"A Secret-Keeper? A magical agreement?"

Just then, an abrupt voice cut in.

Cornelius Fudge and the others looked up to see Sirius Black suddenly standing up.

He scratched his messy black hair in distress, gave a wry smile, and walked towards the door, stepping past the group.

"In that case, I'd rather not listen. Professor Dumbledore, just tell me the result directly—"

As a member of the Order of the Phoenix, Sirius knew very well how cautious Albus Dumbledore was in these matters. If the old wizard believed "that secret" was important enough to warrant signing a magical agreement, and even using a "Memory Charm" as insurance in the exit mechanism, it was certainly no ordinary matter.

And the best way to keep a secret is to not know it.

"A secret, is it? I'm not that interested anyway—"

Professor Sprout shrugged, glancing strangely at the little witch she had originally intended to protect.

From the current situation, if it weren't for Dumbledore smoothing things over, the Ministry officials might be the vulnerable ones in need of protection.

As for what secret Elena was hiding, Professor Sprout wasn't too curious. Hufflepuff students could be said to have the most secrets and be the most eccentric. If she had to pay attention to every little wizard's secret, she wouldn't have time for anything else.

More importantly, it was clearly dinner time, why were there so many little ones outside watching the commotion?

As the head of Hufflepuff House, she had to go out and deal with those children who were wandering around during meal times.

"Like Sirius, if it's a secret, the fewer people who know, the better—"

"Then, Minister, shall Dorcas and I stand guard outside?"

"Yes, if anything happens, we'll rush in immediately!"

Along with Professor Sprout and Sirius Black's expressions, Professor Lupin, Kingsley, and Dorcas Meadowes also stood up and headed out the door.

Hermione, as a "witness," also left the room with Sprout and the others at Professor McGonagall's signal. In the eyes of most professors and off-campus visitors, the little witch's presence was almost non-existent; some people didn't even notice she was there until she left.

"Whew..."

Walking out of the tense office, Hermione exhaled softly.

She must have been crazy to actually listen to that white-haired furball's incitement to attack a full professor.

Even with the Illusion Charm and smoke screen, and even though she used Elena's wand for her "crime," she still felt an almost suffocating tension when she saw the group of professors gathered in the office—not to mention all the important people who arrived later.

But...

Hermione's relief quickly turned to worry as she anxiously looked at the closed door.

"That white-haired furball, she's really gone too far this time. The Ministry and the school board probably won't let her off easily—"

Meanwhile.

Hogwarts Headmaster's Office.

With the office door closed again, a strange silence temporarily fell over the room.

"Alright, alright," Cornelius Fudge said, looking around. He regained his confident demeanor, "Professor Dumbledore, can you tell us the reason now? What's so special about this little girl that she dares to provoke the Ministry three times?"

Obviously, with Sirius and the others gone, the "Dumbledore camp" in the office had visibly weakened.

Apart from Minerva McGonagall and the unfathomable "Apocalypse" professor, almost everyone else was a staunch ally of Cornelius Fudge. Plus, with the two elite Aurors guarding the door, the difference in numbers between the two sides was more than three or four times.

This undoubtedly greatly boosted Cornelius Fudge's confidence. Now, the situation in the office was completely under the Ministry's control.

"According to my information, she's from a Muggle orphanage in the Scottish Highlands, is that right?"

Lucius Malfoy said slowly, coldly glancing down at Elena, a mocking smile on his lips.

"Unless her real last name is 'Dumbledore,' I really don't understand which wizarding family's child could receive such extraordinary attention from you. Of course, judging from past history, you've always had a great deal of affection for orphans..."

"Obviously, she is not a 'Dumbledore,' Mr. Malfoy."

Dumbledore said softly, his gaze fixed on Fudge. After pausing for two seconds, he said in a deep voice.

"Elena Kaslana is merely her name at the Muggle orphanage. In the wizarding world, she has a relative still alive—I only learned of this last year. I think you should have heard of her grandfather's name, Gellert Grindelwald."

"The dark wizard you defeated decades ago? Is this information reliable?"

Amelia Bones, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, pushed up her glasses, her expression turning serious.

"Very reliable. This is not some rumor circulating in the streets—"

Dumbledore sighed, his gaze sweeping over a certain onlooker, and shrugged helplessly.

"Last year, when I went to Nurmengard Castle, Gellert Grindelwald personally acknowledged Miss Kaslana's identity."

"Grindelwald? A doddering, washed-up dark wizard—"

Umbridge raised her eyebrows, sneering dismissively, her contempt and ridicule undisguised.

