118. All Parties Gathered

"I'm not sure, it's just a guess," Aurelius said softly.

"It's rare to see you say that," Nagini smiled.

"It's normal. I'm not a god. I can't predict everything. I'm just used to preparing more back-ups," Aurelius smiled.

This topic ends here.

Aurelius generally would not express an opinion if he were unsure. Nagini also knew Aurelius's habits, so it was different.

"There are so many believers in Grindelwald," Nagini looked at the bustling crowd below and couldn't help but sigh.

"Quantity doesn't equate to quality. Many here may scoff at his tactics, yet they've aligned themselves with him for personal gain" Ori Lius sees the truth.

Grindelwald is just a person they pushed out to pursue their interests.

That is, to obtain more resource space in the world.

The Earth as a whole is also the largest area currently explored by Muggles and wizards.

Resources within this limited area are also limited.

Obtaining more resources is the innate desire of human beings as biological creatures.

For a long time in the past, the resources on Earth were abundant, enough to meet the needs of different groups of Muggles and wizards.

But as time went by, Muggles began to industrialize, and the rapid productivity growth also represented an increase in required resources. The wizarding world had been peaceful for a long time, and the population was also increasing, and so were the resources required.

Muggles do not know the existence of wizards. They think they control all the resources in the world, so they expand outward. Aerospace was born.

But some wizards have their sights set on Muggles.

They believed that Muggles were weak and unworthy of such huge resources.

This is exactly what Grindelwald stands for, and why these wizards support him.

But no matter what the reason is, these wizards support Grindelwald.

Besides those who support Grindelwald, there are also people with ulterior motives.

"Rowling Cathaway, the former director of the Legal Enforcement Department of the Polish Ministry of Magic, and Denis Gugol, a French alchemist, are all senior officials in the Ministry of Magic from various countries. Do you think they will be Grindelwald's followers?" Aurelius, keen on gathering intelligence about pure-blood nobles since arriving in Europe

This information is useful among the Ministry of Magic in various countries.

"Eh?" Aurelius suddenly sat up straight, and he saw an acquaintance - Paul Herman!

Paul, who was wearing a woolen coat, was among a dozen people in the group.

Those people looked very capable, and most likely, they were Aurors!"Why is he here?" Aurelius frowned and thought.

No matter how small the Portuguese Ministry of Magic is, it would not allow the Minister of Magic to personally go to such a dangerous place to gather information.

As for attending the rally itself, that's even more impossible!

If there is one Ministry of Magic in the world that is least likely to support Grindelwald, it is the Portuguese Ministry of Magic.

The Portuguese Ministry of Magic has no pure-blood nobles, a sparse population, and excessive resources.

A thousand people guard the resources of a large sea area, and they will not support Grindelwald's proposition.

This is a typical passive Ministry of Magic. They do not have opinions of their own.

Given the conflict between Grindelwald and the Ministries of Magic of other countries, the Portuguese Ministry of Magic should firmly stay neutral.

"It's really strange..." Aurelius shook his head and looked at the people around Paul.

These people are centered around Paul and are his bodyguards and the like.

But they are not Aurors.

It is easy to see that when Aurors are in groups, they instinctively form a special standing layout, with three groups within the group, and the three groups further cooperate.

This is a habit left over from their special training.

Aurelius noticed over ten groups with this trinity formation in the venue below.

Paul's bodyguards did not follow this practice. Instead, they protected him in the middle and ensured they could act as human shields for him as soon as possible.

This was an unlikely course of action for an Auror to choose.

It would be enough to knock them unconscious or turn them to stone. What if it's a killing curse?

Being an Auror is just a job. A few hundred Galleons a month is not worth risking one's life.

These people with Paul seem more like grim reapers.

How absurd!

Paul, a Muggle-born Minister of Magic, where did he come from?

"Hey! It's Newt! Is he here?" Nagini suddenly patted Aurelius' arm.

Aurelius looked around, not just for Newt!

There were two people beside him, a man and a woman, but there was no sign of Tina.

"Are we breaking up again?" Aurelius couldn't help but laugh.

Not many people could handle Newt's temperament.

Newt is knowledgeable, but he despises the world. He detests the mundane human world and puts all his affection into magical animals.

