The Bard of Hogwarts

Chapter 339 The Bloodstained Letter, Rumors of the Second Generation Dark Lord

In the valley of the shelter.

Ino held the crown in his hand, leaning against the oak tree.

The thought I just had made many things that were previously unclear clear.

It seems that Barty Jr. was already by Voldemort's side starting from Harry's dream during the summer vacation.

Otherwise, with Voldemort's abilities, he couldn't do anything at all, let alone kill a Muggle.

What happened afterward, such as the night of the World Cup final, or because Dumbledore and Newt appeared, or because Little Star died, or for some other reason.

In short, Barty Jr. did not cause the chaos in the original story.

Then, with the start of the school year, it was confirmed that Mad-Eye Moody was the real deal... all these factors combined.

He suddenly realized that if it weren't for Ravenclaw's crown, he would have really overlooked Barty Jr.

"A dog that bites... never barks..."

Ino was impressed. Unlike the loud and boisterous Bella, Little Barty was indeed a talent who had obtained twelve NEWT certifications. Not only was he smart enough, but his abilities were also remarkable.

Mad-Eye Moody is a good example. As a battle-hardened retired Auror, he is not someone who can be easily defeated by anyone alone.

……

Unlike the tranquility of the sanctuary valley.

At the same time, the castle school hospital was overcrowded.

Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Bagman, Barty Crouch Sr., and Snape, among others, all gathered together.

"Albus! Have you figured it out?" Professor McGonagall asked softly by the bedside.

She never believed that Harry would secretly learn dark magic, let alone kill a dragon at the age of fifteen.

"Not yet! But I think Harry is innocent." Dumbledore slowly turned around, his azure eyes sweeping over everyone present, but his expression was somewhat weary.

During his examination, he found nothing unusual about Harry, neither a curse nor anything else. This meant that Harry had no excuse for using the Killing Curse and would have to bear the pressure of public opinion alone.

"Sigh!" Professor McGonagall sighed deeply. Dumbledore's answer made her think of the consequences.

"Innocent? That needs to be proven with evidence!" Old Barty once again offered his untimely opinion.

"Shut up! Can't you see my students are resting?" Professor McGonagall lowered her voice, but the anger in her tone was impossible to hide.

"Then let him get some rest! I'll wait for him."

Old Barty was clearly also angry. He said those words and walked out the door without looking back.

Seeing that Professor McGonagall was about to lose her temper, Bagman once again acted as a mediator, comforting her:

"Minerva, don't be angry. To be honest, he wasn't always like this! But please rest assured, I'll take care of things!"

For a fleeting moment, Bagman really wanted to find Marcus and renegotiate the sales revenue sharing. As the sports director, he was truly going to great lengths for the Triwizard Tournament.

Unlike Professor McGonagall's annoyance, Dumbledore remained silent throughout, only watching Barty Old Man's departing figure with a thoughtful expression.

As for Harry, he seemed oblivious to everything around him, still fast asleep.

……

Time always slips through your fingers like fine sand.

Although it is silent and unnoticed, it still leaves a faint trace.

As dawn broke, the day after the match ended, the entire British Isles were in an uproar.

The Daily Prophet used half a page with a bold, eye-catching headline: "The Savior and the Killing Curse."

Below the title is a five-inch black and white photograph in which Harry, with a detached expression, holds his wand in one hand and points it at the distant Hungarian Tree-Peak Dragon.

The 65-foot-long, ferocious-looking fire dragon lay motionless on the ground, as if it had drunk two gallons of dreamless sleeping potion.

Savior, Killing Curse.

The combination of these two words can easily remind some adult wizards over the age of twenty-five of those crazy days.

That's not all, because just today, the Daily Prophet and the Mirror of Film and Television have reached a rare bundled sales agreement.

The newspaper is divided into two tiers. The first tier is the regular 2 nats a copy, which remains unchanged.

The other option is a two-inch-sized, extremely simple-looking video mirror, but the price of this newspaper has already soared to 5 sisal per copy.

Although the price has increased dozens of times, many people would be happy to pay for it given the hype and headlines.

After all, whether wizards or Muggles, there are always some people who are naturally fond of watching a spectacle, and besides, five West is not expensive.

……

Slytherin dormitory.

Ino put down the newspaper in her hand and turned to look at Draco.

"You said someone is spreading rumors that Harry is the second Dark Lord?"

"Yes!" Draco nodded seriously, then said with great earnestness:

"Yesterday evening, someone found a bloodstained letter in the fourth-floor corridor. The letter read, 'A tribute to the Second Dark Lord, His Majesty Harry Potter…'"

Ino listened quietly to Draco's narration; the whole thing seemed like a novel, bizarre and absurd.

But he also knew that the more absurd something was, the more likely it was to find a market, because it provided the kind of talking points people needed.

One can imagine that once this matter becomes widely known, Harry will likely face unprecedented criticism.

Unlike the original story's Chamber of Secrets and the Slytherin heir, Harry used the Killing Curse to kill the dragon, not only in full view of everyone, but also recorded by a camera lens.

With his talent, background, and reputation, Harry met all the criteria that people would criticize a celebrity for.

Most importantly, there were no riots or Dark Marks during the Quidditch World Cup, which made everyone gradually forget about Voldemort and turn their attention to Harry.

……

In the quiet dormitory room.

When Draco saw Ino fall silent, he suddenly felt that the world was crazy.

The person he bullied for three whole years turned out to be the second-generation Dark Lord? He even once hung him in mid-air...

Thinking of this, Draco suddenly shuddered, then cautiously asked:

"Ino, is there really something wrong with Scarface?"

"Don't overthink it! Just don't provoke him." Ino frowned subconsciously.

Draco's reaction seemed reasonable, but it also seemed to represent the attitude of the other young wizards in the castle.

Three men can make a tiger; public opinion is a fearsome thing.

If Harry were to live in such an environment, even if nothing happened, something would still be said about him.

Moreover, this time it's not just limited to the castle.

Ino looked again at the newspaper lying on the table. He was now quite certain that the old headmaster had really messed up this time.

It seems that, judging from Dumbledore's portrayal in the original story, the headmaster's meticulous calculations are limited to the castle itself.

However, once the scheme is devised outside of Hogwarts, Dumbledore is always on the defensive.

And that's roughly the situation right now.

The irrefutable video evidence, coupled with media reports, bloodstained letters, and clumsy rumors about a dark demon king...

a long time.

"Draco, do you think a wizard who can get twelve NEWT certificates is really that outstanding?"

Before Draco could answer, Ino slowly stood up. He was going to warn Dumbledore to prevent the situation from getting out of control.

Phew... It's been quite a brain drain lately! But I'll do my best to write each chapter well.

(End of this chapter)