Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Azeroth

Chapter 217, Section 216: The Shamanic Priests and Minister Harry
Gold coins come into my pocket, to hell with the ecological environment—Fairy's motto.

I made that up.

But that's the gist of it, and the fairies are never ashamed of it; on the contrary, they are very proud of it.

“So you actually understand what I mean, Harry,” Copper Ring shrugged and said, “your way of doing things really doesn’t work among goblins—if you did it your way, we might fight you before the goblins even start fighting the wizards. No goblin can tolerate your rules, really.”

“I know, I know all too well,” Harry sighed deeply. “So, as for you fairies… damn it, I really don’t want to say this, but you can certainly look at the elements in a different way.”

Harry made a decision that went against his ancestors' wishes.

If Granny Magasa found out that he was actually promoting the heretical shamanistic doctrine of goblins to others, then her teacher, whose personality was quite ruthless, would probably smash his head open with a dead cow hoof.

This is no joke. Magatha Grimtotem is such a bull. For a long time, members of the Grimtotem would even make weapons from the corpses of other hostile tauren, such as legs or hooves. They were among the most extreme groups in all the tauren tribes.

As a disciple of such an extreme traditional shaman, Harry spread the disrespectful ideas of goblin shamans to others, which absolutely deserved to be expelled from the sect.

But what could Harry do?

Fairies are probably the only race that falls for this kind of thing.

"A different approach?" Tilting his head, the copper ring didn't understand.

“…Yes, you don’t need to make any changes. You just need to look at the problem from a different perspective.” It was somewhat difficult for Harry to say this, and he said with a blank face, “You can think of the elements as business partners—you should understand that term, right?”

Yes, that's what makes goblin shamans so unique.

It must be stated that what Harry said next was not from his heart or his true intention; it just came out inexplicably and haphazardly.

“Of course, take you for example, you are my business partner, Harry. Although you don’t earn much, you still make a profit.” Copper Ring then said to Sirius Black, “The Black family is the same. Several of your properties are still managed by Gringotts.”

A pair of eyes swept over Lupin one last time, and the copper ring pretended not to see the poor werewolf.

“Since you know that, that’s fine,” Harry said expressionlessly, spitting out the words as quickly as possible, as if lingering in his mouth for even a second longer would be a defilement. “You can think of the elements as a special kind of business partner; only those with talent can do business with them.”

"You can acquire the power of the elements through negotiation and trade, such as exchanging mineral offerings for the assistance of the fire element, so that the element can help you accomplish the corresponding tasks... or you can try to persuade the element with conditions."

"You can do that?!" Suddenly wide awake, the copper ring jolted awake, the fairy sitting bolt upright, eyes wide, exclaiming, "You can become a shaman without following your rules?! You can make deals with the elements?!"

“...Yes,” Harry nodded with great difficulty.

Some goblin shamans in the Earth Ring even complain that earth elementals are too temperamental, haggling is too time-consuming, and they are hard to persuade.

"Then, if we become shamans in this transactional way, how do we compare to shamans like you, Harry?" Copper Ring stammered. "I mean, in terms of power, can we still do divination? What about combat strength?"

“I don’t know,” Harry said sincerely. “You’ll have to discuss it yourselves. As for the power, at least you can summon the souls of your ancestors, those dead old goblins and such, and listen to their investment advice.”

"Or we can collect the debt from them!" The entire Copper Ring fairy was trembling with excitement. "Damn it! They can't die with the gold coins anymore!! This will definitely be a huge business opportunity! No fairy can refuse this!!"

Harry: "..."

What do you mean?
Torture the souls of our ancestors, is that it?

Harry wasn't the only one shocked; even Sirius and Lupin beside him were stunned by Copper Ring's peculiar thought process. They exchanged glances, their vigilance heightened—working with this money-grubbing goblin required extreme caution.

"...Pretty much, that's all your own business. But generally speaking, we only seek the wisdom passed down from our ancestors." Having experienced the torment of goblins, Harry adapted quickly, only sighing helplessly as he spoke.

“Great job!” Unconcerned about the opinions of outsiders, Copper Ring’s eyes sparkled as he repeated, “Great job—this will definitely be a very lucrative one.”

"Would you be able to dine at the Gringotts year-end meeting?" Harry asked with a smile.

"Not only that! Maybe I can even discuss with them where to make a fortune," Copper Ring burst into laughter, then stopped after a while and looked at Harry seriously, saying, "So, as my business partner, Harry, what do you need me to do?"

Fairies understand all too well that there's no such thing as a free lunch.

“It’s simple. You have to promise me you won’t let this power fall into the hands of goblins who have a lot of grievances against humans,” Harry said seriously. “Those who don’t want to destroy this world, those who are willing to accept the commission to maintain the balance of the elements—you should understand what I mean.”

“I don’t have much resentment towards humans…” Copper Ring’s expression was a little strange. “You know what? There’s no demon in this world who has any resentment towards humans—but, deal.”

The brass ring extended its hand, and Harry reached out and shook it.

....................................

Will fairies rebel? Harry thinks fairies will probably rebel in the future, for more benefits, for the benefit of the fairy race... This kind of thing is unavoidable, so we'll just have to wait and see.

It's nothing more than another fight to determine who's better and who's in a new position, and then peace will return. Harry is quite accepting of it.

Anyway, he's already trying his best to avoid the worst possible outcome.

It must be said that although wizards may look down on other intelligent races, the Ministry of Magic responded immediately when Harry actually started to come into contact with goblins.

