Hogwarts doesn't need a savior

Chapter 279 The frightened bird

Fudge was not unaware that Dumbledore was making a fuss out of nothing, nor was he unaware that Lynn had come here specifically to join in the fun.

After all, he knew that Harry, who fell from the broom, was not seriously injured and was rescued safely.

It was even the Dementors who suffered the most.

More than thirty fierce Azkaban guards were reduced to ashes on the spot, and most of the remaining ones were injured, which could be said to be seriously damaged.

But their unauthorized actions still made the minister who had signed the order extremely embarrassed and he was completely unable to raise his head.

Moreover, thinking of the terrifyingly powerful Patronus Charm, he couldn't help but recall the power of the seemingly kind-looking old man in front of him.

This could not but make him tread on thin ice.

"We just can't spare that many hitters."

After a long silence, he spoke with difficulty and a humble tone.

"To be stationed near the school on a daily basis, at least five teams of experienced strikers are needed, which is already more than half of the mobile force of the department. You understand the situation."

"Minister, I'm wondering... when did you start to lose control of the Dementors?" Lin En asked softly after receiving a look from Dumbledore.

"Lost control—" Fudge's eyes widened, "No! We definitely didn't lose control of them, it's just that these guys have been in Azkaban for too long, so it's not easy to talk to them."

"Isn't this losing control, Cornelius?" Dumbledore looked at him sternly.

The situation was the opposite of their last meeting. Back then it was Dumbledore who was the good guy, but this time it was Lin En. The two people's identity transitions were seamless, and they even had a tacit understanding that did not require words, which made it difficult for him to resist.

The extremely embarrassed minister cursed everyone involved in the matter in his heart, but he did not dare to show any dissatisfaction or displeasure on his face.

He just said pleadingly: "We will strengthen the management of Dementors, so..."

He looked at Lynn for help.

"Principal, I think what the minister said makes sense. These monsters have been in a lawless place like Azkaban for too long. They are also creatures of the dark arts, so this is inevitable." Lynn nodded knowingly and tried to smooth things over. "And I believe that this incident is enough to sound the alarm."

Fudge nodded vigorously, not showing any sign of the domineering attitude he usually showed towards his subordinates in the ministry.

"In that case..." Dumbledore thought for a moment, then relaxed. "This will not happen again. From today on, all Dementors' actions must be notified to the school in advance and must be approved by us, otherwise they cannot leave the designated area."

"If there are still people who don't learn their lesson, maybe I can help relieve the principal's worries a little. After all, there is no difference between a prison guard who doesn't obey orders and a rebel. The minister won't feel bad about it."

Lynn smiled gently, but the words she said sent a chill down Fudge's spine.

He could only force a smile and agree, "Lin En is absolutely right. I believe they will learn their lesson."

Dumbledore then showed a satisfied expression.

"Now we should talk about Sirius Black and the words he left behind. It seems that Peter Pettigrew is still alive. Cornelius, you were the first person to arrive at the scene. Are there any details worth noting?"

It only took him one sentence to go from angry to calm.

-----------------

The Gryffindor common room was a mess left behind by the hastily evacuated students.

Books, snacks, stationery...all kinds of miscellaneous items were scattered all over the floor, all byproducts of the panic when hearing the explosion outside.

Due to the hasty evacuation, the danger had not yet been eliminated, and even the house-elves did not have time to arrive to clean up.

In such a chaotic scene, a tiny mouse would naturally not attract the slightest attention.

It stood alone at the gate, looking at the back of the portrait just a few inches away - just a little bit away from Sirius breaking in.

The skin and flesh trembled, and the tiny mouse quickly swelled up and turned into a wretched middle-aged man with many mouse characteristics.

It's been about two or three years since I last transformed back into a human.

More than a decade of Animagus transformation had caused irreversible damage to his body and mind.

The intense fear seemed like an invisible hand strangling his throat, almost suffocating him and making him feel at a loss.

He had no opinion of his own when he was in school and just followed James and Sirius. He never expected that after so many years, Sirius could actually find him, even though he changed his identity and became a pet mouse.

Now he is completely confused.

He didn't know if Hogwarts could keep him, and he didn't know if someone else had leaked the information - such as Lupin, who also knew his Animagus.

