Chapter 795: A Stinging Rebuke
Chapter 795: A Stinging Rebuke
"What do you plan to do with these four?"
George pointed his wand at the four unfortunate individuals who had been taken down unfairly. They hadn't even realized what had hit them before Albert and his companions struck.
It was unavoidable, as they were in Hogwarts, and they never expected to be ambushed. What was more devious was how Albert had continually used the matter of Black to divert their attention.
"Hit them with another Stunning Spell, and take away their wands," Albert instructed as he waved his wand, conjuring a pile of chains that bound the four men tightly, making them look like grasshoppers tied to straw ropes.
Hermione was stunned by Albert's actions. She couldn't comprehend how he had managed to take down four elite Aurors in an instant, and more importantly, why he had attacked employees of the Ministry of Magic.
"Are you sure this is the right thing to do?" George also seemed concerned.
"There's nothing wrong with it," Albert replied coldly, his voice like a chilling winter wind that made them shudder. "Put away your false benevolence. If we hadn't had the Patronus Charm, do you know what would have happened to us? We would have had our souls sucked out by the Dementors, becoming mindless shells. We wouldn't be here listening to me talk."
"They should..."
Hermione trembled slightly, unwilling to accept what Albert was implying.
"Don't tell me what they should do," Albert cut in. "The fact that those Dementors came in swarms means the Ministry has temporarily lost control of them. It's not unusual for a few unlucky souls to have their souls sucked out." Albert turned to Hermione and added, "The reason you're still standing here is mostly because my Patronus is strong enough to protect all of you."
"You're still very naive, and that's a good thing. But when it comes to dealing with adults outside of school, your ideas are childish to the point of being laughable," Albert continued. "Let me be clear. If you died here, don't expect the Ministry to offer any apologies. They would simply brush it off with some excuse. Even if a dozen Muggle-born wizards died, it wouldn't cause much of a stir in the wizarding world, and Fudge wouldn't need to resign." There was a thick layer of sarcasm in Albert's tone as he said, "I hope this experience will help you mature and save you from paying a high price for your naivety in the future."
Hermione was left speechless by Albert's words, which also greatly shocked her. She realized how much she had taken for granted in the past.
"You should all be aware that Snape isn't among them," Albert continued, "Who knows if these people are really Aurors from the Ministry of Magic or just a bunch of cats and dogs disguised to steal the bounty on Black or his accomplices."
"Harry, Hermione, Ron, Albert, where are you?"
Just then, Hagrid's voice rang out in the distance.
"Start," Albert muttered the password to alert the hidden pair to stay vigilant. Then he raised his wand and released a dazzling ball of light into the sky, illuminating the dark night.
In the distance, Hagrid, Dumbledore, and several Ministry officials were approaching, and Albert even spotted Snape among them.
"Mr. Anderson, Hagrid said you've captured Sirius Black?" Dumbledore's gaze fell on the sturdy cage, and he frowned before shifting his attention to Albert.
"Yes, I've captured Black. This is him," Albert said as he used his wand to bring the unconscious Black forward for inspection.
"Oh my, you've captured Black, you really have captured him," Minister Fudge exclaimed, staring at the unconscious Black in shock.
The Aurors had spent nearly a year trying to capture Black, and now a student had done it. Fudge could already foresee the ridicule the Ministry would face in the pages of the Daily Prophet.
"Can someone explain what's going on with them?" A male witch with brown hair and wire-rimmed glasses pointed at the Aurors who were tightly bound by chains.
"Oh, you mean those four Dark Wizards," Albert bluntly labeled them.
"Dark Wizards?" the man repeated.
"Yes, these people actually used hundreds and thousands of Dementors to attack us. Look over there, Harry fainted after being attacked by a Dementor," Albert said with a faint smile. "Later, they claimed to be Aurors from the Ministry of Magic, but they couldn't provide any evidence. They tried to forcefully take Sirius Black away from me, so I suspected they were Black's accomplices and knocked them out. I was just about to interrogate them when you arrived, so now they're yours to question. Please make sure to round up all these Dark Wizards."
Minister Cornelius Fudge stared at Albert, his eyes shifting to Dumbledore beside him, as if he couldn't believe what he had just heard. Dark Wizards? How had the Ministry's Aurors become labeled as Dark Wizards?
