Hogwarts: This holy light is righteously evil

The ongoing election turmoil, the investigation of internal problems, and negative feedback from the public have left Barty Crouch in a state of utter chaos.

He was restless all day long, having to deal with the competition from Connelly Fudge, purge internal corruption, and salvage his declining reputation. He was exhausted, both physically and mentally, but could not find an effective solution.

What caught him even off guard was that among those who were exposed as writers, some of them were not deliberately sabotaging him. They were indeed his loyal supporters, but they were deliberately guided and instigated to write those seemingly supportive but actually harmful reports.

When these people were indiscriminately kicked out of the campaign team, their pent-up grievances and anger erupted instantly.

They served Barty Crouch with utmost loyalty, only to be expelled in the end. This stark contrast left them utterly disheartened.

Some of these expelled supporters completely abandoned their support for Barty Crouch and switched to the neutral camp.

Even worse, some, driven by anger, have let their past loyalty outweigh their anger and have begun to publicly accuse Barty Crouch of indiscriminately betraying him and discarding him after he has served his purpose. They have even actively spread more negative comments about him and used the sharpest words to defame him.

This shift from full support to full opposition has severely damaged Barty Crouch's reputation and made the election even more chaotic.

Just as the entire wizarding world was in chaos because of this ministerial election, with wizards discussing it and having no consensus, and even Barty Crouch and Cornelius Fudge at a stalemate, a voice that could suppress all the noise quietly appeared.

—Dumbledore publicly stated his support for Cornelius Fudge's candidacy for Minister of Magic!

Everyone knew that this was Dumbledore's first statement on the election campaign since he publicly announced that he would not participate in the ministerial election.

As the most prestigious and respected person in the entire wizarding world, his words alone are enough to make a final decision and directly determine the final outcome of the election.

Even without the previous chaos and Barty Crouch's reputation collapse, Cornelius Fudge already had an absolute advantage based solely on Dumbledore's public support, and his chances of winning were far greater than Barty Crouch's.

Moreover, after the previous series of farces, Barty Crouch had very few supporters left, and his reputation had plummeted. Now, with Dumbledore's support, Cornelius Fudge's victory was already a foregone conclusion.

This long-running ministerial election was full of twists and turns, including attacks, flattery, and internal turmoil. It left the wizards of the entire magical world bewildered and uneasy, with everyone speculating about the final outcome.

When the news broke that Dumbledore had publicly supported Cornelius Fudge, all the uproar instantly subsided.

The newspapers that had previously covered the campaign extensively fell silent after their final large-scale news push, with no more debate or hype surrounding the election.

The storm has passed, and the outcome is clear.

With Dumbledore's support and his previously accumulated popularity, Cornelius Fudge became the ultimate winner of the election. He was all smiles and busy preparing for his inauguration, his heart filled with joy and anticipation.

Barty Crouch, on the other hand, became a complete loser. He stayed at home, his face expressionless, his eyes vacant, and his heart ashen.

His lifelong ambitions were thus completely shattered in a carefully laid trap and chaos!

In the dining halls of Hogwarts, the hustle and bustle had long since subsided. Although the young wizards were still discussing the outcome of the ministerial election, the heated debates of the past were gone.

Marcos, clutching a recent copy of the Daily Prophet, walked briskly to Puni's side with a hint of感慨 (gan3 kai3, a complex emotion encompassing both admiration and regret). "Puni, you were right!"

He spread out the newspaper and pointed to the blank campaign page: "Look, ever since Professor Dumbledore publicly endorsed Cornelius Fudge, there hasn't been any related controversial news in the newspaper. Now, the entire wizarding world, whether students or adult wizards, has accepted that Cornelius Fudge's election is a foregone conclusion, and no one is questioning it anymore."

Hearing this, Puni put down his cutlery and said with a faint smile, "Of course, don't you know who I am?"

To be honest, the final outcome of this election, which seemed to be decided by Dumbledore's public statement, was not actually the case.

For him, it didn't really matter whether Connery Fudge or Buddy Crouch was elected minister. Regardless of who came to power, he only needed to go with the flow and protect his family's interests.

However, Dumbledore's support undoubtedly made this unresolved election a foregone conclusion.

But what truly changed the course of the election was not Dumbledore's statement, but the covert intervention of the pure-blood families.

Earlier, the Purebloods, following Pony's instructions, had unilaterally contacted Cornelius Fudge, informing him that the Purebloods would secretly support him in preventing Barty Crouch's election.

After that, the writers employed by the pure-blood family launched wave after wave of propaganda offensives.

Those writers precisely controlled the direction of public opinion, continuing to undermine Barty Crouch's reputation through excessive praise while simultaneously promoting Connelly Fudge's strengths to compensate for his previous weaknesses.

It was this continuous wave of public opinion that allowed Cornelius Fudge, who was initially at a disadvantage, to gradually turn the tide, surpass Barty Crouch step by step, and take the initiative in the election. Even before Dumbledore made his statement, he was already confident of victory and had a slight advantage over Barty Crouch.

Puni understood that for Cornelius Fudge, who was about to take office, Dumbledore's support might not be considered a true lifeline.

After all, before Dumbledore spoke up, he had already stabilized the situation with the covert help of the pure-blood family, and was even close to winning the election.

Dumbledore's support was more like icing on the cake, making his victory even more secure and completely dispelling any potential doubts.

Thinking about it this way, the secret help provided by the pure-blood family was actually more beneficial to Cornelius Fudge than Dumbledore's public statements.

This was just a fleeting thought in Puni's mind, but it made him realize that Cornelius Fudge would most likely be aware of it as well.

Puni knew very well that once this idea took root and sprouted in Connelly Fudge's mind, it would have a profound impact.