"Let me see."
Andy took the newspaper and read it quickly.
It happened yesterday afternoon. A group of Death Eaters showed up in Diagon Alley without much fanfare and attacked the surrounding shops.
After receiving the news, the Ministry of Magic immediately dispatched Aurors and Hit Wizards teams for support. A full-scale battle broke out in Diagon Alley.
At first, the two sides were evenly matched, and neither side managed to get the upper hand.
However, as the battle continued, Voldemort appeared unexpectedly with another group of Death Eaters. Under Voldemort's relentless attack, the Ministry of Magic side was almost instantly defeated, and many people were killed.
According to the Daily Prophet newspaper's statistics, including those killed and those captured, the Ministry of Magic lost almost a tenth of its armed forces in this battle.
But the strange thing was, Dumbledore never showed up.
Because of this, conspiracy theories instantly swept through the entire British wizarding community under the pen of some unscrupulous reporters.
These people are good at creating a good rhythm.
Even Andy, who knew the inside story, couldn't help but wonder if Dumbledore had an ulterior motive.
Are you letting Voldemort expand to keep the status quo the same?
Allowing your enemy to build up his forces while ignoring your dwindling ally?
They aren't wrong. When you look at the whole thing, it does seem a bit like allowing the enemy to build up his forces while ignoring the dwindling ally.
The British wizarding world cannot cope without Dumbledore!
After reading the newspaper, Hermione's face looked slightly grave. "Andy, Professor Dumbledore... is he really not at school?"
Andy turned to look at Hermione; his expression was a little strange.
Even Hermione is doubting Dumbledore?
"The professor is indeed not here..."
Andy explained, "There's been some trouble on the other side of the continent, and if it's not handled properly, the impact could be a hundred times greater than Voldemort."
"What trouble?" Hermione's eyes widened.
In the young witch's opinion, Voldemort was already the terrifying Demon King who could be featured in myths and stories, so there was no way anything could be a hundred times more threatening than Voldemort.
"Hm..."
Andy hesitated for a moment, then used a silencing charm to block the sound before explaining, "Grindelwald escaped from prison."
"Grindelwald—"
Hermione exclaimed, then lowered her voice, "Grindelwald escaped from prison? Andy...you call this a trivial matter?"
"Mm-hm!" Andy shrugged.
In a way, Grindelwald and Voldemort wanted to do the same thing.
They both wanted to take control of the wizarding world and rule over the Muggles.
The only difference between them is that Grindelwald was more far-sighted. He would use political means, win over people's loyalty, and even run for the Chairman (Supreme Mugwump) position of the International Confederation of Wizards.
In comparison, Voldemort is just a terrorist.
He couldn't even be considered a 'rebel'.
"This is big trouble..."
Hermione said with a grave expression on her face, "If Grindelwald and the You-Know-Who join forces and attack both the European and British wizarding communities at the same time, we..."
Just then, Hermione paused and glanced at Andy.
Although they also had two people on their side, Andy could not provide support to the Ministry of Magic at any time because he is still a student.
"Erm... Grindelwald is different from Voldemort."
Andy patted Hermione's hand and said, "I think there are only two things Grindelwald wants to do right now."
"First, to force Dumbledore back to Hogwarts."
"Second, to whitewash his name!"
"There is no doubt that he has already achieved the first thing. After Voldemort attacked Diagon Alley, Dumbledore would no longer be able to simply leave the British wizarding community."
"So next, he will definitely find a way to whitewash his name."
Andy had a hard time anticipating Voldemort's plans because Voldemort's brain was not functioning normally. However, Andy did have some understanding of Grindelwald.
Grindelwald was not a true Dark Lord.
While he was a dark wizard, he was also a politician.
If Grindelwald wanted to achieve his ideals, he absolutely needed an upright identity to openly appear in the world.
"Do you mean whitewashing his crimes!?"
Hermione couldn't believe her ears. "How is that possible? I know all about Grindelwald's crimes. If I had been a Wizengamot member at that time, I would have sentenced him to receive the Dementor's Kiss."
Andy nodded slightly.
That's true...on the dot!
Andy decided to pass on Hermione's words to Grindelwald exactly as he had heard them. He would try to get Hermione to judge Grindelwald herself if he failed again.
"I've always had a nagging doubt."
Hermione asked, "After Grindelwald was apprehended, why was he only sentenced to life imprisonment?"
Andy spread his hands and said, "Because Grindelwald had too many followers. Unlike Voldemort, if he got sentenced to death, it would likely cause major chaos."
Hermione frowned, obviously finding it hard to accept this reason.
"Andy… Do you think Grindelwald can clear his name?"
Hermione looked at Andy and asked with a frown, "Although I don't think it's possible, the Grindelwald you mentioned seems to be different from the one I know."
"Well..."
Andy pondered for a moment and explained, "I can't say for sure. There are always a few particularly corrupt Ministry officials, and maybe someone has already sided with Grindelwald."
Hermione's expression didn't look good.
There had been a large-scale attack in Diagon Alley, so Dumbledore would inevitably have to return to the British wizarding community to preside over things.
And once Dumbledore returned, no one would be able to restrain Grindelwald.
But Voldemort also couldn't just stand by.
"Andy..."
Hermione suddenly thought of something. "Logically, Professor Dumbledore must have left the Ministry of Magic an emergency contact method when he went to Europe to search and track down Grindelwald, right?"
"The professor has a phoenix... If Voldemort attacks, the professor can always come back to the rescue."
"But..."
"Could it be that the professor has run into some trouble?"
The young witch looked worried.
"It has to be!"
Andy nodded. "Grindelwald is both friend and foe to Dumbledore. He is the one who knows Dumbledore best. It shouldn't be hard for Grindelwald to set a trap for Dumbledore."
Andy had figured out many things by now.
There was no doubt that this was the first time Grindelwald and Voldemort had collaborated.
Grindelwald had held back Dumbledore.
And Voldemort had attacked Diagon Alley.
In this series of developments, there was only one real beneficiary.
That was Grindelwald!
Because he had got rid of Dumbledore and put Dumbledore under enormous public pressure.
Then what about Voldemort?
On the surface, Voldemort has won the battle at Diagon Alley and has also caused the Ministry of Magic to incur huge losses.
But Dumbledore has returned!
Once Dumbledore returns, the British wizarding world will return to the previous situation – Voldemort will be restrained and unable to cause any trouble.
And Voldemort will also face a calm (angry) Dumbledore.
Andy could already predict that the returned Dumbledore will definitely do whatever it takes to deal with Voldemort as soon as possible.
What can you say, Voldemort's thought process is not quite normal.
Dumbledore has left!
He's gone!
But Voldemort has chosen to bring him back.
He really can't stand the thought of being separated for even a day!
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