Chapter 395: Titus's Letter

While listening to Dumbledore, John and Hermione bowed their heads to read the reports in their hands, all of which were foreign wizard newspapers.

The reports were all about wizards of ordinary, non‑magical origin who had suffered mysterious attacks or bizarre disappearances.

Then some long‑standing wizard families began to enter Britain frequently.

"What does the International Confederation of Wizards say?" Hermione asked, her tone carrying a hint of worry.

Dumbledore shook his head: "They're still watching; after all, Voldemort hasn't declared war openly."

"Even if he does declare war, they probably won't provide much support."

John blinked and looked at Dumbledore.

"Then why not let Grindelwald also recruit troops? He used to be quite 'popular', wasn't he?"

Dumbledore looked at him speechlessly: "You want to jeopardize my reputation, don't you?"

Grindelwald is now under Dumbledore's full supervision.

If Grindelwald does anything out of line again, the responsibility will rest entirely on Dumbledore.

"That thing isn't that important, is it..." John muttered persistently.

Dumbledore:......

"Stop scheming against Grindelwald."

"After all, I can't guarantee that if we let him recruit troops, he might find it amusing and turn against us."

Hearing that, John was left speechless.

"You do know that guy is dangerous, right?"

"I thought you two had some unspeakable secret that made you completely trust him."

"The Order of the Phoenix is now fully coordinated with the Ministry of Magic."

"We cannot let Voldemort continue to amass power."

"So recent clashes with the Death Eaters should become increasingly intense."

This situation is both a good thing and not a good thing.

The fierce fighting indicates they are getting closer to a full‑scale war.

A full‑scale war also provides a legitimate opportunity for Harry to appear before Voldemort.

But it also means many will rush to the battlefield, with lives uncertain.

Thinking of that, John suddenly suggested.

"Headmaster, perhaps we could try taking the initiative, since Voldemort is already making moves."

"Let you and Grindelwald go out together to suppress the Death Eaters."

"Ideally, we should give the impression of being busy putting out fires everywhere, making Hogwarts seem unprotected? And also put you in a state where Voldemort could strike at any time."

Hearing that, Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"That is indeed a decent idea."

Whether it's luring Voldemort to Hogwarts or luring him to attack them, both are possible.

Previously, because Voldemort hadn't begun a grand recruitment, we hadn't considered this snake‑out‑of‑the‑hole strategy.

Now that he has started moving, they indeed should respond accordingly.

However, they must first ensure the safety of Hogwarts students.

The emergency war‑evacuation drill must be organized, letting professors guide students through evacuation routes and shelter locations.

All the Secret Passages around Hogwarts exist to quickly evacuate students during wartime, preventing them from being drawn into combat.

After that, the matter was left to Dumbledore to arrange.

After leaving the Headmaster's Office, John handed his body over to Yorel.

Then he and Hermione each returned to their dormitory.

He had just arrived back at the Slytherin Common Room.

He saw Draco and Astoria sitting together on the Common Room sofa, sipping tea and chatting idly.

Noticing Yorel's return, Astoria stepped forward to greet him.

"Good evening, Yorel."

"A plump owl just delivered a letter, marked as for you."

Saying that, Astoria handed over a letter with no signature.

"A letter for me?"

Yorel took the letter oddly, flipping it back and forth, unsure who would send him a letter.

Knowing her status, no one would write to her, let alone...

At that moment, Draco also leaned in.

"I think I've seen that owl before; it should belong to some student at our school."

"But I don't really recall."

Yorel was too lazy to guess and simply opened the envelope; inside was only a thin sheet of paper.

Curious, Draco leaned over to look, because the owl seemed familiar and its owner should be someone he knows.

But Astoria quickly pulled it away with swift eyes.

After Astoria gave him a gentle glance, Draco realized his behavior was somewhat rude and sheepishly sat back down.

Yorel opened the paper, which contained only a single sentence.

"【—Meet at the Secret Base after tonight's curfew.】"

Secret Base?

Seeing that place, Yorel was taken aback, and the John within him was equally startled.

They have a place they call the Secret Base.

There is only one.

That is the Screaming Shack.

It is a secret belonging to John, Titus, Ryan and Ethan.

Although Sirius, Professor Lupin and Hermione also know that place.

But they only drop by.

So, was this letter sent by one of Titus, Ryan or Ethan?

There's an owl, chubby, probably Titus's pancake.

Is Titus looking for Yueer?

Yet from a bystander's viewpoint, Yueer shouldn't know what the so‑called Secret Base is.

So this letter, rather than being addressed to Yueer, is more like it's addressed to John.

Or… it's meant to test Yueer?

If they aren't John, or have no relation to John.

Then they would have no clue what the Secret Base is, and even asking others wouldn't expose the Screaming Shack.

But if they are related to John, perhaps even John themselves.

Then they, or they all, would understand what Titus already knows.

"What should I do, brother?"

Yueer mutters to herself softly.

【Go ahead, it's already approved by Dumbledore.】

John responded in his mind.

Yueer nodded.

Then she said goodbye to Astoria and Draco and went back to her single room first.

"Why would Titus suspect me?"

"I didn't do anything worth suspecting, did I?"

Yueer lay on the bed, stared at the ceiling, and asked oddly.

【Who knows? You and I act so similarly; Titus, as one of the people who knows me best, might have noticed something, though it's hard to say.】

【Of course, the fact that Hermione and I were discovered by Ryan today might have also caught his attention.】

John replied in his mind.

Titus is a lively‑minded fellow, the best at observing details.

Perhaps during this period he saw some flaw.

"Then brother, figure it out yourself and explain to him; after deceiving them for so long and making them so skinny, I won't take the blame."

【......】

Speaking of that, John actually got a bit of a headache.

His good brother became that skinny for him, yet he still thinks about getting close to Hermione.

I really am doomed.