Joanne's words were like a curse, even more terrifying than Voldemort's. Early the next morning, Tver was dragged out of Hogsmeade by Babajide and brought back to Geneva once again.
Speaking of which, the United Nations Office at Geneva had originally been the headquarters of the League of Nations, the predecessor to the United Nations. But because the League of Nations had failed to prevent the Second World War, it was dissolved, and after the war, it became part of the United Nations.
So now, with wizards joining in, what kind of changes would come to the United Nations?
"What are you thinking about?" Babajide asked curiously.
After going through a series of tedious procedures, the two of them were walking toward the Palais des Nations, accompanied only by the United Nations staff responsible for guiding them.
Tver shook his head and was just about to find an excuse to brush the question off when a sudden burst of inexplicable shouting erupted nearby.
"We want the truth!"
"We want the truth!"
"We want the truth!"
Under the direction of a woman at the front holding a megaphone, a group of people stood before the gate, carrying signs of all shapes and styles.
The words on those signs were rather thought-provoking.
"What really happened on TWA 800?"
"Where are the British Giants really being hidden?"
"What species are those giant flying birds?"
When they saw people appear, especially two people who were clearly of high status, they shouted even more excitedly.
"Looks like paper really can't wrap up fire forever. I didn't expect these people to actually make it inside the United Nations to protest," Tver said teasingly.
Babajide's face darkened, though his anger was clearly aimed at these demonstrators, or rather, at the people who had allowed them to demonstrate here.
Tver did not even need to think carefully to understand what was going on.
These people wanted the truth, which meant they were openly challenging The Statute of Secrecy.
But The Statute of Secrecy was a matter for the magic world and the Wizards' Confederation. For Muggles like them to demand a violation of The Statute of Secrecy right in front of them, even unintentionally, was a slap in the face to Babajide, the President of the Wizards' Confederation.
To put it simply, the wizards could give this information, but Muggles could not demand it.
Moreover, the fact that these people could demonstrate inside the United Nations probably. No, definitely meant that certain countries had signaled approval, perhaps even that all countries had agreed to use this method to subtly express a demand to Babajide and Tver.
Open the magic world.
This was both beyond Tver's expectations and entirely reasonable.
Unfortunately, things would have suited Tver better if the opinions of both worlds could be blended together.
Looking at Babajide's thoughtful expression, Tver could not tell whether this had backfired or whether it had pried open the already loosened part of Babajide's heart.
"The Wizards' Confederation spoke very highly of your last speech here."
Just as they were about to step into the Palais des Nations, Babajide suddenly left him with this inexplicable sentence.
Tver's steps paused. After a moment, he continued forward, though a smile had appeared on his face.
His speech last time had hardly been polite. It had even been too forceful, at least as far as the governments were concerned.
But if even Babajide, who had always advocated friendliness, was expressing approval, then clearly these people's little tricks had annoyed him this time.
That was good news for Tver.
What he had always worried about most was Babajide holding on to false hopes about the governments and refusing to agree to certain radical policies and ideas.
That was why, no matter how busy Tver was, he still made time to handle the Wizards' Confederation's affairs, even repeatedly representing Babajide and publicly voicing his hardline attitude on the outside.
Now that Babajide had realized this himself, Tver could not have been more satisfied. Even the noisy protest chants and the provocative expressions constantly aimed at them suddenly seemed much more adorable.
But Babajide was no naive fool. The moment he stepped into the Palais des Nations and left the protest noise behind, his face returned to its usual gentle expression.
"Welcome, Mr. Akingbade. Welcome."
The Secretary-General strode forward to greet him.
Tver had only come last time as a representative, but Babajide was the President of the Wizards' Confederation. According to the principle of equal status, the Secretary-General had to appear no matter what.
Although the Wizards' Confederation and the United Nations were similar in terms of function, when it came to restraining countries, even ten United Nations could not compare to the Wizards' Confederation.
So the Secretary-General shook Babajide's hand for a long while with both envy and emotion, as though he wanted to draw a little strength from the gesture.
"Thank you. It would be even better without all that noise."
Babajide smiled as he shook the Secretary-General's hand. Strangely, although his movements and demeanor were clearly friendly, they carried an air of arrogant casualness.
Even Tver had to sigh inwardly. A normally generous and honest-looking man would still lose his temper when provoked.
The Secretary-General's smile stiffened. He had not expected Babajide to expose such dirty tricks so bluntly.
In reality, petty tactics like this were all too common at the United Nations, and there were even worse ones.
But because of the power gap between countries, many ambassadors would simply swallow the loss in silence, then make a small counterattack somewhere else.
Everyone tacitly understood this. It would neither damage the contents currently under negotiation nor destroy relations between countries.
It was somewhat similar to Tver using magic in the conference hall last time. More than anything, it was a way of expressing an unspeakable, dirty attitude.
Thinking about it that way, the Secretary-General seemed to understand where Babajide's anger came from. His authority had been challenged by unrelated people, so he was using a forceful attitude to resist that challenge.
He looked at Babajide with some envy. The authority of the United Nations Secretary-General was questioned every day, but who would allow him to fight back?
"I understand. Security will remove those people very soon."
The Secretary-General's smile became even friendlier. He did not even mind using the last little bit of power before leaving office to help Babajide in a small way.
As the first African Secretary-General of the United Nations, and also the first Secretary-General who had failed to be re-elected, he truly envied Babajide's position, where power and authority existed together.
Besides, this conference was the last major event before he left office, and he very much wanted to see those arrogant, powerful countries run into a wall before this leader of the magic world.
Sensing that friendliness, Babajide stopped being confrontational and began speaking quietly with the Secretary-General in genuine warmth, exchanging experiences from their respective posts.
Of course, it was mainly the Secretary-General asking questions, almost as if he were already looking for his next job after leaving office.
Huh?
Looking at the old man walking ahead, Tver's eyes suddenly lit up.