Lingering Issues from the War
"Roger, come on, let's go have a snowball fight with the Slytherins! We need a master!"
December 25th, Christmas Day.
The first semester had ended, and most students and teachers had already returned home to their families according to past holiday customs. They wouldn't be back until early January when the break concluded.
Of course, some people chose to stay at school for various reasons.
These students who remained also had their own recreational activities, creating a festive atmosphere.
"No thanks, I'm not done with my work yet." Roger, sitting at the long table in the Gryffindor common room, looked up at the classmate who had called him over and replied.
"Oh." Hearing Roger say that, the Gryffindor classmate didn't press further.
Through their interactions this semester, many people had come to understand what kind of person Roger was.
His words were never lies or excuses; if he said he was busy, it meant he genuinely had important matters to attend to.
After the classmate left, Roger lowered his head again, picked up his pen, and began writing and drawing in his notebook.
Even though Roger possessed the ability of magical Transfiguration, just like when he shared the research report on the Department of Mysteries' temporal studies with Harry, magic would eventually dissipate. It was better to write it down bit by bit to preserve it for a long time.
"Roger, what are you writing?" Hermione, passing by and holding a book herself, leaned in curiously.
In her memory, ever since Roger gained absolute memory and no longer needed to take notes, she hadn't seen him write much.
"Some theoretical materials I've researched. The Headmaster said he wanted to take a look, and it just so happens I want to discuss the feasibility of this theory with him." As he spoke, Roger's thoughts drifted back to the previous night.
After he expressed his willingness to let Dumbledore review his magical path materials, Dumbledore didn't continue discussing Roger's magic.
Instead, he changed the subject to the Middle East and recounted the outcome of the events there to Roger.
Dumbledore's "grand expedition" to the Middle East this time ended bizarrely.
On one hand, the Middle Eastern wizards who had been causing so much trouble became quiet upon seeing Dumbledore actually descend upon the region, looking as if they were thinking, 'You're serious?'
They immediately backed down without Dumbledore having to do much.
But on the other hand, some wizards who had remained silent all along suddenly stepped forward to confront Dumbledore.
These wizards comprised two groups. The first group was purely dissatisfied with Dumbledore's actions.
"Yes, our wizards may have done some things wrong, but isn't what you did even more wrong?"
In the eyes of this group, although the Middle Eastern wizards had been causing a stir, they hadn't launched any large-scale armed actions, nor had they committed any terrorist attacks. Yet, Dumbledore had forcefully arrived to suppress them.
We played a '1 vs 9', and you immediately played a 'royal flush.' I stirred up public opinion and harassed borders, at most blocking your magical material exports, and you directly deployed nuclear weapons, which is a bit unethical, isn't it? Do they think we Middle Eastern wizards are scaredy-cats? Well, they were just unhappy about being slapped in the face.
This group was easier to handle. Dumbledore, as the President of the International Confederation of Wizards, had some diplomatic skills, and resolving their issues wasn't too difficult.
The key was the other group.
When Roger, in the guise of a religious prophet, intervened in a Muggle war in the Middle East and caused quite a stir, even influencing the war's trajectory.
Afterward, Roger was arrested and tried in Britain.
America established a new order in the Middle East.
The large number of Middle Eastern civilians saved by Roger returned to their lives after the war… or so it appeared on the surface.
But this matter wasn't over so simply!
The wizarding world had the International Statute of Secrecy; magic could not appear before Muggles, revealing the existence of magic to the majority of Muggles.
Britain could just wash its hands of the matter and acquit Roger.
But what about their side?
Too many civilians knew about the 'Prophet'!
Although they didn't know it was magic, the birth of a prophet with 'divine miracles' had become almost common knowledge in certain regions!
Europe and America were fine.
The American Ministry of Magic, in conjunction with financial magnates, used public opinion as a weapon to confuse the masses.
Those in Europe and America who hadn't actually met the Prophet were in a state of disbelief amidst the onslaught of misinformation.
They thought it was just a fantastical war story.
But in the Middle East, many had been personally saved by the Prophet! Word of mouth spread, from one to a hundred, then to a thousand.
When the number reached a terrifying scale of tens of millions, memory erasure was impossible.
The true upper echelons of the five major global powers in Muggle society would not allow the wizarding community to interfere with the minds and wills of so many people before the situation became irreversible.
Loyalty to the country, loyalty to the people, loyalty to faith… not all wizards were in cahoots with those so-called pure-blood wizards. The upper echelons of various countries had some Muggle-aligned wizards at their disposal.
Wizards couldn't act as they pleased with impunity. Wizards and Muggles weren't clearly separated; rather, they were intertwined.
Even among the Middle Eastern wizards, there had always been those who sided with the Prophet, and their attitudes were even more peculiar… various forces became entangled, resulting in a stalemate.
Consequently, the 'semi-publicization of extraordinary powers' in some parts of the Middle East became a lingering issue from the Gulf War.
It was fine as long as Dumbledore didn't come. But now that he had arrived, many people wanted Dumbledore to 'uphold justice'!
"I heard you were the one who presided over the verdict of innocence for the great prophet? Then this burden… cough cough, I mean, this important task will be handed over to you!"
This issue involves the International Statute of Secrecy, a consensus held by most wizards worldwide.
Centuries ago, the signing of the Statute of Secrecy changed the landscape of wizarding society, leading to the establishment of the Ministry of Magic and magical congresses in various countries.
And today, hundreds of years later, questions arise: should the Statute of Secrecy be strictly enforced? Where exactly should its scope be defined? What should be done when the past enforcement of the Statute of Secrecy clashes with the will of the high-ranking members of Earth's "Five Benevolent Families"... these are all troublesome matters.
Dumbledore found dealing with such issues gave him a splitting headache.
This was the main reason Dumbledore had been in the Middle East for the past two months. In fact, he was only able to temporarily "escape" back to rest for a while this time because Snape had sent a message seeking aid.
Regarding this, Roger, after finishing his conversation with Dumbledore last night and returning, thought about it and felt that perhaps this matter wasn't so difficult to handle.
"Discussing with the Headmaster?" Hermione looked at Roger, who was thinking while copying something, and leaned in slightly to get a better look.
Change, interference, leaps in life's hierarchy, dimensions, space-time, the self of the mind, the collective unconscious of humanity...
Hermione recognized each word individually, but when put together...
What on earth was this?! Hermione slowly shifted her gaze and took a deep breath.
Hermione was interested in knowledge and respected it, but for her, learning was more of a weapon. She used this weapon to protect herself and establish her position.
She actually wanted to go out and play, but seeing Roger reading always gave her a sense of guilt.
Someone stronger than you is working even harder; how could I dare to rest? But now, that sense of guilt had completely vanished.
Someone who works harder than you isn't necessarily human.
Someone who could discuss matters with Headmaster Dumbledore as early as their first year, why would you try to compete with him?
Having a snowball fight with Slytherin? I'll join the fun too.
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