McGonagall and Snape were not from the same era as Dumbledore.
If Grindelwald were here, he would undoubtedly see the shadow of a young Dumbledore in Ivan.
More aggressive, more arrogant.
"He's like this, and you really don't care?"
Snape looked at Dumbledore, wanting to say that he had trained another Dark Lord.
However, Dumbledore simply shrugged helplessly—he truly had no choice.
Not to mention that he hadn't wanted to fight Ivan before; now, he couldn't win against him, so there was even less room for action.
"They're coming."
At that moment, McGonagall suddenly reminded them.
The three of them turned their eyes toward the fireplace in the headmaster's office, where a burst of green flames rose, and several figures stepped out one after another.
Leading them was the head of the Auror Office, Scrimgeour.
Accompanying him were Moody, Kingsley, and Dawlish. The three of them immediately took out their wands to clean the dust off their robes.
"Oh, you really should renovate the fireplace. Every time I come here, I get covered in dust," Moody grumbled, familiar enough with Dumbledore to voice his complaints openly.
But when he turned around, he noticed that there were other people present in the headmaster's office besides Dumbledore.
"Snape?"
"And Minerva."
Moody greeted Professor McGonagall and Snape. He knew both of them well and was quite familiar with them.
Only Ivan was not very familiar to Moody.
However, when Moody observed Ivan, the latter raised his head and smiled calmly at him.
"Hmm..."
For some reason, Moody felt that Ivan looked familiar.
But no matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn't recall where he might have seen the young wizard before.
"Have we met before?"
Moody limped forward, putting his face directly in front of Ivan. His magical eye spun continuously, as if trying to see through him.
"Oh, here we go again," Dawlish said with a sigh, clearly exasperated by Moody's suspicious nature.
He stepped forward and introduced Ivan, saying, "This is Professor Dumbledore's favorite student, Ivan Ambrosius. He came to the Ministry with him last time."
"Huh?"
Even though Dawlish explained, Moody still stared intently at Ivan.
Of course, now he knew who the boy in front of him 'truly' was!
But precisely because he knew, it made him even more suspicious.
Dumbledore's fire spell—there weren't many people in the world capable of casting it. As Dumbledore's favored student, Ivan learning and mastering such a spell wasn't an impossibility.
The most critical point, though, was this:
Moody noticed that since he had arrived, Ivan had remained exceptionally calm, as though he had already known they would come.
As for the issue of magic power?
That was indeed a point of doubt. How could someone so young possibly possess such immense magic power?
The wizard at Gringotts—his strength was truly exaggerated.
If that individual's identity was indeed Ivan, it would be nothing short of terrifying.
Moody couldn't fathom how someone so young could wield such overwhelming power.
What was even more alarming was the thought of how much stronger Ivan might become if he continued to grow unchecked.
"Alastor?"
This time, Kingsley and Scrimgeour also noticed something unusual.
"Mad-Eye, don't scare the child," Scrimgeour said, stepping forward to intervene. He knew Moody's tendency to be overly suspicious, treating everyone as if they had something to hide.
But Ivan was just a student at Hogwarts—a little wizard.
There was no way he could have any motive to commit any a crime.
Moreover, they had come here with a more important purpose in mind.
"No, no."
Moody took a step back, creating some distance between himself and Ivan. A sly smile spread across his face.
"You can hide it from others, but you can't hide it from me," Moody said.
"It's you, isn't it? That person—it's you!"
"What?"
Scrimgeour and Dawlish looked utterly confused, their eyes darting between Moody and Ivan.
Only Kingsley seemed to understand Moody's implication. Slowly, he drew his wand and pointed it at Ivan.
"What are you doing?"
McGonagall stepped forward, placing herself directly in front of Ivan.
Professor McGonagall was visibly tense.
She had never expected Ivan's identity to be exposed so quickly.
However, considering Moody's renowned abilities, it wasn't entirely surprising. His magical detection skills were legendary in the wizarding world, perhaps even rivaling Dumbledore's.
"Professor."
Ivan was touched by McGonagall's instinct to shield him, but he wasn't one to hide behind someone else. He had made his choices, and there was no point in avoiding the consequences after all.
He gave McGonagall a reassuring glance and gently stepped past her.
"First meeting?"
"No, this should actually be our second," Ivan replied, his tone calm and composed.
Gone was the imposing figure from Gringotts; standing before them was a polite, unassuming boy with a scholarly air.
"Let me introduce myself," Ivan continued. "My name is Ivan... Ivan Ambrosius."
"Ambrosius..."
The moment Moody heard the surname, his expression shifted.
"The Eternal Family? A descendant of Merlin?"
Suddenly, Moody's gaze sharpened, and he turned to Dumbledore, his face a mix of disbelief and realization.
"This kid! He's... an Archmage?!"
"What?"
Having already grasped the difference between Archmages and ordinary wizards after the events at Gringotts, Scrimgeour and Kingsley were stunned.
But compared to what Moody had just revealed, their prior shock seemed trivial.
"Are you serious?"
Scrimgeour frowned, looking back at Moody.
"Such a little guy... an Archmage?!"
Scrimgeour and Kingsley exchanged glances, their disbelief mirrored in each other's eyes.
Dawlish, however, couldn't contain himself and shouted, "Impossible! This is absolutely impossible!"
"How old is he?"
"And an Archmage?!"
Dawlish scoffed, visibly agitated. "You must be crazy, Moody!"
"Heh."
Moody ignored Dawlish's outburst, his magic eye swiveling back to Ivan with renewed interest.
"Albus," Moody asked Dumbledore, "did you know about him?"
"Ah, well... what do you mean, exactly?~"
Dumbledore deflected Moody's question with a knowing smile, his usual cryptic demeanor making it clear he wasn't about to give a straight answer.
"Boy, you're very strong. Truly remarkable."
Moody turned his attention back to Ivan, a hint of begrudging respect in his gruff tone.
"But you shouldn't have broken into Gringotts without permission. That kind of move puts you squarely on the opposite side of the Ministry of Magic, and that's not rational at all."
Despite his words of caution, Moody's stance was notably less confrontational. After realizing Ivan's true strength, it was clear that being an enemy of such a young and powerful wizard was not a wise move.
As for Dawlish and Scrimgeour...
It was just a matter of a forgetfulness memory Charm.
There were two Archmages present, and any one of them could knock Dawlish and Scrimgeour down in an instant.
Add another Memory Charm to ensure that they can return to the Ministry of Magic with peace of mind.
As for Kingsley, he is a member of the Order of the Phoenix and an absolutely loyal person to Dumbledore, so he doesn't need to be hit by the Memory Charm.
_________
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