Old Frank knew that he must have learned something remarkable.
When he said the name "Barty Crouch" for the first time, the man with a calm expression showed a look of shock - even if it was only for a few seconds, it was enough to say a lot. But now there was a sudden sound from all around.
A series of whispers confirmed this point.
"Barty...Crouch? That's really interesting-"
Amelia Bones repeated softly and shook her head towards Cornelius Fudge, who was sitting not far away.
"You know, Mr. Crouch is almost always with Scrimgeour and the others tonight. This is obviously a trap. The mysterious man is trying to sow conflicts within the Ministry of Magic - he is very good at creating suspicion and distrust. Maybe this Muggle
He didn’t lie, but he must have been deceived.”
"Deceived? You mean, do you think You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters would go to great lengths to deceive a Muggle?"
Cornelius Fudge said sarcastically, his voice suddenly becoming louder, as if some of the emotions he had felt since tonight were about to be released.
"There is a mole in the Ministry of Magic. It is obvious. Otherwise they would not know our actions, let alone have a way to cut off the floo network. I believe you and everyone present, but this does not mean that everyone in the Ministry of Magic will not
Question. I don’t need to remind you how many people secretly took refuge in the mysterious man a few decades ago. If we don’t know who the enemy is, tonight’s attack will happen again sooner or later——"
"Old Barty can't be a spy for You-Know-Who. We all know how much he hates those guys, and how much those dark wizards hate him."
Mad-Eye Moody shook his head, his blue magic eye moving rapidly in his eye sockets, observing the expressions of other wizards.
"but……"
"Just like You-Know-Who shares the same name as his Muggle father."
"There is obviously more than one Barty Crouch in this world, right?"
Unlike the other wizards present, Scrimgeour and Moody had received the news from Kingsley before entering the room.
The long-dead Barty Crouch Jr., who was arrested and imprisoned, is suspected to be alive and is leading tonight's raid on the Ministry of Magic!
"What do you want to say? Alastor." Ms. Bones narrowed her eyes slightly, her monocle reflecting the light.
"The question is not what Mad-Eye wanted to say, but what happened -"
Cornelius Fudge cleared his throat, looked at the old Muggle man who had unknowingly become the center of attention, and continued to ask.
"Mr. Frank, please describe in detail the appearance of 'Barty Crouch' and what you heard at Riddle House tonight."
"Well, I have only met Mr. Crouch once. He is about thirty or forty years old. He is slightly taller than me by half a head. He has light yellow hair and his face is very pale. He looks a bit like he has just had a serious illness." Old Frankton
After a pause, he added, "Well, he still has a lot of freckles on his face."
Along with Old Frank's description, some wizards sitting around Cornelius Fudge began to whisper to each other again.
Barty Crouch Sr. was a popular figure in the Ministry of Magic back then. With Mad-Eye Moody's reminder, people can easily awaken their dusty memories.
"Well, tell me what happened tonight," said Cornelius Fudge.
Old Frank nodded, glanced at the wizards who were whispering, and opened his mouth involuntarily.
"In the middle of the night, I woke up again because of the pain in my damn bad leg. When I got up to change the hot water bottle, I happened to see the window..."
Then, he began to tell the wizards exactly what happened tonight.
Old Frank spoke for about a quarter of an hour. Everyone listened very carefully, and there was almost no other sound in the huge room.
He said that he heard the man with a cold voice asking "Barty Crouch" if he had the courage to kill his father with his own hands like he did back then; he also said that he heard them planning to go to the Ministry of Magic to steal wizards.
The files and the prophecy ball, the man called the master by "Barty Crouch" said that he had well-hidden servants in the Ministry of Magic, and the people he planned to kill after that...Dumbledore
.
Cornelius Fudge interrupted from time to time to ask questions, and by the time Old Frank finished telling his story, his face was as gloomy as if he was about to drip.
"Very good," Cornelius Fudge exhaled heavily and said feebly, "So, let alone the two dark wizards who were 'resurrected from the dead', at least we know what they want to do. But
I don’t understand, why do they need wizard files and prophecy balls?”
"Obviously, a new reign of terror -"
Scrimgeour's expression was particularly terrifying, and he exchanged an uneasy look with Ms. Bones, the director of the Department of Legal Enforcement.
"Although I don't know what happened in the past ten years, the mysterious man who went dormant is obviously more terrifying than before. If I guess correctly, his next plan is to issue death threats one by one and eliminate those wizards who disobey him.
Compared to more than ten years ago, this time they have the addresses of most wizards in Britain. From now on, everyone's roof will be haunted by a dark mark that may rise at any time."
"As for the prophecy..." Scrimgeour frowned.
The statistical results from the Department of Mysteries have not been released yet, but what is known is that the Hall of Prophecy and the Hall of Time were almost completely destroyed.
