novelcrest Chapter 395 Blake, you are truly heinous.
Chapter 395 Blake, you are truly heinous.
Chapter 395 (Bonus Chapter) Blake, you are truly heinous!
The entire lakeside returned to silence, and the chill in the air gradually dissipated, replaced by the warm aura left by the guardian spirit.
Sean slowly put away his wand, turned around, his face still calm and expressionless, only the beads of sweat on his forehead revealing the exertion he had just experienced.
He glanced at the people behind him and nodded slightly: "Very good, you did a good job."
"No, what did we do?" Ron muttered under his breath, glancing at the others.
The group looked at each other, their eyes filled with confusion.
Clearly, they had no idea why Sean would praise them.
Just then, the only one in the group who understood the unspoken meaning of Sean's words was his thoughtful "little cotton-padded jacket"—Sophia.
She looked up at Sean, a knowing smile spreading across her face, and exclaimed excitedly, "I knew it! We did the right thing!"
Sofia's speech almost immediately drew everyone's attention.
"You told me before," Sophia continued, a hint of pride in her voice, "that if you encounter a danger in the wild that you can't handle, the greatest help you can give is to hide behind the strongest person and not cause them any trouble."
Upon hearing this, Harry and Hermione couldn't help but show expressions of sudden realization, while Ron opened his mouth as if to refute something.
But in the end, he shut his mouth again.
He looked around and realized that he hadn't been able to help at all except by tightening Sean's robe.
"You—you did it, Phillips!" Just then, Sirius, who had been lying on the ground, finally came to his senses and stammered, "You drove away—all the Dementors!"
Sean glanced at him, walked over, and gently waved his wand to cast a simple healing spell, restoring some of Sirius's strength.
"This isn't just my doing," Sean said calmly, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. "It's the result of our collective efforts."
The group finally recovered from the chaos. Although their "contribution" was somewhat questionable, Sean's words clearly brought some comfort. Ron muttered to himself, "It was indeed a joint effort." Hermione gently nudged him, signaling him to be quiet.
Just then, hurried footsteps and several flashes of magic wand light came from afar.
Harry looked up and saw several figures hurrying towards him.
Leading the group was Cornelius Fudge, who looked tense and held his wand high in his hand.
Dumbledore followed closely behind, his expression slightly serious, and his pace much faster than usual.
Several Hogwarts professors, along with some Aurors and officials from the Ministry of Magic who had attended the appeals session that afternoon, all looked serious, clearly drawn in by the earlier commotion.
"What's going on?" Fudge's voice rang out from the quiet lakeside. His gaze swept across the area and finally landed on Sirius, his eyes immediately filled with suspicion and vigilance.
"Black!" he shouted, a hint of anger in his voice, "It really was you—" Enough, Cornelius." Dumbledore slowly stepped forward, raising his hand to stop Fudge from continuing. His gaze shifted from Sirius to Sean, his eyes scrutinizing.
"Phillips," Dumbledore's voice rang out, "I need an explanation. So many Dementors gathered by the lake, and you seem to have been through a considerable battle."
Sean didn't answer immediately. He adjusted his collar slightly, turned to face the crowd, and explained, "Things are a bit complicated."
In short, Peter Pettigrew, who disguised himself as a pet for years, was the one who betrayed Harry's parents, revealing their hiding place to Voldemort. He just escaped in the chaos.
Fudge didn't speak, but the expression in his eyes seemed to say it all:
Phillips, are you crazy?
To make it easier for Fudge to understand, Sean had no choice but to patiently repeat what he had just said.
"Ridiculous! Utterly absurd!" After hearing Sean's explanation for the second time, Fudge finally snapped out of his daze, his face flushed red, and he interrupted him sharply, "Phillips, have you been under Black's Confusion Charm? How could you believe such a ridiculous story!"
He stared at Sean, quite suspiciously, and said, "A dead man? Disguised as a pet for years? That makes absolutely no sense! I think your judgment has probably been completely destroyed by Blake's trickery!"
