https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-1791-A-War-with-No-Victor-Part-241-/13113240/
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Chapter 1792: A War Without Winners (Part 242)
Chapter 1792: A War Without Winners (Part 242)
"He's gone!"
The next morning, Percy, who had received a letter delivered by the house-elf Kara, rushed to the Minister of Magic's office as soon as he arrived at work. He was eager to share the good news with Kingsley, who was busy reviewing documents at his desk.
As Kingsley put down his quill and looked up towards the door, Percy stepped forward and placed the envelope from his robe pocket onto Kingsley's desk.
"The Anderson family left last night without delay, clearly wanting to avoid the upcoming trouble. This is a letter that Albert left for you through his house-elf!"
Kingsley immediately opened the letter, glanced at the contents on the parchment, and his eyes widened in disbelief. He gripped the letter tightly and muttered, "So like him."
Percy was curious about the letter's content, which had elicited such a strong reaction from Kingsley. However, he knew that some things were better left unasked.
"Spread the news. I believe the goblins have been waiting impatiently as well!"
After reading the letter, Kingsley burned it and then turned to Percy, saying, "Also, inform Director Gradvell to come for a meeting. I think the time we've been waiting for has arrived."
As he spoke, Kingsley rose from his seat and walked to the wooden cabinet on the right, searching for the file folder they had prepared months ago—the contingency plan for a potential goblin rebellion.
Kingsley had never understood why Albert insisted that he wait until after he left Britain to fully ignite the goblin rebellion. But as one of the additional conditions for not directly claiming the bounty on Voldemort from the Ministry, Kingsley ultimately chose not to break their agreement, even if it was only a verbal one. Despite many people advising him not to miss the opportunity, Kingsley stood by their agreement, as his intuition told him it was best not to default.
In reality, such agreements were often considered disposable by government officials, especially verbal ones.
However, Kingsley honored it because he knew that disregarding the agreement would strain their already fragile friendship.
This was not a good thing. Albert was known for his generosity towards friends and his ruthlessness towards enemies, and Kingsley had witnessed firsthand the fate of Albert's adversaries.
He never expected Albert to treat 'traitors' any better.
Maintaining this relatively decent friendship was beneficial for both parties.
Indeed, Kingsley had received a reward for his compliance—the previous letter was a reminder and a warning.
The potential dire consequences of breaking their verbal agreement made Kingsley shudder.
However, the whole situation seemed peculiar, as if everything had unfolded according to Albert's predictions.
Was this the weight of being a "Master Prophet"?
In truth, Kingsley, or rather, the entire Ministry of Magic, had been astonished by the goblins' restraint and their attempts to limit the conflict to a manageable scale. This was the primary reason why a third goblin rebellion had not erupted until now.
They suspected that Albert might have done something, but given his character, he would not have wanted to get involved and, therefore, would not have taken any unnecessary actions.
In the end, they concluded that it was Albert's influence that kept the goblins from provoking a powerful enemy. They had seen what he was capable of in the final battle!
The ruthless and merciless slaughter of numerous werewolves and giants. (Although Albert did not personally participate, the goblins, and even the Ministry, believed that he should bear a significant portion of the blame.)
The goblins believed that it was better to wait for Albert to leave Britain before igniting the war.
Shortly after Percy's departure, Kingsley called an emergency meeting, just like before, to discuss how to respond to the potential goblin rebellion.
The solution was simple.
They announced the ninth round of negotiations with the Goblin Brotherhood.
Everyone knew that these negotiations were unlikely to bear fruit.
It was merely a signal, a trigger to set the conflict ablaze. Both sides needed a reason for the eruption of their long-standing dispute.
The goblins were prepared, and so were they.
As it turned out, the goblins were also in sync with their plan. Upon learning of Albert's departure on his world tour, they seized the opportunity.
When the Ministry proposed the ninth round of negotiations, the goblins, after receiving this signal, immediately rejected the offer, citing the Ministry's lack of sincerity. Bodrick, the leader of the Goblin Brotherhood, accused the wizards of persecuting goblins and secretly attempting to control Gringotts.
The accusations were baseless and unfounded!
In response to the goblins' unreasonable accusations, the Ministry promptly announced through the Prophet that the ninth round of negotiations with the goblins had failed, and they hinted at the possibility of an impending third goblin rebellion in the newspaper.
The relationship between goblins and wizards rapidly deteriorated, leaving everyone shocked. How could both sides, who had previously shown restraint, suddenly tear off their masks?
The reason was soon revealed in the Defense Association magazine: Albert Anderson's family had recently left Britain to embark on a world tour.
So, the goblins were no longer holding back?
In terms of public opinion, the goblins, lacking a channel for their side of the story, suffered in silence, leading many wizards to believe that they had deliberately provoked the third goblin rebellion after Albert's departure. All the evidence seemed to point in that direction.
It wasn't until a direct confrontation between goblins and wizards, resulting in the death of an Auror and several Goblin Brotherhood members, that wizards truly realized the inevitability of the third goblin rebellion.
According to Harry Potter, who participated in the incident, the Goblin Brotherhood had been prepared and, without their previous restraint, showed no mercy when they fought, leading to casualties on the Auror side.
However, the Ministry seemed to have anticipated this and retaliated swiftly after their own casualties.
The Ministry's response was swift; they immediately declared the Goblin Brotherhood illegal and suggested that the organization might be controlled by certain goblins with a grudge against Gringotts, citing the persecution of goblins during Voldemort's reign, for which they blamed the innocent British wizarding community.
Tensions escalated, and although the Ministry did not directly target Gringotts, everyone understood that the third goblin rebellion had fully erupted.
Chapter end
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