Witnessing this seemingly casual yet exquisitely intricate scene, Arthur Weasley felt as if he had been transported back decades... to the first time he saw Dumbledore cast a spell.
He suddenly realized—even without their collective effort, Vid could repair the hole in the cabin wall by himself.
It might take more time, and it might exhaust him more, but the young man indeed could do it.
Perhaps—
His original plan probably was just that... seeking help from others wasn't part of his plan; except for his own power, he didn't consider much else.
So inside the cabin, the only true assistants for Vid were probably those poppets?
At that moment, Mr. Weasley suddenly grew curious, "Vid, why did you give me the antidote to the Life and Death Potion? Do you need me to do something for you?"
Vid thought for a moment before turning around to say, "Mr. Weasley, if I hadn't given you the antidote, what spell were you planning to cast on yourself just now?"
Weasley was momentarily speechless.
Life and Death Potion brings the drinker into a death-like sleep, and physical pain and ordinary spells cannot counteract the effect of the potion… but it can provide a brief moment of clarity.
If facing an enemy, that moment of clarity might change the situation, but in most cases, it's useless.
When he realized he was affected, his first reaction was to take the most decisive self-help measure, with no time to think much.
Vid did not continue to press on, only saying, "Moreover, after the plane lands, the Ministry of Magic will definitely dispatch people to investigate the situation; I'm not very good at handling such scenarios."
Mr. Weasley smiled wryly.
He actually wanted to say—that for many of the Ministry of Magic's officials, Vid Gray's reputation was likely much more significant than Arthur Weasley's. But he swallowed the words before they left his mouth.
"Since you know the Ministry of Magic will send someone, why are you working so hard now?" Mr. Weasley asked, "Just a Forgetfulness Spell, I guarantee these Muggles wouldn't remember anything."
"I know," Vid said, "but even without memories, Muggles can deduce what happened on the plane by carefully observing various signs around them."
"And moreover…"
—And besides, he didn't know the new minister's character well; what if the opponent or the dispatched Ministry officials suddenly felt this was a good chance to undermine Dumbledore and Vid's reputation, and would rather risk violating the Confidentiality Law to cause trouble for them?
Pausing a moment, Vid added: "Also, rather than letting others tidy up the mess, I prefer to have as much control over the situation as possible myself."
"—An admirable thought, I wish I had such awareness when I was young."
Mr. Weasley forced himself up from his seat to help tidy up the situation. While casting spells, he suddenly noticed another issue:
"Speaking of which... after the fire was put out, the cabin doesn't seem as stifling as before? Muggle gadgets aren't so bad sometimes!"
Vid casually explained, "That's because after the fire, the air circulation system between the cargo hold and passenger cabin was isolated, which is equivalent to..."
He paused, pondering how to explain the Muggle design to Mr. Weasley, the Pure-Blood wizard.
"—equivalent to a one-way breathing mask, refreshing the air here every two to three minutes; whereas the smoke and exhaust gas from the cargo hold are drawn outside, preventing them from backflowing."
Mr. Weasley was initially full of curiosity, nodding frequently. Suddenly, his movement halted, his gaze fixed on Vid's face, and he asked incredulously:
"Vid, could it be that the pilot of this plane... is also one of your people?"