"Mr. Fudge!" Hermione suddenly stepped forward, her fists clenched, to defend Sean. "Professor Phillips cannot be confused by any Confusion Charm! He knows the truth better than anyone! We saw it with our own eyes—"
"Miss Granger," Fudge interrupted with a sneer, "have you been afflicted by the Confusion Charm too?"
Hermione's face flushed red, and she was so angry she couldn't speak.
"Mr. Fudge!" Ron couldn't help but step forward, though he hesitated, he still mustered his courage and said, "Professor Phillips is really alright! He protected us and drove away those Dementors! Without him, we would have been..."
"Weasley boy," Fudge raised an eyebrow sarcastically, "it seems you've been hit by the Confusion Charm too, and can't even distinguish the truth anymore."
Ron was speechless, his face turning bright red.
“I can also testify for Professor Phillips,” Harry stepped forward, looking directly at Fudge without fear.
"Potter," Fudge's gaze turned to him, his tone carrying a hypocritical pity, "even you—alas, what a poor child, completely deceived by Black's schemes."
His gaze swept back and forth among the group, his eyes filled with doubt and disdain. He looked at them with the same compassion he had shown to a group of ignorant children, rather than as witnesses.
Finally, his gaze settled on Sirius, who was leaning against the ground, and his eyes immediately filled with anger and disgust.
"Blake," Fudge said viciously, his voice filled with hatred, "you are utterly wicked! Not only did you betray your friends, but you also tried to drag these innocent children down with you! Did you think you could get away with this ridiculous story? No way, absolutely no way!"
Sirius Black wanted to say something, but seeing Fudge's expression, he was so angry that he couldn't speak.
Immediately afterwards, Fudge waved his hand, signaling the Aurors from the Ministry of Magic to step forward and take the group away.
Sean's gaze swept coldly over Fudge and the approaching Auror, his hand unconsciously tightening around his wand. Just as he was about to speak,
Dumbledore coughed softly and looked up to meet Sean's gaze.
Dumbledore gave him a subtle wink, signaling him not to act rashly.
Sean frowned slightly, but ultimately put down his wand.
He straightened up and said calmly, "Alright, if you feel it's necessary, I will cooperate with the investigation. But I hope Mr. Fudge understands that the trust between a professor and these children has nothing to do with your prejudice."
Fudge scoffed: "Of course, that's why I brought you to investigate, Professor."
The Aurors stepped forward and bound Sean's hands, but Sean did not struggle. He simply looked at Sophia and Hermione with a calm gaze.
He said softly, "Don't worry, I'll be fine."
Sean was then taken away from the scene.
A few minutes later, Dumbledore stopped Fudge, who was about to leave.
"Connelly, I need to speak with you alone."
Fudge stopped and hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded and followed Dumbledore to the side.
"Cornell," Dumbledore said slowly, "this matter is of great importance. You cannot rush to conclusions, nor can you undermine the fundamental principles of justice because of some unverified suspicions."
"Albus," Fudge said impatiently, "you saw it yourself, they're all defending Black! Don't you think they might be being manipulated? The Dementors' attacks are strange enough, I can't help but suspect it."
"Suspicion is fine, but you need more evidence." Dumbledore looked directly at Fudge and continued, "Letting Professor Sean and these students leave Hogwarts, or even forcibly convicting them, will only complicate matters. Rather than that, you should stay at Hogwarts for a few days and investigate the matter yourself. Everyone here will cooperate with you."
"Stay at Hogwarts?" Fudge frowned, somewhat hesitant about the suggestion.
"Yes," Dumbledore's tone became more serious, "this will not only demonstrate your fairness but also avoid the negative consequences of jumping to conclusions prematurely. If you find Black is indeed guilty, I will personally assist you in upholding justice. But if the truth is not so, you will not make a mistake."
Fudge pondered for a moment.
Although he was not interested in the suggestion, both deep down and superficially.
But we're on Dumbledore's territory now, and they want to take his professor with them; it's a matter of principle and reason...
"Alright," he finally nodded, agreeing to the arrangement, "I'll stay for a few days. Albus, I hope you'll keep your word."
"Of course." Dumbledore smiled slightly and nodded with satisfaction. "The truth will eventually come to light, Cornelius."
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