As Auston led Bill away, Rosier spoke softly:
"That young man... I don't see anything particularly remarkable about him. Is he really worth our investment of so many Galleons and resources?"
Hearing Rosier's question, Wentworth's lips curled into a faint smile as he replied:
"Even if something appears to be rubbish, sometimes it's simply in the wrong place. Besides, Bill did manage to become a Curse Breaker at Gringotts—that alone proves he has some merit. Consider it a casual move in a game of chess. We stand to lose nothing."
With that, Wentworth sighed before continuing:
"Grandma Rosier, times have changed. This is no longer an era where ideals alone hold sway."
Rosier nodded thoughtfully at his words.
A short while later, Auston returned to the study, where Wentworth greeted him with a smile and said,
"Well done."
Clearly pleased by the praise, Auston barely had time to react before Wentworth's smile faded, and he continued in a more serious tone:
"Now that we have clarity on the situation, it's time to set our plans in motion. Auston, send word to Carrow—tell him to make a scene. Grandma Rosier, the rest is in your hands."
Both nodded immediately in acknowledgment, Rosier included.
When Bill returned to the Burrow, he found his parents waiting anxiously for him. The moment they saw their eldest son arrive home safely, both breathed a long sigh of relief.
After carefully ensuring that Bill was unharmed, Mrs. Weasley clutched her chest and exclaimed,
"Thank heavens you're back in one piece! After this incident, we must stay far away from the Alliance—it's far too dangerous! And I should remind Ron and the others to keep their distance from Wentworth at Hogwarts."
However, before she could finish speaking, both Bill and Arthur Weasley interrupted in unison:
"No!"
The two men exchanged a glance before Arthur explained,
"There's no need to tell Ron and the others. Our son... well, he's not exactly the best at hiding his thoughts or keeping secrets. If he were to find out, he might let something slip, and angering the Alliance would only put him in danger."
Bill quickly nodded in agreement.
"Father is right—that's exactly what I was thinking."
Hearing both her husband and eldest son insist, Mrs. Weasley hesitated before finally dropping the idea.
At that moment, Bill reached into his pocket and pulled out a small cloth pouch that Auston had given him, handing it to his mother.
When Mrs. Weasley opened it and saw the stack of Galleons inside, her expression brightened, and she remarked,
"The Alliance certainly has money to spare! If only the Ministry of Magic were this generous."
Bill had expected the Alliance to act swiftly upon receiving news of the situation. However, to his surprise, days passed without any sign of movement—not at Gringotts, not even in Diagon Alley. Everything remained eerily calm.
Instead, Bill learned from The Daily Prophet that the Alliance's activities had been detected in various parts of Britain. The repeated appearances of the Deathly Hallows symbol had even drawn the attention of other magical governments and the International Confederation of Wizards.
While such symbols had appeared across the world before, most were later dismissed as the work of impostors.
But ever since the Battle of the British Ministry of Magic two years ago, few dared to impersonate the Alliance.
After all, if you were caught by the British Ministry of Magic for a crime, you'd likely end up in Azkaban. But if you were caught by the Alliance for pretending to be one of them, you might start thinking Azkaban wasn't such a bad option.
A few days later, the Weasleys welcomed a new guest—none other than Harry Potter, whom Ron and his twin brothers, Fred and George, had rescued from Privet Drive.
Harry's arrival brought a lively energy back to the Burrow, and it was a clear sign that the new term at Hogwarts was fast approaching.
That morning, the entire Weasley family gathered in their modest dining room, planning to head to Diagon Alley after breakfast to buy school supplies.
Ginny, in particular, had a long list of items to purchase, as she was about to begin her first year at Hogwarts.
Despite the Weasleys' recent financial windfall, Mrs. Weasley glanced at the large group of children before her and sighed. Even with extra gold, it was best to save where they could.
Just then, Arthur Weasley arrived home from the Ministry, intending to accompany them to Diagon Alley.
As Mrs. Weasley served him breakfast, Arthur suddenly remarked,
"Something strange is going on—the entire Department of Magical Law Enforcement is in chaos, especially the Auror Office. It seems they're running out of Aurors!"
"Just this morning, I saw Rufus Scrimgeour leading a team out. Apparently, due to the shortage, he has to personally handle missions now."
Mrs. Weasley waved a hand dismissively.
"It's probably just unrest in various places. Who knows what the Alliance is up to, causing such a stir."
But since Harry was present, and their other children were unaware of the details, the Weasley couple exchanged a glance with Bill and tacitly chose to drop the subject.
What they didn't realize, however, was that Harry—who had long suspected Wentworth's true identity—had paused mid-bite at the mention of the Alliance. His expression briefly flashed with surprise and concern.
As Mrs. Weasley hurried everyone to finish their breakfast in preparation for their trip to Diagon Alley, elsewhere, in the Greengrass estate, Wentworth and his associates were also seated for their morning meal.
At that moment, Auston approached, holding a slip of parchment, and reported,
"Master, your prediction was correct. The Aurors in London have been dispatched to various locations. Moreover, we've just received confirmation—this morning, Rufus Scrimgeour himself had to leave for Scotland on a mission."
Wentworth nodded knowingly, dabbed at his mouth with a napkin, and then spoke slowly:
"In that case, it's time for us to move as well. Give the order—we set out in half an hour. Let's see just how strong the security at Gringotts really is, this so-called safest place outside of Hogwarts!"
-------
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/PrimalDemon [remove the parentheses ( )]