As soon as Fudge finished speaking, the entire Ministry Atrium seemed to be silenced by a massive Silencing Charm.
The Order of Merlin, First Class!
The nomination should go to... that man in the trench coat wearing a fox mask.
When Fudge put these two words into the same sentence, everyone in the audience seemed to freeze in their tracks.
"Did I hear that right?" a male reporter wearing square-framed glasses in the front row whispered, his voice filled with disbelief and disorientation.
" Order of Merlin, First Class?"
"You heard me right," his colleague next to him chimed in, his tone even more dazed. "I heard it too."
Those who had been sitting in the back row of the main hall all stood up, while the reporters in the front row exchanged glances, as if confirming that what they had just heard was true.
" The Order of Merlin, First Class..." a witch in a dark green robe repeated the words to herself.
"That was... that was something Headmaster Dumbledore held."
"That's right, Headmaster Dumbledore earned that medal by defeating Grindelwald and ending the wizarding war that swept across Europe!"
"So now you're going to give this medal to someone who doesn't even dare to show their face?"
The buzzing of discussion in the main hall poured out like a flood bursting its banks.
"Do you remember Arcturus Black?" A middle-aged wizard standing by the aisle turned to the people behind him and said, "He also received the Order of Merlin, First Class."
" Arcturus Black? Which Black?"
"Which other Black is there?"
"That's the one who donated a huge sum of gold to the Ministry of Magic and then received a First Class Order medal."
"Oh, I remember now, the Ministry of Magic explained it was because of their dedicated service to the Ministry of Magic."
"Hmph, everyone knows how he got that medal."
"You mean..."
"What I mean is, this medal isn't only for people like Headmaster Dumbledore."
"If Arcturus Black can win, then nominating this trench coat guy doesn't seem so outrageous."
A few low laughs came from the crowd, but after the laughter subsided, there was more whispering and murmuring.
"Actually, if you think about it, that man in the trench coat has done quite a lot."
A young wizard in a brown coat counted on his fingers.
"During the Death Eaters invasion at Hogwarts, he single-handedly repelled more than a dozen."
" Diagon Alley Fiendfyre head-on this time, and that's Fiendfyre for you! He single-handedly saved everyone in the entire alley."
"Now that you mention it, it seems..."
"But he doesn't even have a name!" someone next to him interrupted.
Is it appropriate to award the Order of Merlin, First Class to an unknown person?
"Do you think he doesn't deserve this medal for what he did?"
The man paused for a moment, then did not answer.
Just then, several people in the front row of the main hall turned their heads at the same time, their eyes quietly falling on Fudge on the high platform.
Fudge stood on the high platform, his face bearing a perfectly measured solemnity, as if his proposal had just been a well-considered and entirely altruistic act.
But after their gazes lingered on his face for a second or two, they silently looked away.
Someone gently nudged the arm of the person next to them and slightly tilted their chin in Fudge's direction.
The person next to him immediately nodded in understanding.
It was no secret in the Wizarding World that Fudge had awarded himself the Order of Merlin, First Class.
That happened shortly after he took office Minister for Magic.
Wizengamot is nominally a subordinate organization of the Ministry of Magic, and as its minister, he naturally has the right to interfere with the medal approval process.
As for what he did that deserved a first-class medal, no one can say for sure.
The general consensus in the Wizarding World was that he was unworthy of the medal, but no one dared to say it to his face.
So when Fudge nominated the man in the trench coat for the Medal of Honour, the people in the audience had very mixed feelings.
Compared to Dumbledore, that man in the trench coat was definitely not up to par.
But compared to Arcturus Black, who at least genuinely saved hundreds of lives.
And compared to Gibbon? That goes without saying.
This comparison silently swirled in everyone's mind, and the nominations that initially seemed outrageous suddenly didn't seem so outrageous anymore.
A strange silence fell over the main hall. Hundreds of people were lost in their own thoughts. After the buzzing subsided, only a few hushed whispers remained.