"I think this must be a misunderstanding," Fudge said dryly.
"I don't think so," Albert glanced at Fudge and turned to Dumbledore. "They released a bunch of Dementors, even more than the ones that attacked the Quidditch pitch last time. If my Patronus Charm hadn't been up to par, you would have only found soulless bodies when you arrived. To be blunt, are you joking when you tell me this is a misunderstanding?"
"He's lying," Fudge said irritably in response to Albert's harsh accusation. "If there were really hundreds and thousands of Dementors, how could he have come out unscathed?"
"I have evidence," Albert said as he pulled a crystal ball out of his pocket and tossed it to Dumbledore. It was the recording that Lee Jordan had secretly made.
Dumbledore caught the crystal ball that Albert threw to him, his lips twitching slightly as he recognized what it was.
The crystal ball replayed the scene of the Dementors' attack, which was quite spectacular. Ordinary wizards, no matter how well they knew the Patronus Charm, would not have been able to resist. However, a white lion-eagle beast eventually appeared and defeated the troublesome Dementors.
The truth.
Sometimes it was cruel, cruel enough to be unacceptable.
Fudge's face turned from white to red, and then an unsightly shade of purple. Even the two Aurors beside him looked displeased. They never expected to be slapped in the face so blatantly, and to have their faces swollen from the backlash.
"Apologize."
"What?"
Fudge was stunned as he looked at Albert, as if he had heard something unbelievable.
"I think the Ministry owes us an apology. Especially to Harry, who almost had his soul sucked out by the Dementors and nearly died," Albert said, lifting his wand slightly. The crystal ball immediately flew out of Dumbledore's hand and back into his own, and he tucked it back into his pocket.
"Mr. Anderson," Dumbledore frowned slightly, realizing that Albert wasn't going to let the matter drop.
As for the reason, Dumbledore was quite clear about that as well.
The conflict between the two sides obviously stemmed from Fudge deliberately blocking Albert's title, and Albert was not one to be trifled with. Otherwise, Hectork Dagworth wouldn't have come to him to mediate their relationship.
And now things were different. Dumbledore was well aware of just how many people stood behind Albert, and if Albert really wanted to stir up trouble, Fudge would undoubtedly be in deep trouble. Just look at that crystal ball from earlier, and you'll know how well-prepared he is.
"The Dementors do pose a significant risk," Dumbledore said, giving Fudge a warning glance. "Now that Black has been captured, I believe they can be withdrawn from the school?"
"Oh, right, Black. I almost forgot about that with all the distractions," Fudge said, still unable to swallow his pride and apologize to Albert and the others.
"Then let's talk about Black. Since I've captured Black and you intend to take him away, shouldn't you give me the bounty?" Albert raised his wand, stopping one of the Aurors who was about to step forward.
"We didn't bring any Galleons with us," Fudge said irritably. "Wait..."
"Professor Snape, didn't you convey my message?" Albert interrupted. "I recall reminding you about it."
"I told him," Snape replied, his expression growing even more gloomy under Albert's questioning.
"Since you didn't bring any money, then you can't take Black away," Albert stated.
Before Dumbledore could say anything, Albert continued, "If the Ministry of Magic loses Black, then my bounty will be gone too."
"The Ministry of..." one of the Aurors began, only to be cut off again.
"I haven't forgotten that not long ago, a Griffin escaped right under the Ministry's nose," Albert said bluntly, hitting a sore spot. "A mere beast was able to escape, not to mention someone as cunning as Black."
"That was just an accident," one of the Aurors replied.
"If the Ministry loses Black, and you tell me it's an accident, who will compensate for my loss?" Albert retorted. "Sorry, given the Ministry's recent accident, I have no choice but to consider my property."
Fudge's face turned purple, but he couldn't refute Albert's argument. What he said made perfect sense—who wouldn't think twice about losing a bounty of 10,000 Galleons to an accident, especially with the Ministry's track record?
"If you want to take Black away without paying the bounty immediately, then someone must guarantee it and sign a record to prevent anyone from shirking responsibility and deducting my bounty in case of an accident." Albert was relentless.
