At Hogwarts, the story begins with deconstructing Avada Kedavra.

Morning, the Minister of Magic's office.

Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge was staring at the pot of biting cabbage on the table. The cabbage, with its menacing, spiky appearance, mirrored his current predicament.

If you're not careful, you might get bitten in return.

Fudge loosened his tie in frustration.

This morning he received not only a paper airplane from Umbridge,

He has met with three directors to discuss the Fairy Bank's interest rate adjustment, the Quidditch World Cup security plan, and the troublesome Muggle item misuse proposal.

He was fed up with these obsequious chores, which made him feel like he wasn't the Minister of Magic, but a yes-man who could be replaced at any moment.

What troubled him wasn't just these things, but also the letter on the table that had been delivered half an hour earlier by a black eagle owl from the Malfur family's private fireplace.

Those were Lucius Malfoy's private letters.

As a minister who had only been in office for a year, he knew all too well that Lucius's letters were usually not simple.

The letter paper unfolded,

Your Excellency Minister,

It is truly heartening to see you so resolutely upholding order and law in the wizarding world during this turbulent time.

As a member of the Hogwarts Board of Governors, I have a responsibility to bring to your attention certain disturbing circumstances, as I have done today through formal channels with the relevant authorities.

Norwegian Spinosaurus, first-year students—including the involvement of that famous boy.

It is understood that the school administration is inclined to handle this matter discreetly as an internal mistake. While this intention is commendable, if the matter is leaked, it may be misinterpreted as a disregard for the Ministry of Magic's oversight authority, thereby raising unnecessary doubts about the rule of law that you advocate.

I firmly believe that with your wisdom and decisiveness, you will be able to handle this matter in a way that upholds the dignity of the law while protecting innocent students.

If there is anything I can do to assist you further, the Malfoy family is at your service, just as we have always done.

Loyal

Lucius Malfoy

After Fudge finished reading, his throat went dry.

He folded the letter and put it in the drawer.

The place was already overflowing with similar letters, all well-intentioned reminders from those old families.

He leaned back in his chair and stared at the Ministry of Magic emblem on the ceiling.

Fudge certainly understood. He had only been in power for a little over a year, and while the position left by Millison Bagnold sounded prestigious, it was only when you sat in it that you realized how hot it was.

Newspapers lauded the new minister for bringing about a fresh start, but the old bureaucrats, Aurors, and even Dumbledore's faction privately considered him a puppet.

He needs a victory, a victory that can be written into a briefing, a victory that can get the Daily Prophet on the front page.

A Norwegian Spinosaurus appeared at Hogwarts.

It also involves Harry Potter.

This is a golden opportunity that has come knocking on your door.

If handled properly, he can declare to the public:

"The Ministry of Magic intervened in time, protecting the savior and correcting Hogwarts' oversight."

No matter how powerful Dumbledore is, he still has to bow down before the law.

But if it's not handled properly... what if the dragon injures someone, or the news leaks out?

The newspaper headline would become "Dragon Hidden in Hogwarts During Minister's Tenure, Savior Nearly Loses His Life"—and then he'd be finished.

He looked at the table.

Now, these two documents form the two poles of power on his desk, awaiting his final touch.

On the left is Lucius's private message.

It represents the flowing Galleons in Gringotts, and the unspoken agreement of the ancient families seated at the Wizengamot.

If you go with the flow, you'll find endless convenience; if you go against the current, you'll find every step difficult. Lucius was selling him an opportunity to consolidate power.

On the right is Dolores Umbridge's report.

Dolores is the perfect executive hand:

She not only craved power, but also had absolutely no moral fastidiousness.

Moreover, acting in this way,

If the operation succeeds, it will be a great correction of Dumbledore's mismanagement by the Ministry of Magic, and irrefutable proof of Cornelius Fudge's decisive and efficient leadership. The Malfoy family will be satisfied, and the public will cheer.

If the operation goes wrong, if the dragon injures someone, or causes public outrage...

That was Director Umbridge, whose intentions were good, but whose methods were too radical and lacked compassion when carrying out his duties.

This is certainly regrettable, and he will personally sign the suspension order against Umbridge in an attempt to quell Dumbledore's anger.

Isn't this the first principle of politics? It's not about what you do, but about whether someone else can be held accountable if things go wrong.

Fudge picked up a quill and wrote a note.

"Very insightful. See you at two o'clock. —CF"

……

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the oak door to the office was gently pushed open.

Dolores Umbridge walked in. Today she was wearing a fluffy pink cardigan, a color that stood out starkly in the serious minister's office.

She tried to force a sweet smile, but the excess fat on her cheeks didn't cooperate, making the smile look somewhat stiff.

Her large eye bags drooped loosely, and the huge black velvet bow on her head trembled with her steps.

"Minister," her voice was sickeningly sweet, "you seem a little anxious. Are those old fogies from Wizengamo grumbling about the Floo powder tax rate again?"

“It’s more troublesome than that, Dolores.” Fudge shoved Malfoy’s letter toward him. “Lucius told me that our greatest white wizard of our time is playing with fire in his ivory tower. Literally fire.”

Umbridge reached out and took the letter, his fingers quickly sliding across the ink.

