https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-699-The-Soulguard-Amulet-and-the-Extra-Two-at-Home/13012878/
Chapter 698: Planning and Choosing a Hero
Chapter 698: Planning and Choosing a Hero
Previously, in the giant tribe, their living conditions were limited, and they all resided in tents. Every night, they were either awakened by the giants' thunderous snoring or kept awake by the sounds of fighting and roaring.
Now, back in Stagford Village, Kyle didn't even have dinner and went straight to his room.
Kyle slept until noon and then left his room to have a quick bite to eat.
However, in the afternoon, instead of staying at home, he went directly to the Ministry of Magic.
When he arrived at the main hall, Chris had just returned from outside.
"Why are you here at this time?"
While waiting for the elevator, Chris asked, "Don't you want to rest a bit longer?"
"There's no need," Kyle shook his head, "A morning's rest is enough."
"How are the Dementors?"
"It's quite troublesome," Chris sighed. "The Ministry has sent out all the people who can cast the Patronus Charm, but it's still not enough.
"Speaking of which, it's really thanks to you for letting Cedric come to work at the Ministry. He's been a great help these past few days."
At that moment, the elevator arrived, and the two of them stepped inside.
In the distance, someone was running towards them, gesturing as if to ask them to wait a moment.
However, in perfect harmony, neither of them showed any intention of helping, and the elevator door closed quickly.
"How's the situation with the giants?" Chris asked in a low voice as the elevator started moving.
"It's been resolved," Kyle said. "The giants fought a big battle to choose a new Gog, and for a while, we shouldn't worry about them joining the war."
"That's good. If the giants were to join the war, it wouldn't be good news for us," said Chris. "Oh, by the way, remember not to tell your mom about this. She still doesn't know that you and Newt left to find the giants."
"I understand..." Kyle nodded.
The elevator stopped first at the floor of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.
Chris stepped out, thought for a moment, then turned back and said, "I suggest you don't go looking for Arthur, and it's best to avoid his entire floor... Fred and George have been asking about when you'll be back."
"I know," Kyle rubbed his forehead.
To be honest, he had originally planned to hide for a while.
Soon, the elevator stopped again.
"First floor..."
Kyle stepped out of the elevator and walked down the corridor, stopping in front of a most magnificent golden door in the middle.
The Minister's office.
Kyle knocked on the door...
"Come in."
The room wasn't as big as he had imagined, but it was very elegant, just like the Headmaster's office at Hogwarts. The walls here were also adorned with portraits of past Ministers of Magic.
However, they all had their eyes closed, as if asleep... But Kyle was well aware that portraits didn't need sleep.
Fudge was sitting at a huge mahogany desk, and when he saw Kyle enter, he smiled and asked,
"Oh, Kyle, are you done with everything?"
"Yes, it's over," Kyle said.
"How was it? Didn't you encounter any danger?" Fudge stood up and said, "I initially disagreed with letting you and Mr. Scamander solve the giant problem, as you haven't graduated yet. But Dumbledore insisted that you'd be fine.
"You know, he can be very stubborn about certain things, and even I can't convince him otherwise."
"Fortunately, with Mr. Scamander, we didn't encounter any danger." Kyle said.
"But why is the information I received different from what you're saying?" Fudge's expression turned serious. "Letting an ungraduated student face a giant Gog alone, if Diana found out, she'd smash my office.
"And I personally don't agree with you doing such a dangerous thing."
"I'm sorry, Minister," Kyle said, "I was too impulsive. I thought I could handle it, you know, my grades at school have always been very good."
"Giants won't appear in Hogwarts classrooms," Fudge said sternly, but soon he laughed again.
"But you did it, didn't you? A sixteen-year-old student defeated a giant Gog alone, preventing a major disaster for the wizarding world. This is enough to earn you a First-Class Order of Merlin.
"In fact, I did it that way, but those old fogies of the Order of Merlin seem to believe that Mr. Scamander did it, and you just helped a little on the side."
"There's no other way," Kyle said, "and Mr. Scamander's involvement was indeed crucial in resolving the giant incident."
"Yes, you're right..." Fudge said, but he didn't seem to care much, "I'll continue to continue fighting for you on this matter. Now, can you tell me what happened these past few days? I want to know some more detailed information."
"Of course, Minister."
After that, Kyle spent an hour recounting the events of the past few days to Fudge.
There wasn't much to hide, as Newt had said on the first day that the Portkey he used was completely legal, which meant the Ministry knew about it from the beginning.
Including his killing of the giant Gog... There was no one else around at the time, so it was obvious who had informed Fudge.
By recounting it again, Kyle was also reporting his work.
An hour later, Fudge muttered, "It seems Dumbledore didn't hide anything..."
