Albert didn't know that someone had already taken the opportunity to put the blame on him.
With an extremely grim expression, Selwyn finally reluctantly agreed with Peter Pettigrew's statement. What else could he do? Could he just tell the Dark Lord directly that they were frightened by the sudden appearance of the Dark Mark and fled
If they dared to say such words, they would probably be removed from Voldemort's list of Death Eaters.
In order to avoid being labeled incompetent in front of the Dark Lord, Selwyn brought up Cassandra Valbras to prove that it was not that they did not work hard, but that the enemy was too cunning.
Voldemort saw through Selwyn and Peter Pettigrew's tricks at a glance, but his guess was also confirmed. The rumor Snape told was very likely true, and Albert Anderson was likely a prophet.
As for why that mudblood appeared in Nicholas Village
According to Snape's report, the Mudblood maintained good relations with many famous wizards. Moreover, he himself was proficient in alchemy and might have maintained a good relationship with Nicolas Flamel.
After all, Dumbledore knew that old immortal when he was young, and Dumbledore had a good relationship with that Mudblood.
The Dark Mark was even simpler. The spell had never been a difficult magic. It was considered dark magic simply because it was Voldemort's mark.
Of course, Voldemort was still very dissatisfied with the actions of Selwyn and Peter Pettigrew. They were frightened by the Dark Mark and fled in panic, which was a shame among the Death Eaters.
After giving each of them a Cruciatus Curse, Voldemort told them to get out.
That "infamous" Mudblood was obviously not a simple creature. Voldemort finally recalled Barty Crouch and Snape's comments on the Mudblood.
The former also looked down on the Mudblood before meeting him. However, after only one year at Hogwarts, Barty Jr. thought that the Mudblood was a tough opponent. At least, from Snape's description, his loyal servant was very afraid of the opponent's strength, otherwise he would not have brought a group of people to besiege him. Voldemort thought that among his Death Eaters, there were probably not many people who could enjoy such treatment.
What made Voldemort even more incredible was that Barty Crouch was actually captured by the other side.
It is not easy to capture a Death Eater unless there is a huge gap in strength between the two sides.
Thinking of this, Voldemort's face became even gloomier.
Dumbledore himself is difficult enough, and this Mudblood is obviously difficult as well. Judging from the fact that he sent his family away in advance, the probability that he is a prophet is very high.
It would be fine if the Mudblood left Britain, but if he continued to stay and oppose him, Voldemort knew that he had to find an opportunity to get rid of him, so as to prevent another guy like Dumbledore from popping up and causing trouble for him in the future.
However, he now wanted to understand Potter's prophecy more and had no plans to act rashly for the time being. There was no rush for this matter anyway and there was plenty of time.
In Voldemort's heart, Dumbledore will always be his number one enemy. As long as he gets rid of Dumbledore, there will be no obstacles in his way.
As for the second biggest enemy, it is naturally Harry Potter.
Voldemort was somewhat wary of this prophesied savior, especially since Harry Potter had slipped away from right under his nose a while ago, which made Voldemort lose face in front of the Death Eaters. He had to kill Harry Potter with his own hands so that those Death Eaters would feel at ease and submit to him instead of believing in those damn prophecies.
Voldemort knew very well what kind of people those Death Eaters were. If he wanted to intimidate those fence-sitters, he had to give them enough intimidation.
As for the Mudblood named Albert Anderson, he was clearly not qualified to be ranked third.
but…
Perhaps, what Voldemort didn't know was that in his heart, this Mudblood was not far from being the third on the blacklist.
If Voldemort knew what Albert had done to him.
…
As a person involved, Albert didn't really care much about the mess between Voldemort and the Death Eaters, but the British wizarding world was in an uproar.
At least, Cornelius Fudge felt his scalp tingling after hearing the news.
Fudge could certainly control the British Daily Prophet, but he could not control the reports on the French wizarding world.
The news of the Dark Mark appearing in Nicola Village had spread throughout the French wizarding community, and an investigation was subsequently launched. The French Ministry of Magic also informed the British wizarding community of the matter through the diplomatic department.
