Tomb Raider

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"Barty Crouch traded his wife for his son."

Ethan shocked Fudge. "Traded? How did he do it?"

"Barty Crouch took his wife to see their son and brought two bottles of Polyjuice Potion," Ethan explained calmly.

"One bottle had his wife's hair, and the other had Crouch Jr.'s hair. They switch places."

"Barty Crouch's wife was dying, so they swapped identities."

"Dementors are blind. They sensed an old man and a dying woman entering Azkaban and an old man and a dying woman leaving. Barty Crouch fooled the Dementors and broke out his son."

"Barty Crouch's wife kept taking the Polyjuice Potion until she died, in the form of Barty Crouch Jr., so everyone thought she was him and buried her as Barty Crouch Jr."

"Soon after, Barty Crouch announced that his wife had died. He held a fake funeral, created an empty tomb, and deceived everyone."

"Oh my God, Ethan, this is really—" Fudge's drunkenness vanished as he processed Ethan's revelation.

The entire scenario played out in Fudge's mind, and he realized it was entirely plausible.

"Ethan, are you sure what you're saying is true?" Fudge asked, eyes wide.

Fudge felt like a drowning man grabbing a plank. His despair vanished, and he suddenly stood up, slamming the table.

Standing up too quickly, he felt dizzy and sat back down.

"I'm sure this news is quite reliable," Ethan said.

"We need to verify, verify," Fudge muttered.

Suddenly, Fudge slapped the table again, excited.

"That empty tomb!"

He stood up, stumbled toward the coat hanger, and prepared to leave.

Then he remembered something, opened a cabinet, and took out two invisibility cloaks.

He threw one to Ethan. "Ethan, let's go!" he exclaimed.

Fudge pushed open the office door, ignoring his wife's surprised look, and strode out.

"What's wrong? What happened?" Alyssa asked in surprise.

"We have some urgent business," Fudge explained hastily and rushed out.

Outside, Fudge excitedly asked Ethan to hold his arm. As soon as Ethan did, their figures quickly blurred.

With a loud noise, the two disappeared, leaving Alyssa bewildered.

Moments later, they reappeared beside a cemetery.

The gate was locked, flanked by two angel statues. Above the gate was an arched sign that read "Crouch." This was the Crouch family cemetery.

The gate was secured with thick, rusted chains, indicating it had been neglected for a long time.

Fudge showed no respect for the family graves. He tapped the thick chain with his wand, which immediately unlocked and fell to the ground with a clattering noise.

Fudge pushed open the iron gate and hurried past one tombstone after another, his eyes eagerly scanning for the right name.

Finally, he stopped in front of a tombstone that read Samantha Crouch.

"This is it!" Fudge stared intensely at the tombstone as if trying to see through the soil and into the grave.

"So what's the plan?" Ethan asked Fudge.

Fudge looked at the grave and gritted his teeth. "We're going to dig it up!"

Fudge, clinging to his last hope, was willing to do anything for the future of his career.

"I'm not sure if this is right," Ethan asked.

"This is for justice!" Fudge insisted, trying to justify his actions.

"If Barty Crouch is involved with the Death Eaters, it will harm the magical world greatly!"

With that, Fudge tapped a dead branch on the ground with his wand, and it immediately transformed into a shovel.

Fudge picked up the shovel and began digging furiously.

Fueled by determination, Fudge worked with incredible speed. Before long, he had dug a large hole in the ground. Sure enough, the tomb was empty.

"It's empty! The tomb is empty!" Fudge, covered in dirt, sat on the mound he had unearthed, muttering to himself.

By now, Fudge believed Ethan's story almost entirely. His eyes flashed with cold determination as he planned to bring down his nemesis, Barty Crouch.

"Ethan, we need a plan," Fudge whispered.

The next day, the staff at the Ministry of Magic were surprised to see Cornelius Fudge again.

Everyone knew that Cornelius Fudge was on the verge of losing his position due to the Dementor riots.

Whether it was the Ministry's repeated accusations and impeachments of Fudge or Barty Crouch's scathing criticisms, it seemed inevitable that Fudge would be ousted.

Cornelius Fudge had yet to show up to work during this turbulent time.

Everyone expected to see Fudge only at the meeting where he would announce his resignation.

But today, Fudge had surprisingly returned to the Ministry of Magic and appeared to be in excellent spirits.

He wore a finely tailored striped suit, a bright red tie, and a long black cloak with intricate patterns. He looked energetic and ruddy.

It almost seemed as if he would receive Merlin's Order.

Fudge enthusiastically greeted each of his subordinates, showing no trace of the despondency he had displayed a few days ago.

The staff, bewildered by this transformation, responded awkwardly before finding excuses to hurry away.

Fudge stepped into the elevator with his head held high, exuding confidence.

On his way to the minister's office, Fudge encountered Umbridge, dressed in her usual pink outfit.

"Umbridge, I'm back from vacation. Please bring all the official documents to my office," Fudge said enthusiastically.

Before the Dementor incident, Umbridge had been one of Fudge's closest confidantes. Naturally, Fudge expected her to assist him now that he had returned.

"But Minister Fudge, I have other things to do. I'm not free right now!" Umbridge replied sharply.

Umbridge was eager to distance herself from her previous association with Fudge.

Fudge was stunned by her response and gave her a meaningful look.

"You have something to do," he said, staring at her intently, which made Umbridge uneasy.

"Then go get busy," Fudge said in a relaxed tone before walking into his office with his head held high.