Chapter 389: Do You Want to Be the Minister of Magic? (Edited)

"No matter, just fulfill the Minister's task," Umbridge thought to herself.

For her, the Minister's task was the most important, and anything that could please the Minister must be properly carried out.

Umbridge gently brushed the dust off the file and carefully put it away. Just as she was about to leave the archive room, she heard a crash behind her, followed by a shout.

"Who's there?!" Umbridge drew her wand and turned towards the source of the sound.

After she left, two figures emerged from behind two file cabinets respectively.

"Tonks! Can't you be more careful on a mission?" The middle-aged man with red hair couldn't help but comment.

"Sorry, sorry. I accidentally knocked over a roll of files. There's a reason why my stealth ability isn't that good," Tonks, the new recruit, apologized.

The people who appeared in the archive room were Arthur Weasley and the rookie Nymphadora Tonks. They had just received orders from Dumbledore to monitor the status of the Sirius Black case file in the archive room.

But it didn't take long after they arrived when Umbridge entered...

It can only be said that Dumbledore is an exceptional strategist.

At that moment, Fudge and his two subordinates also arrived in Hogsmeade. Because they couldn't Apparate directly to Hogwarts, the three of them had to first go to Hogsmeade and then walk to Hogwarts.

"Minister, aren't we being too impatient?" Kingsley reflected for a moment and felt that it wasn't appropriate for Fudge to go directly to Hogwarts. Couldn't he delay things a bit?

He felt he could do it.

Fudge looked at the empty streets of Hogsmeade and the Dementors occasionally floating by, and suddenly felt a knot in his stomach. He had given the order for a curfew in Hogsmeade after sunset before, but he completely forgot to lift the order now.

"As the Minister of Magic, I suppose I have the power to lift the curfew, right?" Fudge asked pitifully.

"Minister," even Dawlish was speechless, "if we can lift the curfew with just a word, that would be a big problem."

Fudge realized immediately. Yes, as the legitimate Minister of Magic, of course, he had that power, but what if a dark wizard impersonated him? If a single word could lift the curfew, couldn't a dark wizard enter Azkaban and take the prisoners away?

Even as the legitimate Minister of Magic, giving orders to the Dementors required a complete set of formal procedures.

"Well, then, let's spend the night at an inn," Fudge saw two Dementors slowly approaching from the street corner and felt that he couldn't openly break his own order. Furthermore, remembering Madam Rosmerta, he instinctively headed towards the Three Broomsticks.

After the three settled in at the Three Broomsticks, each went to their room to rest. As soon as Kingsley reached his room, he sent a Patronus to Dumbledore, informing him in detail about Fudge's visit and his order.

Dumbledore's response was brief: "Observe and wait." Knowing that Dumbledore was prepared, Kingsley felt relieved and took a shower before going to bed.

Early the next morning, the sun rose as usual, but changes in the wizarding world had already silently begun.

Amelia Bones entered her office as usual. Even though it was Sunday and Christmas was approaching, as the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Magic, she couldn't afford to rest.

She walked into her office and found her desk piled with pending files. She sighed softly and took her seat to start working.

She opened the letters and began reading the reports quickly.

"Did someone enchant a lawnmower in Burnley to turn into a flying humanoid creature when started? I'll have to go to the Office for the Prohibition of Muggle Artefacts and probably collaborate with the Department of Memory Modification... Arthur will be busy again..."

"A report that someone was selling low-quality invisibility cloaks in Diagon Alley... Why don't they go and sell them in Knockturn Alley? Surely no one would report them there... It's the job of the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects..."

...

"Notification of Wizengamot meeting summons! Applicant: Albus Dumbledore?!" Amelia Bones narrowed her eyes as she looked at the letter in her hands. She had a feeling that something important was about to happen.

As the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Dumbledore had the power to summon a meeting. As for the reason for the summons, she trusted it would be written in the letter, so she continued reading.

Indeed, beneath the notification was the reason for calling the meeting.

Although she was mentally prepared, she was surprised to see the reason for the summons. This time, the meeting would be about reopening the case of Sirius Black! And that wasn't all; at the end of the notification, there was a lengthy paragraph detailing the history between Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, and the Potters.

After reading that paragraph, Amelia Bones was overwhelmed by a sea of emotions. She never considered that the murderer might be innocent, while the supposed celebrated hero turned out to be the true villain. When she recalled some details from the past, she realized that a whirlwind was about to unleash itself in the Ministry of Magic.

Making an effort to contain her tumultuous emotions, Amelia handled the situation properly and sent a letter to each member of the Wizengamot, informing them that the meeting was to be convened and attaching the reason for the summons.

After completing that task, only one letter remained on her desk. The letter was peculiar; there was nothing written on the envelope, just a small line: Amelia Bones, for your attention.

Amelia Bones opened the letter and found only a parchment with the following words written: Do you wish to become Minister for Magic?

Mrs. Bones' heart began to beat rapidly.