Snape, the Sunshine of Hogwarts.

Chapter 132 Inquiry about flashlights
An opal necklace, a somewhat old crystal ball, and an ordinary household flashlight.

The Aurors' eyes were almost entirely on the necklace and the crystal ball; only a few Muggle-borns glanced at the flashlight.

"What is that thick iron pillar?" a wizard who didn't recognize the flashlight asked after a moment.

"It's a Muggle lighting device that can be powered by batteries. Once the switch is turned on, the bulb in front will light up," someone explained.

"What about the prophecy in the crystal ball? Can it be deciphered?" Gilar's gaze remained fixed on the crystal ball.

She was being reported to by the Auror Chief.

"Diviners need time to interpret prophecies. The best divination professor in the department is Beauxbatons, who is currently on vacation in Spain. Should we call him back?"

"Tell him to come back now, and start investigating this person immediately to find out who sold him these things!"

Gilar gave the order, while at the same time, an Auror expressed his doubts.

"This Muggle thing is unlikely to be the Lemaîtres, but it might be related to that Squib from the Rozier family. Should we bring him over for identification?"

"You guys make the arrangements, and try to find out from him what's special about this thing or what its story is."

The Aurors then quickly began their operation.

The opal necklace was sealed away, the crystal ball with the prophecy was temporarily sent to the Hall of Prophecy, and the Muggle flashlight was thoroughly inspected by employees of the Department for the Prohibition of the Misuse of Muggle Items.

They first completely disassembled the flashlight, then used a device that looked like a fly swatter to inspect every single part.

"What are these wires for?" one employee asked, looking with a puzzled expression at the complex wires exposed after the flashlight had been disassembled.

He is a half-blood wizard whose father is an appliance repair technician. Although he did not receive any systematic training, he has a good understanding of the wiring of some small appliances due to his exposure to the world since childhood.

Normally, a household-grade flashlight wouldn't need this much cord.

But when a colleague next to him swept the lines with a fly swatter and no alarm sounded, the colleague shrugged and said...

"It's probably a new product from Muggles, so it's normal for it to have more wires. After all, if they want something to light up, it's not as simple as us just reciting a spell."

His words put the previously skeptical employee at ease. The two of them thoroughly inspected the flashlight, and after confirming that it was working properly, they reassembled it.

Not long after, Rozier and his wife Marie were summoned.

The two sat down cautiously, leaning against each other. In front of them sat an Auror Chieftain, several ordinary Aurors, and the flashlight that had been inspected.

"Don't be nervous, gentlemen. The Ministry of Magic has already determined that you are innocent. We are here simply to learn more about some things from you."

Auror comforted them while pointing to the flashlight.

"Is this yours?"

The Rozier couple's eyes were fixed on the flashlight; they clearly hadn't expected to see it here.

After a moment's hesitation, Rozier spoke.

"Yes, yes, sir. I bought this flashlight for my wife when we had just met. Sometimes she would get off work late and was afraid of the dark when walking home at night."

Hearing this answer, the Auror was clearly disappointed, but he still continued to ask.

Where did you buy it?

"It was a promotional item in a department store in the 16th arrondissement."

Have you been using it continuously since you bought it?

“My wife used it for two years, and about two or three months ago, it started to malfunction. The light it emitted was no longer as bright as before. Because it was cheap, we didn’t plan to spend extra money to repair it. We just kept it at home as a keepsake.”

Rozier spoke carefully, holding Mary's hand tightly the whole time, and asked one last question.

Is there something wrong with it?

The Auror responsible for questioning him did not answer his question, but after listening to his detailed answer, he whispered to the people around him.

"It's a very ordinary thing."

“He wasn’t lying; this stuff is indeed common in Muggle stores.”

"It must have been taken from his house by the murderers, who thought they could sell it for a good price on the black market."

After exchanging their opinions, the Aurors all lowered their expectations for the flashlight considerably.

But the Auror chieftain who spoke first gestured to one of his men to hand Rozier a flashlight so he could see for himself.

