Chapter 552 Abuse of lynching

Chapter 552 Abuse of lynching
The next morning, sunlight poured into the Hogwarts Great Hall through the high windows, and the golden light reflected on the shiny silverware and steaming breakfast food on the long table, warm and quiet. Students sat in groups of three or four, talking, reading newspapers, and eating hurriedly. The Great Hall was filled with an atmosphere that was calm on the surface but actually a little restless.

Shaylin sat at the center of the Slytherin table, his coffee still steaming, untouched. He cut his buttered toast gracefully while watching the owls flying into the sky above the hall. Today, they came especially early and in large numbers.

Like snow, the letters fell from the sky, landing in front of him - lavender envelopes, green notes, and crumpled parchment that formed a paper wreath around his plate.

This scene quickly attracted the attention of the surrounding Slytherin students. Although Sherin often received letters, such a dense and overwhelming situation was still rare.

"Xie Lin, have you opened an owl shop recently?" Pansy, who was sitting diagonally opposite, couldn't help but tease.

Xie Ling just smiled faintly, did not respond, and casually opened the top letter.

"I didn't believe it before, but now I'm beginning to doubt it. Did the Ministry of Magic really tell us everything?"

"Malfoy Lookout is the time of day I look forward to most."

"My brother is doing an internship at the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. He said that the recent report on 'unusual Dementor activity' was sealed by the higher-ups."

Letters kept falling, and the table was soon filled up. After Sherin nodded, Draco, Pansy, Daphne, Astoria and the Carol sisters also joined in opening the letters.

All of these letters were sent by listeners of Malfoy Lookout, and without exception, the contents of the letters expressed support for him.

Different from what Harry did in the original book, the Malfoy Lookout controlled by Schelling only publicized the restlessness of the dark forces and said nothing about Voldemort's resurrection. This restrained and calm tone made it easier for the audience to trust him.

As the Death Eaters' jailbreak continues to ferment, the Ministry of Magic has still not given a convincing explanation for how the Death Eaters escaped from Azkaban, the most secure prison in the world. At the same time, the public cannot see that the Ministry of Magic is trying to make any meaningful response. Compared with the pursuit of Black back then, the Ministry of Magic's reaction this time was surprisingly cold. There was not even a Dementor responsible for searching for fugitives to be seen on the streets.

The masses gradually lost confidence in the Ministry of Magic, and they even fell into extreme confusion - what was happening in the British wizarding world? What was the Ministry of Magic hiding, and what was it planning?
Their questions never got answered. The Daily Prophet was so secretive about these facts that it avoided even the most obvious dangers.

Therefore, caught between this incompetence and silence, people gradually turned their attention to the only platform that was still speaking out - Malfoy Lookout.

It didn't raise its arms or shout slogans, but it spoke out the deepest fears and doubts in people's hearts. Today, when the Ministry of Magic is collectively silent, the calm, clear, and rational voice of Malfoy Lookout has become the "only explanation" that more and more people choose to believe.

"That's great," Astoria said excitedly, "It seems that most of the audience chose to believe you."

"Yes, the explanation given by the Ministry of Magic is too weak and totally unconvincing," Hestia Carrow nodded and said, "They also said that although they were reluctant to face the crisis, the facts were before them and they had to admit that under the security atmosphere deliberately created by the Ministry of Magic, there were too many inexplicable loopholes."

"This also means that more and more people are becoming alert and starting to question the Ministry of Magic..." Flora Carlo continued.

Daphne sneered, "This is not surprising at all. Between the Ministry of Magic and you, anyone with a brain will choose to believe you instead of the Ministry of Magic."

Sherin nodded with satisfaction. The performance of Malfoy Lookout did not disappoint him. This was exactly the effect he wanted to achieve.

Now that public opinion is on his side, the Ministry of Magic can no longer use the same method against him as it did against Dumbledore.

The only thing the Ministry of Magic could do was to use Umbridge's enormous power in Hogwarts to deal with her within the school. And the power Umbridge could rely on was the Justice Pickets headed by McLaggen.

After capturing Dumbledore's Army, the Justice Squad began to become complacent and acted more recklessly, especially McLaggen, whose character became more erratic and domineering. It is foreseeable that it will not be long before he comes to cause trouble for Schelling.

But... hehe, Sherin is not Potter...

Just as Sherin was still immersed in reading the letter, a tiny "bang" sounded in his ears, and a house-elf in a small tea towel uniform quietly appeared behind him, secretly put a piece of folded parchment into his palm, and then quickly disappeared.

After reading the note, Schelling remembered that today was March 3, the day Sturgis Podmore was released from prison, but the Daily Prophet did not report this at all. The note in his hand was written by Nymphadora, and the content was about Podmore——

Podmore is dead.

