The Evil Thoughts of Hogwarts and the Genie

Chapter 93 Return to Nurmengard

The Squib woman had barely finished her question when she drew her pistol. Her movements were quite professional, clearly indicating she had specifically learned how to use this Muggle weapon.

Although bullets are ineffective against a wizard's armor, they can still seriously injure him if used unexpectedly.

However, the reason she hadn't drawn the gun was quite simple. On the one hand, she wasn't as extreme as Filch; on the other hand, she knew very well that the Aurors also belonged to the Ministry of Magic, and since the ultimate goal was to negotiate with the Ministry of Magic, it would be unwise to overturn the table before even getting to it.

Her reason for being so decisive at this moment was simple: she was worried that this person was a supporter of pure blood, and that the other party had infiltrated with the aim of carrying out a massacre.

"No!" Before the woman with the dud could fire, an old man rushed out. He looked haggard and his face was filled with sorrow. "This is my daughter! Don't shoot, Joanna!"

The Squib woman frowned: "I don't remember having a daughter, Rud! Are you sure your memories haven't been altered?"

Or has it been confusing under a spell?

Rude was both pleased and exasperated upon hearing this.

"Don't joke around, Joanna! How... how is this possible?" Rud took the stranger's hand and expertly rubbed it.

"Even magic can't add a memory to you or me, right? How could that be possible? And, well, okay!"

I had some reservations beforehand, which is why I didn't bring my daughter to the event.

The old dud looked up affectionately and met the eyes of his "daughter".

The old man was momentarily stunned, tears welling up in his eyes: "She looks exactly like her mother!" His daughter then gave him a reassuring smile and helped her elderly father up.

"And she—alas, she has a job in the Muggle world! Unlike you and me, who are complete failures!"

Rud's words made many of the Squigglies shift uncomfortably.

"If I hadn't heard that there really is magic that can turn us into wizards, I wouldn't have asked her to come along!"

The woman with the dud nodded, somewhat skeptical, but she didn't put away her pistol; instead, she asked kindly:

"What's your name? If you want to participate in our next operation, you must sign a contract that will bring a curse upon those who betray it."

Rude's "daughter" let out a soft sigh upon hearing this, and smiled helplessly.

This made the people around him quite uncomfortable. The reason was that this stranger had a rather otherworldly air about him. His black hair cascaded down his shoulders like silk, and his features were even more delicate than those of the girls printed on Muggle posters. He stood in stark contrast to the other Squirrels who had just caused a ruckus and looked listless and ruthless.

"You can just call me Arachne, Madam," Arachne said softly, shrugging with a touch of childishness. "Why not? My father is right here; would I betray him?"

After Arachne finished speaking, she pushed her hand forward pleadingly:

"Put the gun down, Sofia. Seriously, it scares me more than a wand." She raised her eyebrows, behaving much like a Squib living in the Muggle world. "Besides, I...I have a job, so I probably can't participate in our activities often."

Seeing that she was still willing to bargain, the Squirrel woman breathed a sigh of relief. She took out a small notebook, about the size of a palm and made of some kind of leather, from her handbag and asked Arachne to write her name on it.

"It must be your real name," the Squirrel woman emphasized. "Otherwise, you will die a painful death immediately—ladies, if you really are a witch who has snuck in for fun, then I suggest you Apparate right now."

Arachne looked utterly helpless upon hearing this.

"You're so cautious, no wonder you're in charge," she praised sweetly. "But I don't even know what 'Apparition' is—are you writing it here?"

Arachne picked up her pen and wrote down the pseudonym Arachne Rud without hesitation.

Nothing happened.

Ah, as expected: the Squib was tricked by the wizard who sold her this "dark magic item".

Arachne finished writing and casually twirled her pen. Half aggrieved and half teasing, she returned the notebook to the Slur woman, who, seeing that she was alright, breathed a sigh of relief and gave an embarrassed smile.

Arachne smiled in response.

—Master, Master, I succeeded.

This battery, which had been lurking on the black market and procuring many "interesting little things" for the genie, was once a formidable dark wizard. She was especially skilled at altering other people's memories and lurking in to devour her victims' lives.

As for how to use this hidden piece, Edmund already had a rather unscrupulous little idea in his mind.

However, at this very moment, he had just escaped from his mothers' tea party. Heaven knows that while he was preparing to give the British Ministry of Magic a "big" lesson with the battery, he was actually in the middle of a casual conversation, with his two mothers chatting away all around him.

If Elena hadn't been taught some rather useless social etiquette, she might have actually accepted the Evans' invitation and even had dinner at their house. After her heartfelt refusal, Elena fell into an indescribable depression, giving Edmund an unsettling sense of displacement, as if he were the parent and his mother the child forced to separate from her close friend.

"When Lily Evans told me before that you wanted to give her mother an owl, I thought you were joking," Edmund sighed. "But today I realize you're serious."

Elena had activated the key, but she was not used to long-distance apparition, so the mother and son had to knock over the fireplace several times before they were able to return to the Somann estate on the outskirts of Berlin.

The benefits of magic were also evident at this moment; without the waiter's intervention, magic removed Soman and her son's coats and tied up their hair.

"Dina is a very intelligent woman. Her way of thinking is completely different from mine, and she often gives me fresh perspectives," Elena said sullenly as she sat down at the table. "But she rejected my owl—"

Edmund nodded, finding this quite normal. Temporarily keeping an owl during his daughter's school break was one thing, but keeping one long-term would certainly be very inconvenient for an average Muggle family.

"But she told me that I could easily install a rooster, even though international calls are expensive, it's obviously much more convenient than using an owl."

Edmund: ?

Edmund chuckled twice, tempted to grab a servant and ask his mother if she had indeed installed a telephone in the mansion where UMNO gatherings were held from time to time. But he hesitated, deciding to let the servant go, and let himself go as well.

Moreover, Edmund was eager to do something else.

[Knock knock]

The goblin, missing a piece of his skull, awoke from the depths of Nurmengard and walked step by step toward the most notorious criminal in the land. Gellert Grindelwald seemed to be dozing, not even sparing him a glance.

"That's strange, you were the one who wanted to see me!"

The fairy spoke in the voice of the genie.

"Why are you so cold, Mr. Grindelwald? What's wrong? What's wrong? I thought you'd finally come to your senses."

"I thought you were going to make a wish—" the genie coaxed softly. "After all, why not?"

"You have nothing left. Why should someone who has nothing cherish their soul, right?"