Chapter 192: Why Offend Regulus?

The focus now returned to Rufus Scrimgeour, who immediately straightened like a lion, responding firmly.

"The Auror Office will, of course, accompany Sirius Black throughout the entire process. After all, his suspicions cannot be cleared until a verdict is reached by the Wizengamot."

This statement not only clarified the Auror Office's position but also safeguarded its reputation. All the slander from before was now reframed as the Auror Office's forbearance—all for the sake of uncovering the truth.

At this moment, those present nodded in agreement, clearly approving of the Aurors' handling of the matter.

"This kind of thing can't happen again. Not everyone will be like Sirius Black. And there's still one problem—even if the Auror Office captured the hidden Peter Pettigrew, how would they get him to confess? He could easily claim he was merely hiding from Sirius's pursuit or say that Sirius had an accomplice. But fortunately, this time we have a confession—personally extracted by Sirius and verbally admitted by Peter Pettigrew himself."

Once again, Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge demonstrated his supposed foresight, gesturing expectantly toward the witness stand where Harry Potter and the others sat.

Hermione: "Sirius is innocent. At that time, it happened like this… Peter Pettigrew admitted to all of it himself..."

Ron: "Sirius was framed. I got bitten by a dog back then… and I never imagined my pet rat, Scabbers, was actually Peter Pettigrew…"

Harry Potter: "Sirius is my godfather. I never even knew I had a godfather. When I first heard his name, everyone told me he had escaped from Azkaban to kill me. But the truth… the truth is, he was framed by Peter Pettigrew. And for that, he was imprisoned for twelve years…"

Harry nearly lost control of his emotions. Fortunately, Regulus Black, using the skill Confounding Whisper, kept whispering cues in his ear, and Harry managed not to say anything wrong.

What an unbelievable turn of events!

One was Sirius Black, wrongfully imprisoned in Azkaban for twelve years.

The other was Peter Pettigrew, who had long been hiding in the Weasley household as a pet rat in his Animagus form.

And the truth from back then was this: the Potters were killed not because of a direct attack, but because Peter Pettigrew betrayed them out of fear, and because Sirius, in his foolishness, had transferred the role of Secret-Keeper to that traitor.

To uncover the truth, with Regulus Black providing the contract-based spell Order of the Gray Knight, the Aurors and the Minister of Magic granted Sirius a chance to prove his innocence.

Of course, this kind of situation was impossible to replicate. Not every prisoner in Azkaban would be given such a chance—especially those whose guilt had already been etched into trial records back in the day.

"The situation is already very clear. While the Wizengamot usually does not accept the testimony of minors, we also have a professor present here. Plus, the testimonies of the three children corroborate one another. So now we come to the final question—how did Peter Pettigrew escape?"

The female judge, true to her words, acknowledged that everything regarding Sirius had been clarified. His past trial had been a miscarriage of justice, and Peter Pettigrew was alive. But how should his escape be explained?

What if he had been deliberately released? What if the whole thing had been a staged act between Sirius and Pettigrew?

If that were the case, everything that had just been established would collapse, and every detail of Sirius's behavior would come under suspicion and be redefined.

"I should be the one to provide this testimony. Although I was stunned by Harry Potter's spell and missed Pettigrew's confession, I did witness what happened afterward. Just as we were leaving the Whomping Willow's tunnel, we were attacked by a werewolf, which allowed Peter Pettigrew to be rescued."

Snape's expression was grim. After all, Regulus Black had asked him to lie in his testimony—or rather, enhance it to make it more effective.

"During the Dark Lord's rise, werewolves served as his henchmen and weapons. Those beasts welcomed having such a powerful protector, as it allowed them to act without restraint. Even today, there are still werewolves who remain loyal to him. So it's not inconceivable that Peter Pettigrew had ties with them."

After speaking, Snape closed his eyes as if awaiting his doom, clearly unwilling to answer any more questions from the Wizengamot.

