A day at Hogwarts.

Chapter 576 Let's see their sincerity

The early summer rains washed over Luxembourg's forests, leaving the air moist and crisp, carrying the fragrance of earth and vegetation that was truly refreshing.

A babbling brook flows over an ancient stone bridge covered with thick moss. The banks are adorned with blooming lilies of the valley and bellflowers. The white and blue-purple flowers sway gently in the breeze after the rain, and the glistening dewdrops on the petals reflect the sunset.

The sound of flowing water, interspersed with the clear and melodious chirping of birds, weaves together a natural symphony.

Not far from the bridge, a stone house covered in vines stands, its chimney emitting wisps of smoke, the kitchen wafting the aroma of roasted potatoes, and around the dining table, a charming voice is telling an ancient local legend:
"There are monsters in the Luxembourg forests!"

"That monster traveled from east to west, crossing deserts and oceans, destroying countless countries."

"The monster, deep in the Luxembourg forest, with its pack of man-eating wolves, howls at the moon as if singing a lament... reaching out its hand to the unreachable moon."

"So you can't enter the forest. If you're discovered by the monster's wolf pack, you'll be captured immediately and turned into a living sacrifice..."

As he spoke, Charles was methodically preparing dinner in the kitchen area.

The smoked pork neck had already released excess salt during cooking, so Charles took it out of the boiling water.

He melted butter in a frying pan, poured in flour, stirred it into a paste, added a few spoonfuls of broth from the cooked meat, stirred well, and finally peeled the boiled broad beans and added them to the sauce to cook for 10 minutes.

During this time, the bacon was put back into the water. After Charles cast a spell, it was simmered for 30 minutes. Then, he added chopped carrots, leeks, celery roots, onions, and a bunch of herbs made of thyme, bay leaves, burnet, cherifolia, rosemary, and basil. He cast another spell to simmer it for 90 minutes in a few minutes, constantly using magic to skim off the foam floating on the surface of the soup.

Finally, slice the pork neck and plate it with broad bean sauce, placing roasted potatoes on the side.

"Dinner's ready!" Charles called out loudly, and the aroma of food filled the entire stone house.

Gabrielle immediately stopped telling her story and excitedly ran over to help, carefully serving the steaming, fragrant dinner to the table.

Charles then took out several fresh small fish that he had caught from the stream that afternoon; their scales shimmered silver in the firelight.

With a light tap of the wand, the flesh-separating spell was reversed, allowing the fish flesh to be removed intact, leaving only the scales, bones, and internal organs.

Clean the small fish, coat them with flour and breadcrumbs, and deep-fry them in hot oil until golden brown and crispy. After draining the oil, sprinkle them with a mixture of spice powder, and the aroma will fill the air.

Ruby let out a satisfied hum, picked up a roe, tilted its head back, and began to devour it with gusto.

Gabrielle was able to find Charles's hiding place in Switzerland through the ruby ​​with the approval of her parents, and she also brought a letter from Mrs. Delacour.

Many things are understood without being spoken aloud.

Angelina Jolie and her daughter, Mrs. Delacour, keenly sensed that the Gringotts affair was far more complex than it appeared, thanks to the clue that Gabrielle and Ruby had found Charles in Switzerland.

To patch this loophole, they joined forces to cast an extremely sophisticated memory-sealing and modification spell on Gabrielle, sealing and altering her memories so that she forgot the incident and only remembered sleeping soundly at home until dawn.

Now, the wizarding world knows that Charles has gone into hiding after escaping Gringotts' clutches, but no one knows his exact whereabouts.

While Dumbledore and his companions anxiously searched for the ruby ​​in an attempt to find a breakthrough, they were unaware that it was a snack used to deceive children in France.

Mrs. Delacour learned from her husband about the complexity of the Gringotts affair and the power struggles behind it. After careful consideration, she sent her daughter Gabrielle with a letter, and with the help of Ruby, she found Charles.

The two chatted and laughed during dinner. After the meal, it was Gabrielle's turn to go home. Charles took out a thick, heavy envelope and handed it to her: "Gabrielle, please give this letter to your mother for me."

“Okay, I promise I’ll deliver it!” Gabrielle nodded earnestly, carefully putting the letter into her small bag. She then looked at Charles’s pale but still energetic face, which was pale from taking too much medication to fake his illness. “I’m going back now. Remember to take your medicine on time and get some rest!”

She stood in front of Ruby and waved vigorously at Charles.

Charles smiled and waved goodbye.

With a flash of red light and a soft popping sound, Ruby and the little girl vanished from the stone house in an instant.

Today, Phoenix's fried fish wasn't for nothing.

Before long, Ruby appeared like a burning meteor in the Hogwarts Castle Headmaster's office, landed steadily on Dumbledore's desk, put down the letter Charles had written to Dumbledore that she was holding in her mouth, and then went to chat with Fawkes.

Charles did not contact Dumbledore directly, but instead went through Mrs. Delacour, sending a message to the headmaster from afar that he did not want to appear at the moment.

Soon, the letter was laid out on Dumbledore's large desk.

“I see,” Dumbledore murmured to himself, “The goblin’s secret prison… is protected by spatial shielding magic against the phoenix.”

"No wonder Ruby couldn't pinpoint Charles's presence no matter how hard she tried."

In his letter, Charles finally filled in the last logical loophole in the entire chain of events—clearly explaining why Phoenix couldn't find him at the most crucial moment.

Fudge received a message from Dumbledore that Charles had sent word, and immediately rushed from his fireplace to Hogwarts via the Floo Network.

His chubby face was flushed with urgency and sweat, and there was a bit of soot on the tip of his nose from the chimney. As soon as he saw Dumbledore, he asked impatiently, "What specific requirements does Charles have for this matter?"

Fudge knew the key to the current stalemate in negotiations.

The goblins are able to maintain a firm grip on Gringotts by relying on the deterrent power of their past goblin rebellions, which have caused headaches and even heavy losses for the wizarding world.

The reason why the fairy race has not been wiped out by the angry wizards is that they understand the principle that those who know when to yield are the wise. When the situation is completely unfavorable and they are facing annihilation, they will not hesitate to surrender and offer generous compensation in order to survive.

Now, the immense political and public pressure from the legitimate world, coupled with the actual actions of the underworld, has instilled unprecedented panic in the Gringotts goblins. Their ranks are beginning to waver and split, and their overall attitude is starting to back down. Their desire to negotiate and offer compensation to end this matter is becoming increasingly apparent.

However, Charles, the biggest victim, has remained in hiding and has not made any specific demands for compensation or punishment of the implicated demons, leaving the negotiating table without a key objective and a basis for bargaining.

The fairies wanted to surrender and buy peace with money, but they didn't know what price to pay or what conditions to meet to truly quell the situation and satisfy all parties.

Therefore, after confirming that Charles was safe and sound, what Fudge was most eager to know was the price offered by this key figure.

Dumbledore pushed the letter in front of Fudge and said in a deep voice, "Charles did not make any conditions, but instead let the goblin show his sincerity."

"If you show enough sincerity, he will come back."

Fudge's lips twitched. He hadn't expected Charles to be so shrewd, shifting all the blame onto the fairy.

(End of this chapter)