My Hogwarts has a serious problem.

Chapter 322, Section 319: Cornelius Fudge

Inside the magnificent hall, neatly dressed wizards moved about the tables, their manners impeccable, like upper-class celebrities in Muggle society.

Lynn and Dumbledore stood together, once again smiling as they saw off yet another high-ranking wizard from a certain family, a certain senior agent of the Ministry of Magic. He couldn't help but rub his slightly sore cheeks.

"Dealing with these people is pointless; I'd rather fight the basilisk again."

"Force can solve everything in this world, but it is precisely because we don't do that the word 'etiquette' exists."

"Dumbledore said softly. Today he was wearing a very formal sky-blue robe, his silver beard and long hair were neatly combed, and he had a gold medal with a green ribbon pinned to his chest."

Not only him, but every wizard present today wore a golden medal on their chest, only the color of the ribbon was slightly different.

This banquet was actually the Merlin Order awarding ceremony held by Wizengamot to award Lynn Bellocchio, a student who had thwarted the Slytherin heir's conspiracy and saved all of Hogwarts, with the Order of Merlin.

Lynn has received his medal, which is now pinned to his chest with a purple sash.

Lynn paid no attention to the strange philosophies Dumbledore often spouted; he was more interested in Wizengamot, the organization that awarded him the medal.

"So, who has more power, the Ministry of Magic or Wissengarmot?"

Taking advantage of the moment when no one was around, Dumbledore led Lynn to a secluded spot to sit down.

"Your question is incorrect. There is no question of which is bigger or smaller between the Ministry of Magic and Wissengarmo, because there is no conflict between the status of a member of Wissengarmo and an employee of the British Ministry of Magic."

For example, each Minister of Magic also serves as the Honorary Chief Wizard of Wizengamot upon taking office, possessing the same powers as the permanent Chief Wizard.

Each Senior Undersecretary of the Ministry of Magic also serves as the secretary to Wizengamor.

The Minister of Magic had executive power at the Ministry of Magic, and he also had judicial power in Wizengamot.

Therefore, there's no question of who has more or less power between Wisengard and the Ministry of Magic, because they are controlled by the same group of people.

Lynn frowned.

"Isn't it easy for problems to arise when executive and judicial powers are simultaneously entrusted to the same person?"

"Therefore, there is still a permanent chief wizard in charge of Wizengamor, so to be precise, the judicial power is divided in two. If the chief wizard and the minister of magic agree, then Wizengamor's will will indeed be carried out according to the minister of magic's wishes. But if the two disagree, then a vote will have to be held within Wizengamor."

The addition of the honorary chief wizard position to the Minister of Magic sounds very abrupt; normally, when an organization is established, there would never be two different voices at the same time.

In terms of the history of the magical world, Wizengamo was founded much earlier than the Ministry of Magic.

Back then, there was no such thing as an honorary chief wizard. Members of Wizengamo only had one title: the permanent chief wizard, who held absolute authority within Wizengamo.

However, all of this changed after the establishment of the Ministry of Magic.

The newly formed wizarding government does not have the power to dissolve Wizengamo, but it can use its influence to continuously inject instigators, ultimately leading to the current situation.

The history of the magical world is actually quite interesting. After all, wizards are human too, and when it comes to power struggles, there are no limits.

Just as Lynn and Dumbledore were chatting, a short man with gray curly hair approached them with a smile.

Upon seeing him, Dumbledore's face lit up with a smile, though Lynn couldn't discern much sincerity in that smile.

"Cornell, it's been a long time." Dumbledore gave the short man a warm hug and called out his identity.

Cornelius Oswald Fudge, the current Minister for Magic at the British Ministry of Magic and the nominal head of the entire British magical community.

"I've been incredibly busy lately and haven't had much time to visit you, Albus. I hope you don't mind." Fudge's tone was humble when facing Dumbledore, as if Dumbledore was the real Minister of Magic and he was just an insignificant subordinate.

Judging from the Minister of Magic's behavior in the original work, he can be described as an incorrigible idiot.

But to reach the position of Minister of Magic, even if one is incompetent, one's political and interpersonal skills would not be too bad.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Fudge naturally shifted the topic to Lynn.

"I also want to express my sincere gratitude to you, Mr. Belloc. You saved Hogwarts, my alma mater, and the future of the entire wizarding world."

His compliments were very pleasant to hear, but Lynn suddenly became wary.

He hadn't forgotten the difference in their social status. He could understand Fudge's flattering attitude towards Dumbledore, but it was a bit inappropriate for him, a mere wizard, to speak to him in such a tone.

"You flatter me, Minister."

"I'm not exaggerating at all," Fudge suddenly said to Dumbledore with a smile. "Albus, there are some freshly made scones over there. I know you like them. Won't you go and try some?"

Dumbledore narrowed his eyes, and he and Lynn exchanged a glance. Lynn gave him a barely perceptible nod.

"Ah, you guys chat first, I'll go try the food made by the house-elf here."

After Dumbledore left, the Minister of Magic inquired about Lynn's well-being for a while, and then soon revealed his intention to speak with Lynn alone.

"Have you been following the Daily Prophet lately? A heinous dark wizard has escaped from Azkaban."

Lynn raised an eyebrow: "You mean Sirius Black?"

Fudge rubbed his hands together. "Yes, he somehow managed to escape from Azkaban, and the guards are furious."

As he spoke, he seemed to recall those sinister figures, and a chill ran down his spine.

"Black was a loyal henchman of the Man of Varian. Before his escape, he was heard repeatedly shouting things like 'He's at Hogwarts! He's there!' in the prison. Therefore, we can believe that his ultimate goal in escaping was to kill Harry Potter, who was studying at Hogwarts, to avenge his deceased master."

Fudge stared into Lynn's eyes, but Lynn showed no fear; he simply shrugged.

"So what does this have to do with me?"

"Of course this has to do with you, Mr. Belloc. You once saved Hogwarts Castle, so you certainly wouldn't want to see your classmates killed, would you? You proved your strength in the battle to kill the Basilisk, so we should rightfully assume that you can protect Harry Potter this time."

(End of this chapter)