Shifting the Conflict

"What big trouble could we possibly get into?" Tom was puzzled.

"Tom, it's not strange for criminals to operate in organized groups... Besides, a single Human Trafficker hideout couldn't possibly have amassed that much wealth," Li Weide explained.

"You mean that Human Trafficker hideout was only part of some criminal organization, and the gold we took was money that organization had stashed there?" Tom was beginning to understand.

"If that were all, it still wouldn't be the worst part." Li Weide frowned. "Think about it. Could the person guarding such a huge sum have been someone very important within their organization? And we scared someone who might have been extremely important to them out of their mind..."

"This is my fault... I should have thought of this sooner. I should have handled it more cleanly!"

Li Weide looked somewhat annoyed with himself.

Tom could not help nodding. "When you put it that way, we really have made enemies of them."

Then he shook his head again. "But what does that matter? How would they know this had anything to do with us?"

Li Weide sighed. "Have you forgotten the children we let go? Once they find those children, they'll definitely get information about us from them..."

"Once they have our descriptions, they can ask other passersby where we came from..."

"A criminal organization capable of amassing that much wealth definitely has the means to do that."

"Ugh... I shouldn't have said a single word to those kidnapped children... No, I shouldn't even have let them see me!"

It was Li Weide's first time doing something like robbing criminals, and he truly lacked experience.

Tom said disdainfully, "No matter how powerful they are, they're still only Muggles. We're wizards. Are we supposed to be afraid of some Muggles coming to cause trouble?"

In Tom's eyes, those Muggles who could not withstand even one of his ordinary attacks posed no threat to him at all, no matter how many came. He did not understand why Li Weide and Dumbledore both considered the matter so serious.

"Tom, we may not be afraid, but what about Mrs. Cole and the others? What about the other children at Wool's Orphanage? Those people will find this place sooner or later. Think about it—if they can't find us then, what will happen?" Li Weide stared intently at Tom. "This was our mistake. We can't completely disregard whether they live or die and let them bear the consequences for us."

Tom was speechless for a moment. In truth, he very much wanted to nod and say that he did not care at all whether the others in the Orphanage lived or died.

But as his state of mind changed without his realizing it, it seemed that Li Weide had kindled a faint glimmer of light within Tom's cold heart. In the end, he could not bring himself to say something as heartless as that it had nothing to do with him.

"Then... then wouldn't it be enough if we get ahead of them and capture all those people first..."

Tom mumbled those words quietly only after hesitating for a long while.

Li Weide quickly rejected Tom's idea.

"Even if we had the ability to bring them all to justice, we still wouldn't be able to find them precisely."

"As long as even one fish slips through the net, there will be endless trouble later."

"Besides, even if we send them to prison, they have so much money that they'll definitely be able to reduce their sentences as much as possible."

"After they finish serving their sentences and get out... do you think they'll come back for revenge twice as hard?"

Tom snorted. "Then we can just kill them all!"

"That's not a good way of thinking, Tom. We can't kill everyone who offends us!"

As he spoke, Li Weide discreetly glanced at Dumbledore.

He also believed it would be best to kill every one of those people. After all, every one of their hands was stained with blood.

But how could he say such things directly in front of Dumbledore? Wouldn't that make Dumbledore suspicious of him?

Tom, you foolish child! You're still too young!

By then, Dumbledore had quietly observed their conversation from the side for quite some time.

In his view, both Li Weide and Tom were exceptionally intelligent and decisive children.

Yet the two seemed to possess completely opposite personalities.

Kind-hearted Li Weide and cold-hearted Tom...

Dumbledore was most worried about Tom. He knew the child's nature well.

He could not predict what kind of terrifying person a cold and ruthless child who craved power would become after growing up.

But now, Dumbledore was delighted to discover that under Li Weide's influence, Tom, that withdrawn and indifferent child, had actually begun to show a faint glimmer of humanity!

This discovery filled Dumbledore with joy and also made him place great hopes on Li Weide.

He hoped that Li Weide's presence would gradually lead Tom back onto the right path.

Even taking the worst-case scenario, if Tom one day still lost control after all, Li Weide would surely be able to subdue him...

Li Weide had no idea what Dumbledore was thinking at that moment. He was only considering how to solve the enormous mess he had caused.

"Professor... do you have any way to ensure that everyone else at Wool's Orphanage remains safe?" Li Weide turned to ask Dumbledore.

He believed that since Dumbledore had come, he must have a solution.

Dumbledore had always been someone who planned before he acted.

"We only need to shift the conflict." Sure enough, Dumbledore did not disappoint Li Weide.

"You told those children you rescued that the Human Traffickers had been captured by the adults in your families, didn't you?"

"That's right. There were only the two of us at the time, so it was hard to explain... I casually said that the adults in my family had subdued the villains," Li Weide said with a nod.

"Mm... then that's settled. Since you gave those children that information, they can surely learn it as well." Dumbledore spoke leisurely. "In this Orphanage, what adult could so easily subdue such vicious Human Traffickers? It couldn't possibly have been Mrs. Cole, could it?"

Li Weide suddenly understood. "So, as long as we have had nothing to do with the Orphanage from beginning to end, they won't suspect the Orphanage at all, because it doesn't have that kind of capability..."

"They'll only suspect that we belong to another criminal organization robbing criminals, and all the so-called clues pointing to the Orphanage must be false."

"As long as we fabricate some traces of this fake organization for them to find and divert their attention, the Orphanage will be safe."

"That's right. That's exactly it." Dumbledore smiled and clapped his hands.

Tom frowned. "But we really did come from the Orphanage... How can we completely erase all traces of us from the Orphanage?"

"Leave that to me, Tom." Dumbledore smiled. "We are wizards, are we not? The wonder of magic lies in its ability to easily turn the ordinary into the extraordinary..."

Li Weide suddenly seemed to think of something. "Professor, after all traces of us in the Orphanage are completely erased... Mrs. Cole and the others, will they completely forget us?"

Dumbledore sighed. "I'm sorry, Weide. I have to do this. Of course, if you are unwilling, I can think of another way."

Before Li Weide could speak, Tom waved his hands repeatedly. "I don't know what Weide thinks, but I don't mind at all. Anyway... in Mrs. Cole's eyes, I was always a nuisance... a scourge. For them, forgetting me would be a truly good thing..."

Dumbledore looked deeply at Tom, then turned to Li Weide.

"I have no objections either. Even if she forgets me, I won't forget the kindness she showed me..." Li Weide answered readily.

In fact, Li Weide had been in this world for less than a month in total.

Although he was indeed grateful to Mrs. Cole for keeping him from ending up on the streets, claiming that he had grown attached to this place because of that would have been rather pretentious.

"Then it's settled. Pack your things now. When dawn comes, someone will come to collect you... I need to make some preparations first as well."