Chapter 70: "The Power of Chocolate: A Story of Empathy and Courage"

Draco's mind was racing, and the collision of thoughts under a myriad of thoughts took only a few minutes in reality. Just as he was deep in thought, the girl who had fought alongside him earlier brought the package over and placed it on the counter.

"Thank you," Draco said, thanking her as he began to open the package to reveal its contents. The girl looked at him expectantly, thinking he would take out some precious magic item to solve the current crisis. However, she didn't get what she wanted. When she saw the contents clearly, the expression on her face froze, as if she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"You should have a piece too. Fighting is quite tiring," Draco said as he handed her a piece of chocolate. He tore off a piece for himself, opened the wrapper, and popped it into his mouth.

"What do you mean by this?" the girl asked, not accepting his kindness. "What are you doing? Didn't you say you were going to use a banishing spell to solve the problem?"

"But I don't know how to cast a spell like that," Draco shrugged.

Before the girl could finish her sentence, she heard a commotion from the crowd behind her. She guessed that the Dementors were back and quickly turned around, pointing her wand at the crowd. However, she didn't cast a spell because she saw a few people slowly waking up, their faces still filled with fear and worry.

"Don't worry. They're not back yet," Draco said, patting her shoulder. "Actually, these things were prepared for them."

Draco pointed at the candies and chocolates and said, "Muggle scientific research has shown that chocolate has the ability to make people happy. If you've listened to your chemistry classes, you might even know something about dopamine. These things can control people's emotions to a large extent. For these people in front of you, eating some chocolate is the best thing."

"You don't have to show off your knowledge!" the girl said, snatching one of the packages and slapping his hand away. She walked into the crowd in a fit of pique and began distributing the chocolate to those who had woken up.

Draco didn't know why his comrade, who had been chatting happily just a moment ago, was suddenly in a bad mood. He also didn't know that she was using her anger to hide her shame. Just now, she only wanted to chase away these annoying creatures, but she didn't think about these innocent people at all. This was a blow to her, who had been raised to be kind and help others in need. She felt that she usually did a good job of this. For example, when she stood out in the team just now, although the result wasn't very good, she still had a clear conscience.

But after the battle just now, she didn't think about the unconscious people at all. She only thought about herself and what to do if the Dementors came back. She also wondered what method the boy would use to resolve the possible crisis in the future. "When did I become so selfish?" she asked herself. At the same time, her impression of Draco improved slightly. He was calm and collected during the accident and seemed capable. Even in a crisis, he didn't forget to save others.

"Maybe he called me over to get something just now to protect me. He's afraid that I won't be able to deal with the Dementors if they come back," she thought to herself. When a person's impression of another person is formed, it's easy to be biased, and some very normal actions can be over-interpreted.

In reality, Draco didn't think so much. If he had the ability to deal with the Dementors, he would have done it himself. If the girl in front of him was better at using the Guardian Charm than he was, he wouldn't mind being a logistics support and 'freeloader'.

As the chocolate was distributed, it brought with it sincere thanks. The girl was a little happy, but also a little embarrassed. After all, she wasn't the owner of the food and she wasn't the one who suggested it. She was only responsible for distributing it.

Draco didn't stay idle either. He took the remaining food and distributed it to those who had woken up, and there were also some grateful looks and words. Suddenly, the silver door that had been closed to chase away the Dementors began shaking again, and a crack appeared.

This time, Draco and the girl raised their wands at the same time. A few wizards who had just woken up also took out their wands, hoping to help. However, the expected black cloak didn't appear. Instead, a human head with curly gray hair stuck out. After confirming that the creature trying to enter was a human, they put down their wands.

"I'm very sorry," the man who pushed the door open said, bowing deeply to everyone. Draco finally had time to observe the man. He was wearing a dark green coat and pinstriped robe, but they didn't match his short and stocky figure. As for his face, Draco had seen it a few times in the Prophet – it belonged to the incompetent bureaucrat, Cornelius Fudge.

Then, Fudge introduced himself in a way that was common among bureaucrats of all countries. First, he introduced himself and then explained that it was due to his mistake in management that the Dementors, which were supposed to be obedient, suddenly went on a rampage and disobeyed his command, resulting in the accident.

Every politician was a natural actor. They arrived at the scene at the first opportunity to express their attitude. A seemingly sincere apology, coupled with a face full of self-blame, made many victims who were full of anger not dare to throw a tantrum. Instead, they felt that he was brave enough to take responsibility. "Then you should thank these two children," a middle-aged man said.

Every politician is a natural actor, and Fudge arrived at the scene at the first opportunity to express his attitude. His seemingly sincere apology, coupled with a face full of self-blame, made many victims who were full of anger not dare to throw a tantrum. Instead, they felt that he was brave enough to take responsibility.

"Then you should thank these two children," a middle-aged man said, pointing at Draco and the young lady. "If they hadn't chased away the two Dementors, we might still be sleeping on the ground."

"Yes, yes, yes. You should reward them well. I don't care about apologies. Anyway, the words of politicians are worse than farts," said a fat middle-aged woman. Although it was vulgar, it wasn't without reason. The other people who had already woken up also started to talk, mostly about how they should be rewarded.

Hearing this, Fudge was a little embarrassed, but he still rubbed his hands and laughed dryly. "Where are they? Are they still at the scene? I will definitely talk to Headmaster Dumbledore and ask him to add some points to their school." He didn't think there were any other students apart from those at Hogwarts who could deal with the Dementors. Since someone said they were children, they couldn't be that old.

As the head of the Magic Department, Fudge naturally made the most logical guess that the children who had chased away the Dementors were students from Hogwarts. However, before he could praise them, the young lady spoke up.

"After encountering such an incident at the Gringotts branch in England, I think I will complain to the International Magic Cooperation Department in my country after I return," she said, her voice pleasant to the ears but causing Fudge to worry. Diplomacy was a delicate matter, and this statement not only applied in the Muggle world.

Fudge was already in a difficult position because of Black's prison break, and he feared that his political career might really be coming to an end. But before he could say anything, the young lady continued. "But, I think it's troublesome to complain. I think if I'm in a good mood now, I might forget about this matter after returning to France." The sudden turn of events made Fudge's heart thump uncontrollably again.

Without waiting for Fudge to speak, the young lady continued to speak on her own.

"The resolution of this incident is all thanks to him. I don't need your reward since he didn't contribute much. If you can satisfy him, then I should forget about what I should forget."

Then, Draco was pushed in front of her.

"Hello, Uncle Fudge." Draco revealed a polite and standard smile and looked at the man in front of him.