Chapter 229 Alienation of Power
Logically speaking, the Ministry of Magic should have sent people to investigate the Chamber of Secrets incident as early as the Christmas holiday.
After school starts, letting the little wizards directly see their investigation results can minimize the impact of the situation, instead of being watched and discussed like now.
In short, the Ministry of Magic delayed the investigation in a big way until school started.
Loren guessed that perhaps the Ministry of Magic's approval process for field trips was cumbersome.
After the Defense Against the Dark Arts class ended, Loren and Hermione followed the flow of people and rushed into Myrtle's bathroom, watching one student after another jump into the unclean sewer pipes.
The water pipe is only big enough for one person to pass through at a time, so the small bathroom is crowded with little wizards waiting to jump in.
"I just remember seeing a pair of scary big yellow eyes. Ouch, it's so scary!" Myrtle's somewhat excited voice came from a small compartment in the innermost room.
Loren and Hermione walked in the direction from which the sound came, arrived at the innermost part of the bathroom, and pushed open the door panel of the cubicle.
A young Auror stood in the middle of the cubicle, and Myrtle sat on the toilet tank, seemingly conducting some inquiry.
The young Auror nodded towards the two of them, without driving them away or saying any unnecessary words. The smell reminded Loren of some kind of salted fish.
"Hey, you're here!" Myrtle rushed up to them immediately, circled the two of them several times before stopping, held her hands in front of her chest, and cheered with a girl's sweet voice, "I'm so happy, This bathroom has never been so lively since my death!"
Loren reminded her: "This place was never busy when you were alive."
"Ignore him, Myrtle," Hermione pushed Loren and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"This Auror is asking about the scene when I died!" Myrtle showed a look of honor and continued with relish, "As you know, it happened here, and I died in this single room..."
It seemed that the Ministry of Magic would ask the relevant personnel for details. Loren thought about it. On the surface, he and Hermione were not directly involved in the basilisk incident, nor did they face Voldemort head-on, so they should not be asked about it.
After bidding farewell to Myrtle, they also went down to the secret room to see the investigation below.
At the end of the stone tunnel, the staff of the Ministry of Magic formed a circle, and the young wizards crowded outside them, forming another circle, bustling with people.
In the middle of the crowd was a huge snake skin, more than twenty feet long, with a body as thick as an oak tree trunk. The light shone on the snake skin, reflecting green and bright light.
Although it is just an empty shell, the huge shape lying there makes people feel scared.
Most of the little wizards opened their eyes wide, trying to see every part of the snake skin clearly. Some timid students hid behind the crowd, glanced quickly and then retracted, as if they wanted to see but did not dare to look.
"This is just the shed skin of the basilisk. Do you know what this means? The real basilisk is bigger than this skin. I think it is at least forty feet." Ron danced and gestured with the thickness of the basilisk.
The little wizards fantasized about the size of the basilisk even larger than this, and their hearts were agitated. Seamus asked in disbelief: "Then how did you defeat it?"
Good question... Ron gave him an approving look and began to tell the detailed process of how they dealt with Voldemort and defeated the basilisk, with excitement and vivid images.
So much so that Seamus couldn't help but question: "It sounds like it's all Harry's fault, what does it have to do with you?"
Ron frowned like an enraged lion and glared at him: "What are you talking about? If I hadn't been there to support him, how could Harry have found the chance to kill the basilisk?"
Loren and Hermione listened and couldn't help laughing secretly.
After realizing that the people looking at the snake skins here were just ordinary employees, the two continued to go deeper.
After walking inside, Loren realized why most of the young wizards were surrounding the snake skin outside. There was nothing but some black blood stains near the Slytherin statue.
Many Ministry of Magic employees were located in every corner of the secret room, searching for subtle traces. He was gentle and spoke very quietly, except for the people at the foot of the Slytherin statue.
"Albus, did you really see him... I mean, did you really see You-Know-Who?"
The person talking to Dumbledore was a short, fat, middle-aged man with messy gray hair.
Hermione lowered her voice and whispered in Loren's ear: "It's the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge."
Fudge was still dressed the same as they had seen him in Hagrid's hut, wearing a pinstriped suit, a bright red tie, and conspicuous purple pointed-toed boots.
