16. Emergency Meeting

"Huh-huh-didn't you catch up?" Newt and the disoriented Jacob stood in the ruins with their arms akimbo. The place was severely damaged, and the upper halves of the two buildings were smashed to the ground.

Fortunately, this doesn't seem to be a residential area, but rather an office building. Otherwise, many Muggles would have been killed by such destructive power.

"I, I -!" Jacob vomited, covering the floor with the strudel that his goddess had carefully prepared for him.

"Sorry, Jacob, apparating multiple times in a short period can be disorienting for people who aren't used to it," Newt apologized.

"No, I'm fine...just a little - yuck!"

"The charade is over, Mr. Scamander!" Tina appeared in front of them with a wand, flashing faintly as she prepared to cast a spell.

"Tina? You don't understand the severity of the situation! That's a dangerous creature!" Newt defended.

"Yes! It's dangerous! Very dangerous! I saw it, it destroyed several blocks!" Tina rudely interrupted Newt. She looked at Jacob, who was still vomiting, and glared at Newt with hatred. "What did you do to him? He's still a patient!"

"It's just the aftereffects of apparating multiple times. He'll be fine in a little while."

"Just? I'm sorry, Mr. Scamander, but I have to take you to the Magic Congress. What you did can no longer be described as negligence and accident." Tina flicked her wand, instantly disarming Newt and forcibly tying his hands behind his back. The suitcase in his hands fell to the ground.

"Tina, no! We have to find it quickly! We are...wuwuwu——" Newt's mouth was sealed, leaving him whining helplessly.

Tina grabbed Newt with one hand and supported Jacob with the other. "Sorry, Mr. Kowalski, I promise you, this is the last time-"

Magic Congress, outside the Pentagon Office.

Ms. Picquery, the president of the Magic Congress, was speaking with her most effective deputy, Mr. Graves.

"Did you find it?"

"No, all our personnel have been dispersed, but most of them are maintaining the situation, erasing memories, and repairing the damage to streets and buildings-"

"Is this what Aurors should be doing? I want you to find the culprit! Mr. Graves, look, look!" Picquery pointed at a magic map that kept flashing and disappearing. This was a real-time map of New York, allowing the Magical Congress to monitor the situation at every moment. But the real purpose of the map was to oversee the wand owners.

The map of the destroyed street communities continued to grow. Although the intensity of the damage had decreased, the scope of the destruction expanded, with attacks occurring simultaneously at the east and west ends.

Grindelwald frowned. Didn't Picquery know? Did he not know? He was almost obsessed with searching for the Obscurus. Immediately after leaving Second Salem, Grindelwald hurried to the location where he had been attacked.

However, instead of finding the Obscurus he expected, he encountered a bird snake, an invisible beast, and several other magical animals.

"I'm going to a meeting now, Mr. Graves. I hope you receive good news before it concludes." Picquery turned and entered the office.

The Pentagon Office typically serves as the office of the President of Congress during the week and is also used for receptions. But today, it was the venue for a grand meeting of the Magical Congress. The design of the Pentagon Office takes inspiration from the debate rooms of the British House of Commons and the House of Lords, creating an overall Gothic-style presentation.

On both sides, there are stepped seats that are usually concealed by magic. At the moment, they are filled with participants who have rushed from Ministries of Magic around the world.

Chairman Picquery secretly sighed and assumed the position of Speaker inside the House of Commons.

This was not because the Magical Congress was hosting the event. If they were unable to resolve the crisis of the "Secrecy Act" expiration, her current position would be in jeopardy.

"Our friends from America have allowed loopholes in their national secrecy law, threatening to expose everyone..." Heinrich Eberstadt, representative of the Swiss Ministry of Magic, expressed his dissatisfaction and condemnation of the Magical Congress directly.

Jacqueline couldn't hide the look in her eyes that clearly showed her desire to kill someone. The recent chaos had left her utterly exhausted.

Regardless of being a wizard, one's position, or brilliance, the first thing to understand about Picquery is that she is a woman.

A woman consumed by rage.

"The person who allowed Gellert Grindelwald to escape has no right to lecture me here."

Eberstadt was taken aback. In all honesty, while the Magical Congress may not be as powerful as the Muggle world within the wizarding community, it is not comparable to the Swiss Ministry of Magic, considering its territorial size.

When it comes to the number of wizards, Switzerland pales in comparison to the Magical Congress.

In the wizarding world, there is an unwritten rule - having a wizarding school is the benchmark for measuring a Ministry of Magic.

From this perspective, the Magical Congress, which oversees Ilvermorny, is far superior to Switzerland, which shares Durmstrang with many countries in Europe.

Furthermore, the recent failed operation against Grindelwald carried out by the Swiss Ministry of Magic has significantly damaged its reputation. If it weren't for the tiger skin from the International Federation of Wizards, Eberstadt would not dare to say anything.

But he never expected that when he became a pawn, he would be stabbed in the lungs by Picquery. Sprinkling salt on the wound is not enough; this is like opening up the trigeminal nerve and stuffing a ton of snowflake salt into it!

There were hundreds of delegates, and there were always those who wanted to witness the excitement, and their playful glances further hurt Eberstadt's heart.

Isn't this a convention to criticize the Magical Congress? He didn't even consider the fact that criticism and struggle still come and go!

Just when Eberstadt was sweating behind him, the one who came to the rescue was someone from the Magical Congress——

"Mr. Chairman, I'm very sorry to disturb you, but the situation -" Tina dragged Newt and supported Jacob as she stomped into the room. The sudden gazes from hundreds of pairs of eyes caused her heart to ache. With a click, the words that came to my mouth suddenly fell silent: "Emergency..."

Even a fool can tell that so many people gathering here in the middle of the night are not discussing what to have for breakfast.

Tina was crying in her heart, why weren't there two people standing at the door of such a big meeting?

Newt and Jacob were also stunned. Jacob had never been noticed by hundreds of people at the same time, let alone hundreds of wizards.

As for Newt... his mouth was sealed, but the horrified look he gave the British representative said everything——