Dumbledore looked regretful. "But Alastor is very good at Defense Against the Dark Arts. In this respect, he is much better than me."

Hermione and Ron looked incredulous.

"The Death Eaters might be planning something." Harry put away the Marauder's Map. "At the Quidditch World Cup, their target was me, although except for the leader, the others didn't seem so determined."

Dumbledore's face turned serious: "Harry, you should have told me earlier."

"I thought it was just revenge." Harry waved his hand and said in a relaxed tone, "After all, I drove their master away, so they tucked their tails between their legs and lived like stray dogs... just like their master, living in shame."

"But now it seems that it is obviously not the case. They should have a conspiracy, and even Barty Crouch has become their helper."

Dumbledore thought thoughtfully: "It seems that the Death Eaters have not yet abandoned their master."

"After all, Voldemort is not dead yet." Harry finished his milk.

Dumbledore noticed Ron and Hermione out of the corner of his eye. What surprised him was that after hearing the word "Voldemort", the two little wizards showed almost no change in expression. They did not shiver subconsciously like the others.

"Next time you can prepare a glass of vodka or whiskey for me." Harry put down the glass.

Dumbledore smiled and shook his head: "Drink for a few more years, otherwise you will be like me in the future and be scolded as shameless."

Dumbledore sent them away.

Sitting at the table with his hand on the parchment, after a while, he gently moved his index finger, and the feather pen fluttered, dropping a string of words.

"You're going to tell that... Ministry of Magic?" Godric poked his head out and read the words clearly. He said in a dissatisfied tone, "You are the headmaster of Hogwarts. You should handle the affairs of Hogwarts yourself."

"But wizards need order," Dumbledore answered him. "Mr. Crouch is an official of the Ministry of Magic."

"You are shirking your responsibilities." Godric was very straightforward and he did not hide his thoughts.

The other portraits looked at Godric.

Dumbledore did not change his mind: "Power equals responsibility. I am only a headmaster. The Ministry of Magic should handle its own affairs."

Godric sneered.

The other portraits hesitated to speak, and in the end, only Armando Dippet echoed Godric's advice.

Fox delivered the letter.

There was a commotion in the Auror's office, and Scrimgeour wished he could pull out all his hair and become a free owl.

Barty Crouch, the Director of the Department of International Magical Exchange and Cooperation, imprisoned the former Auror Alastor Moody, illegally used Polyjuice Potion, and replaced him by sneaking into Hogwarts.

This is ridiculous!

Scrimgeour counted the men and wrote a report, then hesitated for a moment before casting a spell to send it flying to Fudge's. In the end, he did not wave his wand, the flashing events of the Quidditch World Cup still fresh in his mind.

After that day, he was severely scolded by Fudge with unusual pleasure for a long time, and the incident even occupied a page in the Daily Prophet.

The incident was not a big deal, but the result was terrible, causing Scrimgeour and Crouch's support rates to drop by several points.

And these naturally fell on Fudge.

As Scrimgeour stepped out of the elevator from the second underground floor to the fifth underground floor, he saw Percy, who was waving his wand and dragging a pile of documents, busy and exhausted.

"Are you a Weasley?" Scrimgeour looked at Percy. His striking red hair gave him the best reminder.

Percy nodded eagerly, "Yes, Director Scrimgeour."

"Where's Mr. Crouch?" inquired Scrimgeour.

Percy turned his head and looked at the office at the end of the corridor: "Mr. Crouch is still in the office, you know, Durmstrang and Beauxbatons..."

Scrimgeour interrupted him with a wave of his hand. "Are you sure he's still in the office?"

"Yes," Percy nodded.

Scrimgeour ignored him, which made Percy's face darken, but he soon cheered up again and walked towards the public office area, dragging a thick stack of documents. These were the crucible entrance and exit quality inspection forms that needed to be processed tonight.

There was a knock on the office door.

Crouch's familiar, dull and tired voice came out: "Come in."

Scrimgeour pushed the door open and walked in. "Mr. Crouch?"

"When did we become so unfamiliar, Rufus?" Crouch put down the file in his hand. "What's the matter? Cornelius still hasn't given up suspecting Winky? I have asked him to cooperate with your investigations many times."

"No, I just thought that we haven't caught up for a while. How about going to the Leaky Cauldron for a drink tonight?" Scrimgeour invited.

Crouch’s expression changed slightly, he perked up, his eyes became sharp: “Rufus, just tell me what you want to say.”

Scrimgeour shook his head. He and Crouch reminisced about the past, and talked a lot about Crouch's time at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. At that time, he was just an excellent Auror and had not yet become the head of the office, but he had always been one of Crouch's most trusted people.

Something secret, something only the two of them knew, came out of Crouch's mouth.

"You seem to be doubting that I am not myself." Crouch tapped the table lightly after answering Scrimgeour's words.

Scrimgeour waved his hand. "Battie, I'm sorry. It's just that someone said that you imprisoned Alastor and took his place in Hogwarts. You might also be related to the Death Eaters."

Crouch's face suddenly changed, his hands and eyes trembled unnaturally, and after taking several deep breaths, he calmed down: "Did Potter report it?"

"No, Mr. Dumbledore." Scrimgeour shook his head.

This made Crouch's face change again, becoming even uglier: "Has Mr. Crouch been caught?"

