Grindelwald's Counterattack

"Big news?" Sean walked over and took the newspaper from the twins.

Merlin's Weekly Prophet is a well-known weekly newspaper in the Wizarding World. It is said that the editor-in-chief has a lot of connections and often publishes news one step ahead of others.

Sean unfolded the newspaper, and at the top of the most prominent page was a line of large, bold text.

Room for maneuver? Dark Lord or victim? Fact or conspiracy?

Below is a photo of Grindelwald giving a speech in Newmontgard. In the photo, Grindelwald's eyes are gentle yet powerful as he smiles at the students of Newmontgard below the stage.

Sean continued reading.

"If we were to name the most shocking news in the Wizarding World in recent decades, it would undoubtedly be the exposure of the evil deeds of Grindelwald, the former headmaster of Newmontgard, who triggered the horrific fire in Paris after resisting arrest."

"We learned through two official channels, the International Confederation of Wizards and the Wizarding United Guard, that the esteemed Gellert Grindelwald was once Dark Lord who committed numerous crimes."

"In an instant, the Wizarding World was shaken. A bounty of up to 500,000 Galleon was placed in newspapers and magazines all over the world, and posters were posted at several major locations where wizards were active. Even in the Muggle World, a wanted poster for the serial killer Grindelwald was issued."

"Under such circumstances, almost everyone was convinced that Grindelwald had planned many unknown terrorist attacks, and the Founders and principal of Newmontgard became a wanted criminal overnight."

"However, the enormous impact of this incident was largely wiped out in just one summer. Not only did the Wizarding United Guard, which had lost its temporary leader, rarely speak out, but most importantly, Grindelwald, known as the Dark Lord, did not cause any trouble during his escape."

"Yes, you read that right. Considering the limitations of many wizards in gathering information, our Merlin's Weekly Prophet spent a full two weeks collecting detailed information from all over the world. Now, we can tell everyone that Grindelwald, one of the most powerful wizards of our time, has not taken any action for such a long time, nor has he retaliated against those 'witnesses' who came forward. He seems to have become a ghost."

"Dear readers, I ask you this: if Grindelwald were truly as described in the statements made by the Wizarding United Guard, such a vengeful and powerful wizard who disregards rules and laws, would he do nothing?"

"Of course, speculation alone cannot prove anything. Our Merlin's Weekly Prophet has always adhered to our journalistic principles—fast, truthful, and objective."

"This newspaper received a photograph yesterday, and this photograph is the crux of this report!"

"At the same time, we solemnly promise that the photo has been authenticated by a renowned wizard and there is no possibility of it being forged. Our newspaper is also willing to take responsibility for the authenticity of this report."

Sean then noticed that someone had cast a clever little spell on this weekly magazine, making the word "Truth" float out of the page.

The trigger spell has a very small Magic Power Source; it should contain the photograph that represents the truth.

Sean touched those two words and infused them with a wisp of magic.

Grindelwald's photograph became distorted and blurred, and was replaced by a completely new photograph.

The photo was slightly shaky, but the subject's face was still clearly visible. She was a middle-aged woman with Muggle expression, wearing a Muggle-style long coat and a veil, her body slightly bent, carefully observing her surroundings.

Sean's eyes widened; he knew this person all too well!

However, the other party was burned to ashes right under his nose.

That was the witch who led a Guard Corps to capture Grindelwald that night; she was Cyril Marshall, the temporary leader of the Wizarding United Guard!

this...

The words in the newspaper seemed even more striking and glaring.

"Yes, who is this? Cyril Marshall, the temporary leader of the Wizarding Alliance Guard! In the overwhelming reports at the time, this 'heroic' witch was unfortunately killed while pursuing Grindelwald. As the leader of the guard, she fought bravely and finally died in Grindelwald's flames. In fact, the International Wizarding Federation has decided to posthumously award Lady Marshall the Order of Merlin, Second Class!"

