Gaunt Ring

The battle at the Ministry of Magic had dealt a severe blow to Voldemort's Death Eaters, while the Order of the Phoenix seized the opportunity to strike with thunderous force and took control of the Ministry in one fell swoop.

The period that followed would usher in a brief peace.

Dealing with the Death Eaters was a trivial matter. They were generally centered around those Pure-blood Families.

The Pure-blood Families all harbored ulterior motives. What they cared about was the tangible benefit Voldemort's rise to power could bring them.

If Voldemort ever fell from power, they would abandon him as quickly as possible.

The remaining lunatics who had been bewitched by Pure-blood Theory were nothing to fear. The Aurors could capture them easily, since they had originally been wanted fugitives.

Thus, while the Wizarding World appeared peaceful on the surface, the Order of the Phoenix, led by Dumbledore, had been searching for a way to kill Voldemort.

To kill Voldemort, they first had to destroy all of his Horcruxes.

With Dumbledore's current strength, defeating Voldemort was not entirely without hope.

If Dumbledore had been determined to keep Voldemort behind during that night's battle at the Ministry of Magic, he would certainly have had the Order of the Phoenix focus their attacks on Voldemort.

At that point, no matter how powerful Voldemort was, he would have met his end under the siege of so many powerful wizards.

But he had Horcruxes. As long as they remained intact, even if he were killed seven or eight more times, it would merely reduce him to the state of a wandering spirit.

Once he hid again, who knew what vicious plan he might devise?

Therefore, the Order of the Phoenix set its strategy: destroy the Horcruxes first, then kill Voldemort.

As for destroying the