Ferdinand froze, the teacup in his hand trembling slightly, causing ripples to spread across the surface.
"An heir?" he repeated.
Then, he remembered the wizard who had cast that magic in the video. Streaming Mirror hadn't captured his face directly, but from the back, he appeared to be a tall, slender young man.
Fiona frowned slightly, saying with some confusion, "Grindelwald is over a hundred years old, isn't it normal for him to have an heir?"
"To be precise, he's probably around one hundred and ten."
Moody's normal eye narrowed into a slit, and he said solemnly:
"You don't understand, Mrs. Gray, that age isn't considered old for a wizard like Grindelwald."
"Especially dark wizards; they have unspeakable ways to prolong their lives."
"And… given that man's nature, it's hard to imagine him allowing someone else to share his power."
"But…" Ferdinand hesitated. "That young man beside him…"
That positioning, that magic… it truly looked like an orchestrated debut for an heir, arrogantly proclaiming their power and the individual's existence to the world.
Moody slowly nodded. "So… if Grindelwald truly has an heir, then he must be more than just a follower of Grindelwald. He must be someone who has genuinely inherited that man's bloodline and ideology."
"But such a person… such a powerful person…"
Moody unconsciously gripped the dining knife in his hand, chewing on his cheek as he said, "We've never heard of him!"
While the Wizarding World is closed off and conservative towards the Muggle world, European wizarding families intermarry and communicate frequently, often making spatial distance negligible. They are not ignorant of each other's news.
A wizard with exceptional talent might only need to practice magic diligently for over a decade in a secluded castle to become powerful;
But for an excellent heir to grow, he needs not only talent and effort, but also experience and refinement. He needs to learn to communicate and collaborate with others, build a good network of relationships, and cultivate decision-making and leadership abilities.
He couldn't possibly grow up perfectly, like a princess in a fairy tale, simply by being confined to an ivory tower.
But what about that so-called heir? Where did he study? Does he have friends? Who did he learn from? What are his hobbies?
Moody knew many people, including former dark wizards he had caught who were now in the Alliance, and acquaintances he had made.
But after asking around, he hadn't received any extra information beyond a surname. It was as if the person had simply dropped out of the sky.
"—Braun. I asked everyone I could, and that's all they called him. But even that surname, I don't know if it's real or fake."
Moody said, his voice heavy.
Mr. and Mrs. Gray fell silent, a chilling feeling creeping over them.
Alliance, Grindelwald—these were names that had been relegated to history. Although they had become active again over the past year, they hadn't sparked a war like decades ago, merely targeting Muggles who persecuted wizards.
Some said Grindelwald repented his past sins, and everything he did now was an atonement;
Some called him the Guardian in the dark night of the Wizarding World;
Others said the most powerful dark wizard had simply recognized the changes in the world and the current state of the Alliance, knowing that resistance was futile, and thus used this method to gain acceptance and recognition from the Wizarding World.
Regardless, the once arrogant Alliance seemed to have become more peaceful. Grindelwald's tyranny and ambition had also been worn away by time, like an aging lion, having lost its former edge, no longer fearsome.
But now, learning that he had secretly cultivated such a person, it was as if an invisible, colossal net was slowly unfurling, and a deeper, larger shadow lurked in the dark depths, while the gradually enveloped insects remained blissfully unaware.
For a long time, everyone was immersed in that emotion, unable to speak.
After a while, Ferdinand finally whispered, "If that's the case, then that dark wizard in the Cursed Forest… and the dark wizard with the Cursed Mascot… could they be the same person?"
His voice was instinctively very low, as if he feared waking something terrifying.
"Very likely." Moody nodded. "Our guess—and it's only a guess—is that the dark wizard might be another heir Grindelwald cultivated, but he was the loser in a competition."
His gaze fell on his plate. The half-eaten beef pancake had an irregular gap, its edges slightly charred.
Moody cut off another large piece with his dining knife, his fingers tense, veins bulging on the back of his hand, as if he was exerting force against someone.
"They are playing a dangerous game," he said with extreme disgust. "They are gambling with the lives of innocent people, playing an extremely dangerous, evil game."
He stuffed the cut steak into his mouth, chewing viciously.
Fiona's lips trembled slightly. "I thought… I watched Streaming Mirror, and I thought they were protecting the audience inside…"
"They are both protectors and attackers. However, those people only show one side of themselves to the public."
Moody said coldly, "Fifty years have passed, and Grindelwald has become more cunning. He no longer shouts for war, but has learned how to fool the public."
Fiona twisted her fingers, instinctively glancing upstairs, then said, "Wade returns to school in a week… in this situation…"
Moody's hardened expression finally softened somewhat, and he said gently:
"Don't worry about that, Mrs. Gray. Hogwarts is still the safest place in Britain. Let alone a little whelp raised by Grindelwald, even Grindelwald himself wouldn't dare easily set foot in Hogwarts."
Moody paused, then added, "And, I will also be at Hogwarts this year."
"Really?" Mr. and Mrs. Gray exclaimed in surprise simultaneously.
"Dumbledore invited me to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, and I've accepted."
Moody said, "Hogwarts will be the center of the entire Wizarding World. Since a crisis is approaching, I can't stand by… I'll keep an eye on Wade for you."
He put down his cutlery and said seriously, "I won't sugarcoat things for you, Ferdinand, Mrs. Gray. Hogwarts will be more dangerous this year than ever before, but also safer than anywhere else."
"I will protect the children in the school, fighting until the last moment. Unless I'm dead, your son will never be in mortal danger—I promise you!"
-----------
Machine Translation by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
Read ***+ original & fanfic translations in English, Español, Português, Deutsch, Français, or Русский
Or Translate for free at : https:// randomtranslator.com/translate
Join our Discord: https:// discord.com/invite/XXUR9nkjwa
-----------