A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Chapter 744 Nurmengard

William had assumed that the background check would be extremely difficult in order to meet the first Dark Lord.

Not to mention going back three generations, any immediate family member who has had contact with Grindelwald, made dangerous remarks, or committed a crime is strictly prohibited from seeing him.

Then there should be at least an eight-person interrogation, they'll dig up your underwear and repeatedly confirm the reason for going to see him.

But none of that happened. After reading Dumbledore's letter, Secretary Soros naturally agreed to William and Hermione's prison visit.

It was as if the two of them were visiting some nobody, someone insignificant.

This vetting process... it's harder than even the Death Eaters visiting Azkaban, okay?

William could only sigh inwardly: the original Dark Lord is truly outdated.

Sure enough, we still have to look to England's ultimate star of popularity, who's back in the water for the second time and is still young at heart – Voldemort.

William thought he could finally get rid of Missandei, but to his surprise, she still followed the two of them.

The minister's orders were executed perfectly.

As William was about to leave the Hofburg Palace, he ran into an unexpected acquaintance at the carriage stop.

—Mera Picqueli.

Standing next to her was an elderly woman with white hair, who appeared to be Newt's rumored girlfriend—the former president of the Magical Congress of the United States.

William remembered that when Newt went to America, he took Tina with him.

A chaotic scene, a chaotic scene indeed... This is what William wants to see.

……

……

As expected of Pegasus, Gralling was no slower than Thestrals or Divine Steeds, and arrived at the Führer's hometown, Braunau, in just two hours.

At the entrance to the town, there is a stone tablet:

FR FRIEDEN FREIHEIT

UND DEMOKRATIE

NIE WIEDER FASCHISMUS

MILLIONEN TOTE MAHNEN

Hermione leaned on William's shoulder, gazing at the stone tablet, and asked curiously, "What does it mean?"

William translated softly: "'For peace, freedom, and democracy, may *** never happen again; the deaths of millions remind us of this.'"

"You actually speak German?" Missandei gazed at him intently.

"Yes, I know many languages." William smiled.

If you spend eight years in a time loop, wouldn't you have to learn several more foreign languages?

As for who to learn from?

The wizards in Beauxbatons and Durmstrang are mostly from other countries... You can learn a foreign language from any young lady you meet.

William is highly experienced in this regard.

Upon entering the town, they unexpectedly encountered a large number of police officers.

After getting off the carriage, William went to inquire about it.

An old man with white hair, so thin he looked like he was just skin and bones, was squatting there watching the commotion.

He quickly explained:

"Sunny, the bar owner, killed two drunk men."

He spat and said angrily, "He deserved to be hacked to death. He tried to harass Sunny after drinking a little."

William glanced at the indignant old man and thought:

I wonder if this behavior would be considered excessive self-defense in Austria?

Upon seeing the stranger, the police tried to question him, but William secretly cast a Confusion Charm to get rid of him.

The carriage continued its journey, passing through the town and heading towards a hillside.

Soon, a black castle came into view.

Grindelwald's aesthetic sense is quite good; the castle is filled with cool colors, giving it a striking and austere feel.

Above the entrance, there is a German phrase: Für das hhere Wohl!

"For the greater good," William murmured.

He suddenly remembered that every time he entered a time loop, Dumbledore would say to him, "For a greater purpose."

The carriage stopped at the castle gate, but no Aurors appeared.

"Isn't anyone guarding it?" Hermione asked, looking around.

Missandei took out parchment and a quill, and quickly wrote something on it while explaining:

"The only Aurors guarding this place are outside the castle, but not to keep Grindelwald under guard. They're there to prevent Muggles from accidentally getting lost and wandering into this area."

The Muggle banishment spell isn't always effective; occasionally, Muggles will get lost and wander in.

Hermione exclaimed incredulously, "Grindelwald is imprisoned here, such a dangerous dark wizard, and there aren't a lot of Aurors guarding him?"

Missandei said calmly:

"There's no need for that. Back then, there was a witch named Vida Rozier who led a group of cultists to break into the prison."

Grindelwald did not leave and remained there.

From then on, everyone knew that he really wouldn't leave that prison.

"Who brings him food?"

"The Ministry of Magic provides him with meals, and I come here occasionally too," Missandei said matter-of-factly.

"There's no one here now. The Aurors have probably gone to eat. They sometimes leave their posts without permission."

Missandei quickly finished writing the note and stuck it on the carriage.

William and Hermione peeked out... Wow, good heavens!

It reads:

I brought a wizard to visit you in prison. Since you are not here, I parked the carriage at the gate. Please do not impound the carriage, otherwise your staff will be held accountable.

William was speechless.

This is similar to the idea of ​​not allowing traffic police to issue tickets... I've learned something new.

Pushing open the black gate, William was the first to enter the long-neglected castle.

All around was darkness, and then the three wands lit up.

Missandei had indeed been here many times, and she warned, "Watch out ahead, there's a gap in the floor in the center of the hall."

"What's this for?" Hermione asked curiously.

Missandei explained, "For a long time before Grindelwald fell, there were flames burning down here."

"Fire? Inside this castle?"

"Yes." Missandei nodded.

"To be precise, it's more like a great torch—an eternal flame—burning in the underground cave below, symbolizing light spreading to all corners of the world."

Later, Grindelwald was defeated, and the flames were finally extinguished.

William thought about it and realized that Grindelwald was also a person who valued rituals.

As the three of them climbed higher, the air gradually became heavy, and the ventilation equipment seemed to be completely ineffective.

William found it hard to imagine that someone could survive here for more than half a century, especially since that person was once the Dark Lord.

What kind of power could make him draw a circle around himself and imprison himself?

They continued walking, their footsteps echoing strangely and unevenly in the long corridor.

There were doors in the corridor, some closed, many ajar. All the rooms were abandoned and no longer in use.

"This is where Grindelwald imprisons wizards," Missandei said.

The three of them seemed to be walking along the long river of history, and the relics here told the story of a history that had been buried.

Finally, Missandei stopped at the door of the highest room. The door had a number, but it had faded and was almost unrecognizable.

William straightened his clothes. He had already prepared his opening lines and the message Dumbledore had asked him to convey.

This is a historic meeting!

When William pushed open the door and went in, he looked straight ahead, but in the blink of an eye, his expression froze and his feet were firmly rooted to the spot.

Something is very wrong.

The cell was empty; only the sound of the Danube River flowing could be heard.

……

……

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(End of this chapter)