The news of Voldemort's capture of Gringotts spread throughout the wizarding world the very next day.
After all, the wizarding world was a very small place.
The Daily Prophet devoted a huge section to the story in its next edition.
No image of Voldemort himself had been captured. Only the Dark Mark hovering in the sky and the ruins of Gringotts, now buried deep underground, were photographed.
"THE DARK LORD IS BACK!"
The magnificent building had been reduced to ruins, with broken bricks and tiles scattered everywhere and enormous pits torn into the ground.
It had become a symbol of Voldemort's declaration of his return.
And that was not all.
The economic centre of the wizarding world had collapsed.
The Dark Lord no longer concealed his presence.
He swaggered out through the entrance of the Ministry of Magic using Apparition.
"Who are you?!"
An Auror shouted.
"Stop!"
The Auror pulled out his wand.
The Dark Lord, concealed beneath a black cloak, swiftly raised his own wand.
A ghostly green light flashed.
It pierced straight through the Auror's chest.
"A mysterious person!"
The surrounding employees screamed.
The folder in the Auror's hands was thrown into the air, scattering sheets of paper everywhere.
"Minister of Magic!"
"The Dark Lord has disappeared again!"
Meanwhile, Umbridge was in her office, surrounded by her usual cat decorations, arguing fiercely with Scrimgeour.
During the confrontation, Scrimgeour appeared to be provoked.
He reached out and grabbed Umbridge by the collar.
Just as the fat woman was about to lose her breath, her feet suddenly returned to the ground.
She saw that the light had disappeared from Scrimgeour's eyes.
His hand loosened from her collar.
"Is he really that troublesome?"
A deep, hoarse voice reached her ears.
"All right. He's dead now."
"Who… who are you?"
The ugly woman stared in horror at the equally frightening man before her.
His nose consisted of two narrow slits, and his hideous face was dominated by scarlet, snake-like eyes.
"Does it matter who I am?"
Voldemort smiled coldly.
"Perhaps it does. After all, I spoke with you for quite some time before."
"Now I'm clearing away the obstacles standing between you and the pinnacle of power."
"However, deception is merely a compromise between the weak and the strong."
"And I don't think I need to do that anymore."
"Are you the Mysterious Man?"
Umbridge's toad-like face trembled, the loose skin around it quivering.
"Submit, or die!"
Voldemort's cruel voice echoed throughout the Ministry of Magic.
"We surrender!"
Umbridge's terrified cry reverberated through the Ministry.
The Dark Lord suddenly abandoned his previous habit of hiding in the shadows.
It was as though he wanted to make up for all the time he had wasted.
He arrogantly expanded his sphere of influence without the slightest restraint.
The situation suddenly changed dramatically.
The balance shifted almost entirely—in finance, politics, and public opinion alike.
More and more Dark wizards began joining Voldemort's ranks.
Voldemort seemed to be frantically making up for the progress he had previously lost, rapidly expanding his territory.
"SHOCKING SECRET! THE MOST INSIDIOUS THIEF IS RIGHT AMONG US!"
The Daily Prophet had also begun completely abandoning any pretence of neutrality.
Not that it had ever cared particularly much about neutrality.
But now it had gone even further.
The article discussed the relationship between Squibs, pure-blood wizards, and Muggles from various perspectives.
"Why can two Muggles with no magical talent produce a wizard, while two wizarding families can produce a Squib?"
"My friends, those Muggles are using the technology they acquired through their so-called 'science' to steal our magic with impunity!"
The report contained no neutrality whatsoever.
It was filled entirely with inflammatory rhetoric.
Indeed, a large number of people were incited by it.
Even within Hogwarts.
Hermione, for example, was having a great deal of trouble because of it.
She had to endure Filch's piercing, hateful gaze, as though she had personally stolen his magical abilities.
He was a constant and persistent nuisance.
If Professor McGonagall had not glared at him several times, the man would probably have caused Hermione even more trouble.
The entire Hogwarts castle was shrouded in a rather quiet atmosphere.
Even so, lessons continued.
And then Christmas arrived.
The weather became colder.
Hermione sat alone at her desk in her Gryffindor dormitory.
But she was not reading.
Instead, she stared blankly through the window at the snow-covered landscape outside.
The world was silver and white.
Christmas was coming.
She subconsciously hoped that her parents would send her a gift.
Every Christmas, her parents would send her gloves, scarves, other warm accessories, or some of her favourite books.
Then her breath caught in her throat.
She suddenly realised something.
She had erased all memories of herself from her parents' minds.
To them, she was now a stranger.
They could no longer remember her.
So why would they send her a Christmas gift?
An inexplicable loneliness and pain welled up inside her.
But if her parents were implicated because of her, she would only feel even more guilty.
Hermione stood up and walked over to the cabinet beside the wall.
She slowly opened it and silently took out a light-purple scarf.
She wrapped it around herself, hiding half of her face inside it.
For a moment, she felt a faint trace of familial warmth.
It was a gift from her parents several years ago.
Hermione walked down the corridor.
Then she stopped and sat alone against a mottled stone wall.
Black suits of armour stood on either side of her, while a pile of books lay scattered across the floor.
The thin clouds on the horizon outside the window resembled smooth silk.
But even the beautiful scenery brought her almost no comfort.
A significant number of students had chosen to remain at school for Christmas.
Hermione was one of them.
"Aren't you going home?"
While registering for the Christmas holiday, Harry and Ron both glanced at Hermione's application form.
"I have some things to take care of at school."
The girl answered.
In her dormitory was a radio she had specially modified.
It could bypass Hogwarts' magical interference and receive outside signals.
According to the broadcasts, a once-in-a-century storm was expected to arrive this Christmas.
As a Christmas gift, Hermione gave each of them a copy of Advanced Defence Against the Dark Arts.
The black cover and thick spine made them feel overwhelmed at first glance.
They did not even want to open it.
The snowy scenery around Hogwarts was extraordinarily beautiful on Christmas Day.
Snowflakes swirled outside the windows, pattering against the icy panes.
Christmas was just around the corner.
The twelve Christmas trees that were placed in the Great Hall every year had already been brought inside.
Holly and silver tinsel were wrapped around the stair railings.
Everlasting candles flickered inside the helmets of the suits of armour.
Large bunches of mistletoe hung along the corridors at intervals.
The younger students made snowballs and held snowball fights in the open spaces outside and along the corridors.
Hermione secretly slipped into the Forbidden Forest.
Through the shadows between the trees, she saw an extremely broad and sturdy figure.
She could not help looking surprised.
"Ha… Hagrid? Is that you? Why are you back?"
"Oh, Hermione. It's been a long time."
Hagrid turned his enormous body around and looked at her.
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"The Ministry of Magic has a lot of problems now, doesn't it?"
"Yes."
Hagrid widened his enormous, copper-coloured eyes.
He angrily scratched his curly hair before kicking the snow in front of him hard, sending chunks of snow flying.
"I quit my job the moment Umbridge started that Muggle blood-status system," he said gruffly.
"Hogwarts will probably be next, though I'm sure Minerva won't approve."
The Mysterious Man had taken control of the Ministry of Magic.
That had now become a reality.
"Why didn't you come and find us?"
Hermione asked, puzzled.
"I only just got back myself, and I'm still getting things settled with my little ones."
Hagrid shook his head.
"Little darlings?"
Hermione suddenly realised what he meant.
She looked at the wriggling, furry legs behind him and gave an embarrassed smile.
"I'll give you a surprise once everything's settled."
Hagrid reached out and pushed the creatures down again.
"By the way, what are you doing here?"
He suddenly realised that Hermione probably should not have been in the Forbidden Forest.
"I'm just getting something for Professor McGonagall."
Hermione instinctively lied.
"Neither Harry nor Ron are here."
If it had been the two of them, Hagrid would probably have questioned them more closely.
They were both troublemakers, after all.
While Hermione was preparing for the coming storm, other people were also busy with their own affairs.
As Professor McGonagall was having lunch in the Great Hall, a dark figure suddenly appeared behind her.
"Minerva, this is your Christmas present."
Snape suddenly appeared behind her and handed her a box.
Professor McGonagall looked pleasantly surprised.