Chapter 1111: Rise of the Dark Lord
Chapter 1111: Rise of the Dark Lord
A figure clad in black robes appeared out of thin air, his eyes scanning the manor ahead that was enveloped in a chilly mist. Like a giant bat, he swooped forward, his gaze moving away from the Dementors guarding the entrance as he strode expressionlessly through the fog and into the manor.
This place used to be an old Muggle manor. Before Voldemort occupied it, the estate had been abandoned for the most part, except for an elderly couple hired to take care of it; however, they had since "disappeared."
The man in black glided through the entrance hall and made his way down the corridor to the manor's living room, where a group of silent Death Eaters awaited.
"Severus," a deep, hoarse voice said from the head of the table, "you're late."
"Apologies, Master," Severus Snape murmured, his eyes hollow as they met the crimson gaze of Lord Voldemort.
"Take a seat. The meeting has just begun." Voldemort turned his attention away from Snape and commenced the important gathering.
"Lucius, as an old friend of Cornelius Fudge, what are your thoughts on the likelihood of his submission to us?" Voldemort directed his gaze at Lucius Malfoy, who, as a former acquaintance of Fudge, would have valuable insights.
"Cornelius Fudge, the current Minister of Magic, is a weak-willed individual. With subtle coercion and enticement, or perhaps the use of the Imperius Curse to manipulate and control him, there is a good chance we can make him bend to our will," Lucius replied, his head bowed low to avoid the piercing red eyes of his master.
"However, making Fudge openly stand with us would be challenging. I believe that no matter how weak he is, he wouldn't dare to do that. Unless, of course, we use the Imperius Curse on him, but that wouldn't serve our purpose well," Lucius added.
"Cornelius Fudge is weak, and we can certainly give him a warning and apply pressure. Perhaps... we could destroy a significant Muggle landmark or orchestrate a massacre to send a clear message and force him to submit to the Dark Lord," Yaxley suggested, glancing at Malfoy.
"Fudge's weakness doesn't guarantee his submission," Lucius cautioned. "Many wizards in the current magical community believe he is already the Dark Lord's servant, and he will undoubtedly do his best to disassociate himself from that notion."
"We can perform the necessary modifications on Fudge," Yaxley interjected without hesitation.
"Controlling Cornelius Fudge isn't particularly useful," Lucius disagreed, shaking his head. "He has made numerous blunders in the past year, and the entire wizarding community is calling for his resignation. As far as I know, the Ministry has already given up on him, and modifying him will only accelerate this process and put the Ministry on high alert."
"They believe that Amelia Bones is likely to succeed Fudge and become the new Minister," Lucius continued. "Scrimgeour has even increased the Aurors' protection for Amelia Bones, anticipating that we might target her."
Every Death Eater in the room despised the name Amelia Bones.
"I believe we shouldn't allow Amelia Bones to become the new Minister. It would hinder our infiltration of the Ministry, and we should make her disappear before she is even nominated for the position," Yaxley added, sharing his disdain for the woman.
"The Bones family is an ancient one, but it's unfortunate that they have chosen a path that opposes ours," Voldemort said softly. "Since she has positioned herself as a stumbling block in our path, we must remove her. I shall deal with her personally, as a sign of respect for this ancient name."
"Before we take action, we need to gather information about Amelia Bones' surroundings. If the assassination attempt fails, the difficulty of eliminating her will increase significantly," one of the Death Eaters cautioned.
"Master," Snape interjected after Voldemort's remark, "the Order of the Phoenix seems to have anticipated our move against Amelia Bones long ago. They have strengthened her protection, and I suspect that it might be the doing of Albert Anderson. Perhaps he predicted her death and provided the Order with this information."
"Albert Anderson," Voldemort whispered the name.
"He has a good relationship with Dumbledore, and it is said that Dumbledore also received an invitation," Snape continued.
