July 1, 1990.
This day was one worth recording for the British wizarding world, and indeed for the entirety of Europe's magical community.
After weeks of tug-of-war and political maneuvering, Cornelius Fudge finally got his wish and was officially elected as the new Minister for Magic.
Congratulatory telegrams from Ministries of magic across various countries flew in like snowflakes starting from the early morning; owls nearly blotted out the London sky, and major newspapers scrambled to report the news.
At the dining table of the Shafik Old Manor, Richard held the day's copy of The Daily Prophet. Looking at the giant front-page photo of Fudge waving from a podium, his brow furrowed slightly as he let out an ambiguous sigh.
"To be honest, I still feel Barty Crouch was more suited for that seat than Fudge." The old man put down the newspaper and tapped the edge of his plate with a silver fork. "Crouch might be radical, but he has the means and the grit. It's just a pity..."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"The impact of his son becoming a Death Eater was too great. It was like a bomb that blew away nearly half of his support. After the war, Crouch's prestige plummeted."
At this point, Richard shook his head, seemingly accepting reality with some helplessness. "However, it is peacetime now. Someone like Fudge, who is good at smoothing things over and seems non-threatening, can just about make do."
"Mm, yes."
Willy responded absentmindedly. He was holding a piece of soft buckskin, carefully polishing a pile of gadgets on the table, while his mind was on something else entirely.
Regarding'Special Contributions'... Willy had checked the detailed descriptions on the system page. Becoming a high-ranking Ministry official was included. What if a student he taught ended up becoming the Minister for Magic?
How many points would the system award for that?
Looking at the momentum of Fudge's election, Willy felt it certainly wouldn't be a low amount.
"Hiss—"
At that moment, an orange tail quietly crept onto the table. Otto seemed very interested in the lifelike stone busts on the table. Its left head flicked its tongue out, attempting to lick a stone bust holding a spear.
"Don't touch those, Otto."
Willy moved quickly, grabbing Otto and casually tossing him onto the soft sofa nearby.
Those were the 'wonderful tools' he had prepared for Hogwarts; naturally, they couldn't be messed with.
These stone statues, which looked to be in a Greek style, were Alchemy products with specific uses. After some thought, Willy was certain they would earn him points under the [Campus Construction] category.
Since he was going to Hogwarts to work on 'construction,' thorough preparation was essential.
As time passed, Diagon Alley in London—a street paved with cobblestones—gradually became lively.
Sunlight pierced through the clouds, spilling onto the dazzling shop windows. Young Witches and Wizards with their parents were everywhere, clutching shopping lists as they purchased items for their upcoming school life.
Willy was carrying a bulging bag and heading toward Knockturn Alley when a hesitant voice suddenly came from behind him.
"Willy? Willy Shafik?"
Willy stopped and turned around. A conspicuous family of redheads appeared in his sight.
"Good to see you, Arthur." A gentle smile appeared on Willy's face as he stepped forward and took the initiative to shake hands with the slightly balding, kind-looking Wizard leading the group.
"It really is you; I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me." Arthur Weasley seemed very happy. He quickly stepped aside to introduce his family to Willy. "This is my wife Molly, and these two—Fred and George. They'll be in their second year at Hogwarts this year."
"I'm taking them to buy new books today. There's also Percy and Charlie, but they've gone off on their own..."
Two identical red-haired boys were sizing Willy up with curious gazes. They looked to have an excess of energy, their eyes sparkling with a mischievous light.
After some pleasantries, Arthur looked left and right, lowered his voice, and leaned in close to Willy.
"Willy, listen to me. After Fudge was elected Minister, in order to show his magnanimity, all the disciplinary procedures against staff that were active before the election have been suspended. I've heard from friends in the Ministry that although the fuss you made was... cough, a bit large, it didn't cause any substantial harm. If you're willing to go back now, there's a high probability you can be reinstated to your original post."
Facing Arthur's well-intentioned reminder, Willy shook his head gently.
"Thanks for the news, Arthur, but I already have a new job. I don't plan on returning to the Ministry."
In fact, he had received an owl from Barty Crouch two days ago. The letter promised that as long as he returned and went through a simple procedure, Crouch could guarantee his reinstatement. Willy had politely declined.
"A new job?" Arthur was stunned for a moment.
Willy turned his head to look at Fred and George, who were staring at him. He winked and smiled. "I think I'll be seeing these two spirited young men again very soon, because I've accepted Dumbledore's invitation. I'll be teaching at Hogwarts starting in September."
"You're a new Professor?" Both Arthur and Molly were shocked. "Teaching what? Defense Against the Dark Arts?"
"No, Alchemy."
"Ah, Alchemy. That's good, very good," Arthur responded.
He hadn't taken the course himself. His few impressions of it were that it was difficult and niche, and only available as an elective for upper-year students.
"Alchemy?" Fred and George looked at each other, clearly having no concept of the subject, but they quickly threw out the question they cared about most.
"Um..." Fred asked boldly.
"...Is what the papers said true?" George finished the sentence.
"Did you really inflate the Minister for Magic like a balloon and stick him to the ceiling?" The two spoke in unison, seemingly very interested in the topic.
"Fred! George!" Molly Weasley's eyes suddenly widened like saucers. She pulled her two sons away from Willy and glanced around at their surroundings.
Willy wasn't angry. He leaned down slightly, looking at the twins, and said with interest, "Why? Do you want to learn that spell?"
The twins nodded frantically.
Willy didn't make a promise as they hoped, however. He chatted a bit more with the Weasleys before taking his leave.
Watching Willy's tall figure disappear into the crowd, Arthur Weasley recalled the first time he had met Willy.
The "Experimental Charms Committee" Willy previously led had many similarities with Arthur's "Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects." Functionally, the former was somewhat like a superior department to the latter, just with a much larger scope.
Muggle items that were cursed or illegally modified were usually sent to Arthur first. If they were too troublesome to handle, they would be handed over to the Experimental Charms Committee.
In their past interactions, Arthur had noticed a very strange phenomenon.
In the wizarding world, the vast majority of Wizards had little interest in Muggle items, often possessing an arrogant or dismissive attitude.
If it were a Ministry employee, the probability of being interested in Muggle items could be cut in half; for high-ranking officials, it could be cut by ninety percent.
If that Wizard came from an ancient pure-blood family with an inherent sense of superiority, you could cut it by another ninety percent on top of that. The probability approached zero.
Yet Willy, who embodied all those characteristics, showed considerable interest in Muggle items that had been modified by magic.
Arthur clearly remembered a time they seized a batch of magically modified Muggle firearms; the bullets fired could relentlessly track their targets.
Other Wizards turned their noses up at them, considering them "toys for barbarians," but Willy had taken the initiative to handle the case himself and took all those firearms back to his laboratory.
From that perspective, Willy really was a strange Wizard.
Arthur thought to himself.