Fudge could only turn a blind eye. He hated those troublemakers, especially Sirius Black.
Yes, that's Sirius Black.
Fudge hated Black and Lupin, because the Defense Manual was released not long ago, and this happened. What would people think? Would they connect the two things
Consider these things as some bad omens. Even though those voices were forcibly suppressed by Fudge, it does not mean that these voices no longer exist.
What made Fudge even more upset was another incident, which was the attack on the master of prophecy Cassandra Valbrass. The old woman was still receiving treatment in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and it was said that she had serious memory problems due to a strong forgetfulness spell.
Although this incident was later defined as the work of some dark wizards in Knockturn Alley, Stringer later reminded him that this matter might not be simple, and the hints were actually very obvious.
Of course Fudge could pretend not to know, but that didn't mean these things didn't happen.
…
Unlike the Ministry of Magic, which was guessing at the wrong thing, members of the Order of the Phoenix also brought the matter up for discussion at the gathering.
The appearance of the Dark Mark in a French village is a bit strange, because according to investigations, the unlucky wizard who was killed was just an ordinary wizard in the village of Nicola, and had no connection with Voldemort and the Death Eaters.
They couldn't even think of any reason why the Death Eaters wanted to kill him, and what was even more incomprehensible to them was that they actually released the Dark Mark before leaving.
Especially during the period when Voldemort was still lurking, the appearance of the Dark Mark would undoubtedly attract everyone's attention, as if someone had done it on purpose.
"According to the latest information I have received, this matter is most likely directed at Mr. Anderson. Do you have any news?" Dumbledore cast an inquiring look at Snape.
"I heard that a while ago, the Dark Lord sent Selwyn and Peter Pettigrew to hunt down Albert Anderson. It is said that they brought a large group of dark wizards to his house..." Snape ignored Mrs. Weasley's reaction and continued, "As you can guess, they came up empty-handed. Anderson sent his family away in advance and no one knew where they went. Then, they went to find Cassandra Valbras..."
"What are they looking for Cassandra Valbras for?" Sirius interrupted. "So, it was you who did what happened to Cassandra Valbras."
"It's them." Snape glanced at Sirius, "And don't interrupt me."
"They found Cassandra Valbras and wanted to find out the whereabouts of Albert Anderson from her. Cassandra Valbras told them that Anderson would appear in Nicola Village. Finally, they went to Nicola Village and ambushed there for several days, but... As you can see, someone secretly used the Dark Mark, which scared Selwyn and Peter Pettigrew. They had to temporarily give up the plan to ambush Anderson and hurriedly left the village. Before leaving, they killed the owner of the house, probably to cover up their tracks or confuse right and wrong." Snape said what he knew expressionlessly. Although many of these were judgments he made based on the intelligence he collected, the error should not be large.
"Selwyn and Peter Pettigrew agree that the Dark Mark was released by Albert Anderson," Snape added.
"Are you sure you're not kidding?" Sirius couldn't help but sneer, "A group of Death Eaters were scared away by their own Dark Mark?"
"I remember that only Death Eaters know how to use the Dark Mark." Lupin frowned and said, "How could they think that the Dark Mark was made by Mr. Anderson?"
"Who knows? After all, people like Anderson cannot be judged by common sense." Snape glanced at Dumbledore, and the meaning was very clear. It would be best to ask Dumbledore about this kind of question.
"Whether it is using the Dark Mark or imitating the Dark Mark, I think it is not difficult for Mr. Anderson." Dumbledore agreed with Snape: "As far as I know, Mr. Anderson happened to visit an old friend in France, and I also went to find Cassandra Valbras and confirmed that she did make a prophecy for Peter Pettigrew and Selwyn."
"How is the prophet now?" Kingsley frowned and asked, "Is it possible that the Dark Lord has tied her to their side? If..."
"Not very good. Cassandra is already very old. The Oblivion Charm caused her some problems. It will take some time for her to fully recover." When Dumbledore said this, he forgot that he was older than her. "Of course, it should be a good thing for her that she can no longer help people predict the future."
