"I don't find anything funny..." Dumbledore said calmly, "Look at you now, I know what I would become if I got involved with power... So, it's a very wise choice for me not to get involved in anything related to power."
"Oh?
Is that so?
This doesn't sound like something the Great Sage Dumbledore would say!"
"Great Sage?
Heh... No matter how others flatter me, I know very well that I've never been a good person..." Dumbledore said with a wry smile, "How could a good person become your friend?
Back then, I knew what kind of person you were, but... I still selectively ignored those parts that shouldn't have been ignored... and then we became close friends.
From beginning to end, I'm not that different from you!"
Grindelwald's smile gradually disappeared, "You should really stand with me..."
"I will never stand with you again, Gellert."
"Why not?
Just because everyone says I'm a bad person?"
Grindelwald sneered.
"Even if I am a bad person, as long as what I do benefits the wizarding world, does it really matter whether I'm a bad person or not?"
"Is that so?
Look at what you've done… Even if you can clear your name and deceive everyone else, can you deceive yourself?
You know better than anyone what you've done all this for."
Grindelwald fell silent, his face showing anger.
This was the first time he had done this since being imprisoned in the dungeon…
"I can protect Chairman Picquart without your interference…" Dumbledore paused, then continued, "Frankly, if her plan hadn't been doomed to fail, perhaps… I would have participated."
Dumbledore's words made Grindelwald laugh in fury.
"Heh... Do you really want me dead, Dumbledore?"
"I never intended for you to die.
I just wanted you to abandon this unrealistic ideal and properly atone for the sins you committed in the past..."
Dumbledore gave Grindelwald one last look before disappearing through the door.
"I will not give up... I want you to know that the future we planned was absolutely correct! Sins?
Excuses!
You're just a coward who gave up halfway!"
"Where is Dumbledore now?"
Chairman Picquart sat in his chair, his expression serious.
Someone beside him immediately replied, "He's been staying at his residence since he left here; he hasn't left."
"Is that so..." Chairman Picquart's expression relaxed slightly.
"We can't let him ruin our plans.
"Chairman, do you really think Dumbledore would help Grindelwald escape punishment out of old friendship?"
"I have to prepare for any possibility!"
Chairman Picquart said coldly.
"But… if Dumbledore really decides to help Grindelwald, who among us can stop him?"
Chairman Picqueli glanced coldly at the outspoken subordinate.
"I have my own plans."
The subordinate fell silent.
He understood why Chairman Picqueli was angry…because he had hit the nail on the head.
How could Dumbledore possibly help Grindelwald?
If he really wanted to, no one could stop him!
What was the point of watching him?
Take now, for example.
On the surface, Dumbledore was obediently staying in his room.
But in reality, how could those half-baked people possibly keep track of whether he was really still there?
Therefore, all the measures Chairman Picqueli had taken against Dumbledore were just for show.
She had only one purpose: to leave herself a way out…in case the plan had any flaws and failed, she could simply use Dumbledore as a shield!
If her plan failed, it meant Grindelwald could be exonerated, and Grindelwald's exoneration would inevitably cause a huge uproar.
If, at this point, even the slightest rumor suggested that Grindelwald's acquittal was related to Dumbledore…then, even if her fabricated evidence was exposed, she could later explain that… the real evidence had been switched.
As for who was so powerful as to pull this stunt at the Magical Congress of America?
She didn't need to elaborate.
The prime suspect would naturally be Dumbledore, allowing her, Piccolo, to escape the vortex this incident had created!
In fact, because she had staked out Dumbledore, she might even be seen as having foresight!
That's how politicians are—always leaving themselves a way out, even if it means betraying allies…
Chairman Piccolo took a document from the table and handed it over, "Take this and bring the prepared witnesses from the safe house."
"Understood."
The subordinate took the document and left the office.
However, as he reached a secluded corner in the corridor, his face drastically changed.
A moment later, he became a completely different person.
If Chairman Piccolo were still there, he would certainly recognize him.
This man was none other than Abernathy, the former Auror who had joined Grindelwald long ago…one of Grindelwald's most trusted assistants.
Unlike Vita, he was more adept at personally carrying out infiltration missions.
