The only thing that Ivan was relieved about was the fact that he had previously altered Nott's memory, and the fact that Nott had been under close surveillance for the past two years.
"Have Flenga send some men to find the Nort as soon as possible," Ivan ordered.
Dobby nodded and made a note of this instruction, then seemed to remember something and told her about Lucius Malfoy transporting a million Galleons to the vault in Knockturn Alley in three days.
"A million Galleons? Isn't that seven hundred thousand?" Ivan paused, surprised.
"Mr. Malfoy said the extra three hundred thousand Galleons were a token of his friends' sincerity…" Dobby explained.
Ivan then realised that the pure-bloods were quite tactful…
Having so much money saved up all of a sudden, Ivan's mood lightened considerably.
Money was not everything, but it was definitely enough to solve most of the usual problems.
For example, in the upcoming Wizarding War, the advanced preparations, post-war pensions, and subsequent administrative costs were all solved.
"Tell Lucius that when this operation is over, I will remove the Dark Mark from them," Ivan promised after a moment's thought.
This should be the reward that the former Death Eaters most desire.
After all, once the betrayal was exposed, the Dark Mark on his body would immediately become a ticking time bomb that Voldemort could easily locate and kill.
"Yes, sir!"
Dobby snapped his fingers and vanished on the spot.
… .
Days passed, and the day before Hallowe'en, Ivan received a tip from Lucius that Lord Voldemort would strike at eleven o'clock the next day, when the Aurors were changing shifts.
Their operation took place at nine o'clock in the morning, two hours early. If nothing went wrong, Voldemort would have finished everything by the time he arrived.
In fact, Ivan would have liked it to have been earlier, as it would have been safer, but Ministry officials don't usually start work until nine o'clock, and if it was too early, the Ministry might not even be open!
"It's a shame we don't have time off for Halloween. I guess I'll have to play hooky for the rest of the day," Ivan said, glancing at his class schedule. As a good student of the law, this was the first time he had ever played hooky.
… .
On the day of Hallowe'en, Ivan woke up early for a rare Hallowe'en surprise for the Minister for Magic. After a quick breakfast, he left Hogwarts Castle unnoticed.
After half a year, the wizarding market, which had been destroyed by the war, had been renovated and was no longer as dilapidated as before.
By the time Ivan arrived, the hundred or so wizards involved in the operation were already lined up and waiting.
"Sir Harls!" Seeing Ivan appear out of thin air on the platform, Dougett and the others, who had been waiting anxiously, rushed over.
"Have you made the necessary arrangements, Doggett?" Ivan asked.
"There are a total of one hundred and seventy-three wizards, all of whom are here except for the thirteen that Pearce brought to the Ministry," said Doggett excitedly.
"Good!" Ivan nodded in satisfaction, then continued. "As planned, you and Fran will take one hundred and twenty men and lurk around the headquarters. Once I've dealt with the Aurors, you'll join the Chief Executive and fight your way in."
Dougett and Fran agreed, having rehearsed the plan several times in their minds and knowing exactly what they had to do.
As she spoke, Ivan turned back to Alicia. "Mother, take fifteen enforcers with you to help prevent any stragglers from escaping…"
Support missions were the least dangerous of all operations, and were only used as backup when necessary.
After sorting out the tasks for the majority of the team, Ivan's expression turned serious as he addressed the remaining twenty-five wizards.
"Lucius, Macnair, Goyle, Crabbe, the rest of you follow me!"
"We need to complete the most dangerous mission of the entire plan, and if anyone dies in battle, I promise you that we will settle your families and pay ten thousand Galleons as a pension!" Ivan added solemnly, looking around at the wizards below.
Ten thousand Galleons?
All the wizards present were shocked. Ten thousand Galleons was an unimaginable amount for an ordinary wizard. One might not be able to save that much money without eating or drinking for over a decade!
However, most of the people involved in the operation knew that this was a huge sum of money!
Since they were standing here, they were prepared to die!
Lucius, Goyle, and the others, who did not know what was going on, looked at each other, sensing that something was wrong.
"Some of you might not know the details of the mission, so I'll repeat it!
I will give some of you Polyjuice Potion, and from now on you will be Death Eaters, and you will follow the Dark Lord to Azkaban to save your fellow prisoners, and then you will join forces against the Ministry of Magic…"
"What? Attack… the Ministry?!" Lucius Malfoy was stunned, as were Gibbon, Crabbe, and Goyle.
Lucius Malfoy stepped forward eagerly and demanded, "Wait…Sir Harls, this is not what we agreed upon!"
Previously, their mission was to cause a scene in the wizarding world after rescuing the Dark Lord and declare his return.
The risk was high, but acceptable.
However, the current situation was very different. They needed to fight the authorities directly!
They, twenty-five wizards and seventy-one Death Eaters who had been held for over a decade with little strength left, were going to attack the Ministry of Magic, which had over a hundred Aurors and over two hundred clerks?
This was madness. What was the difference between this and suicide? Even if he survived, he would be wanted by the Ministry!
Lucius Malfoy was filled with rage, but when he met Ivan's cold gaze, all his courage vanished, leaving only boundless fear…
At that moment, Macnair stepped forward and pulled Lucius to a stop. "This was an oversight on my part, Malfoy," he said ruefully. "Sir Harls revised the plan a few days ago, and I should have kept you informed."
Lucius glared at Macnair and opened his mouth to curse, but no words came out.
This was because he knew very well that a plan against the Ministry could not be formulated in a few days, which meant that he had been kept in the dark from start to finish, and that Macnair would at best be the scapegoat.
Even more frustrating to Lucius was the fact that it was too late for him to back out now.
He had betrayed the Dark Lord, and there was no turning back, not with his son Draco in school and his life in the hands of the Dark Lord.
When Lucius finally calmed down, Ivan tried to calm him.
"Rest assured, Lucius, I have no intention of sending anyone to their deaths! I will deal with the Ministry Aurors myself, and your task is not to engage the guards…
Instead, when the Ministry was defeated and Pierce arrived with reinforcements, he worked as a spy with Macnair to 'rebellion' the Dark Lord and attacked the Death Eaters… leaving them all behind at the Ministry!"