Chapter 164: Ambush

Chapter 164: Ambush

As the evening descended, peculiarly dressed wizards emerged in various corners of the hotel. Felix Harp stood in the hotel garden, observing a group of wizards climbing a small hill.

From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Maxwell and a stern-looking woman engaged in conversation, the former appearing quite impatient.

"This is France, Célestine! Not America. You can't command me in the name of your legislature!"

The woman called Célestine had an exquisite and serious countenance, meticulously dressed from head to toe, without a hint of imperfection. She seemed like a capable government official who had just rushed over from a Muggle government building kilometers away to attend a charity event in the slums.

Especially notable were the several wizards standing beside her in pleated robes and cornette hats, solemnly gesturing and pointing at an automated sprinkler, further adding to the persuasiveness of her identity.

In this moment, flames seemed to flicker in her gray eyes, and though she pursed her lips, restraining herself from saying anything hurtful, her response remained steadfast: "The law is an inviolable boundary; we must take action."

"We will handle it," Maxwell retorted stiffly. He emphasized the word 'we,' seemingly reminding the woman across from him that their understanding of the term greatly differed.

The two soon parted ways.

Felix walked over, the anger of the French Auror still apparent on her face.

"She's far too arrogant, thinking I'm her subordinate!"

"Who is she?" Felix inquired.

"A formidable woman, Noël Célestine, the foremost figure of the American Wizarding Congress."

"What does she want?"

"To have American Aurors dispatched here, under the pretense of assisting in apprehending potential criminals," Maxwell said with a stern expression.

Felix clicked his tongue, genuinely surprised by such a demand. He almost wanted to outright point at the French Ministry of Magic and berate, "You're utterly rubbish; I don't trust you. I'll send my own people."

"If she's so distrustful, why didn't she just hold the meeting in America from the start?" Felix asked, raising a similar question he had posed earlier.

"Factional struggles? Hidden agendas? Well, from what I gather, many oppose her..."

Sensitively, Felix asked, "Who opposes her?"

"Uh... I didn't remember," Maxwell revealed an embarrassed expression, muttering under his breath, "The department prepared some documents for me, including various clippings, left in my room, but I didn't look closely... Do you want to see?"

"If it's convenient, thank you, Maxwell."

"Ha, I suppose we're practically acquainted now. And you have a taste in food that resonates with mine; I love that dish of red wine-stewed beef." Maxwell joked.

Felix persuaded, "This aligns with the theme of the current conference, and once the snowball starts rolling, even the most stubborn pure-blood families will be swept along by the tide of the times."

"But..." Professor Bobage wasn't entirely satisfied with this perspective. Although she was a Muggle Studies professor, she didn't believe that the two worlds could cooperate or that cooperation was necessary.

She merely saw the irrationality of the pure-blood ideology in the wizarding world and proposed her solution.

...

The next day, July 20th, the conference officially began.

Noël Célestine, as the representative of the International Confederation of Wizards and the initiator of the conference, presided over the entire event. However, she seemed distracted.

She kept looking in one direction, where a tall, weathered-looking man stood. Every few minutes, he would step out and return, making a gesture towards her when he did.

Delegates from each country took the stage to speak, and Felix Harp found himself growing drowsy.

It was hard to imagine that these outdated notions were coming from the mouths of the most renowned group of Muggle issue researchers.

The only amusement came when a wizard proposed the "Muggle threat theory," and a German wizard berated him as a "Grindelwald sympathizer," throwing a shoe at him.

Perhaps Bobage's perspective would be drowned out in this flood of verbose speeches... Felix thought.

"Professor Bobage, what's your speaking order?"

"I have two wizards ahead of me."

Soon, Professor Bobage stood on the platform. She cleared her throat, her face displaying a poignant expression. Felix knew she hadn't heeded his advice.

But at that moment, the weathered man rushed in, shouting, "Attack!!!"

"Boom!"

A massive explosion rang out behind him.

Hello everyone,

If you enjoy reading this novel and want to read 10 Chapters ahead of schedule, then please join my Patreon.

Or Consider donating! at Paypal or Ko-fi.

Your support is greatly appreciated