### Chapter 95: What Dog Doesn't Crave a Meaty Bone?
Although Gringotts' Elders' conference room remained magnificent, it was no longer quite what it used to be. The conference table and chairs had been raised by at least thirty centimeters to accommodate attendees who stood considerably taller than the average Gringotts Elder.
At this moment, the heads of wizarding families from across Britain had gathered inside.
Of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, only the British branch of the Lestrange family, the Blacks, and the Gaunts were absent. Every other family was represented.
Barty Crouch Sr. was also present.
As the patriarch of the Crouch family, he naturally had a place here. After all, the Crouches were one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight.
Besides these families, numerous others had also arrived. They might not be as obsessed with blood purity, but their wealth and standing in the wizarding world were in no way inferior to those of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. The Dumbledores, for instance, belonged to this group.
Dumbledore himself was absent, but his phoenix, Fawkes, perched atop a chandelier on the ceiling, representing his position.
When the appointed time arrived, the inner doors of the conference room swung open. A young man strolled in, accompanied by two gray-haired wizards.
He was exceptionally handsome, his golden hair shining like sunlight and instantly brightening the room.
"Hello, everyone. It's a pleasure to meet you all. My name is Edmond Grindelwald, and I'm here to preside over this meeting on behalf of my employer."
Under normal circumstances, an employer's failure to attend such an important meeting would have been considered a grave insult to the heads of these families. Yet not a single person stood up to voice their displeasure.
These old foxes were all shrewd and calculating. The moment they heard the surname Grindelwald, their minds began racing with possibilities. Naturally, they promptly forgot about the mysterious employer's apparent disrespect.
"Yes, just as you're thinking," Edmond continued calmly. His composure was far beyond what one would expect from someone his age.
"I am Gellert Grindelwald's grand-nephew."
The conference room erupted into an uproar.
"But please rest assured. My great-uncle is currently enjoying his retirement in Nurmengard and has no intention of starting another revolution. I invited you all here today for one simple reason: to discuss the establishment of a Wizarding Bank."
The heads of the various families fell silent.
That silence lasted a full ten seconds.
They were thinking, weighing their options, and trying to determine whether Edmond was telling the truth.
Old Avery was the first to speak.
"Mr. Grindelwald, I don't care what your real intentions are. I only want to know one thing: is it true that your employer intends to compensate us with gold for the money we lost through Gringotts?"
Edmond nodded. "That's right. It's exactly what my employer intends to do."
Another uproar swept through the room.
This time, however, excitement and delight could be heard amid the commotion.
"Please, everyone, quiet down," Edmond said. "Before we begin, I'd like to give you an idea of my employer's financial resources."
He snapped his fingers, and a luminous screen appeared behind the main seat.
Images flickered across it, revealing a map of the world.
"My employer owns 120,000 square kilometers of land in Ukraine, along with countless businesses in other countries."
Red dots began appearing across the map, marking the locations of his enterprises. Ukraine had the greatest concentration, with nearly two-fifths of its territory covered in red markings.
"My employer possesses more Galleons than you could possibly imagine."
The scene changed again, revealing an enormous vault.
On the left stood rows of metal racks, each more than two meters tall and three meters long, neatly stacked with gold bars.
On the right lay a vast sea of Galleons, piled across several hundred square meters until the coins nearly reached an adult's waist.
The room filled with sharp intakes of breath and the sounds of people swallowing nervously.
Edmond continued, "I'm showing you all this not to flaunt our wealth, but to establish trust between us."
He sat down.
"Yes, the money lost through Gringotts is now in our hands. And under our management, that wealth has grown more than tenfold in a short period."
Whispers immediately spread through the conference room.
Yet no one blamed Edmond's employer for Gringotts' downfall.
After all, Gringotts was the one that had cost them their fortunes, not the people Edmond represented. More importantly, these family heads were practical people. They were counting on this new power to recover their losses. Why would they antagonize their potential benefactors now?
Pleased with their reaction, Edmond continued.
"Our employer intends to establish a new bank and usher in a new financial order for the wizarding world. To accomplish that, we need the support of everyone here."
He paused before making his next announcement.
"We will issue a new currency, backed by an equivalent amount of Galleons held in our reserves. The first global issuance will amount to approximately 120 billion New Magic Coins. And, as a token of our gratitude for your strong support, each family head present today will receive 100 million New Magic Coins!"
The announcement left the assembled nobles utterly stunned.
According to Edmond, New Magic Coins could be exchanged for Galleons at a one-to-one rate. In other words, each family head would receive 100 million Galleons!
The combined assets of some of these families had never even come close to that amount.
If an enormous fortune suddenly fell into your lap, wouldn't it take a while to recover your senses?
As for the possibility of recklessly printing money and causing inflation, how could ordinary wizards be expected to understand such things? Not that Audrey would ever stoop to such a tactic.
At that moment, all the family heads could see was a glittering mountain of gold. Their thoughts were already racing ahead to how they could use this fortune to elevate their families.
"Mr. Grindelwald, your employer is extraordinarily generous!"
"Our family will always be your friend!"
