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Chapter 946: The Second Victim
Chapter 946: The Second Victim
"Please tell me, Igor, who arranged this meeting with you tonight?" Ivan asked, looking at the figure before him.
"Who else? It was the Minister of France, of course. That bastard somehow got hold of evidence that I killed the previous Minister of Magic and used it to blackmail me into helping him become the leader of the Alliance... But when I got there, I realized it was all a complete scam from the start. He wanted my life from the beginning!" Igor roared, his anger burning.
Ivan's expression remained unchanged as he continued to ask questions methodically. Igor answered fluently, his words showing no signs of inconsistency.
However, Ivan didn't take any of it at face value. He knew the true nature of the Resurrection Stone, but for others, this knowledge was limited to him alone. To everyone else, this Igor seemed more real than the real thing. If he claimed the Resurrection Stone summoned Igor's soul, no one would doubt it.
A dead man's testimony could be incredibly useful in the right circumstances, even turning the tide of a situation.
Ivan slowly put away the Resurrection Stone, his mind replaying the events of the night.
He was certain Igor's death was 100% connected to Grindelwald. The only problem was that Grindelwald had covered his tracks so well that there was almost no trace left behind. This was why the investigation had hit a dead end.
Ivan believed that even if Wilkinson and Conner thoroughly investigated the Goblin and Aurors stationed at the North American Magic Headquarters, they wouldn't find anything. Grindelwald was too cunning to leave such obvious clues.
However, the lack of clues itself could be a clue. Grindelwald must have been very familiar with the place and knew that the Department of Mysteries' Aurors possessed the Priori Incantatem spell. Otherwise, even if he managed to slip in, he wouldn't have been able to orchestrate a perfect attack in just a few hours.
This might be related to Grindelwald's previous role as the North American Magic Security Minister during the last Wizarding War. However, Ivan suspected it was more than that. Grindelwald's actions were too smooth, effortlessly bypassing the numerous defenses set up by the North American Magic Congress. This was highly unusual.
Additionally, Igor's willingness to meet alone suggested that Grindelwald was likely impersonating a high-ranking official with access to Igor's compromising information. Only someone in such a position could gain Igor's initial trust through a brief encounter or a magical message. This led Ivan to suspect the Minister of France.
Of course, other suspects included the North American Head of Enforcement, Cornell; the Congress Chair, Wilkinson; the President of the Asian Magic Association; and other leaders and their entourages from smaller countries.
Ivan rubbed his chin, realizing there were too many potential suspects. With the current information, it would be difficult to pinpoint the exact person.
However, Grindelwald's goals were now clear, and they were twofold.
First, he aimed to obtain the Five Keys, putting the Wizarding World's nuclear weapon in his hands.
Second, he sought to sow discord, undermining their plans to form an Alliance and even framing Ivan for the chaos.
So, it seems the next attack will happen soon, either tonight or tomorrow night, as Igor's death will also accelerate the process of the Meeting...
Once the countries reach an Alliance agreement and leave the North American Congress of Magic, it won't be easy to gather all the Keys.
Ivan wasn't sure about others, but someone as prideful as Grindelwald would never settle for small-scale operations. This was also his chance to break the deadlock...
Ivan gradually fell into deep thought. If he were Grindelwald, what would he do next to achieve his goals smoothly?
...
The next morning, the North American Magic Headquarters was still in a state of panic. After a night of reflection, the impact of Igor's death had not diminished; instead, the spread of news had caused even greater fear.
However, the morning Meeting was not canceled. Wilkinson and the others were well aware that the more the enemy wanted to stop them, the more they had to proceed.
"Strange, why hasn't the Minister of France arrived yet?" Pierce glanced at the clock on the wall of the Meeting Room and furrowed his brow. It was almost time for the meeting, but the seat representing the French Ministry of Magic was still empty.
Ivan, of course, noticed this as well. He silently shook his head, realizing that Grindelwald had acted faster than he had anticipated. It seemed one suspect could be crossed off the list...
Sure enough, a minute or so later, several Aurors burst into the Meeting Room and whispered something to Wilkinson. The Chair's face changed, and he immediately left with Cornell and others in a hurry.
As soon as they were gone, the Meeting Room erupted into chaos. There were enough intelligent people there to deduce that a second attack had likely occurred, and it was almost certainly linked to the absent Minister of France!
Amid the protests, the guardian Aurors were forced to escort everyone to the Common Room.
The truth was just as they had guessed. The Minister of France was dead... and the manner of his death was shocking—he had died in his own room!
And the cause of death was suicide!
No one wanted to believe it, but the Aurors from the Department of Mysteries repeatedly cast "Scene Reconstruction" and found no evidence of a second person casting any spells in the small room.
This discovery sent shivers down the spines of the Wizards present, making their skin crawl.
"What is going on here? Chairman Wilkinson, I remember you promised us last night that you would increase security to protect us! What happened?" The President of the Asian Association grabbed Wilkinson by the collar, clearly furious.
First it was Igor, and now the Minister of France. Two leaders had died under mysterious circumstances at the North American Magic Congress. How could he not be terrified?
If the attack last night had been on him instead of someone else, he would have been dead in his sleep by now.
"Enough... I've had it! I'm leaving right now!" A Witch in the crowd screamed in terror. The successive attacks had completely shattered her psychological defenses, and the Minister of France's bizarre death had pushed her beyond her limits.
Although the attacks so far had only targeted the Ministers of Magic from major countries, who knew if it would escalate into a full-scale massacre...
(End of Chapter)
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