HP: Embrace the Darkness

"Your expression tells me that you can't produce any evidence. Is that right?"

Austin pressed on with his victory.

Aces still said nothing.

From everyone's perspective, he didn't move, and his expression didn't change, like a silent stone sculpture.

"Perhaps I can testify?" Dumbledore suddenly took a step forward. "I think my words should be convincing."

Of course, Austin would not let Dumbledore ruin his plan, so he said cunningly, "Mr. Dumbledore, unfortunately, when you testified for Mr. Snape, your words had already lost their credibility. No one can guarantee that you will not be biased towards Mr. Snape after you have a relatively good relationship with him."

"All right." Dumbledore shrugged helplessly and returned to his seat.

"Since you can't produce evidence, then——"

The moment Austin raised the hammer, the door of the courtroom was pushed open from the outside.

"I can prove it."

Aces smiled.

His witness has arrived.

Bradley, the president of the International Potions Association, strode in, his tall figure carrying a heavy aura as he pressed towards Austin.

"Mr. Snape and I had no prior relationship. May I ask if I am qualified to testify for Mr. Cavendish?"

Bradley's tone was aggressive.

Yesterday, just as he learned that the mysterious potion genius was Snape, he received news that Snape fell into a coma because of Voldemort's Horcrux and has not woken up yet.

So, Bradley is now holding a grudge, and Austin can be said to be his punching bag.

"President Bradley? Aren't you supposed to be hosting next door today? Wait, who is the recipient of the Order of Merlin, First Class?!"

Austin suspected that his home had been robbed, and there was both witnesses and evidence.

"Mr. Snape, nominated by Mr. Cavendish, was approved unanimously by the review committee." Bradley looked at Ases, "The corresponding medal is already being made. Mr. Cavendish can take it with him when he leaves."

"okay, I get it."

Ases smiled and nodded to Bradley to show his gratitude.

Austin, who was ignored, was furious and said without thinking: "Bradley, why do you give a medal to a criminal?"

Aces, Dumbledore, and Bradley all frowned at Austin's sharp words.

Ases' voice turned completely cold. "Austin, before you slander others, maybe you can think about what you have done."

Austin's face flashed with guilt, "I don't understand what you are saying, defense attorney, please don't change the subject at will!"

Dumbledore smiled meaningfully, which made Austin even more flustered.

Bradley's temper was not as good as the other two. He pointed at Austin's nose and cursed: "I really don't understand why some people, who are obviously very old, still refuse to retire and insist on wasting social resources. I don't know how they can live with the face they have."

Saying that wasn't enough, he walked out of the witness stand, cracking his knuckles.

"It doesn't matter. I can teach this kind of person step by step that when he reaches retirement age, he should retire properly and go back to lie in the coffin and wait to be buried."

"You dare to take action?"

Austin said in a timid manner.

Bradley showed him on the spot that he had nothing to fear and punched him.

The courtroom suddenly fell into chaos.

Athis and Dumbledore stood aside and watched the show, and there was also Snape who was staring at Athis with a troubled look in his eyes.

However, Ases had to rush to the next meeting and had no time to wait for Bradley to come up with a result, so he stepped forward to smooth things over hypocritically.

"The President of the International Magic Association has the right to award the Order of Merlin First Class once a year. I think Mr. Austin has forgotten about it. What do you think, Mr. Austin?"

Austin covered his left cheek and nodded quickly, "Yes, yes, I forgot."

"Go on," Carter announced solemnly, "Does Mr. Austin have anything else to ask?"

This time it was Austin's turn to be silent.

Ases had sufficient evidence and there was a living witness. What he had just found might be the only flaw. If even this flaw was filled, he would not be able to find another one for a while.

What's more, Ases seems to have something on him, so it's better to be careful.

Austin weighed the pros and cons and shook his head, "No more."

Carter stood up and cast a voice-enhancing spell on himself: "Now, please raise your hands if you agree that Severus Snape's charges are not established."

Rows of arms went up.

