Mysterious Journey

Chapter 1114 The Figure by the Bonfire (Part Two)

"The figure by the campfire?"

Aileen repeated softly, raising an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Clearly, the old potatoes and old radishes had likely come up with a win-win solution.

Perhaps Aileen was somewhat rebellious psychologically, but she still valued the opinions of these two old men at such a crucial moment.

"It's simple, Dumbledore may not be able to appear, but he can become the campfire."

Grindelwald grinned, waggling his right index finger triumphantly, and said with a cheerful laugh.

"If, when the Ministries of Magic from various countries arrive, the werewolves are not in a weakened state after transformation, but are defeated one by one by the arduous battle of some magical supernova, then the issue of competing for the credit of 'capturing werewolves' will naturally no longer exist, right? As I said, this is a war belonging to Mr. Lockhart alone, as for the subsequent cleanup, that is the business of the 'belated' International Confederation of Wizards—"

"Lockhart in control? If he had the ability and appeal, why not run for Minister for Magic?"

Aileen couldn't help but twitch her lips, looking at the old Dark Lord as if he were an idiot.

You know, this is a secret operation involving Aurors from multiple countries.

If Lockhart is still there at dawn, he'll probably just be "werewolf" number plus one.

"Hmm? Run for British Minister for Magic? That's great, your suggestion is a stroke of genius—yes, yes, how could I not have thought of such a clever and wonderful way! This kind of ending is really too wonderful! Let me think... Of course, of course, very interesting..."

Grindelwald's eyes lit up, as if he didn't catch Aileen's sarcasm, but rubbed his hands excitedly instead.

"Hmm?" Aileen raised an eyebrow.

"However, these are the details of the final cleanup. Let me talk about the plan at hand first."

Before Aileen could ask, Grindelwald suddenly stopped smiling, glanced at the battle on the light curtain, and his voice became serious.

"Thanks to his best-selling novels, Lockhart's strength in the magical world is very ambiguous. Even if he publicly clarified that the plot of *Wanderings with Werewolves* was not a personal experience, don't forget that interview a few months ago—when he was in Russia for research, he happened to encounter Voldemort and the Death Eaters' indiscriminate terrorist attacks, and he stepped forward, buying valuable time for the International Confederation of Wizards..."

"Therefore, people may say he's somewhat fond of fame, but no one would think he's a clumsy wizard."

"In fact, Gilderoy Lockhart is only one thing away from the title of contemporary top wizard: widespread reliable eyewitness accounts of magical strength and deeds. As long as there is one thing that can corroborate his magical strength, then all his previous boasts will automatically become true."

"Oh, for example, one person defeats nearly a hundred werewolves?" Aileen asked curiously in a low voice.

"Based solely on the werewolves lying on the ground, or the bloody ground and woodland?"

Grindelwald chuckled, shaking his head, "What kind of scene do you think the Ministry of Magic Aurors would be afraid of? Twisting wooden houses into ropes, cracks that are dozens of meters long, blown-up streets, corpses of giants or magical creatures in pieces... Perhaps these are rare in recent years, but if you expect the Aurors from various countries to feel awe because of this, then you've underestimated these wizards who maintain the daily operation of the magical world."

"In the magical world, the easiest way to reason is to do something in front of others that they can't do—"

"So? What do you think we should do to complete the puzzle of making the fantasy come true?"

Aileen looked at Grindelwald thoughtfully, and she had a vague answer in her heart.

However, she still lacked one or two key steps—

"Very simple, let the Aurors, at least most of the Aurors, 'witness' Lockhart's magic 'with their own eyes', in the old way... in a way that is both understandable and impossible to imitate, rather than the way it is now. A campfire can cast huge shadows, making people look like giants."

Grindelwald didn't play charades, first pointing to Lockhart, and then swinging between himself and Dumbledore.

"Albus and I are that campfire. The shadows from both of us should be very, very large."

Sure enough, just like she imagined—these two old wizards plan to put on a big show together.

As for the shock value and magical effects, there should be no one more powerful than these two in today's magical world.

If Dumbledore and Grindelwald are responsible for the special effects, then Lockhart will probably instantly become unfathomable in the eyes of a group of Ministry of Magic Aurors without directly fighting, and some of his suggestions will naturally become particularly weighty accordingly.

The only problem is...

"The time is now eleven thirty, there are still four or five hours until dawn."

Aileen glanced at the clock, nodded lightly, and said calmly.

"Magical strength and shocking scenes are easy to solve. But what about the audience? What about the performance time? This is not a movie theater. If we have a way to influence the actions of the Aurors, why not choose a simpler way? Lockhart can't fight all night."

"The reason is very simple, in fact, these few questions can be answered with one answer."

Dumbledore glanced at the werewolves, sighed softly, and took the initiative to explain.

"Whether it's Tianming, the Foundation, Gringotts... none of the places we can fully control are ready to accept so many werewolves now—and if these werewolves disappear out of thin air, then most of the European magical governments may immediately fall into panic. Therefore, reasoning backwards from the final result, the best way is to continue using our previous 'transition' plan for the werewolf community..."

"But that was in the British magical world, many of the Ministry of Magic and the Aurors are our people, and public opinion is on our side."

Aileen frowned and couldn't help but say, "This is the former Soviet Union, your influence here... well, is it really that great?"

She had thought about this method at the beginning, but she quickly rejected it.

"Influence? Of course not much—but—"

Dumbledore smiled gently, and before Aileen could continue to ask, a meaningful look flashed in his bright blue eyes.

"This is a milestone event in the European magical world. If even the French Ministry of Magic and the Italian Ministry of Magic are involved, then it wouldn't be particularly abrupt for the British Ministry of Magic to join temporarily. If the British Ministry of Magic Aurors break in, then all the Aurors gathered around the Armenian forest... By the way, this might also solve the trial that Mr. Lockhart may face later..."

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Yay!