"I knew it…"
In the bustling Diagon Alley, Avada stared at the newspaper in his hands. The headline, printed in the boldest font and given the largest space on the page, made his expression twist into one of visible agony.
"The moment I saw that group photo of Harry and the others, I should've known this would happen… A photo is just a photo, but Ron just had to bring that thing along—why?"
With a face like someone who had just bitten into a lemon, he read on.
[Azkaban's Most Dangerous Prisoner, Sirius Black, Still at Large]
Below the headline was a photograph of Black taken in prison. He looked emaciated, his face deathly pale, his whole body like a walking skeleton, staring blankly at the camera with numb eyes.
[The Ministry of Magic confirmed today that Sirius Black remains at large. He is believed to be the most evil criminal ever held in Azkaban. One of the Dark Lord's most elite Death Eaters, Black was responsible for a horrific massacre—using a single spell, he destroyed an entire street, killing one wizard and twelve Muggles…]
[Since guards discovered Black's escape last month, the Ministry has pursued him relentlessly, yet no trace has been found…]
[It is reported that the day before his escape, Black received a newspaper from an enforcement officer, detailing how a Dark Magic artifact left behind by the Dark Lord was exposed and captured at Hogwarts… It is reasonable to suspect that this news provoked Black, driving him to attempt a rescue of his master…]
[In response, an Azkaban Auror dismissed this theory—]
["We showed him the relevant reports back when the Dark Lord was confirmed captured."]
[An Auror who wished to remain anonymous stated: "At the time, he only laughed maniacally and showed no other reaction. He never displayed any signs of attempting escape. This time, only a Dark Magic artifact was seized—why would that provoke him so much?"]
[This reporter suspects that the artifact in question may possess other significance unknown to the public, and attempted to interview its current custodian, Albus Dumbledore… Unfortunately, the request was refused.]
[Though the reason for Black's escape remains unclear, one fact deserves greater attention—no trace of Black has been found to this day…]
["We are doing everything in our power to recapture Black," said Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge. "I urge the magical community to remain calm."]
[In addition, Cornelius Fudge has disclosed Black's information to the Muggle Prime Minister, drawing condemnation from the International Confederation of Wizards… Muggles have been informed that Black is an escaped murderer armed with a gun (a metal wand used by Muggles to kill one another), in hopes of obtaining leads from Muggle society…]
"Looking on the bright side…"
Avada lowered the paper in despair.
"At least this gives me a fast way to get in contact with Black, grab the locket from Grimmauld Place, and then I won't have to worry about Voldemort anymore."
"But Peter still can't die—at least, not yet…"
To be honest, back when he successfully sealed Voldemort's main soul fragment in his second year, he had seriously considered exposing Peter Pettigrew outright. He had kept Peter around as a contingency against Voldemort—but he hadn't expected the knowledge left behind by Professor Baker to be so absurdly powerful, allowing him to deal with Voldemort cleanly and decisively.
Then, just as he was about to revisit the issue of Peter, the Horcrux diary plot followed one after another, forcing him to scheme nonstop throughout his entire third year. It darkened his temperament so much that when he returned to the orphanage, his old friends were genuinely startled.
Yet those events also changed his understanding of the magical world, making one thing painfully clear—
Destroying Voldemort did not mean everything was over.
Voldemort was, at his core, merely a Dark wizard with formidable combat power and an impressive research background. What was truly terrifying was the force behind him—the ancient pure-blood families that upheld extreme pure-blood ideology. In a sense, they were far more dangerous than Voldemort himself.
Where did the immense resources, funding, and manpower needed to build the Death Eaters come from? How did Voldemort go from a novice who had just learned to make Horcruxes to a leading authority in Dark Magic research? Where did all that knowledge and data originate?
From beginning to end, Tom Marvolo Riddle was merely a plant above ground. The ancient, powerful pure-blood families were the roots buried deep beneath the soil. As long as the roots remained, the plant was never truly dead.
If you cut the grass, you must pull out the roots.
That was the "Voldemort" Dumbledore truly intended to destroy.
Once he understood this, a very interesting idea suddenly occurred to Avada—one that happened to have a perfect role reserved for Peter Pettigrew. And if that idea truly achieved its intended goal…
Dumbledore might very well be able to retire.
Of course, the plan was still in its infancy. It lacked a great deal of knowledge and intelligence before it could be perfected. So Avada decided to make good use of this outwardly calm school year to gather deeper information about magical society.
As for how to attend Hogwarts while simultaneously maneuvering Black and gaining insight into the wider magical world beyond the school—he already had a solution. One that had cost him dozens of Galleons and more than half his holiday.
If all went well, it would be fully operational not long after term started.
Which meant that, for now, he couldn't allow Black to tear Peter apart.
If his plan truly worked as envisioned, Peter would be far too important to lose.
"Even if it doesn't work, it's not a big deal. The tracking charm on Peter has never been interrupted, and there's always the Marauder's Map ready to expose him… Damn it, the twins had the map for so many years and never once noticed that the name of the rat next to Ron was suspicious?"
"So they just never paid attention to Ron at all? Some brothers they are…"
Grumbling internally, Avada glanced at the newspaper once more. After confirming there was nothing else horrifying in it, he finally felt a little reassured.
"At least no one thinks Sirius Black is coming after Harry at Hogwarts this time. That probably means we won't be dealing with Dementors at school this year—and I won't have to waste effort learning the Patronus Charm."
"Thank Merlin I don't have to practice the Patronus. I already have more than enough on my plate this year—getting in touch with Black, maneuvering Peter, digging into magical society… Oh, right, and checking out the werewolf curse on Remus Lupin."
Sighing, he rubbed his temples and pulled a book list from his pocket.
He had come to Diagon Alley to buy schoolbooks in the first place—only to get sidetracked by newspapers and future plans.
"Care of Magical Creatures' new textbook… The Monster Book of Monsters…"
"Damn it."
(End of Chapter)