Vinda Rosier

In the Bastille Prison, in Vinda Rosier's cell.

Laurent had grown accustomed to his sister's lack of interest in entertaining him.

He tossed a small metal cube from his pocket, which landed with a crisp sound and unfolded into a chair in the blink of an eye, steadily supporting his body.

After sitting down, Laurent continued to persuade him, "Those things, that person... he doesn't need them anymore. You don't need to insist anymore. Some Acolytes have already been granted the right to be released from prison; after all, decades have passed..."

Grindelwald's followers in those days were called "Acolytes," and their numbers were numerous.

After the final battle between Dumbledore and Grindelwald, the Acolytes were either arrested and imprisoned or went into hiding. Except for a very few who rebelled madly, most of them were not subjected to a bloody purge.

One of Grindelwald's conditions before entering Nurmengard was to do his utmost to preserve the Acolytes.

In the wizarding world, punishments are mostly imprisonment, with the death penalty being extremely rare—because the wizarding population is so small, and wizards' blood is very precious.

Many of the key Acolytes came from Pure-blood families, so during the final judgment, their blood ties were taken into consideration to some extent.

Vinda said indifferently, "That's their choice."

She sat on the sofa, holding an old book in her hands, but didn't turn the pages. Her gaze was fixed on the blank spaces on the pages, as if she were looking at something far away.

Vinda was once the second-in-command of the Acolytes, second only to Grindelwald in status.

She assisted Grindelwald with many affairs; the Acolytes ' supplies, including precious magical items and books, were all managed and kept in secret places by her.

The value of those collections is immeasurable. If she were willing to hand over even a portion of them, she could leave this prison immediately and enjoy her old age in peace.

No matter how comfortable a cell is furnished, it is still a cell.

Laurent had been trying to get his sister to leave, but only if Vinda himself agreed.

In fact, she could have left twenty or thirty years ago if she had wanted to.

But she simply refused.

Laurent was extremely troubled, and his voice rose slightly. "The family shouldn't have been involved in what happened back then. I was able to hide away and study Alchemy, and even find a teaching job in Beauxbatons... If you hadn't followed that person, the family would have been even more glorious under your leadership."

He could roughly guess why Vinda was unwilling to go out.

It's because of that guy from Nurmengard.

In Laurent's view, his sister's life was ruined by that man!

What ideals, what For the Greater Good —these are all just excuses!

With that man's intelligence, how could he not see the sister's feelings for him? But that bastard only took advantage of them.

Laurent certainly couldn't say these words aloud, for fear that Vinda would beat him up.

Putting aside whether he dared to fight back against his sister, the main reason was that even if Vinda didn't have a wand, Laurent wouldn't be able to beat her even with one.

One of the main reasons why Vinda was able to become the second-in-command of the Acolytes was that he was a good fighter, extremely good at fighting.

It's been like this since Laurent can remember.

In response to Laurent's words, Vinda coldly replied, "If you weren't my brother, if you didn't have Rosier's blood flowing through your veins, do you really think you could peacefully pursue your Alchemy?"

Laurent was speechless.

Indeed, aside from Alchemy, he was only good at using techniques like Apparition escape; his skill in direct combat was mediocre at best.

In the wizarding war that swept the world decades ago, the Acolytes would spare him trouble out of respect for Vinda.

Even after the war, bearing the Rosier surname and possessing alchemy skills, he was still able to enjoy a comfortable life.

For Pure-blood, betting on both sides, or even betting on multiple sides, is quite common.

Regardless of which side wins, as long as the family line continues, that's fine.

Seeing that Laurent remained silent, Vinda, as if he had just given him a beating and then gently comforted him, said, "Well, at least in terms of continuing the family bloodline, you've done a good job. I'll never have the chance to have children in this lifetime."

Laurent lowered his head silently, secretly thinking: If you had children, that would be terrible; just the surname alone would be a headache.

Vinda waved his hand, signaling Laurent to leave, and then said nothing more.

The one she follows is trapped in a cage; how could she possibly go out and enjoy freedom?