Rozier took the flashlight and weighed it in his hand. It seemed a bit heavier than before, but he doubted whether it was just his imagination.

He then flipped the switch, and a faint white light appeared in front of the flashlight. Just as he had said, something was wrong with the device; the light had become much dimmer.

All of Rozier's examinations were conducted right under the Auror's nose, until he turned the flashlight around and the faint white light shone into his eyes.
"Is there any movement over there?"

"The earthworm was successfully released last night, and it successfully located the thing."

"Do we need to keep waiting?"

"Wait? What's the point of waiting? Those Aurors who haven't improved at all over the years are completely under our control! They got the cheese today."

In a dilapidated old rental house on the outskirts of Paris, three people dressed in black robes, whose faces and figures were obscured, chatted as they threw firewood into the fireplace.

One of them rubbed his hands together, showing a mixture of anticipation and nervousness.

"It hasn't been easy. We've been preparing for so long, and today we're finally going to take action!"

The other person said calmly.

"She had originally planned to give up, but recent events in the UK made her decide to carry out the project completely again."

“Barty Crouch Jr. escaped from Azkaban? Hahaha!” The last man let out a nasty laugh. “That’s certainly a rare opportunity. Recently, another person escaped from that island, Sirius Black? Half of Europe’s eyes are on them! What a surprising surprise! On an island where no one has successfully escaped for over two hundred years, two people have been exposed to have escaped in just a few days!”

“Thoma is still fantasizing about going to England to meet up with Batty Jr.! When I was with him in Lyon, he kept begging me, saying he knew he was wrong and begging us to keep our promise.”

"We only promised him we'd spare his life, aren't we keeping our promise now?"

"So far, everything has been as we expected."

"Yes, all our plans are going very smoothly. How is Nick Lemaître?"

"He's still the same. He's long since let go of those things and plays wizard chess with his wife in the attic, but for some reason, he's very calm about what we're going to do."

"After all, he has lived for so long, and no one in this world has more experience and weathered more storms than him."

"Never mind what he thinks! As long as we find the item and he's willing to do it, nothing else matters!"

“We’ve waited this long, we absolutely can’t afford any slip-ups at this last moment! Carlo, you keep a close eye on them, whether they’ve truly resigned themselves to their fate or are thinking about something else! Make sure they have no chance to escape.”

"Alright! No need to be so tense. The closer we get to the present, the more we need to relax, right? As long as that person can return and we can welcome him back with our own hands, everything will be worth it!"

A man stood up from his chair, flicked out a wand from his sleeve, and finally caught it precisely at the end!
"Get ready for the final touches! Tonight we're going to light up the entire skies of Paris!"

"What's wrong? Is something amiss, Mr. Rozier?"

The questioning voice brought Rozier back to his senses from staring at the beam of the flashlight.

Beside him, Mary looked at him with concern and asked in a low voice.

"Are you ok?"

Rozier smiled at her and squeezed her hand a little tighter.

"I'm fine, everything's okay."

"I'm sorry, gentlemen, as you know, my mind isn't working very well anymore and I've become a bit slow."

The Aurors were well aware of this, and the leading Auror leader sighed softly, trying his best to keep his gaze from becoming too sharp.

"So, have you noticed any differences between this flashlight and the previous one?"

Rozier remained calm.

"It hasn't changed at all; it's still in the same damaged state as before."

This was enough to prove that they could no longer get any more clues from this object, and the inquiry was about to end. The Aurors were already discussing putting their remaining hopes on the crystal ball.

Rozier suddenly said.

"If it has no value to you anymore, can my wife and I take it back?"

He raised the flashlight, his voice full of earnestness.

"It was the first gift I gave to my wife, so it has a special meaning."

The Aurors exchanged glances, and then the chief spoke.

“You can take it, but not now. We need to keep it as evidence for now. Once all this is over, it can be returned to its rightful owner.”

"Thank you," Rozier said gratefully. "Thank you all, that's enough."

(End of this chapter)