Those who have studied politics or possess historical knowledge understand this principle:
When two major powers of comparable strength clash, the nations caught between them suffer the most before a decisive victory is achieved.
This logic holds equally true in the wizarding world.
The duel between Lawrence and Grindelwald would ultimately exact its price from the Ministry of Magic of another nation.
"How dare you!" Keynes exclaimed furiously.
"Provocation demands consequences," Grindelwald narrowed his eyes, glancing at Newt, who had returned to the ground and offering him a 'benevolent' smile before turning his gaze back to Keynes. "Lawrence is indeed a formidable opponent, but he cannot watch me twenty-four hours a day."
"If you refuse, I guarantee that once Lawrence returns to Hogwarts, I shall pay visits to certain Ministries of Magic."
Grindelwald's eyes swept over the Aurors behind Keynes as he added meaningfully, "I can ascertain exactly which countries each of you hails from."
His words plunged the Aurors into an icy dread.
Having just witnessed an epic duel, these Aurors had gained a stark awareness of the chasm between themselves and Grindelwald, making his threats all the more terrifying.
If Grindelwald truly descended upon their nation's Ministry of Magic, wouldn't it result in complete slaughter?
In an instant, the Aurors turned pleading eyes toward Keynes.
The flustered Keynes then looked to Wayne.
"Accept his terms, Mr President," Wayne shrugged helplessly. "Grindelwald speaks the truth. You cannot expect me to be constantly putting out fires across the globe."
Keynes fell silent.
Keynes yielded.
He recalled bygone eras.
When Grindelwald had ravaged the European continent, even Dumbledore's presence couldn't halt his expansion—precisely for this reason.
Failing to eliminate such a mobile cataclysm in one stroke, rigid opposition would only invite greater bloodshed.
"Mr Lawrence... what is your opinion?" Keynes asked awkwardly.
Wayne feigned displeasure. "It was already risky for me to duel such a powerful opponent. Do you expect me to make selfless contributions now?"
"Of course not! We shall pay adequate compensation. What would you desire?" Keynes hurriedly replied, knowing he couldn't afford to offend this gentleman.
"Sand of Time and Mithril."
Wayne named two extremely precious materials. Keynes's expression shifted slightly, but he agreed and went to negotiate with the Aurors from various nations.
Sand of Time, the primary component for crafting Time-Turners, contains the essence of time itself.
As for Mithril, it need not be said—this ranks among the most treasured materials in Alchemy. Mithril isn't a natural metal but an alchemical product created by smelting gold and silver as the base, combined with numerous rare minerals.
This material possesses exceptional magical conductivity, making it the preferred 'ink' for inscribing magical runes on precious artefacts.
Measured in Galleons, a single gram of Mithril could fetch approximately two hundred Galleons.
The Firebolt's exorbitant cost stems precisely from its use of Mithril in etching acceleration runes.
Even Wayne possessed very little of it, as the substance is notoriously troublesome to produce and rarely required in large quantities.
As for the Sand of Time, they were priceless treasures and had been classified as prohibited trading items by the International Confederation of Wizards. Most were held by various Ministries of Magic.
Wizards understood all too well the severe consequences of tampering with time, so when the Ministry acquired the Sands of Time, it was primarily for safekeeping rather than use.
"What do you need the Sands of Time for?" Newt couldn't help asking.
"Wayne, meddling with time is far too dangerous," Tina also advised. "Don't do something reckless out of momentary curiosity that would worry everyone."
Before Wayne could respond, Grindelwald, who had overheard their exchange, let out a derisive snort. "Scamander, do you think living longer makes you more capable than Lawrence? More clever than him?"
"Spouting such meaningless platitudes – then why enlist him to oppose me?"
"None of your business, Grindelwald," Tina said irritably. "Barging into a private family conversation – is this the Dark Lord's idea of manners?"
"Grandma Tina, don't bother with him," Wayne interjected. "Grindelwald's definitely plotting something, hoping to see me cause chaos by tampering with time."
Grindelwald's mouth twitched.
This wretched boy, actually taking Goldstein's side.
As expected... Newt, you deserve to die!
Wayne explained to the two, "The virtual helmet I'm creating needs some improvements, which require the Sands of Time. I've discussed it with... him before, and we both agreed it should be fine. Please don't worry."
With so many people around, Wayne couldn't reveal that Nicolas was still alive, but Tina understood the implication and felt somewhat reassured.
"Then ask for more. It's not like the Ministry has any use for them anyway."
"Well... that depends on how much weight Mr Grindelwald carries in their eyes," Wayne said with a meaningful glance at the first Dark Lord.
Grindelwald's face darkened.
About ten minutes later, Keynes and the group of Aurors reached a decision.
"Mr Lawrence, we can provide you with five hundred grams of mithril. As for the Sands of Time... there's no detailed inventory across nations, but I can guarantee no less than thirty grains."
"Fifty grains," Wayne glanced at him.
Keynes gritted his teeth and agreed.
These were just the primary conditions. Beyond that, Wayne also requested numerous ancient texts—the older the books, the better.
Keynes didn't hesitate much over reproducible resources like books. Once terms were settled, Wayne promptly poured out one hundred drops of the Water of Life for Grindelwald.
This payment was essentially blood money.
He wasn't afraid the Ministries would renege. If anyone was foolish enough to be blinded by the treasure's value, they'd only have themselves to blame for their destruction.
"Grindelwald, the transaction is complete. I expect you to honour your promise."