Among those present, Barty Crouch Sr. was one of the few who knew that the person behind Edmond's employer was Audrey Astley.
He calmly asked, "What do we have to do in return for accepting this gift?"
The other family heads quickly came to their senses.
Right. There was no such thing as a free lunch!
They all turned their attention to Edmond.
He smiled. "There are, of course, conditions attached to these gifts."
At his instruction, goblins distributed documents concerning the establishment of the new bank to the family heads.
"The first requirement is that our bank must actually be allowed to open!"
Edmond gave them time to read through the documents. The novel investment concepts and development plans immediately caught their attention.
Once everyone had finished reading and looked up, Edmond spoke again.
"Does anyone know who is currently obstructing the establishment of our bank?"
"The Ministry of Magic?"
"No! The vast majority of the Ministry's officials and employees are eagerly awaiting the arrival of a new Wizarding Bank!"
He turned toward Barty Crouch Sr.
"Mr. Crouch knows this better than anyone. He has been helping us push the establishment of the new bank through the Ministry."
Barty Crouch gave a slight nod, confirming Edmond's statement.
Edmond continued, "Now, Mr. Crouch, please tell everyone: who, exactly, is standing in our way?"
Barty Crouch Sr. suddenly found himself in the hot seat. His smile froze.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, he hesitated for a long time, unable to decide what to say.
Edmond was forcing him to take a stand against Fudge!
Just then, a soft, delicate voice drifted into his ears, tinged with a hint of doubt.
"Mr. Crouch, think carefully. This is a wonderful opportunity."
He turned abruptly and saw Pucci standing against the wall, giving him a slight nod.
An opportunity? What opportunity?
But in the next instant, something seemed to click.
Was he afraid of Fudge?
No. Barty Crouch wasn't afraid of Fudge. Cornelius Fudge was utterly worthless!
What he feared was the power attached to the position of Minister for Magic—the power that could make or break his future.
And that was precisely the power he had spent years pursuing.
There had been a time when he came agonizingly close to obtaining it.
The past was too painful to revisit, but now an opportunity stood right in front of him.
An opportunity!
Pucci was right. This really was his chance!
These people had practically handed him the means to bring Fudge down. Why should he back away now?
With such substantial financial backing, becoming Minister for Magic might no longer be a distant dream.
Having made up his mind, Barty Crouch summoned all his courage and shouted,
"The person obstructing the bank's establishment is the Minister for Magic himself—Cornelius Fudge!"
"Cornelius Fudge is the one standing in the way of the new Wizarding Bank!"
The conference room erupted into chaos. Familiar family heads leaned toward one another, whispering and exchanging opinions.
Barty Crouch Sr. sank into his chair. Those two shouts seemed to have drained every ounce of strength from his body. A tingling numbness spread through his limbs.
By speaking those words, he had already placed himself on the opposite side of Fudge. If Fudge survived this confrontation, Barty Crouch would never have another chance to rise again.
To some extent, his fate now rested in the hands of the family heads gathered here.
Edmond rose to his feet.
"Sonorus!"
"Everyone! Please listen!"
"We have called this meeting to establish the Wizarding Bank because we hope you will help us get it up and running!"
"Our sincerity is demonstrated by the one hundred million Galleons' worth of New Magic Coins we are offering each of you!"
"Now, those who are willing to work with us to build the new Wizarding Bank may stay. Those who do not wish to participate will not be forced to do so. You are free to leave."
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire room fell silent.
The family heads looked at one another, but not a single person moved toward the exit.
"Cornelius Fudge has gone against the tide of history, disregarded the interests of the entire wizarding world, and proven himself utterly unworthy of the position of Minister for Magic!"
Lucius Malfoy was the first to speak.
After much deliberation, he had decided to take the lead. If his gamble paid off, the Malfoy family could ride the wave of Hydra's influence to unprecedented heights.
And even if he lost, he was Hydra's relative. Surely she wouldn't abandon him after he had stood up for her? At worst, he would be caught in the purge alongside her.
Why pass up an opportunity with such enormous potential rewards and seemingly no downside?
After all, he was an outstanding Slytherin graduate—a model of the wizarding world's finest schemers!
The Carrow patriarch immediately chimed in.
"That's right! I've heard that Cornelius Fudge was involved in a corrupt deal with Gringotts. He's nothing but a parasite, abusing his authority for personal gain!"
Edmond nodded vigorously. "Indeed. I can testify to that. We have more than enough witnesses and physical evidence to prove it."
The well-prepared goblins immediately brought out the documents and other evidence of Fudge's alleged crimes.
"Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!"
"As Minister for Magic, he actually betrayed the interests of wizards to the goblins!"
"How can someone like that possibly remain in office?"
"Impeach him! He must be impeached!"
"I second that!"
"I second that!"
The last time a motion had received such unanimous support in this room was when Gringotts' Elders had gathered to discuss how to squeeze more money out of Audrey.
Pucci was the only person present who had attended both meetings.
He shook his head to himself.
As expected, both goblins and wizards were utterly helpless in the face of profit!
After all, what dog in this world doesn't crave a meaty bone?