A few more sharp cracks rang out.
Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge and Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Apparated onto the scene, followed by several more officials.
Fudge's signature bowler hat sat crooked on his head, and his plump face was drenched in sweat. The moment he saw the scene before him, all colour drained from his face.
Burning ruins, congealed blood, scattered body parts... and those pure-blood family members lying limp and withered on the ground.
The hollow, despairing eyes of Avery and Crabbe pierced into Fudge like needles.
He gasped, his body swaying slightly as though he might collapse.
Merlin, this was a hundred times worse than his worst nightmare!
This was no mere riot, but an unrestrained massacre targeting pure-blood families! And the perpetrators... his gaze shifted in horror toward the silent figures and Sagres Greengrass standing at their head.
A cold fear gripped Fudge's heart.
He feared these ruthless wizards, but even more than that, he feared the immense fury of the pure-blood families and the international outrage that would follow if this matter became public.
"This... this is truly... most unfortunate..."
Fudge's voice trembled weakly. Pulling out a handkerchief, he frantically wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, forcing out a smile uglier than a grimace as he tried to break the suffocating tension.
"A terrible tragedy... Thank Merlin, the rioters seem to have been... ah... contained."
He completely ignored Barty Crouch's ashen expression and the Aurors' still-raised wands, deliberately overlooking Sagres's earlier actions. His eyes shifted repeatedly between Sagres and Crouch, searching desperately for a way to smooth things over.
"Minister!" Crouch barked. "They—"
"—Successfully prevented the situation from escalating further! Yes, yes, I understand, Barty!"
Fudge hurriedly cut him off, raising his voice to drown out Crouch's words. He then turned toward Sagres, his tone becoming almost sycophantic.
"Professor Greengrass... and all of you... ah... brave ladies and gentlemen, the Ministry of Magic thanks you for stepping forward at this critical moment to protect innocent lives."
Amelia Bones stood behind Fudge, her expression far calmer and more serious than his.
Her sharp eyes quickly swept across the battlefield, assessing the casualties and examining the subdued Death Eaters, her brows tightly furrowed.
She did not speak immediately, but her tightly pressed lips made it clear that she had serious reservations about everything before her, especially Sagres's methods.
"But," Fudge changed the subject, rubbing his hands together with an awkward expression, "you see... this... the follow-up handling should probably be left to the Ministry of Magic's proper procedures. I understand everyone's... ah... indignation, but the dignity of the law must still be upheld. Everything should follow the rules, shouldn't it? These... ah... suspects,"
He pointed at the Death Eaters lying on the ground, as though he could not see their hollow eyes, "should be sent before the Wizengamot for trial..."
He was trying to pick up the "fig leaf" that Sagres had already trampled beneath his feet, carefully attempting to drag the situation back into the familiar, controllable, and negotiable bureaucratic system he understood so well.
Sagres quietly watched Fudge's performance, his grey eyes completely calm. Only after Fudge had finished speaking did he slowly respond.
"Minister," Sagres said calmly, "you have two choices regarding tonight's events."
He raised a hand, stopping Director Bones, who was about to speak.
"First, you can take your people, clean up the scene, comfort the wounded, and lock these power-deprived rioters in Azkaban. Or, of course, you can place them in Muggle prisons, because they are Muggles now."
He paused.
"Afterward, you may announce to the public that a group of unidentified Dark Wizards caused a disturbance, but that the matter was dealt with in time."
He paused once more, his gaze sweeping across the trembling captives.
"Second, you may insist on your so-called 'proper procedures.'"
Sagres's tone remained calm. "But that may not lead to the outcome you wish to see. Not only for them,"
His eyes finally settled back on Fudge's pale face.
"But also for you, and for the order you are so desperate to maintain."
Fudge froze in place as beads of sweat rolled down his temples.
He looked at the expressionless Sagres and the wizards standing behind him, then at the pure-bloods on the ground who had become Muggles, and finally at the grim-faced Bones and Crouch.
