Alastor Moody wasn't the real Alastor Moody at all, but that familiar name—Barty Crouch Jr.?
More importantly, from Draco's explanation, Hermione could tell he was the one who had orchestrated everything from the shadows…
"Let me think for a moment."
She rubbed her temples, her lowered lashes hiding part of the shock in her eyes. Now that Draco had given her the truth, she needed time to digest it all.
Pansy, noticing Hermione's reaction, took a sip of her tea with absolutely no surprise. When she had first learned the truth, it had taken her quite a while to accept that it wasn't some elaborate prank but reality.
And according to the letters from their families, the Minister of Magic wasn't planning to acknowledge Harry Potter's information at all—believing instead that it was a despicable ploy from Dumbledore to meddle with the Ministry's affairs…
As Pansy recalled the letter's contents, Hermione finally seemed to accept the truth as well.
"Never trust what your eyes see—especially when the person is a wizard…"
"Hm?"
"That line is written next to the Polyjuice Potion instructions. Obviously, Barty Crouch Jr. used it to disguise himself as Professor Moody."
Having once snuck into the Restricted Section, stolen the Polyjuice Potion recipe, brewed it herself, infiltrated Slytherin, and nearly caused a memorable mishap with Draco, Hermione immediately understood how Barty Crouch Jr. had pulled off such a flawless impersonation.
She also recalled the little warning scribbled in the corner of the recipe—one that now felt eerily appropriate…
"Exactly. That also explains why 'Professor Moody' always carried a flask with him."
"Because that let him openly drink the Polyjuice Potion in front of everyone…?"
"Smart. And bold."
"Most importantly, no one truly understood a long-retired Auror with frayed nerves who rarely interacted with other wizards."
Joining Hermione's analysis was Astoria Greengrass, seated nearby.
Each time Hermione spoke, Astoria followed naturally with a supplementary comment—their exchange so smooth it felt as if they had rehearsed it.
In truth, they had never even spoken before this moment.
Hermione Granger, huh… So this is why Draco sees her differently?
Astoria, who had quietly approached Draco's end of the table, found herself glancing at Hermione again. Hermione was deep in thought, completely unaware of Astoria's presence.
Astoria had expected her to be nothing more than a girl who only understood books and couldn't apply what she'd learned. But in that short moment, she immediately spotted what made Hermione exceptional:
That rare trait almost no wizard possessed—true analytical reasoning.
...
Astoria's arrival made Pansy, as a fellow member of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, narrow her eyes.
Compared to Granger, who had enormous status barriers to overcome, this Greengrass witch was the real threat…
"Greengrass… what 'important' business brings you here?"
"It's obvious, isn't it? I assume you've received the family message as well."
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
Releasing Draco's arm, Pansy's expression turned cold and proud, finally displaying the aura befitting the Parkinson heir. Hard to imagine she'd been sweetly clinging to Draco just moments earlier.
"Even if I don't know which side your family will choose, I need to warn you—that person won't let you go, Draco."
"What do you mean by that!? Explain it clearly!"
Pansy bared her little fangs as she glared, her tone sharp with threat and fury.
But in the next second, that ferocious little tiger expression vanished as Draco gently patted her head to calm her.
Astoria, momentarily stunned—thinking Draco hadn't heard her—gritted her teeth and continued, "Those Death Eaters who attacked us last time… I suspect that person ordered them."
"Reasonable."
"Even if I don't know why, if it's him, he'll definitely come after you again, Draco."
Many believed that incident had been an attempt to recruit Draco, but those who knew the truth understood something on Draco had caught that person's attention—something he wanted badly enough to take huge risks.
Even if it meant exposing his resurrection plans.
Had the current Minister of Magic not been so useless, the outcome might have been very different.
Yet even then, the motive was clear—to obtain something from Draco.
So after receiving word that that person might have returned—and remembering everything that happened that day—Astoria had rushed here immediately.
"I see. So back then, you were…"
"Yes. I was fully conscious."
Meeting Astoria's steady gaze, Draco fell silent, frowning. He hadn't realized she hadn't fainted while on his back.
Meaning she heard everything—every word exchanged between him and Barty Crouch Jr. And after linking that to the news of that man's resurrection, she had sensed something terribly wrong.
And Astoria's warning made Draco realize—he had missed something important.
…
The two of them continued talking, and since Pansy and Hermione didn't fully understand what was going on, they didn't interrupt. They simply sat quietly and listened.
But the longer Hermione listened, the more her expression began to shift.
Pansy might not have felt much, but Hermione certainly did.
That person?
Resurrection?
What kind of terrifying topic were they even talking about...
"Wait… the person you've been referring to this whole time… it can't be…"
"That's right. Exactly the one you're thinking of."
"So he's really… resurrected…"
"Otherwise, why do you think Barty Crouch Jr. went through so much trouble to disguise himself as Alastor Moody? And even specifically kidnapped Harry Potter—someone who's not even in the top ten of his year?"
"..."
"And it's resurrection in the truest sense."
Seeing Draco's certain, steady gaze, Hermione's face froze a little.
Even though she had mentally prepared herself…
Hermione suddenly wondered whether she'd actually live long enough to graduate from Hogwarts...