https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-983-The-Controlled-French-Ministry-of-Magic/13454976/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-985-The-Only-Explanation-Is-Magic-/13454980/
Chapter 984: Meeting with the Prime Minister of Britain
Chapter 984: Meeting with the Prime Minister of Britain
The two left Ward and returned to the British Ministry of Magic. Seeing that Ivan had been deep in thought and hadn't spoken a word, Pierce couldn't help but ask first.
"Do you think Miss Delacour's information is reliable, Lord Hals?"
Although Fleur's words didn't seem suspicious, and she had almost been disfigured to obtain the information, Pierce, as a cautious leader, still had some doubts.
Because if Fleur's words were true, they might have to face a war with France, which was no laughing matter...
"I believe she is telling the truth", Ivan nodded. He had used Legilimency while talking to Fleur and found no signs of lying.
Of course, this was just an initial assessment. He had Fleur stay at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries not only for protection but also to ensure that she hadn't been under the Imperius Curse or had her memories modified during subsequent examinations.
If possible, Ivan didn't want to be so suspicious of an old acquaintance, but against the cunning Grindelwald, they had to be extremely cautious...
After all, Fleur was an Auror from France, often stationed at the French Ministry of Magic. There was a possibility that she had been controlled as well.
Her injury and disfigurement might have been a ruse, and the information she provided could be a trap to lure him into the French Ministry of Magic, where they would set up an ambush.
Various conspiracy theories flashed through Ivan's mind, but he eventually calmed down. At least from his recent probing, Fleur seemed trustworthy.
"What should we do next? Should we immediately take action against the French Ministry of Magic?" Pierce asked.
Ivan hesitated. He couldn't let Grindelwald control France so easily and gain a base for his operations. Action was inevitable.
However, Ivan wasn't foolish enough to rush into the French Ministry of Magic without any intelligence. Even with more manpower, they could still suffer heavy losses there.
Their experience at the North American Magic Congress was a lesson. Over a hundred North American Aurors, working with the protective magic of the Congress Building, had managed to completely suppress Grindelwald. If not for the sabotage that destroyed the Department of Mysteries and weakened the defenses, Grindelwald would likely have been captured by now.
With this in mind, Ivan instructed Pierce to increase the number of agents infiltrating the French Ministry of Magic. He needed to understand the extent of Grindelwald's control.
From Fleur's and others' experiences, it was clear that some lower-ranking Aurors might still be unaware that high-ranking officials had been compromised. These people were potential allies.
Additionally, Ivan didn't forget to have Pierce inform the Enforcers to strengthen the protection of Muggle leaders, especially by pressuring the French Ministry of Magic to involve the International Confederation of Wizards' Aurors in the protection of the French President, to gauge the French response.
Pierce noted down Ivan's instructions and then, as if remembering something, continued, "President Hals, the newly appointed Prime Minister of Britain might not know about the Wizarding community. Should we inform him?"
Since additional personnel are being dispatched, it will be difficult to keep the next operation a secret from the Muggle Prime Minister.
In fact, as the highest-ranking official in Britain, he has the right to know about the Wizarding World. However, the newly appointed Prime Minister has no significant background, so Buckingham Palace has not yet taken the initiative to inform him of this matter. Additionally, the British Wizarding World has recently experienced some turmoil, which has further delayed the process.
Listening to Pierce's words, Ivan became intrigued and decided to propose meeting the Prime Minister himself.
After defeating Grindelwald, he will inevitably have to interact with Muggle leaders. It would be better to meet them sooner rather than later. Ivan also wanted to gauge the Prime Minister's stance on the Wizarding community.
...
In Britain, Westminster, at 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister's Office.
Prime Minister Harker, who had been in office for just three months, was sitting in his chair, reviewing one document after another.
These documents were secretly submitted to him a few days ago by MI6, detailing various unusual events that had occurred on the European continent over the past year.
For example, more than six months ago, someone spotted a massive Six-Winged Beast soaring over Paris, with two floating coffins beside it. Many Muggles in Paris swore they saw two people sitting on the strange bird. However, after a secret investigation by agents, all the photos were found to be digitally altered. The Six-Winged Beast flying over Paris was actually a kite that had lost its string, and the entire incident was a publicity stunt by a kite-making factory to attract attention.
While Harker was not particularly interested in these bizarre urban legends, what truly concerned him were the increasingly frequent terrorist attacks in Europe and North America!
Over a hundred such incidents in a year, spread across the entire continent, made Prime Minister Harker suspect something unusual. His keen political instincts told him there was definitely a problem!
Such frequent attacks could not be explained by a single terrorist organization suddenly deciding to launch a comprehensive assault on Europe. The various countries' agents, intelligence services, police, and customs departments were not blind.
The only thing that gave Harker some comfort was that Britain and the British Isles were exceptions, allowing him to sit here leisurely and watch the chaos elsewhere.
However, no matter how much he thought about it, Harker couldn't understand why Britain had been spared. In the end, he attributed it to Britain's "excellent" diplomatic reputation—though even he found this explanation hard to believe, there seemed to be no other plausible reason.
After finishing the documents, Harker casually wrote a note for MI6 to strengthen internal reviews in Britain, to prevent dangerous individuals from slipping into the country. He then picked up the phone to call his Private Secretary for a discussion.
But as his finger was about to press the connect button, Harker hesitated, unsure whether to go through with it.
Recently, he had noticed that his Private Secretary might be a bit off. Ever since returning from a vacation, the man had changed. He was often inattentive during face-to-face reports and sometimes spoke in cryptic, half-understood phrases.
If not for MI6's repeated investigations confirming that the Secretary was not a problem, Harker would have suspected him of being an Undercover Agent from the North American Central Intelligence Agency or the Russian Federal Security Service—though he still couldn't rule out this possibility entirely.
(End of Chapter)
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