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Chapter 1249: Carnage
Chapter 1249: Carnage
After the mysterious man and his followers reluctantly retreated, thunderous cheers erupted throughout Azkaban Prison.
Few among those present truly wanted to engage the mysterious man in battle, even though they had prepared for this encounter within the confines of Azkaban. Without Dumbledore present to restrain the mysterious man, they knew they could still suffer heavy losses.
No one was willing to gamble with their life.
Among them, only Scrimgeour, the Minister of Magic, did not reveal a hint of relief at Voldemort's departure.
"Minister, is something the matter?"
Upon noticing his superior's gloomy expression, Gawain Robards, the Head of the Auror Office, quickly schooled his features and inquired softly.
"We will inevitably face off against the mysterious man sooner or later," Scrimgeour sighed heavily as he gazed at the jubilant crowd. "Perhaps tonight was not the best opportunity, but when will the best time come? I have a feeling that we may never again encounter such a good chance as we did tonight."
As he spoke, he glanced at Gawain. "It was already difficult enough to prevent the mysterious man from breaking into Azkaban. Even if he withdrew tonight, he could still return tomorrow."
"This... surely not!"
Gawain's mouth hung slightly agape as he spoke uncertainly.
"Our adversary is the mysterious man," Scrimgeour reminded him with a frown. "The darkest and most dangerous Dark Wizard in history, not some petty criminal from the black market. Don't entertain unrealistic fantasies."
Gawain froze, struck by the harsh reality that Scrimgeour had laid bare. The laughter around him now sounded grating, like a bunch of fools celebrating a hollow victory, and he had been one of them just moments ago.
"Gawain, when you have the time, assist Piers in screening the prisoners of Azkaban," Scrimgeour continued. "For those with minor offenses, impose a fine and release them. We don't want Azkaban to be successfully broken into by the mysterious man one day, forcing everyone imprisoned here to become his minions, willing or not."
Gawain Robards opened his mouth, wanting to reassure Scrimgeour that his worries were unfounded. But remembering that the Minister of Magic had been secretly aided by the renowned seer Albert Anderson, he realized that a jailbreak by the mysterious man was likely inevitable.
Gawain had never doubted Albert's prophetic abilities. Anyone with a sound mind would recognize that the Ministry's precise strikes against Dark Wizards time and again were thanks to the latter's assistance.
Tonight was probably no exception, which explained Scrimgeour's decision.
"The mysterious man's claim that he intended to break into Azkaban was a trap from the start. He merely wanted to hold us back while their true target was Hogwarts," Scrimgeour revealed to his trusted aide, one of the few who now knew the "truth" of what had transpired. "Send someone over there to see what the situation is. We should gain some valuable insights." The only disappointment for Scrimgeour was that the Ministry had failed to deal a severe blow to the mysterious man's followers this time.
"Hogwarts?" Gawain asked, perplexed. "What does the mysterious man intend to do there?"
"His target is most likely Dumbledore," Scrimgeour replied.
With the incident already in the past, Scrimgeour saw no point in keeping it a secret any longer.
"Are they mad?" Gawain struggled to comprehend the Death Eaters' motives.
"I thought so too, but the mysterious man does seem determined to carry out the assassination. Quite a number of Death Eaters have gone to Hogwarts, and you'll probably meet them soon enough."
"Wait, so this whole thing was a trap from the start?" Gawain realized, suddenly understanding Scrimgeour's somber expression.
"Yes, a trap," Scrimgeour affirmed. "If we had succeeded, the mysterious man would have suffered heavy losses, and our lives would have been much easier in the coming years. Unfortunately, he didn't attack Azkaban, and we missed this opportunity." Scrimgeour seemed to sense something, and he reached into his robe pocket, pulling out a silver metal card that was displaying a message. Someone was apparently sending him information.
Gawain noticed his minister's face darken further, as if he had just lost a loved one, exuding an aura that screamed, "I want to kill someone."
"Minister, are you alright?" Gawain asked softly.
"I'm fine," Scrimgeour replied through gritted teeth. "But Dumbledore is dead."
Scrimgeour's tone was bitter as he spoke of Dumbledore's demise, and the few high-ranking members of the Ministry present were stunned into wide-eyed silence.
Finally, a trembling voice asked, "Dumbledore is dead?"
"Impossible! How could Dumbledore possibly die?" Kingsley spluttered, his entire body shaking. He suspected the minister was joking.
"How did Dumbledore die?" demanded Mad-Eye Moody, his voice cold as ice, his hand gripping his cane tightly.
"Snape betrayed and ambushed Dumbledore," Scrimgeour said, his face like a thundercloud.
He turned to Percy at his side and said, "Go back and notify the Ministry. Prepare to issue a bounty and a wanted notice for Snape, and get ready to hold a press conference."
"Isn't Snape on our side?" blurted Tonks, her eyes wide. "Dumbledore swore he was one of us."
Tonks wasn't the only one struggling to accept this; the other members of the Order of the Phoenix were equally shocked.
"Gawain, you stay here with the Aurors to guard Azkaban and prevent the mysterious man from returning to carry out a jailbreak," Scrimgeour instructed. "But don't worry too much. The mysterious man doesn't have many followers with him, and it is said that many Death Eaters participated in the assassination attempt on Dumbledore and met their end at Hogwarts."
