Lucius and Karkaroff were both deeply anxious.
Framing Kael and getting him expelled from Hogwarts was the first mission Voldemort had assigned them after his resurrection.
They thought the matter was practically in the bag, so they had agreed without any hesitation.
To make absolutely sure, Lucius even spent a fortune in gold to bribe Fudge into luring Kael to the Ministry of Magic with some absurd excuse, preparing to catch him completely off guard.
But things were not going as they expected.
How was it possible that Kael's wand didn't show any record of using the Fiendfyre Curse? There had to be some mistake… or maybe the Fiendfyre was still further back in the timeline.
So of course, they refused to agree to stop the inspection.
As if settling their minds on breaking him, Kael did not object either.
After Periculum was cast, more than a dozen spells flashed out in succession, but they were nothing except the most ordinary, everyday charms.
Karkaroff's forehead was already covered with a sheen of sweat,
"Go on, keep going!" he shouted.
But at that moment, Kael pressed his hand onto his wand, cutting off the effect of Priori Incantatem immediately.
"Headmaster Karkaroff, you're being a bit shameless now," he drawled. "What, can't find the spell you want? Should we just sit here all day, or maybe a whole month, until you're satisfied?
"I don't mind, I've got plenty of time anyway, there's still over half a month before the term starts.
"But the problem is, the others here aren't so free. Everyone's got important business to deal with every day and you're making them waste precious time just to play your little game—isn't that a tad too much?"
"You're just guilty!" Karkaroff yelled. "The next one's definitely the Fiendfyre Curse. You're scared, that's why you don't dare go on!"
But before Kael could reply, Amelia Bones—seated at the center—spoke dispassionately:
"Please remain quiet, Mr. Igor Karkaroff. From the current evidence, I believe it's already clear he didn't use any illegal dark magic.
"Unless you can provide further evidence…"
"There is! Veritaserum!" Suddenly, Macnair, who had been silent, spoke up. "As long as he drinks Veritaserum, the truth will come out."
"I see no problem with that." Umbridge immediately voiced her agreement. Then she turned to Kael and said in a mockingly sweet tone, "If you didn't kill Mr. Nott, surely you wouldn't refuse to take Veritaserum to prove your innocence?"
"No, I refuse." Kael smiled. "Also in 1975, after the International Confederation of Wizards discovered that memories could be tampered with, they banned the use of both Legilimency and Veritaserum in interrogations."
"But in special circumstances—like if a suspect refuses to confess—it's still allowed," Umbridge said coolly. "The Ministry of Magic has that right."
"As far as I know, it does not," Kael replied, his expression unchanged. "Unless there is strong evidence, Veritaserum can only be used as a final confirmation. Do you have any evidence now? Just a few people making some statements? That won't do.
"In fact, I strongly suspect they're conspiring to get revenge for my winning against Durmstrang in the Triwizard Tournament.
"So I suggest using Veritaserum on them first, to determine if their testimonies are true."
Amelia Bones gently tapped her fingers on the table, her expression turning contemplative.
Seeing her look like that, Macnair instinctively took two steps back.
No one here was stupid; it was obvious at a glance that he didn't dare drink Veritaserum himself.
But Umbridge chose to ignore it. She kept staring at Kael, asking, "May I take that as resisting the Ministry of Magic?"
"Bang!"
At that moment, the main doors were suddenly pushed open. Professor McGonagall strode in, furious, forcing her way past several Aurors trying to block her.
"You don't speak for the Ministry," she retorted at Umbridge without a trace of politeness, then looked over at Kael.
"Apologies, Kael… Someone told me twenty minutes ago that the location had changed. I sat in an empty room for over ten minutes before realizing something was off. Luckily, thanks to…"
At this point, Professor McGonagall paused a beat before continuing, "Luckily, thanks to someone's help, I learned you were here."
"It's all right, Professor," Kael said. "Maybe someone didn't want you to come."
"I think you're right," Professor McGonagall turned to glance coldly at the people on the dais—especially Macnair, Malfoy, and Karkaroff—her lips pressed into a hard line.
"I never knew the Ministry could just change an inquiry's content at the last minute," she said sternly. "This is just about the most laughable thing I've seen!"
"I must remind you, Minerva McGonagall, this was approved by the Minister," Umbridge said.
"I don't recall the Minister having the right to arbitrarily alter Wizengamot procedures," Professor McGonagall shot back. "No matter. Dumbledore is here in the Ministry as well—I'm sure he'll be along soon, and perhaps he can clear things up for us."
That's right, Dumbledore was indeed in the Ministry at this moment.
Suddenly, Kael wasn't worried anymore. Or rather, he started thinking about how to stall for more time.
"Mr. Scrimgeour," he said with a smile, "I actually think Headmaster Karkaroff had a good point earlier. Maybe my next used spell is Fiendfyre? Shall we continue the inspection?"
Karkaroff's hands and feet were icy cold. The last person he wanted to see now was Dumbledore. Even if Dumbledore couldn't harm him here, he couldn't help but think of that night on the mountaintop and his legs went weak.
As for Macnair standing nearby—he could barely keep on his feet.
Malfoy was the only one who managed to remain the least bit composed.
He knew perfectly well Professor McGonagall was just trying to scare them. The situation with Harry Potter wouldn't be resolved that quickly, so even if Dumbledore was coming, he couldn't possibly arrive right away—unless he was willing to abandon the Savior Potter.
"Blood Debt!" Malfoy suddenly blurted. "Priori Incantatem can be tampered with, but Blood Debt cannot! With the Sphinx Magic Mirror, we can see whether he has ever killed a wizard!"
Malfoy had his reasons, of course. Dumbledore might be terrifying, but at least he wouldn't kill them outright. If they failed their mission, however, the Dark Lord wouldn't be so forgiving.
Even if they survived, they'd be lucky to keep their skins.
Kael frowned.
Sphinx Magic Mirror? Blood Debt?
He was now more certain than ever that Diana must have known about their plan in advance and sent him early to the Ministry. Otherwise, how could things line up so conveniently?
But before Kael could reflect any longer, Chris stepped forward.
"Ms. Bones, I suggest they first prove their own testimonies are true."
"That's right," Professor McGonagall said without hesitation. "Changing the topic of inquiry at the last minute is already a grave mistake. I absolutely won't allow you to continue framing a Hogwarts student without justification."
Her tone was firm, and she looked as fierce as an angry lioness.
"I don't agree either." Kael nodded as well.
With Diana's help, he no longer had anything to worry about, but that didn't mean he'd just play ball for Malfoy and let them lead him by the nose.
Such passivity was not the result Kael wanted to see.
...