0446 Crumbling World

0446 Crumbling World

"They were injured in the chaos!" Lucius Malfoy exclaimed, his voice rising to a near-shout. His pale, pointed face was contorted with rage, eyes flashing dangerously as he glared at Fudge.

A flicker of light passed through Bryan's eyes before they quickly settled back into their usual inscrutable calm.

Dumbledore could not possibly like Lucius Malfoy, who constantly schemed to bring him down and had even acted on it, causing severe consequences. However, upon hearing that Malfoy's wife and son were injured in tonight's attack, Dumbledore immediately showed concern.

"What happened, Lucius?" Dumbledore asked, his voice soft yet urgent. He spoke even before Fudge could answer, leaning forward slightly in his chair. "What harm has young Mr. Malfoy suffered?"

The Malfoy family, particularly Lucius, had been a significant financial backer of the Ministry of Magic under Fudge's leadership. Their generous 'donations' had paved the way for many of Fudge's initiatives. Hearing that Lucius Malfoy's wife and son were injured, Fudge couldn't dismiss it as a trivial matter. Since Dumbledore had already asked, Fudge remained silent, looking at Lucius Malfoy with equal concern.

"We were victims of a terrorist attack!" Lucius said in a rare impolite tone.

"While evacuating," he continued, his voice trembling slightly with anger, "Narcissa and I engaged in a duel with the dark wizards who launched the attack. We were protecting a young Swiss girl, separated from her parents in the chaos.

We managed to drive the attackers away, but Narcissa was hit with a powerful stunning spell while protecting the girl. She's still unconscious. And Draco... my son's arm was injured in the commotion!"

"Oh, how unfortunate—" Fudge said, his voice tinged with a mixture of shame and political calculation. He tugged at his collar, sweat beading on his forehead despite the cool air of the office.

"This incident occurred so suddenly, we— I mean, the Ministry's preparations were indeed inadequate. I should visit your wife and child, Lucius, but it'll have to wait."

Fudge's eyes darted nervously around the room, as if seeking an escape from this uncomfortable situation. "As you know, the Ministry is facing unprecedented challenges, and I can't leave my post at the moment. The wizarding community needs leadership in these times."

The idea that the Malfoy family would step up to protect a stranger's child and duel with dark wizards was something that even Dumbledore, with all his capacity for seeing the best in people, found difficult to swallow. It went against everything he knew about Lucius Malfoy and his self-serving nature.

A strange light flashed in Dumbledore's piercing blue eyes, hidden momentarily behind his half-moon spectacles. He realized that Lucius Malfoy's purpose in rushing to the Ministry to find Fudge at this critical juncture couldn't possibly be just to lodge a complaint about his family's injuries, no matter how serious they were.

Dumbledore's gaze shifted towards Bryan, seeking some hint on this unexpected turn of events. But Bryan's face was expressionless showing none of his inner thoughts. When met with Dumbledore's questioning look, Bryan's lips twitched slightly, revealing a brief, mocking smile that vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

As Dumbledore's sharp gaze returned to Lucius Malfoy, his eyes grew deep and pensive.

Fudge, oblivious to the subtle exchange between Dumbledore and Bryan, continued to face the complaining Lucius Malfoy with a mixture of embarrassment and guilt etched across his round face, until—

"Of course, I understand the difficulties you and the Ministry are facing right now, Minister Fudge—" The usually smooth and confident Lucius Malfoy had never shown such a stern face to the Minister of Magic before. Tonight, however, he stood with straight back before Fudge, his pale gray eyes flickering with an inner fire that seemed almost foreign on his aristocratic features.

"But I must seek justice for Narcissa and Draco, mustn't I, Minister?" Lucius continued, his voice rising with each word. "I must find out what these evil dark wizards are really up to, why they launched this attack—"

Lucius paused, his chest heaving as he struggled to control his breathing. His eyes, wild with a hint of fear and determination, darted quickly between Bryan and Dumbledore before settling back on Fudge. When he spoke again, his voice was harsh, almost grating.

"I want the truth, Minister," he demanded, leaning forward slightly. "So, I asked around with friends in the Ministry. Someone told me the Department has captured a live one—"

Fudge's mind was entirely focused on Melanov, the captured dark witch who was being interrogated. In his preoccupation, he failed to notice Lucius Malfoy's unusual expression.

"Lucius?" Fudge called out impatiently, jolting Lucius from his spiral of dread.

"Oh, I'm here, Minister—" Lucius responded hurriedly, his breath catching in his throat. He looked towards Fudge, only to find the Minister of Magic's eyes conveying an obvious hint for him to get lost.

Fudge, Dumbledore, and Bryan left the Minister's office together, with Lucius Malfoy following behind in a daze. His usual graceful stride was gone, replaced by the uncertain steps of a man walking to the gallows.

Ding—

The elevator arrived with a cheerful chime that seemed wildly out of place given the weird atmosphere. A cold voice announced the floor, and Fudge and Dumbledore were the first to enter the elevator, but Bryan suddenly stopped.

"Minister and Headmaster Dumbledore, you go ahead," Bryan said, his voice smooth and pleasant. "I'd like a word with Mr. Malfoy about Draco's performance in my class."

Fudge blinked in surprise, his bushy eyebrows rising towards his receding hairline. "Oh, at a time like this?" he asked, bewilderment clear in his tone. After a moment's hesitation, he added reluctantly, "Well, alright, Bryan. You're truly a responsible professor. Make it quick—"

Bryan nodded with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. As the elevator car disappeared from view, descending into the depths of the Ministry, Bryan slowly turned to face Lucius Malfoy. The corridor suddenly seemed much darker, the shadows deeper and more menacing.

Although his mind was in chaos from fear, Lucius wasn't foolish enough to believe that Bryan Watson actually wanted to discuss Draco's classroom performance.

"Mr. Watson," Lucius began, his voice barely above a whisper. Truthfully, he would rather be thrown directly into Azkaban by the Ministry than face Bryan Watson alone. The memory of their last encounter at the Leaky Cauldron rose in his mind - the fear this young and powerful wizard had instilled in him was something he had only experienced in the presence of the Dark Lord himself. And tonight, Bryan Watson had finally showed his true dominance to the entire Wizarding world!

Bang!

The sudden noise made Lucius flinch violently. Bryan's face before him was a mask of cold indifference, but the light in his pale purple eyes was so chilly it seemed capable of freezing one's very soul. Under the invisible influence of surging magical power, the corridor lights began to flicker erratically.

The magical pressure in the air built to a crescendo, and suddenly -

Pop! Pop! Pop!

One by one, the light bulbs burst in a torrent of shattering glass and dying light. The sound of breaking bulbs felt like a series of heavy hammer blows striking Lucius Malfoy's heart. The darkness that engulfed them was broken only by the eerie glow emanating from Bryan's eyes.

Feeling weak, his legs were no longer able to support him, Lucius collapsed to the ground with a dull thud.

"This is the second time I've shown you mercy, Lucius Malfoy. There won't be a next time."

Without another word, Bryan turned and entered the elevator. The doors closed with a soft hiss, and he disappeared from the floor, leaving behind a pale and bloodless Lucius Malfoy, staring blankly at the pitch-black elevator shaft.

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