Bad News and Good News
After saying goodbye to Mr. Bauer, Manus considered whether he should go to Downing Street for a visit, since it was, strictly speaking, quite an important matter.
If things go wrong, there could even be shocking news like the Britain Prime Minister dying because his residence was suddenly bombed.
After a high-ranking Muggle Prime Minister dies at the Wizard's Hand, the already delicate relationship between Wizard and Muggle will suddenly become even more strained.
Let's go there anyway, at least to confirm if they're actually there...
As Manus rode the Sleipnir past Downing Street and took a look around, Manus heart sank, but not completely.
The bad news is undoubtedly that a group of Wizard are indeed hiding at 11 Downing Street, the Chancellor of the Exchequer's official residence. And judging from the reaction of the Magical Aura, these Wizards, who are in poor condition and numerous, are clearly not sent by the Ministry of Magic to protect the Muggle elites.
But there was some good news—it seemed that these Wizards had not somehow controlled the Chancellor of the Exchequer, nor had they evaded the layers of protection and scrutiny of the Ministry of Magic's Auror, in order to hide in 11 Downing Street.
It was clear that the Chancellor of the Exchequer who met with them showed no signs of being under magical control, and their hiding place was subtly different from the movements of the Ministry of Magic Auror.
Putting aside the possibility that the Auror might also be colluding with them, it's almost certain that this was at the behest of the Chancellor of the Exchequer and other high-ranking Muggle.
The Auror are only there to protect these Muggle leaders and will not participate in Muggle politics. How to carry out the protection naturally requires the approval of the Muggle leaders, and they cannot come and go freely in the mansion.
Manus considered this good news because since these people were colluding with the Muggle leadership, they would most likely be able to Britain the pursuit of the Ministry of Magic and the Death Eaters.
Naturally, there's no need to worry too much. They were discovered, a major battle broke out, and the Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer both died from the effects of an unknown Charms, leading to this tragedy.
However, this also requires one prerequisite: these people must now want to leave the Britain.
Did they achieve their objectives in the Britain?
Obviously not; even Manus didn't know what their purpose was.
It couldn't possibly be for Voldemort's Horcrux, could it?
Manus believed that these people didn't know it was Voldemort's Horcrux before they seized Hufflepuff's Cup, and probably still don't know now.
In addition, they had previously hired people to Hogwarts to search for and steal something unknown, and the two incidents may have been related to the same purpose.
Yes, if there's any good news, Manus also confirmed that these people are indeed the Greater Good... or so it seems?
There must be very few Wizard factions in this world that use the Deathly Hallows as their symbol, right?
"The Hufflepuff's Cup was explicitly targeted and seized by the Greater Good, so their goal was the cup itself? But I've never heard of any special effects this cup has... It seems I need to get my hands on it beforehand."
Manus made the decision, but still felt something was wrong.
Judging from Hufflepuff's personality and the memories he had seen of Hufflepuff about Ravenclaw, the golden cup was nothing special, and the Greater Good had no reason to specifically seek it out.
Connecting this to the past shocks he had experienced due to the Wizard's behavioral patterns, Manus searched his mind for other possibilities:
After Hufflepuff's death, a descendant of Hufflepuff cast a powerful spell on this ancestral relic, transforming it into a precious magical artifact. This did not prevent Voldemort from turning the golden cup into Horcrux, just as the Resurrection Stone is a precious magical artifact.
The Greater Good seek the Golden Cup out of a symbolic need for it as Hufflepuff relic, rather than for its actual magical utility? For example, is the current leader of the Greater Good also a descendant of the Hufflepuff?
The Greater Good themselves didn't actually know what they were looking for; the golden cup was just one of the items that met their requirements.
This last possibility is actually a bit far-fetched, but it's logically sound and can even explain why the Greater Good hired Kreigs and others without telling them what exactly they were supposed to steal.
It's possible that the reason for not keeping it a secret was that even the Greater Good didn't know exactly what it was.
Manus's eyelid twitched, and after some thought, he still couldn't rule out this outrageous but real possibility.
Let's find the Golden Cup first.
"Voldemort entrusted the Golden Cup to Bellatrix for safekeeping. Where will she keep it?"
Manus currently only knows that this thing isn't in the Black family, at least Regulus doesn't know that. He can ask Lucius if he knows about it when they meet later.
Malfoy was, after all, Voldemort's most important lieutenant, and Bellatrix was Lucius's sister-in-law.
If Lucius didn't know either, then Manus could only resort to magical means. Given that Manus already knew enough about the golden cup, the clues were quite clear.
The meeting with Lucius took place on the fourth day of the holiday. On the third day, Manus visited McGonagall to give Mathilde a follow-up examination and confirmed that the Beastman Blood Curse showed no signs of worsening.
With Manus's current Alchemy, he could theoretically attempt to break the Beastman Blood Curse, but risks remained, so Manus neither tried nor said anything more.
Mathilde's situation is relatively optimistic. McGonagall said she hasn't experienced the Magical Outburst yet, but it should be soon. She is seven years old now, and there are still four years until she can enroll at Hogwarts.
Even if Mathilde experienced Magical Outburst, there's no need to worry about it absorbing Mathilde's magical power to grow stronger, since Manus has already sealed the Beastman Blood Curse.
Manus had ample time to hone his Alchemy and other magical abilities, making it safer to break the Beastman Blood Curse, until the risks were almost nonexistent or completely manageable.
"Don't worry, I've been a therapist quite a few times lately, specializing in difficult cases. The Curse on you is just a bit stubborn to cure completely, but because it was controlled early, there's no need to worry about your life being threatened."
Manus smiled and comforted Mathilde, who had grown up considerably and looked remarkably like Katria in her features.
Mathilde nodded obediently. Although she seemed a bit introverted, according to McGonagall's feedback, Mathilde's daily life was quite normal, and she did not show any signs of autism or depression.