Making Trouble

"Sir?" Truman drew a deep breath and said loudly, "You're just leaving like that?"

"Is there a problem?" Natley looked at Truman in confusion.

"So that means I'm fine now?" Truman was very dissatisfied with the Ministry of Magic's attitude.

"Yes, this was entirely a mistake." Natley's tone was highly official.

Truman glanced at Albert beside him and said coldly, "I need an apology, sir. Do you have any idea how much this letter affected me? Do you know how angry I was when I found myself facing a trial and the risk of expulsion for no reason at all? And now you're saying everything is fine, as if you can just brush me off. Do you think a child is easy to bully, sir?"

Truman's tone grew even firmer. The Ministry of Magic actually intended to pat themselves on the back and leave just like that, which truly enraged him. Thanks to the preparation Albert had given him earlier, his initially trembling voice gradually became resolute. "I need an apology from the Ministry of Magic. This entire matter was caused by your mistake and had nothing whatsoever to do with me. And... the Ministry of Magic must compensate me for emotional distress." In truth, if the Ministry of Magic had apologized to him, Truman would not have asked for any compensation. But their attitude made him furious.

"What? I didn't hear that clearly." Natley's expression stiffened, and even Dumbledore's expression became quite interesting.

"An apology, and compensation for emotional distress, sir." Truman clenched his fists. "One hundred Galleons."

"I'm sorry, child. I regret the trouble this has caused you, but compensation for emotional distress... there has never been such a precedent." Natley could not help raising an eyebrow.

"I don't accept your apology, sir. You have no sincerity at all." Truman said angrily, "Do you think you can bully me just because I'm a child?"

Natley and Dumbledore looked at each other.

"I think it's perfectly reasonable, gentlemen. I was there at the time. When Truman lunged at me after reading the letter, I even suspected he'd gone mad. It took me a long time to calm him down, and I suggested that he write a letter to Headmaster Dumbledore." Albert calmly looked at the two men before him without the slightest fear. Honestly, he did not like the Ministry of Magic. At least, that had been the case when he read the novels. After seeing how the Ministry handled matters, he liked it even less.

After making such a huge mistake, they should at least offer a sincere apology! Damn it, what kind of attitude was it to just walk away?

To put it bluntly, they were merely a group of people abusing their authority. No wonder Voldemort had reduced them to such a pathetic state.

"Besides, I also think your apology lacks any sincerity." Albert narrowed his eyes. "I've met adults like you before. One of my teachers was that sort of person."

Natley's face immediately darkened.

"Of course, you can also just treat us as children." Albert suddenly smiled and patted Truman on the shoulder. "Some people are simply like that. Don't take it too seriously. Let's go back. I'm a little hungry. We can contact each other by owl another day. Maybe we can talk about studying."

Natley left with a dark face. He had no idea what he would soon have to face.

"Well then, goodbye, Headmaster." Albert gave Dumbledore a slight nod. "Thank you very much for helping Truman resolve this trouble. If he had been expelled because of me, I would have felt guilty about it."

"Goodbye, Mr. Anderson, and Mr. Truman." Headmaster Dumbledore left as well.

"Those people are awful." Truman clenched his fist. "What kind of attitude was that? It's disgusting. I really wanted to punch him hard."

"So, do you want to write to the Daily Prophet?" After Dumbledore had left, Albert smiled at Truman.

Just then, Albert had triggered a quest called "Truman's Dissatisfaction," which was also one of the reasons he had decided to help him.

"Yes. We absolutely have to expose this."

"Remember, I get half the reward." Albert was not afraid of stirring up trouble at all. The quest's reward was generous—three thousand experience points, plus an additional twenty-five Galleons.

"Fine, you write it. By the way, are your family really Lawyers?" Truman could not help asking.

"Of course. They're all Lawyers, so I'm actually quite good at dealing with this sort of thing. Besides, we did nothing wrong. Society sympathizes with the weak, and people will definitely enjoy seeing a Ministry of Magic scandal in the Daily Prophet. When the time comes, we'll discuss it with the reporter and make sure our names and photos don't appear in the paper. Also, keep that letter from the Ministry of Magic safe."

Albert knew someone who was perfectly suited for this job.

Britain, London, Daily Prophet headquarters. Rita Skeeter was pondering that day's special edition. There had been no major news worth writing about recently, and it was giving her a headache.

People liked big news. Whether it was true or exaggerated, as long as it caught readers' attention, Rita Skeeter considered it a successful newspaper.

She was questioning her assistant, trying to find some news that could spark discussion.

Not long afterward, several letters were placed on Rita Skeeter's desk. She opened the envelopes. Some cursed her, while others offered her bits of gossip. However, one letter successfully caught Rita Skeeter's attention. After reading it, she knew this was the news she wanted, because a photograph had been enclosed with it.

A few days later, the Ministry of Magic's Misuse of Magic Office became famous. In the Daily Prophet, Rita Skeeter depicted it as a department that constantly made blunders, refused to apologize for its mistakes, and handled matters with an appallingly bad attitude.

Natley was singled out as well. The unfortunate man became the target of countless verbal and written attacks.

At the end of her article, Rita Skeeter wrote that the victim had expressed doubts over whether the Ministry of Magic was still worthy of trust. He had revealed the matter to the Daily Prophet and demanded fifty Galleons in compensation for emotional distress, which the Ministry of Magic had refused to pay. This sum should originally have been paid by the Ministry of Magic, and they still owed that child a sincere apology."

When Natley saw the newspaper, he suddenly felt that his decision back then had been truly terrible. He remembered what the boy had said: "Do you think a child is easy to bully, sir?"

Yet the other party had proved with facts that he was not easy to bully.

Not long after the paper was published, it immediately caused a sensation.

Natley was forced to take unpaid leave for the time being, because the Misuse of Magic Office had suffered as well. Many people sent letters there.

With her pen, Rita Skeeter showed everyone the destructive power of words. After obtaining the two boys' accounts and descriptions, the reporter skillfully used those words to fabricate the content she wanted, while conveniently throwing the Ministry of Magic into chaos.

She was not worried at all that the story would seem untrustworthy, because the letter from the Ministry of Magic Misuse of Magic Office had been included as evidence. There was no way they could deny it.

Truman was in an excellent mood. He received twenty-five Galleons as compensation for emotional distress. It was a fortune beyond anything he could ever have imagined.

Moreover, the female reporter had not revealed either his or Albert's name. Just as Albert had guessed, the Daily Prophet used the matter as its headline, fiercely criticizing the Ministry of Magic and conveniently bringing misfortune upon those people.

Albert was in a very good mood as well. His quest had been completed, and he had also gained Truman's friendship. During Summer vacation, they often kept in touch by owl, and Truman could offer him some help with magic.

As for the Galleons he received, Albert used them to subscribe to the Daily Prophet.