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Chapter 587: Two Pieces of News
Chapter 587: Two Pieces of News
"Don't get so worked up."
As Rita Skeeter became increasingly agitated, Kyle waved his hand and smiled, "I was just joking, why are you taking it seriously?"
Although she seemed a bit stubborn, Kyle didn't want to push too hard.
Well, it was a bit unexpected, and Kyle didn't expect Rita Skeeter's reaction to be so strong, even to the point of threatening to expose her Animagus form.
At the same time, she seemed unable to accept the news of Voldemort's resurrection... or rather, she didn't believe it without concrete evidence.
If only he had taken a photo of Voldemort when he first resurrected.
Kyle remembered that he was quite happy after his resurrection and might even have been a candidate for the Most Charming Smile Award in the Wizard Weekly.
Of course, that was assuming he had the time then.
"I hope you're really just joking."
Rita Skeeter's expression softened, but she still remained cautious.
"Don't worry," Kyle said, "I called you here because I actually have something else to discuss."
Rita Skeeter, who was about to leave, heard this and reluctantly sat back down. She really didn't want to stay a minute longer, but she had no choice; she had a weakness that the other party could use against her.
Moreover, she realized that the Kyle in front of her and Dumbledore were completely different people. Although he appeared harmless, he was much more difficult to deal with than most people she had encountered.
Take the Triwizard Tournament as an example; Rita Skeeter still remembered what Kyle had said to prevent her from writing about him during the tournament.
He kept insisting that he had no chance of winning and wanted to find a reason to shift the blame. In the end, he not only won but became the undisputed champion.
Rita Skeeter had watched all the competitions, and Kyle had an absolute advantage in every event... It felt like the other two contestants were just there to make up the numbers.
Thinking about it now, Rita Skeeter felt like she had been a fool back then, believing Kyle's words without a doubt.
That night, she even wrote an article harshly criticizing Kyle and kept it at home, waiting to publish it after the tournament ended.
However, after Kyle discovered her Animagus secret, she tore up the article and threw it away.
"What exactly do you want?" Rita Skeeter asked irritably.
Kyle looked around and lowered his voice, "I greatly admire Minister Fudge and want to learn more about his achievements... some unknown achievements."
"You've come to the wrong person. Minister Fudge is the Minister of Magic."
Rita Skeeter pushed up her unflattering glasses, "And you're talking about unknown achievements. How could I possibly know about them? If you truly admire Minister Fudge, you should buy his biography at Lythorn Bookstore; it's fifteen Galleons a book."
"Fifteen Galleons? I'm just a student; I can't afford such an expensive book." Kyle said casually.
"You just said you weren't short of money."
"Yes, I'm not," Kyle replied, "but that doesn't mean I can afford a fifteen Galleon book."
Then, without further ado, Kyle placed a photo on the table, showing Rita Skeeter in her Animagus transformation.
"Slap!"
In the blink of an eye, the photo was covered by a handbag.
"Damn it, you actually showed it to me. What if someone else sees it?"
"No need to worry," Kyle said, "I checked, and there's no one around, not even any bugs."
"What do you think of this compensation? Will you consider it?" Rita Skeeter's breathing became heavy.
Kyle didn't rush her and instead went to the bar to get her another Butterbeer.
After all, Old Tom was treating, so why not?
Rita Skeeter took a big gulp from her drink and said, "I want a hundred Galleons, and you have to promise not to tell anyone about this."
"No problem, I swear on Dumbledore's name."
"Why Dumbledore?"
"And I swear on my name that you believe me?"
Instinctively, Rita recalled the image of Kyle confidently declaring his defeat.
She didn't say anything further but cautiously glanced around. Kyle understood and took out his wand, whispering, "Silencing Charm!"
"There, now no one around us can hear our conversation."
Rita then produced a customized peep mirror and, after checking that it didn't react, whispered, "Do you remember that magical creature smuggling incident that caused quite a stir a few years ago?"
Kyle nodded; he had been forced to participate in the entire process of capturing Ogden in the Forbidden Forest. Of course, he remembered.
"According to an informant's tip-off, you were involved in that operation. The Strike Force was so eager to catch that slippery fish because he had evidence in his possession."
"That person used magic to record everything in a notebook."
Kyle raised an eyebrow.
He remembered that when he was in the Forbidden Forest, Ogden had also mentioned that the Strike Force was after him to obtain a notebook. He never expected it to be because of this.
No wonder there wasn't a single Auror present during that trip to the Forbidden Forest; even Minister Fudge was involved.
Unlike the Strike Force, Aurors didn't blindly follow the Minister of Magic's orders. If they had seen the contents of the notebook, it would have been much harder for Fudge to cover up the truth.
Kyle thought for a moment and placed ten Galleons on the table.
"Wait, this isn't what we agreed on!" Rita complained. "Why are there only ten Galleons?"
"Do you want to hear what you just said again? A Minister of Magic involved in magical creature smuggling? That's such an absurd story that even ten Galleons are too much. I suspect you're trying to swindle me."
"I assure you, it's true," Rita said solemnly. "And he wasn't even the Minister at the time."
Rita didn't tolerate anyone questioning her professionalism when it came to gathering secrets.
She had personally heard this; a few years ago, at a ball, she had used her Animagus ability to sneak in and eavesdrop. She had overheard Minister Fudge and another person secretly discussing this very matter.
"If you can bring out that notebook, I'll give you five hundred Galleons," Kyle said. "But right now, you have nothing, so who knows if it's real or not."
"Hmph, if I really had that notebook, it wouldn't just be five hundred Galleons," Rita muttered, but she didn't argue further.
She carefully put the photo into the compartment of her handbag and then took the Galleons from the table.
"By the way, I'll give you another piece of news for free," she said, as if the previous revelation had made her addicted to sharing secrets, treating Kyle as a different form of her reporting.
"There's a senior deputy minister in the Ministry named Dolores Umbridge. She not only pretends to be pure-blood, but she has also repeatedly taken credit for the achievements of other colleagues..."
Kyle was taken aback for a moment but then said nonchalantly, "What does that have to do with me?"
Umbridge wasn't important; she was just a side issue compared to dealing with Fudge.
"Don't be impatient," Rita laughed. "In fact, those ministers know about it, but not only did they not say anything, they even helped cover up the truth.
"I know someone who was fired because of this incident and is now working on a farm in Cornwall."
After saying this, she smiled at Kyle.
Seeing this, Kyle took out another fifty Galleons and placed them on the table.
(End of Chapter)
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