Hogwarts Bloodline Chapter 426: The Pitiful, Innocent, and Very Bad Peter - Novel Cool

Chapter 426: The Pitiful, Innocent, and Very Bad Peter

Chapter 426: The Pitiful, Innocent, and Very Bad Peter

Peter’s pitiful state did not evoke sympathy from the crowd. Sirius Black barely managed to suppress his urge to kill and left Peter alive.

Lupin looked at Harry and the others with gratitude. He had not expected them to still trust him after his Werewolf identity was exposed.

To clear up this misunderstanding, Lupin and Sirius detailed the entire story to Harry, withholding only matters related to the Order of the Phoenix.

Harry almost cried as he listened to the entire story. After a long while, his emotions stabilized, and he looked at Peter, who was tied to the ground, dirty, and bleeding from the nose, with a look of hatred. He asked, confused:

“Why did you suddenly choose him to be the Secret-Keeper back then?”

From Sirius and Lupin’s descriptions, Peter was cowardly, weak, and utterly useless. Even if they needed to change the Secret-Keeper, it should have been Lupin!

“From what Peter said, you should have heard that a traitor appeared in the camp opposing Voldemort, providing the Dark Lord with a lot of information,” Sirius explained, looking apologetically at Lupin. “Because of Lupin’s Werewolf identity, I once suspected him, so I excluded him when choosing the Secret-Keeper.”

“I forgive you, Remus.”

“It’s fine. I also suspected you before. We’re even,” Lupin shook his head.

After saying that, the two exchanged a bitter smile. It was this layer of suspicion that led to Peter becoming the Secret-Keeper. Among James’s friends, Peter was the least likely suspect.

Typically, a spy needs great courage and a strong mental state, and Peter lacked both.

This was supposed to be the safest move, but it ended up pushing James and Lily into hell.

“Anyway, it’s all my fault, Harry! I’m sorry to you. It was my suggestion to James to change the Secret-Keeper that led to all this,” Sirius said, looking at Harry with deep self-reproach.

“No, you’re not to blame!” Harry shook his head, speaking with certainty. “The one at fault is Peter Pettigrew. He betrayed your trust and my father’s trust, betraying his friends!”

Everyone fell silent for a moment. Only Hermione thought of what needed to be done next and reminded them:

“Since everything is clear now, we should quickly inform Professor Mcgonagall. She can notify the Ministry of Magic to clear Sirius Black’s name!”

Harry nodded eagerly; he couldn’t wait any longer.

“That won’t do! It’s not the right time yet,” Ivan interjected.

“Why?” Harry looked at Ivan in surprise, his face filled with confusion. “And I’ve been wondering, if you knew all along, why didn’t you speak up earlier?”

“Of course, we were worried that the Ministry of Magic would interfere,” Ivan sighed and then explained to Harry and the others, emphasizing the potential consequences.

The Ministry of Magic would never admit fault. Without external pressure, they would choose to cover up such a major scandal, continuing the lie rather than admitting the truth.

“I don’t think that would happen. It’s the Ministry of Magic, and we’ve already caught Peter Pettigrew. The evidence is clear. We just need to give him some Veritaserum, and everything will be clear,” Hermione pursed her lips, hesitantly.

Ivan's words were a shock to Hermione, who had always been accustomed to following the rules. She found it hard to accept this sudden change in her worldview.

"The Ministry of Magic is not as just as you imagine, Hermione! For many politicians, the truth doesn't matter. They only care about which outcome is most beneficial to them! Twisting black into white is exactly what they excel at!"

Ivan brutally shattered Hermione's illusions, presenting the harsh reality to the thirteen-year-old young witch.

Harry and Ron were also having their worldviews reshaped. They found it hard to believe that the Ministry of Magic could manipulate the truth so easily.

"Cough, cough."

Sirius Black cleared his throat, drawing the attention of Harry and the others. He felt that such matters were not something a child of Harry's age should be burdened with, so he spoke up.

"We have already made our decision. We just need to wait for Dumbledore to return and let him handle it."

"But how long do we have to wait? What if Professor Dumbledore doesn't return for months?" Harry furrowed his brow, his voice filled with worry.

Ivan shrugged. He couldn't answer that. Normally, as the headmaster of Hogwarts, Dumbledore shouldn't be away from the school for months on end.

"Very soon!" Lupin suddenly interjected.

Everyone turned to look at him in surprise. Lupin didn't hide anything and spoke frankly.

"I just received word that Professor Dumbledore should be back tonight! To be safe, we only need to wait here for one night. We can see him first thing tomorrow morning!"

"Really? That's great!" Harry said, his face lighting up with joy.

Hermione, Ron, and even Sirius breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this news. It felt as if a heavy weight had been lifted from their hearts.

Ivan felt the same way. Although he usually wasn't too keen on meeting Dumbledore, he couldn't deny that Dumbledore always gave people a sense of security.

It felt as if, as long as he was around, nothing needed to be worried about.

With this thought in mind, Ivan looked at Peter Pettigrew, remembering something he needed to confirm. He turned to the others and said,

"Peter has joined the Dark Lord and should have the Dark Mark. If Veritaserum can't be used in the trial, this will be sufficient proof!"

If his memory served him right, in the original timeline, the first thing Voldemort did after his resurrection was to use Peter's Dark Mark to summon the Death Eaters.

Before his resurrection, the weakened Voldemort likely didn't have the ability to give Peter the Dark Mark.

So, it must have been thirteen years ago, when Peter betrayed James and Lily, that he was branded with the Dark Mark!

Sirius quickly thought of this Death Eater symbol and approached Peter Pettigrew with a grim smile on his face.

Peter's face was filled with terror. He cowered in the corner, crying and pleading, like a helpless victim.

Ivan was right about the Dark Mark. It was the reward he received for completing his undercover work and betraying James and Lily. It was the proof of the Dark Lord's trust!

But the thing he had worked so hard for had now become his death warrant!

(End of Chapter)

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