Chapter 239: “Being the Principal”
Chapter 239: “Being the Principal”
Grindelwald walked out of the flames. He wore a gray-black windbreaker, and the strangely shaped collar pin on the vest disappeared. Grindelwald smiled, and even his voice was gentle, but everyone saw that under his face, there was a bloodstain on his chest.
“Aiken, you’ve grown and are more courageous than before.” He stepped forward and gave Mr. Aiken a warm hug, the blood on his chest was stained on his expensive robe.
This way of appearing makes Mr. Aiken a little confused, and the fear of Grindelwald is slowly appearing. It seems that it was only now that Grindelwald discovered that he was still stained with a large amount of blood.
Obviously, the bloodstain was not his own. After waving his wand, the blood on his chest was wiped away, but he didn’t clean it up for Mr. Aiken.
He smiled, put his hands on his chest, and said encouragingly, “Aiken, don’t bother me here. Come on, say what you want to continue to say.”
Mr. Aiken’s domineering power subsided, and he tried his best to keep his face calm, “Mr. Grindelwald, my son disappeared in Nurmengard. So, I think it is necessary to take some measures to ensure my son’s safety. He is a student of your school.”
Grindelwald waved his hand and interrupted him, “Aiken, I want you to continue what you wanted to say and do.”
Mr. Aiken glanced at Sean next to him with slightly confused eyes and suddenly found that both of them had similar smiles on their faces.
Mr. Aiken gritted his teeth. Although he was concerned about the safety of his only son, it was only his intuition that Sean was the culprit, even without any direct evidence.
“I…” His lips twitched, and his voice was several times lower than before. “I will make a thorough investigation before drawing conclusions. I hope that Mr. Grindelwald can provide some help.”
“I want your answer, Aiken. I just praised your courage,” Grindelwald leaned forward slightly, “Don’t want to say it? Then, should I help you with it?”
There was no magic spell, only the crazy surge of magic power. Everyone in the office felt that their breathing had stagnated in an instant.
“Are you going to use Veritaserum on my students?”
He took a step forward, and Mr. Aiken and the people he brought took a step back.
“You want to pry on my students without any further evidence?”
His tone was steady, but Mr. Aiken finally recalled the picture deeply buried in his memory. This wizard in front of him was the same young wizard who could once destroy an entire city with just a wave of his hand.
Mr. Aiken swallowed his saliva and held on, “Mr. Grindelwald, my son is also your student. But he disappeared at school…”
“He’ll come back,” Grindelwald stretched out his hand and patted Mr. Aiken’s back a few times, “What price should you pay today?”
“Mr. Grindelwald…” Mr. Aiken finally panicked now. Although he was smiling, he had already seen the expression of the person in front of him clearly.
Mr. Aiken was almost begging for mercy, “Sir, you are the Principal of Nurmengard.”
Grindelwald sighed. Sean also shook his head. He couldn’t be more clear about what Grindelwald hates and likes most when others say it.
If this sentence came from Sean, Dumbledore, or other students, he would accept it with great pleasure and remind them to continue to praise him. If this sentence comes from those who want to use this identity to get ground over him, Grindelwald’s mood will immediately turn a 180.
“You guys are really annoying.” He muttered to himself, but the cold sweat on Mr. Aiken’s head grew more and more.
“Sir, just like Mr. Dumbledore. You are the principal of a school and one of the greatest wizards of this century. I met Mr. Dumbledore back then, and he is just like yo-.” Before he could finish speaking, Grindelwald stretched out his hand and pinched the other’s lips with two fingers.
“Let me correct you two mistakes,” Grindelwald said, “First of all, I am not one of the greatest wizards alive. There is only one greatest wizard, and that is Albus Dumbledore.”
“Secondly,” he approached Mr. Aiken and whispered in his ear, “I am different from Dumbledore. I hate people comparing me with him.”
Sean heard Grindelwald’s whisper and even wanted to add a sentence. After speaking, Grindelwald let go of his fingers and smiled again.
“Okay, let’s talk about what happened just now?”
There was a mark on Mr. Aiken’s lips, but he didn’t even dare to rub it with his sleeve. Every time Grindelwald got closer to him, he felt that death was one step closer to him.
Mr. Aiken’s lips twitched, “I would like to apologize to Mr. Wallup and procure compensation.”
“No need.” Grindelwald waved his hand generously.
Mr. Aiken took a deep breath and quickly lowered his head. He now feels lucky to have survived a desperate situation. However, what he said next made him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.
“Aiken, which hand do you usually use your wand with?”
“What’s that, Mr. Grindelwald?” Mr. Aiken looked at him in horror.
“Huh? Do you want me to ask you one more question?”
“I, I…” Mr. Aiken wanted to beg him to forgive him, but he didn’t dare to say more when he met his eyes.
“Don’t tell me, I’ll pick it randomly.” Grindelwald smiled and raised his wand.
“Right hand! Right hand!” Mr. Aiken screamed.
Grindelwald nodded in satisfaction. He grabbed his right hand, and the twisted and sharp tip of the wand slowly slid over the back of his trembling hand. He didn’t know what kind of magic spell he chanted, and after a white light, Mr. Aiken’s right hand suddenly became firmer.
