I swung a sword at Hogwarts

As she spoke, Hermione looked nervous, she was afraid of losing this friend.

She could have kept this unspoken suspicion to herself, no one would have known, and John would have remained her friend as before.

But Hermione couldn't accept this.

Friends should be sincere, not suspicious and secretive.

John was silent for a moment after hearing this.

Hermione's palms were sweating and her face was fading. Was John still angry?

Suddenly, John chuckled, and looking at Hermione whose blood was flowing back, he said seriously: "Hermione, I accept your apology."

These words made Hermione breathe a sigh of relief, and her face was no longer pale.

"Maybe I have too many secrets and can't be sincere with others."

John stared at Hermione, his first friend since he entered Hogwarts until now.

The time two people spend together is getting shorter and shorter, but their friendship has stood the test of time.

"But, Hermione, I won't hurt a friend."

John was very serious when he said this.

Hermione nodded, she believed it.

She swallowed back the words that were about to come out of her mouth to ask about what happened next at the lake that day. She knew that it must be full of danger.

Seeing John come back as if nothing had happened, Hermione decided not to ask.

Then the two discussed the broken time converter and finally decided to go to Dumbledore together to explain.

For this reason, John wore an extra long sleeve under his robe.

His right hand had recovered, but John was still a little nervous when he went to the principal's office.

"Toffee fingers."

After learning the office password from Professor McGonagall, the two walked up the spiral staircase.

What caught my eye was the Sorting Hat and those strange silver items.

But this time there is one more thing.

John's eyes fell on the wand on the table and his pupils contracted.

The Elder Wand.

Inside the office, the amiable and benevolent silver-haired old man did not seem surprised by their arrival.

"Ms. Granger, Mr. Wick," he called to them.

There were two chairs already there. John sat down and looked up to meet those wise eyes.

He immediately started to shudder and activated the brain occlusion technique.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I broke the time-turner." Hermione spoke first.

She was a brave witch, and she said loudly, "It's all because of my stupidity."

Dumbledore's reaction was surprisingly calm. He smiled and shook his head and said, "Miss Granger, this is just an object. If it is a thing, it will break one day."

"I am glad that its damage did not affect you." When Dumbledore said this, he looked like a kind and amiable old grandfather.

Immediately, Dumbledore turned his gaze to John and said, "Mr. Wick, I am glad that you can accompany Hermione here."

After a pause, Dumbledore said with a deep look in his eyes: "I will explain everything to the Ministry of Magic, but it may take some time. Their temporary minister is in trouble."

John blocked out all gazes and looked at his nose with his eyes and his heart with his nose.

Hermione asked curiously, "What happened at the Ministry of Magic?"

Dumbledore smiled and said, "It was a false and wrongful conviction twelve years ago. I believe there will be a detailed record in today's Daily Prophet."

He blinked, and Hermione, being the clever witch she was, immediately thought of Sirius.

She couldn't sit still anymore, so she quickly stood up and said goodbye.

John was about to leave as well, but Dumbledore stopped him.

"John, I hope you can give up some things. Not everything on the path of magic is righteous."

When Dumbledore said this, his tone unconsciously became serious, solemn, and even a little scolding.

John stopped walking when he heard this, turned around and asked doubtfully, "Professor Dumbledore, did you only apply for one time-turner?"

After saying that, John walked away quickly.

Dumbledore opened the drawer and looked at the intact time-turner lying quietly inside. He finally sighed.

...

Chapter 171 Ministry Scandal and Another Resignation

The Muggle world is changing with each passing day, and the times are developing rapidly. Perhaps yesterday's trends will become outdated.

The same was true in the wizarding world. The Ministry of Magic announced the capture of Sirius Black in the evening's Daily Prophet, which was delivered to every wizard, and everyone shouted Rufus Scrimgeour's name.

By morning, they received word that the Ministry's incompetence had allowed Sirius Black to escape.

Before some people realized what was happening, Rufus Scrimgeour put pressure on the Daily Prophet to stop reporting the story.

Unfortunately, they still underestimated the boldness of the Daily Prophet.

Rufus Scrimgeour personally took the stage to give a speech about Sirius Black's escape and the fact that someone was behind it.

A kill order was issued in the name of the minister, allowing Sirius to be killed on the spot using the Unforgivable Curse.

At the same time, he also criticized the chaos in Knockturn Alley and expressed anger at the behavior of some wizards who declared themselves kings.

He planned to use the power of the Ministry of Magic to thoroughly crack down on the dark wizards in Knockturn Alley.

After this speech, he seemed to have temporarily escaped the public opinion storm.

However, there was no peace for a single day, as an article titled "Hero? Traitor!" swept the wizarding world.

Even Rufus Scrimgeour had never imagined that Peter Pettigrew, a former war hero who died a very heroic death, would one day appear in the Wizengamot.

Former Auror Tommy Shelby shook hands with his old boss Barty Crouch with a smile and presented him with a gift cordially.

Peter Pettigrew, the once dead war hero who was posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, is now standing alive.

He was locked in a cage, looking miserable, with fear in his little eyes.

A confession is a slap in the face to the Ministry of Magic.

