Harry Potter and the Great Old Ones

Chapter 513 The Wheel of History

"We gather here today to witness a historic moment," Cornelius Fudge read from the speech prepared by Tyella. "Today, the British Magical Federation is founded! Today, I declare that the era of the Ministry of Magic is over! Today, I declare that we will establish an independent government, one that is no longer dependent on the Muggle government, one that is not controlled by any reactionary forces, and one that belongs entirely to the people of the wizarding world!"

After Cornell Fudge finished speaking, he paused slightly, seemingly waiting for applause.

But things turned out a little unexpectedly.

Cornell Fudge's supposedly excellent opening remarks received no approval and no applause.

"Clap, clap, clap, clap," Tiera, sitting in the audience seats, calmly clapped, seemingly unconcerned about how abrupt his applause sounded in the otherwise silent hall.

But then, following Tierra's applause—

"Clap, clap, clap, clap!" Harry, sitting in the audience, clapped his hands vigorously, his face flushed.

Then came Ron and Hermione, followed by the other young wizards of Dumbledore's Army and some of their family members.

Then there was Dumbledore, Bathilda Bagshot, and the fence-sitters who had been carefully observing Dumbledore's attitude.

Even so, even though all of Tierra's friends and acquaintances expressed their approval of his ideas, these applause still sounded so pale amidst the bustling crowds and numerous opponents today.

“We are in the most difficult moment, we are in the darkest moment.” After the applause gradually faded, Connelly Fudge continued in his uniquely passionate voice, “Yes, darkness, the power of darkness is everywhere, the power of darkness has spread like a plague across the land we love.”

"As you all surely know, as you all surely understand," Cornelius Fudge said, "Voldemort is back!"

“Yes, I’m calling him Voldemort, and I’m going to call him Voldemort too. I’m tired of calling him Mysterio or that wizard who calls himself the Dark Lord,” Cornelius Fudge said defiantly, his expression suggesting he had defeated Voldemort himself. “In my eyes, he’s nothing but a loser, a coward, a brutal fool!”

As Connelly Fudge recited the words from the speech draft that Tyella had given him, he secretly felt a chill run down his spine.

Tierra appeared suddenly this morning. Just as Connelly Fudge was anxiously eating breakfast, Tierra suddenly appeared in the seat opposite him. Tierra was enjoying the exact same breakfast as him. If Connelly Fudge hadn't gone to get some pepper from the other side of the table, he probably wouldn't have noticed Tierra's sudden appearance.

This situation is far too bizarre, even in the world of magic.

Connelly Fudge had not heard or felt any sound before he noticed Tierra's appearance.

“Mr. Lockhart?” Cornelius Fudge immediately put down the pepper in his hand and greeted him respectfully.

“Good morning, Secretary General Fudge.” Tierra greeted him politely, then put down her knife and fork, extending her hand across the table to shake hands with Connelly Fudge. “I’m here to deliver today’s speech.” “Speech?” Connelly Fudge asked, puzzled. “But my speech was already prepared, yes, I haven’t shown it to you yet—”

“I’ve seen it,” Tierra said with a smile, but firmly. “I don’t think that one is suitable, so I’ve sent you a new draft of the speech.”

As she spoke, Tierra clasped her five hands together and pointed to the plate on which Cornelius had placed breakfast—

Connelly Fudge looked down and realized that his breakfast was long gone, replaced by a stack of speech manuscripts that smelled of ink.

“You don’t have much time left,” Connelly Fudge heard Tierra say. “Please familiarize yourself with the situation. I have faith in your abilities as a politician.”

Then, when Cornelius looked up at the opposite table again, Tiera had vanished, as if he had never been there. There was no sign of food on the opposite table, and the seat was neatly tucked under it.
Tierra's attitude meant that Connelly Fudge did not have the right to refuse the speech.

Therefore, although Cornelius Fudge felt that some of the wording and phrasing of the speech were too strong and provoked hatred, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and continue reading.

Cornelius Fudge could only keep telling himself that Tyella wouldn't give up on him so easily.

After all, if she were killed by the Death Eaters seeking revenge or even Voldemort, Tyrell would probably find it difficult to find another "Secretary-General of the Magical Union" who was as obedient and easy to control as herself.

This is why Connelly Fudge was able to muster the courage to take such a tough stance, something that was unprecedented for him.

"We should not fear him! We should not be afraid of him! Because he is a remnant of the old era, a representative of the despicable conservative forces. What he represents is not only the power of dark magic, but also the backward ideas of the old era, such as his adherence to the supremacy of pure blood and the theory of bloodlines. The wheels of history roll forward, and the pace of the times will never stop. We will eventually usher in a new future, but there will still be challenges and obstacles on our path forward." Cornelius Fudge continued his passionate speech, "Let conservative forces like Voldemort continue to be conservative! Let him cling to his rotten and maggot-infested pure-blood theory and be complacent! Because history is developmental, it is always moving forward! Old systems will inevitably perish, and old systems and backward ideas will inevitably be replaced by new things and advanced ideas. It will not change because of the will of an individual, and it will not stop moving forward because some extremely powerful dark lord has emerged from the conservative forces."

“As I said before, the wheels of history keep turning, and anyone or anything that tries to change or obstruct the course of history will be mercilessly crushed by them, even the Dark Lord—” Cornelius Fudge paused, “even Voldemort! He and his Death Eaters will inevitably perish—”

"So, according to Minister Fudge, you mean our pure-blood families will also disappear?" Just as Cornelius Fudge was about to bring his speech to its climax, a sharp, sarcastic voice suddenly interrupted him. Closest to the podium, a short, stout young witch with a round face suddenly stood up, head held high, staring intently at Cornelius Fudge. Her eyes, squeezed into slits by her fat, were filled with resentment and anger—

“Dolores Umbridge,” Tierra murmured, then gave a sarcastic smile. His voice didn’t travel far, but reached Dumbledore’s ears. “Even in disguise, you can’t at least make it look better.”

"Minister Fudge just said that the wheels of history will keep turning and crush everything from the old era. Does the minister mean to exterminate all our pure-blood families?" Umbridge was a master at twisting the meaning of others' words when it came to taking advantage of the situation. "No wonder Minister Fudge was able to mobilize the Muggle army. It turns out he has already sided with the Muggle government and wants to carry out another witch extermination campaign against us."

"Huh!?" Cornelius Fudge was completely dumbfounded by the scene before him, seemingly not expecting this situation at all, and looked to Tiera for help.

Tiera smiled, brushed off non-existent dust from her knees, and slowly stood up—

(End of this chapter)