HP: Azkaban's Outstanding Graduate

The newspaper also included a blurry but striking photo: Sagres standing in the foyer, with a stretcher covered in a shroud being carried away in the background.

Fudge also subtly inquired whether Sagres was interested in the Sir Merlin Medal, but Sagres simply pretended not to understand.

Fudge then said he would immediately remove all the Dementors, and this time Sagrais glanced at him.

Deep within Hogwarts Castle, in the dark and damp pipe system, a mouse missing a toe huddled shivering behind a cold water pipe.

Just a few days ago, when the young wizards went to Hogsmeade for a holiday, Peter Pettigrew meticulously arranged his "death" scene: he casually added some blood and plucked a tuft of hair to create the illusion that he had been brutally murdered.

He originally intended to frame Hermione Granger's cat, but to his surprise, Black actually broke into the Gryffindor Tower that night!

At that moment, he was almost overjoyed, thinking that even Merlin was looking out for him.

Without hesitation, it abandoned its warm dormitory and stable food source, and, in its Animagus form, like a real rat, hid in the castle's intricate pipe system.

Just to be on the safe side, he even slipped out of the castle and hid for two days in a pile of damp, rotting leaves at the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

A few days ago, Blake's insane act of breaking into the castle, along with the terrifying magical fluctuations that followed and the chilling aura emanating from the Dementors, nearly annihilated it.

It lived in constant fear, only daring to sneak out in the dead of night to carefully nibble on the scraps of food it could find.

During this time, every nerve in its body was taut, its ears perked up at all times, alert to any disturbance.

It feared Blake's reckless madness, but even more so the powerful Greengrass.

However, when the latest copy of the Daily Prophet was used as bedding by a house-elf and thrown into a corner of the kitchen, and then blown by the wind to the entrance of an abandoned pipe, Scabbers keenly sensed the breath of freedom.

Hunger and the long-accumulated lack of information finally overcame the remaining fear, driving it to cautiously approach.

It saw it through the faint light filtering through the gaps in the pipe.

The huge headline on the front page struck it like lightning!

Sirius Black... is dead!

Banban's heart was practically leaping out of his chest, if a mouse's heart could beat that violently.

It read the report greedily, word by word, especially the part where Fudge personally confirmed the death and that the body was taken away by the Ministry of Magic.

ecstasy!

what!

A feeling of immense joy, like a drowning person finally grabbing onto a piece of driftwood, instantly filled the small body!

My nerves, which had been tense for months, finally relaxed completely at this moment.

That heavy sense of fear finally dissipated!

"He's dead... He's really dead! He was killed! The Ministry of Magic took his body! Hahahaha!"

Its small eyes gleamed with unbelievable excitement, and a cruel smile appeared in the dark pipe. "The greatest threat is gone! No one will know my secret anymore! No one will be able to identify me anymore!"

It excitedly spun around a few times, its small body trembling slightly with excitement.

Chapter 220 Undercurrents

Looking at the magnificent castle again, Banban's eyes were no longer filled with fear, but instead gleamed with greed and calculation.

“Greengrass, I’m so grateful to you!”

"The Dementors have left, and the weekend is almost here at Hogsmeade... That silly Weasley boy will definitely be at Honeydukes... At that point, a 'lost' and 'luckily' found pet won't attract much attention..."

Its little head was racing, calculating, "Back to Ron's side...back to being Scabbers...a mouse in the Ministry of Magic official's house...what a perfect cover! I can hear all sorts of news...waiting for my master to come back..."

The immense joy of confirming safety, along with the desire for a stable food supply and valuable intelligence, completely overwhelmed any remaining caution it might have had.

It couldn't wait to get back to its warm dorm, enjoy double the bacon, and then drift off to sleep to Ron's snoring.

These days he has been living in fear and hardship, enduring wind and rain, which is a far cry from the comfortable life he had enjoyed for the past ten years.

After giving the newspaper that brought the "good news" one last glance, Scabbers turned around without hesitation and, following the familiar path, with light and even somewhat smug steps, sneaked back towards the Gryffindor Tower.

He planned to stay near the tower, find an excellent hiding place, and wait for the perfect opportunity to return.

"It's time to 'go home'."

As it thought this, the stray toe's claw made a faint sound as it stepped on the cold stone and disappeared into the dark depths of the pipe.

……

Minister Fudge's smugness hadn't even cooled down when a bolt from the blue came from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement—the body of Sirius Black, which was being kept under strict guard in a special morgue awaiting "final disposal," had vanished!

The Auror guarding the body swore that no one had entered or left, and that the protective magic had not been triggered, but the "corpse" covered with a shroud seemed to have evaporated into thin air, leaving only a cold stone platform.

Fudge was having afternoon tea when he heard the report.

The porcelain cup in his hand fell to the ground with a "clatter" and shattered, splashing hot tea all over his trouser leg.

"Wh...what?! Missing?!"

Fudge's face instantly turned from rosy to deathly pale, and large beads of sweat seeped from his forehead.

He frantically pulled off his hat, his fat fingers unconsciously tightening around the brim, a multitude of terrifying thoughts flashing through his mind:

Black isn't dead? Did someone dare to steal the body? Or is there a traitor within the Ministry of Magic?

Either way, it means that his "major victory" and "restoration of peace to the wizarding world," which he had just boasted about in the Daily Prophet, are about to become a huge joke.

His political reputation could even plummet as a result.

After a brief moment of panic, a ruthless glint flashed in Fudge's eyes.

He slammed his alchemical prosthetic leg on the table and gave orders to the Auror office director who had come to report: "Block the news! Immediately! Right now! Keep this a secret! Absolutely no leaks! Especially not a single word from Dumbledore or that Greengrass!"

