"Don't get so excited."
Watching Rita Skeeter become increasingly agitated, Kael waved his hand and smiled, "I was just joking earlier. Why did you take it seriously?"
Although she seemed somewhat intimidating, Kael didn't want to push too hard,
How do I put it, it was a bit unexpected. Kael didn't think Rita Skeeter would react so strongly, even saying she'd rather expose her Animagus status.
At the same time, she seemed unable to accept the news of Voldemort's resurrection... or rather, she didn't believe it without concrete evidence.
If only I had taken a photo of Voldemort back then.
Kael remembers that Voldemort was quite happy after his resurrection. Maybe he could have even won the Wizard Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award.
Of course, that's assuming he had the time back then.
"You better really be joking."
Rita Skeeter's expression softened a lot, but still carried some wariness.
"Don't worry." Kael said, "The reason I called you here this time is actually for something else."
Rita Skeeter, who was about to leave, reluctantly sat back down upon hearing these words. She really didn't want to stay another minute, but she had no choice. After all, she had a weakness being held against her.
And she also realized that the Kael in front of her was completely different from Dumbledore. Although he seemed harmless, he was much harder to deal with than most people she'd encountered before.
Take the Triwizard Tournament, for example. Rita Skeeter still remembers the things Kael said to prevent her from writing about him.
He kept saying he was certain to lose and would find reasons to shift the blame, but ended up being the undisputed champion.
She watched all the matches, and in every task, Kael had an absolute advantage... It felt like the other two were just there to make up the numbers.
Now thinking back, Rita Skeeter felt like a troll for believing Kael's words so completely.
She even went back that very night and wrote a harsh article condemning Kael, intending to publish it after the Triwizard Tournament ended.
But since Kael discovered she was an Animagus, she tore up that article and threw it away.
"What exactly do you want?" Rita Skeeter asked irritably.
"It's about Fudge." Kael looked around and lowered his voice, "I admire Minister Fudge and want to know more about his deeds... um, some unknown deeds."
"You've got the wrong person. Fudge is the Minister of Magic."
Rita Skeeter adjusted her ugly glasses, "And you said unknown deeds. How could I possibly know? If you truly admire Minister Fudge, go read his autobiography.
"Flourish and Blotts has it for fifteen Galleons a copy."
"Fifteen Galleons... I'm just a student; I can't afford something that expensive." Kael casually said.
"You just said you weren't short on money."
"I did, not short on money." Kael said, "But that doesn't mean I can afford a fifteen Galleon book."
Then, Kael didn't say anything else and directly slapped a photo on the table, showing Rita Skeeter's complete Animagus transformation.
"Smack!"
In the blink of an eye, the photo was covered by a handbag.
"Damn it, how could you just take it out like that? What if someone saw?"
"They won't." Kael said, "I've checked; there's no one around... no bugs either.
"How about this as compensation, consider it?"
Rita Skeeter's breathing became much heavier. Kael didn't rush her but went to the bar to get her another Butterbeer.
After all, it was Tom Senior's treat, so why not?
Rita Skeeter downed half a cup in one go before saying, "I want another hundred Galleons, and you must guarantee not to out me."
"No problem, I swear by Dumbledore's name."
"Why Dumbledore?"
"Well, if I swear by my name, would you believe it?"
Instinctively, Rita Skeeter remembered the scene where Kael confidently said he was sure to lose.
She didn't say anything more and cautiously glanced around. Kael understood immediately, pulled out his wand, and softly incanted:
"Muffliato!"
"Alright, now no one around will hear our conversation."
Then Rita Skeeter took out a special Peeping Mirror, and after seeing no reaction from it, she quietly said:
"Do you remember that sensational Fantastic Beasts smuggling incident a few years ago?"
Kael nodded, recalling how he was forced to participate in Oren's capture in the Forbidden Forest.
"According to informants, he was involved, and the Beaters were so eager to catch the one that got away because the person had evidence.
"The person recorded everything with magic in a notebook."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
He remembered that in the Forbidden Forest, Oren had mentioned that the Beaters were chasing him for a notebook. He didn't expect it was because of this.
No wonder it was only the Beaters who went to the Forbidden Forest that time, without any Aurors. Turns out Fudge was involved too.
Aurors and Beaters are different. Aurors don't follow the Minister of Magic's orders blindly. If they saw the contents of that notebook, it would be much harder for Fudge to cover up the truth.
Kael thought for a moment and put ten Galleons on the table.
"Wait, this isn't what we agreed. Why only ten Galleons?" Rita Skeeter complained.
"Do you want to hear what you just said... A Minister of Magic involved in Fantastic Beasts smuggling? Such an absurd claim, ten Galleons is more than enough. I suspect you're trying to rip me off."
"I can guarantee, I'm not." Rita Skeeter said earnestly, "And he wasn't Minister yet when he was involved."
When it comes to gathering secrets, Rita Skeeter wouldn't allow anyone to question her professionalism.
She genuinely heard it at a party a few years ago, when she sneaked in using her Animagus form to eavesdrop, and coincidentally overheard Fudge discussing it with someone else.
"If you can bring out the notebook, I'll give you five hundred Galleons." Kael said, "But right now, you have nothing. Who knows if it's true or not."
"Hah, if I truly had the notebook, it would be worth more than five hundred Galleons." Rita Skeeter grumbled but didn't argue further.
She carefully tucked the photo into the lining of her handbag and pocketed the Galleons on the table.
"Let me give you one more piece of information." She smacked her lips, the earlier revelation seeming to have gotten her hooked, treating Kael as a different form of reporting.
"There's a Senior Deputy Minister named Dolores Umbridge in the Ministry of Magic who not only pretends to be Pure-Blood but has repeatedly taken credit for other colleagues' work and claimed it as her own..."
Kael was initially startled but then nonchalantly said, "What does it matter to me what she does."
Umbridge isn't important. As long as Fudge is dealt with, she's just an afterthought.
"Don't be so hasty." Rita Skeeter chuckled, "Actually, even the Minister knows about this, but he not only said nothing but even helped cover it up.
"I know someone who got fired because of this and is now working on a farm in Cornwall."
After saying that, she looked at Kael with a smile.
Seeing her expression, Kael placed another fifty Galleons on the table.