Fudge stood on the high platform, his gaze sweeping over the faces below.
He knew the time was right, so he cleared his throat and moved the megaphone closer to his mouth.
That concludes today's press conference. Please leave in an orderly manner.
His voice came through the loudspeaker, like a meeting host announcing the end of the meeting.
There was a moment of silence in the audience as everyone snapped out of their thoughts, and then applause broke out.
It started with just a few people in the front row, but it quickly spread to the entire main hall.
People stood up from their seats and walked towards the exit in twos and threes, still discussing the news they had just heard.
"Do you think that man in the trench coat will come to claim him?" a young witch asked her companion as they walked.
"What's the point of accepting a medal? He won't even show his face. Do you think he'd come to accept a medal?"
"That's true. But now that Minister Fudge has mentioned it, if that man in the trench coat reappears, people will probably look at him differently."
"What's different?"
"Think about it, the Order of Merlin, First Class —that's not something just anyone can get. Minister Fudge personally nominated him, which means the Ministry of Magic acknowledges his contributions."
"Too."
"And look at what that supplement said. After today's press conference, who will believe it? They saved the whole Diagon Alley, Rita Skeeter barely even mentioned it."
"Shh, keep your voice down, she's right behind you."
The two people lowered their voices, quickened their pace, and blended into the flow of people heading towards the exit.
Fudge stood on the high platform, watching the people leave one by one, his expression remaining unchanged.
Only after the last person left the main hall did he turn slightly and walk towards the side corridor.
He walked into his office, closed the door behind him, and the lock clicked shut.
Then he stood behind the door, let out a long breath, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.
He walked behind his desk, draped his coat over the back of his chair, sat down, closed his eyes, and savored the scene for a while. A pleased smile involuntarily appeared on his lips.
Hundreds of people sat below the stage, while he stood on it, guiding their thoughts with every word he uttered.
He started by calling Lockhart a fraud, diverting everyone's attention from the Ministry of Magic's mistakes.
He then brought up the loopholes in Wizengamot's honor vetting process, pointing the finger at Dumbledore.
Finally, he released that memory, letting everyone see for themselves what the man in the trench coat had done.
But the most important step is the final one.
He was nominated for the Order of Merlin, First Class.
Fudge opened his eyes, his smile deepening.
That was a brilliant move.
Given Wizengamot's negligence and the impact of the Diagon Alley incident, Vincenzo will certainly strengthen its review process going forward.
In the future, if anyone wants to Order of Merlin, the review process will be much stricter than before.
The man in the trench coat had to show his face if he wanted to accept the award.
He couldn't possibly accept the medal with his face covered; Wizengamot wouldn't allow an unknown person to receive a first-class medal.
He must provide identification information, someone must come to collect it, and there must be verifiable documentation.
At that time, the Ministry of Magic had seized the initiative.
Isn't it the perfect bait to lure someone who wouldn't even reveal their identity suddenly having a reason to show themselves?
If he comes to claim it, the Ministry of Magic can follow the trail and find out more about him.
If he doesn't come to collect it, Fudge won't lose anything; he only "suggested" it, and didn't actually issue it.
Public attention has shifted, and no one will investigate what Fudge did in the Diagon Alley incident anymore.
He didn't contribute anything, nor did he take any risks, yet he reaped all the benefits.
Fudge leaned back in his chair and couldn't help but chuckle softly.
" Cornelius, oh Cornelius," he said to himself, "You've got some skills after all, you're something else."
He stood up, walked to the window, and pulled the curtains open a crack, looking out at the grey London sky.
What will tomorrow's newspapers say?
Minister Fudge nominated a mysterious man in a trench coat to receive the Order of Merlin, First Class?
Or is it " Ministry of Magic Admits You-Know-Who's Soul Has Returned, Diagon Alley Incident Revealed"?
Regardless of the title, it has nothing to do with Gibbon anymore.
He nodded in satisfaction, drew the curtains back, returned to his desk, sat down, and opened a document. His mood was many times better than yesterday.