This is perhaps the fastest response the Ministry of Magic has made in decades. At a recent meeting, Fudge overruled objections and established a new department with a straightforward name: the Shamanic Administration Department. It is not yet a large department, but is attached to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Its main responsibilities are to deal with the possible future resurgence of elements and the management of shamans in the magical world.

Well, even if you include the centaurs in the Forbidden Forest and the merfolk in the Black Lake, there are currently no more than thirty shamans in the entire British magical world. However, the Ministry of Magic has still created a new department for this profession, which is clearly destined to grow in the future.

At the latest International Magic Conference, many African countries' ministries of magic discovered that wizards within their borders had communicated with new powers, which called themselves the Elements. This not only confirmed what Harry had said before, but also provided strong evidence for Dumbledore's repeated emphasis at conferences, as president of the International Confederation of Wizards, on the need to pay attention to the impact of the resurgence of the Elements.

So now the prevailing trend in the magical world is no longer inviting Harry Potter to prove himself, but rather inviting him to share his experience on how wizards should deal with the elements who have their own intelligence and have been identified as a new intelligent race, and how to ensure that they do not break the secrecy laws.

In short, things are quite troublesome. After all, it's no secret that Muggles can become shamans if they are favored by the elements... It can only be said that the ministers of magic in various countries are now having a headache.

Dumbledore didn't stay at the school much during this time; he was always running around outside, busy with these kinds of things.

The Shamanic Priests Department was a hasty response from the British Ministry of Magic. Well, the current minister is none other than Harry—after all, he was the one who proposed all the theories related to elements and the matter of shamans.
Therefore, after Fudge made a special trip to the school, Harry still agreed to take on the responsibility.

Putting everything else aside, Cornelius Fudge was indeed a complete nobleman—most nobles in Stormwind—the kind of standard human scum nobleman who fought for power even when the orcs came to attack, and then did nothing of note after rebuilding the kingdom.

He showed no arrogance in front of Harry, instead showering him with compliments to make him Minister of Magic—in Hagrid's words, it was probably similar to how Fudge had consulted Dumbledore on everything when he first became Minister of Magic.

Regardless of what Fudge was like in private or in public, Harry became a proper official in the Ministry of Magic. Although it was only a small department, everyone knew that this department would definitely not be small in the future, and might even stand shoulder to shoulder with the Auror's Office.

Many people believe that Fudge only has this department under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement because Harry is indeed too young. When he comes of age, the department may become completely independent—after all, all the shamans in the British wizarding world are Harry's apprentices.
As the person who understands the elements best right now, only he can build a basic framework and rules of conduct for this department, and even formulate new laws in the future.

Therefore, when the Daily Prophet reported on this new department, there was little resistance or disapproval from the wizarding community regarding Harry becoming a Ministry of Magic official at such a young age.

Ultimately, wizarding societies are far more accepting and tolerant of geniuses than Muggle societies; capable people are naturally expected to take on more responsibility.

As for Harry, who has become a proper Ministry of Magic official... he hasn't been to work a single day.

Although Fudge had cleared out a large office for him on the seventh floor of the Ministry of Magic, the Department of Shamanism was still a ghost department, completely unmanned—Harry hadn't even graduated a single apprentice yet, let alone been sent out on missions.

The world hasn't become a place where elements are readily available, and the secrecy laws are still in effect, so the shamanic priesthood can still enjoy a period of relative peace.

At least for now, Christmas has arrived.

Let's celebrate the holiday first.

"Here, more chocolates." Ron opened another box of candy and placed it next to Harry, saying without looking up, "Fourth-year Demi Rowan, I bet there's some love potion in it. Want to bet, Neville?"

"No bet," Neville said without hesitation. "What's the point of betting on something like this? Everyone knows that most of these candies contain aphrodisiacs."

“Okay,” Ron said with a hint of regret, “Actually, it felt pretty good—hey! Don’t look at me like that! I’m just talking about how it felt after taking the love potion! It was like the whole world became sweeter, pink and sweet.”

Of everyone present, he was the only one who had this experience.

“Oh, you’re disgusting, Ron,” Hermione said with a look of revulsion. “Love potion distorts your own will; it’s love forcibly created with magic, it’s not real! It’s a defilement of love!”

“I know!” Ron said, his face flushed. “I didn’t say that was right! I was just describing the feeling to you!”

"Oh, a love potion—haha, you'd better watch out for those witches, Harry, they're all ruthless banshees!" Sirius laughed and sat down on the sofa. He pretended not to see Hermione glaring at him, then suddenly sat up straight. "Wait, Harry, what's that in your hand—?"

"Your masterpiece," Harry said with a smile, waving the parchment in his hand. "Mr. Moonface, Mr. Wormtail, Mr. Bigfoot, and Mr. Prongs... proudly present the Marauder's Map."

“Yes, yes, that’s it,” Sirius excitedly took the parchment from Harry. “I remember it very clearly, we argued for a long time about what to leave on this map… well, although I really don’t like seeing a certain name on it.”

“What’s that? Sirius?” Ron interjected. “Let me see.”

Sirius Black didn't intend to keep the "Marauder's Map" a secret; he spread the parchment out on the table.

"This is—Hogwarts?!" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes widening as she took a closer look. "A map of Hogwarts?"

"That's right, this was the perfect weapon that made it hard for us to get caught no matter what pranks we played!" Sirius said proudly.

(End of this chapter)