"Besides, if I'm not mistaken, that dark wizard should still be locked up in Nurmengard Castle. I'm sorry, Professor Dumbledore, I really don't understand why a descendant of a dark wizard deserves special privileges... In fact, in my opinion, this rotten seed shouldn't have been allowed into the school in the first place. Now is the perfect opportunity to correct the mistake, snap her wand, and lock her up with her grandfather."

Lock... lock them up together?

Dumbledore's lips twitched, as if recalling some unbearable past events.

If fate allowed him to choose again, Dumbledore would never have carelessly sent Elena to Nurmengard Castle to save time.

And the most outrageous thing was that, now, both emotionally and legally, Grindelwald had really become that little girl's elder?!

"Indeed, Professor Dumbledore, regardless of what 'compassionate' promises you may have made to that dark wizard."

Cornelius Fudge's expression became relaxed. He twirled his top hat in his hand and said smoothly.

"You see... as Minister of Magic, my position is difficult—we never compromise with dark wizards. If she's done something wrong, she must be punished accordingly. And considering her family genes—I mean, her family history—perhaps we need to be even more cautious and strict..."

"I agree with the Minister. The Hogwarts Board of Governors exists to ensure objectivity and fairness."

Lucius Malfoy glanced at Elena meaningfully and said softly, indifferently.

"Frankly, I don't think there's any need to keep this a secret."

At the same time, Professor McGonagall, though she hadn't spoken, also looked at Dumbledore with a puzzled expression.

Clearly, in the eyes of most people, Grindelwald was too far removed from this era, so far that his name wasn't even as well-known as Peter Pettigrew, a Death Eater—another reason, of course, was that Grindelwald's power never extended to Britain at its peak.

"Ah, from the Chocolate Frog cards, that's certainly an understandable interpretation."

Dumbledore nodded gently, took off his glasses from his nose, and rubbed his temples wearily.

"However, if you study the documents carefully, you'll notice—Gellert Grindelwald is slightly different from other wizarding criminals."

Dumbledore said, his gaze slowly sweeping across the faces of Fudge, Umbridge, Lucius, and others. "Grindelwald 'imprisoned himself' in Nurmengard Castle. When he decides to break out, almost no one can stop him. Do you understand my meaning?"

"The International Confederation of Wizards would allow such a thing to exist? How did he escape judgment?!"

Cornelius Fudge frowned, obviously realizing some of Dumbledore's concerns, or rather, he thought he realized them.

A "senior, weakened version of Voldemort" who could break out of prison at any time was, of course, a threat that couldn't be ignored. As the wizard who had defeated, but not completely defeated, Grindelwald in the past, Dumbledore's caution was understandable, but...

"Oh, dear Professor Dumbledore, I think you may be making a mountain out of a molehill."

Umbridge put on a fake smile, saying sweetly, as if she were reading Fudge's mind, expressing his thoughts for him.

"The Ministry is never afraid of the threat of dark wizards. One of our jobs is to combat dark magic forces—not to mention an old man imprisoned in a foreign castle for decades, even if the Dark Lord were to be resurrected, the current large Auror force could easily arrest him. If you're worried about that dark wizard seeking revenge, we can even strike first and take control of him in Nurmengard Castle..."

"Of course, the Ministry is now more reassuring and prosperous than ever."

Dumbledore said politely, glanced calmly at Fudge, blinked, and suddenly changed the subject.

"If Voldemort is a comparison that makes it easier for you to understand, then the biggest difference between Grindelwald and Voldemort is that after his downfall, his followers—who call themselves 'Acolytes'—were not brought to justice. Many of them are still active or in hiding in various corners of the wizarding world. This is one of the reasons why the International Confederation of Wizards cannot take any further action."

"Acolytes? Foreign Death Eaters?"

Cornelius Fudge couldn't help but chuckle, shaking his head dismissively.

"Alright, so they... um, how many 'Acolytes' are there in total—let's assume the peak period, give me a rough estimate, and then think carefully, would they dare to run rampant in Britain? The Azkaban guards are always complaining that there aren't enough prisoners."

"Peak period? I don't know the exact number, but I guess there are at least..."

Dumbledore glanced strangely at Grindelwald not far away, pondered for a few seconds, and slowly raised one finger.

"Ten? A dozen?"

"Alright, it can't be a hundred, can it?"

Cornelius Fudge guessed casually, shrugging his shoulders and pretending to analyze.

"If there really are a hundred, then considering the number of Aurors in the Ministry, we'd have to recruit 30 more people to roughly match the number of those 'foreign Death Eaters' from the last century, which would indeed be a significant pressure—"

"No, Cornelius..."

Dumbledore shook his head with a complex expression, and said softly.

"At least, I mean, conservatively speaking, there are at least as many as there are people in the British wizarding world."

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Yay!