At first, when the word "Norwegian Spinosaurus" came into view, she curled her lips in disdain.

Such filthy, dangerous, and uncultured beasts are usually the concern of the boorish people in the Department of Magical Creatures Control, and have nothing to do with her.

However, she slowed down when her gaze fell on the words "famous boy" and "bypass the Ministry of Magic".

This is not a simple case of illegally keeping magical creatures.

This isn't just about a prank on the boy who miraculously survived. It's a breach.

A perfect opening to break through Hogwarts' autonomy and extend the Ministry of Magic's reach into the castle.

An opportunity has arisen, and Fudge desperately needs a knife that can stab without getting his hand dirty.

She looked up.

"A dragon, Minister," she read, "a Norwegian Ridgeback. In the school. And... a fire that was handled properly. Oh, this is truly... regrettable."

"Regrettable?" Fudge scoffed. "This is a disaster! If this gets to the Daily Prophet's ears, the front page will be 'New Minister Loses Control of Hogwarts Security.' The public will think I can't even control a dragon-keeping Warden in the Forbidden Forest, let alone Dumbledore!"

“Indeed, Minister.” Umbridge closed the letter. “According to ‘Yes, Director’—oh, I mean, according to the unwritten rules of our Department of Magical Law Enforcement, there are usually three stages in handling these kinds of cases.”

She held up her finger.

"Phase One: Due to insufficient evidence, we declare that nothing happened. That's exactly what Dumbledore is doing now; he wants to turn this into an ordinary fire."

She held up her second finger.

"Phase Two: If the evidence comes to light, we'll declare that it did happen, but its impact was exaggerated, and everything is under control. That's what Mr. Lucius wants you to do now: send one or two Aurors to knock on the door, take the dragon, and then write Dumbledore a lukewarm warning letter."

Fudge nodded: "That sounds like a safe bet..."

"But that's very unprofessional, Mr. Minister." Umbridge's smile deepened. "Because there's a third stage: when things can no longer be covered up, we declare it an inevitable tragedy caused by the long-term negligence of the previous administrators."

And we, that is, you, are the saviors who establish a new order from the ruins.

Fudge picked up the conversation: "What do you mean?"

“What I mean is, why send an Auror?” Umbridge leaned forward. “Aurors belong to Scrimgeour, to the old guard. If you send an Auror, the credit goes to the Department of Law Enforcement, and the trouble is yours. But if you send the Office of Misuse of Magic…”

She patted the file in her arms.

"...Go conduct a routine survey on the mental health and magical safety of minors. No one can accuse you of interfering with school education, because we're just out to care for the children. If we happen to discover a dragon during the survey, and a smuggling plan resulting from the principal's administrative negligence—"

"—Then this is not a case involving contraband."

Fudge looked at her approvingly. "This is a complete collapse of the administrative system."

“That is exactly right, Minister,” Umbridge added sweetly. “Dumbledore is no longer that untouchable saint; he is merely an aging and negligent educator who cannot even distinguish between school rules and laws. And you, through timely administrative intervention, protected all the students from the threat of fire and toxic flames.”

Fudge leaned back in his chair and began to fidget with his top hat.

"But Dumbledore would say it was an accident. He had the support of Wizengamor."

"So we need evidence, Mr. Minister. The irrefutable evidence of those illegal acts."

Umbridge lowered his voice.

"If we could personally lead the team to them the moment they're caught red-handed..."

"What do you need?" Fudge asked.

"An authorization order, Mr. Minister."

Umbridge pulled a piece of parchment from the file, dipped his pen in ink, and...

"Led by the Director of the Office for the Misuse of Magic, this team will be fully responsible for investigating potential risks on campus. No Aurors are needed, no Chief of Staff is needed, I will report directly to you."

Fudge picked up the pen, but hesitated to put it down.

"But, Dolores, what if... I mean, what if Dumbledore uses his influence to get Wisengamour to dismiss our investigation? He always has a way."

This is his greatest fear.

He was afraid to confront that legendary wizard head-on.

"Mr. Minister, of course he can. But the more he does it, the more he proves to everyone:"

He was feeling guilty; he was using his privileges to cover up his dereliction of duty.

At that point, we won't be attacking a dragon, but rather Dumbledore's abuse of power.

You don't need to win; you just need to make him look like a sinner who used every means to cover up his mistakes.

Public trust will naturally crumble and shift to you, the minister who upholds the law.

Fudge was silent for a moment.

Finally, he leaned back in his chair.

He looked at the authorization document and left his signature on the parchment.

Umbridge took the paper and carefully blew the ink away.

“Minister,” she gave a comical curtsy, “I will make sure this incident turns into a formal inquiry into Dumbledore’s rule over the weekend.”

The door was closed gently.

Fudge looked back at the pot of biting cabbage. He realized that Dolores Umbridge was becoming better at biting off the fingers of his political enemies than his own biting cabbage.

But he doesn't care now, as long as she doesn't bite him.

……

When Umbridge walked out of the minister's office, the sweet smile on her face had not yet completely faded.

She walked briskly down the Ministry of Magic corridor back to the office of misuse of magic.

