Chapter 22: Shifting the Blame
"What big trouble could we possibly get into?" Tom asked, puzzled.
"Tom, it's not unusual for criminals to commit organized crimes... and a single kidnapper's hideout wouldn't accumulate so much wealth," Theo explained.
"You mean, that kidnapper's hideout was just part of a criminal organization, and the gold we took was funds deposited there by a criminal organization?" Tom began to understand.
"If that were all, it wouldn't be the worst," Theo frowned. "Think about it, wouldn't someone who can guard such a large sum of money be a very important person in their organization? And we drove someone who might be very important to them crazy..."
"It's my fault... I should have thought of this earlier, I should have done it cleaner!" Theo seemed a little annoyed.
Tom couldn't help but nod. "Thinking about it that way, we've indeed made a big enemy." Then he shook his head. "But what does it matter? How would they know it was us?"
Theo sighed. "Did you forget the children we released? As long as they find those children, they can definitely get our information from them..."
"With our physical descriptions, they can find out where we came from by asking other passersby..."
"A criminal organization that can accumulate so much wealth definitely has that ability."
"Sigh... I shouldn't have said a single word to those kidnapped children... no, I shouldn't have even let them see us!" Theo, doing this kind of black-eat-black thing for the first time, was indeed very inexperienced.
Tom said disdainfully, "No matter how powerful they are, they're just Muggles. We're wizards, are we afraid of those Muggles causing trouble?"
In Tom's eyes, these Muggles, who couldn't even withstand a "basic attack" from him, couldn't pose any threat to him no matter how many of them there were. He didn't understand why Theo and Dumbledore thought this was serious.
"Tom, we might not be afraid, but what about Mrs. Cole and the other children in Wool's Orphanage? Those people will find this place sooner or later. Think about what will happen if they can't find us?" Theo stared at Tom. "This is our mistake, we can't completely ignore their lives! Let them bear the consequences for us."
Tom was speechless. In fact, he really wanted to nod and say he didn't care about the lives of the others in the orphanage at all. However, as his mentality changed imperceptibly, Tom's cold heart seemed to be lit up by a glimmer of light by Theo. So, he couldn't say such ruthless words that had nothing to do with him.
"Then... then we just need to catch those guys before they do anything..." Tom mumbled after a long hesitation.
Theo quickly rejected Tom's idea. "Even if we have the ability to bring them to justice, we can't accurately find these people."
"If even one slips through the net, it will be an endless source of trouble."
"Besides, even if we put them in jail, they're so rich that they can definitely reduce their sentence as much as possible."
"After they're released... do you think they'll come back for revenge?"
Tom snorted. "Then we'll just kill them all!"
"That's not a good idea, Tom. We can't kill everyone who offends us!" Theo said, glancing at Dumbledore without showing any sign.
Although he also thought it would be best to kill all these guys, after all, their hands were stained with blood. But how could he say such a thing directly in front of Dumbledore? Wouldn't that arouse Dumbledore's suspicion?
Tom, you silly child! You're still too young!
At this time, Dumbledore had been quietly observing their conversation for a while. In his opinion, both Theo and Tom were very intelligent and decisive children. And these two seemed to have completely opposite personalities. The kind-hearted Theo and the indifferent Tom...
Dumbledore was most worried about Tom. He knew this child's personality very well. He couldn't predict what kind of terrifying person such an indifferent and power-hungry child would become when he grew up.
But now, Dumbledore was pleased to find that under Theo's influence, Tom, this solitary and indifferent child, had begun to have a glimmer of humanity in his heart! This discovery made Dumbledore very happy and also filled him with expectations for Theo. He hoped that Theo's existence could guide Tom back on the right track.
To take a step back, if Tom did lose control one day, then Theo would definitely be able to subdue him...
Theo didn't know what Dumbledore was thinking at this time. He was just thinking about how to solve the big trouble he had caused.
"Professor... do you have any way to keep the others in Wool's Orphanage safe?" Theo turned to Dumbledore and asked. He believed that since Dumbledore had come, he must have a solution. Because Dumbledore was always a person who planned ahead.
"We just need to shift the blame." Sure enough, Dumbledore didn't disappoint Theo.
"You told the rescued children that those kidnappers were caught by the adults in your family, right?"
"Yes, there were only two of us at the time, it wasn't easy to explain to them... so I just casually said that the criminals were subdued by the adults in my family," Theo nodded.
"Well... that's right. Since you told those children this information, they can definitely know this." Dumbledore said leisurely, "In this orphanage, what adults can easily subdue those fierce kidnappers? It can't be Mrs. Cole, can it?"
Theo suddenly realized, "So, as long as we have nothing to do with the orphanage from beginning to end, they won't suspect the orphanage at all, because the orphanage doesn't have that ability..."
"They will only suspect that we are members of another black-eat-black criminal organization, and the so-called clues that lead to the orphanage must be fake clues."
"As long as we fabricate some traces of this fake organization and let them find them, diverting their attention, then the orphanage will be safe."
"That's right, that's the logic." Dumbledore clapped his hands and smiled.
Tom frowned. "But we are from the orphanage... how can we completely erase our traces in the orphanage?"
"Leave this to me, Tom," Dumbledore smiled. "We are wizards, aren't we? The magic is so magical that it can easily turn something rotten into something magical..."
Theo suddenly seemed to think of something, "Professor, after our traces in the orphanage are completely erased, Mrs. Cole and the others, will they completely forget us?"
Dumbledore sighed. "Unfortunately, Theo. I have to do this. Of course, if you don't want to, I can think of other ways."
Before Theo could speak, Tom waved his hand repeatedly. "I don't know what Theo thinks, but I don't mind at all. Anyway... in Mrs. Cole's eyes, I'm just a trouble... a disaster. It's a real good thing for them if they don't remember me..."
Dumbledore took a deep look at Tom, then looked at Theo again.
"I have no objection either. Anyway, even if she doesn't remember me, I won't forget her kindness to me..." Theo was also very straightforward.
In fact, Theo had been in this world for less than a month in total. Although he was indeed very grateful to Mrs. Cole for not letting him wander the streets, it would be hypocritical to say that he would miss this place because of this.
"Okay, then let's do it. You pack your things now. Someone will come to pick you up at dawn... I have to make some preparations first."
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(End of this chapter)