The Unsettling Situation

Faced with Lupin's question, Sean fell into deep thought.

The attacks on Muggle and the prison break were clearly orchestrated by the same group of people, but there was one point that Sean hadn't quite figured out.

That is, the attack seemed somewhat rushed.

In comparison, the large-scale prison breaks of serious offenders in various places seem more like the result of careful planning.

The word 'prison break' may seem unreal, but not just for Sean, every wizard deeply understands the weight of this word.

Take Azkaban, for example. This wizarding prison located on a remote island in the North Sea is a nightmare for many people. Even famous wizards would frown when talking about Azkaban.

The most famous thing about this wizarding prison is that no one has ever escaped since its establishment.

As far as Sean knew, Azkaban was located in the sea, and the entire island was enchanted with magic similar to Undetectable Extension Charm; its area was far larger than the island itself. The towering prison walls contained not only various obstructing spells but also trigger-based magical traps.

Every month, the Auror who escort Dark Wizard to Azkaban reinforce the magic there. They also need a special pass from the Ministry of Magic to safely enter and leave the prison by small boat.

In addition to the fearsome Dementor, Azkaban also has a prison guard force composed of Hit Wizard (Auror trainees). They are mainly responsible for guarding prisoners whose crimes are not so serious, and also serve as visitors and verify the identities of released prisoners.

Veritaserum, Disillusionment Charm, and Polyjuice Potion —even Auror would need to verify these things one by one.

Under these circumstances, it is hard to imagine that a large-scale prison break could occur in Azkaban.

In Sean's memory, there were only two escapes from Azkaban in the original story. The first was by Sirius, who relied on Animagus to maintain his sanity and eventually swam to the shore as a black dog.

The second was the Death Eaters ' breakout, which was actually a special case because Azkaban's main guards, the Dementor, had sided with Voldemort.

However, in this situation, Sean had already encountered Dementor from Azkaban to Hogwarts, and he was certain that these emotionless demons had not yet sided with another unknown dark force.

Such a large-scale prison break suggests the immense effort the forces behind it must have invested. While there's no concrete evidence, Sean is almost certain there's a Hit Wizard within the guards, the Auror escorts, and the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

If Azkaban is like this, then other countries must be in a similar situation.

It is quite easy to deduce that this behind-the-scenes force has already infiltrated a sufficient number of traitors into the Ministry of Magic in various countries, and the sheer size of this force is almost terrifying.

And what about the corresponding attacks on Muggle?

While it is extremely disrespectful to the victims and their families to think that the casualty figures are insufficient, it must be said that, given the scale of this force, the consequences of the disaster do not seem as unbearable as imagined.

It's worth noting that when Sean was speaking with his family earlier, Mr. Wallop said that most of the public was unaware of the situation, and the government concealed the truth very quickly, partly due to the help of wizards, and partly because the scope of the incident was indeed not very large.

In terms of scale and impact, it pales in comparison to the two fires Grindelwald set in Paris.

This is also why Sean thought the attack on Muggle was rushed.

The most serious consequence of this is that, because it has spread to many countries and regions, the Ministry of Magic and the Muggle government have to spend a great deal of manpower and resources to deal with it in order to ensure that the Statute of Secrecy remains in effect.

However, if the mastermind behind this was trying to overturn the Statute of Secrecy, given the power they've demonstrated, they could easily have planned a larger and more heinous attack. After all, not every Paris fire involved Newt summoning Thunderbird to rain down Swooping Evil venom.

So, what is the deeper purpose?

Sean pursed his lips and finally looked at Lupin: "Sir, could you tell me your opinion?"

Hearing his words, Lupin stroked his chin and said slowly after a moment, "I think such a large-scale event should be viewed from the perspective of an ordinary wizard."

"How so?"

"When prisoners escape, followed by attacks on Muggle, what would an ordinary wizard think? It would certainly be the work of some radical, terrifying wizarding organization. In the current situation, I believe that after the initial shock, most people would immediately think of Grindelwald," Lupin explained.

"Oh? So you're saying you don't think Grindelwald did it?"

Lupin gave him a rather helpless look. "Didn't you give me that list? A bunch of graduates from Newmontgard... If Grindelwald had done it, you wouldn't have rushed back to check on your parents' safety."

Sean was speechless; he had forgotten about that...

Lupin continued his analysis, "This is the first opinion of ordinary wizards. If the Ministry of Magic does not find out the true identity of the force behind it, they will definitely push the blame onto Grindelwald. The opposing opinions that were formed because of those two photos will suddenly reverse."

"But for Grindelwald, this situation might not be so bad..." Lupin said softly, glancing at Sean. "He's capable and shrewd. The Ministry of Magic making him a scapegoat also means something else—many radical Wizard Supremacy side with Grindelwald, and even many Dark Wizard will come knocking on his door wanting to pledge their allegiance..."

"This inadvertently strengthens Grindelwald's underground influence, and those radical potential elements will inevitably gravitate towards him..."

Sean nodded slowly, which coincided with his own thoughts.

"So, what's likely to happen next is that the Ministry of Magic will issue a series of stricter, even harsher, regulations, making the current situation even more tense. At the same time, the Muggle government is likely to put pressure on the Ministry of Magic, which is something Grindelwald would like to see," Lupin said.

Sean said, "So, you think that the official forces will confront Grindelwald's underground forces next, and that, perhaps because of the growth of Grindelwald's forces, the two sides will confront each other openly?"

"It's just a guess, but the current situation seems to be developing that way." Lupin shrugged.

That's true... So that means the unknown force behind the scenes is trying to exacerbate the current turmoil in wizarding society, and in some ways, they've even helped Grindelwald...

So, is their goal to throw the Wizarding World into complete chaos? Sean wondered to himself.

