"Clang, jingle jingle."
Listening to the shop door close and the bell behind it ring incessantly, Su Ming expressionlessly fiddled with the Serpent Tree leaves in his hand as he watched Fudge leave with an eager spring in his step.
Though they were leaves, they felt like thin stockings. To keep them from drying out and shattering, they had been transported in ice water the entire time.
Yes, he had obtained the goods. After the troublemaking duo gradually extended their Black Hand toward Ilvermorny School—and Grindelwald had even shown his face near the school—Principal Fontana had finally caved. Through the Magical Congress, he reached a deal with the British Ministry of Magic, allowing Dumbledore's aid mission to finally proceed.
It had already been two months. If they had kept refusing to budge, Su Ming and Grindelwald would have found it difficult to keep causing trouble without exposing the Magic World.
Fortunately, Fontana still did not dare gamble with his students' lives. He could not be sure when the Dark Lord would invade the school.
Unfortunately, even with the Dark Lord and Cloak helping him, Su Ming had not found the location of the Serpent Tree himself.
Once Dumbledore arrived at Ilvermorny, Su Ming and Snape bid Fontana farewell. Their excuse was that the new term was about to begin, so they needed to return to Hogwarts to prepare lessons—and they did not want their own headmaster nagging them.
Old Dumbledore was still as cheerful as ever. He casually chatted with Snape for a few moments, and after receiving the answer that nothing unusual had happened, he had no leads for the time being. He could only remain at Ilvermorny a little longer and watch how things developed.
There was no helping it. The Ministry of Magic had accepted their benefits,