He couldn't advance or retreat. Although he was temporarily safe, the fear in his heart was fermenting and expanding.

He is not a good person, nor even a bad person, because he lacks the courage to do bad things.

But he is also a wizard who should not be underestimated.

The improved version of the thunderbolt explosion he learned from the Dark Lord was just the tip of the iceberg - as a "reward" for rebellion, this magic helped him send the reckless Sirius to Azkaban, and also allowed him to escape.

But, what is coming will eventually come.

He knew very well that although his skills were not weak, they were still far behind Sirius, not to mention that there were real monsters in this school.

Not to mention Dumbledore, who had observed Lin En at close range countless times and knew best how easy it was for the other party to take his life.

If they stayed here, they would be his amulets... but not necessarily. He seemed to have heard his name in the noisy crowd. Once exposed, the amulet would undoubtedly become a death warrant.

But leaving here...the world is so big, where can he run to?

The Dark Lord, who is not dead but has disappeared, will never let him go, and neither will Dumbledore.

As long as they have the determination and are willing to pay the price, there are ten thousand ways for them to find me no matter where I hide.

The heavy feeling of despair enveloped him like a dark curtain.

“What should I do…?”

He muttered to himself in pain, not even noticing that the flat-faced cat was huddled behind the door curtain of the girls' dormitory area, observing secretly with a frown on his face.

Maybe for a short while, maybe for a long time, he turned back into a mouse and walked towards the men's dormitory trembling.

In the end, he did not have the courage to escape from here, even though he had been tortured to the point of being terrified and like a frightened bird.

Rather than going out and facing Black, he would rather rely on Hogwarts security, and...

There are also Snotlout and Eric who have a grudge against Blake!

It would be best to let them fight Sirius to the death and kill Sirius directly, so that the debt will be settled.

He thought to himself and prayed continuously in his heart.

After a few rustling sounds, he hid again in the little nest that Ron had built for him, hiding himself tightly so that not even a bit of light could penetrate.

The warm darkness temporarily comforted him, and he dozed off cautiously—although he was also plagued by nightmares.

What he didn't know was that the seeds of doubt had already been cleverly planted outside the common room just across the wall.

The Ministry of Magic, the professors, and the students who are eager to explore everything.

Under the careful care of the planners behind the scenes, they took root and sprouted at this special time point today.

Once doubt arises, it will not disappear easily.

Until the truth comes out.

Chapter 280 The First Step to Change (Part )

At noon, Fudge, who was worried, left school in a hurry without even having lunch. Soon, several teams of strikers, ready for battle, came to the castle and conducted a comprehensive inspection from inside to outside.

From the entrance of the common room where Sirius was found, to the many routes determined based on the stories told by the portraits along the way, to the castle's gates and various known passages - most of which were secret passage information contributed by Mr. Filch, the castle's gatekeeper - they checked extremely carefully, but still found nothing.

Sirius Black, a guy who seemed more dangerous than the former fugitive, the rebellious son of Barty Crouch, who had brought shame to the then Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, seemed to appear out of thin air and evaporate from the castle in an instant, coming and going without a trace.

This made Lynn, who was commissioned by Dumbledore to personally participate in the investigation and tracking, look gloomy, and also made the professors who received the news feel pressured.

There is no doubt that either Black has some strange magic or there are some unknown secret passages in the castle. Neither is good news.

Snape was particularly annoyed. He had just checked the fourth and fifth floors of the outer castle, and he didn't even bother to avoid the students who were still discussing noisily in the hall. He asked directly, "Headmaster, do you have any idea about how Black sneaked into the school? Or our amazing Professor Eric?"

He didn't seem to be deliberately provocative, but whenever he opened his mouth, his words would inevitably be provocative and irritating, like some kind of special ability.

"Severus, I don't think we have any more clues, but I believe that Black is not a lunatic. He won't be stupid enough to stay in the school for a long time - nor will he be stupid enough to break in for the second time in a short period of time. After all, we have increased our vigilance." Dumbledore looked at him calmly and did not give Lin En, who was standing beside him, the opportunity to make trouble.

This inevitably made Lynn feel a little disappointed. He glanced at Snape and left.