Her pink sweater stood out conspicuously among the gray-robed employees passing by. Some instinctively lowered their heads to avoid her gaze, while others pretended to be busy turning over parchment. She didn't care. She liked the effect.

Pushing open the office door, she saw her assistant, Percival Prag, standing in front of her desk, holding a stack of newly arrived documents.

"Director," Praggle's voice was ingratiating.

"The Department of Magical Creatures Control has just sent us a notification. The complaint that Lucius Malfoy submitted through official channels this morning has been copied to our department because it involves the use of magic by minors and the potential risk of misuse of illegal items."

Umbridge's bow trembled slightly as she looked up.

She took the document; the parchment was stamped with the words "To be handled by [relevant authority], please read and approve, copy to [other documents]".

Standard internal document circulation template: Header: Department of Magical Creatures Control; Copies: Department of Law Enforcement, Office of Misuse of Magic, Hogwarts Liaison Office, and Department of the Minister (for record).

She quickly glanced at the main text.

[...According to reliable intelligence, an illegally imported Class IV dangerous magical creature (Norwegian Ridgeback) exists within Hogwarts Castle, posing a fire hazard and involving direct contact with several underage wizards (including Mr. Harry Potter)...The whistleblower requests the Ministry of Magic to immediately intervene in the investigation and take measures to seize the creature...Given the potential involvement of minors' mental health and inappropriate use of magic in this incident, we are forwarding this copy to your department for your review and approval...]

The document concludes with the comments from the newly appointed deputy director of the Department of Fantastic Creatures:

"We request the Director of the Office for the Misuse of Magic to review and propose joint action recommendations. Animal shelter and subsequent handling will be led by our company, but if administrative penalties for minors or school management responsibilities are involved, please have your company take the lead in consultation."

Umbridge's eyes narrowed.

Very good. Lucius is indeed a veteran; he threw the report at two departments at the same time, but both involved minors and the abuse of magic, pointing precisely to her.

This was a meticulously planned meeting.

Within the ministry, whoever takes the lead holds the dominant power and is most likely to claim credit for both the good and the bad.

She placed the documents on the table and said sweetly to Prag, "Darling, please arrange for me to meet with Director Chilton immediately. The sooner the better. Tell him it's an urgent matter personally authorized by the Minister, requiring the Office of Misuse of Magic and the Department of Magical Creatures to handle it together."

Praggle nodded and hurried out to arrange the Floo Powder reservation.

Umbridge settled into her pink armchair and picked up the meeting document again.

At the Ministry of Magic, the procedure for interdepartmental meetings is as follows.

The first step is document registration: Upon receiving a document, the secretariat must distribute it, number it, and mark its urgency.

Then comes the proposed handling opinions: junior staff in the responsible department first write preliminary handling suggestions, which are then signed off by the department head at each level.

Then comes the countersigning: if other departments are involved, copies must be sent to them and their opinions requested, which usually takes three to five working days.

Finally, the approval process begins: after all the opinions from the joint signatures have been collected, the document is returned to the responsible department, where the director summarizes them and submits them to the minister or vice minister for signature, thus forming the final departmental order or authorization for action.

And now, the document she holds is stuck at the signing stage.

The Division of Fantastic Beasts wants to take the lead because dragons are their area of ​​expertise; but they are also afraid of taking responsibility.

If any students are injured during the operation to subdue the dragon, or if Dumbledore turns against them, public opinion will smear them.

So they cleverly passed the buck to her regarding underage mental health and magic abuse.

Umbridge smiled.

She can handle this ball, and she's going to turn this meeting into her weapon.

She wrote down her initial comments:

The Office of Magic will handle any improper use of magic.

Given that the incident involves the direct involvement of multiple first-grade students and may pose a systemic risk due to long-term administrative negligence, it is recommended that this office take the lead in organizing a comprehensive assessment and research on campus magic safety and the well-being of minors.

The investigation team will include two investigators from the Office of Misuse of Magic, one containment specialist from the Department of Magical Creatures, and one observer from the Department of Law Enforcement (more may be added as needed).

Please have the Minister's Office confirm the authorization for this action. The Office will submit a detailed plan tomorrow.

————DJU

[Improper Use of Magic by the Office Director]

She folded the document with satisfaction and put it into the envelope.

We'll see Chilton later, the director of the Department of Fantastic Beasts.

She would tell him in the sweetest tone:

"Dear Director, this joint action document is very timely. Let's work together to make this a success. You take charge of Long, and I'll take charge of the children and the school. The Minister has already given his approval."

Of course, she wouldn't tell him about the minister's approval.

It is clearly stated that "Director Umbridge is fully responsible and reports directly to the Minister."

She would get him to sign off on the joint operation, but then list herself as the lead person in the official documents.

Thus, if she succeeds, she will be the hero who saves Hogwarts from the dragon's wrath; if she fails, the charred dragon scales and the enraged Dumbledore will first bring disaster upon the Department of Fantastic Beasts.

Umbridge likes to weave this process into an impenetrable net.

She was standing right in the center of the net, holding the knot for reeling in the line.

She walked toward the door, the bow trembling with each step.

This time, it was because of excitement.