"So, who can tell me now who this woman who looks exactly like the late Ms. Marshall is? According to the Guard Corps's public records, Cyril Marshall was single and never married, and she didn't have a sister who looked exactly like her!"

"Also, dear readers, please allow me to remind you. The place where this woman who looks exactly like Ms. Marshall appeared was— Belgium! That is, the headquarters of the Wizarding United Guard."

"We can very well suspect that Ms. Marshall has faked her death!"

"I imagine some people will be asking now—what was Ms. Marshall's purpose in faking her death? Was it out of fear of Grindelwald's retaliation? You must all be thinking that, right?"

"First, none of the Guard Corps who chased Grindelwald that night and survived suffered any retaliation from Grindelwald. Second, don't just look at a face; look to the right rear of our clever and resourceful Ms. Marshall— "

Looking in the direction of the words, Sean realized that he had been completely absorbed by Marshall in the center of the photo. Behind her, there was a middle-aged man with a similarly furtive figure. The man had short, neat hair, and the long beard that Sean remembered had been shaved off.

"I bet you've remembered that man's name too. That's right, Rosha Onassis, who 'sacrificed' herself that night with Ms. Marshall and was also posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, Third Class!"

Rosha Onassis ... Sean narrowed his eyes. To be precise, this person should be referred to as Rosha Mopsus, an even older Pure-blood surname.

Descended from the blood of an Ancient Greek Seer, he is also one of the masterminds in Sean's mind.

"Another wizard who should have died long ago! If Ms. Marshall was the temporary head of the Guard Corps and had to conceal her survival because of her identity, then what about Mr. Onassis? How are the other surviving members of the Guard Corps any different from him? And why is he hiding himself?"

"We have reason to suspect that, in addition to these two 'deceased' who have already appeared, the other wizards who have also been buried are likely still alive, just like their companions!"

"At this point, my dear, wise readers, isn't the whole thing getting a little complicated? Let me help you recall that all the mainstream media reported that Grindelwald caused the deaths of more than a dozen members of his Guard Corps that night, and that he also started the towering fire in Paris. The terrifying Fire Giant that appeared briefly afterward was also attributed to Grindelwald."

"All of this information was provided by the 'audience members,' who are also members of the Guard Corps!"

"That night, Professor Dumbledore, who assisted in the arrest of Grindelwald, did not comment on the matter after the Paris fire was resolved! He did not tell everyone definitively that Grindelwald had committed those evil deeds!"

"Furthermore, please allow us to provide an additional piece of information. That night, the Fire Giant was summoned on the outskirts of Paris, and this terrible magic was also directed at Grindelwald. However, let's not forget that our French Ministry of Magic, which is known for its hands-out approach, still sent two Auror to investigate."

"The two men died tragically, and no one knows what happened at the scene. Of course, the two Auror who have been confirmed dead are naturally believed to have been killed by Grindelwald, or rather, by the Fire Giant."

"However, according to our reliable sources, the corpses of those two Auror clearly exhibited a bizarre state of death. This state did not originate from the Killing Curse, fire, or immense strength, but rather from charred, twisted lines on their bodies. In other words, these two Auror most likely did not die at the hands of Grindelwald. After all, if he had summoned such a terrifying Fire Giant, Grindelwald, who had already been defeated by Dumbledore, would not have needed to resort to any strange Dark Arts, would he?"

"The Guard Corps has always been highly regarded by the public, and their actions have been recognized by many people. We did not want to speculate in this way, but one suspicious point after another, as a newspaper that strives for the truth, we must be responsible for the authenticity of the news. We must question whether the previous reports were the truth, or whether they were the so-called 'truth' that others wanted us and the public to see?"

"Here, Merlin's Weekly Prophet merely offers a conjecture. Perhaps Grindelwald didn't commit any killings that night; perhaps he was simply trying to prove his innocence..."

"However, someone deliberately 'died,' the scene was deliberately concealed, and everything seemed to be proclaiming to the world that Grindelwald was so evil. After all, if you are innocent, why do you resist arrest, why do you kill so many 'innocent' wizards... All of this is worth pondering."

