Chapter 345: Open Government

Under Bernard's guidance, Harry arrived at the long table in the conference room, where Jim Hacker sat exactly as Harry had first seen him—buried behind towering piles of documents, thick square glasses perched on his nose, intently reading a paper.

"Oh, Harry." The Minister looked up, clearly interrupted by Harry's arrival. "I'm glad you came. When Humphrey told me a group of students would be interning, I asked him first: 'Will Harry come?'"

"Yes, I was even looking forward to your arrival. You must know these things well: what do you think of the current magical world?" The Minister's tone carried a hint of urgency.

"Huh? You're asking me?" Harry was taken aback. "But you're the Minister of Magic?"

"Yes, yes, on the surface—or by longstanding tradition—I am, after all, the official Minister of Magic, responsible for governing the entire magical world," the Minister complained with mild irritation. "But ever since Yanayev pulled those stunts, I'm dragged to meetings with the Prime Minister every other day, consulted on every issue. Even a minor mishap—a typhoon, say—makes them suspect it's tied to the magical world!"

"That does sound exhausting." Harry offered a casual agreement.

"Exactly. So my information is severely outdated—I'm certainly less informed than you are." The Minister nodded. "So, how is the situation between the Order of the Phoenix and the Death Eaters?"

"We're not at war," Harry said with a strained smile. "Both sides' leadership understand that open conflict must be avoided right now."

"That's a shocking revelation," the Minister said, removing his glasses. "It shows just how behind I am. When someone reported to me about the 'Dumbledore's Army,' I thought the war had already escalated to its peak—children were being sent to the frontlines. How dire must it be?"

Harry recalled how, at the start of their clashes, both sides had carefully considered how to mislead the Ministry… now it seemed those efforts had been like flirting with a blind man.

"To be precise, Minister," Harry tried to explain, "Dumbledore's Army is a spontaneous student organization. Students have united to issue a neutral anti-war declaration, protecting themselves from being drawn into the conflict—and, incidentally, acting as a brake on their parents, those already on the brink of war."

"I understand," the Minister shook his head. "But I hope next time you won't speak like that. Avoid clauses, modifiers, and metaphors—Humphrey does that when he's trying to trick me, and it makes me feel terrible."

"Alright." Harry nodded awkwardly.

"So if you're not at war, what are you doing instead?" the Minister asked.

"Have you heard of the Dumbledore family scandal?" Harry wanted to test how outdated the Minister's information was. "It was actually a propaganda campaign launched by the Death Eaters."

"What?" The Minister blinked. "I only know about Lewinsky."

Harry ignored the unfamiliar name and changed the subject. "Alright, that was just a test. Do you know about Voldemort's secret to immortality?"

"I know. I've heard it's because he drinks malted milk every day," the Minister said with complete certainty.

"Let me summarize," Harry swallowed. "We're engaged in a series of covert struggles around this secret. We aim to eliminate any possibility of Voldemort's return; the Death Eaters won't let us succeed."

"Yes, covert struggle… sounds like a cold war."

To Harry, it seemed the Minister was genuinely trying to make sense of it all in his own way.

"Good. I'm glad you understand."

"I see. An interesting situation…" The Minister paused, then realized he should change the topic. "Arnold brought you here for the internship. What position are you planning to take? Frankly, I'd very much like you to accept the role of my personal advisor."

Harry's expression turned slightly confused and reluctant, so the Minister quickly added: "To be precise, it's a government-appointed personal advisor. Officially, you're employed by the Ministry of Magic, but your duty is to serve as my personal advisor… for example, you've met Bernard, right?"

"Yes, he's very professional," Harry replied.

"Exactly. A highly professional personal secretary, exceptionally skilled at tongue twisters." The Minister put his glasses back on. "But in truth, he's assigned to me by the Ministry—not personally hired by me. You understand?"

"Oh, I see." Harry noticed Bernard was an elegant middle-aged gentleman. Usually, when important figures wanted to hire their own secretary, they chose young blonde women.

"So you want me to be this 'Ministry-assigned personal advisor' for you?" Harry scratched his head.

