Lucius took the report and read it carefully, his brow furrowing.
"Make up the shortfall from the pure-blood fund again. Treat all of it as loans. They can repay it gradually."
The assistant looked conflicted. This was blatant bloodletting of the pure-bloods to support those at the bottom.
"Director, we've already drawn fifty thousand Galleons from the fund to subsidize Werewolf Potions and encourage ordinary wizards to start businesses, but we still haven't seen any returns. The pure-blood patriarchs who stepped back from active roles are very unhappy."
Lucius sighed.
"It's all right. I'll speak to them later."
The assistant said nothing more and took out an envelope.
"Director, this is the report from the Exploration Team in the United States. It's protected by confidentiality magic, so you'll have to open it yourself."
Lucius took the envelope, unsealed it with his magical energy, and read for a while. His slightly furrowed brow immediately relaxed.
"Excellent. As expected of a former pure-blood family of England, the Rowle Family has been very cooperative with the people we sent. Old Rowle isn't asking for much, either. He's willing to exchange access to resources and a school governor's seat for a modest stake in the Chamber of Commerce."
The assistant listened from the side. Quite capable himself, he spoke up with a reminder.
"Director, isn't this going a little too smoothly?"
Lucius paused, turned the matter over in his mind, and spoke in a slightly colder voice.
"A fair point. Still, this sort of thing comes down to how the subsequent maneuvering plays out. If they're sincere, well and good. If they actually dare to play tricks, hmph."
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
At Lucius's signal, the assistant went over to open it.
Daniel arrived with his head held high and his