Beside the long curved table, a woman in red interpreted: “The strokes are trembling, incoherent, of different sizes, and the layout is disorganized – the person who wrote is very scared and panicked. It seems that the woman did not escape.”

The man with a ponytail next to him gave a ferocious smile.

“It’s good that he’s still on the island! Check again and find him for me!”

“Yes!”

The black-clad guards behind him responded in unison and immediately took action.

“It sounds like she’s looking for help from her wizard friend. Do we need to cut off the signal transmission?”

Another short and fat man with glasses asked.

“Cut it off? No, don’t do that. Let them come!” The ponytailed man sneered, “I’m just worried that my experimental materials are not rich enough!”

He walked to the wall, reached out and pressed it, and the huge metal door slid open silently, revealing a metal platform behind the wall.

The man walked up, held the railing and looked down.

At his feet was a research room that looked like an assembly line factory. Dozens of researchers in white coats were busy working. Everything in the room was in order and progressing rapidly. Everyone’s eyes were equally dead and indifferent. The conveyor belts covering the ceiling and the floor were moving quietly.

Sometimes, a trace of blood would appear on the conveyor belt, but it would be quickly washed away by a thin stream of water, leaving only a faint smell of disinfectant in the room.

The man had a disdainful smile on his face.

“——Wizards? With the help of technology, they are nothing more than a group of clowns living in the Middle Ages.”

……

“Om——”

The strange buzzing sound suddenly sounded again, and Rita Skeeter curled up in pain, almost unable to hold back her screams.

She bit the stinking quilt, hugged herself with her hands, and huddled on the shabby bed, shivering constantly. Her muscles and bones felt like they were being gnawed by countless ants. She was in so much pain that she was almost going crazy.

She held on with all her might, not knowing how much time had passed, or even whether she was dead or not. She couldn’t help crying.

After what seemed like a century, the torture finally stopped.

When Rita Skeeter regained consciousness of her body, she found a pair of small hands supporting her face, and someone was gently wiping away the stains on her face with a worn handkerchief.

She opened her eyes and saw the person who saved her once again.

There were more than a dozen children, both boys and girls, crammed into the small cell. The oldest was thirteen years old and the youngest was only four years old.

They were wearing loose white robes, no underwear, no shoes, and their feet were bare on the ground. Their faces were pale from not being exposed to the sun for a long time.

The one who helped her wipe her face was the thirteen-year-old girl.

Rita trembled and asked in a low voice: “Those people… left?”

The girl nodded vigorously, as if to comfort her, and gave her a faint smile.

Rita almost shed tears.

She sniffed and said, “Be patient, someone will come to save us, there will definitely be someone!”

Rita looked down at the crumpled paper she had crumpled. There was only one sentence on it:

【Where are you? 】

Chapter 384 Rita Skeeter’s Escape

Rita Skeeter has no idea how many times she has regretted her current predicament, but she knows in her heart that when she stood at the crossroads of fate, it was inevitable for her to make this choice.

There is no way. Curiosity not only kills the cat, but also kills a gossip-loving reporter.

At the very beginning, she was commissioned by Wade Grey to track a group of suspicious werewolves.

On the ship, Rita Skeeter accidentally discovered that some officials from the Ministry of Magic also took this slow Muggle transportation. Without thinking, she eavesdropped for a while, hoping to catch some explosive information.

The news is indeed very explosive.

An official from the Ministry of Magic named Umbridge was so strange in her dress, behavior and speech that even the knowledgeable Rita was amazed.

Umbridge talked at the dinner about how to treat Muggles, Squibs and Mudbloods, and how to eliminate “dirty inhuman monsters” –

“I don’t think Muggles deserve to exist – of course, they are here and sometimes they are useful, after all, someone has to do some work.”

“So we can be a little more lenient with them – allowing those with dirty blood to live.”

“I think that if wizards are able to rule over Muggles, they should exterminate those that are disobedient and keep those that can be tamed, raising them like livestock.”

“They shouldn’t receive an education, nor should they have the right to wield weapons. It’s enough for Muggles to just learn how to work.”

“As for those mudbloods born from Muggles, they cannot be allowed to master wands. This is too dangerous for wizards.”

“I also hope to push the Ministry of Magic to introduce new policies to strengthen the management of non-human creatures.”

“For example, expanding the werewolf capture team and restarting the vampire eradication operation – these are all necessary.”

“Giants, veela, goblins, centaurs, and mermen are all strictly managed by wizards… They must prove their worthiness to exist.”

“Of course… I think it’s better to kill all the giants. The purpose of the existence of these creatures is to prove to us that the Creator is not perfect either…”

Because those sitting next to her were officials of the Ministry of Magic of lower rank than her, who openly or secretly supported the pure-blood theory and hoped that wizards could have more power, Umbridge spoke without restraint.

She really didn’t think there was anything wrong with her words. Umbridge believed from the bottom of her heart that they were correct and just. Even if others didn’t understand her, she just felt that her words were too high-brow and not appreciated by many people.

It was because of this belief in herself that Umbridge, who was considered by many to be “terribly evil,” was even able to cast the Patronus Charm, which further strengthened her confidence in herself.

She did not notice that even these wizards, whom she regarded as her “fellow wizards”, showed uncomfortable expressions on their faces when they heard about Umbridge’s cold-blooded and cruel measures.

She didn’t even notice that there was a tiny beetle perched on the Roman rod that hung the curtains in the corner of the room.

Rita Skeeter wrote down everything Umbridge said – she had a lot of negative information like this, just waiting for the moment when Umbridge fell from power so that she could use it to make a big news story.

How to become a successful gossip reporter? Of course, it depends on the accumulation of little things in daily life.

For the rest of the time, Rita almost forgot about Wade’s instructions and concentrated on collecting Umbridge’s dirty laundry. The more she tracked, the more she felt that this was a treasure.

However, Rita Skeeter was very concerned about the other party’s position as Deputy Minister of Magic, so she had to temporarily suppress it like other information.

But when she returned to England, she suddenly discovered that Umbridge’s position was not as stable as she had shown.

Minister Fudge deliberately made trouble twice and handed over the very important work in Umbridge’s hands to other people, and asked her to check the quality of imported and exported crucibles instead.

This is basically the work that interns are responsible for.

Rita Skeeter confirmed that this person had been abandoned by the center of power, and immediately was eager to expose the dirty laundry. However, considering that the position of deputy minister had not really been eliminated, Rita first tested the waters with a sex scandal.

However, this time, Rita Skeeter, who was used to exaggerating, hit an unexpected wall even though she did not lie.

Umbridge was as obedient as a dog in front of the Minister of Magic, and she wanted to bark a few times to show her loyalty; but in the Ministry of Magic, she actually held considerable power and controlled many low-level employees.

Soon, Rita Skeeter was retaliated against and even had to flee Britain in a hurry.

Fortunately, her Animagus form was never exposed, and with the invisibility cloak “lent” to her by Vader, Rita’s escape was relatively smooth.

Rita used the post office’s public owl to send a blank letter to a foreign country, then turned into a beetle and lay on the owl’s back, and flew out of the British Isles with the owl.

She was supposed to arrive in the open and inclusive Denmark, but when the owl was flying over the sea, it was accidentally shot down by a Muggle ship.

Rita followed the owl and hit the deck. The poor owl died instantly, but the beetle flapped its wings a few times before landing and landed steadily in a pile of hemp ropes on the deck.

At the time, Rita thought it was just an unfortunate accident.

——Although I have never heard of Muggles eating owls, maybe these guys have a special hobby?

Muggles are just so wild and rude.

Rita Skeeter thought disdainfully, and then wondered how she should continue sailing.

It’s not that she can’t Apparate, but Rita Skeeter’s Apparate level is not enough to support her across the long sea, and she doesn’t want the tragedy of separation to happen to herself.

Then, she heard the conversation between the two Muggles –

“How can there be an owl in the sea?”

“Owls are the messengers of wizards. Almost all wizards use owls to deliver letters – pathetic creatures, they are so far behind the times.”

Rita Skeeter was startled.

Did these Muggles know about the wizarding world? Did they shoot down the owl on purpose?

Then, she heard heavy footsteps coming towards her, and hurriedly squeezed her tiny body into the gap between the hemp ropes and looked over.

The tanned man leaned over to pick up the dead owl and remove the letter.

“What’s written on it?” asked another younger fisherman curiously.

“Strange…” the older man muttered, “It’s a blank sheet of paper.”

He looked at the letter over and over again, and rubbed it with his rough fingers, as if he suspected that there was some mechanism hidden on it.

Then he folded up the blank piece of paper and said, “Maybe it’s written in invisible ink—take it back and let them have a look. And this address, too. They need to look into it.”

“Could there be wizards living there?”

the young fisherman licked his lips and asked eagerly.

“Maybe.” The older man laughed. “If we can really catch one or two wizards, we will have accomplished a great feat this time!”

“Lev, have you ever seen a wizard? Can they really become invisible?”

“I haven’t seen it, but I heard that wizards can not only become invisible themselves, but their houses are also invisible – what do you think? Do you want to become a wizard too?”

“Who wouldn’t want to?” the young fisherman said bluntly, “If I could become invisible, I would go steal from the bank vault and never be short of money again.”

The older man laughed. “Don’t envy them. Maybe one day, we will also have magic!”

The hoarse laughter seemed to ring right next to her ears, making Rita shiver all over.

Perhaps it is because of the Ministry of Magic’s long-term vigilance and persistence that the Statute of Secrecy has been deeply rooted in people’s hearts. Even a selfish person like Rita Skeeter subconsciously believes that the Statute of Secrecy must not be violated.

Rita felt very uneasy hearing two Muggles talking about the wizarding world in a joking and familiar tone.

The beetle trembled its antennae, and its sixth sense made a tsunami-like sound, urging her to leave quickly.

but……

She didn’t know how far she was from the land at the moment, so she didn’t dare to Apparate away casually; and because she was confident in her own means of saving her life, Rita finally stayed.

——I’ll leave as soon as the boat docks!