Chapter 689: 689: Secrecy Law, Wizardry Law

There were too many weeds. John really ought to trim them.

After the falling snow covered Silverhand Manor, the entire estate was wrapped in white, adding a touch of cool, delicate beauty to the mansion.

“I think you should actually use the fireplace instead of treating it like a Floo Network terminal.”

Tommy rubbed his hands together and breathed out a puff of white mist.

John had a dragon’s physique, so he was not afraid of the cold at all.

The enormous manor felt like a natural ice cavern.

Tommy was having a hard time enduring it.

Even as a werewolf, he could not comfortably spend the middle of winter wearing nothing but a suit.

“Tommy, you’re a wizard. You should know how to deal with it yourself.”

John glanced at him.

Ever since his money had been taken away to invest in the club, Tommy had become increasingly fond of taking advantage of whatever he could.

John was currently reviewing various laws passed by the International Confederation of Wizards over the years.

Most of them were largely inconsequential.

The entire International Confederation of Wizards seemed to exist for the sake of the International Statute of Secrecy.

They firmly upheld the Statute of Secrecy. As long as something did not risk exposing the wizarding world, it did not seem to be considered a particularly serious problem.

Back when the wizarding war broke out in Britain, the International Confederation of Wizards had not intervened either.

That was rather baffling.

“The International Confederation of Wizards should not exist for the Statute of Secrecy. It should exist for wizards.”

John rubbed the rings on his fingers, one silver and one set with an emerald-green gemstone.

He raised his right hand.

The silver ring transformed into a gauntlet that covered his arm.

Narrowing his eyes, he looked at the five super magic crystals and the Philosopher’s Stone.

“The International Confederation of Wizards needs to change.”

The silver gauntlet contracted back into a ring.

John looked at Tommy, who was so cold that he had tucked both hands under his armpits.

“Send word to the Ministry of Magic for me. Convene a meeting of the International Confederation of Wizards.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

Tommy hurried out eagerly.

He felt that even outside was warmer than this house.

John shook his head helplessly and placed his hand on the table.

The biting cold around him began rushing toward his palm.

Before long, the snow covering Silverhand Manor melted away.

John opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of white mist.

All the cold had been absorbed into his body.

On his chest, lines and circles resembling the branches of an oak tree surrounded a square shape.

After absorbing the cold, several additional lines appeared on the square before vanishing in an instant.

…

Ministry of Magic.

Main hall of the International Confederation of Wizards office.

John saw Damocles Belby among those present.

The Potions master, who was obsessed with honours, was a member of the Wizengamot and therefore also qualified to attend this meeting.

“John, you haven’t come to see me in ages.”

Damocles looked deeply aggrieved.

Ever since John had carried Slughorn to an easy victory, Damocles had suffered from insomnia for several nights straight.

Every night, he would wake from his dreams, sit blankly on his bed staring at the ceiling, and mutter,

“No, seriously, what’s wrong with him? Stealing his student’s research partner?”

For Damocles, there was nothing more painful than watching a second Order of Merlin, First Class slip away right before his eyes.

If he had been any less rational, he probably would have bombarded his dear teacher with Howlers by now.

Seeing Damocles, John smiled.

“It has been a while. There are a few things I’d like to discuss with you privately after the meeting.”

The moment Damocles heard that, his eyes lit up.

“We absolutely have to talk. You are not allowed to go back on your word!”

The meeting was about to begin.

Damocles walked away while looking back every few steps, afraid that John might stand him up.

John was somewhat speechless.

These Potions masters who came out of Slytherin all seemed to be cut from the same cloth.

Snape was probably the only exception.

The meeting began.

John sat in his seat.

He took out the International Statute of Secrecy.

This law was the very foundation upon which the International Confederation of Wizards had been built.

And now that John had placed it before them, every wizard present felt their heart tighten.

They knew of the Second King’s ambition.

They also knew how powerful he was.

But when they saw the Statute of Secrecy, someone still could not help questioning him.

“Lord Wick, what is the meaning of this?”

John did not answer immediately.

He simply rested one hand on the Statute of Secrecy, and his calm yet authoritative voice spread throughout the hall.

“In 1689, it was signed and enacted.”

“In 1693, the Salem witch trials took place on American soil, resulting in multiple wizards being persecuted by Muggles.”

“At the end of the eighteenth century, the witch Dorcus Twelvetrees exposed the existence of the wizarding world to Muggles, forcing the Magical Congress of the United States of America to relocate and leading to strict restrictions on contact between Muggles and wizards.”

“In the nineteenth century, the Bigfoot incident once again placed wizarding society at risk of discovery.”

