Chapter 490 Rufus Scrimgeour
A series of dazzling red lights flashed over the ruins.
The figures flickered, and hundreds of fiery red lights shot out from the wizards' wands, weaving in and out of each other. They struck the rubble of the ruins and were bounced back into the darkness.
"I saw it, it disappeared!" shouted a wizard.
"Don't be foolish, Apparition is not allowed in this area..."
But considering Caresius' sudden disappearance, this statement was particularly unconvincing that night.
"The man vanished suddenly from my sight, if it wasn't Apparition..." The voice broke off and then said in surprise, "There's a man on the ground, unconscious, my goodness, what is this!"
"What have you found?!" Mr. Crouch said in a cold, emotionless tone. His face tightened, and his sharp eyes darted into the darkness.
A few moments later, under everyone's watchful gaze, a wizard emerged carrying a limp figure.
She had a tea towel around her neck. It was Winky, the house-elf!
Mr. Crouch observed as his house-elf was laid at his feet, motionless and silent.
The other Ministry of Magic officials all looked at Mr. Crouch, and the atmosphere in the air was eerie.
For a few seconds, Crouch remained petrified, frozen, his eyes gleaming on his pale face as he gazed at Winky.
Then he seemed to come back to life.
"This, this is impossible, impossible!" he said, "It can't be!"
He moved quickly around the wizard in front of him and headed towards where they had found Winky.
"It doesn't make sense, Mr. Crouch!" the wizard who found Winky called out, "There's no one else there."
But Mr. Crouch seemed unwilling to accept his word, pacing back and forth there. He carefully searched among the dark ruins, the sound of debris rolling and falling constantly heard.
When Evan and Hermione descended, he did not emerge from the ruins.
"Evan, Hermione, are you both alright?"
Evan saw Sirius and Mr. Weasley rushing towards them, looking very alarmed.
In the sky, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Krum, Fred, George, and other Quidditch players landed slowly beside them.
People gathered to inquire about Evan and Hermione, shedding tears of joy.
Everyone was struck by Evan's power, not expecting this 13-year-old to be so strong.
Those who knew him knew that Evan had used the power of the Philosopher's Stone; that mighty power was beyond the imagination of the modern magical world.
Soon, Fudge arrived under the protection of a group of Aurors.
He did not seem to have recovered from the tremendous shock and asked Evan who he was battling.
"That's enough, these two children need to rest!" Sirius impatiently interjected, "Evan just had a fight with a dark wizard who suddenly broke in. This should have been the responsibility of the Ministry of Magic. If you want to know the truth, you can ask those dark wizards who have been captured, and you can find out who they are and where they come from!"
"You're right, Black!" Fudge nodded uneasily. "We..."
Just then, the Ministry of Magic officials at the edge of the ruins gave another cry of alarm, and everyone hurried over there.
The Aurors seemed to be debating whether the house-elf had conjured the Dark Mark, and the final focus was on the wand.
To use this magic, one must have a wand, and Winky did have one in her hand.
The scene was chaotic, and as everyone made their way through, the expressionless Crouch emerged from the ruins. His face remained as pale as a ghost, his hands and toothbrush mustache nervously moving.
"Barty, where have you been tonight?" Fudge asked hurriedly. He seemed even more nervous than before. "I can't believe this happened tonight, a dark wizard attack, and now even the Dark Mark has appeared!"
"I have been very busy!" Mr. Crouch said, still speaking in the same halting manner, barely moving his lips. "During the match, someone snuck into my tent. They seemed to be searching for something!"
"To me, these guys are absolutely mad. What will people say tomorrow?" Fudge complained, "Don't even think about it. Surely they will think it's all the fault of the Ministry of Magic, but who can... God, what happened to this house-elf?"
It seemed as if Winky, the house-elf, had just been seen lying on the ground.
A man from the crowd quickly approached Fudge and whispered a few words to him.
The wizard looked like an old lion with gray strands in his mane of lion-like hair and thick eyebrows.
Behind a pair of metal-framed glasses, he had sharp eyes, fixed sternly on Crouch.
He possessed a certain lanky grace, although he walked with a slight limp.
He immediately gave an impression of insight and toughness.
He was Rufus Scrimgeour, Chief of the Auror Office at the Ministry of Magic, and currently the strongest auror.
"Rufus, do you mean..." Fudge's gaze fell upon the wand in Winky's hand.
Then, he seemed to have suddenly discovered some great truth and looked incredulously at Crouch.
"So, Crouch's house-elf conjured the Dark Mark with this wand!" said Fudge slowly, with a touch of horror in his voice, "The sign of 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named', how could she use this magic!"
Crouch did not speak, and his eyes rested on the wand in Winky's hand.
He did not seem to hear Fudge's words, nor understand their meaning.
"It can't be her..." someone whispered.
"Even if it wasn't her, this house-elf cannot go unpunished!" stated Scrimgeour bluntly. "She has violated the Third Article of the Wand Use Code: No non-human being is allowed to carry or use a wand."
"But..."
"I believe we should hear this house-elf's defense first, and then judge," continued Scrimgeour. "If you have no objection, Mr. Crouch..."
He seemed to be addressing Crouch, but did not wait for a response, quickly raising his wand and pointing it at Winky, "Rennervate!"
Winky stirred weakly. Her large brown eyes opened, blinking in confusion.
Under the silent gaze of the wizards, she rose shakily.
Then, slowly and trembling, she looked up and observed the crowd.
Afterwards, more slowly, she directed her eyes to the night sky.
It could clearly be seen that the floating skull was reflected twice in her huge, glassy eyes.
She sighed, looked at the people in the square with bewildered eyes, and suddenly burst into terrified sobs.