Amelia handled the unexpected situation that troubled Hagrid and Hermione with such ease, showcasing her abilities and the convenience of her power and authority to Bryan in full display.
Truth be told, for a brief moment, Bryan seriously considered whether he should wade into the mess at the Ministry of Magic, but he quickly came to his senses. Indeed, under a stable social order, power is a very useful thing, but when social order heads towards chaos, his own strength holds more sway.
Moreover, once one steps into the quagmire of power, it's not so easy to remain unscathed, just like Amelia in front of him.
Amelia Bones has always had a good reputation in the wizarding world, seen as an upright witch. But even someone like her, when caught in the struggle for power, has to find ways to increase her own bargaining chips if she doesn't want to be kicked out.
"Oh, ho ho, but who do we have here?"
Just a minute before eight o'clock, a series of footsteps suddenly came from outside the office door. Cornelius Fudge, leading the way, opened his office door to see Bryan on the sofa and immediately showed delight, striding over with open arms.
"Good morning, Minister Fudge. You're looking quite well—"
Bryan rose to his feet and warmly embraced Fudge, his words accompanied by a cordial smile.
"Yes, indeed, all thanks to the outstanding young hero who aided the Ministry of Magic in resolving a monumental predicament!"
Cornelius Fudge said with a conspiratorial wink directed at Bryan, his expression couldn't be more friendly. Then, as if struck by a sudden recollection, he patted his forehead, stepped aside, and formally introduced the individuals who had followed in his wake into the office to Bryan.
"Rufus and Dolores, you've had the pleasure of their acquaintance that fateful night, Bryan. These two are among Amelia's and my most capable assistants. Without their valuable contributions, we wouldn't be able to handle the complicated situation!"
Fudge said with a beaming smile.
Bryan noticed the fleeting displeasure in Amelia's eyes. Then, he realized what the problem was. Perhaps, what Fudge said was just a polite remark.
Not to mention the change in attitude when they met again, smiling and assessing him coquettishly, Dolores Umbridge, the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic, was not someone to be taken lightly.
Rufus Scrimgeour might not be in the same trench as Amelia. He was the Head of the Auror Office, a subordinate department of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. But when Amelia received him, she didn't bring along this crucial subordinate of the department. Instead, Rufus followed behind Fudge, which should be considered a snub.
Bryan had encountered Rufus three times. The first time, he sent him to St. Mungo's, the second was a few nights ago when Rufus was all for attacking him, and now was the third.
Bryan understood why the head of the Auror Office was cold towards him.
From Rufus's reaction after seeing Bryan use the Fiendfyre Curse that night, it was clear he was someone who couldn't tolerate any flaws. Moreover, the Aurors had been tracking Greyback for years without success, only to inexplicably fall into his hands, which was almost like saying all Aurors were incompetent.
"Ahem, and this—"
Fudge's smile became somewhat strained as his gaze fell upon the final wizard to enter the office, "The esteemed head of the distinguished International Magical Cooperation Department, the famous Barty Crouch. Everyone in the British wizarding world knows him, and that includes you, right, Bryan?"
Full of malice.
Whether it was the calculated sequence of the introductions or Fudge's tone, Bryan could not fail to discern the unmistakable aura of malice that clung to Fudge's attitude towards Barty Crouch.
Barty Crouch was a man in his fifties, with a chubby figure and a perpetually mismatched outfit. Unlike Fudge, who usually wore a friendly smile, Crouch stood straight with rigid movements. He wore a spotless, wide suit and a tie without a single wrinkle. His short black hair was equally neat, and the middle parting was so straight that it seemed like it was drawn with a ruler. His narrow mustache was trimmed as if it had been measured with a ruler as well.
Bryan could sense the coldness in Crouch's gaze as he looked at him, rather than hostility or disgust.
This was very interesting.
At this point, Barty Crouch couldn't possibly not know that the Ministry was preparing to push the blame for Sirius Black onto him, which would completely ruin his chances of advancing in his position. Normally, Barty Crouch would definitely resent him. Under ordinary circumstances, Barty Crouch would have undoubtedly harbored a deep-seated resentment towards the orchestrator of his downfall. The fact that he was facing him with such an expression could only mean one thing: Fudge didn't reveal that it was his idea.
While Bryan was contemplating, Barty Crouch stared at him and his eyebrows twitched imperceptibly.
As a long-standing senior official in the Ministry of Magic, Crouch had seen countless outstanding young wizards from all walks of life over the years. But every one of them, under his oppressive gaze, would appear uneasy and nervous to some extent.
Only this Director of Hogwarts Student Safety Office, Bryan Watson, who appeared to be in his early twenties, didn't show any fear after his gaze pierced into those pale purple eyes. On the contrary, it was himself who felt a slight palpitation in the face of the sharpness that flashed in those purple eyes.
Originally, when Cornelius told him that it was just a young wizard who had taken down Greyback and his pack of werewolves, he didn't quite believe it, but now, he was almost half-convinced.
The person with the worst mood in the room was definitely Barty Crouch.
Twelve years ago, his son, a Death Eater ruined his hopes of becoming the Minister of Magic, and after twelve years of hard work, people in the wizarding world had gradually forgotten the scandal that had happened to him. But now, a political achievement from those bygone years was dragging him back into the abyss.
If it were in the past, Barty Crouch wouldn't mind exchanging a few words with this powerful young wizard who suddenly emerged. But now, he was in no mood for it, so he just nodded at Bryan with a stern face.
