Ti passed quickly, and the final exams were soon over.
After the exams, students had a full week to wait for their results.
During this week, there were no classes and no pressure from exams.
It was essentially a full holiday—students were free to enjoy themselves around the school, and as long as they didn't break any rules, the professors would tacitly look the other way.
So, for most students, this week was the happiest ti of the year.
Of course, for the seventh-year students, it ca with a touch of sadness… After all, this week marked the final days of their Hogwarts life.
Today was already the last day of that joyful week.
In the Room of Requirent—
Wade and Tom were both looking extrely excited.
In front of them was a map, and on that map, countless tiny dots were moving around.
Next to each dot was a na!
"I declare the Marauder's Map complete. Yes, I'm naming it the Marauder's Map!" Wade said proudly.
"Haha, with this map, sneaking into the Restricted Section to read is going to be so much easier!" Tom said happily.
Seeing how excited the two of them were, Anne, who had been watching from the side, gave a token round of applause.
"Anne, cheer up. You played a huge part in making this map! If it weren't for those months of scouting you did, how would we know about so many secret passages?" Wade said with a smile.
"Well… but all I contributed was a piece of paper, and you turned it into this… Wade, you're amazing!!"
Even though Anne wasn't in the best mood, she had to admit she admired Wade's talent.
The Marauder's Map could even show the movents of Professor Dumbledore and Headmaster Dippet—just that alone showed how incredible it was.
And yet Wade had managed to pull it off… No wonder Grindelwald valued him so highly.
"Anne, you've looked troubled these days. Did sothing happen?" Tom suddenly asked.
"Huh? N-No! Nothing at all! Really!" Anne was startled and hurriedly denied it.
But right after defending herself, she realized her reaction had been a bit too much.
Anne: Ah. Shit..
Sure enough, Tom looked at her with a suspicious expression.
Just as Anne was struggling to co up with an explanation, Wade suddenly said, "It's about your aunt, isn't it?"
"Huh? You…" Anne looked completely flustered.
"I rember you once ntioned you had an aunt who went off on her own and lost contact with the family… and then, in a wanted list published in the Daily Prophet, I saw a na—Vinda Rosier…" Wade smiled. "That's your aunt, isn't it?"
"I…" Anne was originally panicked, but upon hearing Wade's words, she found her excuse. She quickly nodded. "Yes… she left ho years ago. I never imagined she'd join the Dark wizards under that man… I… I don't know what to do. What if everyone thinks our family is tied to them?"
Tom silently rolled his eyes on the side. What do you an "what if"? You clearly are connected!
Grindelwald had already fallen from power!
Logically speaking, Anne was no longer of any use.
He really couldn't figure out what was wrong with Wade—why go out of his way to cover for this woman?
Was there so kind of reward for protecting her or sothing!?
Wade smiled and comforted her, "One Rosier falling into darkness doesn't an all Rosiers are dragged into the mire. Even if so people suspect you because of it, as long as you conduct yourself properly, there won't be any issues. Look, none of the other students have ever suspected you, right? After all, you helped us catch several of Grindelwald's followers!"
"Uh… that's true…" Anne smiled, but her heart felt even heavier.
Luckily, her aunt had been taken away by Mr. Grindelwald.
Otherwise…
I might very well be in Azkaban by now!
After all, the only two people who knew her true identity were Grindelwald and her aunt.
And Veritaserum from the Ministry of Magic was no joke…
She looked up at Wade, who was happily examining the map, and couldn't help but ask, "Wade, do you think Grindelwald will rise again?"
"What's this? Worried about revenge?" Wade asked, intrigued.
"Mm… that's part of it…" Anne replied, following his lead.
"Then don't worry. He won't win," Wade said. "Even when he was at his peak, he had a hard ti succeeding—let alone now."
"Uh… but why? I an, back before he lost, his power was enormous! Didn't he have a pretty good chance at winning back then?" Anne couldn't help but argue in a small voice.
In her view, Grindelwald's defeat this ti was just a fluke. If it hadn't happened, his victory would've been only a matter of ti!
"Good chance at winning back, huh?" Wade chuckled. "When even the wizarding world can't agree with itself, I really don't see how he was ever going to win."
"You're right…" Anne fell silent for a mont, then asked again, "But… if his ideas attracted so many people, doesn't that an there was so rit to them? Then why are so many people against him?"
"His ideas were reasonable?" Wade laughed. "He didn't have any real, developed ideology—just a few catchy slogans. And a handful of slogans isn't enough to serve as a foundation for thought. A revolution without a guiding ideology—how could that possibly succeed?"
"Guiding ideology? What kind of guiding ideology?" Anne asked.
"Let ask you: Grindelwald shouts his slogans loud enough to shake the skies, but has he ever published a book? Anything that actually explains his ideology?"
"No… no, he hasn't."
"Then who else is supposed to fail if not him? Even that little guy next door at least had in Kampf… Grindelwald doesn't even have an autobiography."
Ah.. this..
Anne listened to Wade's words and felt a vague sense of awe without really understanding.
She honestly didn't get what Mr. Grindelwald's success or failure had to do with whether he'd published a book.
Seeing the confused look on her face, Wade could tell she hadn't understood a word.
"Let ask you—what's the purpose of books?"
"Um… to pass on and share knowledge?" Anne replied uncertainly.
"Then what do you think qualifies as knowledge?" Wade asked.
"Magical theory, maybe?" Anne guessed.
"Knowledge covers a lot of things, Anne… magical theory is just one part. In fact, even a cookbook that teaches you how to cook—culinary skills can also be considered a form of knowledge. So… if sothing like cooking can be passed down as knowledge, then why can't ideology?"
"Ideology?" Anne scratched her head. "Why would anyone want to pass down ideology?"
Wade felt like tearing his hair out. He'd explained everything so clearly, and she still ca out with that? All his setup, wasted?!
But Wade still held back from scolding her. Even if Anne couldn't understand what he was saying, that old man definitely would. Heh~
"Didn't you just ask why, even though his ideology seems reasonable, so many people are still against him?" Wade asked.
"Yes…"
"That's because Grindelwald never took the ti to organize his ideas into a proper system and spread them. A lot of people don't actually understand his ideology, so of course they can't see any rit in it."
"Think about it—even if he's the greatest public speaker in the world, and his speeches make people's blood boil with excitent… how many wizards in the world can actually attend his speeches in person? How many would even dare to?"
"And because of that, the ideas he promotes during those speeches are likely to be misrepresented or twisted by others!"
"Even if you're an honest revolutionary, you might still end up being sared as a terrorist in the end!"
"Let's take it a step further—even if no one distorts your ssage, only those who've heard your speeches will understand your stance. The ones who haven't? They won't feel anything at all."
"But if you publish a book, it's different! If he had written and distributed his ideological works after his speeches, then anyone who genuinely believed in his vision would've taken the initiative to spread those books around the world…"
"Over ti, the more people co to understand his ideology, the more supporters he would have."
__________
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