Harry Potter: Transmigrated Detective Link

The so-called trial naturally wouldn't take place in a place like the Department of Mysteries, which, from the name alone, has nothing to do with law.

Led by the female clerk, Link and his two companions stepped out of the elevator, passed through a real Department of Mysteries corridor, turned a corner midway, and went down a staircase.

They kept going down for almost five minutes before finally arriving in another corridor.

The decoration style here was completely different from the opulence of the rest of the Ministry of Magic.

It was entirely made of stone. Lining both sides of the corridor were rows of pitch-black doors, the whole atmosphere gloomy and intimidating, lit entirely by torches mounted in sconces on the walls.

If one had to describe it, it looked exactly like some of the rarely visited places in Hogwarts.

"Honored guests, we have arrived."

Finally, the female clerk stopped before one of the doors and said respectfully.

Link nodded at her, then shifted his gaze to the door.

It was a black wooden door that looked extremely old. At the moment, its lock had already been undone, and above it, embedded into the stone doorframe, was a rusted metal number plate, 1.

"The First Courtroom, huh."

Link muttered. Beside him, Mrs. Flamel and Emily also stared at the number plate, their expressions solemn.

These so-called courtrooms were where the Ministry of Magic tried the most high-profile criminals,

for example, the Death Eaters who followed Voldemort in committing countless atrocities.

After Voldemort's downfall, these courtrooms had been left in a semi-abandoned state.

Ordinary criminals didn't need a Wizengamot trial here at all, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement could handle them directly.

Now, reopening a courtroom for the retrial of Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew showed just how seriously Fudge was taking this case.

Noticing that Link and the others were still looking the door over, the clerk smiled faintly and explained respectfully, "The First Courtroom was only opened this time because Minister Fudge insisted on it, since Sirius Black was tried here back in the day, the Minister felt that overturning his conviction here would be more meaningful!"

At this, Emily and Mrs. Flamel only gave slight nods to show they understood.

But Link raised an eyebrow.

The clerk's words had just given him a very important piece of information, this trial had already been predetermined by Fudge to end in Sirius's favor.

"Tsk, tsk~"

Clicking his tongue in mock amusement, Link finally led Mrs. Flamel and Emily inside.

The courtroom itself was an enormous space.

The lighting was still dim, but much better than the corridor outside, enough to see clearly.

At the center stood two simple iron chairs for the accused, no handcuffs, but loose chains draped over them.

About ten meters out from these chairs were rows of wooden benches, each row higher than the one before, reminding Link of the lecture halls or sports arenas from his previous life.

Many people were already seated.

Most of them were invited spectators, all dressed immaculately, clearly of high status.

Directly in front of the accused's chairs sat about fifty people in crimson robes, each with an ornate silver "W" embroidered on the left chest, Wizengamot members.

As the highest governing council in the British wizarding world, every one of them looked very serious.

Seated in the center of the front row in the Chief Judge's seat was, of course, Cornelius Fudge.

He seemed to have used some kind of magic to make himself look slimmer and more imposing.

Even when Link and his companions entered, he merely gave a small nod, none of his usual warmth.

The spectators, however, reacted differently.

Most were heads of powerful wizarding families or major figures in the British magical world.

Many had connections to the Flamel family, and lately, through their children at Hogwarts, had learned of Link's extraordinary talent. So the moment the three appeared, they were surrounded by smiles and flattery.

Fortunately, everyone still carried themselves as nobles, without being overly aggressive, allowing Link's group to eventually reach their seats.

Soon after they sat down, Fudge formally declared the trial begun.

The audience, some of whom had still been whispering to Mrs. Flamel and Link, fell silent at once.

Fudge nodded in satisfaction and read from a piece of parchment,

"On August 15th, the retrial of Sirius Black, on charges of joining the Dark Lord and indirectly causing the deaths of James and Lily Potter; and of casting a deadly curse in a Muggle street, killing thirteen Muggles, in violation of the International Statute of Secrecy."

"Interrogators, Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge, Director of Magical Law Enforcement Amelia Bones… and the full Wizengamot."

After rattling off the long list of names, Fudge's expression grew even more serious. Switching parchments, he continued, "First defendant, Peter Pettigrew!"

At his words, the courtroom doors banged open, and two uniformed Aurors dragged in Peter Pettigrew, more frightened and disheveled than the last time they'd seen him.

The Aurors forced him into one of the chairs. The loose chains automatically coiled around him, binding him tightly.

His appearance triggered a wave of gasps from the audience.

Clearly, most had never expected that the man once hailed as a hero, said to have died resisting the 'Death Eater' Black, and posthumously awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, was in fact alive! And now involved in a retrial!

Fudge caught their reaction, the corners of his mouth twitching upward almost imperceptibly, before continuing,

"Second defendant, Sirius Black. And witnesses for this case, Albus Dumbledore and Remus Lupin!"

Sirius was also brought in by two Aurors.