Dumbledore took out the purple robe from somewhere, put it on himself, and raised his hand happily.

Passed almost unanimously.

Only a few people, led by Austin, chose to abstain.

Carter could not wait to announce: "I declare that all charges against Severus Snape are not established. Severus Snape is not guilty."

There was applause everywhere.

Amid the uproar, Ases left the scene quietly.

Dumbledore and Bradley caught up, and the two old men reached out from the left and right to stop Athis.

Bradley pulled Aces towards him without any hesitation, "I'm one step ahead of you. Let me talk to Aces first."

"I am more familiar with Athis." Dumbledore was inexplicably aroused by Bradley's competitive spirit.

"My topic is more important!"

"My topic is more personal!"

Ases pulled his hand away expressionlessly and turned to ask the official following him.

"How long until the next meeting?"

The officer checked the time. "Ten minutes."

Ases calculated the time and said clearly, "In the ten minutes, you can spend two minutes arguing, three minutes each talking, and two minutes on the way."

The two of them immediately stopped fighting.

Bradley took the initiative to retreat and walked to the other side of the corridor. Dumbledore's eyes fell on him vaguely and his voice was vague.

"I don't understand, Ases, you could have just made your relationship public so no one would question your eligibility to be in that position."

Aces raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you sure that no one will question it and that most people will look at Sif with strange eyes?"

Dumbledore touched his nose.

This is a problem, but he doesn't think Snape would mind it. After all, in the eyes of the Potions Master, the looks of others are no different from the garbage made by students.

"If you came to me to tell me this, then there is no need to say more. I will not make it public until Sif wakes up."

Ases tapped his shirt hem rhythmically with his fingertips, keeping track of time silently.

"Anything else, Mr. Dumbledore?"

"Gone."

Dumbledore's expression was difficult to read, and he took the initiative to walk towards Bradley. Bradley also walked towards him, and the two passed each other.

The heroic northern man was much more enthusiastic than Dumbledore. As soon as he arrived, he hugged Aces and said, "Long time no see. By the way, where is Severus? I want to go see him."

Compared to the bland greetings, Bradley's last few words simply engraved the word "impatient" on his face.

"After a while——"

"Don't try to fool me with these words."

Bradley slapped Ases on the shoulder. Ases swayed, and held the wall with his hands to steady himself. He said helplessly, "How about in a month?"

Bradley looked at Aces suspiciously: "Are you so sure that Severus will wake up in a month?"

This statement almost made Bradley's suspicion of Ases clear.

Asseth was not offended.

“I’m not sure, but I’ll try my best.”

"Why don't you let me go see Severus? There are certain similarities between potions and treatments." Bradley did not give up.

Ases lowered his shoulders, nimbly avoided Bradley's restraint, and slowly straightened his messy clothes.

"…I'm sorry, but it's still not possible. Sever doesn't like uninvited guests. If he knew that I brought people here without his permission and ruined his rest, he would be unhappy."

Bradley carefully discerned Aces's expression. Aces let him see calmly, only slightly lowering his eyelashes to cover his lifeless eyes.

"Okay, then I'll wait for good news."

Bradley didn't see any trace of lying on Ases' face and reluctantly let it go.

Ases was smoothing out the wrinkles on his shoulders. Hearing this, he nodded politely and turned to leave in the direction he had just come from.

Dumbledore and Bradley, who stayed behind, were suddenly stopped by two officials, who stuffed a red invitation into their hands. They opened it and finally understood why Asis left in such a hurry.

"You kept it a secret really well. Now Austin will be anxious again." Dumbledore laughed, put away the invitation letter, and looked at Bradley, "Together?"

"Hahaha, let's go!"

Bradley was in a good mood. He enthusiastically put his arm around Dumbledore's shoulder and strode forward. Dumbledore became three inches shorter when he was put into his arm. From a distance, all he could see was Bradley's big fur coat swaying in the corridor.

Ases walked to the door of the courtroom on time. He calmed himself, grasped the door handle, and pushed open the door of the hearing room.

