Minister's Office.
Dumbledore sat quietly, gazing at the Elder Wand in his hand.
Even just holding this unusually shaped wand, he could still feel the immense magical power coursing through it…
Once upon a time, this was the "legendary artifact" he and Grindelwald had longed for the most. But now, it felt like the most useless thing in the world.
The door to the Minister's Office opened.
Minister Fawley walked in, looking thoroughly exhausted.
"Albus…" Minister Fawley greeted him, then sat down across from Dumbledore.
He knew very well why Dumbledore had come.
After all, this wasn't the first time Dumbledore had come to see him.
"Hector… regarding Grindelwald, I must once again urge you—please don't follow his lead too unquestioningly," Dumbledore said carefully.
"I understand your concern, Albus… but what he did at the MACUSA trial has frightened everyone. No one wants to become the next Picquery…" Minister Fawley sighed.
The Grindelwald of the past would deal with political opponents through assassination, intimidation, or kidnapping.
But now… that bastard had started framing people!
In truth, if it were just framing, people wouldn't be quite so terrified.
The real issue was… a lot of people who'd risen to their current positions in the Ministry didn't exactly have clean records. So, if Grindelwald wanted to bring them down, he might not even need to frame them!
No one doubted that someone like Grindelwald could easily dig up real evidence.
So those who were clean feared being falsely accused, while those with skeletons in their closets were even more guilty and anxious.
Under such circumstances, the number of people brave enough to go against Grindelwald had become vanishingly small.
"Luckily, the suggestions he's put forward so far haven't been too terrible," Minister Fawley said helplessly.
Dumbledore felt a wave of sorrow in his heart.
Was the Ministry really going to let fear allow this man to do whatever he pleased?
Had the wizarding world truly lost all its backbone?
Back when Grindelwald first began terrorizing Europe, so many had stood up bravely to fight him and his followers in bloody battle.
But now… why was there no one left who dared oppose him?
Dumbledore suddenly recalled something Grindelwald had said the last time they met...
"So what if you've seized the Elder Wand? Do you really think I'll give you a chance to use it?"
That's how it often was—if the enemy came at you with a blade, there would be many who resisted.
Because everyone could feel the immediate threat.
But if the enemy used a softer blade… far fewer would resist…
Because people didn't recognize the danger. They felt there was no threat, no need to push back.
Grindelwald was slowly infiltrating and manipulating the Ministry like a frog being boiled in warm water.
"Albus… if Grindelwald hasn't done anything harmful yet, perhaps… we don't necessarily have to bring him down," Minister Fawley said hesitantly.
Dumbledore gave him a long, searching look, then said nothing more. He simply let out a deep sigh and turned to leave.
Boiled alive in warm water… and now Fawley himself had become the frog in the pot.
"Albus… I know you're disappointed in us. But what can we do?" Minister Fawley said to Dumbledore's back. "If anyone is going to stop him, there's no one in the Ministry who can. Only you. Only you have that ability. Albus… if you truly want to defeat him, you can't stay hidden away at Hogwarts. You need to come out. You need to wield power. You need to fight him his way."
Dumbledore's lips trembled slightly, but in the end, he said nothing.
Could he wield power? No… he couldn't. He didn't dare.
His past had left him unable to trust himself again.
If he ever took hold of power and lost control… then the world would end up facing two Grindelwalds.
"When the time comes… I'll take care of it," Dumbledore said softly, tightening his grip on the Elder Wand.
If Grindelwald truly couldn't be stopped… then he would have no choice but to break the rules one more time.
Minister Fawley looked at the wand in his hand and suddenly understood what he meant.
Was he… planning to kill Grindelwald outright if nothing else worked?
But that would mean killing a high-ranking Ministry official without evidence or justification. If he did that, Dumbledore would likely spend the rest of his life in Azkaban...
"Albus… is it really worth it?"
"If someone has to pay the price… let it be me."
...
Safe house.
Wade was squatting inside the greenhouse in the garden, contentedly harvesting the mature "fruits" of his Venomous Tentacula and storing them in the suitcase beside him.
These Tentaculas, nourished by a special nutrient potion, looked noticeably larger than ordinary ones.
And they grew quickly...
While he'd been away, Toby had already helped him harvest them several times.
After each harvest, they would be temporarily sealed using a method taught by his senior.
When needed, he could simply remove the seal and toss them out.
And when he did, he could even use Transfiguration to enlarge them a bit on the spot! That way, their bite strength and bounce distance could be improved.
These were just a few handy tricks his senior had taught him.
But so far, Wade hadn't had the chance to actually use any of these plants in combat.
The main issue was… that kid Tom was getting sharper and sharper—he wasn't falling for it anymore...
As for the suitcase beside him…
Before leaving America, Wade had spent the night consulting Newt about the Undetectable Extension Charm. He even got a full tour of Newt's suitcase, which helped him make great progress in his own charmwork, leading to improvements on his own suitcase.
At the time, Dumbledore had been too preoccupied to notice. Otherwise, he absolutely wouldn't have allowed Wade to learn from Newt.
After all, both of them were magnets for trouble… Could anything good really come from two chaos-bringers learning from each other?
Even though it was only one night, the older and younger "troublemakers" had gotten along quite well. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time, and Dumbledore had been in too much of a rush.
So Wade had no choice but to wave goodbye to Newt.
As they parted, Newt even invited Wade and Tom to visit his home sometime.
But not long after that, Grindelwald suddenly showed up in Britain, and Wade and Tom were promptly grounded for good.
The one who had it worst was Jacob…
He had just moved his whole family to Britain to escape Grindelwald.
Pfft~!
Who could've guessed Grindelwald would go straight for the heart—becoming a high-ranking official in the British Ministry of Magic?
America had already become the stronghold of the Purist faction, completely off-limits now. Dumbledore suggested Jacob consider relocating to France or somewhere else.
But this time, Jacob refused.
There was no place left in the world that was truly peaceful anymore. If that was the case, then what was the point of constantly moving?
And so, Jacob stayed. He even built a house next to Newt's home in Dorset and settled down.
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