bioinnovel Chapter 378 Fudge's Crisis
Chapter 378 Fudge's Crisis
Chapter 378 Fudge's Crisis
Cornelius Fudge looked terrible, as if someone had just stolen his favorite toy.
Seeing Dumbledore closing in, Fudge felt an intense sense of crisis and immediately thought of two people.
The first person that comes to mind is Eugenia Jenkins, who served as Minister for Magic from 1968 to 1975. Due to her inability to deal with Voldemort's rise, Eugenia had to step down.
The second person that comes to mind is Harold Mintham, who served as Minister of Magic from 1975 to 1980. Harold was a hardliner, but he was also unable to contain Voldemort, and he ultimately met a similar fate as Jenkins.
Now, Cornelius Fudge is about to face the same predicament as his two predecessors: how to effectively curb Voldemort's rise.
Fudge knew he was not a qualified wartime leader; he could not do what his two predecessors had failed to do, and Voldemort's rise was unstoppable.
Fudge also knew that the safest way to stop Voldemort was to follow Dumbledore's instructions and act according to his advice.
However, whenever Cornelius Fudge saw Dumbledore, he would be reminded of the early days when he took over as Minister for Magic.
At that time, many people said Fudge was a lucky guy, that he got his ministerial position by chance, and that he was Dumbledore's puppet, obeying Dumbledore in everything.
At that time, Cornelius Fudge didn't care about the gossip. He wasn't very confident in his abilities, so he was happy to seek help from Dumbledore.
But now things are different. Connelly Fudge is deeply fascinated by everything that power and status bring him. He is no longer willing to share the power in his hands and can no longer tolerate the comments that he is a puppet.
The Minister of Magic should take orders from the headmaster of a school? Where in the world is there any logic to that?
Cornelius Fudge no longer wanted to live in Dumbledore's shadow, even if Dumbledore was right!
"Voldemort has regained his physical form, and we must face that, Cornelius." Dumbledore's tone softened somewhat, but remained firm.
Upon hearing the name Voldemort, Cornelius Fudge shuddered once again.
"Don't mention that name, Dumbledore!" Fudge said frantically, his eyes fixed on Dumbledore. "The Man from Darkness hasn't returned. It was all a conspiracy by Crouch and his son."
The first step is to negate Dumbledore, negate everything about him, and prevent him from further expanding his influence.
Only in this way can the Ministry of Magic be protected from corruption and remain under the correct leadership of Cornelius Fudge.
"Young Crouch was confined to the school, old Crouch died at Riddle Hall, and where did the Fiendfire that burned down the cemetery come from?" Dumbledore asked.
Dumbledore remained seated behind his large desk, his tone still calm, but Belvina could tell that Dumbledore's patience was nearly exhausted.
Although Dumbledore was still sitting there, he exuded an indescribable power, like a volcano about to erupt.
Connelly Fudge, the minister, stood there dazed, as if he had been punched hard, unable to utter a single word.
Fudge, looking flustered, stammered, his eyes still fixed on Dumbledore.
He said, "The tomb... Fiendfire... Where is the Fiendfire?... Muggle credentials are unreliable... There is no Fiendfire..."
In order to refute Dumbledore, Cornelius Fudge went so far as to lie through his teeth, even ignoring the fact that the person in question was standing right next to him.
He continued, "I think you're deliberately creating panic, Dumbledore—this won't do, this absolutely won't do, it will ruin everything we've worked so hard for over thirteen years."
As he spoke, Cornelius Fudge's face turned purplish-red, perhaps from shame, or perhaps from excessive excitement.
He continued, "You're deliberately creating panic because you feel I don't respect you enough, and you want to reclaim the glory that once belonged to you—" He became increasingly agitated, "Only when the Mysterious Man returns will people remember you and value you again!"
Connelly Fudge became more and more excited as he spoke, to the point that he almost believed it himself.
"Cornelly, I implore you to face this reality and stop deluding yourself," Dumbledore said. "Voldemort is back, and if you accept this fact immediately, we can take control of the situation—"
"Enough, Dumbledore!" Fudge roared. "There's no Voldemort! It's all the Crouch family's doing, a plot to overthrow the Ministry of Magic!"
Having known Cornelius Fudge for so many years, this was the first time Belvina had ever seen him lose his temper like this.
"And you!" Fudge pointed at Dumbledore, "you just want to control me, and thus control the Ministry of Magic—you're tired of the school, aren't you, Dumbledore!"
"I don't want to control you, and I have no interest in the Ministry of Magic." Dumbledore stood up, his voice rising. "Voldemort is back, and he will once again gather his followers—weren'tors, giants, and those Death Eaters of yesteryear. Once these people are back under his command, the world we have painstakingly rebuilt will be destroyed once more!"
"Nonsense, utter nonsense!" Fudge shook his head as he slowly backed away. "I think we have nothing more to talk about."
Cornelius Fudge retreated step by step, and the more eager Dumbledore appeared, the more Fudge felt that he wanted to plot his way to power.
Fudge doesn't want to become a second Jenkins, nor a second Mintham. Neither Dumbledore nor Mystic can remove him from his ministerial position!
