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Chapter 1054: Umbridge's Strange Thinking
🕑 Added 2024-03-22 04:24:25 +0000 UTC“Great, let's get started!” After seeing Evan drink the tea, Umbridge leaned forward slightly, "Firstly, I want you to tell me, on the night before the Christmas holiday, where did Dumbledore take you and Harry Potter?"
Evan blinked, wondering why Umbridge was so certain he would answer such a question.
Then, he realized, it was Veritaserum … she’d put Veritaserum in the drink.
"I went home, Professor!" said Evan. "You know, Elaine wanted to go to Hogwarts, she’s a student of Nicolas Flamel like me, and Professors Dumbledore and Flamel hoped I could take care of her at school."
"Really?!" Umbridge was obviously not satisfied with Evan's answer, "And what about Potter?"
"Oh, Sirius Black probably returned during that time, he's Harry's godfather, and he wanted to see Harry," Evan explained.
"So Dumbledore had you leave Hogwarts late at night to meet them?" Umbridge was not pleased.
This reason was too far-fetched; anyone could see that it was impossible.
"Yes!" Evan nodded and looked at Umbridge calmly.
"Good, then where has Black been during this time?" she asked. "He's been missing for a long time."
"I don't know," said Evan. "Maybe he went on vacation."
"Well, drink up, Mason, drink up," she said, watching Evan drink all the tea in the cup, a smile appeared on her face again. "Alright, Mr. Mason, let us not play childish games. I know that you know what they are doing; you have to consider your own position. What is the benefit of directly confronting the Ministry of Magic?"
"Professor, I did not confront the Ministry," said Evan. "And currently, the Ministry is the one in a precarious situation."
"Do you think so?! Do you really think that the Ministry has no understanding of the current situation?!" said Umbridge. "It seems that I need to remind you that, as far as I know, you and Harry Potter once formed an illegal student organization at school, and you recruited students to join this organization at the Hog's Head Inn."
Evan squinted. Umbridge knowing this information was not surprising at all. Hog's Head Inn was crowded and anyone could snitch.
But the D.A. members themselves should not have betrayed them, as the magical protections Evan left behind were never triggered.
Since no one betrayed, that meant Umbridge didn't have enough evidence.
Thinking about it, if there was evidence, she would go directly to a showdown with Dumbledore instead of wasting time with him here.
"Yes, Professor, we have indeed formed such an organization!"
Umbridge showed a satisfied look on her face after hearing Evan’s words.
"We did have such intentions!" Before she could speak, Evan continued, "But that was not illegal at the time. After the Ministry’s Decree banned all student clubs, we terminated the organization and never continued our activities."
"Really?" Umbridge looked at him suspiciously.
"Yes, so we didn't violate any regulations," said Evan. "You should know that."
"Well, I will take your word for it this time," said Umbridge. "But how do you explain this? Not long ago, it was I who almost caught that despicable Black in the Gryffindor fire. I know perfectly well it was you and Harry Potter he was meeting. Shortly afterwards, you two disappeared from the school. What were your plans?!"
"That was just a coincidence, I just said..."
"You're not telling the truth, Mason!" Umbridge impatiently interrupted Evan’s answer.
"Professor, what do you want to know?" Evan looked at her and emphasized, "I am telling the truth."
"I want to know the relationship between Black and the escaped Death Eaters?" Umbridge's smile disappeared from her face.
She leaned her body towards Evan, her ugly toad eyes staring fixedly at him.
So that was it, they hadn't given up on the stupid idea of Sirius helping the Death Eaters breakout.
They wanted to use Veritaserum to get some evidence from Evan. Fudge and Umbridge's minds were undoubtedly clouded. Even with so much evidence, they still didn't want to believe the fact that Voldemort was resurrected. Instead, they were doubting Sirius, or to be more precise, doubting Dumbledore.
"As far as I know, they don't seem to have any contact," said Evan. "Sirius is against the Death Eaters. They are enemies. If you’re willing, you can read the latest issue of Hogwarts Magic, you’ll know that the mastermind behind this prison break is Voldemort..."
"Don't mention that name, and don't mention your rumor-mongering newspaper, it is illegal in Hogwarts," Umbridge shouted, sitting down again. She seemed to think that Evan had taken Veritaserum and could not tell lies. A smile appeared on her lips again. "It seems that you are not as important as I thought, Mr. Mason. They haven't told you all the important things, have they? Alright, let's change the topic. The girl beside you..."
“You mean Elaine?" Evan’s heart tightened.
"Yes, it's her," said Umbridge. "Let's not waste time, Mason. I can tell you clearly that we have investigated her identity. The Ministry has sent people to France. There is no such person at Beauxbatons, and Nicolas Flamel doesn't have such a student. Who is she?"
"Really?" said Evan. "As far as I know, she is Professor Nicolas Flamel's student, studying Alchemy with him. In many ancient wizarding schools, this kind of master-apprentice relationship is prevalent as a secret inheritance. Therefore, it's quite normal for the Ministry not to find information about Elaine at Beauxbatons."
"That's abnormal too!" Umbridge impatiently said, "Mason, the Ministry knows much more than you can imagine. To be honest with you, someone saw that girl in the Norwegian region, and Black was seen there too. That place is the lair of vampires. So, we have reason to suspect that Black, together with vampires, plotted this escape of the Death Eaters. We have sent people there, and finding evidence is only a matter of time. You're a smart person; think about the current situation. Speak out everything you know. Otherwise, when I gather enough evidence, you'll end up in Azkaban. I assure you, that day won't be too far away."
Evan looked at Umbridge. The Ministry wasn't entirely foolish; they quickly investigated information about Elaine and Sirius in Norway.
However, their way of thinking was extremely strange. They actually suspected that Sirius had conspired with vampires to plan the escape of the Death Eaters. Listening to Umbridge, it seemed she was doubting Dumbledore, thinking that he had saved those Death Eaters...
These guys weren't just foolish; they were insane. Power had blinded their eyes, leading them into madness.
