"That's only the surface. In reality, the royal family, meaning the Queen, the Prime Minister's cabinet, and the civil service jointly govern this country!"
Rhys analyzed, relying on the information he had obtained from Hermione.
"Based on a few things Hermione heard from her father, along with my own understanding, I think the civil service is actually the group that holds the greatest power in this country. And the royal family is definitely not just a figurehead like the books claim."
"Because those who possess time are the ones who truly possess power. Prime Ministers and cabinets change too frequently, while civil servants are appointed for life, and the Queen has ruled for decades."
Helga nodded thoughtfully.
Dumbledore was a very good example. He had lived long enough and had always been the Headmaster of Hogwarts. That alone, combined with his record against two Dark Lords, had earned him immense prestige. If it weren't for certain flaws in his personality, those Ministers of Magic would never have been able to stand against him.
"So you think the Queen and the head of the civil service would know about the existence of the magical world?"
Rhys shook his head. He couldn't be sure.
If he were in charge of running the Ministry of Magic, he would definitely let the Queen know about the existence of the magical world, then arrange for one or even several elite wizards to become senior civil servants.
That way, they could effectively monitor the Muggle government in secret and interfere with the implementation of policies that were unfavorable to the continued existence of the magical world.
As for the Prime Minister, Rhys was not inclined to let him know about the magical world. But there was no need to control him with the Imperius Curse either. That would be far too extreme and unnecessary, unless something truly special happened.
A person who has to face a general election every five years, is he really worth taking that seriously?
How long can he actually govern?
He comes into office and spends a year or two just getting familiar with the situation, overturning or continuing his predecessor's policies, fixing the mess left behind, then spends another two years playing mind games with the civil service. By the time everything is finally sorted out, it's election year again, and the Prime Minister has to start preparing for the next election.
If he happens to lose, and the opposing party takes power, whatever little achievements the former Prime Minister had will probably vanish in an instant. Treating someone like that with real seriousness was honestly asking too much of Rhys.
Besides, the differences between Prime Ministers were huge. Some even had to form coalition governments, and if a cabinet crisis erupted, there could even be an early election.
If Rhys were to find out that decades later, some Prime Ministers would have terms shorter than the shelf life of a head of lettuce, he would definitely insist on keeping the existence of the magical world a secret from them.
"I'll contact Jamison and have him ask Bones and Fudge whether the Ministry of Magic has truly been strictly following the Statute of Secrecy."
"Of course they haven't," Helga said. She simply didn't believe that the Ministry of Magic had absolutely no contact with the non-magical world. That wasn't realistic.
"And what about the magic array? Have you got any ideas yet?" With the topic of the Statute of Secrecy temporarily settled, the two of them shifted their attention back to building a new magic array for Hogwarts.
"I do. It's similar to the Great Hall ceiling, but the direction of the spell is reversed…" Rhys explained his concept to Helga.
According to Rhys's plan, he intended to rely on Hogwarts' existing defensive magic to create a protective barrier over the school, thereby hiding it from view.
Once the protection was activated, not only Muggles but even wizards would be unable to see the existence of Hogwarts.
He decided to call this magic the "Magic Canopy."
"Of course, this is only the first layer of protection. After that, we'll need to set up broader enchantments around Hogwarts to ensure that Muggles won't come anywhere near this place."
"That's a very good idea. But this kind of magic is extremely difficult. Do you need any help?"
"I do." Rhys didn't bother being polite. Of course he needed Helga's help.
"Alright, wait here for a moment." Without another word, Helga left the office straight away.
Rhys: ???
After thinking about it for a second.
Oh damn? She isn't going to get that thing, is she?!
Rhys's instincts were right. Helga really did come back carrying a hip flask.
The flask was about the size of an adult's palm and was rather crudely made, nowhere near as exquisite as the ones on the Great Hall tables. But the moment he saw it, Rhys's breathing grew noticeably heavier.
"Is this really necessary? You even brought this out?" Rhys felt that Helga might be making too much of it. They were just making major changes to the school's magic array. Was it really necessary to use even her hip flask?
Back when Ragnarök had ended, the four of them each took some of the gods' hard-to-handle remains and crafted a personal artifact of their own.
Helga used Odin's crown as the main material, with the Eternal Flame, the energy source of the fire giant Surtr, as the foundation. With Godric's help, she turned the golden crown into a hip flask.
She stored the gods' divine blood inside the flask. According to her, the divine blood would slowly transform into wine within the vessel. Anyone who drank it would receive a comprehensive enhancement. The activity of their magic, the speed of domain expansion, their perception, even their luck would all increase. After the effects faded, it would still grant a small permanent boost to one's physique.
More importantly, as long as it was fully matured wine, drinking it came with almost no side effects. At most, a few fragmented images and intense emotions would flash through one's mind. Among the four of their personal artifacts, this one had the least side effects.
After this artifact was completed, Rhys had hardly ever seen Helga use it, and he himself had never once tasted the wine brewed from divine blood inside. And now he actually got the chance to have some? This was a truly unexpected delight.
"Thanks to you, it's been sitting in my dungeon for a full thousand years. Quite a lot of wine has accumulated inside," Helga said, a genuine smile appearing on her face.
Being brought to the modern era by Salazar had its pros and cons, but it had unintentionally helped Helga in a big way. Her golden hip flask had lain quietly in her private classroom for nearly a thousand years.
If she had taken it with her while traveling, that would have been a huge loss.
"So it's fully transformed already?" Rhys stared at the flask, his eyes filled with curiosity.
"Of course not. There were so many false gods. Only about half of it has been converted."
"That's still quite a lot." The curiosity in Rhys's eyes turned into envy. Helga had really taken out her most treasured stash.
Helga took out two cups and poured a little of the wine into each. The amount she poured was very small, just enough for a single sip. The liquid was extremely thick, looking like a ruby embedded at the bottom of the cup.
Rhys didn't stand on ceremony. He picked up one of the cups and downed the thick wine in one go.
When it first entered his mouth, it tasted no different from ordinary wine, just much thicker. Rather than wine, it felt more like syrup. But once he swallowed it, it was as if he had gulped down a ball of fire. His mouth, throat, and stomach all seemed to burn.
A few fleeting visions flashed before Rhys's eyes, followed by a surge of anger and sorrow that rushed through his heart, making his eyes briefly turn a vivid red.
"Huff… huff—" After taking several deep breaths, Rhys finally managed to suppress those turbulent emotions.
And in the meantime, the fire that had been burning in his stomach had already spread through his limbs and bones.
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12 Chaps ahead at Patreon.com/HornyFBI