As soon as I walked in, an old atmosphere hit me in the face. There was a faint smell of dust in the room. I don’t know how long this room has not been used.

Ases calmly slowed down his breathing, used magic to look around, and found that there were already a circle of people sitting sparsely inside.

These people were all wearing dark purple robes and wide hoods. To the naked eye, they almost blended into the shadows.

But Ases is not the naked eye.

In his perception, there were countless flames floating in the room, some strong and some weak, but more of them was endless darkness.

The darkness did not affect Ases's actions. He walked slowly to the center of the room, where there was a simple chair and table, which was the seat reserved for him.

Ases sat down at his seat.

Everyone's gazes followed closely behind him. The room was dimly lit with only a few faint candles flickering. With the faint candlelight, they could see Ases' young face through the hood.

"So young? Are you sure he killed Voldemort? It doesn't look like it to us."

"That should be it. My British friend said so. There is also a rumor that the Grand Magician Medal he is applying for this time is not for himself."

"Who else could it be for?"

A sneer was clearly heard, accompanied by some complicated and awkward language.

"And as far as I know, no one else in the British wizarding world has made the corresponding contribution to apply for the Grand Wizard Medal, and Dumbledore can't do it this time. What's more, Dumbledore already has it, so there is no way he can apply for a second time."

"Who knows? Anyway, I'm just here to go through the motions. For my contribution in killing Voldemort, it should be no problem to apply for the Grand Wizard Medal."

"Me too." The voice sounded lazy, as if the person was about to fall asleep in the next second, which made the people around laugh.

Another voice spoke over the laughter: "Have you forgotten that there is an age limit for the Grand Magician Medal? This kid doesn't even look thirty years old."

"Rules are meant to be broken. I think he is full of confidence and should be able to hold his own."

The lights suddenly came on brightly.

Dumbledore and Bradley walked in, dressed in purple robes.

They are the final reviewers.

Grand Magician Medal, the judging begins.

"Mr. Cavendish." The purple-robed man sitting at the top suddenly spoke up, "Please hand in your prepared application."

Without any movement from Ases, identical pieces of parchment were placed in front of everyone. Dumbledore and Bradley went to see the final signature first.

Sure enough, a name was written on it in sharp strokes - Severus Snape.

Dumbledore was silent for a while, feeling sour.

When he was young and energetic, he also wanted to obtain the Grand Magician Medal to prove himself, but he never had the chance.

Until Grindelwald dominated Europe.

Yes, he got the Grand Wizard Medal, but the price was the loss of Grindelwald for more than fifty years, and Grindelwald also lost his freedom for more than fifty years.

Others also noticed the unusual name at the end of the signature, and someone politely reminded him, "Mr. Cavendish, do you need to check the name on it?"

"No, the name is correct."

Ases then took out the prepared experimental records and supporting materials.

His fingertips seemed to casually stroke the corners of the pages, identifying which was which, and then delivering them to each person's desk.

Bradley was the most excited. He couldn't wait to get closer and take a closer look. The more he looked, the more excited he became. He knew that Ases was hiding something good. Look, here it is.

Others also saw the content above and exclaimed in amazement.

"This thing is great, and it's very difficult to make. No wonder Cavendish is willing to give up his own honor to promote Snape."

"It's really good, but if Cavendish monopolizes it, it will be difficult for us to get a share in the future."

"Not necessarily. He hasn't built up enough momentum yet, so it's still unclear who will win."

"You are behind the times. Austin just attended a review meeting for Snape. It was Cavendish who tried his best to exonerate him. Who do you think he will choose to cooperate with after he wakes up?"

"what do you mean……"

"Humph, it's just as you thought. There really is a cunning person in the Cavendish family who prepared for a rainy day so early."

Amidst the whispers, everyone reached a consensus, but it was unknown how many people took advantage of the situation.

It was the same purple-robed man who knocked on the table. "Mr. Cavendish, are you sure you want to give up applying for the Grand Mage Medal for yourself and for Snape?"