"This Mudblood has indeed caused us no small amount of trouble," Voldemort said, turning to Snape. "Severus, I hope you bring us some good news."
"He will be getting married in mid-July," Snape revealed.
"Mid-July?" Voldemort was not pleased with the timing.
"He is cautious, and none of the invited guests know the exact date and time," Snape explained, pulling a silver card from his robe pocket and placing it on the table. "Many professors from Hogwarts received invitations, but I was not among them. Anderson has never trusted me from the start. This is the wedding invitation."
"An invitation?"
Everyone's eyes fell on the silver card, skeptical of Snape's claim.
"This card has been enchanted. Apparently, it will only reveal the specific time and location of the wedding at a certain point," Snape explained to Voldemort. "Anderson is vigilant, and I suspect he has been aware of our attention from the beginning."
"Master, we should capture that old woman, Madam McDougall, and interrogate her. We'll surely be able to obtain the exact time and location from her," Bellatrix Lestrange volunteered eagerly, her arm raised high. "It's a disgrace to purebloods that she allowed her daughter to marry a Mudblood. Let me—"
"Madam McDougall doesn't live at home. She's hiding somewhere and only goes to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries for work. She doesn't appear anywhere else," Snape interrupted, glancing at the slightly deranged Bellatrix. "Unless you plan to raid St. Mungo's, but I must remind you that they are prepared for such an eventuality."
"It would only take a few minutes for me to snatch Madam McDougall from St. Mungo's," Bellatrix said, ignoring Snape's warning and eager for action.
"Although it pains me to admit it, Anderson is indeed a significant problem," Snape frowned. "I taught him for seven years, and I know his capabilities well. Underestimating him because of his Muggle background will surely lead to trouble."
"Master," Yaxley interjected, "according to the latest information I received, Scrimgeour hopes to use the Mudblood's prophetic ability to locate us."
A brief silence fell upon the room as Voldemort recalled certain unpleasant memories.
Not long ago, the Aurors had raided and captured their headquarters, and all signs pointed to Scrimgeour having located the exact location through that Muggle-born, Albert Anderson.
"By all means necessary, that Muggle-born must be eliminated before he becomes more of a nuisance." With a casual flick of his wrist, Voldemort sent the silver card flying towards Lucius Malfoy's face. "Don't disappoint me again, Lucius. Prepare a little surprise for that Mudblood."
"I will take care of the Mudblood, I assure you, but..." Lucius caught the card and hesitated for a moment before continuing, "if Dumbledore attends the wedding as well, it won't be easy to kill the Mudblood under his watchful eyes."
Voldemort suspected that Dumbledore's previous obstruction had something to do with the Muggle-born's prophecy?
His Nagini, his Horcrux.
"I don't care how you do it, get rid of that Mudblood before he causes more trouble. I'm authorizing you to use all the resources at your disposal." The murderous aura emanating from Voldemort made the surrounding Death Eaters feel suffocated. "As for Dumbledore, I will deal with him personally."
"Yes, Master." While Lucius agreed verbally, he lacked confidence in his heart. He knew all too well how troublesome Albert Anderson could be, having experienced it firsthand during his failed assassination attempt. Lucius couldn't refuse or even dare to disobey Voldemort's orders.
The last time he failed, he had used the key to help the captured Death Eaters escape from Azkaban.
Even though the Dark Lord hadn't pursued the matter further, Lucius knew that Voldemort blamed him for the destruction of the prophecy orb, as he had been in charge of the entire plan. Even though the failure wasn't due to his mistake, Lucius couldn't avoid shouldering the consequences.
"First, give Cornelius Fudge a warning. If he's unwilling to side with us, then teach those hypocrites a painful lesson." Voldemort made his final decision. "Yaxley, I need you to find out about Amelia Bones' security arrangements as soon as possible. Lucius, you handle the Mudblood. Severus, continue to keep an eye on Dumbledore and provide us with more intelligence on the Order of the Phoenix."
"Yes, Master!"
