Since there were no supplies prepared for people to live on here, Modesty was taken back to the United States by Ya Zhou the very next day. As for Tver and the other wizards, they still had to remain in Bhutan for another week.
Of course, they were staying in an ordinary city in Bhutan.
They remained there partly to deal with questions from the various representatives, and partly to continue refining the proposal.
For example, questions such as which side would hold command authority once the Joint Operations Office was established, or whether Aurors would be allowed to assist muggle members if they came under threat from the muggle side.
These considerations would not be included in the final proposal, but once the proposal was passed, they would be distributed together with it to the Ministries of Magic of various countries as operational guidance.
Yes, by this point everyone had already taken it for granted that the proposal would pass smoothly. The vote was nothing more than a necessary procedure.
Refining the proposal was also in Tver's interest, so he stayed until the vote was over.
The result, naturally, came as no surprise at all... it passed unanimously!
With that, all of his work in Bhutan had finally come to an end.
But his work in the Confederation was still far from finished...
"Tver, according to the requirements of the proposal, as the British representative, you need to personally report its contents to the British Ministry of Magic."
That morning, just before leaving Bhutan, Babajide stopped Tver.
"Normally this would be done by the Minister for Magic or someone of similar rank. Of course, given the, well, peculiar situation at the British Ministry of Magic, you may decide for yourself how to carry it forward."
Tver nodded helplessly.
When he had first proposed this measure, he still had not quite adjusted to his identity as a Confederation representative, so he had asked for the Confederation itself to be involved in the Joint Operations Office.
Of course, that was not exactly a bad thing for Tver. It had just added a tiny little bit to his workload...
After saying goodbye to Babajide and the representatives from other countries who were also preparing to leave, Tver reached out with obvious distaste and picked up a... toilet seat.
"Don't worry, it's never been used."
The moment the Portkey activated, Babajide offered the reassurance with a wicked grin.
Whoosh.
That familiar sensation of spinning rushed over him, and Tver officially said farewell to this sacred city of magic as he began his journey back to Britain.
"Tver Fawley, British representative to the Wizards' Confederation, returning from Bhutan. I've got that right, haven't I, Mr. Fawley?" a cool voice said just as Tver regained his balance.
"Yes, that's right."
Tver realized the person speaking to him was a young witch whose face practically radiated exhaustion, and that he was now standing at the edge of a magnificent golden hall.
The floor beneath him was dark wood polished bright as a mirror. Overhead was a peacock-blue ceiling inlaid with glittering golden symbols that kept moving and shifting.
It looked magical in exactly the way one would expect.
Ahead of him, the walls on both sides were lined with fireplaces glowing with a ghostly green light. Every so often, a wizard would suddenly emerge from one of the fireplaces on the left, while on the right, several people stood in line before each fireplace waiting to leave.
Of course, between the fireplaces on both sides, plenty of wizards were also appearing and disappearing by Apparition.
It seemed the quieter area where Tver had arrived was the section the Ministry had specially set aside for Portkey travel.
He casually tossed the toilet seat in his hand into a nearby basket, then followed the flow of people and strode toward the far end of the entrance hall.
But the great fountain in the middle of the hall caught Tver's eye, especially the golden statues at its center.
A handsome wizard stood at the highest point, holding his wand aloft and pointing it at the sky. Gathered around him were a beautiful witch, a centaur, a goblin, and a house-elf.
Even more striking, the centaur, goblin, and house-elf all wore expressions of admiration as they gazed up at the two wizards.
Tsk. It really showed off wizard superiority to the fullest.
Past the fountain was the main entrance to the hall, and beyond those doors lay a smaller chamber.
The lifts leading to the various departments of the Ministry of Magic were in that chamber.
"Professor Fawley?"
A voice full of delight called out from behind Tver. When he turned, he saw Harry, being held back by Arthur Weasley so he would not rush straight over.
"Good morning, Harry, and Mr. Weasley," Tver replied with a smile.
Following the stream of people heading to work, Harry had to weave through the crowd several times before finally squeezing in beside Tver, but by then they had already reached the lifts and were swept inside by the press of people.
"Professor, what are you doing here?" Harry asked in a low voice.
Thanks to Mr. Weasley's build and Tver's, the three of them managed to secure a fairly comfortable corner inside the lift.
The people around them wore the lifeless expressions unique to early morning. They only glanced once in their direction before turning their attention back to the lift's golden grille.
Tver let out a sigh. "I'm holding a position in the Ministry of Magic now as well, and I need to carry out some official duties."
"Seventh floor, Department of Magical Games and Sports, including the British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters, Official Gobstones Club, and Ludicrous Patents Office."
At that moment, the cold voice of a woman suddenly rang through the lift. At the same time, the lift came to a stop on the seventh floor. With a clank, the golden grille slid open and several wizards stepped out.
Harry, however, was still focused on what Tver had said.
"Official duties? Are you going to work at the Ministry of Magic? Then what about school...?"
"School won't be affected. Well, unless something unexpected happens."
Tver had the odd feeling he had just raised a flag, but with Dumbledore's attitude having softened so much, there was not much point anymore in him remaining at the school.
"And what about you? Did you find a job at the Ministry too?" To keep Harry's curiosity from spiraling any further, Tver quickly threw the question back at him.
The moment the topic shifted to himself, Harry's expression darkened at once.
"The Ministry charged me with using magic in front of a muggle. They're going to expel me from school..."
"But you were in danger at the time, weren't you?" Arthur, who had been silent until then, quickly patted Harry on the shoulder in comfort.
"That's right. I ran into Dementors, and I only used the Patronus Charm to protect Dudley!" Harry pressed his lips together. Though he was still nervous inside, he explained it to Tver with determination.
"But all the Dementors are in Azkaban. How did you run into one?" a wizard beside them asked curiously.
Arthur turned to him with a grave expression. "Then maybe you should ask the people in charge of the Dementors, Bob!"
The wizard called Bob just shrugged indifferently. He was clearly on good terms with Arthur, not the sort to get upset over something like this.
"Well, good luck," he said to Harry with a smile, then stepped out on the fourth floor.
"Thanks," Harry muttered, feeling considerably more reassured.
"Second floor, Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
"We're here!" Arthur said at once, grabbing Harry and pulling him out so quickly that Harry only had time to wave at Tver before being dragged from the lift.
Now Tver was the only one left inside.
But soon, the cold female voice rang out again.
"First floor, Minister for Magic's Office and Department of Magical Maintenance."