"Roger, what do you want to do?" Dumbledore could tell from Roger's expression that something was not right.
Roger casually shook his head, "Nothing, I just feel that when the wheels of the era start to turn, there will always be some discordant notes, but it doesn't mean anything."
"The progress of history has never stopped because of this."
Whether in the past or present, in any region of the world, the emergence of a significant new thing will definitely attract opposing voices.
Just like the birth of the spinning jenny, and the increasingly powerful AI, everyone knows that these are symbols of advancement that can lead to better development of civilization.
But the problem is, human civilization becoming stronger does not mean that individuals will live better lives.
There are also many things, like cobblers and oil sellers, that have been abandoned by the times.
Those who have spent most of their lives perfecting a skill, with a casual remark, can negate an entire industry. If they lose their means of livelihood, they will definitely find ways to resist.
This is just about making money.
And for some people in the Ministry of Magic, virtual reality technology is a matter of life and death! This is a political struggle where blood is shed without a visible knife! "I understand their unease, but for those who are determined to be my enemies, I will not show mercy," Roger said.
It's like in the Middle East, those USA soldiers, not every one of them had blood on their hands, but when they pointed their guns at him, nothing else mattered.
Roger is currently the Director of the Virtual Reality Technology Management Office, a significant title, but virtual reality technology is currently only applied within Hogwarts.
Although it has attracted some attention, under Roger's strategy of hiding his strength and biding his time, it has not been particularly noticed.
Everyone's energy is more focused on Roger himself.
But when Voldemort infiltrated the Ministry of Magic, things changed.
With Voldemort's insight, combined with his contract with Grindelwald, he immediately saw the endless potential of virtual reality, and this potential could likely be realized very quickly.
Voldemort had become so deranged in pursuit of his dreams that he was willing to dabble in the Time Gu Technique.
How could he possibly allow Roger to grow unchecked?
Roger's backing in the Ministry of Magic comes from Dumbledore and the faction of pure-bloods led by the Board of Directors.
This is not a small force.
But as mentioned before, the Ministry of Magic is an organization formed by various families and wizarding factions joining forces after the International Statute of Secrecy was established hundreds of years ago.
Dumbledore is not the sole dominant power.
As long as Voldemort passes some information to those who 'need' it, there will naturally be people who choose to obstruct the expansion of Roger's industry.
Just as Voldemort would not allow Roger to grow stronger, they would not allow their political rivals to expand unchecked.
They could accept being at a disadvantage, but they would absolutely not accept a complete loss! "Roger, don't do anything rash," Dumbledore's brow furrowed even deeper.
Roger, however, indicated that Dumbledore was overthinking it: "Don't worry, I will 'offer courtesy before resorting to force'."
The current situation is somewhat different from the Middle East battlefield; the people in the Ministry of Magic lack the ability to truly threaten him.
Therefore, Roger will make them understand the situation and give them an opportunity. If they refuse to 'join them if you can't beat them,' Roger's true offensive will begin.
...Roger believes that no one would be so foolish.
...
The next day, the Gryffindor common room.
"What's in Slytherin's Chamber of Secrets?" Although Harry had refused to accompany Roger yesterday to avoid being a burden, it would be a lie to say he wasn't curious.
After all, that was Slytherin, one of the founders of Hogwarts!
For Harry, the Hogwarts acceptance letter was the most important turning point in his life, and he held a special affection for everything related to Hogwarts.
"It's just the Basilisk, as I told you before. Everything else has been cleared out by Slytherin's 'heir'." As he spoke, Roger lightly tapped in the direction of Harry's forehead with his finger.
Harry instinctively touched the strangely shaped scar on his head and immediately understood.
"Let's not talk about that anymore. Are you still going to participate in Quidditch this year?" Seeing that Harry's mood had visibly soured when Voldemort was mentioned, Roger changed the subject.
Although he felt like only a little over a week had passed, Harry had just been trapped in a time loop for about half a year due to Voldemort's machinations.
He was now somewhat 'allergic' to Voldemort.
"Of course, I'll continue to participate," Harry replied without hesitation.
After Roger's modifications, Harry's athletic abilities had reached the world-class level, and he could even compete in world-class Quidditch matches.
Dominating a Hogwarts inter-house sport was like a professional athlete bullying amateurs.
