Eighteen years had passed since the Magic City of Dalaran rose into the sky.
Over time, people gradually accepted the fact that magic existed in this world, along with a small number of people capable of wielding it.
Wizards began daring to cast spells in front of Muggles without worrying about causing unrest or being punished by the Ministry of Magic.
Muggles, meanwhile, began growing accustomed to the possibility that their neighbors might be wizards—the sort who could suddenly vanish and reappear with a pop.
Of course, human society could never be free of conflict. News of Muggles attacking wizards and reports of wizards toying with Muggles appeared before the public almost every day.
Fortunately, these conflicts had always remained on an individual level and had never escalated.
As long as Bell, the world's number-one "terrorist," was still alive, the leaders of Muggle forces around the world would not dare organize a large-scale purge of wizards.
Otherwise, if "justice" suddenly descended from the heavens one day, they truly would not be able to withstand it.
Even now, wizards who had lived under the restrictions of the Statute of Secrecy for years were still affected by that law, despite its abolition.
Very few of them actively sought contact with Muggles. Some extreme pure-bloods even felt tainted by merely speaking to Muggles, causing no small amount of trouble.
But no matter what, beneath the deterrence of the hanging "Bell Menethil Sword of Damocles," the world as a whole had continued moving toward coexistence and mutual prosperity.
Thanks to this, Bell's reputation around the world had unknowingly hit rock bottom before making a dramatic reversal. As some people gradually realized Bell's immense contribution as a "restraining force," more and more began changing their views of him, from fear and disgust to worship and