"Crash!"
At that very moment, there was a loud clatter behind Wentworth—the sound of something being knocked over. Immediately after, a furious voice rang out behind him.
"Wentworth! What did you do to my sister?!"
Jabari stormed up like an arrow, placing himself between Wentworth and Nala Nwadike. His hand darted toward his robes, reaching for his wand.
But before Jabari could even grip it properly, Wentworth made a sharp flick with his hand. Jabari's wand flew from his grasp, clattering to the ground several feet away. Wentworth's expression remained impassive as he said coldly:
"Jabari, next time you face someone else, you'd do better casting wandlessly. You're far too slow."
As Jabari looked ready to retaliate, Nala's voice came from behind him:
"Jabari, this isn't Wentworth's fault... it's mine."
Jabari glared at Wentworth, eyes full of unwilling fury, before finally stepping back, visibly reluctant.
Nala was wiping away tears with both hands as she spoke again:
"I'm sorry, Wentworth, for losing control in front of you. It's just… some things have been weighing on me for so long, I could barely breathe."
Wentworth sighed quietly and asked:
"Honestly, I didn't want to press you about it… but go ahead. Why did you have Jabari say those things to me? What exactly are you trying to do?"
Nala, her emotions now more composed, gave a small bow in Wentworth's direction before speaking slowly:
"Everything I had Jabari tell you... it's all true."
At those words, Wentworth's brow furrowed, but he said nothing and let her continue.
"It started two or three years ago. I began noticing strange things. First, the herbs provided by Uagadou for Potions practice. They were getting worse in quality. Much worse."
"When I asked Professor Amari about it, she told me it was a deliberate challenge. She said that brewing potions with poor-quality ingredients would test our mastery. If we could still make a viable potion, then we truly understood it. And I believed her."
Wentworth's frown deepened. That explanation… He'd never heard anything like it from Professor Snape. If it truly had pedagogical value, he had no doubt Snape would have bullied Professor Sprout into growing substandard herbs specifically for that purpose.
Nala continued:
"Later on, I noticed something else odd. Among the new students entering Uagadou, there were far more from the larger tribal groups, especially the Kalembo Tribe."
At that, Jabari, who had been quietly listening, suddenly interrupted:
"That can't be right, sis. I looked into the new students you asked about, none of them were from Kalembo."
But Nala shook her head firmly:
"They must have changed their names and had their origins hidden. Don't forget, surnames can lie."
Wentworth awkwardly rubbed his nose, while Nala went on:
"Surnames may lie, but scent doesn't. The way they smell, it's just like Juma's. I know that sounds strange, but they all carry the same scent, one shaped by the place you grow up in. They absolutely came from Kalembo. I'm sure of it."
Hearing that, and recalling the intuitive talent Nala had displayed, Wentworth couldn't help but nod slightly in acknowledgment.
But that wasn't the end. After a brief pause, Nala continued:
"The real confirmation came one day when I was preparing to attempt a new potion. I went to ask Professor Amari for help, and she gave me the key to Uagadou's herb vault, the chamber where all the potion ingredients are stored. She told me to fetch them myself, but she also warned me not to let anyone see me."
"It wasn't the first time. Professor Amari often had me go alone to collect ingredients. She'd hinted more than once that I could take extra, that no one would notice. I knew she meant well, trying to make sure I had more materials to practice with, but I always pretended I didn't catch the hint."
"But this time, just after I entered the vault, I heard footsteps approaching. I immediately hid myself. And that's when I discovered Headmistress Adisa's secret."
At this point, Nala began trembling again. It took her a while to calm herself before she could go on.
"It was Juma Kalembo who came in with her. I heard him say, word for word: 'Headmistress, my father is very pleased with the herbs Uagadou has been providing lately. So, this time, we're adding ten percent more Galleons on top of our original deal.'"
"But what shocked me even more was what came next. Juma asked Headmistress Adisa if the Kalembo Tribe could be granted ten additional admission slots to Uagadou this year. He said the tribe was willing to pay three hundred Galleons per student!"
"I don't remember all the details, but I clearly remember the outcome—they agreed. Uagadou would give the Kalembo Tribe five extra admissions. For each one, the tribe would pay Headmistress Adisa three hundred and sixty Galleons!"
Nala fell silent.
Wentworth, meanwhile, was stunned.
If everything Nala had said was true, then this was not just a minor scandal, it was a disgrace of historic proportions in the magical world.
A headmistress, selling ingredients from the school gardens, even selling admission spots to a sacred magical institution?
It wasn't just unheard of. It was unthinkable.
But Wentworth didn't believe Nala was lying.
For one, she had nothing to gain from deceiving him. And for another, he believed she understood exactly how powerful Dumbledore was. If Dumbledore wanted to uncover a secret buried in someone's mind, very few could hide it from him.
Which meant, there was a very good chance that Nala Nwadike was telling the truth.
And now, the burden had been passed to Wentworth.
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TN: This fanfic has been fully translated and is available on my Patreon —— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]