He was breathing heavily, pacing anxiously back and forth in the office like a trapped beast.

“Listen,” he stopped, lowered his voice, and gave an unquestionable, commanding tone, “The official story is this: Black’s body has been completely incinerated by the Ministry of Magic, reduced to ashes! Not a single trace remains! Understand? This is top secret!”

As he spoke, he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and chin with a handkerchief, as if he had regained control of the situation: "All those who know about this, including you, Scrimgeour, immediately sign a silence pact and go to the memory erasure room to forget this matter completely."

He paused, a cunning glint returning to his cloudy eyes: "Also, inform Barnabas... tomorrow's front page must be filled with news of Gilderoy Lockhart's arrest and imprisonment. Describe his disheveled state upon arrest—crying, begging, his robes stained—in vivid detail! Give it the biggest headline: 'The Hero's Halo Shattered, the Mask of Deception Torn Off.' Furthermore,"

Fudge spoke rapidly, his thoughts exceptionally clear. "Didn't St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Injuries and Illnesses just get a new director? That...that person...yes, whatever her name is! Add this news item to my head: 'St. Mungo Welcomes Reform, Senior Healer Takes Over as Director.' Use these 'exciting' good news items to divert public attention from the Black affair. Get it done right now!"

Rufus Scrimgeour, the Auror's chief of staff, had a dark expression throughout, his lips pressed into a sharp line. After hearing the order, he turned and left without saying a word.

Fudge slumped back into the large executive chair, as if his spine had been removed. He wiped away a cold sweat again, his eyes darting around.

He had to cover up the fact that "Blake's body had disappeared," even if it meant telling an even bigger lie.

……

The afternoon sun lazily streamed through the window, casting warm dappled light into the ward.

Madam Pomfrey had just finished examining Harry and was pleased to announce that he was recovering quite well.

There has been a constant stream of good news these past few days, but the most exciting news is that Sirius Black has finally been captured, or more precisely, killed.

The traitor who betrayed his parents and made him an orphan... is finally dead! He was personally killed by Professor Greengrass.

Harry thought with some regret that he hadn't been able to witness that moment in person.

Strangely enough, he had never actually met this enemy who carried such a deep-seated blood feud.

My impression of Blake comes almost entirely from the crazed face on the wanted poster and the cold, covered corpse in black cloth that appeared in the Daily Prophet a few days earlier.

Oh, and there's also the photo Hagrid gave him of his parents, but Sirius in that photo looks completely different from the one on the wanted poster.

Not being able to see that face with his own eyes, not being able to witness the end of that hatred, Harry felt a strange sense of loss.

Several days have passed since the news of Blake's death broke, and the initial euphoria of revenge has gradually subsided.

His most pressing thought now is to leave this hospital bed and return to the vibrant life in the castle.

Harry had no idea that the "corpse" in the newspaper photo had mysteriously disappeared, and that Minister of Magic Fudge was in a terrible predicament, busy weaving one lie after another to cover up the truth.

Just then, the ward door was pushed open with a bang, and Ron rushed in, his face beaming with barely suppressed excitement, waving a brand-new copy of the Daily Prophet high in his hand.

"Harry! Harry! Look! Big news! Another big news!" Ron's voice rose with excitement.

Harry was startled and took the newspaper, still smelling of ink. The huge headline on the front page immediately caught his eye:

[The former hero has been caught; the mask of deception has finally been torn off!]

"What is this...?" Harry didn't react for a moment.

“Lockhart!” Ron blurted out, grinning with obvious schadenfreude. “All his adventure stories are stolen! He’s a complete fraud.”

"Arrested? How did the Ministry of Magic find out?"

“It was a therapist at St. Mungo’s Hospital who found her. Oh, and her name is in the newspaper,” Ron said quietly, pointing to the newspaper. “She’s the one who cured Neville’s parents last time. I think she’s going to become the director of St. Mungo’s Hospital.”

“Oh, I see,” Harry thought, his mind flashing back to Lockhart’s flamboyant words and actions, and his flashy but impractical teaching. Then he suddenly realized, “Right, where’s Hermione?”

“She’s in class,” Ron shrugged. “She’s crazy, she won’t rest for a second, but she said she’ll come see you after class.”

Harry nodded. "Those Dementors around the school... they've all left, right?"

Harry asked again, which was one of his biggest concerns.

"They've cleared everything out already!" Ron confirmed happily. "The air is so much fresher now."

Harry's thoughts immediately drifted to his Nimbus 2000, and his mood involuntarily darkened.

He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Malfoy, he..."

“Uh…” Ron’s expression became somewhat subtle. “He seems to be… well, not very popular in Slytherin lately.”

He lowered his voice slightly, "Ever since he saved you on the Quidditch pitch, the Slytherins have been treating him like he violated the 'House Doctrine' or something, and they haven't been very friendly towards him."

Harry remained silent for a moment, his feelings complicated.

“But Malfoy obviously didn’t take it to heart at all,” Ron said, his tone shifting to one of amusement. “Not only that, he took the opportunity to challenge several guys who were mocking him. To be honest, he’s definitely different from before, isn’t he?”

“Yeah, I think so too, but I’ll have to step up my game,” Harry smiled again, a glint of light in his eyes, “otherwise, his dueling points might surpass mine.”

"By the way, did I tell you that?"

Ron suddenly remembered something, and with a proud look on his face, he pulled something out of his pocket. "Look! I passed the advanced duel test too!"

He held up the brand-new badge in his hand, its intricate patterns gleaming silver in the sunlight.

The ward was immediately filled with the excited chatter and laughter of the two boys.