Capítulo 294: Chapter 294: Evidence
"This is impossible!"
As soon as Alaric finished speaking, someone in the crowd exclaimed.
"The Dark Lord has resurrected?"
"This joke is not funny at all! Voldemort died fourteen years ago!"
Just like a giant stone being thrown into a calm lake, this news caused an uproar among the wizards.
Most of them couldn't believe it—they couldn't accept that Voldemort could actually come back to life.
"It's true..." Harry also stepped forward, his face pale and looking unwell.
"Child, drink this first. You don't look well," Madam Pomfrey approached and handed Harry a cup of hot cocoa mixed with a sedative.
After taking a moment to steady himself, Harry continued, "The trophy was a Portkey. It took me to a graveyard... Voldemort was there... Voldemort..."
"You must have seen wrong!" someone in the crowd shouted, "You probably mistook some dark wizard for the Dark Lord!"
"Please, everyone, quiet down and let's hear the full account from these individuals," Madam Bones stepped forward.
With her being a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Magic, the scene quickly calmed down.
However, no one noticed the eager look in Madam Bones' eyes as she turned to Harry and Alaric.
This woman was not only a hawkish figure within the Ministry of Magic against Voldemort and the Death Eaters, but she also had a deep personal vendetta against Voldemort himself.
"The Dark Lord was there? And then?" she gently prompted Harry.
"It was... Peter Pettigrew... He was there..."
"Peter Pettigrew was there, and then what?"
"They brewed a potion... to restore his body..."
"The Dark Lord restored his body? He was reborn?"
"Then the Death Eaters came... and we dueled..."
"You dueled with the Dark Lord?"
"We escaped... Alaric, Miss Granger, and Miss Delacour appeared... They rescued me... using the trophy..."
He didn't mention being struck by Voldemort's Killing Curse or seeing his parents between life and death before coming back to life.
He found the experience too unbelievable.
Madam Bones nodded and turned to the other three.
"Did you really see the Dark Lord's resurrection with your own eyes?"
"I... I didn't see Voldemort's resurrection myself," Hermione hesitated for a moment but gathered the courage to say the name.
"But we did see Harry dueling with him, and when they didn't notice us, we created a distraction and then took Mr. Potter away."
This was the testimony Alaric and the two girls had agreed upon beforehand.
If they said they had been there from the start, someone would surely question why they didn't stop Voldemort's resurrection.
The information about Voldemort's Horcruxes was too crucial.
Even Dumbledore had kept this secret to himself, not even telling his closest allies in the Order of the Phoenix.
In a world of magic, there were too many ways to extract information from a person: advanced illusion spells, Veritaserum, Legilimency, and more.
All could easily make a wizard spill secrets.
If Voldemort learned that his Horcruxes had been exposed, he might create more or hide the existing ones, making it even harder to kill him.
For this reason, Alaric and the two girls also agreed to remain silent about the Horcruxes.
If only one person claimed something incredible, it would often be dismissed as a rumor.
If two people claimed it, some might start to believe.
When three people confirmed the same incredible event, it would be believed by many.
Now, Alaric, Hermione, Fleur, and Harry—four individuals—confirmed Voldemort's resurrection.
And these four were not ordinary wizards.
Alaric aside, Harry had "killed" Voldemort before, while Hermione and Fleur were champions of the Triwizard Tournament, outstanding among young wizards.
Their joint confirmation greatly increased credibility.
Immediately, the wizards present began to discuss loudly again.
Some believed in terror, some were skeptical, and others insisted they were lying.
Madam Bones turned to Dumbledore.
"Albus, what do you think of this?"
Everyone's eyes also turned to Dumbledore.
As the leader of the light wizards and a key figure in the fight against Voldemort, his words carried significant weight.
Dumbledore pondered for a moment before he spoke again.
"Although I hate to admit it, my friends, I must announce that my old adversary, Voldemort, has likely indeed been resurrected."
Gasps of shock rippled through the crowd.
Dumbledore frowned and continued speaking.
"Three years ago, I encountered Voldemort. At that time, he had not yet fully resurrected and was barely surviving by possessing others.
Most of you may remember that person—it was Professor Quirrell, who taught Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts."
The young wizards began to whisper among themselves.
Many of them remembered the bumbling Professor Quirrell, and none had expected that he, who attempted to steal the Philosopher's Stone, was actually possessed by Voldemort.
Dumbledore pointed to Alaric and continued.
"Back then, Alaric was only a first-year student, yet he led Miss Cho, Miss Granger, Mr. Potter, and Mr. Weasley (Ron puffed out his chest and blushed in the crowd) to bravely protect the Philosopher's Stone, preventing it from falling into Voldemort's hands and stopping his resurrection."
The crowd looked at the group with surprise and admiration.
"From this, we can infer that Voldemort has indeed not truly died and has been seeking ways to resurrect all along.
Therefore, the news of his resurrection now is very likely true."
"Of course, words alone are not enough. We have another piece of circumstantial evidence," Alaric suddenly interjected.
"And that is the fact that Barty Crouch Jr. was impersonating Professor Moody.
We can check his office; there should be evidence of his disguise there."
"Good idea," Snape's eyes lit up.
"One of the ingredients for Polyjuice Potion is human hair. I guarantee the real Alastor is still alive."
So, a group of them headed to the Defense Against the Dark Arts office on the third floor.
In the chaos, Alaric noticed two people had already fled.
One of them was Ludo Bagman.
To repay his debt to Alaric, he had bet with the goblins that Harry would overwhelmingly win the Triwizard Tournament.
For this, he had tried to cheat for Harry several times and had given him perfect scores twice.
Now, with the Triwizard Tournament ending inconclusively, and Harry appearing with Hermione and Fleur holding the trophy.
Even if Harry had been the first to touch the cup, the goblins, known for their strictness, would not consider it an overwhelming victory.
In other words, Bagman had lost the bet.
To avoid being caught by the goblins, he had fled early.
.
.
.
Guys, do leave some power stones and reviews.
✌patreon.com/bobthewriter✌
If you guys enjoy this story, you can support me on Patreon and get access to 30 Advance Chapters, it really helps me to work on new chapters.
Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder