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*****
"It seems he's really dead."
After waiting for about five minutes without any movement from the old wizard, George cautiously opened the door and stepped inside.
He tested the wizard's breath, and once he was certain the man was truly dead, he breathed a huge sigh of relief.
If it had been a direct fight, there was no way he could have won against a black wizard in his seventies or eighties.
With just a basic Shield Charm to protect himself, the old man could have knocked George out with a simple Stunning Spell.
For a dark wizard to live to such an old age, he must have had some serious skills and perhaps even some powerful tricks up his sleeve.
The fact that George had managed to kill him in this ambush wasn't due to his own strength but because the old man hadn't expected the attack at all.
Once he confirmed the old wizard's death, George quickly put on an expression of panic, hurriedly pushed open the shop door, and ran toward Diagon Alley.
He didn't shout for help in Knockturn Alley—doing so might have drawn the attention of other sinister wizards before the Aurors could arrive.
"Help! Help! Mr. Morton has been injured in a potion explosion! Someone, please, come help him!"
As soon as George reached Diagon Alley, he started shouting frantically, his face full of fear and worry, as if he had just lost his own father.
Before long, his cries attracted the attention of two patrolling Aurors nearby.
"Take us to him, quickly!"
Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley were always under heavy surveillance, with Aurors patrolling 24/7 to prevent incidents that might make the news and tarnish the reputation of the Ministry of Magic, especially the Minister's.
Besides, it was the start of the school term, and many young wizards were in the area with their parents, stocking up on supplies.
"Director Scrimgeour, after conducting a thorough check, we've detected no second wand's magical trace and no signs of stolen property. We can rule out foul play. It appears this was an accidental death caused by a potion-brewing mishap."
Inside Morton's Potion Shop, a young witch with pink hair and a pale, heart-shaped face—around eighteen or nineteen years old—was reporting her findings to the middle-aged wizard standing opposite George.
The middle-aged man nodded approvingly after hearing her report.
"Well analyzed, Tonks. It seems Mad-Eye Moody has trained you well over the past year. Keep learning from him, and in two years, you'll be ready to become a full-fledged Auror."
"Professor Moody may have a bit of a temper, but it's an honor to learn from him."
A hint of pride appeared on the young witch's face.
Alastor Moody, despite being long retired, was a famously renowned Auror in the wizarding world. More than half the prisoners in Azkaban were put there by him.
Being mentored by such a legendary retired Auror during her Auror training was something that made other trainees incredibly envious of Tonks.
As George stood nearby, eavesdropping on the conversation, his mind began to spin.
"Scrimgeour, the Head of the Auror Office... Is he the same Rufus Scrimgeour who eventually replaced Cornelius Fudge as Minister of Magic?"
"And Tonks... Is she the Metamorphmagus Nymphadora Tonks?"
He carefully recalled memories from his previous life, and the identities of the two individuals before him slowly became clear.
Scrimgeour, after taking over from Fudge as the new Minister of Magic, had adopted a hardline stance against Voldemort and the Death Eaters. And then... he was brutally murdered by Voldemort.
As for Tonks, she was born with the ability to change her appearance at will. She eventually married Professor Lupin—though, at this point, she had just graduated and hadn't even become a full-fledged Auror.
Thinking of that, George smirked. Lupin certainly turned out to be the "old man" chasing after a much younger woman.
Of course, that wasn't important right now. What mattered was that both Scrimgeour and Tonks were known to be relatively responsible Aurors. And that was good news for him.
Are all Aurors necessarily good people?
Not at all.
Corruption was rampant in the current Ministry of Magic, and quite a few Aurors were involved in it.
If George had run into a more greedy Auror, it would be hard to say how much of his inheritance he could actually keep.
"Poor child, finally adopted, and now an orphan again," Tonks said sympathetically as she handed the investigation report to Scrimgeour. She turned her gaze to George, her eyes filled with pity.
From their brief investigation, she had learned about the frail boy's background.
"That's not necessarily true. In fact, this might be a good thing for him," Scrimgeour responded, shaking his head at Tonks' remark.
As the Head of the Auror Office, Scrimgeour knew all too well what kind of people lived in Knockturn Alley. From the boy's malnourished and scarred body, he could easily piece together the situation.
For George, this might actually be a blessing in disguise. At the very least, he could inherit a sizable fortune and attend Hogwarts.
"Boy, your name is Dora, correct? Since Mr. Morton's death was an accident, and you are his only relative..." Scrimgeour began, stepping forward to explain the situation to George.
The gist of it was twofold:
First, George was entitled to inherit the dark wizard's shop and the money stored in Gringotts.
Second, with Morton's death, there was no one left to teach George magic, so he would need to attend Hogwarts to continue his education.
Both of these points were already within George's expectations, and he agreed without hesitation.
Throughout the investigation, George had not shown any signs of deep grief or sadness.
Since his acting skills weren't convincing enough to deceive a seasoned veteran like Scrimgeour, George didn't even bother to fake grief too hard.
However, he did make one request before everything was wrapped up.
"Sir, I don't want to be called Dora anymore. Can I change my name?"
The name "Dora" was unfamiliar to him, and if possible, he preferred to go back to "George," a name that felt much more natural.
"Of course, you can," Scrimgeour replied, not surprised at the request. He assumed the boy wanted to change his name as a way to distance himself from bad memories. "Tomorrow, Miss Tonks will take you to handle all the inheritance paperwork. If you'd like, she can also help you officially change your name."
"Don't worry, I've got it all under control!" Tonks stepped forward, gently placing a hand on George's head, her voice warm as she tousled his hair.
She wasn't foolish. From the conversation between her boss and George, she had already picked up on certain things.
"Thank you very much, Auror," George responded politely.
Getting in good with an Auror was certainly no bad thing—he might even need their help in the future. Knockturn Alley wasn't exactly a friendly place. Inheriting a dark wizard's fortune was like a child walking down the street with a bar of gold—it was bound to attract unwanted attention.
Even if no one dared act openly, there was no telling what might happen in secret.
"What a well-mannered boy," Tonks thought, her heart softening at his polite and composed demeanor despite his young age.
For most adults, it wasn't children themselves they disliked, but rather ill-behaved kids and their equally troublesome parents.
When faced with a polite and respectful child, many were more than happy to offer a helping hand.
(End of chapter)