He understood that the so-called "proper procedures" seemed utterly pale and powerless in this moment. The other side simply did not care about the authority of the Ministry of Magic.
After a moment of struggle, his fear of Sagres's methods and his fear of the situation spiralling completely out of control ultimately overwhelmed everything else.
"...Of course," Fudge said in an extremely dry voice. Avoiding Bones's disapproving gaze, he continued, "Of course... dealing with a crisis... sometimes requires... unconventional methods. The Ministry of Magic... thanks everyone for their assistance. The subsequent... cleanup and appeasement efforts will be handled by us."
He spoke these words almost through gritted teeth, personally tearing away the final fig leaf, tacitly approving Sagres's actions and choosing to conceal the truth.
Director Amelia Bones took a deep breath, as though she wanted to say something, but in the end she merely gave Sagres a stern look before ordering her subordinates in a low voice, "Auror teams, assist with treating the wounded and assessing the losses. No unauthorised statements are to be leaked!"
She chose to carry out the order, but everyone could tell that this matter was far from over.
As the night deepened, the clamour of the campsite gradually gave way to a heavy silence.
Ministry officials and Aurors moved through the ruins like worker ants, clearing the battlefield, binding the former Death Eaters who had lost their magic with specialised Binding Charms, though it now seemed unnecessary, and carefully calming the frightened witches and wizards while sternly warning everyone not to reveal the details of what had happened tonight.
...
After all that,
In the shadow of a luxurious tent that had not yet been completely burned down, far from the main ruins, two figures briefly met.
Amelia Bones had come to find Sagres.
In the dim light, her expression was unusually complicated, carrying both concern and a trace of exhaustion that was difficult to hide.
"Sagres."
Her voice was low, stripped of the formal, official tone she had used earlier in front of Fudge.
"Director Bones."
Sagres gave a slight nod in greeting to his former superior.
A brief silence followed.
Amelia's sharp eyes studied him closely, as though trying to see through the calm and composed expression on his face.
"Draining magic... permanently."
At last, she spoke each word slowly and heavily. "This is an extremely dangerous form of Dark Magic, Sagres. Even during the darkest periods of history, such a thing was unheard of. The side effects, the corruption of the caster's mind..."
"I know what I'm doing, Amelia."
Sagres interrupted her, his voice still calm. "Compared to what they used magic to do, this is not punishment, but 'correction.' Eliminating the threat permanently."
"Is that really the case?"
Amelia stepped closer, her gaze sharp as fire. "Or are you beginning to enjoy this... feeling of controlling the lives and deaths of others? A power even greater than life and death itself? What you displayed tonight was not merely power, but an absolute authority that stands above the law. That is extremely dangerous, both for others and for yourself."
She paused, her tone growing even heavier.
"I've seen too many outstanding Aurors who were consumed by darkness while fighting it. At first, every one of them believed they could control the situation, control the power, even control themselves. But what was the result? Don't become one of them, Sagres. Don't lose control. Once you grow accustomed to using such extreme methods to 'solve problems,' you'll find the path beneath your feet becoming narrower and narrower, until there is no way back."
Sagres listened in silence, his grey eyes unreadable in the shadows.
After a moment, he spoke slowly. "If the existing methods were enough to solve the problem, I would not choose a more extreme path. But when law and order fail, someone must always do the 'necessary' things. As for control..."
He slightly raised his hand, looking at his long, steady fingers.
"I have never lost it."
"Nor have I ever feared judgement. If one day I must pay the price for everything I have done, then I will not avoid it..."
Amelia looked at him deeply, as though searching for some crack in his expression, but in the end she only sighed.
"I hope so, Sagres. You are walking a tightrope, and beneath it lies a bottomless abyss."
She gave him one final look before turning and striding away.
___
o(*≧▽≦)ツ💫 Read up to 12+ chapters in advance on Patreon/DarkDevil1