After he left, Snape lowered his voice a little: "Without internal help, it will be difficult for Black to enter the school. He can't break through the magic here."

"I don't think so. You know, this castle has many secrets that have been buried in history along with the four great founders." Dumbledore's tone was somewhat warning, and his eyes glanced vaguely at Lupin who had just returned.

He restrained Snape, although this angered the bad-tempered Slytherin Head of House.

"Headmaster." Lupin came over. "I have already told Harry about the matter and have arranged things over there."

"Well done, Remus." Dumbledore nodded with satisfaction. "Perhaps you can help me take care of him during this period. This child is naturally more resistant to Dementors than other students."

"Of course, I'll try my best," said Lupin.

Snape snorted lightly, but did not interrupt, just walked away.

"Now I have to go find those Dementors," Dumbledore said with a smile. His tone made it clear that the conversation was over. Lupin nodded politely. "Originally I wanted to ask Lynn to help me, but he obviously wanted to find his students more. Of course, I also think Mr. Diggory needs some encouragement and rewards. For example..." He glanced at the huge hourglass and his voice suddenly rose. "In recognition of the heroic rescue action and the spirit of fair competition, Hufflepuff will get 50 points!"

There was a loud cheer from the audience, which also made Lynn, who was sitting next to Cedric and his classmates, smile with satisfaction.

"I think you can return to your respective lounges after dinner at the latest." He looked at the little wizards surrounding him, "Get ready. I will be there to cheer you on in the next rematch. I believe you can beat Gryffindor - it's a good time to get familiar with the new lineup."

"Yes, Professor," Cedric said gently, "that's exactly what I meant."

Since several of last year's championship-winning players have graduated, the strength of this year's Hufflepuff team has been slightly affected, but he still organized a team with a balanced dominance, which just needs some refinement.

As for saving Harry and fighting the Dementors, he didn't take it too seriously.

In his view, this was just the right thing to do.

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London, Ministry of Magic.

The work of the Azkaban Administration is becoming increasingly unsuccessful.

Every time the Dementors got into trouble, it was like a slap in the face to them.

Fudge, who had lost face at Hogwarts, obviously would not let them off so easily. His angry roar penetrated the well-soundproofed office and even reached the adjacent floors.

This was a rare gaffe for him, who always appeared to be gentle.

But it wasn't entirely anger - because not long after, the Azkaban Authority and the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes took action and dug up files from more than a decade ago.

Even the then Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Barty Crouch Sr., who had been transferred from the Department, was called in to assist.

That history of life imprisonment without trial has once again become the focus and is being re-examined.

But these have little to do with the Department of Magical Law Enforcement on another level. They are still handling their work in an orderly manner, especially the director Amelia Bones.

She never seemed to get tired, and there was always endless official business to handle, making the entire executive department seem like a complex machine that ran at high speed and never made mistakes.

While Fudge was getting anxious, she had already arranged for her staff to hand over the archival materials after preparing the files in advance, and she was slowly and methodically flipping through the intelligence from all over the place.

With the appearance of Sirius Black at Hogwarts, most of them had become completely useless, with the exception of one secret report from Brian Johnson.

Looking at the contents above, she seemed to be thinking about something. She burned it to ashes, then took out a blank piece of parchment, wrote a few simple lines, and handed it to the owl that was on standby at all times.

After watching the messenger go away, she sat down again and was about to pack up and take a short rest when she heard a knocking sound outside the house.

"Tuk Tuk Tuk"

"Please come in."

She pressed her temples, which were slightly swollen from the intense work, and said to the bald wizard who walked into the room, "It's Arthur. Welcome. Is there anything you need from me at this time?"

"Sorry to bother you when dinner is almost over, Amelia." Arthur's tone was apologetic. "I was dealing with some difficult work and was delayed for some time."

"It's okay. It's not time to eat yet." Amelia said with a smile, "What is this in your hand...?"

"This is my resignation letter. Please sign it for me. I hope to complete the relevant formalities as soon as possible. The work in the office has been handed over."

As he spoke, Arthur placed the neatly written resignation letter in front of Amelia.

Chapter 281 The First Step to Change (Part )

"Resign..."

Amelia looked carefully at the resignation letter on the table and was not too surprised.