Why Not Replace Him with a Minister Who Listened?

"An Alder Wand, with a unicorn tail hair core, nine inches long."

Ollivander took one look and named the wand's materials. At the same time, information about its owner slipped from his lips. "This wand belongs to Quirinus Quirrell. I heard Hogwarts appointed him as its Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this year.

How did his wand end up here? And it's cracked! Fortunately, it hasn't been damaged beyond saving!"

Ollivander treasured wands beyond all else and could not bear to see one damaged. As he spoke, he reached out to take Quirrell's wand and consider how to repair it.

To his surprise, Dudley immediately pulled the wand back and tucked it into the inner pocket of his coat.

What a joke! If you repair it, its rating will jump straight to A-grade!

The fusion cost will skyrocket!

How am I supposed to finish my crash course in spells then?!

"Mr. Ollivander, you only need to issue me a certificate! This wand is tied to an important matter, so there is no need to repair it!"

Dudley looked all business. Ollivander could say nothing further and had no choice but to walk behind the counter, take out a sheet of parchment, and begin writing and drawing.

Outstanding wandmakers all possessed decent carving and drawing skills. This was evident from the thousands of wands in the shop, each with its own distinctive shape.

Even when wands used identical materials, Ollivander gave every one of them a unique appearance.

Thus, before long, Mr. Ollivander had recreated Quirrell's cracked wand from memory on the parchment. It was vividly lifelike, practically identical to the original.

He then noted the wand's materials and owner, finally signing his own name and adding his family's distinctive crest with a touch of magic.

A certificate that was simple yet far from ordinary was complete.

"Thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Ollivander!"

Dudley snatched up the parchment with lightning speed, casually thanked him, and led Harry away.

By the time Mr. Ollivander came back to his senses, the two brothers had already opened the shop door and left.

A sudden sense of unease came over him. Remembering Dudley's advice, he closed his eyes and carefully felt the lives and wills of the thousands of wands within the shop.

One minute, ten minutes, half an hour, one hour...

Whether Mr. Ollivander managed to commune with the wands in his shop, Dudley neither cared about nor concerned himself with.

In any case, he had obtained what he wanted without spending a single Knut.

After leaving the wand shop, he and Harry saw Hagrid with a miserable expression, along with Dumbledore standing there with lowered eyes, lost in thought.

"What's wrong, Hagrid? Did you lose some money?"

Dudley cracked a joke. After a satisfying verbal outburst and a highly profitable bout of verbal fraud, he was feeling much better.

Yet happiness seemed to be constant. When one person laughed, someone else cried.

"No, Dudley. It's much worse than that. Minister Fudge simply won't believe what Dumbledore and I told him. He's a fool. He won't admit Voldemort has returned, and he doesn't believe I didn't commit a crime!"

Hagrid spoke in a gloomy voice.

Having erased the stain Dumbledore had left in his heart, the poor half-giant still could not shake off his low spirits.

"Is this Minister Fudge very powerful? More powerful than the 'great Dumbledore'?"

Dudley asked in a sarcastic tone. As he spoke, he took a brand-new suitcase, a gift from the robe shop, from one of the magical carts parked by the roadside.

"Oh, Dudley, of course not. No one is more powerful than Professor Dumbledore. Not even Voldemort would dare claim that."

Hagrid answered without hesitation. In his heart, Dumbledore stood infinitely high.

"Then what about reputation? Does this Minister Fudge have greater influence than the 'great Dumbledore'?"

Dudley continued. By then, he had opened the suitcase and pointed the poplar wand that was most compatible with him at the space inside it.

"That's impossible too!" Hagrid said. "Professor Dumbledore has unparalleled influence, both in Britain and internationally."

"Then why are you two standing here feeling depressed and brooding with your heads down? Are your brains broken? If this minister can't understand human speech, then replace him with a minister who can!"

Dudley calmly said something utterly shocking.

He truly could not understand Dumbledore's way of thinking. If the old man was supposedly law-abiding, he still occasionally bent rules through his strength and status—for instance, forcibly protecting the framed Hagrid, or allowing the Gringotts Goblins to compensate Dudley with a living dragon.

Yet if he was supposedly free-spirited, then at crucial moments involving major matters, he could never be firm to the end. Possessing such tremendous power, he still meekly played the compromiser, leaving himself stifled, his allies miserable, and his enemies delighted, with time and opportunity to quietly build up their strength.

"This is not right, Dudley! I can't do that, you..."

Dumbledore, still reflecting on himself, was startled by Dudley's wild words.

He hurriedly scanned the surroundings. Only after confirming there were no other wizards nearby did he instinctively reject Dudley's idea according to his usual way of thinking. He even wanted to reason this lawless young genius wizard out of the crooked notions in his head.

But Dudley did not hear what he wanted to hear. Ignoring Dumbledore completely, he began casting a spell, cutting off Dumbledore's pointless rambling.

"Undetectable Extension!"

Dudley waved his wand at the suitcase and recited the incantation, imitating the casting process Hagrid had used earlier.

The Undetectable Extension Charm was an advanced spell and subject to Ministry of Magic approval and control. The spellbook Mr. Diggle had bought for Dudley contained no relevant instructions, so this was Dudley's first attempt. He skipped the theory entirely and went straight into practical casting.

"Pop!"

A strange noise rang out. Dudley's wand released a spark trailing black smoke before swiftly going out. Clearly, he had failed.

"Dudley, your pronunciation is wrong, and so is your wand movement."

Dumbledore stopped discussing pointless matters. Seeming to have figured something out, he watched Dudley's attempt and began instructing him like a teacher.

This time, Dudley did not ignore Dumbledore. He learned seriously.

He was a pragmatist. He would not give up an opportunity to improve his strength over trivial matters such as pride or emotion.

After some guidance, Dudley successfully cast the Undetectable Extension Charm in a passable manner, abruptly expanding the suitcase's interior to one hundred cubic meters, like a modestly sized room.

However, perhaps because he was not proficient enough, or perhaps because his technique was insufficient, the expanded space could not be maintained permanently. It would last only a week, falling short of Dudley's expectations.

Dumbledore saw what Dudley was thinking. Without another word, he held the Elder Wand and pointed it at the suitcase in midair.

"Undetectable Extension! Weight-Reducing Charm! Preservation Charm! Spell Stabilization Charm!"

A smooth string of spells, effortless and seamless.

Dudley watched helplessly as an ordinary suitcase became a C-grade magical item in an instant.

Inside it, not only was a vast thousand-cubic-meter space permanently stabilized, but any stored items would remain preserved for a long time without affecting the suitcase's own weight.

It was an excellent-quality storage artifact!

"Very good!"

Dudley praised it, then stored all five magical carts, packed to the brim with items, inside the suitcase. These were all the belongings he and Harry had purchased, aside from Hedwig, who was shut inside her birdcage.

Harry was afraid his pet and messenger would feel stifled inside the suitcase, so he carried the cage directly in his hand.

After putting everything away, Dudley carried the magical suitcase and turned toward Dumbledore, delivering a parting ultimatum.