Chapter 1434: As Expected
Chapter 1434: As Expected
After the incident with the Thompsons, the recently rescued families calmed down upon hearing the news.
Perhaps this was why many people liked to make examples of others to deter misbehavior.
Naturally, some doubted the veracity of the incident, but they no longer had the courage to act rashly.
Even though Albert took the time to remove the tracking spells the Death Eaters had secretly placed on them, most of the family members remained well-behaved, and no one objected to staying in the shelter any longer.
After all, no one wanted to die.
The Thompson case served as a stark reminder.
It could be said that most people were "asking for it," but Albert could understand their actions.
However, understanding didn't mean he would clean up their mess.
After reassuring the members of the association, Albert headed straight for the conference room, but not before calling for the leaders of each group.
"What are you thinking about?"
Sana put a cup of coffee in front of Albert and sat next to him with her notebook.
"Earlier, I was curious about how the location of the association headquarters was exposed," Albert took a sip of his coffee, "I never expected it to be revealed in such a way."
"That doesn't make sense. Not many people in the association should know the exact location of the headquarters, right?" Sana was confused. At least, she didn't know where it was.
"Yes, most members indeed don't know the location, and that was one of the precautions I took. But there are only so many abandoned villages in Britain. As long as the mysterious man had a brain, it wouldn't be difficult to find the headquarters through a process of elimination; it would just take some time."
This was a problem Albert had never considered before.
Even though he had cast a spell on the land to prevent it from appearing on maps.
But if Voldemort really wanted to cause trouble for them, finding the location of the association headquarters was only a matter of time.
However, even if the mysterious man found the headquarters, there was no need to worry too much. After all, there were still quite a few houses here protected by the Fidelius Charm to ensure everyone's safety.
As long as Voldemort saw this part of the memory in Kevin Thompson's mind, he probably wouldn't waste much time on this matter.
But the prophecy in the crystal ball told him that Voldemort would come.
"Are we preparing to move now?" Sana suddenly asked.
"We should at least be prepared so that we don't end up in a panic when the time comes." Albert looked at Fred and the others who had knocked and entered, motioning for them to sit down.
"Are we really moving?"
Everyone looked at each other, a little reluctant to leave the comfort of the building they were currently in.
"You've seen the situation. It's only a matter of time before this place is exposed. We must be prepared." Albert explained.
"Cleaning that building will be a huge undertaking!" Lee Jordan muttered.
"You're wizards, you can use magic." Albert reminded them.
"When do we start?" Kenneth asked.
"This afternoon. I estimate that the mysterious man and the Death Eaters will need some time to find us."
"Does Kevin Thompson know the exact location of the association headquarters?" George suddenly asked.
Albert repeated what he had just told Sana, and everyone fell silent after hearing his explanation.
The news of the impending move quickly spread throughout the association headquarters, and everyone began to curse Kevin for his stupidity. Because of his impulsive actions, he had not only lost his own life but also endangered the entire association.
"Want to talk?"
Noticing Cedric's gloomy mood, Albert invited him to talk.
"I kind of regret inviting Kevin." Cedric forced a bitter smile.
Kevin had been his friend at Hogwarts, and he never expected things to turn out this way.
"That's not your fault. Before joining the Defense Association, everyone was made aware of the possible risks involved. Moreover, this time, it was Kevin's impulsive actions that caused the situation." Albert patted Cedric's shoulder, "So, you got it wrong from the start. It wasn't you who harmed Kevin; it was Mr. Thompson's stupidity that harmed his son."
"But..."
"You're thinking that if Kevin hadn't joined the association, this wouldn't have happened?" Albert easily saw through Cedric's thoughts and said self-deprecatingly, "Don't think like that. You're not Kevin's father, nor are you a savior. You can't save everyone."
"But you've always been..."
"Yes, I've always protected everyone and tried to keep them from harm as much as possible. But eventually, everyone will have to face danger, and we will inevitably lose people we know in this war. I've always been clear about this and mentally prepared for it." Albert's expression was calm, reflecting the inner peace he had mentioned.
"In fact, the current situation is much better than I expected."
"You knew this would happen?" Cedric looked at Albert in surprise, then understood. Albert was a Seer.
"Yes, I knew." Albert opened the door and walked out of the conference room, saying as he went, "But it wasn't because of a prophecy. Anyone could have guessed it without one."
Cedric listened quietly to Albert's words.
"The mysterious man and the Death Eaters have suffered setbacks here too many times. They must want to get rid of the Defense Association, which is a thorn in their side, just like they eliminated Dumbledore."
"So, the Death Eaters captured your families to threaten you into submitting to them."
Cedric remembered Albert mentioning this, but many of the family members hadn't taken it seriously, and now they had been captured.
"So, we took the risk to break into the Ministry of Magic to rescue your families. But since they didn't listen to your warnings, they probably wouldn't have listened to me either. Therefore, what happened was inevitable, and Kevin Thompson was just the unluckiest of them all."
"But why didn't you try to..."
Cedric almost blurted out the question, but he quickly realized how naive and foolish it sounded.
"Why didn't I stop it? Because there was no way to do so." Albert shook his head, "You're all adults, and all I can do is give you advice. Otherwise, you would find me annoying. Not everyone realizes how costly trial and error can be."
"Mr. Thompson didn't listen to my advice and left the shelter on his own. Kevin also ignored my warning and went to find his father. I'm not saying they did anything wrong, but it's regrettable that he got himself involved."
"Now you know why I don't allow association members to leave headquarters and act on their own!"
As he spoke, Albert turned to look at a few people eavesdropping on the other side of the room, "There's no need to eavesdrop. This isn't a big deal, and I've never tried to hide it from you. I've mentioned it before, just not as comprehensively as I explained it today."
"Why?"
"Because you don't like to listen, and you find me annoying. So, I usually just mention it in passing. Luckily, you took my advice and stayed at headquarters without running around."
"As for Kevin, this matter involved his father. Even if I had been there, I couldn't have stopped him. The most I could have done was go with him to rescue his father, but I wouldn't have done that because it would have been meaningless. By the time he got the news, it was already too late."
"If he hadn't acted on his own, he wouldn't have died. But there are no 'ifs.' He walked straight into the enemy's trap and didn't have Harry's luck to escape unscathed. Instead, he became a memory package delivered straight to the mysterious man."
(End of Chapter)
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