Even if there are still a few crystal balls left in the ruins, there is a high probability that they will not be what the mysterious man wants. In such a chaotic environment, they have no way of knowing what the mysterious man took, but they can roughly
Guess what it is.
"Wait, I remember this. When Peter Pettigrew was tried a few months ago, he also mentioned-"
Emilia Bones rubbed her eyebrows and said slowly and thoughtfully, "The mysterious prophecy about the mysterious man, the prophecy that caused the mysterious man to disappear for more than ten years... It was precisely because of that prophecy that the mysterious man became a man.
Will go to Godric's Hollow alone to kill the Potters."
"Well, I share your assumptions, but they don't make sense now."
Cornelius Fudge sighed, banged his fist on the armrest, and whispered bitterly.
"The mysterious man successfully got what he wanted, but we still know nothing about the contents of the prophecy ball-"
"Well, regarding this matter, I think it's the least thing to worry about tonight..."
At this moment, Dumbledore coughed lightly, crossed his fingers on his knees, and said with a smile.
"Those that were stolen and damaged were just prophecy records kept in the Department of Mysteries. The prophecies were specifically addressed to a certain person, and that person obviously had the means to re-hear its contents."
"Who heard it?" Cornelius Fudge asked subconsciously. In fact, he already knew the answer at the moment he asked.
"It was me," Dumbledore said, "on a cold, damp night thirteen years ago, in a room above the Pig's Head pub. I went there to meet a witch who applied to teach divination. In fact, my original intention was, I don’t plan to continue the divination class, but the applicant is the great-great-granddaughter of a very famous and talented prophet. I think I should meet her out of politeness, and then..."
"Professor Sybill Trelawney, right? And then she made the prophecy in front of you in order to get her position?"
Cornelius Fudge reacted quickly and looked at Dumbledore excitedly, "So, you still remember the content of that prophecy, right?"
"Of course, in fact, I even have a way for you to listen to it again..."
Dumbledore smiled gently and continued calmly, "However, before that, I think we'd better settle Mr. Frank's side first. If you don't have any other details you want to ask about, we will discuss it next. There are a lot of things to do, what do you think?"
"Oh, yes - of course -"
Connelly nodded, looked around the room, and quickly zeroed in on the witch in the corner who was temporarily captured for recording.
"Um, Miss Nymphadora, please take Mr. Frank to rest -"
"Ah? Oh -" Tonks, who was wandering in her mind, suddenly came back to her senses.
She hesitated and glanced at the minister, put away the magic quill with some helplessness, stood up, and walked to the door.
"Well, Mr. Frank, come here. Due to time constraints, you can't go to Scotland Yard to record it yet. I'll help you find a comfortable hotel to stay temporarily. After you wake up in the afternoon, Mr. Minister and the others will The discussion has concluded."
"Uh, um, okay -" Old Frank looked at the wizards around him and nodded silently.
Even if he didn't understand the content of their discussion, Old Frank could still see the anxious state of these wizards at this time.
Obviously, the magical world is no more peaceful than the ordinary world.
…………
"Well, in short, Voldemort is back."
Dumbledore said calmly, looking at Fudge and then at Scrimgeour.
"The Ministry of Magic, and even the wizarding society, must take action as soon as possible. Under the influence of Veritaserum, we at least know their next plan from Mr. Frank - in fact, it is essentially the same panic-mongering behavior as in the past - but This time we have more allies."
"The magical governments of various countries will hold a joint meeting soon, and the mysterious people and Death Eaters will not be arrogant for too long..."
Cornelius Fudge said quickly, but his words were quickly interrupted by Dumbledore.
"Of course, I believe in the anger of the Ministry of Magic in various countries, but that is not what I am referring to. The wizarding world must be more closely united, Connelly."
Dumbledore looked at Fudge with his blue eyes over his half-moon glasses, and said in a serious tone, "I heard on the way here that a person suspected of Voldemort appeared at the Ministry of Magic. This may be a person who has fallen more than the Ministry of Magic." What's worse - Tom Riddle successfully used the Horcrux to become immortal, and we are no longer facing an ordinary dark wizard, but a terrifying demon king that can never be completely killed."
"I believe that it won't take long for this news to spread with fear throughout Europe and even the wizarding world around the world."
Dumbledore's voice echoed in the narrow office, and many wizards seemed to have guessed what he wanted to say, and they all showed uneasy expressions.
"Yes, just like eleven years ago, we can defeat Voldemort countless times, but he can also be resurrected countless times."
"In the face of this almost invincible fear, the dark forces gathering around Voldemort will be beyond imagination."
"I am one hundred and eleven years old this year. Voldemort doesn't even have to do it himself. He can let 'time' kill me. He can also use countless attempts to end my life, or other people who stop him... If not
Prepare in advance and we are doomed to fail."
"Understand, the war has broken out. This is a war that uses time as a weapon and is beyond everyone's imagination."
Dumbledore looked around at the wizards around him, took a breath, and said softly.