The Ministry of Magic's Plan

Sony was founded in 1946 and headquartered in Tokyo. After years of development, it had become a major comprehensive multinational conglomerate.

Its newly appointed sixth president and representative director was Nobuyuki Idei, who had been the driving force behind Sony Music's collaboration with MJ.

Someone was determined to acquire the music rights to Sony/ATV, which was enough to prove just how sharp Idei's instincts were.

"Investigate this young man."

Half an hour later, the secretary returned. Idei accepted the thin personal file without expression and read it carefully.

Vincent Wayne

Male

British

Age unknown

The only son of Eric Wayne, the new owner of Bugatti, chairman of Wall Street's newly established Prologue Investment Company, holder of large quantities of United States tech company stock, and the second-largest shareholder of BMG Records as of 3:45 this afternoon.

Idei frowned slightly. "Is this all for now?"

"Yes, President Idei. I've had our branches in Britain and the United States begin an in-depth investigation. A more detailed file will be available soon."

Idei opened the drawer beneath his desk and placed the thin file inside.

This young man was far from simple. The internet age was about to arrive, and the tech stocks in his hands would soar in the future.

Idei had never believed in luck. There had to be a special reason why the other party had suddenly entered the declining record industry.

"Focus on investigating his connections. I want to know why he's so determined to acquire Sony/ATV's music rights."

The secretary nodded solemnly. "Understood, President Idei."

Britain, Ministry of Magic.

After being reduced to ashes by Fiendfyre, the Minister's office had been rebuilt. It was no longer resplendent in gold and jade, but compared to the other departments, it could still be called luxurious.

At the expensive mahogany table, Fudge was reading Umbridge's letter.

Naturally, she had not honestly disclosed what she had been doing at Hogwarts. She had merely pointed out that the school's system had extremely serious problems, particularly its selection process for model students and prefects.

Having the headmaster directly appoint them based on student performance was not only unfair, but also granted the headmaster excessive authority, which was detrimental to the Ministry of Magic's plans.

Fudge set the letter down with a frown. In his eyes, this selection system had practically been tailor-made for Dumbledore to win over outstanding students.

From 1969 until now, Dumbledore had officially served as Hogwarts headmaster for twenty-six years. How many exceptional students had joined his ranks during that time? And after graduation, how far had they risen across the various professions of the Wizarding World?

The more he thought about it, the worse his headache became. Fudge rubbed his throbbing temples.

Dumbledore's "ambition" was expanding by the day. Before long, he would take action and interfere in the Ministry of Magic's power struggle.

Those outstanding graduates would surely aid him. Fudge might be stripped of his position as Minister in his sleep, or even be "maliciously" framed and thrown into Azkaban.

"No—" Fudge's face turned pale as cold sweat broke out across his body.

He would not allow things to develop in a worse direction. He had to strike first.

But Vincent was Hogwarts' largest board member, and the castle was "controlled" jointly by him and Dumbledore. Umbridge had entered the school as the Ministry of Magic's Special Educational Commissioner, but aside from supervision, there was nothing else she could do.

He needed a reason—a reason that would arouse public outrage, a reason that would force the Ministry of Magic to intervene in the school's management.

Campus bullying, academic misconduct, faculty corruption and bribery, under-the-table manipulation of resource allocation, student violence caused by conflicting school rules...

Fudge grinned. With just a casual bit of thought, he had already come up with so many excuses.

He took out parchment and a quill and wrote a reply to Umbridge, who was far away at Hogwarts.

At seven in the evening,

Umbridge, who had anxiously waited all afternoon, finally received the reply.

She had only read two lines before a smile of triumph appeared on her face.

Despite her limited mobility, she immediately took her little notebook and left her office.

Great Hall,

The students who had been enjoying dinner immediately lost their appetites.

At first, they had all thought the pink toad was targeting Hermione. Yet after circling the Gryffindor table, she unexpectedly made her way over to the Slytherin table.

Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff did not escape either. She even scrutinized several professors at the staff table from head to toe.

"Where is Professor Snape?"

Professor Charity Burbage, who taught Muggle Studies, lightly adjusted the glasses on her nose. "Professor Umbridge, what do you need him for?"

"Nothing." Umbridge quickly wrote a line in her little notebook. "I was merely asking."

She looked toward the other empty seats at the staff table. "Do Professor McGonagall and the others usually not come to the Great Hall for dinner either?"

Burbage did not quite understand what she was trying to ask.

The school had never required professors to eat at the staff table. Umbridge herself never came either, so why was she asking such a question?

"Professor Burbage, it doesn't matter if you don't answer. I know the school's food is very poor."

Burbage tilted her head, seeming to faintly grasp something. "Professor Umbridge, I don't think there's anything wrong with the school's food. Perhaps you're simply not used to it yet."

"Is that so?" Umbridge carefully studied her expression with a scrutinizing gaze.

Burbage was famously mild-tempered, but even she was somewhat angered by being looked over like that.

Her tone carried a hint of displeasure. "Professor Umbridge, what exactly are you doing?"

"I'm investigating." Umbridge regretfully withdrew her gaze. "As the Ministry of Magic's Special Educational Commissioner, I have a responsibility to investigate every corner of the school."

She flashed what she believed to be a sweet smile at the four long tables below. "Look, everyone seems to have lost their appetites."

Disgusted by her, Burbage gave an awkward smile.

Whose fault was it that everyone had no appetite? Wasn't it because of her?

People needed some self-awareness. No wonder the entire school, teachers and students alike, disliked her.

"Professor Burbage, what do you think is the reason?"

"Uh... well, I'm not very sure. Maybe it's because—"

The smile on Umbridge's face became even brighter. "Because of corruption in the administration, correct?"

Burbage suddenly froze.

It was bad enough that she lacked self-awareness. She deliberately picked faults while feeling pleased with herself. No wonder the entire school, teachers and students alike, disliked her.

Seeing that Burbage did not answer, Umbridge casually wrote another line in her little notebook.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Professor Burbage. Enjoy your meal."

The revolting pink toad had finally left, but no one had much of an appetite anymore.

The castle dungeons,

The sound of heels tapping against the floor drifted eerily into Snape's office.

"Knock, knock—Professor Snape, are you there?"