It wasn't as if no one knew about Lupin's werewolf condition.

It wasn't as if no one suspected that the werewolf who suddenly appeared might have been Lupin.

But at this point, it was obvious that all the testimonies were leaning in Sirius Black's favor. To stand up and question that now?

Many people thought better of it. Why risk offending Regulus Black?

Harry Potter: "My godfather blocked the werewolf's attack and suffered serious injuries while driving it away. There are medical records from the school infirmary confirming this. At that moment, no one had the chance to deal with Peter Pettigrew, who seized the opportunity to transform into a rat and escape."

Harry noticed that Snape looked rather grim. Clearly, what had just been said was the extent of what Snape could tolerate. After hearing Regulus Black's whispered instructions, Harry filled in the remaining details of the testimony.

As for what happened afterward—when Sirius and Regulus were attacked by Dementors by the lakeside and nearly lost their lives—Regulus Black didn't mention it. Harry Potter, after glancing in Regulus's direction, also sensibly chose not to continue speaking.

The female judge believed most of the testimony. However, considering that the Aurors were supposed to be on watch yet still allowed Peter Pettigrew to escape, she immediately turned to look at Rufus Scrimgeour.

"At the time, the Aurors were distracted by a werewolf, but a warrant has already been issued for Peter Pettigrew. We believe he'll be caught soon," Scrimgeour said as a final attempt at damage control. But even that was thanks to Regulus Black's tip-off. Scrimgeour couldn't help but glance at him—if Sirius Black hadn't truly been innocent, there was no way he would have agreed to Regulus's demands.

Regulus Black had guaranteed a perfect resolution to the negative impact of the prison break—ensuring no one had to take the fall.

"Then there's one last question, Sirius Black! During your trial back then, why did you plead guilty? With insufficient evidence, you admitted to all charges, which led the Wizengamot to expedite your sentencing. You must provide a reasonable explanation."

The female judge, perhaps prompted by a certain old bee, clearly aimed to shift the blame. The Wizengamot could not be held responsible for a wrongful conviction from the past.

The Auror Office had already avoided blame. The Minister for Magic had also avoided blame. Now it was the Wizengamot's turn. Everything depended on whether Sirius would give testimony that allowed the Wizengamot to distance itself as well.

Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to say now?

At that moment, Sirius's mind went completely blank. All the testimony just now had sounded so real—even he had nearly believed it himself!

With a pleading look in his eyes, Sirius turned toward Regulus Black in the spectator seats, terrified that anything he said might ruin everything. After all, such a complex plan had clearly been devised to rescue him. Causing trouble now… would be tantamount to signing his death warrant.

Regulus hadn't prompted Sirius on purpose—he wanted to see just how foolish his older brother could be.

Even if Sirius was family. Even if he had truly been wronged. Even if he was Harry Potter's godfather.

If, after all the effort Regulus had put into creating so many favorable conditions for him, Sirius still found a way to ruin it all, then even the most precious things have their limits. The honor of the Black family must not be tarnished.

Fortunately, it seemed Sirius at least knew to ask for help when it mattered.

Regulus Black began whispering in Sirius's ear.

"I pleaded guilty back then because I acted on impulse. I deeply regret misjudging someone. At the time, I was convinced that once the Potters had their child, the Dark Lord would come for me to find out their location. So, I transferred the role of Secret-Keeper to Peter Pettigrew. He was the most inconspicuous of the four Marauders. I never expected that he had already become a spy for the Dark Lord. This is all my fault. My foolishness led to the deaths of James and Lily Potter. Harry! Please forgive me—this is all my fault. I believed killing that traitor would make things right. It was all my mistake."

Tears streamed down Sirius's face as he spoke, overwhelmed with guilt. He kept apologizing to Harry Potter, taking full responsibility for everything.

Everyone present now understood—Sirius had only pleaded guilty back then out of remorse and a desire to punish himself. That was why he didn't try to defend himself at all.

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