“For a wizard, the wand means a second life. Of course, the hand using the wand needs to be well protected. A small magic spell can make your right hand better.” Grindelwald raises Mr. Aiken’s right hand, showing a masterpiece for others to watch.
But no one paid attention to it because Mr. Aiken’s left hand had completely disappeared at some point. His left hand disappeared into the air, leaving only Mr. Aiken’s frightened and trembling eyes.
Sean silently observed Grindelwald’s actions just now. The magic spell just now seemed to drain the vitality of the left hand and then add it to the right hand.
Grindelwald showed his “work” and forgot about it as if throwing garbage. He waved his wand, and the door of the office was opened.
“Originally, trespassing on Nurmengard and daring to interrogate students without my consent should be given a harsher punishment. But for the sake of your son’s disappearance, I’ll let this slide for now. Mr. Aiken, remember to thank me for my kindness every day in your prayers.” Grindelwald said with a smile.
Mr. Aiken didn’t dare to say another word. He tightly held his lost left hand and quickly left.
Grindelwald turned his head to look at Rosier and Goodman, “You two. I have my own reasons for not getting my hands tied in this situation, but in the future, don’t let this happen again. “
The two didn’t even think about Sean, who was present. They knelt down on one knee and stroked their chests with their hands, “Thank you for your kindness, Lord Grindelwald.”
“Just call me principal.”
“Yes, Lord Grindelwald.”
“Forget about it,” Grindelwald turned and left, waving his hand to signal Sean to follow.
The two left the office and walked on the silent corridor of Nurmengard at night.
“Sir, that was cool.” Sean complimented him sincerely.
Grindelwald twirled his short beard triumphantly, “Thank you for your compliment, Sean. But you haven’t seen anything, and I really should let you see it when I have the chance.”
“I look forward to it, sir.”
“Let’s not talk about that. What about little Aiken?”
“He’s in my ring.”
“I knew it,” Grindelwald nodded and then waved his hand indifferently, “You can do whatever you want, but let him out tomorrow morning.”
Sean nodded, “I see. Should I do something to him?”
“Why you ask me?” Grindelwald expression was weird, “I am the principal of Nurmengard. I should be worried about the disappearance of my school’s students instead of discussing with the culprit of the kidnapping.”
“I just had a talk with someone who was frightened just now. I don’t know anything.”
Sean laughed when he heard it, “As the principal, there are still many things you can’t do, right?”
Grindelwald shook his head with a sigh, “Yes. I admire Albus. He can maintain such kindness and tolerance after staying in the position of principal for so long.”
“Oh, that man just now will thank you for your kindness.”
“He probably would.”
Grindelwald continued, “Sean, you know. I always think that every wizard is an extremely valuable resource, and I don’t want to hurt anyone who’s a wizard. But sometimes, the unsatisfied people cross the line too much, and I’ve been headmaster for so long that they’ve forgotten who I was.”
“The first Dark Lord?”
“You can say that,” Grindelwald shrugged his shoulders, “When you can control the history of magic, it doesn’t matter how you name it. Even if a lowly cockroach will do.”
Sean looked at him and nodded silently. History is always written by the victors.
Grindelwald has never cared about these names; what he just said is also true. He cherishes the life of every wizard. If his ultimate long-cherished wish can be fulfilled, Grindelwald would sacrifice countless lives, including his own, to make that wish come to reality.
He doesn’t know if he still focuses on that goal.
Grindelwald did not take Sean to his office, and the two stopped at the fork on the first floor leading to the Hogwarts lounge.
“Okay, this is a pleasant evening for both of us,” Grindelwald sighed with satisfaction, “Before you go back, I have one more question.”
“What?”
“What are you going to do with that Veritaserum?” Grindelwald asked with interest.
Sean knew that he was curious about his follow-up preparations. He would probably be a little disappointed if there was no plan for this situation. Sean took out a bottle and opened the cork.
“Respect, sir.” Sean raised his glass and then took a sip.
Grindelwald looked at the scene in front of him, and he saw that the pale white liquid that slipped into Sean’s deliberately widened mouth turned into black sparkling water as it passed through his throat.
He clapped almost gleefully.
“Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful nonverbal Transfiguration.” Grindelwald said three beautiful words, and the expression of admiration in his eyes almost overflowed.
“Did you do it without a wand?” He asked again with great interest.
Sean held out a hand, showing the wand hidden in his sleeve.
“I can do it nonverbally, but I can’t do it wandless.”
He used nonverbal Transfiguration to turn Veritaserum into soda. Under Gamp’s law, the resulting soda has a strong smell of soda. After drinking it, the veritaserum that turned into soda will not take effect. His Transfiguration won’t last long. It is enough to deal with the situation just now.
Grindelwald smiled and waved his fist into the air, “Damn you, Albus, I can’t believe you’re a Hogwarts student. Unbelievable, look at your insidious little trick. You should have become Nurmengard’s next principal.”
Sean almost choked. He wiped his mouth and said with a wry smile, “Sir, you just said that being the principal is not a good thing.”
“Maybe go for another path? Like the next generation of a Dark Lord?” Grindelwald said with a smile.
“That doesn’t sound nice.”
“Heh,” Grindelwald laughed happily, “That’s up to you to choose.”
“I hope so, too.”
After the two said their goodbye, Grindelwald watched Sean leave.
The smile on his face gradually faded, and he murmured, “Choose…”