"Twelve years ago, we sent a true hero to Azkaban, and the traitor who murdered the Potters openly took everything that belonged to him."

The man who spoke was named Pierce Thicknesse. He was wearing a neat suit and had a short, neatly trimmed black beard.

He faced everyone in the Wizengamot and started talking.

Pointing at Peter Pettigrew who was locked up like an animal, he shouted angrily, "Twelve years, twelve whole years!"

"The Ministry of Magic hastily convicted a hero of a crime that resulted in him being tortured in Azkaban for twelve years!"

"Isn't this a scandal that should serve as a wake-up call to the world, a blow to the Ministry of Magic?"

Pius Thicknesse spoke eloquently, and his words made people close their eyes, as if they were imagining a person being kissed by a Dementor for twelve years.

Rufus Scrimgeour stared at Pierce and his fists clenched so tightly that they made a clicking sound.

He had just issued the kill order when it was revealed that the real murderer was someone else.

"This is just your one-sided statement."

As soon as Scrimgeour opened his mouth, Pierce smiled, opened his arms, and said, "The 'temporary' Minister of Magic is right here. You can ask anything you want."

The word "temporary" stung Scrimgeour again.

He was about to speak, but Piers Thickness interrupted him aggressively, "Please tell me why Peter Pettigrew hid himself disguised as a mouse for twelve years, twelve whole years."

After that, Pierce looked around at everyone and shouted with determination: "It's been twelve years since Voldemort fell. Why is he still hiding?"

There was silence in the seats, but after hearing these words, there was a sound of gasps, as if hot water was boiling.

"He actually said that name."

"Piers Thicknesse, when did he become so brave?"

"Who doesn't know that the name is cursed?"

They whispered to each other, even after so many years, many people were still afraid of the mysterious man.

They didn't even dare to mention that name, for fear of being visited by Death Eaters as they had been before.

Pierce's behavior earned him a reputation as a brave man, and then someone questioned Peter Pettigrew.

At first Peter Pettigrew was reluctant to admit it, but the evidence was overwhelming.

Just like Pierce said, if there wasn't a ghost, how could he have turned into a mouse and hid for twelve years.

When the truth serum was brought up, Peter Pettigrew told the truth trembling all over.

Rufus Scrimgeour was devastated when the Ministry of Magic scandal became public.

Not just because he was the Minister of Magic, but because he issued a kill order against a hero.

The Daily Prophet was widely publicized, and almost everyone had a copy.

In these newspapers, in addition to reports on scandals in the Ministry of Magic, there were also some seemingly trivial and ordinary things, such as Lord Johnny Silverhand's cleanup of Knockturn Alley.

It seems subtle, but it is actually delicate.

Amid the scandal at the Ministry of Magic, Knockturn Alley, which was criticized by the interim Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour, has another good development.

Some people went to Knockturn Alley and found that it was indeed the case.

There are no dark wizards with covered faces selling love potions to you, and the neat and clean streets are no less neat and clean than Diagon Alley.

The gray industry has not disappeared, but has hidden itself.

It is better to block than to open up.

Johnny Silverhand rewrote the rules, and it was basically impossible for ordinary wizards to see the gray industry unless they had a guide.

By the time John came out of the principal's office, news of the scandal had spread throughout the school.

"Temporary Minister for Magic Rufus Scrimgeour has resigned ashamed of his negligence in investigating the truth."

"At the same time, an apology is issued for the incident regarding the Dementors attacking Hogwarts students, and an order for transfer to the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes is issued."

"Piers Thicknesse will be the head of the Auror Office, and Amelia Susan Bones may be the next director."

"Peter Pettigrew has been stripped of all honors and will spend the rest of his life in Azkaban."

The Daily Prophet was passed around among the little wizards. Ron said in annoyance, "I used to like Rufus Scrimgeour."

Hermione congratulated Harry, "That's great, Harry, Sirius has been cleared of all charges."

Harry also had a happy look on his face, he had once fantasized about living with his godfather, but because of his status as a fugitive, Sirius had no choice but to hide.

This is great now. Maybe I don’t have to go back to the Dursleys.

He wished he could write to Sirius right now and tell him.

Ron saw Pierce's name and leaned in to whisper, "My dad said Pierce Thicknesse was a smooth and mercenary person. I didn't like him at first."

There are three obvious beneficiaries of this scandal.

The first is Amelia Susan Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, who is seen as the most likely candidate to become the next Minister for Magic.

The second was Barty Crouch, who was upright and incorruptible and was the cause of the revelation of the truth. Although he did not receive a job transfer, the officials of the Ministry of Magic began to pay attention to him again.

The third one is Pierce Thicknesse, who became the director of the Auror Office, a powerful department. It is said that he brought in a sum of defense funds for the Auror Office as soon as he took office.

According to insiders, the funds were provided by the Silver Hand Johnny store.

The students were talking enthusiastically about how two ministers had stepped down in just one year. No, it should be the Minister of Magic and the Acting Minister of Magic.

Harry looked at the other news in the newspaper and saw that Lord Johnny Silverhand was tidying up Knockturn Alley.

He remembered that Hagrid had once mentioned Sir Johnny Silverhand, and he had also seen him in the school hospital.