"Minister, what did you just say?"
"Oh, nothing?"
Fudge quickly shook his head, "I mean you've worked hard these past few days, I should give you a few days off, but..."
He looked troubled, "You probably don't know, but the Ministry is short-staffed right now. Death Eaters have been very active lately, causing panic among the people. Many of us, including me, haven't been home for three days straight.
"I understand, Minister." Kyle added, "And I've taken the liberty of giving myself a half-day off. I just hope you won't dock my pay."
"Haha, that's only fair. I was even planning to give you a raise." Fudge laughed, "So, do you have any good suggestions for the current situation?"
"I think we should print some brochures to teach everyone how to protect themselves during this critical period." Kyle paused and continued, "Additionally, we need to boost everyone's morale as soon as possible and let them see the Ministry's determination."
Fudge's eyes lit up. He had only mentioned it casually, but he didn't expect Kyle to have a solution.
"Take your time and explain it slowly."
He waved his wand, and a butterbeer appeared on the table.
"Thank you." Kyle picked up the butterbeer and took a sip before continuing, "First, for the self-rescue brochure, leave it to me. Tomorrow morning, I'll bring the finished draft over. If you approve, we can distribute it along with the Daily Prophet to everyone."
"No problem." Fudge agreed readily, "But how should we boost morale?"
"How about establishing a few heroes?" Kyle suggested after a moment's thought, "People need heroes the most right now."
"I was thinking the same." Fudge was pleased. "So, who do you have in mind?"
"What about Harry Potter?" Kyle suggested, "The Chosen One, the perfect choice for the current situation."
Fudge nodded; in fact, he had been doing the same recently, with daily news about Harry Potter in the Prophet.
"And Deputy Minister Umbridge..." Kyle continued, "As a pioneer against the Death Eaters, her name is more inspiring than Harry Potter's right now."
"Dolores..." Fudge hesitated. "But she's still at St. Mungo's, having endured the Cruciatus Curse twice. What if the Death Eaters attack St. Mungo's again?"
"Ah, I understand."
Kyle said, "But Minister, given the current situation, a tragic hero's story will inspire more courage from the people than the Chosen One."
Fudge seemed to have an idea and didn't say more. He just waved his hand and said, "I need to consider this further."
"Of course." Kyle said, "If there's nothing else, Minister, I'll go back to drafting the self-rescue brochure."
"Go ahead." Fudge said, "Just make sure it's detailed enough."
"I will." Kyle nodded.
He then left the room and returned to his adjacent office.
As soon as Kyle opened the door, two arms landed on his shoulders, one on each side.
"Hey, look who's back..."
"Our Senior Minister's Assistant..."
Fred and George squinted, staring at Kyle with a hint of malice.
"Don't be hasty." Kyle quickly raised his hands in surrender, "I have my reasons."
"Explain..."
"You're dead if you don't satisfy us!"
"I'm doing this for your families." Kyle freed himself from their grip and explained, "You've graduated now, and you should consider your families. Your department was supposed to be under the Office of Magical Complaints."
"Think about it. If you don't come to the Ministry to help, Mr. Weasley's workload will increase significantly."
Fred and George remained silent.
They had been busy these days, so busy that they barely had time to eat. The Office of Magical Complaints had only a few staff, and if everything was left to them, Mr. Weasley might not even have time to go home and sleep.
"Don't try to fool us..." Fred said, "This is clearly the job of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
"Are you sure?" Kyle raised an eyebrow, "Don't tell me you haven't noticed that most of the counterfeit and substandard defensive products are made with Muggle items."
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"You have a point." Fred muttered, "Then why didn't you tell us earlier?"
"Where's the surprise if I did?" Kyle walked to the desk and sat down. "Besides, Cedric and I are at the Ministry, and you two are enjoying yourselves outside. Don't you feel guilty?"
"Not at all." Fred blurted out.
George nodded, "Our conscience is clear."
"In that case, you can leave." Kyle said, "Go ahead and open your shop in Diagon Alley tomorrow. No need to come, and I'll talk to the Minister about your situation."
Fred and George were taken aback, not expecting Kyle to say that.
"Are you sure?"
"Can we really leave the Ministry?"
"Of course." Kyle said, "But you'll need to find others to do your current work. I can't possibly burden Mr. Weasley with everything."
Fred and George exchanged glances.
"Look who's taking it seriously now," Fred quickly changed his tone, "We were just joking. Why are you taking it so seriously?"
"That's true." George laughed, "Now is when the Ministry needs people the most, and it would be too selfish of us to leave. No, absolutely not."
"Besides, you and Cedric are our best friends. How could we possibly enjoy ourselves outside while leaving you alone?"
