"Tell me, you didn't only remember our old agreement because you need something from me, did you? I thought about it for a very long time before deciding to help you cover up Grindelwald's many actions!"
Newt was still carrying that little suitcase, walking across the African savanna with a disgruntled look on his face.
Yes, the helper Tver had found this time was Newt Scamander!
Raising Magical Creatures was no problem at all for Newt. The only issue was how to convince him to obediently follow Tver's instructions, breed specific Magical Creatures, and harvest the corresponding magical materials.
As for Karkaroff's matter, that could only be left to Cynthia.
What, I'm also the kind of leader who likes ordering people around?
A misunderstanding. This was definitely a misunderstanding. I am absolutely not learning from Dumbledore!
Tver's old face flushed with embarrassment, but he quickly waved the documents in his hand.
"Of course not. It wasn't easy for me to secure the rights to this entire grassland."
A flash of delight passed through Newt's eyes, though he still put on a look of disdain.
"Come off it. You important people are all like this. Back then, Dumbledore was always ordering me to do this and that!"
Tver could deeply relate, though he also felt a faint trace of resentment.
"People like Dumbledore are just ungrateful. I'm different. I've always kept your request in mind, and that's how I managed to secure such a vast stretch of land…"
He swept his hand outward, taking in the grassland before them and the distant forest beyond.
"And this place, by unanimous decision of the United Nations, will become the largest nature reserve in Africa, and even the entire world!"
In reality, this would be a model cooperation zone jointly built by both sides and managed by the United Nations Wizarding Authority, combining conservation, tourism, biological material supply, and other functions.
Both Tver and the various governments intended to make this place the starting point for cooperation between the two sides, not simply a facility for breeding Magical Creatures.
Of course, there was no need to explain all that to Newt. Judging by how excited he looked now, he probably had no interest in listening to such nonsense anyway.
"What about the forest over there?" Newt asked excitedly, pointing toward the distant trees, of which only a small portion could be seen.
"That entire forest is included. It's only a small part of this enormous reserve," Tver explained calmly.
Africa was vast and sparsely populated to begin with. If it were left under local management, the land would only be neglected, or worse, occupied by foreign capital with ulterior motives.
So, with the United Nations stepping in and the five permanent members offering a little token benefit, this place had naturally been "contributed."
If he had not been worried that involving too many countries would create disputes, Tver would have doubled the size of the area!
Newt, however, was utterly stunned.
The wizarding world was wonderful in many ways, but it occupied far too little land.
Places like Dragon reserves were all kept hidden from local governments, with large numbers of dragon handlers restraining the Dragons' behavior while using magic to drive away muggles who came to investigate or stumbled in by mistake.
Not only did the manpower and resources required far exceed the cost of raising Dragons, but as muggle detection methods and ordinary activity increased, these vanished lands drew more and more attention. It was never going to be a lasting solution.
And now, the reserve he had dreamed of stood right before his eyes. Not only could he raise Magical Creatures as he pleased, he did not have to worry about them being discovered by muggles!
Newt felt as if happiness were about to knock him senseless. He pointed toward the unseen distance and stammered, "I remember there's a lake somewhere nearby…"
"All included," Tver said with a firm nod. Even if it was not included now, the lake would belong to the reserve the moment it was needed.
"The entire reserve covers more than one million square kilometers, which is about four hundred thousand square miles."
"Aside from a few creatures that the local Ministry of Magic and the Confederation require to be bred, you can raise whichever Magical Creatures you think are suitable."
"All expenses during that period will be paid by the Wizards' Confederation."
After being hit with surprise after surprise, Newt hesitated.
"Tver, I heard, only heard, mind you… that Albus plans to repeal The Statute of Secrecy?"
Tver raised an eyebrow.
Back then, what he had used to convince Newt was only that he planned to make cooperation between wizards and muggle governments closer.
In fact, up to now, aside from Tver and a handful of others, the wizarding communities of various countries all believed that was all this was. Even if they vaguely suspected something, they still did not know this was an extremely important step in the process of repealing The Statute of Secrecy.
He had not expected Newt to notice it so keenly.
"What makes you think that? Dumbledore is the guardian of the wizarding world…"
"But if repealing The Statute of Secrecy could protect the wizarding world, I'd bet he wouldn't mind doing it!" Newt retorted.
Back when they were fighting Grindelwald, what methods had Dumbledore not used?
His kindness and friendliness were only the surface. In certain respects, Dumbledore was also someone who would use whatever means were necessary to achieve his goals.
Of course, his goals were generally good for the wizarding world.
Tver immediately nodded in approval, almost giving Newt a thumbs-up.
"You're right. Dumbledore does believe The Statute of Secrecy is no longer suited to the times, and he intends to replace it with a more comprehensive and safer set of laws."
He sighed, making himself look like a hardworking, long-suffering employee.
"I've been run ragged because of his radical idea. If I hadn't remembered that you always wanted to establish a nature reserve that could integrate multiple species, I wouldn't have pushed so hard for the Confederation and the United Nations to hand this place over to you."
"What do you mean?"
Newt had already been surprised when Tver confirmed his guess, but the next sentence made him pause.
"You mean this place was originally…"
"It was originally going to be handed over to the local government. You know how it is. Africa's economy is relatively underdeveloped, but its magical resources are extremely rich."
Tver showed a bitter smile, then quickly seemed to accept it.
"They wanted to turn this place into a world-class tourism hub, not a place meant to protect the survival of Magical Creatures."
"And you have to admit, building such an enormous reserve requires an astronomical amount of money and resources. Without a suitable way to generate benefits, even the wealthy Confederation and the United Nations would never approve this plan."
"But you said this place would be built as a nature reserve…"
Newt grew anxious. In his eyes, although muggles could be friendly, their understanding and care for Magical Creatures could never match his.
"That's right," Tver said with a strained smile. "And we have a certain potions workshop owner to thank for that."
"After I fought for it, the governments now intend to turn this place into a cultivation base for certain magical materials. With output, plus the profits from potions, they finally agreed to the plan."
"It's just that, for the Magical Creatures that will live here in the future, I can't help feeling it's a little too utilitarian…"
"No, no, I think this is already very good," Newt said, patting Tver on the shoulder to comfort him. "Wizards hunt Magical Creatures anyway. If it's me handling it, life may be much better for them."
"But are you truly willing to do this sort of work?" Tver asked pitifully.
"How could I not be? I'll move my home here tomorrow!" Newt declared boldly, then immediately remembered something. "Of course, Tina has to agree first. Hehe."
Tver beamed and hugged Newt's old bones.
"Thank you so much!"
"I should be the one thanking you. Securing such a large reserve couldn't have been easy, could it?"
"Not really. I only had to persuade quite a few countries, with a little coercion and bribery…"
"…?"
Newt felt that something was off, but he could not quite figure out what.