92. Shadow Ruler

"Next! Maintain the line." Marcus ordered the wandless wizards being forced to stand in line and get their vows done with Happy one by one.

As if the sword of Damocles hung on their heads, they all accepted the terms Happy threw at them. After all, the other option was to fight Happy, and there was no guarantee that they would survive, as they had already seen it happen before.

"...I will never go against Happy Lestrange or his interest in any way possible. If I did, I'd die a painful death. I will obey Happy Lestrange as long as it's an order related to work, which involves working for the company and Happy Lestrange personally—no limitations on what that work may be…"

The terms were airtight and loose enough to give Happy the full power to order them around. However, the vow also spoke of getting a salary of ten thousand galleons a month with a scope of bonus anywhere from a hundred to a thousand percent, in case they did a good job. If they weren't paid according to that, the vow would be null and void.

After an hour, all ten wizards officially became a member of Happy's squad. "I welcome you to Lestrange Investment Bank. We sell various things and sometimes topple governments that don't care about their people. Now, may I know why you attacked me exactly? And who placed the bounty on me?"

"We don't know that." A man named Liam spoke. "We work for the International Guild for Bounty Hunters. The bounties are public. The one who completes them takes the pie. The amount on you is currently fifty million galleons—it's an international contract."

"Oh, so that's why you aren't all from the same place." Happy realized but wasn't fazed. "Well, from now on, one of your jobs is to catch bounty hunters that are coming after me and keep them alive until they make an Unbreakable Vow with me."

"..."

Everyone turned silent but didn't dare speak. They just wondered how far would Happy go, since there were countless hit-wizards registered with the guild.

"I want one hundred people in our ranks, and for that, I shall be working from here. So go and bring me people—the one who brings the most shall win a bonus of one million Gold Galleons. The second position shall receive, half, and third half of that—GO!" Happy clapped his hands and sent them away, letting them escape from the warehouse in the middle of nowhere. How they were going to return to the UK was something they themselves had to worry about.

Happy just remained in the warehouse. "Ah… I forgot Koko was sleeping on my bed. Poor boy must be worried about me."

…

At Hogwarts.

Happy never returned after that night. The school was made aware of what had transpired the previous night. Confusion was everywhere, but the classes continued as normal, as if nothing had happened.

Hermione, Harry, and Ron felt frustrated but couldn't do anything as even Dumbledore told them not to worry about Happy. Merely being told Happy was safe wasn't really reassuring.

However, there was one little feathered creature running around the school in search of his human.

Koko woke up to a shock in the morning, not finding Happy anywhere in the room. At first, the goose remained calm as it was normal. However, when lunchtime came, and Happy still didn't appear, Koko started to worry.

"Quack!"

"Woof!"

He walked around the hallways of the school, calling for Happy. He searched every nook and cranny and talked with other animals of the school, but to no avail.

"Ayyyy?" Koko shouted around, trying to use various sounds to make his words seem like Happy's name.

"Ayyy?"

Sadly, the day passed, and night fell once again. Koko returned to the common room and sat down on Happy's bed to wait there. After all, it was the only home he knew. Happy was the only family and friend he had.

Woosh!

But when everyone was asleep, a small blue portal appeared right beside Koko on the bed. The little goose perked his head up and remembered the strange thing was related to Happy.

"Ayy?"

Koko wasted no time and jumped right into it. And in a split second, he found himself embraced tightly in the arms of his dearest friend.

"Koko!" Happy hugged the goose. "I'm sorry, you must have been so worried about me. I was trying to finish dealing with things here before getting to you."

Koko was a happy-go-lucky goose, just like Happy. So he quickly forgave the boy and rubbed his furry head below Happy's chin.

"Haha, good. Just relax for now. We're going to be here for a while." Happy brought Koko to his small temporary house, away from the mess outside. He had a plan for the moment, and to do that, he had to stay away.

…

Ministry of Magic,

Bam!

"Order in the room—Do not behave like savages." The Minister for Magic, Fudge, stood at the podium in Wizengamot. "We made mistakes in the past, but no longer can we do such. Peter Pettigrew shall be fed Veritaserum so the truth can be unveiled. Furthermore, there is no denying that Peter has remained in hiding for over a decade now—as an illegal animagus."

There were no objections in the court anymore. There were plenty of purebloods in the Wizengamot, but they had indirectly received advice from Happy to let the truth come out; That was, unless they wanted to be slaves of Voldemort once again.

So, Peter was fed the potion in front of everyone. There were many overseers of the trial, from non-Wizengamot members to a few journalists.

Quickly, Peter was fed the potion, and the rest was history. The man confessed to his crimes with no resistance since Peter lacked a spine from the beginning. He revealed his fears, and how he betrayed the Potters after becoming the Secret Keeper.

The folly had come to light, and the fact the Ministry had blundered big time, sending an innocent person to rot in Azkaban for years was embarrassing, to say the least. But, Fudge was smart and threw the previous Minister under the bus. Dumbledore, in fact, had to bear the most burden because he never pushed for a comprehensive trial.

"The facts have been made clear." Fudge started to read the verdict. "Sirius Black is innocent, but there is no amount of apology that can redeem his years spent in Azkaban. However, for Peter Pettigrew, to not only betray the Potters but also murder muggles and frame an innocent man to be tormented for so long—a Dementor's Kiss is the only plausible outcome. Those in agreement, raise your hands."

Almost all hands rose up in agreement with the punishment.

"That settles the verdict. Then—Peter Pettigrew shall be given a Dementor's kiss—Wizengamot is adjourned."

Peter Pettigrew cried and pleaded. He broke down on the floor, but there was no pity in anyone's eyes. He made his choice, and the consequences were also his to pay. For the next few days, he was to be kept in the dungeon-like cellar at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement until the administration of the Dementor's Kiss. It was enough time to break his mind.

The Aurors came and threw him into the cellar roughly.

He cried.

Night passed.

Days passed.

Boom!—But it wasn't his time to die just yet, as the steel doors of the cellar blew apart with a bang. Multiple men with skull masks emerged from the dust cloud, making it clear who they belonged to.

"Your work is not done yet. You are needed to serve the Dark Lord!" The mysterious figures ordered. They caught Peter by his neck, and dragged him out.

"W-Why? Where are you taking me?" Peter questioned frantically.

The mysterious men didn't bother answering and simply apparated away. It was shocking as the ministry was warded against such magic. Undoubtedly, the breakout was going to be the greatest disgrace for the Ministry of Magic.

And the one who was going to take all the blame was none other than Cornelius Fudge.

…

DRC,

Happy ate his breakfast, a big serving of fluffy pancakes, butter, cream, and syrup. Sitting by the table in his robes, he looked at the newspaper, reading the first-page article with much delight.

[...Year after year, the mistakes of the Ministry have been ignored. Condemning an innocent man to suffer in Azkaban for over a decade was already grievous enough. But now, the true evil was able to escape right under the nose of Minister Fudge—Who will bring order to this chaos? The stooges of the Dark Lord continue to sow chaos—How will this madness be quelled?...]

Happy sipped some sweet fresh orange juice. "Ah… I hope you won't disappoint me, Peter… go do your job. But, who should I make the new Minister for Magic?"

Beyond all the mayhem, the ruler from the shadows made plans. The Boy Who Eats, without anyone knowing, manipulated events behind the scenes.