Standing next to him, the person holding the dark green top hat for him was a similarly short and chubby woman. She wore a pink woolen hat on her head, a pink plush fragrant top on her upper body, and a pink lower body. She is wearing a mid-length A-line skirt and pink high-heeled shoes.
The whole person is pink, and the slightly older face has a sweet smile like a girl, which looks like giving people goosebumps.
With his distinctive personal characteristics, Loren recognized it at a glance. That was not a Death Eater, but a classic villain who was better than a Death Eater, Umbridge.
It looked too much like a pink toad. Loren poked Hermione next to him and asked in a low voice: "Do girls think her outfit is very girly?"
"No way, it's so ugly." Hermione's tone was equally disgusting.
The two people spoke not loudly, but Percy, who was watching the excitement like them, heard it. He turned his head and warned seriously: "Don't say that, that is Dolores, who is about to be promoted to Senior Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Magic. ·Ms. Umbridge."
"She must be a very capable lady to be qualified for such a high position at such a young age." When he spoke, there was inexplicable longing in his eyes.
"What?!" Hermione suddenly became angry, "She is the Umbridge who proposed the Anti-Werewolf Bill?"
"Oh, this really fits my imagination of her!" Hermione's attention was completely attracted to Umbridge, and she stared at her motionlessly.
At the foot of Slytherin's giant stone sculpture, the conversation between Dumbledore and the others continued.
"I hope you understand, Connelly, Voldemort has fallen, and we don't have to be afraid of him. You can call him by his name: Voldemort." Dumbledore said calmly.
"Fuck -" Fudge took out his handkerchief, wiped the non-existent sweat on his forehead, and said unnaturally, "As you said, that person has fallen, how can he come back?"
His words gradually became smoother and faster, "Albus, it's not that I don't believe you. However, as the Minister of Magic, I should be responsible for the wizards. If untrue news is spread, it will cause them of panic."
Fudge said in a worried tone: "You know, many people are looking at us. Think about it, what we say will make those poor wives worry about their husbands who are away sooner or later, and will make the shop owners in Diagon Alley They are all on tenterhooks, worried that someone will destroy their shop at any time..."
Fudge talked for a long time, all of which said that he was responsible for the people, in an attempt to persuade Dumbledore.
Dumbledore's blue eyes were full of pressure. He looked directly at Fudge, forcing Fudge to look away and wipe his sweat with a handkerchief more frequently.
After a while, Dumbledore slowly spoke: "Cornelly, you already have the answer in your mind, don't you? But I have to say, think about what happened fifty years ago, who else could open the Chamber of Secrets except Voldemort. "
He is determined to take away my position... Fudge only had this thought in his mind, and a thin layer of sweat broke out on his forehead.
Whether it is in the Ministry of Magic or among the people, Dumbledore's prestige is much higher than him, and there is also the Wizengamot who supports him. If Dumbledore is determined to spread the news of Voldemort's return, maybe he will He was elected Minister of Magic within a week.
As his eyes rolled around, Fudge met Umbridge's gaze. Under the hint of her small movements, Fudge slowly calmed down.
"Could it be that he recorded the method of opening the secret room and left it in a certain classroom, tucked in an old book, until the students dug it out this semester."
Fudge rattled off his arguments, "After all, he hasn't appeared for more than ten years. If he still has such ability, why did he wait so long?"
After listening for a long time, Loren felt that he somewhat understood Minister Fudge's mentality.
If Fudge was just an ordinary wizard, or just an ordinary official, he might face the dangers of Voldemort and actively deal with it. It's just that he is the Minister of Magic, and his fear of Dumbledore seizing power and his obsession with power make him think that everything is a means for Dumbledore to seize the throne.
He is short-sighted and judges others by himself. He is just a villain who happens to be in power.
Dumbledore looked at the Minister of Magic in front of him with disappointment... He was a little weak, liked money, power and status, lacked self-confidence, was a bit exaggerated, but not bad at heart. This was Dumbledore's previous impression of Cornelius Fudge. .
It was also because of this impression that he did not object to Fudge assuming the position of Minister of Magic, and even thought it was quite appropriate. But he ignored the alienation of power on a person.
"Maybe." Dumbledore sighed, "Excuse me, I have to leave. I have a whole pile of letters from parents of students to reply to."
