Early Sunday morning,
Vincent arrived at the Gwent store in Diagon Alley dressed in all black.
There were several other people behind him, all of whom were his buddies who had been simply disguised.
"Wayne, you'd better give me a raise!" Sam said breathlessly as he brought over the last man.
"Okay, let's raise it by 1 Knut."
He grumbled and picked up a large water glass, then gulped it all down.
"You're the boss, you make the decisions."
"Send it back and I'll give you an extra 1 Knut."
"The evil capitalists!"
The friends didn't have much of an opinion about harboring a criminal wanted by the Magical Congress.
Because, apart from the twins, all of them had been to Japan for vacation.
Sam, that unreliable Auror, has probably done something that will incur the wrath of both heaven and man again.
"No, he was too busy with work, so he came to my house to slack off."
Vincent finished speaking, even Fred and George looked down on him.
"Uh—do you know how twisted Director Graves is?"
Neville shook his head.
"I once chased away three Furaikan in one day."
"You just took those things back and ran away, right? You still had time to go on a mission?"
Sam, unfazed by Vincent's ruthless revelation, remained completely calm and composed.
"What do you know? I foresaw this scene in advance."
Even Neville didn't believe that.
"Ahem—Anyway, I only came to be the acting store manager because Wayne was short-staffed."
"Oh."
"Soon, I will return to the Magical Congress to continue being Auror."
"Oh."
Sam gave up.
His deeply ingrained image is beyond saving.
Vincent pulled back the curtains on the second floor. "Tsk tsk—there are quite a lot of people here."
Fred and George squeezed next to him.
"Oh dear~ Could they all have been invited over gold Gold Galleons?"
"It shouldn't be that bad." He pushed past the two of them.
"Can't you go to the window next door?"
"Of course—no way!"
"This is the best spot; you can see the men's expressions clearly."
It's definitely a good location, right in front of the main entrance.
Hermione carefully drew back another curtain.
"Quite a few people have already started drawing cards. Are you sure Professor Dumbledore will appear at this time?"
Vincent once again pushed aside Fred and George's large faces that were crowding around him.
"If I were him, I would have shut the shop down by now."
Efficiency is key.
But they are getting on in years, so let's be a little more understanding.
The wait wasn't long.
A group of Auror in brown jackets walked over from the Diagon Alley.
Fudge and Dumbledore walked at the front, neither of them looking too good.
Of course, there was also a certain senior secretary dressed in pink.
"Clap clap clap—" James perfectly captured the changes in the men's expressions.
Fudge stood in front of the Black Swan Wizard Card House, heartbroken, as he made way for the crowd.
He originally didn't want to come, but he couldn't completely ignore the letters of complaint from both domestic and foreign sources.
If this happened in the country, it would at most be considered a typical fraud case.
It can be solved by simply paying a fine and shifting a few scapegoats.
However, he is none other than the former president of the International Confederation of Wizards, Roger Edwind.
That's not all; former British Ministry of Magic, Millicent Bagnore, even invited him for tea yesterday.
If we don't take action soon, isn't it time for Wizengamot to take over?
Fudge hopes to minimize problems and resolve them altogether.
Unfortunately, reality didn't allow it; there were already quite a few foreign journalists around.
The locals, especially Lita, whose expression was extremely excited, seemed eager to rush in before them.
Dumbledore!
He wasn't planning to protect anyone, so couldn't he have given us a heads-up beforehand?
Even a hint...
Hmm, it seems that Dumbledore hinted at this before leaving when he gave a brief report on the situation in Japan to the Ministry of Magic.
"Heh heh—" Fudge glanced coldly at Lucius looked slightly flustered.
It's all that bastard's fault!
One should not... or at least should not cheat or swindle others out of the wealth they have earned through hard work.
"Minister Fudge, what exactly happened?"
"Lucius—no, Mr. Malfoy, we have received a large number of whistleblower reports."
Umbridge unfolded a search warrant stamped with the Ministry of Magic's seal.
"We hope everyone will cooperate fully with the Ministry of Magic's investigation."
Rest assured, we will uphold the law impartially and resolutely ensure that no innocent person is wronged.
Her sharp voice was so penetrating that it gave the children behind the glass window goosebumps.
Sam was no exception, "Dammit!"
This pink ****?! It almost made me vomit my breakfast today.
His words made even Neville feel nauseous.
"Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Magic."
"Jane?" Hermione shuddered.
"What's going on?" Vincent turned around and found that there were many people behind him.
She crossed her arms and said with a look of disgust, "My middle name is also Jane."
Fred and George quickly stepped aside.
"Merlin's pink toad, don't let her disgustingness infect us."
Hermione rolled her Big White at them both. "I want this good spot."
She stepped forward and pushed Vincent aside, joining Daphne in claiming the best spot at the angle.
"No!" The twins, their faces full of frustration, could only squeeze behind Cedric.
When they looked again, the Auror had already entered the Black Swan Wizard Card House.
Reporters were all kept outside, only their cameras were constantly clicking away.
The Auror dismantled the massive card pool, adorned with numerous gems, and neatly stacked the Wizard Cards, categorizing them one by one.
The men all had gloomy faces.
There are a few items that haven't been put in yet.
Regret is useless; what matters is how to solve the problem.
Lucius gave Old Parkinson a wink, and the latter took a deep breath, then suddenly slapped his forehead hard.
"Merlin —it seems the factory printed a few types of cards that were missing!"
Old Flint, dressed in sheep's clothing and furious, grabbed him by the collar.
"Damn it! You old bastard are in charge of the factory!"
"Has it already been printed? Are you planning to secretly sell it at a higher price later?"
"No, I really forgot." Old Parkinson had barely finished speaking when he received a large punch to the face.
Old Crabbe and Old Goyle quickly helped him up from the ground.
"Franz, it's understandable that Iagos has a bad memory and forgets."
"Hmph—" Old Flint, who was being stared at by the Auror, loosened his fist.
What a clever ruse!
Dumbledore maintained a smile throughout, seemingly wanting to give them some applause as encouragement.
Lucius braced himself and met Fudge's questioning gaze.
"Minister Fudge, this is just a minor accident. We will rectify it as soon as possible."
Fudge waved for the Auror to continue their search.
Umbridge tactfully stepped forward and stood between the two.
"Mr. Malfoy, we are not here to investigate whether the probability of Wizard Cards matches the advertising."
Her shrill voice sounded a little more palatable, "We're here to investigate just how much value it actually has based on its workmanship and materials."
A set of cards can be bought back for 500,000 Galleon. After deducting costs, how much profit is left?
What, then, supports that value?
This is exactly what Royston Edwind is questioning.
Millicent Bagno vaguely mentioned the debunking of a scam that only appeared in the Daily Prophet and disappeared without a trace in less than half an hour.
If it's truly an illusory bubble, what will be left after it bursts?