The heavy black wooden door silently closed behind them, shutting Stern's suffocating despair and madness inside.
The corridor lights were not particularly bright either, but they lacked the dim, oppressive atmosphere of the interrogation room.
The middle-aged official was pacing outside the door. Hearing it open, he immediately turned around with a smile on his face.
"Has your meeting concluded, Miss Vanderbilt?"
"Of course." Elsie nodded and smiled. "Thank you for your hospitality."
"You're too kind. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to ask. I'm at your service at all times," the official said hurriedly, as though deeply honored.
Just then, the gray-haired Auror who had stood guard outside the door like a statue fixed his gaze on Wade and suddenly asked:
"And this gentleman is...?"
Wade looked back calmly and said, "Lawrence Gailkitch."
Elsie turned and frowned. "Auror, do you have some objection to my bodyguard?"
The gray-haired Auror stared fixedly at Wade with sharp, eagle-like eyes, his gaze filled with suspicion and scrutiny.
The young man across from him, however, had an exceptionally calm and clear gaze. He seemed steady and composed, without a trace of unnecessary emotion.
After a brief exchange of looks, the gray-haired Auror seemed to confirm something and lowered his gaze.
"No, of course not."
He bowed slightly to Elsie. "It is simply that everyone who enters or leaves the interrogation room must be registered. That is all."
By the time the two Vanderbilts had gone far away, until even their footsteps had completely vanished at the end of the corridor, the official who had barely maintained his smile suddenly darkened his expression.
"You were far too reckless just now, Samuel Goldstein!"
The middle-aged official rebuked him. "That was the eldest daughter of the Vanderbilt family. Do you know how much they