"If you still refuse to acknowledge all of this, then there's really nothing more to discuss with you," Dumbledore said. "I will act according to my will, and you, you can continue to dream of a peaceful world!"
Dumbledore's tone was calm and his threat level was low; he sounded more like he was issuing a statement.
Hearing this, Belvina frowned again. Why was Dumbledore in such a hurry? Why did he have to force Fudge to immediately admit that Voldemort had returned?
"Very well, very well, Dumbledore!" Fudge laughed angrily, threateningly saying, "I've always treated you with utmost respect, and this is the result I get! Fine, since you want to go against the Ministry of Magic..."
Cornelius Fudge didn't finish his sentence; he wagged his finger threateningly, then turned and walked out of the principal's office.
At this crucial moment when Voldemort is making a comeback, the Minister of Magic and the Headmaster of Hogwarts have broken ties, which is not a good thing. Voldemort must be laughing all the way to the bank.
Belvina looked at Dumbledore.
Dumbledore was no longer as impatient as before; he seemed to have anticipated Fudge's overreaction.
After thinking it over, Belvina decided to leave Dumbledore behind and go check on Fudge first.
With that thought in mind, Belvina nodded to Dumbledore, then turned and left the headmaster's office to chase after Fudge, who was storming off in anger.
Perhaps due to excessive excitement, or perhaps because she felt Hogwarts was not safe enough, the Minister of Magic walked very fast, and Belvina only caught up with him at the top of the stairs on the sixth floor of the castle.
"Minister, please wait a moment!" Belvina called out from behind Fudge.
But Cornelius Fudge didn't stop; instead, he walked even faster, taking only a few steps to cross the stairs and reach the platform.
Belvina, who was following behind, had no choice but to quicken her pace and rush down the stairs like lightning, finally intercepting the furious Cornelius Fudge on the platform.
"Are you here to persuade me too?" Fudge's tone was icy, his attitude even more curt. "Are you here to act as Dumbledore's advocate?"
"Of course not." Belvina quickly shook her head in denial. "The Triwizard Tournament, Minister, I'm here for the Triwizard Tournament. With so many things happening at school recently, should the tournament be canceled?"
The missing Durmstrang principal, Igor Karkaroff, has yet to be found, and then it was revealed that Barty Crouch was actually Barty Crouch Jr. in disguise, and that both Crouch and his father were dead. The Triwizard Tournament is truly fraught with misfortune.
Even more ill-fated than the Triwizard Tournament was Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge.
Upon hearing Belvina's question, Fudge's face turned green. He couldn't come up with a single decent idea; his mind was filled with thoughts of how to deal with Dumbledore.
"Maybe we should just stop completely," Cornelius Fudge said with a pained expression. "The ministry is very busy right now and can't spare any more manpower to search for Karkaroff."
The fact that Barty Crouch can no longer serve as a referee is easily resolved; just find someone else to fill in.
The problem lies with Igor Karkarov; we can't just expect Durmstrang to immediately elect a new principal!
"Belvina," Cornelius Fudge suddenly lowered his voice, "I'll ask you one last time, you really—you really saw the Mystic, right there in Little Hangleton?"
Belvina looked away without responding, but Fudge had already heard the answer.
In an instant, Connery Fudge's anger vanished, replaced by boundless panic.
"The Mysterious Man is back—the Mysterious Man is really back—" Fudge stammered in a low voice, "Dumbledore—the Mysterious Man—this is terrible—"
Belvina was now absolutely certain that Cornelius Fudge had accepted the fact that Voldemort had returned, but for some special reason, he was unwilling to admit it or dare to make it public.
"Minister, do you remember Hector Foley?" Belvina asked. "He served from 1925 to 1939..."
He served as Minister of Magic during his tenure.
Cornelius Fudge looked up blankly, not understanding why Belvina had suddenly brought up the Minister of Magic from over fifty years ago.
"At the time, Gellert Grindelwald was stirring up so-called revolutions across Europe, but Minister Foley did not take it seriously, thinking that Grindelwald was not a threat."
Although Gellert Grindelwald never set foot in the British Isles, Hector Foley still lost his job and resigned in disgrace because of it.
Belvina continued, "Minister, whether you believe it or not, you must take action."
"That's enough," Cornelius Fudge said. "I'm the Minister for Magic, and I'll handle this myself."
Then there was a moment of silence. Belvina didn't seem as impatient as Dumbledore; she believed Fudge would think things through slowly.
While it's important to guard against Dumbledore's "scheme to seize power," it's even more important to prevent Voldemort's resurgence.
If Dumbledore succeeds in taking over, Fudge will only lose his position as Minister. But if Voldemort takes control of the Ministry of Magic, Fudge could be excommunicated.
"Belvina, will you always support me, no matter what decision I make?" Cornelius Fudge asked.
"Of course I will always support the Minister," Belvina said without hesitation, "but I'll be carrying your flag, not your coffin, Minister."
Connelly Fudge fell silent again and slowly walked down the stairs.
This time, Belvina didn't chase after him; she believed Fudge would soon figure out what was more important.