"Of course, I understand this kind of involuntary busyness!" Fudge was extremely happy. He hurriedly said goodbye to Dumbledore and watched him go away.
Their conversation did not avoid the young wizards. In addition to Loren and the others, there were also some young wizards in the secret room who also saw it.
When Dumbledore walked out, a seventh-year Gryffindor wizard couldn't help but stood up and called out to him.
"Headmaster Dumbledore," he hesitated, "mystery - I mean Voldemort, is he really related to these things, I mean about the Chamber of Secrets, about the basilisk and so on?"
Dumbledore had a gentle smile on his face. He felt happy that the little wizard called Voldemort by his first name. He said kindly: "Mr. Xavier, you need to judge this for yourself."
He glanced around at the little wizards who had the same doubts, with a heart-warming smile on his face, "The scene of what happened is in front of you. The people who witnessed the incident are your classmates. You have the ability and the right to make your own decisions." Judgment. I just want to say, make the choice that you feel is right."
After speaking, Dumbledore nodded and left.
Percy froze on the spot with dull eyes. The impact was so great that he couldn't recover for a while.
At this time, although Percy's desire for power has sprouted in his heart, he has not graduated yet and has not yet been influenced by messy concepts and things.
On one side is his beloved Principal Dumbledore, and on the other side is the Minister of Magic whom he admires. One of the witnesses of the incident is his younger brother. Ron is a bit naughty and will never lie about such a thing. His reason Understand the truth of the incident.
The clearer the truth of the matter became, the greater the impact he received.
The students talked a lot:
"Which one do you believe?"
"We should trust Principal Dumbledore, he has no reason to harm us."
"The Ministry of Magic has no reason to lie to us."
…
Fudge looked at this scene from a distance, his face fell a little ugly, and when the little wizards looked at him, he showed an approachable and friendly smile.
Loren stood close to Hermione, and he even felt that Hermione was shaking with anger. Surprisingly, although Hermione was angry, she said nothing. Instead, she stared at Fudge and Umbridge, trying to get more information from them.
Loren stood silently in front of Hermione and pushed her a few steps closer to the shadow of the pillar next to her, so that she could have a better look at the opposite side without being noticed.
Looking at Percy next to him, Loren mourned for him from the bottom of his heart. Poor Percy, he was mentally shocked by the dirty officialdom before he graduated. He didn't know if he could survive it.
A neatly dressed Auror walked quickly to Umbridge and whispered something to her. Umbridge's smile became even brighter.
She coughed a few times, cleared her throat, and said loudly on purpose: "Minister Fudge, except for the marks of the basilisk's impact and bite, the signs at the scene indicate that only a low-level duel took place, and they are all relatively common magic spells. What is certain is that there is no sign of the killing curse."
Fudge breathed a sigh of relief, probably holding his voice, and replied in a solemn tone: "I think this should prove that it is not the mysterious man. After all, isn't his best thing the killing curse?"
The acting skills of the two were very poor. Anyone could tell that they were performing for the little wizards when they sang and harmonized. But some goals have been achieved. The eyes of some young wizards have changed, and the balance in their hearts is faintly tilted towards the Ministry of Magic.
Fudge and Umbridge walked towards the little wizards, looked at them, and said in a friendly tone: "Seeing you reminds me of when I was studying at Hogwarts. Cherish the days now, believe me , this will be the most relaxing and most nostalgic day for you for a long time in the future - probably more than ten years, maybe decades."
The little wizards were infected by his gesture and put down their guard. A young Slytherin wizard asked: "Minister Fudge, what is the truth about the Chamber of Secrets and the Basilisk? Is that person really back?"
Fudge laughed twice: "I can't tell you the specific situation yet. We will publish it in the Daily Prophet after the investigation is completed."
If the minister leaks everything, the assistant will make up for it. Umbridge laughed twice and said: "From the current evidence, the answer is no."
"But, Harry saw this with his own eyes."
"This is normal," Fudge was like a friend to the little wizard, talking about his experience in a friendly manner, "When I was your age, I would deliberately say exaggerated things in order to attract attention..."
Loren and Hermione, who were already drifting away, couldn't hear the rest of the words.
In the Chamber of Secrets, the Minister of Magic was still talking, seemingly unintentionally but with sinister intentions, slandering Harry and Dumbledore.