Kingsley Shacklebolt shot a cold glance at Fudge as he prepared to flee, then locked eyes with Arthur and the other members of the Order of the Phoenix.
The Ministry of Magic is too important to give up so easily!
As Kingsley made up his mind, a loud noise came from the other side of the door, and an unidentified object flew over everyone's heads and smashed into the wall behind them.
The noisy meeting room suddenly became very quiet. The frightened high-ranking Ministry of Magic officials turned around and saw that the door that had just flown over their heads was actually the door to the meeting room.
"Impossible, how did they get here so fast?!" Arthur Weasley muttered to himself in disbelief.
It had only been eight or nine minutes since they received the notice of the invasion. Could it be that the Aurors were made of paper?
However, there was no changing the facts, and shortly after the explosion, a large number of demented, ragged Death Eaters poured through the door.
"Bella, Lucius, Auguste, Antonin, Macnair…" Fudge gasped at the sight of the familiar faces, silently cursing the treacherous Dementors.
It was the Ministry of Magic that gave them the land to live in, allowing them to devour the prisoners' happiness and even the souls of the wicked, but instead they bit the hand that fed them and freed the Azkaban prisoners…
Fudge wanted to order the Dementors to be killed!
Arthur, Kingsley, and the others gripped their wands tightly. With a cursory glance, they could tell that there were at least a hundred Death Eaters blocking the entrance, and that there were only about thirty of them. The chances of winning were close to zero!
What made everyone feel even more despair was the figure surrounded by Death Eaters.
Many of the wizards present had participated in the war fifteen years ago, so they were naturally familiar with this red-eyed snake-faced face and knew how powerful the Dark Lord was.
Ivan strode to the middle of the meeting hall, raised his hand to signal the Death Eaters to hold their fire, then turned to Fudge and the others.
"Long time no see, Connelly!"
Fudge, in a state of despair and fear, was taken aback by Ivan's words. Had they met before?
It was certainly true twenty years ago, but Fudge did not think he would be remembered by the Dark Lord as a minor player, as he was not yet Minister for Magic.
Before Fudge could figure it out, Yvonne continued. "I must say, your offer to me was very good, but it's a pity I prefer to be in charge of the wizarding community myself…. However, Connelly, I'll give you a chance to live, and now…. Prove your loyalty to me…."
Proposal? Prove loyalty?
The sheer amount of information contained in Ivan's words left Fudge's brain reeling, and he wondered if the Dark Lord had mistaken him for someone else.
As Arthur listened to the Dark Lord, he recalled how Fudge had been suppressing Dumbledore over the past few months, vehemently denying the return of the Mysteries and disregarding the Dementors riot.
At first, he thought the Minister for Magic was simply intellectually challenged, stupid enough to politicise something that would endanger the wizarding community, and mistakenly attributed it to rumours that his political enemies were trying to silence him.
It seems likely that Fudge reached some sort of secret agreement with the Dark Lord to get rid of Dumbledore together.
However, it is clear that Fudge is playing with fire, and Voldemort's aggressive attack on the Ministry is proof that Fudge is out of his depth, severely underestimating Voldemort's strength and ambition…
Kingsley Shacklebolt had a vague feeling that something was amiss. Fudge, no matter how stupid he was, would never choose to work with You-Know-Who, and the look of shock and fear on his face when he heard about You-Know-Who's attack did not seem to be faked.
Fudge finally realised what was going on and tried to defend himself. "No, that's not true, don't listen to his nonsense, there's no agreement… He must be trying to divide us, yes, that must be it!"
Fudge's defence, however, was largely ignored, as the Dark Lord had taken over the Ministry and could have killed everyone there at any time.
"So you're prepared to go against my wishes, Connelly?" Yvonne interrupted Fudge, who was trying to defend himself. She raised her right hand impatiently, and a dark green light flashed.
Fudge's face changed, his hair stood on end, and he threw away all thought of power and dignity in the face of death.
"No, no … stop!! I'll …"
Before Fudge could finish, Ivan waved his wand indifferently, and a green beam of light shot out of the tip.
"Avada Kedavra ~ (Avada Kedavra)"
In the next instant, Fudge collapsed to the ground, his eyes wide with fear and confusion.
A deathly silence fell over the meeting room. Arthur and the others looked at Fudge's body and felt a chill run down their spines.
Minister for Magic was dead, right in front of them!
Kingsley Shackle took his eyes off Fudge's body and looked at the Dark Lord standing in the middle of the hall, wondering why the Dark Lord had killed Fudge so mercilessly when Fudge had declared his willingness to surrender.
Ivan put down his wand and said regretfully, "It's too late! I prefer people who know what's good for them!" He then looked at the remaining wizards and asked casually.
"So, it's your turn. Who else wants to go against my wishes?"
The Ministry officials trembled under Ivan's gaze. The Dark Lord was more vicious than they had ever imagined, and to go on a killing spree just because Fudge had given it a moment's thought was the work of a madman!
However, Ivan's temperamental behaviour only served to heighten their fear, and in a matter of seconds, nearly one-third of the Ministry's senior officials had fallen to their knees, begging for the Dark Lord's understanding in a subservient manner…