Chapter 70

"Your name?"

"Alex Wood."

"Who do you work for?"

"Murphy Darkholm."

"What do you do for him?"

"I help him process potion materials, help him make potions, and, and sell them to Muggles."

"How long have you been doing this for him?"

"I, I don't know, I'm not clear..."

"Change the question, what potions does he sell to Muggles?"

"Es, Essence of Dittany, and also, Beau, Beauty Potion..."

"Boss!" Watching Alex, who kept revealing secrets, the interrogating Auror shouted excitedly, "He confessed! He confessed everything!"

"But the testimony of Veritaserum will not be believed by the Wizengamot..." another Auror said distressfully.

"Then don't go through the Wizengamot!" the older Auror said, "Let that reporter in, we'll make his testimony public! That way everyone will know what Murphy has done!"

"That risk is too great, they might say we used torture to extract a confession. We still have to take him to the Wizengamot to convict Murphy."

"It will be too late to take him to the Wizengamot. Once the effect of the Veritaserum passes, he might recant again! We won't get anything! If no one hears his testimony now, they can even say those testimonies are forged! We should let others witness what he said!"

Everyone was silent and looked at Kingsley again, "Boss, make a decision."

Kingsley hesitated. He was an upright Auror, and if possible, he didn't want to convict people through crooked ways. He wanted to bring criminals to justice in a straightforward manner.

But, that Auror was right. The Wizengamot would not believe the testimony obtained through Veritaserum, and once the effect passed, the possibility of Alex Wood recanting again was very high. He couldn't count on him to identify Murphy in court.

Perhaps letting go of this opportunity for now was the most correct thing to do.

Murphy Darkholm was a more cunning enemy than he had imagined, and perhaps a longer tug-of-war was needed to truly catch his handle.

If Scrimgeour were here, he would definitely advise him to wait patiently, because enemies wrapped in greed are always more impatient than Aurors. As long as there is enough patience, one can wait for the enemy to reveal their flaws.

But, could he wait?

Thinking of Frank, who had lost more than a month of memory and was still somewhat forgetful, and thinking of the blood all over the floor outside Bask's ward, Kingsley Shacklebolt's heart felt as if it were being fiercely gripped by a hand.

If he continued to wait, how many more brothers would be injured?

Who would be the next Auror carried into the ward? Galian, Layton, or Lisette?

When that time comes, how would he face their relatives and children?

"Boss! We can't stop them anymore, Rita Skeeter is clamoring to expose our illegal detention, and Director Crouch is also here!" an Auror came in to report to Kingsley.

Kingsley looked at the Auror, but his heart suddenly relaxed.

Given the situation, he had no choice.

"Let her in."

Rita Skeeter was aggressive, pushed aside the Auror who had been blocking her, and walked quickly toward the interrogation room, followed by a photographer.

Murphy and Barty Crouch followed closely behind, both with gloomy faces.

Rita Skeeter actually didn't know what was going on, but she smelled the scent of news. She actually didn't care what happened, she just wanted to make a big deal out of it, the bigger the better, so that everyone would come to see, and then her report would appear more valuable.

As soon as she entered the interrogation room, she saw Alex Wood slumped in the chair.

"Illegal arrest! Torture!" Rita Skeeter immediately became excited, "Take pictures! Take pictures!"

"Wait!" Barty Crouch shouted, "Kingsley! What's going on?"

"Director Crouch, we have obtained the testimony of Murphy Darkholm violating the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy!" Kingsley said, "Alex Wood is Murphy's assistant, and he has confessed everything!"

"Oh?!" Barty Crouch felt relieved.

Just now, there was such a big commotion outside, and when he heard Rita Skeeter clamoring about illegal detention, he was nervous. It wasn't until later that he found out it was Kingsley who had caught Murphy's man that he breathed a sigh of relief, but this was also a very unfavorable accusation against Aurors. As the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, he naturally had the obligation to ask clearly.

All the way here, he had been arguing with Murphy, and the latter seemed to be trying his best to pin the label of "illegal arrest" on him, which made him very annoyed.

But at this moment, hearing Kingsley say that evidence had been obtained, Barty Crouch breathed a sigh of relief, and even secretly praised Kingsley.

He was originally a very iron-fisted person, and he had never been stingy about using some unconventional means to deal with crime.

As long as the result proved that Murphy was a criminal and Alex was an accomplice, then what was the problem with an early arrest? At worst, he could help Kingsley fill in an arrest warrant later.

"What's going on, speak clearly!"

Barty Crouch said immediately. He knew too well the means by which these media distorted facts, and he had to give his own people a chance to speak.

"Report to the Director, we previously received a tip-off that Alex Wood was manufacturing potions for Murphy Darkholm to sell to Muggles. This is a serious violation of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. We immediately dispatched to arrest Alex Wood and completed the interrogation just now. He has confessed his criminal facts and confirmed Murphy Darkholm's criminal behavior."

"Good!" Barty Crouch nodded, "Ms. Rita Skeeter, you heard it. It's not an illegal arrest by Aurors, but the evidence of the other party's crime is solid. We should immediately throw these two criminals into Azkaban!"

"Oh? Not worthy of being a Director, what great official power! Without a trial by the Wizengamot, you can send people to Azkaban. Not to mention that Aurors can arrest people illegally, now even the Wizengamot is decided by you. Then in the future, wouldn't you be able to say who to catch, who to lock up, and who is guilty?"

Murphy, who hadn't spoken since entering the door, suddenly said.

"Don't take things out of context!" Barty Crouch scolded, "When did I say there would be no trial?"

Although the Wizengamot Administration Services is a subordinate agency of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, it only manages administrative matters such as meeting arrangements, meeting convocations, and meeting minutes, and cannot directly manage the members of the Wizengamot, nor does it have the right to interfere with the various resolutions and trials of the Wizengamot.

The Wizengamot is a legislative and judicial body, and its functions must be separated from the law enforcement and prosecutorial functions of the Auror Office. Otherwise, holding the four powers of legislation, prosecution, law enforcement, and adjudication would directly lead to an uncontrolled power monster, truly saying who is guilty is who is guilty.

All along, the criticism of the functions of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement had never stopped, and this accusation was what Barty Crouch was most afraid of hearing.

During the First Wizarding War, Barty Crouch had done the thing of throwing Sirius Black into Azkaban without trial. Although due to the public opinion environment at that time, this overstepping of authority was not only not condemned but instead increased his prestige.

But now, seven or eight years had passed since the First Wizarding War. If he dared to do this again, it would definitely cause everyone to feel insecure, and he, the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, wouldn't be able to stay in his position for long.

However, Murphy didn't intend to let him go, "Using Veritaserum on people you suspect, is this your way of trial?"

(End of chapter)