As the Witch spoke, the floor of the telephone booth began to tremble, and the booth Weilan and Carson had squeezed into slowly sank into the ground.
The sidewalk outside the glass window slowly rose. Weilan descended in the dark for about a minute before a ray of light finally shone on him again.
This ray of light gradually grew brighter and more intense until it filled the entire exit of the telephone booth. Only then did the telephone booth stop descending.
“The Ministry of Magic hopes you have a pleasant day.”
After the Witch's voice finished, the telephone booth door swung open. Weilan followed closely behind Carson, cautiously observing the opulent, unfamiliar surroundings.
They stood at one end of a long hall with dark wooden floors. Overhead was a peacock blue ceiling adorned with shimmering golden symbols.
The four walls were made of dark wood panels, within which many gilded fireplaces were embedded.
Weilan knew that those fireplaces were one of the essential means of transportation for Ministry of Magic employees commuting to and from work.
However, because the Christmas holiday had already begun, there were very few people in the hall. He glanced at the fireplaces on both sides for a while but didn't see anyone using them.
In the center of the atrium was a fountain. A group of solid gold statues stood in the middle of a circular pool, depicting a male Witch, a female Witch, a Centaur, a Goblin, and a House-elf.
The hall was quiet; Weilan could even hear the gurgling of the fountain.
“Follow me.”
Carson led Weilan through the long atrium, walking towards the row of golden doors on the opposite side.
To the left of the golden doors, a scruffy, reluctant employee on duty at that hour inspected Weilan and registered his wand.
After the inspection, Carson took him through the doors and pressed a button for an elevator.
“Everyone else has already arrived. The trial begins in thirty minutes.”
Carson glanced at his watch and told Weilan:
“The Aurors who need to attend are already waiting in our Auror Headquarters. We have brought all the newly discovered evidence for this case.”
“In a moment, you'll familiarize yourself with the evidence. Then you'll attend the trial with us.”
“Don't be nervous; you're just our special guest—prepared for any unforeseen circumstances.”
“We cannot drag this case past Christmas. Resolving it as quickly as possible will provide a good explanation for everyone.”
As they spoke, the elevator doors opened.
Only the two of them were in the elevator. Carson pressed the button for the second floor, the elevator doors closed, and it began to ascend with a clattering sound.
When the elevator stopped on the second floor and the grated door opened, the indifferent female voice spoke again:
“Second floor, Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Improper Use of magic Office, Auror Headquarters, and Wizengamot Administration Services.”
“We're here.”
Weilan stepped out of the elevator into a long corridor with rooms on both sides.
They turned a corner, passed through two heavy oak doors, and entered a messy, noisy open area divided into many cubicles.
The nearest cubicle had a sign hanging squarely above it: Auror Headquarters.
“This is it.”
Carson pulled open the door, and Mrs. Lupin happily rushed out, embracing Weilan.
“This is truly troublesome for you, Weilan! To drag you into attending a trial at this time.”
“But we all believe that with you here, we will surely get justice for that deceased child!”
To suit the needs of participating in the trial, Mrs. Lupin had specially transfigured herself to appear very imposing today.
A sharp face, upturned triangular eyes, and strands of silver hair mixed into her high bun.
However, as soon as Mrs. Lupin smiled, her carefully crafted imposing demeanor was completely shattered.
“Let's get down to business as quickly as possible.”
Carson found a chair for Weilan and gently closed the oak door behind him.
He pointed to a wall behind him, and Weilan's gaze followed—
An entire wall was covered with various photos and copies of reports.
There weren't many people in the cubicle, only five including Weilan. Carson cleared his throat, and everyone immediately sat up straight in their chairs.
Weilan observed the remaining pair of unfamiliar Witches and Wizards in the cubicle. The male Auror had a round face exactly like Neville's, while the female Auror had very similar black eyes and a small nose to Neville.
They were smiling and waving at Weilan.
“The Longbottoms.”
Weilan returned their greeting, roughly guessing their identities.
Mrs. Lupin introduced the two to Weilan, and it was exactly as Weilan had expected.
They were Neville's father, Frank Longbottom, and Neville's mother, Alice Longbottom.
“Let's talk about our findings at the first crime scene.”
Carson took out a slender stick and pointed to a map pinned to the wall.
This was a map of Upper Hogsmeade Village and the surrounding areas.
“Crouch Villa is here.”
Carson's small stick pointed to the center of the map.
“According to eyewitnesses from Upper Hogsmeade Village—”
Carson glanced at the copy of the transcript above the map.
“On the night Bader disappeared, his and his mother's walking route was roughly this one.”
A red line extended from Crouch Villa, along a winding country road, and after passing a few villagers' houses, it stretched towards the sparsely populated edge of the village.
The red line was finally cut off within a large orange area.
“According to Mrs. Crouch, and the testimony of the last eyewitness, the place where Bader last disappeared was narrowed down to within the orange area.”
“We conducted a thorough search of that area and finally found faint traces of the Killing Curse and Apparition under an oak tree.”
“By inferring the spell release time from the residual traces, it was precisely Thursday of the week before last.”
“After comparison, this was indeed the Killing Curse cast by Mrs. Crouch's wand—the time, location, and wand all matched!”
“Not only that, because the first crime scene was too remote, and then it snowed, preserving the traces at the scene.”
“We also found Mrs. Crouch's footprints entering and leaving the scene, as well as a strand of her hair that naturally fell out.”
The stick in Carson's hand pointed to a series of photos on the left side of the map.
Finally, his stick moved to the right side of the map, to the transcripts pasted on the wall:
“Moreover, this time we found a new child witness—previously, she was overlooked by us due to her young age.”
“She had insomnia that night, so she clearly saw the road below her house through her bedroom window.”
“According to her, the Crouches, mother and son, started their walk around 7:30 PM. Mrs. Crouch returned alone around 10:00 PM.”
“During this period, Mrs. Crouch carried her wand.”
Frank said confidently:
“This time, we can definitely confirm Mrs. Crouch's guilt.”
“I can't imagine how those lawyers can argue against it!”
The supporting physical evidence was complete.
The Aurors had used all their strength to search for evidence.
Another failed trial would be impolite.
“I generally understand.”
Because there was a lot of evidence and the chain of evidence was complete, Weilan had nothing to say:
“Once the trial begins, I will carefully listen to both sides' arguments.”
