Hermione had roughly guessed the relationship between Headmaster Dumbledore and Grindelwald, although it might be difficult to ever prove it.
However, there still seemed to be a chance to prove how powerful Grindelwald truly was, because right now, at this very moment, he was blocking the path of the girls heading to Filch's office.
The five girls who were originally going to settle the score with Filch immediately became highly vigilant, except for Amanda who remained calm and composed, and they all drew their wands and pointed them directly at Grindelwald.
Amanda also stepped forward, looking at Grindelwald in front of her with slight caution.
Although she hadn't sensed hostility or malice from Grindelwald before.
But who could truly know the mind of a Dark Lord? Who could be sure that Grindelwald hadn't changed his mind now and was preparing to attack them?
"Relax, little girls."
Grindelwald raised his hands with a relaxed demeanor, "I bear you no ill will. I promised Albus I wouldn't do anything more to his students."
That word "more" was quite telling. Amanda instantly recalled Mr. Newt Scamander, who was mentioned in related books as having made a great contribution in the battle against Grindelwald.
So Grindelwald had done something to Newt, Headmaster Dumbledore's student, before, right?
"So you and Headmaster Dumbledore really..." Hermione blurted out in a daze, immediately clamping her mouth shut once she realized what she had said.
Grindelwald raised an eyebrow, looking at Hermione with appreciation, "A smart little girl. That's right, Albus and I..."
Cho Chang, Marietta Eckmore, and Penelope widened their eyes in astonishment, clearly understanding the relationship between Grindelwald and Headmaster Dumbledore that neither Hermione nor Grindelwald had explicitly stated.
Wait, wasn't Grindelwald defeated by Headmaster Dumbledore and imprisoned in Nurmengard? And yet, the two of them were—they were lovers?!
Was the structure of their relationship this complicated? Was their romance this thrilling?
This was how the greatest white wizard and the Dark Lord of the current era conducted a relationship? Fine, ordinary people like them wouldn't understand.
Amanda, who normally might not have grasped such a thing, understood this time. She nodded knowingly and questioned Grindelwald.
"So, Mr. Grindelwald, if you won't do anything to us, why did you come here to block our way?"
It couldn't be just to stop them from settling the score with Filch; Grindelwald definitely wasn't that idle.
Looking at Amanda, who had asked the question, Grindelwald gave a friendly smile, "I came to find you. Amanda, correct? I'd like to chat with you, if I may?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Hermione, who had just slightly relaxed her guard, instantly became tense again. Cho Chang, Marietta Eckmore, and Penelope reacted the same way.
Grindelwald looked at the four girls behind Amanda and couldn't help but sigh, "Seeing you all like this... it always reminds me of the people who once followed me."
"The people around me are my friends. They merely approve of me, they don't follow me. On the contrary, I rely on them; it is only with their help that I can succeed. Otherwise, no matter how powerful I am, I would ultimately just be a lonely person."
Amanda shook her head, rejecting Grindelwald's use of the word "follow."
In her eyes, everyone helped her achieve success, rather than following her; she relied on everyone, rather than everyone being great because of her.
"You truly are different from us." Grindelwald slightly nodded, recalling what Dumbledore had told him previously.
"Alright, don't be so nervous, girls, I just want to talk about something with Miss Amanda. Besides, even if I genuinely wanted to harm her, given her current strength, I probably couldn't."
Well... that did seem to be the case. Hadn't Amanda said before that she could handle Grindelwald?
The four girls exchanged glances and lowered their wands.
Amanda turned back and nodded at the four girls, signaling them to wait where they were, and then walked toward Grindelwald.
Walking up to Grindelwald, she watched as the old man casually waved his hand and cast a Muffliato Charm.
"A Muffliato Charm?" Amanda tilted her head, looking at Grindelwald in front of her. What were they going to discuss that required a Muffliato Charm?
"Is that necessary?"
"I think it is quite necessary." Grindelwald nodded.