One by one, John listed events that had taken place throughout the history of the wizarding world.

Everyone listened quietly.

No one interrupted.

“The birth of the Statute of Secrecy protected wizardkind for a time. The International Confederation of Wizards was created because of it.”

After finishing, John swept his gaze across everyone present.

“But the International Confederation of Wizards, in its excessive devotion to the Statute of Secrecy, seems to have forgotten its original purpose.”

“Original purpose?” German Minister for Magic Gresham asked in confusion.

“Yes. Its original purpose.”

John pushed the Statute of Secrecy forward.

It slid across the table toward the centre as he rose and began to walk.

“We have forgotten that the original purpose of this law was to protect the safety of wizards.”

“The Statute of Secrecy exists to serve wizards.”

He stopped directly in front of Yelufan.

Looking at the white-bearded old man, John narrowed his eyes slightly.

“Not the other way around.”

“My apologies, Lord Wick, but I do not understand what you mean.”

A representative from Africa’s wizarding community looked puzzled.

“What difference is there between the two?”

“Of course there is a difference.”

John nodded and looked at the dark-skinned wizard.

“The difference is that the Statute of Secrecy should not continue to exist at the expense of wizardkind.”

The moment he said that, everyone was shocked.

Was the Second King planning to abolish the Statute of Secrecy?

The President of the Magical Congress of the United States immediately stood up in opposition.

“No. The Statute of Secrecy cannot be abolished!”

He was not alone.

Representatives from many other countries voiced the same objection.

The Statute of Secrecy had existed for centuries.

Following it had already become second nature to them.

Only a few people present did not immediately express a position.

Among them were Gresham of Germany, Roland of France, and Percy of Britain.

There was also the representative from an eastern nation in Asia.

“I am not proposing that we abolish the Statute of Secrecy,” John said calmly. “It is simply no longer suited to the current situation.”

He returned to his seat.

“I want to ask all of you one question.”

“In your eyes, is the wizarding world truly still unknown to Muggles?”

The loudest opponents opened their mouths to answer.

But the words stopped before they could leave their lips.

Yes, the Statute of Secrecy existed to protect the wizarding world from being destroyed by Muggles.

But after everything Grindelwald had done, no one could even be certain whether the Muggles had already begun paying attention to their world.

John raised a hand and grasped at the air.

A yellow rubber duck appeared in his hand.

“Which of you knows what this is used for?”

If Mr. Weasley were here, he would definitely have been able to answer. After all, he had once discussed it with Hermione’s father.

But now, the elites of the wizarding world could only look at one another.

“This is called a rubber duck. It’s a rather useless and impractical thing.”

John placed the duck on top of the Statute of Secrecy.

“Its only purpose, more or less, is to add a little amusement when Muggles take a bath.”

The representatives fell silent.

John looked at them with pity.

“The Statute of Secrecy has indeed protected wizards. But centuries of isolation have also left wizards completely ignorant of the Muggle world.”

“Back when wizards arrogantly believed themselves superior to Muggles, no one bothered to understand them. Yet today, all Muggles need is an order and the press of a button to destroy any place in the world.”

His words made the wizards present lower their heads.

In the past, they would have argued.

Now, they could not find anything wrong with what he had said.

“The International Confederation of Wizards should serve wizards, rather than obsess over the Statute of Secrecy,” John declared loudly. “We are the administrators of wizardkind. We exist to serve wizards.”

“We need to change. We need to step out of our arrogance.”

He raised a finger toward the sky, his words carrying deeper meaning.

“Strength is supreme. We need to pursue it.”

“We must recognise our own shortcomings by looking at Muggles, and absorb knowledge from them instead of endlessly hiding away and indulging in our own pride.”

“Yes, we possess magic that current Muggle technology cannot replicate. But what about the future?”

“The sky was once the domain of wizards. Now there are aeroplanes above cities and submarines beneath the oceans. All of them are telling us the same thing.”

“Miracles do not care whether they are born from technology or magic.”

“The weak will be eliminated. There is nothing shameful about pursuing strength.”

He picked up the rubber duck again as every gaze in the room converged on it.

“We must begin a new transformation by learning to study as Muggles do.”

John walked over to Yelufan and placed the duck in front of him.

“Their technology, their way of life, their weapons.”

John spoke solemnly.

“A new reform begins today. The great wheel called magic must continue moving forward.”

“The 1998 New Wizarding Law proposal.”

John slammed his palm down heavily on the old Statute of Secrecy with a loud bang.

“Let us begin the vote, everyone.”

He stood there as though surveying his own territory.

After today, power would begin to gather in one place.

In the hands of that young man.