If I had to make an analogy, Aurelius felt that Newt and Kudo Shinichi shared similar traits.

One forgets everything when it comes to logical reasoning, and the other disregards everything when it comes to magical animals.

They understand each other and are in love with each other, and they both appreciate beings with exceptional martial arts skills. But their pretentiousness makes the audience anxious for them. As far as Aurelius knows, it appears that Newt and Tina still haven't gotten together after eight or nine years. Kudo Shinichi, on the other hand, has been involved in thousands of episodes. Furthermore, Newt encountered even more challenging situations.

Fortunately, it seems that Tina now has a boyfriend who is an Auror. Despite this, there's no need to worry that they won't achieve positive results. Decades later, Newt and Tina's grandson—a rebellious individual whose name remains unknown—abducted Luna, a character that countless fans had been longing for.

"There must be hundreds of people from the Ministry of Magic from various countries, and yet you can still recognize them," Aurelius emotionally commented on Grindelwald's card.

A gathering, despite knowing there is a trap, still allows the Ministry of Magic of various countries to send a large number of personnel to investigate.

It is not an exaggeration to say that everyone is on edge.

Of course, it's also possible that Aurelius thought these Ministry of Magic officials were too clever, and maybe they didn't expect there to be a trap. However, there are not many such fools.

Among the people Aurelius didn't recognize, Aberforth and Merrythought also attended. Aberforth was wearing a woolen coat and a thick top hat that covered most of his face. It seemed as though he was covering his ears and stealing his identity. The hat didn't effectively hide his face at all, but it was a common tactic used to blend in with the crowd at the gathering, as many people did the same.

"Aberforth, did you see that?" Merrythought asked anxiously.

Aberforth shook his head. The photos in his hand were soaked with sweat, but Aurelius was still nowhere to be found.

"Maybe we arrived too late and he has already sided with Grindelwald," Aberforth said quietly.

"He's Dumbledore! How could he do this?" Merrythought urgently inquired.

"I don't know, maybe it's because of Grindelwald's threat, or maybe he was enticed by something. It might not be as bad as we think," Aberforth shook his head, as if trying to rid himself of these negative thoughts.

"Enticed? What could Grindelwald possibly use to entice him?"

"The possibility of survival," Aberforth said quietly...

"Is Abernathy here?" Grindelwald leaned back on the sofa, closing his eyes to rest. Tonight was a significant operation.

Whether the plan to recruit Aurelius succeeded or not depended on this gathering.

It succeeded because Aurelius did not oppose Grindelwald, meeting his minimum requirement.

However, it failed to achieve the desired outcome - Aurelius surrendering and becoming Dumbledore's enemy.

Given these circumstances, Grindelwald placed even greater value on tonight's gathering.

He aimed to establish his authority and announce his return to the world.

To establish authority, he needed a target.

The forces attracted from the Ministries of Magic across different countries presented the perfect target.

To establish authority, he also needed an audience.

The tens of thousands of prominent wizards and witches from all walks of life present served as the ideal audience.

To put it bluntly, Grindelwald was unsatisfied with hiding underground like rats causing trouble. He wanted to lead the wizarding community and have a seat at the table.

For this reason, he specifically chose Paris as the location for this gathering, deliberately selecting the French Ministry of Magic, the current nominal authority.

"Well, very good. Mr. Sochuro is coming soon. You go and greet him," Grindelwald once again tasked Abernathy with welcoming guests.

Of all the jobs he'd ever done, this was one of the most beautiful, second only to his nose.

During his time at the Ministry of Magic, Abernathy had become well-versed in greetings and send-offs.

Not only was he polite and considerate, but he also brought Grindelwald a great deal of respect.

Let's not get into anything else. At least in this matter, Abernathy was better at relaxing than the arrogant Vinda.

Leaving the venue once again, Abernathy headed to the cemetery.

This time, Sochuro wasn't alone.

As Grindelwald's most reliable ally, it only made sense to bring more people along to enhance their reputation at such an important moment.

Following the advanced notice, Abernathy walked through the cemetery corridor and made his way to the agreed-upon square on the east side of the cemetery.

"You're sick! Yusuf! You should see a doctor!"

"This is an oath! It's not a disease! You saw it just now! My hand, the hand that made the oath, just--ah! Damn it! It's starting again!"