#182 - Show

Although he valued honor and was greedy for resources, this kind of gift beyond a reasonable range still made him feel uneasy. He knew that there was no such thing as unprovoked love in this world, and sometimes the more you took, the more you would have to repay in the future.

"It seems Moody's evaluation of you is correct. You are so humble and content at such a young age," Millicent Bagnold said with satisfaction, nodding her head.

"Regarding the awarding of the 'Combat Hero' honor to you, we made this decision after careful consideration," Barty Crouch Sr. continued.

"The wizarding world has just experienced a war, and there are still many remnants of Death Eaters hiding in the dark, wanting to stir up trouble. Therefore, even now, we cannot speak of a true restoration of peace. Most wizards living in Britain are caught in a tangle of emotions, celebrating the fall of the Dark Lord on the one hand, and worrying about the Death Eaters threatening their safety on the other," Minister Crouch explained.

Millicent Bagnold also nodded and then continued:

"So, at this time, there is a great need for news that boosts morale. You defeated five Death Eaters as an underage wizard, which will shut up those cowards who over-promote the strength of the Death Eaters."

"At the same time, this can also show the Ministry of Magic's determination to fight against the Death Eaters, and put pressure on those who still try to defend the Death Eaters."

"Moreover, you are a Muggle-born wizard. Because of the Dark Lord, many wizards of the same origin have been living in fear. Many of them have fled abroad to seek refuge out of fear. Now the number of wizards in the country has sharply decreased compared to before the war. This arrangement is also a signal to appease these wizards."

"I'm sorry, saying it this way may seem a bit too utilitarian, but the British wizarding world is now recovering and needs to spread more good news to restore wizards' confidence in the Ministry of Magic."

Millicent Bagnold very bluntly told Anduin why they made such a decision, which showed the Minister's fair and frank side. Of course, it may also be that she disdained to deceive a young wizard.

"I understand, thank you for your candor. If that's the case, I'm honored to accept the Ministry of Magic's award." After knowing the cause and effect, Anduin felt confident and simply accepted it.

In his opinion, this behavior was simply creating a role model and setting an example. It was not uncommon in his previous life. Just like the Beautiful Country pushing out a hodgepodge of African-American transgender pansexuals to be high-ranking officials for political correctness, the nature of the show was more important, but it was not a loss for him in the end.

For Millicent Bagnold, Anduin was indeed a good candidate. From his past experience, he had helped the Order of the Phoenix fight against the Death Eaters, so his position was not a problem.

At the same time, Moody had a high evaluation of him, he had a lot of contact with many members of the Order of the Phoenix, and his reputation was very good. Moreover, he could independently fight against several Death Eaters, whether he relied on his own force or alchemical props, which represented strength.

The most important thing was that he had a good image. Originally, Millicent Bagnold wanted to push Moody out, after all, he was the Auror with enough merit, but she was still very hesitant. The main reason was that he looked too scary, which might have the opposite effect.

"In that case, go back and prepare yourself. The celebration banquet is currently scheduled for a week later. We will announce it in the Daily Prophet later. If you need any help, just go directly to Moody." Minister Crouch looked at Moody and signaled him to assist Anduin.

"Don't worry, let's go Anduin, let's go out and talk slowly." Moody enthusiastically pulled Anduin out of the Minister's office.

Then he took Anduin back to his office and told him in detail about the arrangements for the celebration banquet a week later.

"Won't this be too grand?" After listening to the details, Anduin felt that it was a bit exaggerated. Why were so many dignitaries invited? Almost all members of the Wizengamot Council were invited.

"Frankly, giving you a celebration and awarding you a medal is secondary. The main thing is to put pressure on those pure-blood families. It's a pity that Toquir is gone, otherwise there would be no need for such trouble. Just use the Travers family to kill the chicken and scare the monkey, and remove their Wizengamot seats. Then see who else dares to protect the Death Eaters!"

For Moody, Anduin belonged to his own people, so he spoke very bluntly and revealed some of the Minister's arrangements.

"Toquir is gone? What do you mean?" Anduin asked with a puzzled expression.

"Hmph, just as we were preparing for the interrogation, Toquir suddenly died before he could even open his mouth. I don't know if he was cursed or poisoned. I guess the most likely thing is poisoning. Damn it, we haven't been able to find the murderer until now, not even a clue." Moody was very angry when he thought of this. Scrimgeour hasn't found out the result yet.

Anduin breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that there was no result, but he was very sure of Moody's judgment ability. His guess was accurate enough. Fortunately, they had never seen something like a cyanide poison sac, otherwise there would have been a risk of exposure.

"Toquir was poisoned?" Anduin tried to change the subject, "Then I shouldn't become a target, should I?"

"Do they dare?" Moody widened his eyes, "You are Dumbledore's student, and you will be awarded the Combat Hero medal by our Ministry of Magic next. If they want to touch you, give them eight guts."

However, Anduin's words may have alerted Moody, making him feel a little uneasy.

So he continued to say to Anduin: "Why don't I go find you a two-way mirror? If you encounter danger, contact me quickly."

"Uh, don't bother so much, I have this." Anduin took out a communication charm.

"What is this good thing again?" Moody felt that Anduin was like a store, and he could always pull out some strange things.

"Communication Charm 0 is a sample I improved, adding a positioning function. I only have the last one left. I'll give you one. If I encounter danger, it will send out an emergency signal. It will emit a red light and screams, and it can show my location. If it emits a blue light, it's a normal signal, proving that I want to find you, but it cannot show the location."

"Good stuff, if I receive your normal signal, I'll go to the Longbottom's house to find you." Moody happily accepted the charm and even had Anduin test it in front of him.

Afterwards, Anduin said goodbye to Moody and took Vanessa to the Leaky Cauldron through the Floo Network and treated her to a good meal.