After Harry and Draco left, Tver set a glass of pumpkin juice in front of Babajide.
"Sit down. You came all the way to Hogwarts. Come to think of it, I still haven't congratulated you on becoming President of the Confederation."
The Confederation election had already concluded before last Christmas, but Tver had truly been too busy to spare the time, so he had Ya Zhou vote on his behalf.
In fact, quite a few representatives had done the same. After all, in the current Confederation of Wizards, unless Dumbledore ran again, no one would question Babajide's election.
But judging from his expression, he did not seem happy about it at all...
"Thanks, but I'd rather have you take the job." Babajide sat down gloomily.
Even before becoming President, he had already helped Dumbledore handle quite a lot of Confederation affairs. After all, the First White Wizard still had the school to manage.
What he had not expected was that after actually becoming President, the workload would still far exceed his imagination.
Take this meeting with Tver, for example. He had wanted to come see him two months ago, but only today had he finally found the chance.
Otherwise, he would not have barged in so rudely.
"No thanks." Tver immediately refused. One look at Babajide's face told him this was a trap, and he was half-afraid the man might try to abdicate on the spot and hand the position over to him.
"I'm already drowning in school matters and Joint Operations Office business, and Voldemort is still out there..."
Babajide looked at Tver with open disdain, as if Tver really thought he was about to become the shortest-serving President in Confederation history.
"Alright, alright. I know you're busy. Otherwise, I wouldn't have blocked so much Confederation business for you."
Tver's eyes lit up at once.
No wonder he had been getting so few letters and assignments from the Confederation lately. So it was not just because he had hidden his location. Babajide had been helping too.
"Babajide, you'll always be my good friend!" Tver declared with exaggerated emotion.
"Go on, what was important enough for you to come all the way to Hogwarts? For the sake of our friendship, I'll definitely help you solve it today!"
At that, a faint smile finally appeared on Babajide's gloomy face.
"It's actually nothing much. It was something related to you in the first place, but now there's been a slight change..."
"Oh?" Tver paused with his pumpkin juice halfway to his lips.
The only matter related to him that also fell under Confederation business was the Joint Operations Office he had proposed.
Thinking about it, Britain had mainly moved faster because Voldemort's threat was pressing, so under Tver's urging, the office there had been established relatively quickly.
As for other countries and regions, even the efficient ones had probably only just finished setting theirs up.
If the Muggle government had been uncooperative, and the local Ministry of Magic had not acted with much urgency, the process could easily have dragged on until now.
So by that logic, the only thing troubling Babajide could be the increasingly obvious problems piling up around those offices.
"Quite a few Joint Operations Offices have now been established in various countries, one after another. And just as you expected, the results have actually been pretty good," Babajide said with a complicated expression.
"With the offices serving as channels of communication and transfer points, when different countries deal with leaks, both sides can play to their strengths. Wizards handle the traces of magic, while Muggles take care of covering up the information externally."
"In the past, a leak would require the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, along with many divisions under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, to act together."
"Now it only takes a few wizards to deal with the scene, and after that, the Aurors just have to catch the culprit."
"It has greatly reduced the Ministry's workload. Once there was a working example, Ministries of Magic in other countries became much more enthusiastic about setting up their own offices."
He had been one of the strongest supporters within the Confederation for pushing the office plan forward. The benefits had come from that plan, but so had the trouble...
To be honest, even Tver had not expected the results to be this good. His original excuse had simply been to guard against leaks connected to Voldemort and to promote Muggle governments' understanding of the wizarding world.
He had even been mentally prepared for wizards in Ministries of Magic around the world to oppose the offices because they would be stuck spending their days tired, irritated, and explaining magic to Muggles.
But instead, it had actually reduced the workload?
In truth, the Muggles in the offices had not taken on that much of the work. The reason the workload seemed lighter was because cases were now being handled through a model with multiple functions but a single line of command.
It was similar to the special departments formed in the Muggle world for emergencies like floods or earthquakes, bodies that usually held extremely broad powers.
Ordinarily, no government on either side would allow such an institution to exist for long. But for both sides, this was still something new, so they had not reacted that quickly yet...
So in that sense, it was a product of extraordinary times. If this department was really going to be expanded in practice, then its chain of command would have to be made clear.
"So what's troubling you now should be the problems this department has created, right?" Tver said with certainty.
"Exactly." Babajide let out a long sigh. "This department has revealed a great many problems, and those problems have put the Confederation in a very special situation. That means we have to think everything through with extreme caution."
"Ahem, sorry. Pumpkin juice went down the wrong way." Tver quickly pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his mouth, trying to hide the awkwardness on his face.
After all, he was the one who had set all of this in motion, pushing the wizarding world toward a crossroads with the future.
Babajide paid no attention to the small gesture. He was too lost in his own thoughts and worries.
"Our communication with Muggle governments has actually gone fairly smoothly. There have been plenty of problems, of course, but as rulers, they won't completely reject cooperation that could help them govern their countries more effectively."
"But." Babajide suddenly lifted his head, startling Tver.
"The wizards in the Joint Operations Offices have suddenly realized they don't know how to deal with matters coming from the Muggle side!"
"Tver, in just two months, I've received no fewer than a hundred reports about wizards interfering in Muggle affairs!"
Tver immediately understood Babajide's concern.
It was nothing more than situations like Marvolio dealing with the bombing attack. The wizards in the Joint Operations Offices had a solid advantage when it came to information, and through their Muggle colleagues, they could learn about incidents happening in their countries in real time.
Out of simple compassion, unless they were cold enough to stand by and watch people die, those wizards were very likely to involve themselves in helping Muggles.
But the problem was obvious. That clearly violated the Statute of Secrecy.
"Have they gotten involved in wars between Muggles, or in their political scheming?" Tver asked in return.
Babajide shook his head. "No. If that had happened, I'd have shut the offices down already."
"Then were they threatened or bribed into doing these things?"
"Impossible. They're all excellent Ministry employees. Muggle methods simply can't threaten them."
"Then they..." Tver's expression remained calm, yet it placed immense pressure on Babajide.
Babajide unconsciously held his breath. It felt just like decades ago, when he had first met Dumbledore, who was already known as the First White Wizard, and his heart had leapt into his throat.
"...did they do something bad?"