Doubts Surrounding a Miscarriage of Justice and Adult Students!

"I understand, Dudley. We'll do as you say!"

Dumbledore emerged from his stunned, dazed state. Without much hesitation, he directly agreed to Dudley's proposal.

His ideas and way of doing things were undergoing a powerful transformation.

"There's one more thing."

Seeing Dumbledore agree, Dudley immediately moved on to the next matter.

"Dumbledore, Hagrid has suffered this injustice for far too long. You must clear his name as soon as possible and prove his innocence!

This is also to make up for the mistake you made back then! As the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, the highest wizarding court, a man who wielded judicial authority, you severely lacked the ability to investigate cases and assign responsibility.

The Chamber of Secrets was opened. An unknown monster escaped and killed a student at the school. At the same time, Hagrid's secret breeding of an Acromantula was accidentally exposed.

Did those few facts alone prove that Hagrid had used his spider to murder someone?"

Dudley's questioning plunged Dumbledore into memories of the past.

"Voldemort at the time, Tom Marvolo Riddle, was an outstanding fifth-year student at Hogwarts. His exceptional magical talent and extraordinarily handsome appearance had earned him considerable prestige among the students.

Voldemort told the Ministry of Magic wizards investigating the case that he had personally witnessed Hagrid's spider kill Myrtle. His followers all echoed his claim, severely interfering with the Ministry wizards' judgment.

Furthermore, Hagrid had no way to prove that the Acromantula had not killed anyone. So I could not clear him of the charges or stop him from being expelled. All I could do was forcibly keep him at Hogwarts as gamekeeper."

As Dumbledore recounted that history, he seemed to think of Hagrid erasing his own memories yesterday. Sorrow and guilt showed on his face.

But Dudley had no intention of indulging Dumbledore. He immediately analyzed, from a rational perspective, what Dumbledore could have done back then.

"I'm honestly speechless with you wizards. Your justice system is that backward? Do you even understand what 'innocent until proven guilty' means? If you suspect someone is the murderer, you need to investigate and establish a sufficient chain of evidence to prove it!

Yet you made the suspect prove his own innocence? If he couldn't prove it, he was guilty? What kind of bullshit logic is that?

Dumbledore, the reason you thought you couldn't clear Hagrid was simply because you didn't use your brain!

I don't even need magic or potions to give you a way to prove Hagrid didn't commit murder!

Your wizarding history books state it clearly: Salazar Slytherin was a wizard who believed in pure-blood supremacy. Would the Chamber of Secrets he left behind allow itself to be opened by a half-blood born of a wizard and a giant?

If that isn't persuasive enough, then let me ask you this: did you perform an autopsy on Myrtle after she died?

When an Acromantula kills, it either suffocates its victim with silk, corrodes them with venom, pierces them with its legs, or bites them with its mouthparts. Were there corresponding traces on Myrtle's body?

Did they match the Acromantula Hagrid kept?

Even if the young Voldemort had been cautious and left behind some fabricated traces on Myrtle's corpse afterward, they would never have withstood a careful, thorough examination!

Because after a person dies, their blood stops flowing. The difference between poison from wounds inflicted while alive and marks added after death is obvious!

There was an even more important clue. I heard from Hagrid that Myrtle became a ghost after she died, right? Did none of you think to ask her what killed her? Had she ever seen the Acromantula Hagrid kept while she was alive?

Young Acromantulas lack the ability to kill a wizard in a single blow. If a spider had killed her, Myrtle, the victim, could not possibly have known nothing!

So, if you had put a little thought into it, would it really have been difficult to prove back then that Hagrid and his spider hadn't killed anyone?

Dumbledore, if you had done that back then, not only could you have cleared Hagrid of suspicion, you could have exposed the young Voldemort's disguise. At the very least, you could have charged him with false accusation. You might even have discovered that Voldemort had opened the Chamber of Secrets and committed murder, then locked him in Azkaban.

Would Voldemort still have become the Dark Lord who plagued the Wizarding World? Even if he had, he would have paid a far greater price!"

Dudley's incisive analysis left Dumbledore stunned yet again.

"Dudley, you are smarter than any Ravenclaw I have ever met. If I had possessed your quick wits and wisdom back then, if you had been born a century earlier so that I could have met you sooner, more than half the tragedies I experienced would have been avoided!"

Dumbledore's heart was filled with mixed emotions—guilt, self-reproach, regret, and a sense of loss... Tears welled up in his eyes once more.

"However, Dudley, the regrets of the past have already happened. Missing abilities and complicated fate created this outcome. All we can do now is make up for it as best we can.

I will clear Hagrid's name as soon as possible and prove his innocence to every wizard!"

Dumbledore made his promise.

"That's not enough. Hagrid had to leave school in his third year because of this. I want you to set aside some time to tutor Hagrid, strengthen his spellcasting ability and combat training, and make up for the regret of his unfinished education."

Dudley refined his demands.

"Good! Since becoming headmaster, I haven't taught personally for many years. When the time comes, you and Harry are welcome to sit in as well."

Dumbledore agreed to the request without the slightest hesitation.

"Not just Harry and me, but my parents too—The Dursleys! Dumbledore, you don't mind having two more adult students, do you? This is the last thing I want you to do before school starts."

Dudley unceremoniously added even more to Dumbledore's already heavy workload.

Dumbledore had been shocked numb by now. Upon hearing yet another outrageous request from Dudley, he did not react very strongly. He simply nodded decisively.

He wanted to see just how Dudley intended to turn two fully grown Muggles into wizards as well.

Amid countless astonishing conversations, time had already reached the dead of night.

The Dursleys had been waiting in the first-floor living room, and they had prepared a lavish dinner.

After Dudley, Harry, and Dumbledore finished their long discussion, they collected themselves, left Dudley's large bedroom, and went down the stairs from the second floor one after another, arriving in the Dursley household's first-floor living room.

With Dudley and Harry as witnesses, Dumbledore solemnly apologized to the Dursleys, especially Petunia. He sincerely asked them to forgive his inappropriate behavior in the past and expressed his respect and remembrance for the Potters.

Petunia and Vernon were so surprised that they did not know how to respond. Only after Dudley explained and reassured them from the side did they understand Dumbledore's intentions.

Petunia remembered the moments she had shared with her "freak" sister in the past. Overwhelmed with sorrow, she collapsed into Vernon's arms and cried bitterly.

After she finished crying, the Dursleys forgave Dumbledore. They no longer feared or distanced themselves from the old wizard as they had before, accepting him as an ordinary friend they did not know particularly well.

At the right moment, Dudley announced to his parents that the family no longer needed to leave the country. Then, before Dumbledore, he stretched out both hands and grasped one of each parent's arms.

A miracle was about to happen!