The two of them conversed in perfect harmony, a stark contrast to their attitude just a minute ago.
It was inevitable, given the circumstances.
In the past few days, they had confiscated countless counterfeit and substandard defensive products and unauthorized magical items.
Although the items were fake, they sparked numerous ideas they had never considered before. With slight modifications, these items could become genuine and highly sought-after.
In less than two weeks, their Weasley Joke Shop had introduced over a dozen new products, all well-received.
For instance, the anti-Dementor necklace they mentioned earlier had sold twenty pieces in a single day, and that was with them only having time to make twenty.
More importantly, this department specifically oversaw magical item shops. If someone else were in charge, they might conduct ten inspections a day, making it impossible to keep the store open.
Fred and George had no doubt that Kyle could pull off such a shameless move.
Thinking of this, the two immediately brought out butterbeer and biscuits, placing them on Kyle's desk.
"You must have been swamped these past few days..."
"Try some, Mom baked these this morning, and they taste amazing."
Kyle didn't expose their hidden intentions, casually taking a biscuit and popping it into his mouth.
The taste was indeed delightful.
He then pulled out a stack of parchment.
"What are you doing?" George asked curiously.
"Nonsense, I'm obviously about to work." Kyle said, "I need to write a booklet to teach everyone how to protect themselves."
"That's great." Fred's eyes lit up as he said, "I think everyone needs a bit of magical help to protect themselves right now."
"Like something against Dementors..." George said, "I know of something that, when shattered, releases a large Patronus Silver Fog, not a real Patronus, but it can hold off Dementors for a while, giving you time to escape."
"More importantly, it's not expensive, just ten Galleons..."
"Oh?" Kyle paused, putting down his quill. "Where can you buy such a thing?"
"Diagon Alley, number 37," Fred replied.
Diagon Alley, number 37, was the location of the Weasley Joke Shop.
Kyle was well aware of this, but he didn't reject the idea outright. After a moment's thought, he asked, "Does it really work?"
They were right; in this situation, besides personal strength, necessary magical item assistance could also play a crucial role.
After all, magical items didn't require incantations or wands, making them the most convenient option. The only drawback was their high cost.
"I assure you," George said seriously, "Don't forget what we do; we can't tarnish our reputation."
"And Tonks and Moody have both seen it, they bought two on the spot, which is proof enough."
Kyle tapped the table with his fingers. If even the Aurors found it useful, there was no doubt about its effectiveness.
Kyle tentatively said, "If you can lower the price to five Galleons, I can include your shop's location in the booklet..."
"That's impossible." Fred stated firmly, "It's not easy to store a Patronus Charm, it requires a unicorn horn and dragon blood for the engraving, and the cost is seven Galleons and fifteen Sickles, not including our expenses."
"How about six Galleons..."
"I told you, the cost is seven Galleons and fifteen Sickles, we're not lying to you..."
"Hold on," Kyle interrupted George, "For every piece sold, the Ministry will subsidize you one Galleon, how about that?"
"But there's no profit in that." Fred frowned, "Although we also want to contribute to the magical world, we can't sell things and lose fifteen Sickles, can you add a little more, even just one Galleon?"
"If it's too much, Fudge might not agree." Kyle shook his head, "Without the generous support of Lucius Malfoy, the Ministry doesn't have much money.
"And some things can't be measured solely by Galleons, this booklet is for all wizards, and it's the best advertisement. If it succeeds, the Weasley Joke Shop will become famous."
Fred and George hesitated.
Kyle was right; this was an opportunity to make their shop's name known. Perhaps overnight, the name Weasley Joke Shop could spread throughout the magical world, bringing undeniable benefits.
However, the more people bought it, the more they would lose.
Fifteen Sickles per item wasn't much, but what about a hundred or even a thousand...
By then, even if they became famous, what use would it be if they were losing money?
Fred and George wanted to refuse, but they couldn't bear to let go of this opportunity...
"We shouldn't have come today." Fred said through gritted teeth.
If they hadn't come, they wouldn't have faced this difficult choice.
The two paced back and forth in Kyle's office, unable to make a decision for a long time.
"There might be another way."
Seeing their indecision, Kyle thought for a moment and said, "The Ministry should have a way to purchase cheaper dragon blood and unicorn horns."
"As long as we can lower the cost, we're fine." Fred and George said simultaneously, "We'll only charge the cost price, no matter how much it is."
"Don't rush, I'm just saying it's a possibility." Kyle said, "After all, I haven't looked into this either, I need to ask first."
"It's fine." George said, "Even if it just reduces our losses by a few Sickles, it's no problem."
"Of course, not losing money would be the best." Fred added.
(End of Chapter)
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