"I'm telling you this because I want you to be… truly personal," the Minister glanced toward the doorway. "The matters I consult you on—I'd prefer no one else in the Ministry knows."

"I understand. I'll keep it strictly confidential," Harry said, convinced he fully grasped the Minister's hidden motive—he didn't want others to think he was an ignorant fool.

"Good. There's actually something I'd like your opinion on." The Minister opened a file. "Do you know we're about to hold a new election?"

Harry's eyes widened. "Is this an appropriate topic for us to discuss?"

"Nothing here needs secrecy. We're an open government," the Minister said. "Don't tell me you're the leader of the Order of the Phoenix—even if you were just an ordinary student, we could still discuss this openly."

Harry pursed his lips. He knew these issues were far beyond what an "ordinary student" should touch.

"Let me give you context. Yanayev's campaign in Chechnya has lasted nearly a year. Muggles can't imagine why it takes so long, so I reminded them: it's likely a test of magical weapons. Now, the highest levels of the Muggle world are rapidly reaching consensus—they can't remain passive any longer, nor ignore the Ministry's voice." The Minister frowned. "So this election will likely result in a Labour victory. But the problem is, Labour hasn't yet settled on a leader."

"If I understand correctly," Harry asked, "once Labour wins, this 'internal leader' will become Prime Minister?"

"Precisely. So we must be extremely cautious," the Minister gently traced his fingers over the file. "What stance should the Ministry take? Should I support Eric or Duncan?"

Harry didn't know who Eric or Duncan were. He asked the question as he understood it: "Is there any real difference between supporting one or the other?"

"No difference in ability—I believe either could handle the job. But I can't support both," the Minister looked troubled. "If I support Duncan and Eric wins… then it's over for me. But if I support Eric and Duncan wins… then it's over for me anyway."

"Could you remain neutral? Support neither?"

"Then whichever one wins, it's over for me," the Minister said with resignation.

"Then which one do you actually want to support?" Harry asked.

"Duncan…" The Minister hesitated. "Or Eric."

Harry suddenly felt a strange familiarity. As the kind-hearted Hufa, he had to choose between supporting Lucius or Bellatrix—and if he chose wrong, it wouldn't just mean political ruin, but biological annihilation.

So what had Hufa chosen? He chose Regulus and Snape—in other words, the side holding military power and authority. And in the Muggle world—magic was power.

"Minister, I'm puzzled," Harry asked. "Are you really afraid of them? The Labour leader—or even the Prime Minister—are just two Muggles."

"Of course I'm not afraid—physically speaking," the Minister blinked. "But administratively, they can easily replace the Minister of Magic. There are plenty in the magical world willing and able to take the position—Snape is one. Damn it, I need to know whether Snape plans to support Eric or Duncan."

Snape probably didn't even know who those two were, Harry thought, struggling not to laugh.

"But it's not just that—who knows how many others support Eric or Duncan? Arthur, Cuthbert, Leslie… even Danholm and Bagman!" The Minister gnawed his fingernails. "If I make the wrong choice, there are dozens waiting to take my seat. I absolutely cannot afford to pick wrong."

Harry thought for a moment, then asked again: "Is there any way—could the Ministry's support be so decisive that whoever we back is guaranteed to become leader?"

"That's impossible," the Minister waved his hand. "Because of the Statute of Secrecy. Even if we support someone, it must be internal, quiet—just vague hints and rumors… in short, absolutely no Muggle notice."

"Oh, wait." The Minister suddenly sat upright. "Let's flip the approach. What if we want to block someone—make sure they can't become leader? That's not hard. The hard part is bypassing the Statute of Secrecy…"

"We should stick to legal methods," Harry gently reminded him.

"Ah, yes, I understand," the Minister nodded. "That's the purpose of the Order of the Phoenix—your presence… your oversight and reminders—prevent the Ministry from sliding into another abyss."

"Rest assured," the Minister nodded. "I'll consider legal political tactics—spreading rumors, fabricating scandals, that sort of thing. Call him a KGB spy, or a CIA agent. But first, I need to decide who I actually want to support."

"Minister, I mean—is it possible that the laws governing the world aren't limited only to the Statute of Secrecy?" Harry said, slightly displeased.