In Dumbledore's view, Cassandra undoubtedly sent herself to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries and successfully avoided the possible danger.
After all, it was obviously impossible for Voldemort to let the Death Eaters rush directly into St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. That would be too cruel, and he could not do that while he was still trying to hide himself. What's more, it would be useless to capture an old man who was a little demented and unable to help with divination. He would only cause trouble.
"Why doesn't he hide? I mean, why doesn't Anderson hide?" Arthur asked puzzledly. "Logically, he must have realized that he was being targeted by the mysterious man. I don't think he would be completely unaware of this."
"In fact, we don't need to worry about him. You see, Anderson only used a little trick to scare the Death Eaters to death. I suspect that if he wants to, he can also send those unfortunate Death Eaters to hell." Sirius was very confident in Albert. "Besides, I always feel that he is going to do something big."
"Big deal?" Lupin asked doubtfully.
"My intuition tells me that this guy is no pushover." Sirius recalled, "Look at what he has done. He captured Peter Pettigrew and sent him to prison. He also blackmailed the Ministry of Magic. He also took care of Barty Crouch Jr. in one fell swoop. I wonder what reward the Ministry of Magic is going to give him."
"I don't know, maybe not." Arthur shook his head.
"I suddenly know why Fudge is in such bad luck." Sirius now understood why Albert gave him that report. It seemed to be revenge against Fudge for not giving him the reward for capturing Barty Crouch Jr. At least Sirius thought it must be related to this incident.
"Is this really the reason?" Tonks asked doubtfully. She didn't know Albert, she had only heard of his deeds.
"Yes, that's about it." Sirius explained, "I've done a few deals with him and I know him fairly well. I think in his eyes, he helps the Ministry of Magic catch prisoners, and Fudge gives him a bounty, so neither party owes the other anything, that's about it. That guy isn't a greedy person, but in many cases a deal is just a deal, and there's a price to pay for taking advantage without giving anything in return, and he happens to have that ability."
"Why is he willing to provide us with convenience?" Tonks was even more confused and her eyes turned to Dumbledore.
"He also hopes that the wizarding world can have peace, and it is of no benefit to him if Voldemort rules the wizarding world, so it is not surprising that he is inclined towards us." Dumbledore explained. He certainly would not say that he offered some goodwill to Albert.
"Mr. Anderson seems to be very keen on participating in international competitions." Kingsley suddenly interrupted, "Spain will be hosting the International Wizarding Duel Tournament soon. Will he plan to participate in that competition?"
"Don't let Voldemort know about this for the time being." Dumbledore reminded Snape.
"I don't think this kind of thing can be kept secret. With his ability, if he really wants to participate in that competition, it will definitely appear in the newspapers. Now you can only hope that the Dark Lord and his Death Eaters don't read the Daily Prophet." Snape felt that if Albert went to participate in a world-class competition, there would be little chance of keeping it completely secret.
"We can ask the Daily Prophet to delay reporting this matter." Sirius said without hesitation.
"Can't we just let that child give up participating in some dueling tournament?" Mrs. Weasley also frowned.
"How about we go watch the International Wizarding Dueling Tournament?" Sirius suddenly said, "If Voldemort's men show up there and plan to harm Anderson, we can help him. If we can capture a few Death Eaters or force Voldemort to show up, I think Fudge will definitely not continue to insist that the story of Voldemort's return is fake."
Of course, his target is Peter Pettigrew, and maybe that timid mouse will come over, and then his chance will come.
"It's not a good idea to ask for leave to watch the dueling competition." Kingsley reminded: "It is very likely to expose our identity as members of the Order of the Phoenix. If we want to go, I'm afraid we can only use the portkey, but as you know, the Ministry of Magic is keeping a close eye on the portkeys now."
"Yes, it will be more beneficial to us if the Death Eaters can be exposed." Tonks agreed with Sirius.
After all, Voldemort hiding in the dark is always a big trouble.