On December 1st, the German Ministry of Magic announced that they would revoke the arrest warrant for Mr Gellert Grindelwald and erase his criminal record within their territory.
Simultaneously, they would appoint Grindelwald as a senior advisor to the Ministry of Magic to contribute to the development of Germany's wizarding community.
Soon after, neighbouring countries such as the Netherlands and Belgium issued strong protests, claiming that Germany had seriously violated the International Security Act and urging Germany to quickly repent and mend its ways.
Among them, Poland's rhetoric was the most vehement. Their spokesperson vehemently denounced Grindelwald as a demon, and German wizards as scum and degenerates who should all be imprisoned.
That same afternoon.
The Polish Ministry of Magic announced its merger with the German Ministry of Magic to jointly pursue better development.
For a time, the entire European wizarding community was thrown into panic and turmoil. Even Muggles began to notice, as rare sightings of flocks of owls flying chaotically across the sky during the day became common.
Experts jumped out to claim this was due to the greenhouse effect, blah, blah, blah.
The next day, German newspapers published an interview with Grindelwald, directly responding to Fudge's blame-shifting.
"I have never considered my followers to be a mob or evil Dark Wizards. They are all seekers striving for an ideal. As for Britain's Death Eaters?"
"Sorry, all I see is savagery and madness, along with pitiful weakness."
"They once followed a master who was little more than a thug. Even if they begged on their knees to join, I wouldn't accept them. Such people would tarnish the purity of my followers."
"If Mr Fudge continues to slander and damage my reputation, I won't mind taking the trouble to personally visit Britain and have a word with you."
The Daily Prophet also republished this interview. Within ten minutes of seeing the newspaper, the British Ministry of Magic issued an apology, claiming it had misunderstood Mr Grindelwald and that someone else must have helped the Death Eaters escape.
Many British wizards felt that Fudge had truly embarrassed Britain after reading this statement, but Fudge didn't care at all and even wanted to curse back.
'You lot are so brave—it's not like you're the ones being directly threatened by the Dark Lord.'
'It's easy to talk big when you're not in the line of fire.'
'Look at the Ministers for Magic of those other countries—they've all disappeared without a trace, probably already dead. And that stubborn Poland—just try being stubborn today?'
'The Ministry of Magic now belongs to Grindelwald!'
Fudge had long regretted shifting the blame onto Grindelwald. Seeing the opportunity, he quickly backed down to save his own skin.
...
Malfoy Manor.
Voldemort finished reading Grindelwald's interview and was equally furious.
This bastard had compared his Death Eaters to petty thugs, and him, the dignified 'Dark Lord', to a gang leader.
The disdain in his words was palpable even through the newspaper and translation.
"Grindelwald!"
A piercing roar echoed throughout the manor. The Death Eaters who hadn't yet left trembled at Voldemort's rage. Bellatrix was still angrily shouting about going to kill Grindelwald.
What right did a hundred-year-old man, a failure defeated by Dumbledore, have to mock her master?
What Bellatrix didn't know was that while part of Voldemort's rage stemmed from Grindelwald's belittlement, the greater portion came from envy-fueled hatred.
Why had he spent decades trying to dominate the British wizarding world without success, even losing half his life in the process?
Yet Grindelwald had merely emerged for a few days and already seized control of two countries.
Was the gap between them really that vast?
This comparison made Voldemort question his entire existence, even causing his obsession with killing Potter and Lawrence to waver.
Perhaps... he should follow Tom's example and flee abroad first, build up strength in some small country, then attack again later?
He didn't know if foreign moons were rounder, but they certainly wouldn't have freaks like Lawrence and Dumbledore.
But soon enough, Voldemort dismissed this thought himself.
Potter, Lawrence, Dumbledore - these three had become his obsessions. Unless he killed at least some of them, he wouldn't feel secure even if he left.
Especially now that several Horcruxes had been destroyed, and he wasn't sure whether Ravenclaw's Diadem had been discovered - this chilled Voldemort to the bone.
He didn't even dare send Malfoy to check, fearing Lawrence might notice something amiss and confiscate it incidentally.
'I must kill Lawrence first,' Voldemort gritted his teeth, already devising a plan.
In the following days, Grindelwald's major operations showed no signs of stopping.
The Ministries of Magic in Finland, Norway, and Czechoslovakia underwent massive purges, all carried out by Grindelwald through legitimate means.
Those people had dirty secrets beneath their surfaces - nothing showed during normal times, but every investigation hit its mark.
The pure-blood wizards who had swallowed up resources from families targeting his followers also paid the price.
His actions moved the older generation of Acolytes beyond measure, while the recruits felt Grindelwald's dominance and grew increasingly worshipful.
But there were drawbacks too.
At the very least, the European Ministers for Magic had reached peak wariness regarding Grindelwald.
Setting aside past conflicts, they quickly united, not seeking profit but aiming to eliminate this threat as swiftly as possible.
Recently, Wayne received 800 letters a day from other Ministries of Magic.
This time, however, they'd learned their lesson - unlike their brainless behaviour during meetings, they now spoke politely and offered substantial rewards.
They didn't expect Wayne to completely defeat Grindelwald, only hoping he could make Grindelwald think twice.
Only then did people truly understand what a top-tier wizard represented - someone capable of influencing global affairs.
As for Dumbledore, Britain had actually revoked his wanted status, yet nobody could locate his whereabouts.
A rumour even spread - that Dumbledore had actually died, otherwise Grindelwald wouldn't have dared escape from the high tower to make his comeback.
Wayne was also full of doubts—what was old Dumbledore doing in Russia? Why hadn't any news come for so long?