Today, the Order of the Phoenix sent Lupin and Oakden Hobden to pick up Podmore, but they did not wait for the latter to show up. After some inquiries, they learned that he had died in prison. The explanation given by the Ministry of Magic in the written report was that Podmore "died of illness", but Dumbledore's judgment was that his soul was first sucked away by the Dementor's kiss, and then he contracted the disease and died.

This was not an accidental "death" but a purge.

Schelling frowned deeply and looked up at Umbridge who was still eating breakfast in the professor's chair - this was not Fudge's style, but more like Umbridge's method. You know, although Podmore is a member of the Order of the Phoenix, he has not committed a crime that is punishable by death. In principle, executing him in prison is already an abuse of lynching. If this matter is exposed, the consequences that Fudge will have to bear will not be as simple as stepping down. This approach is tantamount to declaring war on the Order of the Phoenix!
The Ministry of Magic is clearly determined to deal with Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix - but does Fudge himself really have the courage to do so?
"It seems that the Ministry of Magic is ready to go to war with the Order of the Phoenix..." Xie Lin thought to himself.

……

A day passed, and that night, in the secret room behind the secret passage on the fifth floor.

Several magic candles on the wall flickered with pale blue light, which fell on the obsidian floor and stretched the five figures diagonally.

Shailene Malfoy leaned back in his chair, looking calmly at the five girls standing in front of him.

Katie Bell stood at the front, looking confident and a little proud. She was obviously quite satisfied with the completion of this task. She tilted her head slightly and spoke first: "Malfoy, these three are new members from Gryffindor. They are all very happy to join the Dragon Society."

Standing on her left is Lini Richards, a curly-haired girl with a delicate face. Her eyes reveal a bit of innocence, but her eyes hide her curiosity and eagerness to try the unknown world. She is Katie's closest friend, so it is not surprising that she is here.

Xie Lin's eyes swept over her lightly. He was no stranger to Lini. In the original book, when Katie put on the cursed necklace, it was Lini who was beside her and cried for help. She was Katie's inseparable close friend.

"Hello, Malfoy," Lini said nervously, but her tone was sincere. "Actually... there are many fans of yours in Gryffindor. I am one of them. Katie also admires you very much. I trust her judgment."

On Katie's right is a well-proportioned girl with sharp brows - Demelza Robbins.

Sherin also knew this character. In the original book, she was an excellent Quidditch chaser, and became the main player after Harry became the captain. But now the three chasers of Gryffindor - Angelina, Arya, and Katie - were all there, so Demelza was only a substitute player for Gryffindor for the time being.

She didn't beat around the bush like Lini did, but said directly: "I'm tired of Gryffindor's injustice - everyone knows that Ron Weasley was selected for the Quidditch team not because of his ability, but because of his nepotism with Potter and his two brothers."

"Who knows? His skills are terrible, that's fine—" Demelza gritted his teeth and said, "But he has a very powerful mouth. Every time the team makes a mistake, he always shirks responsibility and puts all the blame on others. Of course, the first choice is me, the 'alternate chaser'."

She sneered: "Since Gryffindor's 'courage' is just a fig leaf for connections, I don't mind trying somewhere else."

Xie Lin nodded slightly, his eyes stayed on her for two seconds, and then turned to the far right, it turned out to be Xie Lin's acquaintance——

Vicky Frobisher.

The new star of the Magic Club that impressed him was talented and calm. At this moment, her uniform was neat and tidy, with the club badge she had just won on her chest.

She did not avoid Xie Lin's gaze, but took a step forward and nodded slightly, as decent and self-possessed as always: "Xie Lin, in the Magic Club, I am grateful for your care and guidance many times," she said softly, with clear admiration in her eyes, "I sincerely hope to join your circle and become an ally that you can truly rely on."

Xie Ling slowly raised the corners of his mouth.

The joining of these three people opened up a gap for the Gryffindor forces of the Sleeping Dragon Society, just as he expected.

The fifth person stood behind the three, looking a little reserved. She did not take the initiative to speak like the others, but quietly held a sealed parchment scroll with a complicated look in her eyes.

"Marietta." Sherin whispered her name.

She bit her lip, handed the letter forward, and whispered, "My mother... asked me to tell you: From today on, the Aikmer family is willing to obey you, and she will cooperate with all your instructions in the Ministry of Magic - I only ask you to protect me."

Schelling reached out to take the letter, quickly glanced over it, and confirmed that it was a contract of submission from the Aikmer family - as long as Schelling kept his promise and protected Marietta in Hogwarts, the Aikmer family would follow Schelling's lead.

He smiled calmly, rolled up the letter and put it away, his tone relaxed but with a reassuring certainty: "Tell your mother that I agree to her conditions."

[“Intermediate vassal family” Acquired by the Ekmo family! 】

He stood up and looked at the five people in front of him.

"Welcome, new members of the Sleeping Dragon Society."