Lupin unsurprisingly looked at Fudge and the Aurors visiting again, taking a deep breath, fearing he might emulate Snape's sarcastic demeanor.
Despite having known from various sources that the current Minister of Magic was quite incompetent, facing him in person still made Lupin's blood pressure rise.
"Sirius has gone to track Peter Pettigrew."
Lupin, holding back his temper, tried to speak as calmly as possible:
"Even though you've admitted there are doubts about this matter, and Sirius is innocent… but he hopes to catch Peter Pettigrew himself for revenge."
"What?! Does he have any leads on Peter Pettigrew? How did he get them? How can he guarantee that he'll catch Peter Pettigrew?"
Fudge asked loudly, his small eyes revealing a cunning gleam, as if to say—finally caught your loophole.
Lupin inhaled and exhaled again.
"Sirius hasn't guaranteed that, he only hopes he can catch him! He's putting in his greatest effort to do so—when your Ministry of Magic has no way of dealing with the escaped convict!"
Lupin couldn't help but add a sarcastic remark.
He had realized that Fudge was not only not smart, but also stubborn.
His mind was already set on an answer, and whatever the situation, he would desperately try to fit it into that answer.
So no matter what Lupin said, he'd interpret it as "Sirius colluding with Pettigrew" and form a self-consistent logical explanation.
Sure enough, Fudge suspiciously said, "Hmm? How can you be sure he's really trying to capture and not cover up? I've heard about your school days, apparently, Sirius has been wild since enrollment, doing many bad things..."
Lupin's anger flared, raising an eyebrow, he said, "Minister, do you think you know Sirius better than I do? He is..."
"Knock knock knock!"
A sudden knock interrupted Lupin's words, and everyone paused for a moment, then they saw Harry, who had been silent, run to open the door.
"Vid!"
Came his surprised voice from the door.
"Haven't seen you in days, Harry, here's a gift I brought you from the United States."
Vid handed a jar of colorful candies to Harry, while asking, "Where are Remus and Sirius?"
"Eh… Sirius is out, Remus is at home."
Harry didn't understand what he meant and answered cautiously.
"I also brought gifts for them..."
Vid entered, seeing the people in the living room, seemingly only then realizing the situation, he said in surprise, "Sorry, I didn't know you were entertaining guests."
"No, Minister Fudge is here to take Sirius for investigation and..."
Lupin hadn't finished before being interrupted by Fudge.
"Vid! So glad to see you!"
The chubby minister raised his voice, eagerly coming forward to shake hands: "I must say, Flow Mirror is an amazing invention! And the Friendship Book, no wizard can live without it now!"
"Hello, Minister." Vid politely shook hands.
"Hahaha, I wanted to say this last time at Hogwarts, but regrettably never had the chance."
Fudge said with a wide grin, "Using the Flow Mirror to broadcast those trivial matches is such a waste. I think it should play a bigger role in promoting Ministry of Magic policies..."
He had long wanted to build a good relationship with this young Alchemy genius but previously never had the chance. Even when he'd been to Hogwarts last time, he couldn't find the opportunity to talk.
Encountering Vid unexpectedly at the Black Family's home was no less than a large piece of cake landing before a hungry man for Fudge, instantly putting aside Sirius, his demeanor becoming friendly and enthusiastic.
"Actually, we had similar ideas, but we don't know if the Ministry of Magic would find it offensive to have journalists record with the Flow Mirror..."
Vid replied with a smile, then using a slightly anticipatory tone he said, "If you don't mind, could you arrange for Ms. Umbridge to collaborate with us on the promotion?"
"Umbridge?"
Fudge's smile became somewhat stiff suddenly, "You know Umbridge?"
His first thought was, hadn't Umbridge known he wanted to meet Vid Gray, why hadn't she arranged it?
He then heard Vid's explanation—
"No, I've met Ms. Umbridge twice, but she shouldn't know me."
"Who's Umbridge?"
Harry asked Lupin quietly, puzzled by the conversation.
Actually, Lupin was not clear either, but Vid overheard his question, turning to Harry with a smile he said:
"She is the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, reputedly outstanding during her school days, and after entering the Ministry of Magic she excelled, climbing ranks, now just a step away from becoming the Minister!"
Those many Aurors fully aware that Umbridge advanced by deceitful flatteries and taking credit from others displayed strange expressions.
"And Ms. Umbridge is also very graceful, gentle, and full of childlike spirit."
Vid continued:
"She loves cats very much—although I've never interacted with her, cat lovers are generally kind-hearted, broad-minded, and responsible. Ms. Umbridge must be like that too, right?"
Harry, completely unfamiliar with Umbridge, believed him, imagining a noble and gentle lady, he said eagerly:
"Sounds really nice—I wish I'd met her."
"You will have a chance in the future! Maybe she'll appear on the Flow Mirror in a couple of days!" Vid said.
The Aurors: "..."
Stop, I'm about to throw up.
The person these two kids were talking about had even a knut's resemblance to the domineering, self-assuming, cold-blooded, control-freak pink toad they knew?
Lupin saw the expressions of others, feeling vaguely that something wasn't right with what Vid said, yet not knowing his purpose in speaking so.
As for Fudge, even though Umbridge was his "own," he felt as if he'd swallowed a fly.
Especially when he heard what Vid said next:
"—I believe Ms. Umbridge has a great chance of becoming the next Minister. With her ability, it's certainly not inferior to Minister Millicent Bulstrode!"
"Minister Fudge, you think so too, right? I heard Ms. Umbridge is your capable subordinate, you must know her abilities better than anyone else."
Fudge thought grimly: What ability? The ability to flatter? Or the ability to wish for an extraordinary friendly relationship with me?
He had always thought Umbridge spoke very well, every word reached his heart, but for the first time, he found that woman truly repulsive.