Chaos has broken out... Why is that...?

"Fishing in troubled waters"—but what kind of fish is this?

But what he and Lupin could deduce, Grindelwald could certainly also conceive of; he was a Seer, after all.

So what measures will Grindelwald take in response?

Sean was quite distressed that he couldn't contact the sinister old man on his own initiative.

Given Grindelwald's character, even if he knew it was the work of the force behind it all, he would likely accept it willingly...

This is a Open Conspiracy to get key figures at the center of the storm to willingly enter the circle.

"Sigh... What a hassle..." Sean lay down weakly, his tone full of helplessness.

Lupin chuckled and said, "Boss, you're overthinking it. Actually, there are many things you don't need to consider."

"Sir, you can just call me Sean." Sean smiled through his bitter expression.

It's not that he wants to overthink things; the key is that I'm actually right in the eye of the storm. If I lift my butt up even slightly, the fuse sticking out of my belly button might just ignite.

Otherwise, who wouldn't want to be a third-grade student, happily learning magic and chatting and laughing with female classmates?

"Sean, what I mean is, maybe the people who haven't taken any action yet have already foreseen all of this and prepared for it?" Lupin said with a smile.

"You mean... Professor Dumbledore?"

Lupin nodded. "Yes, Professor Dumbledore will not stand idly by and watch disaster happen. I believe he can always turn the tide."

Yes, Dumbledore ... Sean unconsciously opened his eyes wide and stared at the ceiling.

Grindelwald once said that Dumbledore likely setting up a scheme... but what exactly is this scheme?

Dealing with these highly intelligent old fogies is exhausting...

Lupin probably guessed what Sean was thinking. He smiled and shook his head, "Dumbledore has always been like this... When we were in school, our group often caused trouble, Dumbledore always had this 'I know what kind of people you are, but I've decided to guide you secretly' look on his face. After graduation, the troublemakers matured just as he expected."

"Is Sirius mature yet?" Sean joked.

Lupin shrugged. "Comparatively speaking, I've matured."

"Oh, by the way, sir, were you quite familiar with Professor Snape back then?" Sean suddenly became interested and asked about Snape.

After all, in this world, although Snape seems to have parted ways with this group, they seemed to have had a long period of friendship when they were in school.

Mentioning Snape, Lupin sighed in a cryptic tone, "Yes, we were very good friends back then. Although we argued every day and would occasionally fight, we were truly friends... It's just that we were both too immature back then..."

Looking at Lupin's wistful, nostalgic, and somewhat regretful expression, Sean couldn't help but imagine a whole host of things.

Wow, that must have been quite an eventful time.

However, seeing that Lupin didn't want to say more, Sean didn't ask any more questions.

"Sir, our work continues uninterrupted, without leaning to either side," Sean stood up. "Of course, the same old rules apply: your identity remains hidden, the person in charge remains the same, and our foundation will remain underground for the time being—by the way, if anyone investigates, release the fake identity I gave you last time."

To avoid exposure, the foundation founded by Sean operates in secret. On the surface, it is a small charitable organization headed by an elderly, wealthy, childless wizard from England. He is a well-known philanthropist in the Muggle world and is now preparing to launch his own charitable campaign in the Wizarding World as well. This benevolent gentleman possesses all the legal credentials, whether in the Muggle or the Wizarding World.

For Sean right now, creating a shadow character wouldn't be difficult.

Lupin stood up and nodded. "Yes, I understand, and I will tell them to be more careful."

"I trust you to handle things. At the same time, our foundation's work direction needs a slight shift."

Lupin waved his wand, and paper and pen flew into his hand. "Well, go ahead."

"We're concerned about the families of Hogwarts students. We don't need to worry about the wealthy Pure-blood Wizard. Our focus is on the safety of the families of students from the Muggle Family. We can offer some assistance if necessary. If possible, I would like you to create a form for me in the next few days to provide me with detailed information. I will send you the student form when I get back."

Lupin nodded. "No problem. What about the Half-blood Family? There are also some Pure-blood Wizarding Family whose living conditions are just average."

Sean for a moment and said, "Keep an eye on it, mainly their personal safety. Just confirm their specific circumstances in this accident."

"No problem. My men just got in touch with the Butterbeer supplier a couple of days ago, and our information channels have expanded significantly."

"Good, keep it up. Money is not a problem. Just find all sorts of reasonable excuses to throw money at them. We don't need their trust, we just need to ensure the accuracy of the information."

"Okay, no problem."

"Also, we can't control things overseas for now, but we can gather some information, mainly focusing on the family situations of students at various School of Magic..."

While taking notes of the key points, Lupin glanced at Sean was speaking with a furrowed brow but with clear and comprehensive reasoning.

Wow, the Muggle world is full of tricks... and this underage boss in front of me, he's really throwing money around...

If this continues, in less than two generations, perhaps only ten years or even less, their Wizarding Rights Foundation will have unimaginable connections and social prestige.

Lupin thought that if Sean wanted to, he could probably be elected Minister for Magic before he turned thirty. No, perhaps he could even become President of the International Confederation of Wizards.

After explaining the Foundation's next priorities to Lupin, Sean also gave him a special Floo Powder. Any message could be sent by simply throwing Floo Powder into the fireplace, and the paper with the message written on it would fly to Newmontgard.

Upon returning to Newmontgard, Sean placed symbols of the Golden Dawn around the fireplace, a minor variation of his self-created marking spell, requiring only a change to the trigger conditions.

Whenever there's activity in the fireplace, the symbol of the Golden Dawn will be triggered, and Sean will naturally sense it and go to investigate. The only drawback is that without a wizard as a medium, Sean must go to "recharge" the symbol every week.

After doing all this, Sean went into the Vanishing Cabinet and returned to Hogwarts.