bioinnovel Chapter 189 Decay and Incompetence
Chapter 189 Decay and Incompetence
Chapter 189 Decay and Incompetence
It was afternoon, and the Ministry of Magic's magnificent hall was bustling with people.
Once upon a time, Belvina was also a member of the Ministry of Magic, a beneficiary of this corrupt and massive organization.
As the chair beneath her changed, Belvina's stance shifted, gradually moving her to the opposite side of the Ministry of Magic, and today she's even here to disrupt things on behalf of Dumbledore.
Looking back, Cornelius Fudge's decision was absolutely out of his mind, personally sending his most capable assistant to Hogwarts.
Belvina took a deep breath, then strode quickly across the gleaming dark wooden floor to the other end of the hall. After passing the fountain, the elevator lobby came into view.
"Good afternoon, Miss Blake."
"Belvina! You're back!"
"It's so good to see you, Miss Blake!"
"Belvina, shouldn't you be at Hogwarts?"
Many people greeted and chatted with Belvina along the way, but she didn't stop as she used to. Instead, she kept a gloomy face and ignored everyone.
Everyone could tell that Belvina was in a bad mood, and no one wanted to provoke her, nor did anyone go up to ask why.
At this time of year, Belvina should be enjoying a leisurely weekend at Hogwarts, but instead she's at the Ministry of Magic in London. Could something big have happened at the school?
To the left of the golden doors in the elevator lobby, there was a table with a sign that read "Security Check" on it. A young-looking wizard was sitting behind the table.
The wizard in charge of security checks wore a light-colored robe, his beard was neatly shaved, and his clear eyes still held a purity untouched by the Ministry of Magic.
His name is Alvin Hewitt, and he is a newcomer to the Ministry of Magic who has only been there for the past two years.
Young Hewitt saw Belvina hurrying by. Although he felt that guarding the gate was a waste of his talents, he still dutifully stood up and prepared to complete the security check.
However, Belvina didn't even glance at Hewitt, and walked past the check-in counter straight towards the elevator inside.
Ignored, Alvin Hewitt rushed forward to stop her; he knew who Belvina Black was.
But he didn't know that the witch who had suddenly barged in was Blake.
Young Mr. Hewitt had never actually met Belvina, only seen her photograph in a report in the Daily Prophet.
"Madam, please state your purpose and show me your wand." Hewitt ran a few steps and hurriedly caught up with Belvina as she entered the elevator hall, blocking her way.
This was Alvin Hewitt's duty: to register the purpose of every stranger entering or leaving the Ministry of Magic.
Record their wand information.
Alvin Hewitt's running and loud protests immediately drew the attention of everyone else in the elevator lobby, and a group of Ministry of Magic employees turned to look.
Some people recognized Belvina immediately, while others remembered who she was after being reminded by their companions.
Former head of the Public Press Service at the Ministry of Magic, advisor to the Minister of Magic, and currently a professor of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts.
Recipient of the Order of Merlin, First Class.
Some people stood with their arms crossed, ready to watch the show, but they clearly realized that the young man in charge of the security check had messed up.
Some people were about to step forward and say a few kind words, but they could clearly see the icy coldness on Belvina's face, and they were determined not to let the unlucky young man offend her.
At this point, Hewitt still didn't recognize who Belvina was, but he could still feel the gloating looks in the elevator lobby.
"Excuse me, ma'am," Hewitt said, forcing a smile, "please state your purpose and present your wand for inspection."
Belvina, her face tense, glanced at the young man blocking her way, surprised. It seemed she had indeed been away from the Ministry of Magic for too long, as she was being stopped by security personnel.
Under normal circumstances, Belvina would probably have obediently accepted the examination and might even have remembered the responsible young wizard in front of her.
But Belvina was there to cause trouble, and she wasn't going to cooperate with the inspection. So Belvina stood there motionless, deliberately making things difficult for the other party.
Not kicking over the security checkpoint at the main entrance was already a sign of restraint.
"Come here," Belvina said, pointing to someone at random. "You come here and tell him who I am."
She beckoned with her finger, and a male wizard who was just waiting to watch the spectacle became the unfortunate lucky one.