To be honest, the current Hogwarts Quidditch was hardly able to bring Harry enjoyment in terms of sports.
Perhaps only world-class competitions could make him feel challenged.
But this did not mean that the competition was meaningless to Harry.
"I want to bring seven years of Quidditch victories to Gryffindor, just like Slytherin House won the House Cup for seven years," Harry said with a smile, but his gaze seemed distant.
Roger knew that Harry was likely thinking of his parents; his father had been an excellent Gryffindor Quidditch player.
Distracting himself with Quidditch would definitely take up some of Harry's time for studying magic.
But Roger had no intention of stopping him, not even mentioning it.
Because magic, it wasn't something you could strengthen purely through effort.
Otherwise, Hogwarts' educational method wouldn't be clubs and happy education; it should be the Eastern rote learning strategy.
Magic is powerful because of the mind.
Harry's desire was part of his psychological needs. If it were stopped, it might not yield good results.
It's like Muggle student education; they need to study when it's time to study, and they need to play when it's time to play, and play well at that.
Otherwise, the probability of future psychological problems would absolutely not be small.
And for wizards, once psychological problems are amplified by magic, no one knows what kind of impact they could ultimately have.
...At the very least, Voldemort's childhood experiences left him unable to move past it his entire life. While he seemed powerful, he was actually trapped in the past.
"What about you?"
"Besides magic, is there anything you need to do this semester?" Roger looked to his side.
At noon, the Gryffindor common room was quite crowded. Many Gryffindor young wizards who preferred a quieter environment would spend their time there.
Hermione, whom Roger had asked, was one of them.
She put down "Dangerous Dark Magic Materials," which was covered in various highlights, and turned to meet Roger's gaze.
"I'm looking into some books about Muggle politics," Hermione replied seriously.
After the summer's experiences, she had seen many problems within wizarding society, yet few wizards paid attention to them.
To wizards, the world seemed to have always been this way and should remain so.
But Hermione had a different view.
She had tried to connect with many wizards mentally but hadn't found the ultimate answer, so she placed her hope in Muggle political science.
Roger scratched his head. He understood Hermione's thoughts, but...
"It's great that you want to find ways to solve problems, but is there a possibility that, rather than politics, magic is a better way to solve the problems you're facing?"
In Roger's eyes, all social system disruptions were superficial; their root lay in human nature.
Whether it was house-elves, the conflict between Muggle wizards and Pureblood Wizards, or even the various problems Hermione encountered.
Political reform could only treat the symptoms; only by changing humanity itself with magic could the root cause be addressed.
When Hermione and Roger were researching wand upgrades together at Ollivanders, they often communicated, more frequently than during the previous school year.
So Hermione was aware of some of Roger's thought processes, but she didn't agree with him.
"You're right. When magic becomes strong enough, material wealth is abundant, and humans become a higher form of being, my problems will definitely have a new answer."
"But you see."
"Roger, you've read both magical history and Muggle history extensively. You should know better than anyone."
"When civilization enters a new stage, most of the problems from the previous stage are resolved."
"But a new stage of civilization will definitely have new problems." As Hermione spoke, a unique light flickered in her eyes, as if she were a prophet foreseeing the future at that moment.
Many problems from the primitive tribal era do not exist in modern civilization, but does modern civilization have fewer problems? No, modern civilization's problems are only more numerous than those of the tribal era.
The more complex society becomes, the more contradictions arise.
Hermione had reason to believe that even if Roger's Three-Dimensional Law and Second Magic were popularized among every human on Earth, and everyone became exceptionally powerful.
People would no longer worry about making a living, and instead, they would have more pursuits.
What would emerge wouldn't be a utopian paradise of bliss.
But rather... a complete societal collapse in the truest sense! When everyone can survive without relying on others, what reason would people have to live in groups?
The psychological comfort of social animals? Roger had already given a 'perfect' answer to that.
[Second Magic · Virtual Reality!]
Being a creator god in one's own world is much more satisfying than having to face others' expressions in the real world, isn't it?
"Uh... so that's how it is." Hearing this, Roger finally understood that he hadn't fully grasped Hermione's thoughts before.
It was because he knew Hermione's original fate that he had developed some preconceived notions.
Hermione cared about the disadvantaged groups in wizarding society, like the house-elves.
But she didn't just care about those things.
What Hermione wanted now was a... 'perfect world'!
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