Pierce: I nominate Hales as President, Who Agrees and Who Opposes?

Connor gave Ivan a long look, then nodded and led the way back to the Magical Capitol.

As it had previously been used as a battlefield, the entire first and second floors were in ruins. Fortunately, the conference room was not affected. Under Connor's orders, the Aurors quickly invited the representatives who were taking refuge in the living room.

After Grindelwald's outburst, the wizards who were still in Congress were frightened and came in cursing…

The Russian wizards were furious, and when they saw Connor, they scolded him.

"Director Connor, please tell me what is going on? It was your North American Magical Congress that invited us to this meeting, and Grindelwald replaced your President of the Congress. If Mr. Harls hadn't called back Minister Igor's soul, we would all be dead!"

The other wizard representatives were equally indignant. Due to the mistake made by North America, they were nearly wiped out. Naturally, they would not let the matter rest so easily. They immediately demanded an explanation from North America and Magic France.

Conal, however, was not to be trifled with, nor did he dare to let the MACUSA take the blame alone. Even when the blame was placed on Bruno and the others, he stated that the French Ministry of Magic was the cause of everything, and that if the Minister had not been under the Imperius Curse, President Wilkinson would not have fallen so easily under Grindelwald's control.

The entire meeting room was filled with curses and shoving. Soon, everyone was in an uproar. Some agitated wizards even rolled up their sleeves, as if they were planning to have a martial arts match…

Looking at the increasingly chaotic meeting room, Ivan shook his head helplessly and immediately took out his wand to cast a Resounding Spell on himself.

"Enough! Be quiet!"

His loud voice instantly drowned out the noise in the meeting room and attracted everyone's attention.

"Everyone, please listen to me. This is not the time for infighting. Everyone here is a victim. If I could, I'm sure Director Connor would hate to see this Capitol Building reduced to a battlefield!" Ivan said solemnly.

"Our real enemy is Gellert Grindelwald … and he is the one responsible!"

"Although we have successfully foiled Grindelwald's plot, I'm afraid it won't be long before he regroups and grows even more powerful, making a comeback…"

"So the most important thing at the moment is to join forces and find a way to capture Grindelwald and his Saints, rather than having to resort to mutual abuse and recriminations … Pardon me for saying this, but it would be a waste of valuable time!" Ivan said.

"I know what you mean, Mr. Harls, but Minister Igor is dead, and we have to go back and elect a new Minister. Could we postpone this meeting of the World Confederation of Wizards for a while…" the Russian wizard in the lead said awkwardly.

Bruno and the others nodded, but Ivan interrupted before he could speak.

"How long will it take you to choose a new minister? A week? A month? More? Grindelwald does not give us that time, remember!"

"He ran into a brick wall in the North American Magical Congress, so why don't you think about where Grindelwald is most likely to go to further his influence?" Yvonne asked in a slightly threatening tone.

Bruno's face fell at Ivan's words. This was their worst fear!

It was common knowledge that one should pick the weak ones, and although North American MACUSA had suffered a setback at Grindelwald's hands, its heritage as the most powerful magical region was evident.

The Aurors, led by Connor, were able to keep Grindelwald under control for a time with the help of protective magic, and he would have been imprisoned if the Department of Mysteries had not been in trouble.

Not to mention the fact that Ivan Hals was an English wizard and did not fear Grindelwald.

By contrast, the countries most vulnerable to Grindelwald's revenge were France and Russia, which had lost their ministers and were facing civil unrest…

When Ivan saw that Bruno and the others understood his meaning, he turned to the wizard representatives and spoke solemnly.

"The threat Grindelwald poses is by no means a regional or continental one, but a common threat to the entire wizarding community, and no one can be left alone… so I hope you will all put aside your old prejudices and truly join forces!"

"If we sit idly by and do nothing today, there will undoubtedly be a war in the future!"

"This is not just a civil war between wizards and wizards. Grindelwald's ambition is more than that, and he is more likely to provoke Muggle-wizard hostility, causing untold casualties and possibly the entire wizarding world to be destroyed!"

Yvonne's voice echoed through the room, and the delegates, who had known Grindelwald's cunning and power, fell into deep thought.

While many considered Ivan's claims to be exaggerated, Grindelwald did have the power to topple the existing order.

"I propose that, from this day on, all countries be placed in charge of Grindelwald's affairs, and it is expected that at least seven rapid-response forces will be required to link up with the intelligence services of each country. This is the only way to contain the vicious events of recent times, and to further the search and capture of Grindelwald…"

As Yvonne rambled on about her vision, Conal frowned. According to Yvonne, the new department would have terrible powers.

Ivan even proposed that the Rapid Response Force be allowed to enter the wizarding world in secret to investigate and capture suspected targets in case of emergencies.

"Then who's going to lead them? And how are we going to make sure Grindelwald doesn't send someone in?" Bruno interrupted.

"I'll see to it personally that no one gets in!" Ivan said firmly, then hesitated. "As for the leaders…"

"If this rapid-response force can't defeat Grindelwald and his Saints, then I'm afraid there's no need for it to exist at all, so in my opinion, it would be better to let Hals lead this new department!" Pierce said without hesitation.