Chapter 1284 Mrs. Wayne! Your husband is on the front page again!
Meanwhile, at MI6 headquarters,
Inside a heavily guarded room without any markings.
The atmosphere here is completely different from that of the Ministry of Magic. There are no fancy decorations, only practical alloy walls, constantly flashing electronic screens, and the low hum of running equipment.
Carlton stood in front of a large display screen showing processed satellite imagery of a blurry fire dragon rising into the air near Whitehall, London.
There were also several other people in the room, dressed in casual clothes but exuding a capable air, including the new director, John Kyle, who took office last year.
Carlton paused the screen so everyone could see the figure on the dragon's back. "Creating maximum chaos and visual impact to announce his presence and power is Mr. Vincent Wayne's style. He may be using this method to send a strong signal to the Ministry of Magic, the murderer, and other forces that may be lurking in the shadows."
Director John nodded slightly. “His actions are not under our control. I have repeatedly hinted to the Queen and the Prime Minister that he should keep a low profile as much as possible, but it seems to have had no effect.”
Carlton pondered for a moment, then said, "Chief, should we investigate the whereabouts of the fire dragon?"
“No need.” John turned to another screen, which was full of photos of the scene where the killer threw the opal necklace. “Our primary mission in MI6 is to protect our citizens from supernatural threats and to understand as much as possible this world that is rapidly becoming unfamiliar before our eyes. Anything about the magical world is not our priority as long as it does not directly endanger civilians.”
Even as darkness fell, London remained bustling.
In contrast to the Ministry of Magic, which was struggling with panic and bureaucracy, the most informed people in the Muggle government were observing how things would develop.
Vincent unleashed not only a fire dragon, but also an unknown hurricane that swept across two worlds.
Tens of thousands of witnesses have seen the legendary fire dragon, and this cannot be completely quelled by despotism and dictatorship.
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At Hogwarts, shortly after dinner, many students received urgent communications from their families.
Immediately afterwards, various unofficial tabloids, hastily printed and even hand-drawn illustrations, such as "Emergency Extra" and "Night News Flash," were thrown into the auditorium and common room by the owls like bombs.
The students gathered together, discussing the topic with a mix of fear, excitement, and disbelief.
A third-year Ravenclaw student waved a crudely made flyer depicting a fire-breathing dragon crashing through a roof. “He’s riding a dragon! He really is riding a dragon! My uncle’s neighbor’s brother-in-law lives in Diagon Alley, and he says that Ukrainian Iron Belly is as big as a castle tower, and the wind from its wings almost blew him into Knockturn Alley!”
“Vincent Wayne?” a Hufflepuff freshman asked blankly. “The senior who won the Transfiguration Today’s Most Promising Newcomer Award two years ago? He blew up Gringotts?”
His face was filled with disbelief; he clearly couldn't reconcile the smiling, handsome senior in the honor room photo with the "brutal dark devil" image in the newspaper.
The most heated discussions take place in the Owl Court Club's activity room.
“Impossible, absolutely impossible!” Ron’s face turned redder than his hair. “This must be the Ministry of Magic’s doing! It’s a smear campaign! They can’t catch him, so they come up with this outrageous story! Vincent riding a dragon to blow up Gringotts? Why not write that he also plucked the moon off the wall to wear as a necklace?”
He angrily opened the magic communicator, and the homepage of the dubidubi video platform was full of videos related to fire dragons. He randomly clicked on one, and then his jaw dropped.
Although the fire dragon looked much younger, it was still confirmed to be the one from Gringotts.
And that figure standing on the back of the fire dragon... well, it really is Vincent.
Ron awkwardly raised his hand to close his chin, then opened another video.
The video shows a well-dressed witch, clearly an employee of the Ministry of Magic.
“An hour ago, the evil Dark Lord Vincent Wayne attacked Gringotts, causing minor damage, but the dragons bravely repelled him, and the Ministry of Magic is currently hunting down the fleeing Wayne.”
Harry, sitting opposite Ron, leaned closer and stared in disbelief at the witch rambling on the projection screen.
The homepage is full of videos of Vincent flying away on a fire dragon; her ability to lie through her teeth is almost on par with Rita Skeeter's.
Harry glanced at the user's nickname and realized it was the official account of the Daily Prophet, which made sense.
Lavender and Parvati, who were at the next table, saw Hermione enter the activity room and immediately rushed towards her like a whirlwind.
Lavender was also holding a copy of the latest tabloid, which proclaimed in exaggerated font: Exclusive Scoop! Wayne's Real Target May Be a Mysterious Treasure!
“Mrs. Wayne! Look! Look at this!” Lavender rushed up to Hermione, practically slapping the unfolded tabloid in her face. “Your master is on the front page again! This time with a picture! Although it’s a bit abstract.”
The sketches in the tabloids weren't just abstract; they were practically science fiction, like Cthulhu.
Is that big, round, fat chicken a fire dragon? And is that crooked stick figure on its back Vincent?
Parvati leaned closer and pointed to the text beneath the sketch, "The Dark Lord escaped the scene on a dragon..."
She lowered her voice as much as possible, her tone full of curiosity: "Mrs. Wayne, did your husband give you any advance notice? Like, 'Darling, I might be going to blow up a bank tonight and be back late' or something?"
Hermione's face instantly turned red.
“Lavender! Parvati!” She snatched the tabloid in front of her, both amused and exasperated. “Don’t talk nonsense! And please, I beg you, don’t call her ‘Mrs. Wayne’ in public.”
"Oh, what does it matter?" Lavender chuckled and pulled her to sit down. "The whole school knows about your relationship anyway, it's not a secret."
“Okay.” Hermione turned to look at the tabloid in her hand. “You’re right, but I’m used to keeping a low profile.”
She glanced at it a few times, then calmly closed it. "Bombing the bank... riding a dragon across London... those are things he would do."
The principal's office is on the eighth floor of the castle.
Dumbledore stood by the window, gazing into the distance towards London.
It was pitch black outside, but his blue eyes behind his crescent-shaped glasses seemed to pierce through the darkness and see the bustling city that had been engulfed by the fire dragon.
He smiled, shook his head, and sat back down at the table.
"Ding--"
Dumbledore tapped the magical communicator on his wrist. The text message projected onto the screen was from Vincent, and it was very brief:
"There's something sinister in the vault that can drive the fire dragon into a frenzy."
The smile on his lips froze instantly, and the wrinkles that had been smoothing out tightened instantly.
Although Vincent didn't say it explicitly, Gringotts was definitely one of the safest places in the world not long ago.
Hiding Horcruxes in one of his vaults is indeed Voldemort's style.
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