Everything Fudge had done tonight stemmed from his misunderstanding and prejudice toward Dumbledore.
Fudge's obsession with power always made him put himself in the position of a victim, treating everything Dumbledore said and did as an attack against him.
With the constant rumors circulating among the public and Sirius's acquittal, the misunderstandings and prejudices in Fudge's heart had grown deeper and deeper.
This made Fudge, obsessed with his position as an official, stop believing anything Dumbledore said or did.
Fudge stubbornly believed that Dumbledore wanted to seize his position and replace him as the unquestioned authority of the British wizarding world.
This was Fudge's most foolish trait. He was constantly judging Dumbledore through the eyes of a politician.
Even after hearing the attack by Barty Crouch Jr. and Fowley directly from Professor Moody, and even after personally witnessing the towering flames over Little Hangleton, he still refused to believe Dumbledore's judgment or the facts Sirius had told him.
In Fudge's eyes, the strange events occurring one after another this year could only be connected to Barty Crouch Jr. and Fowley, the two Azkaban prisoners.
They had been using Voldemort's name to create panic in order to accomplish some unknown purpose of their own.
And Dumbledore was taking advantage of this situation, creating panic so that he and Harry Potter would once again become important, gain public support and approval, and regain control and authority.
If you do not believe it, just look at the people present tonight!
Sirius Black was Harry Potter's godfather and Dumbledore's student. If Potter became the Savior, then Black, as the Savior's godfather, would also benefit enormously.
There was nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Esmeralda Twist was Dumbledore's most trusted student. Almost no one in the entire British wizarding world was unaware of this. Ever since she entered the school, Dumbledore had taken care of her in every possible way and protected her at every turn.
Didn't the way he treated her look very much like he was raising his successor?
Everyone present was someone Dumbledore trusted and relied upon. Fudge alone was an outsider. Fudge believed that these people were joining forces to deceive him, just like how Dumbledore had never mentioned that Potter was a Parseltongue, despite Potter's strange behavior showing signs of it everywhere.
It was precisely these prejudices, misunderstandings, and subjective assumptions that made Fudge distrust, and even feel hostility toward, everyone present.
That was why Fudge had lost his temper and spoken without thinking, turning a blind eye to what Eda had gone through tonight and even cursing that she should have died.
Fudge had spoken too quickly. Although it had certainly made him feel much better, it had also created the current standoff between both sides, with tensions running high and neither side knowing how to back down.
On the other side, Vinda Rosier was not an impulsive person. Her confrontation with Fudge was not the result of momentary recklessness either. She had her own considerations.
Fudge's words had not made Vinda particularly angry. The fact that the Minister of Magic could only vent his frustration by saying provocative things was enough to show how much of a failure Fudge's life was.
In the wizarding world, having the bigger fist was the ultimate truth. At the root of Fudge's inner concern was the fact that his strength could not support his ambition.
Every day he sat in the position of Minister, he was constantly on edge, terrified that someone would overthrow him.
Such a weak Fudge was not enough to make Vinda angry, especially not in front of so many people. Vinda's threat tonight sounded like a threat toward Fudge, but in reality, she had deliberately put on this display for Dumbledore to see.
Vinda did not oppose Eda following Dumbledore and fighting against Voldemort. In Vinda's eyes, there was nothing wrong with that choice. Hadn't she herself once followed Grindelwald in opposing the entire world? It was nothing extraordinary.
What truly worried Vinda was not Voldemort, but Dumbledore.
Vinda was worried that Eda was young and inexperienced, and that she might unknowingly fall into Dumbledore's schemes. She was afraid that one day in the future, Eda might willingly die for Dumbledore and Harry Potter.
In a war, anyone could die, and everyone had to be prepared to face death. But no one wanted the person who died to be themselves or someone they cared about most.
Vinda was the same. Everyone could die in this coming war, including herself. Only Eda could not.
Vinda did not know whether Dumbledore genuinely intended to raise Eda as his successor, or whether he simply regarded Eda as a useful tool, a sharp blade that could clear the way for Potter.
