Jane Yu was so shocked she nearly dropped the intestines from her hands.
She squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again, confirming she hadn't lost her mind—
Had Minister Bones really just uttered such horrifying phrases as "Thank goodness" and "only took out his intestines"?
The person they were desperately trying to save was undoubtedly a Ministry employee, wasn't he?
She strongly suspected that even Voldemort couldn't say something so inhumanely cold-blooded to his Death Eaters!
It must be her old auditory hallucination problem flaring up from stress again, she reasoned.
Augustus's expression mirrored her terror, his mouth agape wide enough to swallow an entire egg.
Though their faces were written with horror and bewilderment, their hands continued working mechanically and dutifully, stuffing the intestines and stomach back where they belonged.
Jane Yu watched in stunned silence as Minister Bones, her face radiating the relief of someone who'd narrowly escaped disaster, approached with a team of stern-faced Aurors to carefully examine their barely-breathing Ministry colleague:
"Right arm fractured, compound fractures in both legs, multiple stone fragments embedded, severe burns, pulmonary hemorrhage..."
"This looks critical! Contact St. Mungo's immediately—get their best Healers and spare no effort to save Thicknesse!"
After a chaotic flurry of activity, the Aurors lifted Thicknesse and rushed him out at breakneck speed.
Suddenly, the laboratory fell into an eerie silence.
Augustus mentally composed the melody for "Tears Behind Iron Bars."
Jane Yu silently calculated the probability of successfully fleeing with Augustus and escaping justice.
Minister Bones contemplated a hundred ways enemies might dismantle the Ministry from within.
Three minds, three different anxieties, but identical gravity etched on their faces.
"I'm willing to confess!" Augustus, having finished both lyrics and melody for his prison ballad, squeezed his eyes shut and cried out first, "Yes! I'm responsible for this situation! I blew him up! You can send me to Azkaban!"
"Given the emergency circumstances, perhaps we should complete this project first? This was an accident," Jane Yu argued reasonably. "No one could have predicted Thicknesse would suddenly appear there."
But Minister Bones's dark expression suddenly transformed into amazement as she declared loudly:
"What Azkaban? Nobody's going to Azkaban! You've done us an enormous favor! Excellent work! Brilliantly executed!"
Something was definitely wrong here.
Jane Yu and Augustus exchanged bewildered glances.
She rubbed her ears, convinced her auditory hallucinations were worsening.
Otherwise, how could she possibly be hearing phrases like "enormous favor," "brilliantly executed," and "excellent work"?
Was the person standing before them truly the famously just and impartial Minister Bones?
They'd blown up half the Ministry's tenth level... nearly killed a Ministry employee—
In her previous life, Augustus would be looking at a minimum ten-year sentence, and she'd face charges of gross negligence at the very least...
How could this Minister possibly absolve them both?
"Could she be under the Imperius Curse...?"
Jane Yu muttered under her breath, warily studying Minister Bones—
Her eyes were clear and bright with genuine joy, showing no signs of external control whatsoever.
Yet her reaction far exceeded Jane's expectations. Bones seized upon her muttering and continued enthusiastically:
"Exactly! I knew you'd already suspected! The Imperius Curse! With your sharp instincts, you must have detected something amiss!"
Jane Yu managed only a bewildered "Ah?"
Bones surveyed the laboratory's cracked walls, scattered debris, and melted equipment, releasing a heavy sigh:
"You must have endured an incredibly fierce battle—look at this devastation from Blasting Curses and Fiendfyre... I failed to provide you with a proper research environment. This is my negligence."
She suddenly bowed deeply to both of them, demonstrating profound remorse for the situation.
"No, no!" The two, guilt-ridden over destroying the laboratory and injuring a Ministry employee, startled and quickly returned the bow, frantically protesting, "This was merely an accident—please don't apologize! We're the ones who should be sorry... for carelessly reducing this laboratory to such a state. We cannot escape responsibility..."
But Minister Bones continued her profuse apologies, and the three mutually guilt-stricken individuals nearly buried their heads in the rubble with their excessive bowing.
"This devastation isn't your responsibility—it's a medal of honor from your valiant struggle!" Bones proclaimed passionately. "The enemy was incredibly cunning, infiltrating the Ministry and breaching our defenses! They deliberately triggered multiple false alarms to lower our vigilance!"
By now, she'd pieced together the entire sequence of events!
The first alarm must have been a deliberate distraction created by the suspect Thicknesse, designed to send her and the Aurors on a wild goose chase!