He clasped his hands in front of him, "You should know my former ideology, right? For Wizards to lead Muggles and guide the world's progress."
"I know."
"Mm," Grindelwald softly responded, his eyes gazing into the distance, seemingly looking through the air toward the past years. "I once saw a future where Muggles' technology soared, and Wizards were forced to hide everywhere, or even be killed."
"I can burn down a city with magic. Albus can too, and so can you. But besides us, how many Wizards can achieve that level?"
"But Muggles are different. Anyone can use their weapons, and they are far more dangerous to us."
Meeting Grindelwald's gaze, Amanda nodded noncommittally. If he put it that way, it might indeed be true.
After all, for some weapons, if you disregard entering passwords, verification commands, or aiming, it really just comes down to pressing a button—even a five-year-old child could press that button.
"That's why I thought at the time, before Muggles became so powerful and before Wizards fell so far behind, I should change everything and let Wizards become the dominant force."
"I can understand that." Amanda expressed her approval. After all, Grindelwald was speaking from the standpoint of the Wizarding World, from the standpoint of Wizards—he was speaking for whoever's side he stood on.
Standing on the side of Wizards, he naturally hoped that the Wizards of the Wizarding World would be the dominant force. Just like in the current M Country, aren't the Muggle World and the Wizarding World competing against each other, both preparing to devour the other?
"But I failed. Albus believed... that we should not start a greater war. He believed that love would eventually solve everything."
Smiling helplessly, Grindelwald shook his head, "He, ah, is always like a saint."
"Headmaster Dumbledore is a very good person and an excellent Principal; that is beyond doubt."
"I believe that too," Grindelwald turned his head back to look at Amanda, "But I am more interested in asking about you."
"Me?"
"Yes. That child is the one you love, right." Grindelwald slightly nodded, gesturing toward Hermione.
Amanda turned her head to look, took a few seconds to process, and then nodded, "Yes."
Patiently waiting for Amanda's answer, Grindelwald continued, "I've heard about her. When you caused that big commotion in your fourth year—last year—she aspired to peaceful, equal coexistence between Muggles and Wizards, correct?"
"Yes, that is what I hope for too." Amanda confirmed this.
"But humans are all greedy," a dark glint flashed in Grindelwald's eyes. "Muggles are, and Wizards are too. Everyone will want to absorb the other. And with the weapons Muggles possess... how can you be sure that Muggles won't want to turn around and absorb us, thereby triggering an even greater war? That would surely cause your beloved even more pain."
Looking at Hermione's beautiful eyes gazing toward them, Amanda's lips subtly curled into an arc, "I have deeply experienced human greed, Mr. Grindelwald, so I will absolutely not overlook it."
Lifting her head and looking brightly at Grindelwald, Amanda raised her right hand and gently clenched it.
"Muggles possess various technologies, and those technologies make them powerful."
"But who says I don't have them? Technology fifty years ahead, a hundred years ahead, a thousand years ahead. With the help of magic, almost every technological concept in my mind can be realized."
Amanda's aura slowly began to rise steadily, her long black hair dancing without wind. "Hermione and the others were saddened by everything I once experienced, and I, too, now feel loathing and hatred for that kind of suffering."
"But I cannot deny that that unstoppable development, that race between life and death, has made me not only the peak of the Wizarding World but also the absolute pinnacle of Muggle technology."
"Now I am the one who holds absolute power. No one else will have to experience what I went through. The world of equality and happy life for everyone that Hermione desires is also what I desire."
"She is responsible for conceptualizing such a world and promoting it downwards, and I am responsible for preparing everything needed to realize that world for her."
"I will realize such a world for myself, for her, and for all the common people. The common people of the Wizarding World and the common people of the Muggle World are the largest and most vulnerable groups."
"They cannot bear the slightest conflict, and they bear the final loss of any contradiction. No one should ever dream of holding them hostage with anything. They are the ones who least want to start a struggle. Anyone who crosses them in any way, or crosses the new world Hermione wants to create—"
"—must be prepared to crush me, this peak, this pinnacle."
