Dumbledore had actually come looking for him in person?
Maurise was genuinely somewhat surprised.
Perhaps it was regarding the Grindelwald matter? After all, he had just brought up the topic with the Headmaster not long ago, so it was only natural that he would be a prime suspect.
Of course, other possibilities couldn't be ruled out. After all, he was merely a student; even if he was a suspect, the severity of the situation couldn't be that bad.
Frick looked Maurise up and down, his voice trembling slightly. "What on earth is Dumbledore doing here?"
He seemed panicked by the sudden arrival of the Hogwarts Headmaster.
"Maybe he's here to buy something?"
Maurise swallowed the last bite of his sandwich and wiped the breadcrumbs off his hands.
Frick's eyes widened in horror.
"That's impossible!" he hissed. "He asked for you by name—Maurise Black."
Maurise nodded and headed toward the kitchen door. "I'll go out and meet him, then. Frick, suit yourself."
Frick froze for a second before yelling after him, "This is my shop! Also, you have to go buy some groceries for me nearby later!"
It seemed he was still brooding over the stolen bread.
"Alright," Maurise shrugged. "Want some dried Grindylow fingers?"
"No wizard eats that filth!"
Maurise smiled, said no more, and walked straight out the door into the storefront.
At the shop counter, Dumbledore was standing quietly.
He was wearing a dark purple robe adorned with intricate patterns, a black pointed soft hat resting on the back of his head, revealing his graying sideburns.
His fashion sense remained as questionable as ever.
Hearing the footsteps, Dumbledore turned around.
"Good morning, Maurise," he said mildly. "I guessed I would find you here."
Maurise's tone was casual. "Good guess. But I just got here, so it's a bit of a coincidence."
"Is that so?" Dumbledore took a few slow steps forward.
"So, Professor, what brings you here?" Maurise glanced toward the entrance. "Oh, customers."
Two elderly hags had just walked into the shop.
Upon seeing Dumbledore, they stiffened, turned around, and began inching backward, trying to retreat out the door without making a sound.
Then, Dumbledore turned his head and offered them a polite, warm smile.
The two hags spun around and fled, stumbling over themselves in terror.
Maurise felt they were overreacting; there was really no need to be that nervous.
Seeing this, Dumbledore showed a slightly helpless expression. "I didn't mean to scare away his customers. I hope Frick doesn't mind."
"He wouldn't dare."
Maurise glanced back at the doorway to the inner room. Frick hadn't dared to follow him out.
Dumbledore gave a slight nod and said no more.
Maurise waited for a few seconds. Seeing that the Headmaster had no intention of continuing the conversation on his own, he asked again, "What did you want to see me about?"
Dumbledore looked at him calmly and spoke softly, "Are you aware of the recent events at Nurmengard?"
"The prison where Grindelwald is held?" Maurise asked, feigning ignorance. "What happened?"
"Someone broke in."
"Really?" Maurise raised an eyebrow. "That's awful."
"It is. Someone bypassed Nurmengard's Anti-Apparition wards. The guards didn't even get a clear look at his face before he vanished like a ghost. When they reported it to me, they couldn't even give me a list of suspects."
Dumbledore sighed, then asked directly, "Tell me the truth, Maurise. Was it you? Or does it have anything to do with you?"
'As expected.'
Maurise rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
His best move right now was to deny it, play dumb, and brush the whole thing off.
He hadn't left a shred of evidence, and Grindelwald likely hadn't said a word. As long as he denied it, no one could punish him without proof.
But... he didn't want to.
Dumbledore obviously cared deeply about Grindelwald. Even though the man was now a dying, toothless old man, Dumbledore maintained an unusual level of vigilance over him.
It was strange.
Maurise had a feeling that the relationship between these two men was far from just enemies.
Thinking of this, he suddenly wanted to test Dumbledore's reaction.
If Dumbledore knew he was the one who broke in, how would he react?
No tactical reason—just pure curiosity.
So, he simply admitted it. "Yeah, that was me. I went to Nurmengard."
Dumbledore was caught off guard. "Truly?"
"I went to have a chat with him," Maurise said lightly, as if discussing the weather.
"A chat?" Dumbledore's expression turned serious. "I consider this a very grave offense."
Maurise didn't think it was a big deal.
He leaned against the wall and said, "So what? As the Headmaster, are you going to punish me? Or throw me in prison too?"
Dumbledore remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking, "You really have... given me a difficult problem."
"I was just curious about some research," Maurise said.
Dumbledore rubbed his temples.
Honestly, Maurise's actions were always outside his expectations.
For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.
He looked up at the young man leaning against the wall and asked, "Could you tell me what you two talked about?"
"Sure," Maurise said frankly. "I'm looking into a specific subject right now. I found out Grindelwald did some research on it back in the day, so I went to ask him about it."
"A subject? Like what?" Dumbledore's expression was peculiar.
'You have to admit, this really sounded exactly like something this particular student would do.'
Maurise nodded.
"I don't know if you've heard of it," he said. "Grindelwald called it the realm between life and death."
Dumbledore froze, his expression becoming complex.
"You know the place?" Maurise asked, watching him closely.
"Yes," Dumbledore raised his head slightly, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "We once researched it together... but we failed."
'Failed?'
Maurise felt surprised.
But Grindelwald had clearly entered that dimension—he didn't think the old man was lying.
There had to be some hidden history here.
'Wait a second.' Dumbledore just said they "once researched it together"!
So, these two might have been friends in the past, or maybe even partners?
As Maurise processed the implications, Dumbledore's expression softened. "Did you learn anything from him?"
Maurise thought for a moment, carefully wording his answer: "A little, but not much."
"That's good," Dumbledore pondered for a moment. "I advise you not to return to Nurmengard. But this did serve as a reminder. Maybe I need to upgrade the security there."
Maurise didn't mind.
He wasn't planning on going back anytime soon anyway.
But speaking of which... upgrading a maximum-security prison's defenses not to stop the inmate from escaping, but to stop outsiders from visiting... it was bizarre.