When Keynes saw Grindelwald handing the Water of Life to Vinda Rosier, he felt a surge of relief.
So he wasn't using it himself.
"Stop breathing here, I might catch your stupidity," Grindelwald waved impatiently. "I've never gone back on my word once given. Now get lost."
"Oh, and pay an additional sum in Galleons. I haven't settled with you for destroying the castle yet."
"Didn't you already receive the Water of Life?"
"That was my wager with Lawrence. None of your damn business."
"You!" Keynes glared at him, then, noticing all the Saints casting sharp glances his way, turned away resentfully and made a gesture inviting Wayne to proceed.
'Paid a huge price to get Lawrence to act, now paying another fortune to clean up Grindelwald's mess.'
'This time, both parties involved profited enormously, while we're the only ones losing our shirts.'
"Wait." Grindelwald called out to Wayne just as he was about to leave, his tone hopeful: "Really not considering leaving Scamander? I'll double his salary."
Newt: "..."
...
The battle that would influence the future landscape concluded, and spectators from around the world carried the information back to their respective nations.
For a time, discarded Portkeys lay scattered everywhere like trash.
Dolphin Rowle returned to Malfoy Manor and was immediately summoned by Voldemort.
So eager was he to understand Lawrence and Grindelwald's true capabilities from this duel that he didn't even bother listening to Rowle's account, directly using Dark Magic to extract and forcibly view the complete memories.
After watching, Voldemort fell silent.
Both Lawrence and Grindelwald possessed power that somewhat exceeded his expectations.
He'd originally assumed Grindelwald, having been defeated by Dumbledore and imprisoned for so many years, must have significantly declined in strength.
But after viewing the complete memories, Voldemort's wariness towards Grindelwald and Wayne had reached its peak.
As Rowle hadn't dared approach the battlefield too closely, many memories were blurred, yet the residual shockwaves and destructive power were undeniably real.
Particularly, that dragon Patronus - seeing it made Voldemort grind his teeth in frustration.
Back in the Forbidden Forest, he'd been forced to flee by this very thing.
Though it was Quirrell who actually took the beating.
Voldemort had always regarded it as his personal disgrace.
Now, Lawrence's Patronus had evolved further and could wield powerful magic, making him even more wary.
Recalling the cataclysmic battle between the two colossal creatures, Voldemort simulated how he might counter such an assault.
He was a staunch advocate of the Killing Curse, firmly believing there was no problem that couldn't be solved by one Avada Kedavra - or two or three if necessary.
But facing such a spectacle, ordinary Killing Curses seemed somewhat inadequate...
A gleam flashed in Voldemort's eyes as he recalled an ancient magic from Slytherin's legacy.
He'd originally considered this magic inferior to his Killing Curse, but now... it seemed worth learning after all.
Meanwhile.
Other nations' Ministries of Magic received intelligence from their spies and rapidly reassessed Grindelwald and Lawrence's combat capabilities.
Only when bloody reality stared them in the face did they realise that in the wizarding world, influence was merely a byproduct of power.
Yet one nation remained deathly silent.
The Russian magical community.
When Grindelwald escaped, they didn't attend the joint conference. When Durmstrang fell, they showed no concern.
Even this world-altering battle seemed to have occurred without their presence.
In truth, the Russian Ministry had sent observers.
Where Young Master Lawrence was concerned, Tom was intensely focused.
Before the duel, he'd even prayed to Merlin, hoping Master Lawrence would perish in the confrontation.
Unfortunately... the intelligence brought back by his subordinates left him deeply unsatisfied.
Ministry of Magic of the Soviet Union.
Tom sat in the main seat with a furrowed brow. Recently, he had been working hard to improve his strength, but time was ultimately limited. It had only been two and a half years since his resurrection.
Even though he far surpassed ordinary wizards, he was still at a disadvantage when facing Grindelwald, Wayne, and even his original self.
Not to mention...
"Is he still there?" Tom suddenly asked.
Katerina was momentarily taken aback, but quickly realised who Tom was referring to and hurriedly replied, "Dumbledore is still there, and he has already contacted quite a few people. Shall we make a move?"
"Not yet." Tom raised his hand slightly to stop her. "Keep increasing the pressure. Let's see exactly how many people are dissatisfied with us. We can use Dumbledore as bait to lure them all out."
After speaking, he adopted a sorrowful, compassionate expression. "Originally, I wanted to spare their lives, but those corrupt pure-bloods have seen the results of our reforms and yet remain obstinately misguided..."
"For the sake of our country, I have no choice but to be ruthless."
Hearing this, Katerina didn't try to dissuade him. Instead, she showed an expression that said 'it's about time', and said excitedly, "Mr Riddle, you've finally understood! They are all traitors to our country, a cancer!"
"Let's endure it for now." Tom comforted her. "When the day comes for them to gather, everything will move towards the light."
"Yes!"
...
Hogwarts.
During dinner, Wayne, Newt, and Tina returned to the school.
Seeing Wayne safe and sound, unharmed, the Great Hall erupted in thunderous cheers.
They didn't know the outcome of the duel, but the fact that Wayne had returned completely unscathed was proof enough of his strength.
After calming the excited students and giving Professor McGonagall a brief account of events, Fudge personally rushed over.
The two had a long discussion in the Headmaster's Office, and Fudge didn't leave the school until after ten o'clock.
Wayne, who had originally intended to draw lots for something, lost the inclination. He quietly went to Ravenclaw to fetch Luna into his suitcase and then went to rest.