Hermione suddenly raised her head. Although her fingertips were trembling slightly from nerves, her voice was exceptionally clear and carried an unquestionable firmness.
"I deny the charge of 'using magic without authorization'!
"That day, in the outskirts of London, the Dementors appeared first. They went straight for that Muggle. I had to save him!"
Hermione clenched the edge of her robe, and a hint of restrained anger entered her voice.
"I used the Patronus Charm to defend myself, and even more so to protect someone else! Is watching them get torn apart by Dementors what the Ministry of Magic considers 'following the rules'?
"And Dementors are under the Ministry's jurisdiction. Why would they appear in a neighborhood full of Muggles? Shouldn't that be the issue this hearing is investigating?"
"Dementors?" The members of the jury looked at one another. They had not expected Hermione to have cast the Patronus Charm for that reason.
But why would Dementors appear in the Muggle world? Weren't most of them supposed to be in Azkaban? Could You-Know-Who really have returned? He had once controlled Dementors before.
Fudge's expression tightened. He knew he could not let the jury keep discussing this, or the situation would completely slip out of his control.
So his gaze shifted, and he immediately thought of a clever excuse.
"Yes, what a very intelligent excuse. Muggles cannot see Dementors, so no one can disprove your claim. Isn't that right, child? Is that what you were thinking?"
Being questioned like this made Hermione furious. Just as Fudge expected, she fell into the trap of trying to prove her own innocence.
"I'm not lying. There were three Dementors in total. If I hadn't cast the Patronus Charm, not only that Muggle, but I would have died too."
Fudge forcefully interrupted Hermione's explanation.
"That is enough. Sorry to interrupt you, but I believe this must be a carefully fabricated story. However, since you cannot provide any witnesses to this incident, you cannot prove that you truly encountered Dementors."
Hermione's eyes were full of anger. She had not expected Fudge to be so shameless.
At that moment, Harry patted her shoulder, telling her to relax, then smiled calmly.
"Sorry, Minister Fudge, but we do have another witness."
Fudge looked at the fifteen- or sixteen-year-old wizard before him, and his expression stiffened. He did not dare underestimate him in the slightest.
So he immediately retorted, "If the witness you are referring to is yourself, then I am sorry, Mr. Potter. Because your close relationship with Hermione Granger is widely known, you cannot serve as a witness."
Harry sneered at Fudge. "Who said the witness was me? The witness is Mrs. Weasley.
"At the time, Mrs. Weasley was also at the scene. She saw everything."
Fudge's face changed drastically. "How is that possible? There were clearly only the two of you at the scene. You are lying. You are conspiring to give false testimony!"
Harry shook his head, looking perfectly calm. "At first, the two of us also thought we were the only two wizards at the scene. But afterward, Mrs. Weasley told me that she happened to be watching the whole thing from a distance."
"That's impossible. I need to extract Weasley's memory. Only if she has the relevant memory can she serve as a witness. Otherwise, both you and Weasley will be sentenced!" Although his heart was filled with a terrible premonition, Fudge still made the best decision available to him.
Right now, he could only hope that Harry and the others really were conspiring to give false testimony.
But Harry's response made Fudge's expression turn even uglier.
"Of course, esteemed Minister Fudge. As you wish."
Mrs. Weasley walked over. Harry gave her a look, then took out his wand and touched Mrs. Weasley's head, drawing out a shining, glassy strand of memory. After that, he took out a Pensieve, placed the strand of memory inside it, and said to everyone, "You all saw that. A memory inside a Pensieve cannot be faked.
"You can use the Pensieve to see what Mrs. Weasley saw back then and determine whether what we said is true."
Fudge was the first to stand. With an ugly expression, he stuck his head into the liquid inside the Pensieve. A moment later, he straightened up and looked at Harry in disbelief.
"How is this possible? She was actually there at the time?"
The other members of the jury stepped forward one by one to watch the memory inside the Pensieve. Now Hermione had key evidence, enough to prove her innocence.
Fudge had no choice. No matter how unwilling he was, in the face of absolute evidence, he had to declare Hermione innocent.
However, just as he was preparing to end this unpleasant hearing, Harry suddenly smiled at him.
"Don't be in such a hurry to leave, Minister Fudge. We still have another hearing to deal with."
Fudge was in an extremely bad mood. After hearing Harry's words, he said impatiently, "As Minister for Magic, how could I not know there is another hearing today? Mr. Potter, this is no joking matter."
Is there really no other hearing? Why don't we let Mr. Malfoy and Barty Crouch say whether there is another hearing?
At once, the ominous feeling in Fudge's heart reached its peak. He stared at Malfoy and Barty Crouch in shock, and their reactions made him unable to believe his eyes.
Lucius Malfoy bowed slightly to everyone and smiled brightly.
"Mr. Potter is correct. There is indeed another hearing today. It is only because Minister Fudge is so busy with work that even though we already informed him of the schedule, Minister Fudge still failed to remember it."
Barty Crouch simply said, "That's right. There is indeed another hearing."
Fudge swept his gaze around and discovered that the jury members all looked surprised.
But that surprise was not about the next hearing. It was surprise that Fudge actually did not know about this hearing.
At once, Fudge understood. The next hearing was a conspiracy aimed at him, and he had no choice but to face it.
So he asked with an ugly expression, "Then what exactly is the content of this second hearing? Let us begin."
Harry did not give an answer directly. Instead, he smiled and teased, "So Minister Fudge really does not know the exact contents of the second hearing. Of course we can tell you, but before that, please step down from the judge's seat and take the defendant's seat."
"What do you mean?" Fudge demanded.
The smile on Harry's face grew even more sincere, and in Fudge's eyes, even more dangerous.
"That is because the content of the second hearing is the trial of Minister for Magic Fudge for inaction and irresponsible conduct during his term in office.
"If the hearing passes, then Minister Fudge will be forced to step down from the position of Minister for Magic."
Fudge finally understood Harry's purpose. He gritted his teeth and forced out each word.
"You're dreaming!"
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