Raising a successor required an enormous amount of effort and dedication. Such a person could not simply be discarded.
But a sharp blade was different.
When that blade was no longer useful or sharp enough, the person holding it could discard it at any time, sacrificing her in exchange for greater gains.
This was something Vinda could not tolerate. That was the true purpose behind her confrontation with Fudge tonight.
Vinda needed to confirm her position in Dumbledore's eyes, to confirm whether Eda was someone who could be sacrificed at will.
The evening breeze brushed past them, but there was nothing gentle about it. The air was filled with an unpleasant smell of burning, enough to make people nauseous.
The two sides continued to face each other, yet no one made the first move.
The Aurors surrounded Fudge to protect him, but they did not choose to attack. Firstly, they did not want to take the blame.
They were waiting for Fudge to give the order himself. Secondly, they did not want to get themselves killed. Wasn't staying alive and collecting their salaries much better?
"Dumbledore!" Fudge began roaring again. "What exactly are you trying to do!"
Fudge shoved aside the Auror blocking him and continued shouting, "I'm standing right here. If you want to become Minister, then come and take the position from me. There's no need for all these underhanded tricks!"
In Cornelius Fudge's subjective world, he was the Minister of Magic! Vinda Rosier had actually dared to attack him and even threatened him.
Anyone could figure out with their butt that Dumbledore must have ordered it, with Dumbledore backing her from behind.
The Minister's passionate speech made everyone's eyes nearly fall out of their sockets.
The Aurors stared at the Minister in disbelief, unable to understand what he was thinking. Wasn't he directly pushing Dumbledore onto the opposing side? Was he tired of living and trying to speed things up?
Eda was equally shocked. She had already prepared herself for a fight, only for Fudge to come out with this! Cornelius Fudge really lived up to his surname. He was soft enough, and stupid enough.
"This is simply a grandmother protecting her granddaughter. There is nothing to it, Cornelius," Dumbledore said, minimizing the matter and smoothing things over.
Dumbledore wanted to unite as much strength as possible to resist the returning Voldemort. He did not want to see pointless deaths tonight, nor did he want these Aurors to die needlessly because of internal conflict.
The bigger picture was what Dumbledore was considering, not Cornelius Fudge's personal feelings.
Dumbledore was disappointed by Fudge's behavior, but the Minister of Magic could be replaced when his term ended. He could not die while in office, and even less so at Dumbledore's hands.
Perhaps Fudge had seen through this very point, which was why he dared to repeatedly provoke Dumbledore and treat the Headmaster of Hogwarts as though he were nothing.
Fudge was about to say something else, but before he could continue making a scene, one of the Aurors behind him spoke first.
"Minister, I think there are some matters we can discuss at length. There is no need to rush things. Our most important task right now is to uncover the truth about Barty Crouch Jr. and Benedict Fowley and prevent them from causing harm. These two are the most dangerous."
The speaker had a deep, slow voice that seemed to possess a calming magic. He was very tall, bald, and dark-skinned, and wore a dark-colored robe.
With the night growing deeper, Kingsley Shacklebolt's appearance and clothing made him somewhat inconspicuous on a night like this.
If someone else had said these words, Fudge probably would not have paid much attention.
But Kingsley was different. Fudge could at least listen to him somewhat. The Shacklebolt family was an ancient pure-blood family, and Kingsley was also a very capable man.
Fudge's subjective assumptions had caused tonight's events to veer off course. What had started as a conspiracy by Barty Crouch Jr. and Fowley had turned into Dumbledore plotting against the Ministry of Magic, or rather, plotting against Fudge personally.
Kingsley's words merely brought tonight's events back onto the proper track. He was reminding Fudge of what was most important at the moment. The struggle for power could be put aside for now.
Vinda glanced at Dumbledore with slight disappointment. What did he mean by considering the bigger picture? Vinda thought this was simply soft-heartedness.
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