"Ireland scores their sixth goal… Ireland scores their seventh goal… Yes! Cheer, Ireland scores their eighth goal! Ireland is leading 130 to 10 points. Does Bulgaria still have a chance?"
Ludo Bagman's hoarse shouts echoed continuously. Barty Crouch Jr. waited another ten minutes in the darkness before finally, reluctantly, confirming—
The plan had truly gone awry. The operation to use the cursed giant trees to assault the stadium, create chaos, and abduct Harry Potter had to be declared a failure.
Barty Jr. angrily and confusedly pondered the reason for the failure.
The Ministry of Magic had no reason to discover his perfect plan; Barty Jr. knew very well their perfunctory and lazy work ethic.
Moreover, he had checked the forest that afternoon and confirmed that all the giant trees were intact and ready to be awakened at any moment.
Could there be an issue with the spell I used to awaken them? Or was there some protective charm used near the stadium that prevented the trees in the forest from receiving the signal?
The worst-case scenario is that Dumbledore discovered the problem… but such a short time shouldn't be enough for him to undo all the spells!
And Dumbledore couldn't have too many helpers, because Barty Jr. noticed in the box that Dumbledore's followers were keeping an eye on the Death Eaters who had exposed their identities.
This included the box Barty Jr. had been in earlier; several Weasleys were consistently, subtly watching the Malfoy family. Their looks were certainly not benevolent, nor were they simply disdainful.
That vigilance and subtle guard… it was like Aurors watching Dark Wizards preparing for a transaction.
Barty Jr.'s heart stirred slightly.
—Could it be that those traitors wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to do something, but Dumbledore's people discovered it beforehand?
If that's the case… it might also be an opportunity…
As Barty Jr. pondered, he cast a cold glance at the box door behind him, then turned and went down the stairs.
He needed to first confirm what had gone wrong with the giant trees he had painstakingly awakened.
Ten minutes later, Barty Jr. stood at the forest's edge, looking at the massive wound on the ground. His face was pale, his body trembled, and his heart burned with rage, yet he couldn't help but feel fear.
He tightened his Invisibility Cloak, carefully avoided the burning remnants of tree roots, bypassed the dark, Magic-created swamp, and followed the fan-shaped charred marks forward.
The ashes underfoot were thick and soft; his feet sank in with almost no resistance, and his shoelaces were already covered in dust.
There were no trees, no weeds, no insects crawling around, only a vast expanse of white ash, still gently falling even now.
Barty Crouch Jr. squatted down and brushed aside some ash with his hand, discovering vitreous glaze marks on the ground beneath. This made him feel even colder.
Who was it?
What kind of Magic was that?
Could it be Dumbledore…?
Barty Jr. shook his head.
This wasn't Dumbledore's style, and he wasn't willing to believe that possibility.
Then, Barty Jr. thought of another Dark Wizard as renowned as Dumbledore—Grindelwald.
Though that old man had never been active in Britain, what if…?
A scene flashed through Barty Jr.'s mind: Grindelwald Apparating into this camp, whether he intended to watch the match or do something else, when suddenly a large group of giant trees came thundering towards him from the forest.
Grindelwald would naturally take this as an attack and provocation, immediately use an incredibly powerful spell to burn the entire forest to a barren wasteland, and then leave.
If this was Grindelwald's doing… then Grindelwald's power far exceeded the master's estimation.
But a Dark Wizard nearing death was easier to deal with than an unknown enemy. Moreover, Grindelwald might not be able to withstand the physical toll of casting such Magic; perhaps he had already returned to his lair to recuperate.
Barty Jr. mused: If my conjecture is true, then the plan to abduct Harry Potter still has a chance of success…
The Wizard left the forest, clearing away any traces of his presence as he went.
An invisible breeze swept up the ashes from the ground; when they settled again, they completely covered the footprints.
...
After the Alliance members Apparated away from the camp, Grindelwald remained.
"Wade, fancy a walk with me?" he said.
Drayne and Antoine understood his meaning. They slowed their pace, creating distance. Wade even heard Antoine grumbling about wanting to watch the match.
Then, the old and young walked side by side through the camp.
Though the night was dark, large and small lanterns hung in places along the roadsides, constantly lengthening and shortening their shadows.
"Tell me, Wade," Grindelwald said in a relatively calm tone, "how do you feel after successfully casting that Spell?"
Wade was silent for a moment, then said, "…I think I understand now why arrogance is the first of the Seven Deadly Sins."
Possessing the power to overturn order makes it difficult not to become arrogant and blind, to view others as tools or even insignificant, and to rationalize one's own plunder, bullying, and oppression as the law of "survival of the fittest."
At this, Grindelwald scoffed.
"Child, I don't deny that Dumbledore taught you many useful things, but you've also inevitably been infected by some of his ridiculous flaws."
"You are too passive, Wade Grey!"
"This world, whether there's war or not, is a cruel battlefield. Life-and-death struggles are everywhere! Perhaps fear doesn't equate to power, but—"
"To shackle your own power, to fear your own ambition, to not dare to grasp power?"
"Do you know what that's called? It's foolish self-deception! Hypocrisy, childishness, indecisiveness!"
"You even believe a bunch of idiots can maintain world peace, fantasizing that the corrupt and incompetent Ministry of Magic can deliver fairness and justice, rather than making the right decisions!"
"When you can make your enemies disappear from the face of the earth with a flick of your wand, why would you tolerate a bunch of clowns stepping all over you?"
Wade had been listening with his head bowed, feeling a vague sense of unease, but the more he listened, the more something felt off. He kept feeling like Grindelwald wasn't just scolding him... or at least, not only him.
His heart suddenly skipped a beat, and his throat tightened. Could Dumbledore be nearby?
Wade instinctively glanced around, but all he saw were tents of varying heights.
"You must remember—"
Grindelwald suddenly stopped, turned to face Wade, and said in a deep voice, "Silence can be a strategy, but never a habit! Otherwise, even if you possess the greatest power in the world, you'll be nothing more than a clay puppet, shackled and manipulated by others!"
He stared into Wade's eyes, his gaze flickering as if he were also looking elsewhere.
"You know my expectations for you, Wade, but remember my words—don't let your morality become a shroud for your companions!"
-----------
Machine Translation by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
Read ***+ original & fanfic translations in English, Español, Português, Deutsch, Français, or Русский
Or Translate for free at : https:// randomtranslator.com/translate
Join our Discord: https:// discord.com/invite/XXUR9nkjwa
-----------