This successfully convinced everyone the alarm system was malfunctioning with false alerts, thereby reducing their alertness when the second alarm sounded, allowing the infiltrator to slip past security during the assembly!
Meanwhile, Jane Yu and Augustus had astutely sensed the malicious intent, correctly identified the intruder as Imperius-cursed, and engaged in fierce combat—after a grueling battle, they'd successfully subdued the suspect!
"You've performed a tremendous service! Not only did you protect invaluable research and your own lives, you've captured an enemy and uncovered a Death Eater connection! This should have been my and the Aurors' responsibility, but we were negligent! I dare not imagine the consequences if you'd been kidnapped and taken away... How catastrophic that would have been!"
Bones gripped Jane Yu's hands excitedly, completely disregarding that they were still stained with blood and wizard fragments.
Though she didn't know exactly what had transpired outside, Jane Yu now understood—
The Thicknesse they'd nearly blown to smithereens must have turned traitor, becoming a Ministry mole!
That's why he'd suddenly appeared in what should have been their exclusive research territory—either to gather intelligence or assassinate them!
Unfortunately for him, timing was everything—their research team's explosion had delivered a perfect critical hit!
They'd eliminated the enemy before he could even speak or act!
"So it's like a flash-combo ultimate...?" she muttered. "But why would Thicknesse...?"
Minister Bones shook her head, the betrayal of a longtime colleague hitting her hard, creasing her brow with deep worry lines:
"Pius Thicknesse works in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement—we've collaborated for years... I've already dispatched investigators to trace his recent contacts, locations, and movements within the Ministry... Once he regains consciousness, I'll combine his testimony with our findings."
She repeatedly assured Jane Yu of a thorough investigation before hurrying from the laboratory.
"So we're not going to Azkaban after all!"
Augustus murmured, his face brightening with relief.
Jane Yu also exhaled deeply—she'd just been mentally crafting countless escape scenarios involving Augustus.
"That was terrifyingly close... I was even considering using your remaining nitroglycerin tablets to extract the key compounds... combined with a few Blasting Curses... to distract the Aurors... Looks like that won't be necessary."
But the mention of "nitroglycerin tablets" seemed to trigger something in Augustus's brain, causing him to rush forward excitedly:
"I knew you understood nitroglycerin! So you appreciate them too... You know exactly what I'm after! I've always been fascinated by Muggle medicine! Don't you find it miraculous how Muggle substances, like wizarding potion ingredients, can both explode and heal... During my time at St. Mungo's, I experimented with suturing techniques, gastric lavage procedures—I even secretly tested various medications on myself!"
His candid admission surprised Jane Yu somewhat—
After all, in the insular wizarding world, wizards like Augustus who embraced Muggle concepts without prejudice and expressed such open curiosity were rare.
But she had to admit, his thinking was genuinely progressive, pioneering the integration of technology and magic.
Unfortunately, this path proved treacherous, causing him to detonate the laboratory on his first attempt, nearly taking himself and others along.
No wonder St. Mungo's had transferred him with such remarkable speed—no hesitation, no delays, not even a hint of reluctance.
That probably conveyed a certain "our temple is too small for this great Buddha" sentiment.
Jane Yu gave him an enthusiastic thumbs-up in support.
She decided to procure several sets of Muggle textbooks to guide Augustus toward the proper path while preventing the Ministry's century-old foundation and countless wizarding lives from being obliterated in a series of workplace accidents.
"Excellent ideas—you're truly talented!" she praised. "But I'd like to share some Muggle wisdom with you: 'Master mathematics, physics, and chemistry, and you'll fear nothing in the world... Without solid foundations, everything crumbles...' Before researching Muggle medicine and pharmacology, you need to strengthen your fundamentals."
Though Augustus didn't fully comprehend everything, he grasped Jane's intent.
It represented unwavering support for him—
This made his eyes light up with excitement!
"This is wonderful!" he gushed with effusive praise. "Truly worthy of my superior—such forward-thinking, such progressive ideas! You're as profound as Azkaban... as noble as St. Mungo's... as inclusive as Hogwarts... My admiration for you is as vast as the North Sea..."
Jane Yu gained deep insight into what Augustus's mentor Hippocrates must have felt during their farewell at St. Mungo's.
She sighed, wiping away cold sweat that had formed from lingering anxiety:
"The admiration isn't necessary—just promise me that if you cause trouble in the future, don't mention me or our research team."
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