Chapter 1068: Scrimgeour, the Real Man
Moody was only happy for a few seconds, and soon his face was covered with gloom again.
It would be great if there was a way to catch the Death Eaters lurking in the Ministry of Magic, but Rookwood, who should have died in Azkaban, is alive and well. He will never be happy unless this mystery is resolved.
Did the Ministry of Magic still have spies planted by Voldemort that hadn't been discovered? Or was there something wrong with Azkaban? Or was Rookwood escaping from prison like Sirius?
All these speculations made Moody's face so gloomy that it seemed like water was about to drip out.
Suddenly, he turned his head and stared at the passage outside the room.
"Professor Moody?"
"Sh ...
There were scattered conversations coming from outside, and Umbridge's signature shrill voice made Vincent and Hermione frown instantly.
Didn't the big pink toad fall out of favor? Why did he follow me here in the middle of the night?
Is it possible...
"Minister Fudge, this way please, we are almost there."
The humble and flattering tone doesn't sound like she has an affair with Fudge. Maybe someone tipped her off.
Their guess was correct. Umbridge was standing outside the room in a pink nightgown and pink slippers.
After a while, Fudge, wearing a felt hat and a dark suit, walked in side by side with Dumbledore, wearing a pure white robe.
Moody came forward angrily. "Fudge! You knew August Rookwood was alive, didn't you?"
Umbridge stopped her in one swoop. "Stop! You lunatic!"
Moody roughly pushed her away, pointing at the dying Rookwood lying on the ground. "You refused to officially announce the news because he is not dead. Did he escape? Or were you released?"
Fudge's face looked extremely ugly after being yelled at, and it became even uglier when he saw Rookwood with half of his face disfigured.
The dozen or so high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Magic behind him also had unhappy faces. Some of them had expressions as if they had seen a ghost, like Umbridge who was pushed against the wall, some did not react much like Scrimgeour, and some were as indignant as old Barty.
It was obvious that Moody's anger was not without reason. The Ministry of Magic had long known that Rookwood was not dead, or that his death was actually used to cover up something more serious.
Vincent and the somewhat numb Hermione retreated to Bagman's side in the corner of the room, intending to remain silent and obscure.
If Fudge couldn't give a reasonable explanation tonight, Dumbledore, who was standing beside him with a squinting smile, would not let him go.
"This matter..." Just as Fudge opened his mouth, Scrimgeour walked forward from behind.
His expression was full of guilt and self-blame. "This matter is my responsibility. I—"
"Rufus!" Fudge interrupted sternly, "Do you intend to reveal the Ministry's top secrets?"
Scrimgeour turned pale.
He met Moody's eyes that seemed to be burning with anger, his whole body trembled, his teeth clenched tightly, and the muscles on his cheeks bulged. "Minister Fudge, the matter can no longer be concealed."
His eyes became firm, "This is my fault, I will take full responsibility."
"Rufus!" Umbridge rushed over with her teeth bared. "What responsibility can you take? Can you bear it alone?"
It seems to be a serious matter.
The officials behind him also tried to persuade Scrimgeour, but his eyes did not change at all, which made Vincent look at him with a new respect.
"Everyone listen to me." Scrimgeour clenched his fists. "The Death Eaters have already sneaked in. If we don't make up our minds to make changes, the British wizarding world will be finished."
The higher-ups were silent, save for Umbridge's shrill voice.
"Rufus, if there's any unrest in the wizarding world, it's all because of you!"
You sound so alarmist, it seems like you're in big trouble.
Scrimgeour's straight back bent slightly, but he stood up straight again quickly. "Really?"
He stared straight into Umbridge's eyes. "Since when did our Ministry of Magic start to cover up problems instead of trying to solve them?"
He turned and glanced at the senior executives behind Fudge. Except for old Barty, they all lowered their heads in shame.
"Huh..." He let out a long breath and looked at Dumbledore and Moody. "The story starts on the day when Peter Petty was executed..."
Scrimgeour is the head of the Auror Office at the Ministry of Magic, so naturally he would escort such an important criminal personally.
But when he arrived at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Peter Pettigrew had disappeared, and the Auror in charge of guarding the ward had been under the Imperius Curse.
"We held an emergency meeting and finally decided to go to Azkaban to find a scapegoat to execute Peter Pettigrew."
Scrimgeour paused, then smiled bitterly. "Yes, I chose Rookwood to be the scapegoat. He used to be an employee of the Department of Mysteries and knew many unknown secrets of the Ministry of Magic. His death will only bring good things."
Needless to say, the Death Eaters released the Dark Mark at the execution site, and then took advantage of the chaos to rescue Rookwood, who was disguised as Peter Pettigrew.
After letting two extremely vicious criminals escape in succession, the Ministry of Magic still chose to keep the matter secret.
If such a living person disappeared in Azkaban, it would be discovered sooner or later.
Anyway, we don’t know how many prisoners will die in a year, so we might as well let Rookwood “die”.
After Scrimgeour confessed everything, he closed his eyes, as if feeling a long-lost sense of relief.
Moody patted his shoulder gently and said, "Rufus, thank you for your hard work."
With such a shocking scandal in the Ministry of Magic, it can basically be said that his political career is over.
Be brave enough to take responsibility for your mistakes, this is something even children understand.
But the senior officials in the Ministry of Magic didn't seem to understand this, especially Umbridge, who had a murderous look in her eyes.
Needless to say, as Fudge's mouthpiece, she must be the culprit who suggested finding someone to replace Peter Pettigrew.
No wonder he had been trying to stop Scrimgeour from confessing; it turned out he was afraid of being held accountable.
If the Ministry of Magic had admitted its mistake from the beginning, perhaps there would not have been an attack on the camp during the World Cup, and there would not have been so many accidents in the Triwizard Tournament.
Unfortunately, regret is useless, someone must be held accountable for this series of events.
Scrimgeour can't escape, but is the responsibility really all on him?
What about Umbridge, who proposed to find a replacement? What about the senior executives who agreed with her?
Vincent, who was like a transparent little boy, was observing Fudge's micro-expressions the whole time.
He was very calm and didn't show any panic.
Damn it, this series of events will probably be covered up as usual.
……
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