"The credibility of the Ministry of Magic..." Fudge sputtered.
"The credibility of the Ministry is highly questionable," Albert interrupted again. "Not long ago, I received several letters from people congratulating me on becoming the British Youth Representative of the Wizengamot, but it seems the Ministry has no intention of awarding me the title."
"Nonsense!" Fudge exclaimed.
"Many of my friends from the Wizengamot and the Ministry wrote to tell me about it. At first, I didn't believe it either, but when you receive a stack of letters, you have to believe it. After all, I don't think they need to collectively lie to me and waste their time. We're all busy people here," Albert said, a smile spreading across his face.
George would swear he had never seen such a smile on Albert's face before, and it sent a chill down his spine.
"After you hand Black over to the Ministry, you will have completed the bounty, and we will naturally pay you the reward," Fudge said, steering the conversation away from the previous topic. "Since you don't trust the Ministry, let Professor Dumbledore be the witness. However, the bounty amount is quite large, and we will need to follow the proper procedures." Fudge didn't dare to continue the previous line of discussion. Albert's words revealed a lot, indicating that he had friends in both the Wizengamot and the Ministry.
Fudge didn't even need to think about this. If Albert truly had no friends in the Wizengamot, the title of British Youth Representative wouldn't have been forced through.
Fudge didn't want to continue the conversation with Albert any longer. The entire night had been a series of embarrassments, as if someone were constantly shoving dung down his throat. And if Albert could record the Dementors' attack, why wouldn't he record their conversation?
"Let's move on to the next topic," Albert said, ignoring Fudge and gesturing to the cage beside him. "Tonight, Professor Lupin came out without taking his Wolfsbane Potion, so I had to temporarily confine him here."
Albert raised his wand and, with a slight wave, caused the original cage to melt away, revealing the transformed werewolf within. The angry roar that erupted from the cage startled Fudge and his companions, nearly causing them to jump out of their skins.
"Fortunately, you were here to prevent any mishaps," Dumbledore said gently.
"I have a spell that can turn Professor Lupin back to his human form," Albert continued, "but this spell has never been tested on a werewolf before, so I'm not entirely sure what the effects will be."
"Is it the Human Transformation Spell? I've heard of this spell. Why don't you give it a try, Mr. Anderson?" Dumbledore said with interest. He knew that Albert had the situation under control and believed he could easily handle everything.
"Can't you do it?" Fudge asked Dumbledore.
"It's said that the Human Transformation Spell was invented by Mr. Anderson," Dumbledore explained gently. "The spell is supposed to turn a werewolf back into its human form during a full moon transformation."
"Is there really such a spell?" Fudge's companions, the two Aurors, were shocked. They understood the implications. If such a spell existed, the threat posed by werewolves would be significantly reduced.
Albert raised his wand and pointed it at the werewolf in the cage, beginning to cast the Human Transformation Spell. The spell was rather complex, and soon a blue light struck the werewolf. The once aggressive werewolf now contorted in pain, its body convulsing violently before it transformed back into Professor Lupin's original form. However, the intense pain seemed to have left Professor Lupin in a semi-conscious state.
"It's a brilliant spell," Dumbledore said, observing Lupin and nodding in approval. "Do you mind sharing it with others?"
"Of course," Albert replied.
"The wizarding world will remember your contribution," said the male witch standing next to Fudge, the one with brown hair and wire-rimmed glasses.
"One last thing," Albert said meaningfully. "As far as I know, the reason Professor Lupin took the risk of coming out tonight was because he sensed the presence of Peter Pettigrew and believed he was still alive."
Fudge wanted to curse out loud but managed to restrain himself. The series of events that had unfolded that evening had taught him to keep his mouth shut.
"Do you have any evidence?" Dumbledore asked casually.
"Yes, this is the evidence," Albert said, holding out the cage. "You can force him to reveal his true form. If he's an Animagus, his name should be Peter Pettigrew. If not, then Professor Lupin must be mistaken."
Albert handed the cage to Dumbledore and said, "Try it out. I don't know how to force an Animagus to revert to their human form."
Fudge stared at the rat in the metal cage that Albert had given to Dumbledore, his mind going blank.
(End of Chapter)
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