He glanced at the documents in his hand, a smug smile appearing on his face.
After he left with the documents, several more figures appeared in the corridor.
They silently followed Abernathy's footsteps...
Dumbledore's residence.
Livid and Tom were playing wizard chess, seemingly bored.
Tom watched with a grim face as his king was dethroned by Livid's knight...
This was his tenth loss.
"I say... can we stop playing?
I want to study," Tom said with a wry smile.
"Why?
Chess is so enjoyable, why study?
Studying is so boring..." Livid began to rearrange the chessboard.
Tom's face turned green.
Livid was crushing his opponent every time, of course he was enjoying it!
If Livid were the one being crushed, Tom would bet the minimum dark magic the chessboard would encounter would be Fiendfyre...
"Ahem, do you think Dumbledore can stop Grindelwald?"
Tom quickly changed the subject.
"He can't.
At most, he can only extricate Chairman Piccolo from this matter," Livid smiled.
"But what is he going to do?"
Tom asked curiously.
"No matter what, if the plan fails, Chairman Picqueli will definitely be in danger."
"It's simple, he just needs to do nothing."
Li Weide said helplessly, "Just do nothing, turn his back on his ally, and then let his ally stab him in the back."
"You mean, Chairman Picqueli is going to betray him?
How is that possible?"
Tom was shocked.
"Haven't we said that there are no permanent friends, only permanent interests…" Li Weide pointed outside.
"With those half-baked individuals outside, they can't even keep an eye on you, how could they possibly keep an eye on Dumbledore?
How could Chairman Picquart, such a shrewd person, not understand this? But she still did it… which means she was just putting on a show…"
Tom turned his gaze back to the chessboard: "These guys' schemes are just too complicated… I still don't like such convoluted plots…"
Li Wade laughed: "There's no way around it, even with Grindelwald's strength, you can't just break through directly.
So you have to resort to some petty tricks…"
"I'd rather use my brain on the chessboard…" Tom said coldly.
"So, Dumbledore really decided to remain silent and let Chairman Picquart stab him in the back?"
"That's just the kind of person he is, isn't he, Tom?
Just sacrificing a little reputation to protect one of Grindelwald's enemies…"
"I just think he's foolish. Who knows there's a pit ahead and still jumps in?"
Tom said disdainfully.
"Well… this kind of stepping into a trap is called sacrifice…"
"I'll never understand…" Tom looked at Li Wade, then suddenly said, "You really are Dumbledore's good student, don't you have any intention of helping him at all?"
"Respecting his wishes and staying obediently in his room is what Dumbledore would most like… Besides… are we really the only ones who can't bear to let him step into a trap?"
A meaningful smile appeared on Li Wade's face.
"Who else?"
Tom asked.
"Would you bear to let me step into a trap?
Sometimes, even enemies might lend you a hand.
As the saying goes, there are only permanent interests…" Li Wade suddenly asked.
Tom laughed, "If you were to step into a trap, I would absolutely bear to, but… it's just too difficult to get you, you bastard, to do it, otherwise, I would definitely give you a push!"
Three days passed in the blink of an eye
Li Wade was right.
Except for going out on the first day,
Dumbledore stayed in his room from the second day onwards.
He indeed did nothing more, calmly facing the huge scapegoat that was about to be thrown at him.
That noon, after lunch, Dumbledore, along with Livander and Tom, left the room where they had stayed for three days.
That very noon, Grindelwald's public trial would begin in the Great Court, before wizards from all over the world.
Like the Wissengamor Court of the British Ministry of Magic, the Great Court was located underground.
When Livander and Tom arrived, they were astonished to find the underground space where the Great Court was located was terrifyingly large…
Apart from the central area which had a normal courtroom layout, the rest of the space consisted of tiered seating.
"They specially used the Unseen Stretching Charm to expand the space for this trial…" Dumbledore murmured, looking at the enormous circular space before him.
"This could seat thousands of people, right?"
Livander shaded his eyes with his hand, looking at the highest point, the "mountain top."
A public trial, and the seating was arranged like a concert…
"Our seats are at the front," Dumbledore smiled.
"That's great!
We don't have to sit at the top!"
Happy New Year!
Tonight's chapters are generally a little slower.
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