The wizard's previously gleeful, menacing expression instantly froze. Then, he crumpled to the ground, bleeding profusely. The wound inflicted by Shadowless Strike required a specific anti-spell to heal, one that left no magical trace. Its combination of stealth and lethality made it a dark art even Tom Riddle found effective.
"Ah!!!"
The Muggle brothers nearby cried out, scrambling to escape this suddenly dangerous place. It wasn't so much the sight of the wizard's corpse that terrified them – death in such a sparsely populated area, while not a daily occurrence, was hardly unheard of. What they truly feared was that their own lives were now in danger.
...
Malfoy stared blankly at the wizard sprawled in a pool of blood, then glanced up to see Snape and Harry approaching from a short distance away, Snape's expression as grim as ever.
"Ignore him," Snape said, offering comfort to his godson in his own peculiar way. "Such lawless and reckless dark wizards are dealt with via swift execution here."
Malfoy, however, was preoccupied. "Godfather, how did you and Harry even know I was here?"
"Hmph… you've caused quite the stir, even alerted the Ministry of Magic," Snape said, his voice cold and dry, clearly infuriated by his godson's foolishness.
"Huh?"
Malfoy then noticed the sudden hush around him. The screams and gasps of the Muggles had been replaced by an unsettling silence. Looking past Snape, he saw a group of Indian Ministry of Magic employees repairing damaged buildings and erasing Muggle memories.
"..."
Malfoy's lips twitched, his gaze darting between Snape and the Ministry employees behind him. "Godfather, would you believe me if I said this wasn't my fault?"
Snape sneered, but before he could retort, a heavily accented English voice cut in from behind him. "Of course. Or rather, it was our Ministry of Magic's fault for allowing you to find yourself in such danger, Mr. Malfoy."
An Indian Ministry of Magic employee, a man of about fifty or sixty with a neatly trimmed, curly white beard, stepped forward. "My name is Anand Singh, Minister of Magic of India."
Anand extended his right hand to Snape in a friendly manner. "Professor Snape, it's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard of you from Ashok Petil, one of the world's finest Potions Masters."
"..."
Snape studied Anand thoughtfully, then returned the handshake. His tone was as even and composed as always, lacking both excessive respect and undue coldness. "Hello, Minister Singh."
"..."
Malfoy, unable to contain himself, looked back and forth between the two men before finally blurting out, "Godfather, where is Tom Riddle?"
"Ah? Tom Riddle is here as well? I'll have someone invite him…" Anand became noticeably flustered. "No! I'll go myself… Professor Snape, would you mind accompanying me for a moment?"
In truth, Anand genuinely hadn't known Tom Riddle was present. Although Tom Riddle had arrived through proper channels, he hadn't actually registered, or rather, no one dared to reveal his whereabouts without explicit permission. Snape and his group, on the other hand, hadn't been a concern. With so many Death Eaters scattered across the globe, someone slightly unusual like Snape wouldn't attract attention.
Anand was now visibly agitated, a stark contrast to his earlier composure with Snape. While he could guess at Tom Riddle's reasons for being there, anxiety gnawed at him. He feared Tom Riddle might target him, might set his sights on the Indian Ministry of Magic, leaving him surrounded by the Dark Lord's men...
However, Anand was simply overthinking things. The reason the Indian Ministry of Magic didn't have many Death Eaters was precisely because Tom Riddle wasn't interested. Aside from the potential waste of manpower, the main concern was that these characters held rather peculiar ideas and weren't particularly useful. He had no desire to receive a letter from the Indian Ministry of Magic one day, informing him of "non-violent non-cooperation."
...
From the moment Snape and Harry set out to find Malfoy to their return with Minister Anand, less than half an hour had passed. Tom Riddle was currently showing Nagini and Cassandra around, making the best of the scenery. While there wasn't much to see, and some of the locals were rather unpleasant, the sea was preferable to waiting around aimlessly.
Tom Riddle had briefly considered taking them shopping, as there were some relatively normal-looking areas nearby – perhaps the legendary "rich district," where the goods might be more reliable. However, both Cassandra and Nagini politely declined. They might entertain the idea of purchasing local magical items, but consumer goods were out of the question.
"..."
Tom Riddle, growing somewhat bored, used magic to tease the cows in a nearby field. Nagini and Cassandra chatted quietly nearby. In truth, though he appeared disinterested, Tom Riddle was keeping a close watch on Harry and the others.
A strange glint flickered in Tom Riddle's emerald eyes, and he subtly raised his gaze as a crackling sound heralded the distortion of space.
"You're here?"
Tom Riddle didn't turn around, but instead used magic to guide one bull to charge at another, staging a makeshift "bullfight."
"Professor Tom Riddle?"
Anand, looking profoundly nervous, walked to Tom Riddle's side under the watchful gaze of Nagini and Cassandra. Yet Tom Riddle seemed completely uninterested, focused solely on the "bullfight." Just as Anand was beginning to feel deeply uneasy...
"You must have a suspect, correct?"
Seeing his chosen bull triumph over the other, Tom Riddle nodded with satisfaction, then turned back to face Anand. "Yes, it's hardly likely that they haven't found something after all this time... Let's go."
Tom Riddle recalled Ashok Petil mentioning that he had learned from his former colleagues at the Indian Ministry of Magic that they already had a suspect in mind.
"Ah? Ah!"
Snapping back to attention, Anand hurriedly followed. "Professor Tom Riddle, where do you wish to go? I will take you."
"The Ministry of Magic."
...
Agra Fort, a red sandstone fortress located on the west bank of the Yamuna River in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India. Traces of magic could also be found within this ancient structure. Just as the entrance to the English Ministry of Magic was disguised as a red telephone booth, the entrance to the Indian Ministry of Magic was concealed as an old Mauryan dynasty stone pillar.
For some reason, the Ministry of Magic seemed drawn to these conspicuous locations for their entrances. The telephone booth in England was situated in a high-traffic area, while the Indian pillar was simply placed within a historical site. Perhaps they simply relied on magic to prevent Muggles from discovering them.
Unlike wands made elsewhere, Indian wizards crafted their wands with Ganges sand. To enter the Indian Ministry of Magic, one needed to lightly touch the stone pillar's veins with a wand infused with this Ganges sand.
---