The Butcher of Hogsmeade

The Pwitt brothers exchanged bewildered glances. This reaction was almost tantamount to admitting Shen Hou's judgment to his face. It could only be said that neither of them were good at lying, at least not to acquaintances and friends. They had not prepared any contingency plan for how to cover up their deception, and thus they were easily exposed.

Gideon, forcing a smile, asked, "How did you figure that out?"

"You two always act together, right? You just said it yourselves, you're together every day at work." Seeing that the two didn't argue, Shen Hou's tone relaxed considerably.

"so what?"

"Therefore, the information you receive on a daily basis should be effectively shared, at least in terms of work-related information."

Gideon nodded in agreement: "Yes, that's normal."

"That's where things get weird." Shen Hou looked at the two brothers, who were still completely bewildered, and found it amusing. "Why did Gideon act so surprised when he saw me in the office, as if he was finding out for the first time that I was working under Arthur, while Fabian's first words to me in the bar sounded like he already knew I was working for the Office Against Muggle Misuse? I don't know much about logic, but I do know that when someone deliberately lies and puts on a show, there must be an ulterior motive."

Gideon and Fabian were speechless, their faces full of regret. The two brothers blamed each other in unison: "You idiot, it's because of you that we were exposed."

Shen Hou was both annoyed and amused, and calmly acted as judge for the two brothers' mutual accusations: "I think it should be your shared responsibility. Didn't you Aurors even check your plans before taking action? One of you said east, and the other said west."

"Come on, this isn't some serious mission, who would take it so seriously? We're just here to have a drink with you and Arthur, at least that's the main reason." Fabian waved his hand, completely unconcerned about the so-called "plan failure".

Gideon asked curiously, "Is this the only flaw we have? Just because the two of us give conflicting accounts, you're so sure we have ulterior motives?"

"Of course there are other reasons." Shen Hou's face had a half-smile on it. "Do you think I can't tell that you've been trying to trick me into revealing information, especially about casting spells without a staff? You were so eager, almost undisguisedly asking questions, but you were interrupted by Arthur several times."

"We performed that badly?" Gideon looked embarrassed, seemingly ashamed of his amateurish performance. "It seems Fabian was right; we really didn't treat this as a serious task."

Shen Hou was utterly bewildered: "Then, who exactly did you get this mission from? You were covering for me with Arthur before, so someone clearly spoke to you, and you knew a thing or two. Why are you trying to trick me into revealing anything today?"

"Don't tell him yet." Fabian stopped his brother, a mischievous smile on his face, deliberately making things difficult for Shen Hou. "Since you can see through our intentions, why don't you guess who made us do this? I don't believe you can guess that."

"No clues at all, just guessing?" Shen Hou didn't object to this kind of "game," but he didn't want to be led by the nose. "Forget it, it doesn't matter, as long as it's not those Death Eaters, those terrorist lunatics. They shouldn't be paying attention to me. I only injured a few werewolves in Hogsmeade, so they probably don't care."

"Alright, here's a hint: you've seen that person before." Fabian took a step back.

Upon hearing the prompt, Shen Hou answered crisply and decisively: "Is it your Auror colleague Alastor, or Piastrelli, the director of the Department of Magical Accidents and Disasters?"

"How did you guess?" Fabian exclaimed in surprise, and Gideon also looked surprised.

"Is it hard to guess?" Shen Hou said with a hint of smugness. "There aren't many people who know the whole story to begin with. Anyone with more right to know than those two can just ask me if they have any questions. Those with less right to know don't even know where I am. The only ones who are both curious and know where I am are probably those two. If we're talking about interpersonal relationships, the only one who could get you to help extract information is... Alastor?"

"Oh..." Fabian leaned back, letting out a sigh of defeat. Gideon, in slightly better shape, remarked with great admiration, "You really should be in the Auror's office; it's a waste of your talent to be working under Arthur."

Shen Hou retorted, "Isn't Arthur one too? Isn't it a waste of his talent for him to stay in an office where Muggle items are prohibited?"

"That makes sense. Suddenly I don't feel so regretful anymore." Gideon laughed heartily and raised his glass in celebration.

Shen Hou drank a glass of wine with him, then asked, "So what is Alastor's purpose? I believe the Minister of Magic has spoken with everyone who knows, and perhaps Professor Dumbledore also told you not to contact me casually?"

Fabian, quicker than his brother, nodded repeatedly: "That's right. They demanded that everyone who saw you that night keep it a secret, not say a word, not inquire, and even if they hear your name or see you elsewhere in the future, they shouldn't be overly enthusiastic, and absolutely no one should discover your special nature... So you really are a time traveler, from 2026?"

"Remember that saying? Don't—ask—about—it." Shen Hou reminded him, word by word.

"Ugh, how boring!" Fabian grumbled, but as expected, he didn't press the matter further. "Who isn't curious? Alastor is, and so are we, just not as neurotic as him, trusting no one and even ignoring Dumbledore's requests."

Shen Hou immediately grasped the key point in the other party's words and asked, "You mean, that one-eyed cripple sent you here to extract information simply out of curiosity, and even did it against the orders of the Minister of Magic and Dumbledore, doing it in private?"

"It's incredible, isn't it? That's the kind of person Alastor is. He treats the slightest disturbance like a 'mystery man' has arrived, on high alert. You might not believe it, but if he walked into the Leaky Cauldron with us today, he wouldn't order a single drink. He'd just sit there and watch us drink. He never touches anything offered to him by others, whether it's food or drink." Fabian rambled on, full of pent-up emotions.

"So, he sees me as a potential threat?"

"Not really. After all, Dumbledore and Minister Millison both issued gag orders, which is equivalent to them vouching for you. Mad-Eye isn't that crazy," Fabian said. "However, he'll still find out where you're from, who taught you magic, and how powerful that magic is... That's just his habit, or rather, his quirk. The more information he gathers, the more at ease he feels."

Shen Hou suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and muttered, "Crazy!"