954 Why Not Keep the Resurrection Stone with Him?

Ivan rubbed his chin. Not many people could make themselves feel threatened…

However, it was hard to say. After all, he had just fused with the Thunderbird's blood, and his sense of danger was much stronger than before, so his previous experiences could not be compared.

"Iris?" said Pierce, after a moment's thought. "I've heard of him! He was quite famous in France, having graduated magna cum laude from Beauxbatons and become Head of the Department of Mysteries before the age of thirty!"

"According to the intelligence officers, Iris was the one who discovered the activities of Grindelwald's followers, and was responsible for uncovering several traitors within the French Ministry of Magic, and is now in the Minister's confidence in her ability to interrogate prisoners…"

"It would seem that there are capable people in France," Yvonne said, raising her eyebrows in surprise. It made sense, though, since it was a large country, and one or two talented individuals were not unusual.

"So what do we do next? Do you plan to stay in France?" Pierce asked.

"No, let's go back to England," Ivan said, shaking his head. He had just taken the Resurrection Stone from Grindelwald, and he needed to be alert for retaliation.

The battle gave Ivan an insight into Grindelwald's power, so he needed to craft a wand as quickly as possible, and then find a way to discover the secret of the Three Deathly Hallows.

Perhaps the story of the three brothers is more than just a legend, for there is no other explanation for why the Cloak of Invisibility was so much more powerful in Grindelwald's hands.

"By the way, Minister Pierce, keep an eye on this place for me. I have a bad feeling about this," Ivan reminded him solemnly.

Pierce, of course, agreed readily.

At the same time, in the Minister's office, the French Minister, who had been humiliated by Ivan and the others, flew into a rage and vented his frustration on his subordinates.

Over the course of the past month or so, they had dispatched hundreds of Aurors to search for clues to Grindelwald's whereabouts, but to no avail. They had not even been able to find out that Grindelwald was planning to break into Nicolas Flamel's tomb to steal the treasure. It was an utter disgrace!

If not for the fact that the two foreign wizards had blundered into each other's plans, Grindelwald would probably have left France in the dark by the time he had achieved his goal…

The Minister's roar lasted for over an hour, and when the Aurors came out of their offices, they looked miserable. They had all been ordered to find all the saints in France within two weeks.

After the crowd dispersed, Iris returned to the lounge alone. Just as he was about to enter, he suddenly sensed something and looked down the empty corridor.

"Come out, Alison. I should have said that it would be best if you did not come to see me alone if there was nothing important… Your current status should have nothing to do with me…"

At the same time, a witch appeared out of thin air in the quiet corridor.

"Don't worry about Glinn… sir, most of the Aurors from the Ministry have been sent to Paris to deal with the Muggles, and the rest won't notice," she replied easily, then hesitated before continuing her questioning.

"It's just that I don't quite understand why you tried to stop me from attacking Ivan Halth just now, when it was such a good opportunity. We could have provoked a fight between Ivan Halth and the French Ministry of Magic, waited for both sides to suffer, and then tried to take the treasure back."

Alison was not happy about the fact that Ivan Hals was leaving. They had spent so much time and effort trying to get their hands on the Resurrection Stone, only to have it stolen from them.

"You think too highly of the Minister, Alison," Iris said slowly. "With North American and British personnel, even if there were to be a confrontation, it would most likely go nowhere. You might even be exposed as a result… which would seriously jeopardise our future plans."

Most importantly, he had no idea how strong Ivan Hals was, and he was not confident that he could keep him here. If Ivan Hals managed to escape, all of his months of preparation in France would be in vain.

"Then why don't you just cast a spell to control the Minister and make him do as you wish? Wouldn't that be more convenient?" Alison asked, puzzled.

"The Imperius Curse is not as powerful as you think. The Minister for Magic is constantly under the scrutiny of people with ill intentions. If I had cast the Imperius Curse on him, I'm afraid he would have been exposed during the confrontation with Ivan Hals," Iris explained patiently before reminding him.

"Also, don't forget, what we need most at the moment is an unsuspected identity. That's the only way we'll have smooth access to that thing…"

Alison nodded, her irritation subsiding.

When the witch caught his meaning, Iris continued. "We did not come away empty-handed this time. Ivan Hals caused quite a commotion in Paris, involving tens of thousands of Muggles, and I'm afraid it will not be easy to quell."

"If anything else goes wrong, I'm sure the International Confederation of Wizards will be forced to hold that meeting and invite representatives from all over the world. If nothing goes wrong, they'll bring the Key with them."

"We only have one chance. Until then, we must never reveal ourselves."

"So why don't we just leave the Resurrection Stone with Ivan Hals and get it back later?" Iris said firmly.

… .

A week passed in the blink of an eye, and Ivan enjoyed a few days of peace after returning home from France. The expected revenge did not come, as if Grindelwald had given it up.

This confused Yvonne, as the object of their desire to break into Nicolas Flamel's tomb must be very important.

Ivan was even prepared for Grindelwald to come to England and duel him, so he spent the week desperately researching new wands and practising his new abilities, only to have his efforts end up in vain.

After staying at home for a few days and ensuring that Grindelwald would not come looking for trouble for a while, Ivan left for Diagon Alley to meet Ollivander, the British Master Wanderer.