...
In the suitcase pocket dimension, Wayne was discussing the Tornados team acquisition with Cho.
Due to their consistently poor performance, the Tornados acquisition progressed very smoothly, with the entire team valued at less than ten thousand Galleons - merely the price of two Firebolts.
The current problem was that the original owner was rather sentimental—he hoped Wayne wouldn't dismiss the old staff after acquiring the team, or he wouldn't sell.
To be honest, he had originally planned to dismiss every single person in the team.
After all, with a record of finishing in the bottom three for eighteen consecutive years, one could imagine what sort of individuals made up both the players and the management.
After some bargaining, the current owner finally conceded, offering a fifty percent staff reduction quota.
Even then, Wayne was reluctant to agree—he didn't want to keep a bunch of incompetents.
But when Ludo Bagman learned that Wayne was negotiating the acquisition, he took the initiative to approach him and offered his analysis.
The team's poor performance was partly due to the players and coaches, but also to insufficient funding and outdated equipment.
In fact, a few of the players still had potential.
Though Wayne questioned Bagman's intelligence and political acumen, he had considerable faith in his Quidditch insight, which was why he reluctantly agreed.
"My favourite Chaser on the Tornadoes is Montague Jane," Cho said, looking at the list as she spoke to Wayne. "She's actually quite talented and deeply devoted to the team. I've heard many teams tried to poach her with high salaries, but Jane refused them all."
Wayne nodded. "Let's keep her then. Who else?"
"For the others, let's follow Mr Bagman's advice," Cho shook her head, not continuing further.
After some picking and choosing, Wayne kept three players and only one member of the coaching staff, thus fulfilling the task.
...
Back in the Great Hall for dinner, Professor McGonagall quietly shared news with Wayne that was hard to classify as either good or bad: Hagrid had returned.
Hagrid's return was naturally a good thing, but if it meant Newt had to leave... well, Professor McGonagall wasn't too pleased about that.
Not only was Newt already popular with all the students, but his teaching standards were far superior to Hagrid's.
Moreover, given the current delicate situation, Newt's significance to Hogwarts extended beyond being just a professor. He still had much to teach the students – for instance, how to stand against a Dark Lord.
Such invaluable experience was precisely the kind of lesson the students needed most at this time.
"I'll go see him in a bit," Wayne said after a moment's thought, addressing Professor McGonagall.
...
After dinner, Wayne left the castle.
By the edge of the Forbidden Forest, the long-uninhabited wooden cabin now had an oil lamp burning inside, with wisps of cooking smoke rising from the chimney.
Wayne approached the cabin and gently knocked on the door.
A familiar voice came from inside.
"Who's there?"
"It's me, Hagrid."
The door swung open quickly, revealing Hagrid's large head. Upon seeing Wayne, he smiled at first, then his expression turned awkward.
"Should I be callin' yeh Wayne, or Headmaster Lawrence?"
"It's after hours, feel free to call me whatever you like. Aren't you going to invite me in?"
"Er—no, it's jus'... I've only jus' got back, an' the place's still a bit messy, yeh know." Hagrid hastily moved aside to let Wayne enter, then quickly closed the door behind him.
A blazing fire roared in the fireplace, but the room's dust remained unswept, emitting a musty smell mixed with the odour of food, making Wayne instinctively hold his breath.
With a wave of his wand, a whirlwind gathered all the rubbish and dust into a cluster and sent it flying out the window. The air freshened immediately, and Wayne finally dared to breathe again.
Only then did he turn his gaze to Hagrid's face.
The half-giant's hair was a tangled mess, matted with blood clots. His left eye was swollen shut, bruised purple and black. His face and hands were covered in wounds, some still bleeding.
Finally, Wayne looked at the enormous, blood-drenched steak placed on the table.
"Dragon meat. Though highly toxic, it does have analgesic properties. Hagrid, it seems you've had quite an eventful few months."
"Jus' the usual, really." Hagrid said somewhat awkwardly. "I reckon yer experiences're far more legendary. I were only away a short while, an' yeh've gone an' become Headmaster already!"
He had spent these months completely isolated in remote mountains and deep forests, completely cut off from outside information.
After emerging, he had headed straight to Hogwarts. When he returned and met Professor McGonagall, who told him Wayne had become Headmaster, Hagrid initially thought April Fool's Day had come early.
It was only after Professor McGonagall explained Umbridge's misdeeds and how Dumbledore had been driven away that he accepted the reality.
Wayne took out several bottles of healing potion and handed them to Hagrid, who thanked him and began applying them.
"Was it Giants?" Wayne suddenly asked.
Hagrid paused in his application of the potion. Wayne continued, "Don't bother hiding it. You're terrible at lying. Dumbledore also told me about the nature of your mission this time."
"He really told yeh?" Hagrid asked in surprise.
"Yes, he said you went with Madame Maxime to make contact with the Giants hiding in the mountains."
Giants and Trolls aren't the same race. Strictly speaking, Giants should be classified alongside semi-human creatures like Vampires and Centaurs.
During their peak, there were hundreds of Giant tribes worldwide, but due to wizard persecution, most of the world's Giants have now gathered together and hidden in the mountains, numbering only a few hundred.
Dumbledore sent Hagrid to win over the Giant community and prevent them from siding with Voldemort.
After all, Giants are capable of fighting and killing dragons. The impact of several dozen Giants would definitely match the armed forces of a national Ministry of Magic.
Seeing that Wayne even knew he had gone with Madame Maxime, Hagrid finally believed that all this had indeed been told to Wayne by Dumbledore.
He stopped hiding anything and began recounting his experiences over the past few months.