After giving his orders, Scrimgeour turned to his side, addressing the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, "I want you to work with Gawain to expedite the review of Azkaban's prisoners and grant bail to those with minor offenses after they pay a fine.
If Dumbledore were to meet his end, the mysterious man would undoubtedly come to break out the Death Eaters one day."
"Kingsley, Dexter, take your Auror squads and follow me to Hogwarts," Scrimgeour continued with his arrangements. "It's said that during the attack on Hogwarts, a large number of Inferi were released, and Hogwarts will need help with the aftermath."
During this period, Scrimgeour had thoroughly familiarized himself with his role as Minister, efficiently making arrangements. Then, he led the Aurors and members of the Order of the Phoenix towards Hogwarts.
When they apparated in front of the Hogwarts gates, they discovered Albert's surprise for them: over a dozen unsavory characters lying on the ground, clearly up to no good.
"Looks like a lot of people will be accompanying Dumbledore in death tonight." Scrimgeour turned to Kingsley, "Do we have Veritaserum?"
"Yes," Kingsley nodded.
"Good. Once we confirm that they are Dark Wizards and have committed unforgivable crimes, kill them on the spot. There's no need to bother with a trial at the Wizengamot." Scrimgeour said with killing intent, "It's better to render them permanently harmless now rather than let them continue causing harm and creating more victims in the future."
It was no wonder that Scrimgeour was so angry. Albert had told him that if Dumbledore died, the mysterious man's next assassination target would be him, and he stood little chance of escaping unless he was willing to fake his death and give up his position as Minister of Magic. But how could Scrimgeour ever accept such an outcome! "Yes!"
Kingsley was taken aback but did not object to Scrimgeour's temporary decision.
In the past year, the Ministry had dealt with too many Dark Wizards, and now they were just adding a few more to the count.
"Dexter, take your squad to deal with the Inferi in the school, the rest of you follow me into the castle to handle the captured Death Eaters." Scrimgeour gestured for the others to follow him.
They easily took care of the Inferi blocking their path and made their way towards the Hogwarts castle.
Instead of prioritizing questioning Professor McGonagall about the night's events, Scrimgeour first went to confirm the identities of the captured Death Eaters—there were over a dozen of them, many of whom were known Death Eaters.
"You really plan to..."
Mad-Eye Moody looked at the Minister, his expression hesitant.
"When did you become so indecisive? Are you letting Dumbledore's attitude rub off on you? Avada Kedavra!" Scrimgeour mocked, and a flash of green light suddenly lit up the room, piercing everyone's eyes.
"Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!"
Scrimgeour went on a rampage, sending a Killing Curse to each of the captured Death Eaters...
Everyone present shuddered, their eyes filled with awe as they witnessed Scrimgeour's merciless slaughter of the Death Eaters and Dark Wizards.
"I never imagined that I would be using the Killing Curse so frequently." Scrimgeour paid no heed to the gazes of those around him and mocked himself, "I wonder how those reporters will describe me now, a Minister with a penchant for murder?"
"Minister, are you alright?" Tonks asked anxiously, looking at Scrimgeour.
"I'm fine, very fine. It's a pity that the mysterious man didn't send more Death Eaters, otherwise, we could have taken them all out and brought peace to the Ministry for a long time. But with the death of so many Death Eaters tonight, I'm sure we've struck a heavy blow to the mysterious man's plans!" Scrimgeour turned to the terrified Dark Wizard and directly asked, "How's the interrogation going?"
Kingsley shook his head, "They are all Dark Wizards, and many of them have been involved with Muggles..."
"Then get rid of them all." Scrimgeour pointed his wand at the Dark Wizard and coldly cast, "Avada Kedavra!"
Perhaps it was because he had gotten too used to casting the Killing Curse, but the green light hit the Dark Wizard, causing him to fall back, lifeless.
"As for the rest, there's no need to continue the interrogation. Finish them off and save some Veritaserum." Scrimgeour raised his wand again, preparing to take out the remaining Dark Wizards, but Kingsley grabbed his wand.
"Minister, calm down."
"Calm down? How can I be calm?" Scrimgeour glared at Kingsley, "With your intelligence, you should clearly understand that Voldemort's next target is to kill me and then control the next Minister of Magic to take over the Ministry. Every Death Eater and Dark Wizard here will become a tool for Voldemort's schemes in the future. Getting rid of them now is the right thing to do, and it might even save countless innocent lives."
"Mercy towards the enemy is cruelty towards yourself. Look at Dumbledore; if he hadn't been so naive, how could he have lost his life so unexpectedly? I'm sure Albert Anderson must have warned him about Snape."
Albert had not just convinced Scrimgeour with his prophecies. He had laid out a comprehensive plan, working with Scrimgeour to gradually weaken Voldemort's forces, and eventually, they would join forces with the entire British magical community to crush Voldemort once and for all.
Albert's plan had been proceeding smoothly, but Dumbledore's sudden death that night had caused the favorable situation to collapse, and Scrimgeour's defenses had crumbled with it.
Scrimgeour, who was supposed to be the Minister that defeated the mysterious man and became the greatest Minister of Magic in British history, was now facing imminent assassination. How could he not be furious! (End of Chapter)
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