Scrimgeour shook his head. After confirming that the man in front of him was Crouch, his tone became much lighter: "Mr. Dumbledore is not like Mr. Potter. He still respects our Ministry of Magic very much and wrote a letter to inform us to come and arrest him."

"But it seems that he made a wrong judgment?"

"Bati, you're so tired even for the Final Three."

Crouch frowned, "Rufus, how can you be so lax? That's Mr. Dumbledore. Since he wrote to you personally, he must have evidence. Even if that person is not me, it could be someone pretending to be me."

"You're still the same as always." Scrimgeour chuckled. "Then I'll make another run. Want to come with me?"

Crouch shook his head: "That's your Aurors' business. I'm only in charge of the Department of International Magical Cooperation now."

"Auror Command welcomes you back to serve as the Director." Scrimgeour waved at him. "Then I will take people to Hogwarts to check and will clear your name."

Scrimgeour left, closing the door behind him.

Crouch could no longer conceal his emotions and slammed the table angrily until his hands turned red. The pain completely suppressed his anger. Then he remembered something, snapped his fingers, summoned Winky, and asked it to take him to the castle.

Hogwarts, West Tower.

Astronomy class is still one of the compulsory subjects for young wizards.

Of course, compared with other subjects, this course is much easier. The first three years are enough for them to become familiar with the stars. This year, the astronomy class is more like a late-night date, with the professor telling them ancient legends about the stars.

But tonight, it seems a little too lively.

There was a loud noise under the castle; it was the sound of a blasting spell.

Several dark shadows flashed by quickly, and there was the sound of magic spells.

The little wizards immediately got up from the ground, clung to the wall, and looked down on tiptoe.

But this was the eighth floor, and it was pitch black outside the castle, with poor visibility and they couldn't see anything.

Ron was so anxious that he wanted to chew the bricks of the wall into his stomach.

So urgent!

The melon is right in front of me, but I can’t eat it.

Harry pulled two telescopes out of the Sorting Hat and gave one to Ron and one to Hermione.

"Didn't you buy this during the Quidditch World Cup?" Ron took it woodenly. "You still have it?"

"Aren't you keeping it too?" Harry asked briskly.

Ron muttered, "I'm not carrying that around with me."

"If, I'm just saying if." The Sorting Hat continued, with a resentful tone, "You have a hat that can be stuffed with anything, and you will also carry so many things with you."

Hermione whispered, putting the telescope back: "Harry, use it, you can see more information."

Harry shook his head: "No, the distance is not very far. I can see that it is Professor Moody, and a group of Aurors are chasing him." He looked to the side again, and behind a window not far away, there was someone who was paying attention to that side like him.

Professor Moody?

Auror?

Ron immediately looked intently, and Hermione also raised her telescope.

The other students scratched their heads and were very envious.

There is nothing more painful than having a melon in front of you and others can eat it but you can't.

The noise of the spell was very loud and spread to the Forbidden Forest. Dark magic was running rampant and the evil and dark aura was almost reaching the tower. It was not until the end of the astronomy class that the noise gradually died down. As soon as Harry and his friends got down from the tower, a silver phoenix landed on Harry's shoulder and brought him an invitation from Dumbledore.

Harry took Hermione and Ron and changed their route temporarily, heading towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's office.

Push the door open and go in.

The room was a little crowded, with Dumbledore, McGonagall, and several Aurors.

Moody, who had no prosthetic leg and only an empty eye socket, shuddered violently when he heard the sound of the door being pushed open. He looked up and was relieved to see that it was Harry.

Scrimgeour sat across from Moody in a daze. He was not injured, only the edge of his robes was singed, but he looked as if he had lost half his life.

"Mr. Potter?" Moody said, his tone a little sharp. "Thank you. It's really bad for me to have such an unqualified thing happen just after I became a professor."

"Where's Barty Crouch?" Harry nodded to him. He did not see the figure he cared about most in the room.

Scrimgeour looked up woodenly, his eyes wide open, and said in a vague tone, as if he was not on the right track: "Barty is dead."

"Dead?" Harry was stunned. "You guys were so ruthless?"

Scrimgeour gritted his teeth, a little ashamed and annoyed: "We are Aurors, not dark wizards. Of course we wouldn't do that. He was killed by the rebound of his own spell when he resisted."

"I can't believe it! Batty actually..."

"I looked for him before coming here, and confirmed that he was real and still in the Ministry of Magic!"

"But when I arrived at Hogwarts, I saw two Bartys with my own eyes. The one from the Ministry of Magic was his elf in disguise. Oh, no... Barty, there is no way he could do such a thing."

“He is the person I admire most.”

Harry frowned, "What about Winky, the house-elf?"

"Dead too." Scrimgeour waved his hand. "Killed by Barty. He used the Killing Curse with great skill. He didn't hesitate."

"Are there any other accomplices?" Harry asked.

Scrimgeour shook his head and sighed, "No, Mr. Potter, please don't let any more gangs come. Barty alone is enough to give us a headache. The Director of the Department of International Magical Exchange and Cooperation actually did such a thing, and he died during the arrest process..."

Harry didn't ask any more questions. After accepting Professor Moody's thanks, he walked out of the office, went to the bottom of the staircase, and immediately took out the Marauder's Map.

In the Defense Against the Dark Arts office.

The names of professors and Aurors appeared on it. Harry glanced at it quickly and then continued to scan other directions. From left to right, there was no longer the name "Barty Crouch" or the name "Winky".