This Deal Is Very Worthwhile

By Monday, something had suddenly started circulating in Hogwarts Castle.

It is said that during yesterday's Quidditch practice match, Kyle and the Weasley brothers got into a fight in the locker room due to some conflict.

At first, no one believed it, since everyone knew they were best friends and that even if they had a conflict, they would never fight.

But it soon became apparent that Fred and George appeared to be genuinely injured...

Both of them had a bruise above their eyes, as if they had been hit by something.

This caused an uproar in the castle.

The rumor was suddenly confirmed, which aroused the curiosity of countless people who wanted to know what could have caused former friends to fight each other.

But neither the Weasley brothers nor Kyle said a word about it, offering no explanation whatsoever.

Kyle was in Umbridge's office at that moment.

"Professor..." he said, looking at Umbridge who was fiddling with a bottle of dried flowers, "I already know why they went to the Hog's Head Inn's Head."

"What is it!" Umbridge immediately stopped what she was doing and asked urgently.

"Campaigning," Kyle said. "They're planning to mobilize their families to support Dumbledore becoming Minister for Magic."

"Damn it!" Umbridge cursed angrily, without a shred of doubt in Kyle's eyes.

Because of the rumors circulating at school, she naturally knew that Kyle had fought with the Weasley brothers.

She also knew that the Weasley brothers had been to the Hog's Head Inn.

The fact that longtime friends could turn against each other and even fight is enough to prove that Kyle is on the side of the Ministry of Magic, so the news he brought must be true.

Parents could be mobilized to support Dumbledore... If Minister Fudge knew, he would surely be furious.

Umbridge spun around in circles like a potato top, muttering to himself, "No, this must be stopped from happening again. There absolutely cannot be a second time."

"What are you planning to do?" Kyle asked.

"Disband all student organizations, associations, teams, and clubs, and prevent them from ever having the opportunity to get together again," Umbridge said.

"But Professor, people will complain about this," Kyle said. "Hogwarts students almost all participate in various clubs and teams. Isn't this approach a bit too radical?"

"It's alright, it's just that the old student groups have been disbanded, and they can definitely reorganize," Umbridge said. "But only with my permission."

As she spoke, she took out a piece of parchment, preparing to issue Educational Decree, which was essentially stricter school rules.

As High Inquisitor appointed by the Ministry of Magic, she has this authority.

"Professor, I still feel there's something wrong with this," Kyle continued. "There are just too many organizations, associations, and clubs at the school. If we were to investigate and reorganize them all, it would take at least a week, and the students at the back of the list would still complain."

"This is an order from the Ministry of Magic," Umbridge said arrogantly. "They must accept it."

"Of course..." Kyle said, "But I have a better way."

Umbridge stopped writing with her quill and looked up at him.

Kyle cleared his throat and said, "Actually, it doesn't matter if they want to support Dumbledore, as long as more people choose to support Minister Fudge, right?"

"What do you mean?" Umbridge asked.

"I've inquired; only about fifty people attended the party last time."

Kyle continued, "Compared to the entire Hogwarts, this number is actually not large, in fact, it's quite small. We can easily win over the remaining people and get them to support Minister Fudge."

"Think about it, Professor. If all the remaining hundreds of students in the school choose to support Minister Fudge, then these fifty-odd people become insignificant."

Umbridge's eyes lit up, and then she began to ponder Kyle's words.

Fudge would be furious if Fudge knew that students were openly supporting Dumbledore; there's no doubt about that.

But if she can garner more support for the Ministry of Magic, then the nature of the matter will change.

Kyle is right; compared to the rest of Hogwarts, fifty-odd people are really not that remarkable.

Moreover, even if she couldn't get everyone else to support the Ministry of Magic, even just half of them would be a great achievement for her.

"What should we do?" she asked. "How about we hold a party? We can hold it in the school Great Hall and have everyone come."

Kyle shook his head. "No need for that, Professor. That would make us seem like we have ulterior motives."

"Just let them know who truly cares about the students."

"So what's your plan?" Umbridge asked with interest.

Kyle didn't speak, a hesitant expression on his face.

"What?" Umbridge raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, if it succeeds, I'll tell Minister Fudge about your achievement."

"You've misunderstood, Professor," Kyle stammered. "It's just... as you know, our Hufflepuff House Points were surpassed by Slytherin today..."

"Kyle, there's something I have to say..." Umbridge looked at him with feigned seriousness and said, "Even as a professor, I can't just give students extra points arbitrarily; that's a shameful act of cheating."

"Yes, Professor, I know," Kyle said softly, "But if we win the House Cup this year too, it will be our sixth consecutive title..."

"Regardless, this kind of cheating is unacceptable," Umbridge said. "However, because you discovered some people's wrongdoing in time, I can make an exception and give Hufflepuff an extra twenty points this time."

"Thank you, Professor," Kyle said with a smile.

"Can you tell me your thoughts now?"

"Of course," Kyle said. "As long as we can make the students feel the Ministry of Magic's goodwill, we can start with Quidditch."

"Quidditch?" Umbridge frowned, somewhat puzzled by what he meant.

"That's right, it's the most popular sport at Hogwarts, and also the largest group."

Kyle said, "Dumbledore was too stingy, or rather, he didn't value Quidditch at all, which resulted in the school's brooms being outdated Comet and Cleansweep Series brooms that were not only slow but also had a terrible experience, which the team members complained about many times."

"If the Ministry of Magic were willing to fund a new batch of brooms for the school, I think everyone would jump for joy."

"Change the brooms?" Umbridge hesitated, then shook her head. "No, that's a lot of money."

"It doesn't need to be too expensive, just new, like the latest Cleansweep," Kyle said with a smile. "And if the Ministry of Magic handles the procurement, we should be able to get additional discounts, right? You can handle this yourself."

Umbridge seemed to realize something; her eyes flickered. She didn't reply, but she didn't object further either.

"I'll say it again, Professor..." Kyle pressed on, "There are many people who like Quidditch, and each team member has a considerable influence in the academy."

"With just a little money, you can effortlessly gain many supporters, while also highlighting Dumbledore's stinginess. It's a very worthwhile deal."