"Master, I've found Igor Karkaroff." Yaxley spoke up after Voldemort finished giving his orders, eager to curry favor. "That traitor is hiding in a seaside hut somewhere in the north."
"Excellent, excellent. I shall personally execute that traitor." A dangerous light flashed in Voldemort's scarlet eyes.
He, Voldemort, was in the mood to kill.
...
The next day, Cornelius Fudge returned to his office amidst the strange gazes of his colleagues. Ever since the news of Voldemort's resurrection spread, his situation had become increasingly dire. Both his former allies and old political enemies were working together to push him out of his position.
Sometimes, Fudge contemplated resigning on his own.
However, he was very worried that as soon as he stepped down, he would be thrown into Azkaban.
Even if he did decide to resign early, he would have to inform the next Minister, and Fudge believed that his years of experience as Minister could still be of assistance to the new incumbent.
It was a nice thought.
But the next Minister was most likely going to be Amelia Bones.
She was a serious, brave, and just woman.
Fudge didn't feel confident about persuading her.
There was a rapid knock on the office door.
Fudge's capable assistant, Arthur Weasley, rushed into the office, breathless, and reported, "Minister, the Brockdale Bridge has collapsed! The Dark Lord brought down the Brockdale Bridge!"
"Has it finally... begun?"
Fudge's body trembled slightly. Ever since Voldemort's return, he had expected this day, but he hadn't anticipated it would come so soon.
"Cornelius Fudge, I am addressing you directly now."
At that moment, a high-pitched, cold voice echoed through the walls and floor, audible to every employee in the Ministry of Magic. Anyone who didn't know better would think that Voldemort was right there in the Ministry.
"Cast aside your pretense and join me. I will allow you to remain in your position. If you refuse to side with me, many Muggles will die because of you. That bridge was merely a warning."
Fudge's face turned deathly pale. Voldemort's words had backed him into a corner.
"Minister, are you alright?" Percy quickly reached out to support the faltering Fudge and glanced at the Ministry, which had fallen into chaos.
"I'm fine, I'm fine." Fudge replied weakly. His mind was blank, and he didn't know what to do.
"Hold a press conference." Amelia Bones stepped forward, looking at the weak Fudge with a slight frown. "Now, we must clarify the situation immediately."
"Yes, yes, we must clarify this matter immediately." Fudge nodded hastily. "Weasley, it's up to you."
"Leave it to me, Minister."
"Are you alright?" Bones asked.
"Perhaps, I should resign." Fudge's face was bitter. He knew he was finished. Even if he voiced his stance immediately, it wouldn't help. Unless he submitted to Voldemort, no, even if he did, he couldn't possibly continue as the Minister of Magic.
Bones looked at Fudge and fell silent for a moment. She knew what Fudge wanted to say, but she also didn't know how to deal with the mess he had left behind.
"Everyone should have heard by now. We are facing unprecedented challenges." Fudge came to the Great Hall and addressed all the employees of the Ministry. "Ever since the Dark Lord's resurrection, I expected this terrible day to come, but I will not yield, and neither will the Ministry of Magic yield to such threats..."
Fudge's speech was met with a chilling indifference.
"Minister, what countermeasures do you plan to take?"
"Minister, when do you intend to step down?"
"Minister, Minister..."
"I will step down once the next Minister is elected." Fudge's face was bitter as he knew he had to give an answer today.
The entire wizarding world had been clamoring for his resignation for a long time.
If, because of him, a large number of Muggles were slaughtered... Fudge didn't dare to think further. Perhaps, he should resign early and let someone else deal with this mess.
With Fudge's promise to step down, the employees of the Ministry breathed a collective sigh of relief. They all hoped that the new Minister would be able to lead them through the current crisis.
However, they were thinking too simplistically.
Even Dumbledore couldn't solve the current predicament, let alone the Ministry of Magic, where self-interest reigned supreme.
(End of Chapter)
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