Chapter 353: Alarming The Snakes

After dealing with matters related to the Diadem, Alaric continued to stay at Hogwarts, enjoying campus life.

As usual, he continued his research in the Chamber of Secrets, while spending his free time with Hermione and Cho Chang, either goofing off or teasing Luna.

On weekends, he would find opportunities to go home and comfort Fleur and Penelope in their longing.

Such days passed in blissful contentment.

However, outside of Hogwarts, the situation in the wizarding world had changed dramatically.

Under the orders of Amelia Bones, the Head of the Auror Office, Scrimgeour, led a full-scale operation to apprehend all the Death Eaters that Harry had identified as having been present with Voldemort in the graveyard.

Although many pure-blood families had aligned themselves with Voldemort, most of the Death Eaters had scattered after Voldemort's first defeat fourteen years ago. 

Voldemort had maintained the loyalty of his Death Eaters through power and fear, with some degree of self-interest involved, but this did not translate into true loyalty from most of his followers.

Many Death Eaters had completely betrayed Voldemort after his fall, concealing their pasts.

Some, like Karkaroff, had betrayed their comrades to avoid judgment, and these individuals could not turn back.

The few who had sworn to seek Voldemort's resurrection after his death were rare.

Thus, with the wizarding world now at war with Voldemort, the Ministry of Magic could not use evidence from fourteen years ago for indiscriminate arrests.

They had to rely on Harry's identification to confirm the true loyalists.

Following the old list would ensure fewer mistakes, but it would also force many who were not planning to return to Voldemort into desperate situations.

The Ministry lacked an army, and in the past, maintaining order relied solely on the Aurors.

Given the current situation, the number of Aurors was becoming strained.

Unfortunately, the selection of Aurors was too difficult, so reinforcements could not be quickly obtained.

Currently, Bones' only methods for expanding her forces were to recruit retired Aurors and seek help from the Order of the Phoenix.

Among the Aurors conducting these arrests were the retired Alastor Moody, as well as active Aurors such as Kingsley and Tonks.

Although members of the Order of the Phoenix did not accept Bones' leadership and had their own plans, Bones was still on their side and held the official title of the Ministry of Magic.

Despite their doubts about Bones' plan, they followed her orders.

Since the Aurors had prepared thoroughly and acted boldly, and since no Death Eaters could have anticipated such an audacious move, the operation was highly successful.

Leading the charge were the Malfoy family, along with the McNeill, Avery, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle families.

Most members of these families were apprehended by the Aurors overnight and were all sent to Azkaban.

It wasn't until the next morning that people realized the estates of these families were all empty, revealing the full extent of the operation.

The entire wizarding world was in an uproar.

This was not only due to the Ministry's— or rather Bones's— decisive action but also because of the identities of these families.

These were well-known pure-blood families, with the Malfoy, Avery, and Nott families being among the famous Sacred Twenty-Eight.

These families had always held significant influence in the wizarding world, and now the Ministry had managed to capture them all.

The first to react was not Voldemort or the Death Eaters, but rather the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge.

These families were also key members of the pure-blood faction that backed him.

With these people gone, the pure-blood faction was effectively left with nothing, putting his already precarious ministerial position in even greater jeopardy.

Thus, the next day, he issued dozens of orders to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and demanded the release of the members of these families from Azkaban.

However, Ms. Bones had been thoroughly prepared.

She had not only worked hard against Voldemort but had also taken the opportunity to streamline the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, turning it into an impregnable fortress.

Even Azkaban, which used to comply with the Minister's orders, was now under her control.

She used the excuse of a lack of manpower to continually deploy Aurors from Azkaban.

After a series of complex transfers and assignments, the Aurors at Azkaban had been completely replaced, and the prison was now firmly under Bones's control.

After discovering that his orders had fallen on deaf ears, Fudge had no choice but to play his last card.

He urgently convened a Wizengamot meeting.

At the meeting, he accused Bones of acting on her own, misusing public resources, and arresting a large number of innocent civilians, many of whom were loyal and reliable wizards—referring to people like Lucius Malfoy.

Of course, Ms. Bones fought back, citing Harry's testimony that these families were likely still aiding Voldemort.

Although the Department of Magical Law Enforcement would not randomly judge them, for the safety of the wizarding world, they would remain temporarily detained in Azkaban until their threat level was confirmed.

Bones used terms like "detention" and "protection."

However, when paired with Azkaban, these terms were not convincing.

Since nearly half of the Wizengamot's members were from the pure-blood faction which were captured, Fudge's support from them had significantly dwindled.

Nevertheless, as a skilled politician, he seized on the fact that the Aurors had acted without authorization, spreading fear and convincing people that if Aurors were not monitored, Bones would use the pretext to arrest all dissenting Wizengamot members under the guise of Death Eaters, thereby eliminating her opposition.

Such statements gained traction in the Wizengamot, with many wizards believing that the Aurors' actions were reckless, raising concerns about the risk of Bones becoming a dictator.

In any case, with Dumbledore's help, Bones managed to maintain her advantage.

However, as time passed, if Bones did not achieve further success, opposition within the Wizengamot would grow, and Fudge's counterattack would become a real possibility.

Conversely, if Bones could prove the legitimacy of her actions—such as uncovering evidence of Death Eaters or obtaining other intelligence related to Voldemort.

Then this operation would be seen as a decisive move with foresight, adding to her positive record.

In short, this operation was fraught with risks and challenges.

But as for Bones herself, she was confident in her success.

For this was just the beginning of the plan—stirring up the grass to scare the snakes.

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