"Who are you? Another Defense Against the Dark Arts professor?"

"Dolores Jane Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic, and also one of the future professors of Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts for the coming year, though that depends on Professor Dumbledore's arrangements, and..."

Umbridge squeezed out a sickly-sweet, nauseating smile on her fleshy face, using that high-pitched, affected voice.

"And... Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the Ministry's appointed High Inquisitor for this education pilot program."

"Wait! High Inquisitor? Since when do we have officials stationed at the school?!"

A tall wizard with dark hair and deep grey eyes frowned, interrupting rather rudely. Judging by his features, he must have been quite handsome once, though his gaunt appearance suggested he had just endured a long ordeal.

"Professor Dumbledore, I wasn't aware there was a new addition to the education policy allowing these corrupt, bureaucratic politicians to meddle in the school. That's not a good idea. Besides, Defence Against the Dark Arts, taught by you?"

"I'm sorry, Sirius Black, the Ministry of Magic is not obligated to inform you of its decisions."

Umbridge turned her head towards the man, her smile unwavering, and spoke in a high-pitched voice reminiscent of a little girl, but with a chilling detachment that sent shivers down one's spine.

"At least I haven't violated four or five Ministry decrees within a month of being released from Azkaban. Perhaps the Black family's fortune is enough for you to squander, but putting you in Hogwarts to teach – even as a probationary professor of Transfiguration – seems like a questionable risk in my opinion, and that's also the Ministry's view."

"And I am the first High Inquisitor appointed by the Ministry."

After a brief pause, Umbridge twitched her stubby fingers on her pink cardigan, saying with a hint of pride.

"By the way, establishing an Inquisitor in the school was not the Ministry's idea. It was Professor Dumbledore who proactively suggested this plan to prevent the education pilot program from deviating from its actual purpose and original intention – I must say, it's a very wise, admirable, and inspiring proposal. That's why the greatest wizard of our time is Professor Dumbledore, not you."

Hearing this, the old man sitting at his desk finally couldn't help but interrupt.

"Dolores, that's far too flattering. There are many wizards in this world who possess talents and abilities that I can never hope to achieve, such as inventing the Wolfsbane Potion, or having a bestselling book..."

Dumbledore took off his spectacles from his crooked nose, rubbed his temples, and continued.

"Sirius, perhaps your past experiences have made you distrustful of the Ministry of Magic, but I believe the Ministry wouldn't joke around with the students' education – just as it has been for the past centuries. We have entrusted the Ministry officials with trust, respect, and to some extent, regulatory and adjustment rights, and they will use these powers with discretion, wouldn't you agree?"

Dumbledore turned his head, looking at Umbridge meaningfully.

Faced with the old man's sharp gaze, Umbridge averted her eyes subconsciously, muttering carefully.

"Of course, of course, Professor Dumbledore, you're right. The unique and ancient skills of the wizarding world must be passed down from generation to generation while striving for innovation, otherwise they will disappear. The precious treasure trove of magical knowledge accumulated by our ancestors must and can only be protected, supplemented, and improved by people like you who are dedicated to the noble cause of education."

Here, Umbridge paused and gave a slight bow to the other professors in the office.

Although most of them didn't return her bow, the expressions on the faces of many wizards who were paying attention to the argument clearly improved slightly – even if they knew it was bureaucratic flattery, it sounded good in the absence of conflicting interests.

Unlike the delicate relationship in the original timeline, Cornelius Fudge and the Ministry of Magic were not nearly as powerful at this time.

More precisely, the sudden "crises" that occurred in the past year had made the honeymoon period between Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and the British Ministry of Magic particularly long.

And in the eyes of most people, this close relationship was logical and gratifying:

In the "mortgage crisis" of the "first half" of last year, the Ministry of Magic took the plunge and actively absorbed the debt, trying everything possible to prevent Hogwarts Castle from falling into goblin hands;

In the "second half" of the year, Hogwarts turned the tide, inadvertently exposing Voldemort and Peter Pettigrew's conspiracy and recovering the losses from the financial fraud.

Admittedly, Hogwarts' intervention in Gringotts and the bundled sale of "Hawking" did put some invisible pressure on the Ministry, so Cornelius Fudge was somewhat resistant when he first received Hogwarts' "new curriculum" proposal.

However, before he could think of a reason to decline, Dumbledore offered him a price he couldn't refuse.

A foothold in Hogwarts, something the Ministry had wanted since its inception.

Moreover, if Albus Dumbledore's proposal was carefully interpreted, the Ministry would get more than just a foothold. In certain specific circumstances, the "High Inquisitor's" rights would even surpass those of the headmaster.

Whether it was the right to assess and supervise professors who were incompetent, morally corrupt, or uneducated, or the right to judge the school's external image, recruitment, and talent introduction, or even the handling of disciplinary students and the awarding of commendations in the school...

These were all immense trust and coveted power that Cornelius Fudge had never dreamed of.

Undoubtedly, this was a great advancement worthy of being recorded in the history of the Ministry of Magic.

Perhaps there would be a greater Minister for Magic in the future, but Cornelius Fudge could be certain that if this was successful, no official in the previous Ministry could match his achievements.

And Dolores Jane Umbridge, as the "first High Inquisitor," was clearly well aware of this.

For the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts, replacing a "High Inquisitor" was not a big deal. Once the education reform began, there would be plenty of wizards sharpening their heads to squeeze into this position.

The trust given by Hogwarts was too generous, far exceeding what the Ministry should rightfully possess.

After so many years of struggling in the Ministry, Cornelius Fudge and Dolores Umbridge almost immediately predicted the old wizard's reasons for doing so – this power was like delicious fish meat exuding a bloody smell in the sea, and countless hunters hiding in the shadows hoped that they would make a mistake, and then try to tear a piece of flesh from it.

Unsurprisingly, they would soon face questions and pressure from all corners of the wizarding world.

Those obviously unreasonable rights probably couldn't be retained for too long, those seemingly harmless clauses would also be over-interpreted, and how much of a foothold they could ultimately keep depended on their degree of caution in responding.

"So, Professor Dumbledore, please rest assured... As High Inquisitor, the first thing I will assess is the teaching quality of the course I am responsible for – of course, when I submit to you about some flashy wizards, or professors with problematic characters, I also hope that you will handle it impartially and not disappoint me."

Umbridge glanced at the old man beside her, her expression carrying a few hints of flattery, as well as deeply hidden fear.

As expected of the most intelligent wizard in the magical world today, Albus Dumbledore was simply too terrifying.

This kind of manipulation of people's hearts and politics that ordinary people could hardly achieve, oh no, it could almost be regarded as an art, this was perhaps something he would never be able to master. Compared to Grindelwald, she was infinitely more dangerous.

Elena Kaslana, this demon king who hasn't grown up yet, is simply too terrifying.

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Big chapter! Well, I think it is.