Conceding Defeat

Amosta let his gaze fall on the silent Graves. After studying him intently for several seconds, a strange light flashed in Amosta's eyes.

This was truly interesting.

At the Joint Review Committee convened to decide whether the Learning Machine could enter the American market, Trake Graves—the very man responsible for calling this meeting that should never have existed—not only said nothing, but was also using Legilimency to shield his thoughts.

Was there something he did not want exposed before him? The real reason for the resistance he had shown toward him all this time, even refusing to meet him before the review committee?

To be honest, even now, Amosta could not be certain why Trake Graves, whose hair had begun to gray and whose hard, sharply defined features perfectly embodied the phrase "a man of high rank and power," harbored such deep hostility toward him.

Still, from the restrictions he had imposed on him, Amosta had some faint guesses.

The most likely possibility was simply that Trake Graves did not wish to follow in his grandfather's footsteps.

More than half a century ago, when Percival Grevis served as both Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and head of the Department of Security at MACUSA, he encountered the Dark Lord Gellert Grindelwald. Percival himself was imprisoned by Grindelwald, who then assumed his identity and infiltrated MACUSA. Through a series of events, this nearly caused the wizarding world to be completely exposed to Muggles.

This was a disgrace to the Graves family. Given that, it was perfectly understandable that Trake Grindelwald would feel disgust and even resistance toward wizards of extraordinary power like himself.

Although he had enjoyed immense prestige in the international wizarding world these past few years, any shrewd wizard could judge his style from the methods he