"You're amazing, Ivan. I knew you could do it." Hermione gave Ivan a big hug, as excited as if she had just passed an exam.
"As the first Hogwarts student ever to graduate above her class, you're bound to go down in history. I can't believe we're graduating together this year…" George and Fred giggled.
Yvonne hugged Hermione, then turned to the Weasleys and asked, "Have you thought about what you're going to do after you graduate?"
"We're going to keep running the Joke Shop, of course. We've even rented a shop in the busiest part of Knockturn Alley. It'll open in a few days!" George said happily.
After several years of hard work, they were finally able to gain Mrs Weasley's approval to conduct research openly and sell joke toys.
However, this was on the condition that they did not fail their N.E.W.T. exam. Otherwise, they would definitely be scolded.
"I'd like to congratulate you both in advance," Ivan said with a smile, pushing the thought aside.
He had intended to involve George and Fred in the study of the magicalisation of Muggle technology, considering their talents in the development of alchemical objects, but decided against it.
There were supposed to be plenty of alchemists in the Department of Mysteries, and there was really no need for George and Fred to leave their favourite careers behind.
"What about you, Ivan? Are you going to join the Ministry of Magic after you graduate?" Fred asked curiously. He had little interest in politics, but it was clear from his graduation exams that many of the bigwigs in the wizarding community thought very highly of Ivan. Even the Daily Prophet praised him.
Fred even believed that Ivan could break the record again and become Minister for Magic before he was twenty-five, if he chose to.
"No, the Ministry of Magic is not for me. I'll probably go back to teaching at Hogwarts," Ivan said, shaking his head.
The position of Minister for Magic was of less importance to powerful wizards like them.
Heavy government affairs and complex political struggles would instead consume a great deal of valuable time, and being the Minister for Magic behind the scenes was the best course of action.
After all, unlike Muggles, wizards did not need to rely on clustering for power to secure their position.
It would be no trouble at all to have him at the head of Hogwarts if one day he was required to do so, as the position of Headmaster of Hogwarts was no different from that of Minister for Magic.
"That's a pity. If you'd been made Minister, we'd have had our way in the wizarding world," George quipped ruefully.
Ivan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. So that was what the two of them were planning. Just as he was about to say something, the system notification sounded in his head.
[Mission: The Rise of the Dark Lord (completed)
Objective: Rule the British wizarding community
Task Progress: 100%
Legendary Points: 4
…]
Ivan was taken aback by the prompt, but he quickly recovered.
In fact, after Lord Voldemort's death, the progress of the mission to rule Britain soared to ninety-nine percent, just shy of the final one percent.
Previously, he was still puzzled, but now, he was suddenly reminded that the mission had been completed.
Yvonne thought about it for a moment and decided that something must have happened. The system had not gone wrong so far.
Could Grindelwald have succumbed to the Dark Arts and died on the spot?
Of course, it is possible that the escaped Death Eaters have been caught today…
He was more inclined to believe the latter, as it was unrealistic to expect Grindelwald to commit suicide.
"What's wrong, Ivan?" George and Fred asked when Ivan didn't say anything.
"Nothing. I just saw Minister Pearce looking for me. I have to go over," Ivan lied.
"Then you'd better hurry, it's probably the Ministry trying to give you a medal or something," Hermione urged.
Ivan nodded, then used his magical mark to send a message to Pierce. He then left the foyer and headed for the outskirts of the castle.
Pierce, who was chatting with his old friends, paused for a moment. He quickly bid Richard Goshawk and the others farewell and strode after them.
Pierce looked around to make sure no one was around and asked nervously, "Sir Harls, did you call me here for something urgent?"
He even suspected that the other party was unhappy because he had not arranged the exam procedures properly and caused the atmosphere to not be lively enough.
"You've been doing very well lately, Pierce… I trust you caught all the escaped Death Eaters? Why didn't you report this to me?" Ivan asked casually.
Pierce's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly explained, "We've caught fifteen Death Eaters and several werewolves who were hiding so well that the Aurors didn't find them until last night. I was going to catch all of them and notify you."
"I hope so…" Ivan stared at Pierce for a moment, but decided not to expose his intentions. "What about the Secret-Keeper? Did you find him?"
"It was verified that the Secret-Keeper was Pettigrew Peter!" Pierce exclaimed, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead. "The Unknown One transfigured him into a half-Infernal monster, then wiped his memory and buried him underground… It took the Aurors several days to dig him up, based on the clues Snape gave them."
"No wonder…" Ivan muttered to himself.
He underestimated the cruelty of Lord Voldemort, who, in order to ensure that the Fidelius Charm would not be broken, transfigured Pettigrew into a monster that did not need to eat or breathe, and buried him as a corpse.
They would never have found the location of the Secret-Keeper if not for the fact that Snape had gained Voldemort's trust and indirectly obtained information.
However, Peter Pettigrew was truly miserable. He had put his life on the line for Lord Voldemort, but in the end, he was sentenced to hell by his master, Voldemort.