Hogwarts: Who uses a crowbar in wizard duels?

Splash!

At this time, London was still experiencing torrential rain, with rain and fog enveloping the entire city, obscuring the sun and creating a sense of oppression.

Such torrential rain is rare, but not unusual either.

Muggles continued to come and go in the heavy rain, busy with work and life.

As Muggles passed by shop windows, they didn't notice the blurry reflections of people walking by in them.

Those were countless people dressed in black trench coats, ignoring the torrential rain as they walked through the rain curtain reflected in the mirror.

Their destination was singular: London's central park.

If you are also a wizard, when you pass by some shop windows near Central Park, you may be able to see countless men in black gathering there in the blurry reflections of the windows.

But when you look back at the park, it's completely empty.

Only when lightning occasionally rips across the sky can you catch a glimpse of those dark, shadowy figures in that fleeting flash.

But in the mirror world.

There are no Muggles, no animals, not even an ant here.

The only things there were wizards and this endless rain.

The wizards gathered around a square stone platform in the center of the park.

They didn't talk much because the people here didn't all belong to the same organization.

They could be Death Eaters, members of various families, or even people from the Ministry of Magic—in short, a mixed bag.

But they were all tacitly waiting for something.

No matter how heavy the rain poured down on them, not one of them left.

And so it went, until the clock tower in the real world suddenly rang out a loud bell that pierced the sky.

A figure had appeared and stood on the central stone platform at some point.

He just stood there with his hands behind his back, and he exuded an aura that inspired awe.

Gellert Grindelwald.

Looking at his figure, some admired him, some scrutinized him, some were incredulous, and some were angry.

"Wow, there are more friends here today than I expected."

Grindelwald strolled across the stone platform with his hands behind his back, looked around, and let out a soft chuckle.

His voice couldn't be drowned out by the torrential rain.

Then, in the next instant, the torrential rain suddenly stopped, and countless raindrops floated in the air, as if time had stood still.

However, the wizards in the audience were unaffected.

The world suddenly fell silent.

"I think you should know why you've gathered here."

Grindelwald stood on the stone platform, looking down at the wizards below, and spoke slowly.

"You want the truth, right?"

As he spoke, Grindelwald stretched out a hand and gently brushed away the raindrops floating in front of him, appearing quite relaxed.

"I think some people should recognize me. More than fifty years ago, I made a prophecy that Muggles would start wars for their desires, causing widespread suffering and death, and even we wizards would not be able to avoid it."

"In the end, my prophecy came true."

Why?

"Because I failed back then."

Grindelwald strolled on the stone platform and confessed his past failures, admitting that he had not been able to lead the wizards to stand up and overthrow the Law of Secrecy.

He blamed himself for failing to prevent that future from happening.

"But now I'm also glad that I didn't succeed back then."

"If we had gone to war with the Muggles back then, the weapons that the Muggles used to kill each other would have fallen on our own people first."

Why?

Grindelwald, still with his hands behind his back, looked at the wizards below the stage and asked himself the second "why."

"Because that's in the nature of Muggles."

"They are greedy, they are envious, they are cowardly, they are arrogant..."

"The flower of magic blooms only in a select few of us."

"Muggles, on the other hand, will covet this beautiful flower and try to pluck it and place it on their experimental beds."

Grindelwald's tone did not fluctuate dramatically, but rather gradually guided and incited the crowd's discontent with Muggles.

However, his tone suddenly changed, and his voice rose several octaves.

"But that's not our focus today."

"I have gathered you all here today because I have foreseen a new future."

All that talk was actually to lay the groundwork for the accuracy of his prophetic abilities and, unwittingly, plant a seed of doubt in the hearts of the people.

A thorn that speaks of the ugliness of Muggles.

"If you truly want to continue your family's bloodline, the bloodline of wizards, then abandon your illusions of ruling Muggles."

"When war breaks out, we will win, but we won't win forever."

"Many people will be displaced, their families destroyed, and they may be Muggles or wizards."

"This is not what we want to see."

When Grindelwald said these words, his tone was full of sorrow and pity, like that of an elder who cares deeply for his family, which was very moving.

It's as if they're saying that their wizards aren't afraid of Muggles or war.

But unlike Muggles, they don't risk the lives of their fellow citizens to wage war for profit.

"And the second point, which is also the most important one."

"War will eventually end, maybe in ten years, maybe in a hundred years."

"At that time, wizards will no longer be legends or fairy tales in Muggle society, and Muggles and wizards will coexist."

"Even in this day and age, there are still many Muggles who, by chance, can marry wizards and give birth to half-wizards."

"And what if we lived in an era where wizards were fully exposed? How many Muggles do you think would covet their magic?"

"They will use sweet words and every possible means to taint our bloodline and seize our power!"

At this point, Grindelwald's tone finally became somewhat passionate and animated.

He looked at the Death Eaters below the stage, as if offering heartfelt advice.

"This is the end for you who followed that so-called Dark Lord."

"Purebloods may experience a brief resurgence, but it will only be a flash in the pan."

"The real way to change the future is to cut off all meaningless Muggle relationships."

"Only by ensuring that ordinary Muggles never have the opportunity to come into contact with the wizarding world can you continue the pure-blood lineage."

Grindelwald's speech caused a huge uproar among the wizards in the audience.

While not all purebloods may have acknowledged Voldemort, there is one thing they at least agree on.

That's because wizards rule over Muggles, which is why they follow Voldemort.

But now, even that last shred of recognition has been completely destroyed by Grindelwald.

It's easy to imagine how devastating this was for Voldemort's forces.

"Look, this park, these tall buildings, cars, airplanes."

"How beautiful, how convenient, all of this is brought about by Muggles."

"We don't need to do anything, we can just enjoy it quietly, that's our right."

"War brings us no benefit, but ignorant Muggles do."

"Perhaps in the future, another wizard will stand up and refute my statement."

"But it's okay."

"Because I will always be your family and friends, and I respect your choices."

At this point, Grindelwald stopped speaking and quietly looked at the wizards below the stage, waiting for their inner thoughts to ferment.

His remarks were met with both approval and disapproval.

In the eyes of some radicals, this is cowardice, weakness, and a fear of Muggles.

If a war breaks out between wizards and Muggles in the future, and the wizards win, he will be forever branded with shame by the wizards.

But Grindelwald didn't care; his real purpose wasn't as complicated or terrifying as Kevin thought.

On the contrary, it is very pure.

And it has already been initially achieved.