"But I'm truly not exaggerating," Amanda retracted her right hand, her aura receding, but her words became even more forceful, "Who has that capability, and who has that ability?"
"Technology, magic—I welcome anyone who approaches me with the attitude of working for the common people to compete with me. But at the same time, I am absolutely certain that I will not lose."
As her hair fell, the Muffliato Charm set by Grindelwald was instantly lifted. Amanda turned around and walked toward Hermione.
"You once stood on the side of the Wizarding World, Mr. Grindelwald, but I stand on Hermione's side, on the side of all the common people."
"She is indeed a powerful and confident young girl," Grindelwald blinked, walking briskly toward the Headmaster's Office. "It's just as Albus said, the new generation is much stronger than us. Getting old, getting old..."
Just now, the old man, who was naturally able to see glimpses of the future, saw everything Amanda was doing through her words.
Colossi breaking through the sea surface, giant shadows shrouding the sky, a "Steel Torrent" marching out for the common people—when Amanda and the girl named Hermione surged forward, carrying their ideology and the power behind them,
it was evident that no one could stop peace and equality from descending upon humanity. The general trend was irreversible... He was now starting to look forward to how miserable the fates of that fellow Voldemort and some of the Muggle World's figures would be, hahaha.
Grindelwald laughed wildly, but when he arrived at the Headmaster's Office, he was greeted by an empty room.
Hmm? Where was Albus? Where was his big Albus?
Only after asking the nearby portraits did he learn that Albus had just rushed directly to Filch's office, having apparently realized that once things settled down for Amanda and the others, they would go settle the score with Filch.
"Should have just walked with those five girls." Grindelwald shook his head, sat down unceremoniously in Headmaster Dumbledore's chair, and slowly closed his eyes.
Never mind, he would just sit for a while and wait for Albus to return.
On the other side, Amanda gently knocked and pushed open the door to Filch's office, unsurprised to see Headmaster Dumbledore standing inside.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, you did come here after all." Amanda politely nodded to the Principal, and her gaze traveled past him toward Filch behind him.
"I figured you would come, after all." Headmaster Dumbledore shrugged.
"Mr. Filch, I believe I reminded you before to distinguish between who belongs to Hogwarts and who is an ill-intentioned outsider."
As Amanda spoke, her eyes turned cold, filled with frost as she looked at the Castle caretaker.
The Young Wizards of Hogwarts tolerated his poor attitude toward Young Wizards because they understood he couldn't use magic and it wasn't easy cleaning such a large Castle by himself.
But helping Umbridge deal with Hogwarts students, and causing Marietta Eckmore to be hit by Umbridge and fed half a bottle of Veritaserum—how dared he!
He really couldn't distinguish between allies and enemies. A person like that was a threat if he remained at Hogwarts.
He sided with whoever was unkind or harsh to Young Wizards. Since Death Eaters would surely be even worse to Young Wizards, was he going to support Death Eaters moving into Hogwarts too?
"I saw, that day, I saw her attacking the Professor." Filch pointed a trembling finger at Marietta Eckmore. Clearly, he knew that his current situation would not be easily resolved.
"Nonsense," Marietta Eckmore rolled her eyes unceremoniously. It was because of Filch that Umbridge, that toad, managed to successfully ambush her. It would be strange if she gave Filch a pleasant look. "That toad ambushed me and tried to feed me Veritaserum to make me talk about Amanda. Should I cooperate instead of resisting? Are you truly senile?"
"Just because of your interference," Cho Chang slowly clenched her fists. If not for the last shred of sanity controlling her, she would have drawn her wand already. "Marietta Eckmore was hit by four Stupefy spells and fed half a bottle of Veritaserum, Filch."
Cho Chang gritted her teeth, "Don't think you can easily put this matter behind you today!"
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