Very few wizards actually knew about the Giant's appearance or the battle that day. It was as if someone had deliberately covered the whole thing up.
Naturally, that meant only the handful of people present knew about Pansy and Hermione's performance, their progress, and the astonishing result of the two of them working together to bring down the Giant.
Not that Pansy and the others cared much about becoming famous.
Hermione, however, did feel a little regret over it, because she thought it should have earned their house a nice number of points...
In any case, it was not only because the Giant's existence had been deliberately hidden. At the same time, something major had happened in the wizarding world, making this unexpected incident with the Giant seem far less important.
And that event threw the wizarding world into unavoidable chaos.
If Draco and the others had not been at Hogwarts, they would have felt the unrest sweeping through the wizarding world even more clearly.
It was only a few days later that Draco and the others finally received the news...
"Is it confirmed?"
"Mm... Looks like the Ministry can't keep it under wraps anymore, not after something like that happened."
"You think it could just be a mistake?"
"...Do you even believe that yourself?"
"......"
After hearing Pansy's firm answer, Hermione let out a solemn sigh.
That sigh carried both unease about what was to come and disappointment that this was not a false report...
Meanwhile, Astoria, who had been quietly listening to Pansy and Hermione talk, kept glancing back and forth between Draco and Dobby.
Yes.
Aside from Pansy and Hermione, who were always by Draco's side, there was also a small House-elf present, one who looked oddly familiar.
Looking at Dobby, Astoria, who had arrived a little late, still had no idea what had caused the heavy atmosphere in the room.
Frowning, she propped her chin on one hand and thought to herself, Dobby... what is he doing here? Could it be just like Parkinson and Granger were saying, that something serious has happened?
Though full of questions, Astoria had always been patient. She did not ask right away. Instead, she found a seat and quietly observed everyone there...
...
Come to think of it, after Draco had effectively lost Lockhart as a source of information, Dobby had become his new eyes and ears for everything happening outside.
A lot of what Draco knew about the outside world came through Dobby...
Dobby might not have seemed especially clever, but when it came to loyalty, he was incomparably better than Lockhart, who always had his own motives.
At the very least, he would not disappear for no reason.
Because of that, Dobby had been making many more trips between Hogwarts and Malfoy Manor during this period.
The reason he had never been discovered was not only because Dumbledore was not at school, but probably also because of those few visits to the kitchen to see the other House-elves.
Thanks to Draco and Hermione's efforts, the House-elves' attitude toward them seemed to have improved to some extent.
In short, Dobby had brought back some truly shocking information this time...
Noticing Astoria's gaze, Draco lightly tapped the table with his fingertips. "Give me the full details. Leave nothing out, Dobby."
"Yes, Young Master. Master said the same thing."
Compared with the words Young Master, Dobby was clearly far less willing when it came to saying Master. It was obvious that, in Dobby's heart, Lucius ranked nowhere near Draco.
Ahem. With everyone watching, Dobby gave a rather clumsy wizard's salute before slowly recounting everything he knew.
At once, Pansy and the others turned their attention back to him.
Perhaps because he had never enjoyed this kind of undivided attention before, Dobby nervously shook his large head. "Not long ago, the Dark Lord's loyal Death Eaters launched a sudden attack on the Ministry of Magic's Department of Mysteries without any warning."
"The Department of Mysteries."
"Yes, Young Master. That very mysterious Department of Mysteries. Before this, Dobby had never heard of it either. If needed, Dobby and Dobby's friends can investigate it..."
"No need, Dobby. Keep going."
Watching Dobby excitedly flap his big ears, Draco could not help twitching at the corner of his mouth.
He knew that if he did not stop Dobby now, they would not get to the main point anytime soon. That was why Draco hurriedly cut him off.
Compared with the Department of Mysteries, which they knew nothing about, what mattered more right now was the Death Eaters' objective. That was probably why Lucius had agreed to let Dobby know about it in the first place...
Tugging at his ears, Dobby continued, "Dobby does not know what the Department of Mysteries does, but the Death Eaters seemed to be after a prophecy stored there."
The moment Dobby finished speaking, Hermione gave a startled cry.
"A prophecy?! The one Luna mentioned?"
"That has to be it... If so, then it explains why the Dark Lord attacked the Department of Mysteries. After all, the Ministry values that prophecy so highly."
"But what kind of prophecy could make the Dark Lord personally infiltrate the Ministry, even at the risk of exposing himself?"
Astoria had been listening with great interest, but after hearing Hermione's last sentence, she could not stay seated any longer.
What had Hermione just said?
The Dark Lord had appeared at the Ministry of Magic?
Astoria could no longer remain calm. "Wait, did you just mention the Dark Lord?"
Knowing Astoria had not heard the earlier part, Pansy kindly explained, with just a hint of bad intent.
"Mm... According to Dobby, if Dumbledore hadn't arrived when he did, it might really have been too late."
"Yes. The moment Dobby saw Young Master, Dobby told him everything Dobby knew."
Dobby proudly puffed out his chest, as if that alone proved he was Draco's best friend.
Eyes wide, Astoria looked at the others and, seeing no surprise on any of their faces, finally realized that Dobby must have already told them this before she arrived.
But that only made it more terrifying.
Because didn't that also mean...
Voldemort's power had already recovered?!