"However, what is even more worrying is—if, if all of this newspaper's speculations are true, then why, why would they frame such a great wizard who has made enormous contributions to the Wizarding World? What conspiracy is hidden behind all of this..."

"This report is brought to you by the entire team at Merlin's Weekly Prophet."

Sean slowly put down the newspaper, muttering, "They're here..."

To others, this report has flaws and is vague and incomplete in its explanations, but the photograph alone proves a great deal.

At the same time, the person who wrote this report was quite clever; he strung together every suspicious point, and small loopholes were often covered up by larger ones. Moreover, according to the other party's logic, everything seemed to make sense...

But Sean, who was there that night, knew the whole story. He had personally witnessed both Marshall and Mopsus being burned to ashes.

The only person capable of tampering with this is Grindelwald!

With this "whitewashing" article out, it's no surprise that many people in the discussion about Grindelwald will change their stance!

As for Mopsus, no, it should be Rosha Onassis, he had been hiding his identity all along. And it was precisely because of this that an identity without any special features corroborated the various suspicious points about his faking death.

Unfortunately, those ancient Pure-blood families couldn't possibly come forward to explain—"Wow, that person is actually a member of our family, and he did this because he was afraid of retaliation."

First, let's set aside the suspicions arising from the involvement of ancient families. It's worth noting that the fact that Grindelwald set fire to each of those families wasn't even mentioned in the newspapers.

Clearly, they didn't want to appear in the public eye too early.

Huge suspicious points have been exposed, making it impossible to explain. The only remaining witness that night Sean, was actually part of Grindelwald's group...

Sean couldn't help but secretly admire Grindelwald's methods; they were truly impressive...

I just don't know if he came up with these ideas on the spur of the moment or if he had prepared for them long ago.

Nearby, Fred and George, their faces beaming with excitement, patted Sean on the shoulder.

"Dude, this is big news!"

"Your Dark Lord teacher is on the road to redemption!"

The two sang in unison, appearing more excited than anyone else.

Sean waved his hand casually. "That has nothing to do with me. It's their game, and I can't get involved."

Beside her, Hermione had also finished reading the report, crossed her arms and murmured, "If the Guard Corps can't explain these doubts, as long as similar reports continue to be published, and public opinion ferments, Mr. Grindelwald might even be exonerated..."

Sean shrugged. "I'm afraid the Guard Corps don't have that much time; they probably didn't expect this combo."

"Why do you say that?" Hermione asked, puzzled.

Sean gestured towards another page of the newspaper. "Look, the Guard Corps is currently running for its first leader. Tsk, such a short-established organization already has factions with differing ideologies."

Another page of the newspaper read, "The battle between Conservatives and Radicals: who will be chosen as the first head of the Guard Corps?"

However, this also gave Sean a clue: the Guard Corps was not a monolithic entity, and the core leadership was not completely controlled by the mastermind behind the scenes.

That makes sense. The Guard Corps was impressive, but its establishment was somewhat rushed. It was clearly driven by external forces, but those external forces did not fully penetrate the core.

However, there is still a huge problem with Grindelwald's arrangements.

That was Professor Scamander Newt Scamander, who had just said goodbye to Sean.

This highly respected elder once publicly revealed the crimes Grindelwald committed decades ago. Now, Grindelwald wants to clear his name, but it will be difficult to do so unless Newt changes his story.

Because Newt doesn't change his mind, the Guard Corps naturally stand on the moral and legal high ground. Regardless of their initial intentions, as long as they have a legitimate reason, they can be in the right.

If Grindelwald wants to clear his name in official institutions, no matter how powerful he is, he cannot bypass the principle of 'reason'.

Sean looked up at the Seventh Floor, where the Headmaster's Office was located.

So in the end, it still depends on Dumbledore's choice, doesn't it?

"Come on, old men, let me see what kind of show you're putting on..." Sean raised the corners of his mouth.