#141 - Infighting (First Order)

"I understand, but no one knows where he is now. I inquired a little around Christmas, but even his family doesn't seem to know," Rozier added.

"Better safe than sorry. It's always good to be prepared," Anduin said, pulling a large bundle of wands from his space bag and handing them to Rozier. "These are the wands of those guys. Take them back and return them. I'll return the original books to them after I've copied them. Tell them that I'm a man of my word and I keep my promises, so I hope they do the same."

Then he pulled out 20 Galleons and handed them to Rozier. "This is your share. Don't slack off recently, and keep a close eye on those guys."

Rozier finally saw some money coming his way, and a smile appeared on his face. He readily agreed to Anduin's request.

After dismissing Rozier, Anduin drew out Yaxley's wand, a brown mountain ash wand with a dragon heartstring core, 11 inches long. It looked well-maintained.

"It seems your master has abandoned you. In that case, you can be my spare wand. I hope you won't be as ungrateful as your master," Anduin said coldly, looking at the wand.

As for Yaxley, since he didn't go home, he most likely went to meet up with other Death Eaters. Anduin was quite satisfied with this.

At the same time, in the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts, two people were also discussing topics related to Yaxley.

"So, you lost Yaxley?" Dumbledore asked, his back to Snape, while feeding Fawkes.

"Indeed. After he used the Killing Curse on Anduin that day, I felt something was wrong. After he left, I kept him in my sight, but Yaxley didn't return to his family. Instead, he went to Diagon Alley, where I lost him. I've been trying to find him recently, and I can roughly pinpoint his location, but I still haven't been able to confirm his exact position," Snape said coldly.

"What's your judgment?" Dumbledore asked, turning his head.

"His condition wasn't good at the time. I was afraid he would do something irrational, so I followed him closely, but I didn't dare to show myself rashly. However, I've been using a Sensory Charm to locate him. With his ability, he can't escape my surveillance, even with Apparition. I believe someone must be helping him," Snape replied.

"Just as I predicted. It seems those exiles haven't given up yet. It's a pity we couldn't catch them red-handed. Yaxley didn't go to his family after causing trouble. Instead, he went to them. It seems he's completely lost his way." Another student has completely fallen, which made Dumbledore feel somewhat saddened.

"Tch," Snape sneered. "I think you're really getting old, still caring about a soon-to-be Death Eater."

"The Dark Lord has fallen. At this time, we must try our best to win over every wizard, especially since he's still an underage wizard," Dumbledore turned to look at Snape. "By the way, have you checked Diagon Alley? Judging from Yaxley's behavior, there should be a Death Eater stronghold there."

"You don't need to remind me of that, but it's a mixed bag there. Many properties actually belong to some pure-blood families. I'm not an Auror, so I can't just break in and search," Snape said.

"Give me the approximate location, and I'll have Moody think of a way. But the effectiveness may not be great. Millicent is under a lot of pressure right now."

"Hmm?" Snape looked at Dumbledore suspiciously. "Isn't she riding high right now? The Dark Lord fell during her term. Now there are rumors outside that she is expected to become one of the greatest Ministers for Magic in British history, and you're supporting her, aren't you?"

"Indeed, the situation isn't bad now, but it's not as optimistic as you might think. The main problem lies within the Ministry of Magic. In the Wizengamot, many families who originally firmly supported her have leaned towards neutrality again because of the fall of the Dark Lord, and have even begun to help those families who sided with the Death Eaters. After all, they are all pure-bloods. Many Death Eaters cannot be convicted because of this. Millicent is now competing with them," Dumbledore said with a frown.

"Hmph, it's the same old power balance trick. They fight among themselves when there's no external pressure. It's not surprising at all," Snape said with a disdainful curl of his lips, and then asked, "Then, according to you, those wanted Death Eaters may have been hidden by them?"

"That possibility cannot be ruled out. I am supporting Millicent in putting pressure on those families, and we can't let them protect these criminals like this. You know, we have a lot of friends too, but this will take some time," Dumbledore said.

"What about Yaxley? Are you just going to let him go?" Snape asked.

"I'll have the Order of the Phoenix take over his case, but those little wizards he bewitched must have been scared out of their wits. Now they are accessories to murder," Dumbledore said with a slight smile.

"Isn't that all thanks to that Anduin? Now they are being blackmailed by our Slytherin ghosts," Snape paused. "Moreover, I could sense that he discovered me that day."

"Oh?" Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"Mainly, I didn't expect Yaxley to be so bold. I was taken aback when he used the Killing Curse at the time, and I almost stopped him, but Anduin reacted quickly. That's probably when he noticed my presence," Snape said in a deep voice.

"Then he still dares to blatantly coerce those little wizards. It seems he wants to see our reaction," Dumbledore said after a little thought. "It's best not to encourage this kind of thing. Take some time to talk to him."

"I'll talk about it in a while. It's good for them to suffer a little. They're openly causing division in Slytherin. They're really courting death," Snape thought of the mess in the House during the first half of the school year and was furious.

"This is a matter for Slytherin House, so naturally you have the final say. Anduin should know what he's doing," Dumbledore didn't ask any further.

"He knows more than what he's doing. He used only basic spells and self-defense spells to subdue all those little wizards, and he didn't let them shed a drop of blood. Afterwards, he even used potions to heal their wounds. He handled it so professionally. I bet he planned it all along," Snape recalled that day. From beginning to end, Anduin had been calm and composed, as if he had rehearsed it beforehand. How could he not be surprised?

However, he didn't know exactly what happened in the cabin that day. It was shielded by a silencing charm. He thought Anduin had used potions to heal the little wizards.