Currently, several people in the office were strong contenders for the next Minister of Magic, and since he had already chosen to support Amelia Bones, it was natural not to be too friendly with others, so Bryan just nodded back to Barty Crouch with a forced smile.
The atmosphere in the room was slightly cold, Fudge seemed a bit embarrassed, and Amelia timely stepped forward, smiling at Fudge, "I was just discussing the situation at the school with Bryan, Cornelius. I think the most important thing should be conveyed by you."
"Oh, thank you for giving me this honor, Amelia—"
Fudge immediately said with a beaming smile. He asked everyone to find a seat and then looked warmly at Bryan.
"The Order of Merlin, First Class—we have been in communication with the Office of Award Assessments, which falls under the jurisdiction of the International Confederation of Wizards. It was no easy feat, but we have managed to secure this for you. This is what I promised you last summer."
"My sincere thanks!"
Bryan still feigned a bit of surprise, though he was unfazed.
"In addition, after discussions within the Ministry, we will invite you to serve as a Wizengamot judge and a senior advisor to the Ministry of Magic. And of course, the bounty money for Greyback and the werewolves under him, along with the reward originally prepared for Sirius Black, will be a total of seventy thousand Galleons!"
This could be considered a tangible benefit and the smile on Bryan's face became more genuine.
"We have also secured some additional titles for you, Bryan,"
Fudge said gleefully,
"The honorary vice-chairman of the Anti-Dark Arts League—Dumbledore is the honorary chairman. Also, we've contacted the famous wizarding magazine— 'The Wizard's Weekly.' This year's 'Most Charming Smile Award' is undoubtedly yours, Bryan. I bet your picture on the magazine cover will be more eye-catching than Gilderoy Lockhart's. After all, that annoying charlatan just stole a story of a wizard who helped a small village get rid of werewolves, while you actually took down so many werewolves!"
'Damn, what bad luck!'
Bryan's smile froze on his face.
After announcing the commendation for Bryan, Fudge confronted him again regarding what to say and what not to say in the conference. After all, the journalists wouldn't let such a big news slip away easily; they would surely attempt to dig out every detail they could.
After internal discussions, the higher-ups finally decided to announce to the wizarding world that, in addition to Bryan's direct actions, the Minister Cornelius Fudge and Barty Crouch Sr. had led the early intelligence gathering and command operations in the werewolf eradication effort.
Bryan was somewhat surprised to hear this explanation.
Fudge's decision to seize the spotlight for himself came as no great surprise – it presented an unparalleled opportunity to bolster public support and reinforce his tenuous grasp on power. As for Barty Crouch, Bryan swiftly discerned that this was likely a calculated form of compensation. After all, a "scapegoat" would soon be required to bear the brunt of responsibility for Sirius's case.
"This is a great victory. For a long time, the wizarding community has lived under the shadow of the werewolf criminal organization led by Greyback - there are many heartbreaking examples of innocent and kind wizarding residents losing their peaceful and tranquil lives due to werewolf attacks."
The entrance hall of the Ministry of Magic was almost filled with reporters from various well-known media outlets at home and abroad and amidst the continuous sound of camera flashes, Fudge proclaimed with a booming voice, his face aglow, passionately denouncing the heinous crimes committed by Greyback in both the Muggle and wizarding worlds.
It was as if, compared to the 'monstrous' Greyback, the darkest deeds of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named were mere petty thefts.
"It's incredible that not a whisper leaked from the Ministry beforehand!"
Fudge boasted from the podium, while below, many Ministry employees were busy maintaining order. A sweating Mr. Weasley took a moment to catch his breath and spoke to Amos Diggory, who was also responsible for this task.
"I agree with you, Arthur!"
Amos Diggory, from the Department of Magical Creatures, exclaimed,
"You know, Arthur, I have quite a few acquaintances in the Auror Office, but not a single one of them mentioned a word about it. Just now, I even ran into Kingsley over there, and he was very secretive about it. Oh, it's unbelievable that they actually kept silent and accomplished such a great feat!"
Amos paused, his gaze drifting back towards the stage, where the unmistakable figure of Bryan Watson stood out in stark contrast to the assemblage of middle-aged witches and wizards, the majority of whom appeared to be well into their forties or beyond.
"Tell me, Arthur, how much do you truly know about this Watson?"
"Oh, him -" Mr. Weasley smiled cheerfully. "To be honest, I should be surprised, I mean, a wizard taking down so many werewolves. But when I found out it was Bryan, I somehow thought it was to be expected!"
In the Ministry, if you had a juicy piece of gossip, you would be highly sought after. Amos's interest was piqued by Arthur's cryptic response, and he grabbed Mr. Weasley's robe, 'ordering' him to clarify.
"You all must know about last year's basilisk incident. Bryan saved my daughter Ginny and my youngest son Ron. Although Fudge claimed that Bryan was sent by the Ministry and the Hogwarts Board of Governors to the school, but in fact there was no such thing."
"I've heard Cedric talk about this."
Amos said enthusiastically,
"He really liked Bryan Watson as the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He even said that he was the only wizard in recent years to safely step down from that position. What do you think that signifies, Arthur?"
A short wizard, resembling a stoat and dressed in a dark blue robe, also came over,
"Perhaps—"
This was Reginald Cattermole from the Magical Maintenance Department. He lowered his voice to avoid being overheard by the reporters who were everywhere.
"There have been rumors for many years about the curse placed on that professorship by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and only this Bryan Watson has been the exception. Maybe—"
Cattermole also stopped talking, not continuing. The reason he stopped was the same as Amos - because the speculation was too sensational, and they would find it absurd just thinking about it.
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