Promoting virtual reality, something related to mind magic, is out of the question in the Muggle world, let alone pushing it forward.
Even in the wizarding world, it would likely face immense resistance.
Without even thinking about it, the Ministry of Magic would definitely get involved.
As long as Roger doesn't completely flip the table and shatter the old order to establish a new one, he has to act according to the existing rules.
And right now, the Minister of Magic, Fudge, and Dumbledore's political relationship hasn't been untangled. If Dumbledore were to approve of the Second Reality, Roger would indirectly face much less trouble.
To persuade Dumbledore, Roger listed facts showing the benefits of the Second Reality for both wizards and Muggles.
Roger also explained his future plans to allay Dumbledore's doubts.
Seeing Roger's candidness, Dumbledore finally nodded, agreeing to let Roger conduct a small-scale pilot operation to see the results.
In a few days, Roger would finish debugging the Alchemy Device and then find Dumbledore. At that time, they would go to the Ministry of Magic together for the relevant reporting.
"Headmaster, I heard there's been quite a bit of public outcry recently. Is there anything I can help with?" After discussing his own matters, Roger shifted the topic to Dumbledore.
Originally, after Grindelwald's escape, there had been some negative comments surrounding Dumbledore, and after the incident where the Department of Mysteries was looted, the public outcry truly exploded.
Although at Dumbledore's current strength, from an individual perspective, he no longer needed to worry about the "fear of people's words." However, as the Headmaster of Hogwarts and the President of the International Confederation of Wizards, being constantly embroiled in controversies would impact his status.
Dumbledore is the Headmaster of Hogwarts, but strictly speaking, the Board of Governors is the true owner of the school, and the Headmaster is more like a "Chief Executive Officer."
The same applies to the President of the International Confederation of Wizards; that position is elected.
Unless Dumbledore keeps his mouth shut and starts reasoning with his wand...
In response to Roger's inquiry, Dumbledore shook his head. "I can handle international matters. As for domestic issues, your not taking any action is the greatest help you can give me."
"Oh?" Roger exclaimed in surprise.
"How so?"
Roger hadn't paid much attention to the current public outcry. The information he knew came from overhearing classmates chatting during meals.
And the students at Hogwarts were boarders, already separated from the outside world by a layer, so they obviously wouldn't know the latest developments.
"Actually, this matter is related to you."
Dumbledore briefly recounted the cause and effect.
Life in Britain was under Dumbledore's protection, so public opinion there naturally differed from other European countries.
Moreover, due to certain factors, their focus differed from that of other European nations.
In countries like Germany and Austria, Grindelwald, immediately after escaping, committed the major crime of attacking an important department of a country's Ministry of Magic and stealing forbidden magical knowledge. This indicated he was planning something big! Many people who had lived through Grindelwald's reign of terror were still alive, so the European wizards, living in constant fear, were clamoring for Dumbledore to find a way to deal with Grindelwald.
Under their fear, they unleashed all sorts of tactics like public pressure, moral blackmail, and diplomatic coercion, all aimed at forcing Dumbledore to act.
Should he go himself? Such a dangerous task, how could he possibly go himself! Of course, it should be left to the experts! However, the British wizards viewed the situation from a completely different perspective.
With Dumbledore around, there might be some isolated incidents, but there would definitely not be a massacre-level disaster.
After looting the knowledge and the Time-Turner, Grindelwald fled immediately, not daring to linger, which was proof that he wasn't confident of defeating Dumbledore... at least, that's how the public saw it.
Therefore, they were more concerned about what Grindelwald intended to do with these stolen items. Before the Grindelwald incident, the hottest topic in the British wizarding world was that the Seer and The Boy Who Lived were researching Time Magic, and the Ministry of Magic had enacted hundreds of laws to restrict anyone from researching such dangerous magic.
People were discussing whether some restrictions should be eased to make these two hopes of the future British wizarding world even stronger.
The discussion was divided: one side argued that dangerous magic should be restricted, and what if such dangerous magic fell into the hands of dark wizards?
The other side argued that it shouldn't be a case of "only officials being allowed to set fires while the common people are forbidden from lighting lamps." Why should only the Department of Mysteries be allowed to conduct research? How could they guarantee that everyone within the Department of Mysteries was trustworthy?
The two sides, who were already arguing, had reached a point where they were considering, "At worst, the Seer and The Boy Who Lived could take on nominal positions in the Department of Mysteries to bypass some restrictions," with both sides compromising.
And at this critical juncture, the Time Hall within the Department of Mysteries, responsible for researching Time Magic, was robbed.
This made many people lose their composure.
"This is what you call safety? This is what you call preventing dangerous magic from falling into the hands of dark wizards?"
"So your laws only apply to us ordinary wizards, while truly powerful dark wizards can just snatch whatever they want?"
Amidst the worries about what Grindelwald would do with Time Magic, a new wave of public outcry began to surge.
Now, the British wizards had temporarily stopped paying attention to Dumbledore.
They had started discussing another matter.
"Who are these Ministry of Magic laws actually targeting?"
If it were just a simple discussion, it wouldn't be much of an issue. The key point was that many of the Ministry's laws were truly chaotic, with many bizarre and incomprehensible regulations.
So...
"Is the Ministry of Magic just letting this public opinion fester?" Roger asked, confused.
Dumbledore chuckled lightly. "Not only are they letting it fester, they are even fanning the flames."
Roger pondered for a moment and then made a guess. "Are some high-ranking officials trying to use public sentiment to force judicial reform within the Ministry of Magic?"
"...Some rules do need to be changed." Dumbledore's gaze became distant and melancholic.
Dumbledore thought of his sister, his father.
And the many things he had encountered during his years of teaching at Hogwarts.
He understood the complex relationship between Muggles and wizards, and the fear some people harbored, but that shouldn't be an excuse for 'neglectful governance.'
There should be more appropriate ways to handle many matters.
This wasn't just Dumbledore's thought, but also the shared sentiment of many other wizards.
Everything happening now wasn't initiated by Dumbledore, but he was willing to offer his help.
Understanding the current situation, Roger pursed his lips. He wasn't interested in these kinds of rules and regulations.
"Alright, as long as you know what you're doing, just call me if you need anything."
"...Actually, I do have something." At this, Dumbledore suddenly remembered something.
"What is it?"
"What do you think about the Muggle Studies course at Hogwarts?" Dumbledore asked with a very serious expression.
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