The man walked up to Alvin Hewitt and whispered, "This is Belvina Black."
Young Hewitt knew he had kicked a hornet's nest; he had stopped the wrong person. He wanted to say a few good words for himself, but Belvina spoke up first.
"Speak louder, didn't you have lunch?" Belvina said. Although the dry bread in England wasn't very good, the Ministry of Magic's logistics were still quite good.
"This is Belvina Black," the wizard who had originally wanted to watch the spectacle exclaimed. "She's the Minister's advisor, a professor at Hogwarts, and..." He now deeply regretted his decision to go and watch the show.
Belvina interrupted the man, not wanting to hear anything about the Order of Merlin's medals, as it made her feel insulted.
"Have you memorized it?" Belvina asked. "If you have, I'm leaving now."
Alvin Hewitt was young, not a complete naiveté, so he didn't dare to continue obstructing him and quickly stepped aside.
Belvina ignored the young Hewitt, not even offering a disdainful or mocking glance, and walked straight past him toward the elevator.
The other employees in the elevator lobby made way for them. They were all wizards who worked within the system, and regardless of their other abilities, their eyesight was definitely not a problem.
Everyone could see that Belvina was very unhappy at this moment. Just because she didn't argue with the lower-ups didn't mean she wouldn't cause trouble for those above her. If those above her were to be targeted, it would be the small fry who would suffer.
Soon, Belvina stepped into the elevator alone. The golden gate closed gently, and with a series of clanging and clattering sounds, Belvina and the elevator disappeared together.
Only then did the employees in the elevator lobby breathe a sigh of relief and begin to discuss in hushed tones the purpose of Belvina's visit.
"What's wrong with her?" someone asked. "She looks like she's here to cause trouble."
"Who knows? Shouldn't she be at school right now?" someone else said. "Could something have happened at school?"
"Sirius Black!" someone else exclaimed, as if they'd discovered a hidden detail. "Could it be that they've caught Black? She's that person's sister!"
People in the elevator hall were speculating about all sorts of things, but no one expected that the Dementors had attacked Hogwarts a little over an hour earlier, let alone that the Dementors had almost killed Harry Potter.
The unfortunate but lucky wizard sighed, patted Alvin Hewitt on the shoulder, and complained, "Next time, keep your eyes wide open and don't dare to stop just anyone."
Young Alvin Hewitt hung his head in despair; the Ministry of Magic was nothing like he had imagined. On the other side, in the elevator, Belvina crossed her arms, her right index finger repeatedly raising and lowering, tapping her left arm.
Belvina was thinking about how she should convey Dumbledore's anger when she met Fudge, so as to express the headmaster's attitude without causing a complete falling out between the headmaster and the minister.
This is Dumbledore's true attitude towards the Dementor attack. The headmaster was furious and wanted to teach Fudge a lesson, but Dumbledore couldn't do that.
Cornelius Fudge is, after all, the Minister of Magic and the nominal leader of the British wizarding community. Beating him up would certainly feel good, but it would be detrimental to Hogwarts and might even affect Harry.
That's why Dumbledore appointed Belvina as the middleman, trusting that she could handle the relationship between the school and the Ministry of Magic properly.
Belvina sighed inwardly. Dumbledore had really given her a difficult problem, because Belvina now also wanted to "use the sword in the hand of a loving mother to cut Fudge down."
What kind of things did Cornell Fudge do? Are those things a human being could do?
The Dementors' attack on Hogwarts was infuriating enough, but the Anti-Volus's Noble Phantasm caused it to crash from dozens or even hundreds of feet in the air. It's not like it can turn into Potter-chan, let alone Potter-pie!
The elevator slowly ascended, its chains clattering. A cold, indifferent female voice suddenly rang out from within the elevator: "First floor, the Minister of Magic's office and logistics department, including the office of the Senior Deputy Minister, the Minister's Advisor, and the Assistant Minister, as well as the Ministry of Magic's Public Press Office."
The golden gate slid open gently, revealing a long corridor covered with a thick crimson carpet—a corridor Belvina had walked through countless times.
Taking another deep breath, Belvina stepped out of the elevator with a gloomy face, the golden gate closing behind her.