Compared to Pettigrew, he looked far more spirited.

In fact, "spirited" was an understatement, he was like a superstar stepping onto the stage, chin raised, proudly sweeping his gaze over everyone present, flashing grins now and then.

The audience ate it up, cheers erupted, people shouting his name, some even rudely standing in excitement.

The scene descended into chaos.

Order returned only after Sirius was chained to his chair and Dumbledore entered with Lupin and Harry.

Dumbledore's reputation was indeed formidable, the spectators quickly toned down, shifting from noisy to low whispers.

Frankly, even that was rude for a trial, but Fudge didn't seem to mind.

He cheerfully stood, instructing Aurors to bring a chair for Dumbledore.

Harry and his two companions looked a bit overwhelmed by the tense yet chaotic atmosphere, standing awkwardly beside Dumbledore.

Fudge, magnanimous, had three more chairs brought for them to sit next to Dumbledore rather than in the gallery.

"Alright, I will now read the charges against Peter Pettigrew. The accused is charged with the following crimes."

"In the case of the Potters' deaths at the hands of the Dark Lord, the accused deliberately, knowingly, and willfully betrayed the location of their safe house, joining the Dark Lord as a Death Eater."

"Subsequently, when exposed, he fought Sirius Black in a Muggle neighborhood using lethal curses, killing thirteen Muggles."

"Finally, the accused faked his death, shifting all blame onto Sirius Black, and went on to enjoy posthumous honors from the Ministry of Magic."

"These acts violate a total of nineteen laws, including the International Statute of Secrecy, the International Ban on the Use of Lethal Curses, and the Prohibition of Contact with Dark Wizards."

Having finished reading, Fudge exhaled, then asked Pettigrew, "According to the principles of fairness and justice, I now ask you, why are you, who should be dead, still alive?"

"I… I was scared!" Pettigrew squirmed, shifty-eyed, stammering, "Because I was far too afraid of Sirius Black and his master! If I didn't hide, they'd have come to kill me, just like this time!"

"You're lying!" Before he could finish, Harry shouted furiously.

Such an outburst drew frowns from several Wizengamot members.

They were not ignorant common folk, Harry's "Savior" title meant little to them. If he kept up the rudeness, they might well have him thrown out.

Dumbledore and Hermione clearly realized this too, hastily restraining Harry.

Only then did Fudge nod, saying impassively, "Peter Pettigrew, your reasoning does not hold water. The power of the Ministry and Azkaban is beyond doubt."

"If things were as you claim, your first thought should have been to seek protection from the Ministry, not fake your death for over a decade!"

Pettigrew was left speechless, mumbling incoherently.

Fudge smiled like a victor, but just then, an old yet resounding voice rang out from the Wizengamot benches,

"I object!"

Everyone turned. Link and his companions saw a kindly-looking, clean-shaven, white-haired old man standing with his hand raised.

Seeing all eyes on him, the old man said, "According to our investigation, Peter Pettigrew has been timid since childhood. That is why his Animagus form is a rat."

This drew a burst of laughter from the gallery.

He patiently waited for it to subside before continuing, "Such a cowardly person, when faced with that kind of danger, could indeed have done something foolish. So, Minister Fudge, you cannot judge him by ordinary logic."

At this, quite a few in the audience nodded.

Many had attended Hogwarts with Pettigrew and indeed remembered him as unusually timid.

Fudge, Harry, and the others didn't look pleased.

This trial had seemed a sure thing, and now an unknown old man had suddenly stood up to speak for Pettigrew.

Link found it odd, until Mrs. Flamel leaned in and quietly explained, "That's old Bartos. He was a close aide to the former Minister for Magic, and during the Death Eater purge he used the chance to seize a huge amount of property, which got him into the Wizengamot."

Link instantly understood.

If that was the case, the old man's stance made perfect sense.

That whole older generation of vultures had seized Death Eater wealth, including, of course, the Black family's.

If Sirius's conviction was overturned, would he not come after those who had devoured over half of his family's fortune?

For them, the only safe path was to nail Sirius to the pillar of shame as a Death Eater forever.

Only then could they sleep peacefully at night.

Realizing this, Link's lips curled upward.

Things were finally getting interesting. He even began picturing the outcome if Sirius's conviction wasn't overturned.

'Now that… would be truly amusing.'

And it wasn't just Link, many spectators who had been indifferent at first now perked up, listening intently.

The trial grew more intense.

One after another, Wizengamot members from Bartos's faction stood to debate fiercely with Dumbledore, Sirius, and the others over Pettigrew's guilt.

Throughout, Fudge still held considerable control as Chief Judge.

Whenever a debate reached a dead end, he would throw out a new topic, keeping the argument going.

But Link noticed something curious,

Fudge's questions didn't follow normal trial procedure.

It was as if he were guiding both sides to describe the events of the case in detail, so that the audience could follow the story more clearly and easily.

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