The next week, both Harry and the German Emperor went to the meeting of the International Confederation of Wizards.

The Sabase Praacheen Hol towered over everything around. Nearly a hundred meters tall, it loomed vast over the great city around it. The shining jewel of India was unspeakably ancient. None had yet tried to use Muggle methods to date it, but what methods they had used had revealed a date that was simply unimaginable. The Sabase Praacheen Hol was over 4 million years old. Given that most wizards had believed that the world was ten thousand years old, this had come as quite a shock. It seemed to be a relic from the times of Atlantis. The walls were made of a glowing white material, which nothing of this day was even able to so much as scratch. It was one of the greatest artifacts of the days when gods yet walked the Earth, when Oinos Bhrghos destroyed countries with a word.

What was inside was far less impressive. There was row after row of seats, fit to hold the hundred and more magical nations that deigned to send representatives to the International Confederation of Wizards. There were also smaller conference rooms, for the numerous subcommittees. Inside the room for the subcommittee, there was indecipherable writing carved into the walls in some long forgotten language. As near as Harry could tell, it read Fch chmhchdch obrchn Latnts. Across the room, Harry saw the Emperor Frederich, and a middle-aged man who seemed to be his aide.

A few minutes later, the chair, an old seeming woman in a headscarf, probably from the Ottomans, said, "I see everyone is here this week. Are there any issues anyone wants to raise?"

The Emperor Frederich jumped up, and shouted, "Yes. Britain has launched an illegal coup against Austria, and they must be reprimanded."

Cagri Sadik responded "Ah. How does the representative of the British Empire respond?"

Harry said, "Let me do this." To Amelia Bones. He got up. "This charge is of course, ridiculous." There were mutters of surprise. "The deposing of Emperor Francis was not an act of the British government. The organization that killed that senile old tyrant merely asked for our help. And Frederich's concern for Emperor Francis is not born out of any high-minded altruism. Rather, it is because the death of his uncle, and the replacement of him with a regime that will actually listen to the people, means that Frederich will lose some of his ill-gotten and illegal influence in Germany. Any German invasion of Austria would be a sign of German revanchism."

The Emperor indignantly replied "Are we no longer safe in our beds from Britain? Francis was the legitimate ruler of Austria, and murdering him is an act of war. I demand all British forces leave Austria, or we will declare war."

"And if we were to leave, who would succeed to the Austrian throne? Oh, right, you. This is not some high-minded altruism; this is a simple desire to expand his throne. I call on all of you to stop this German expansionism in its tracks."

"You dare defy me, you impudent boy?" Frederich screamed, practically apoplectic.

"Yes. I will not stand idly by while the Germans again take nations, and try to found a European Empire. I do not wish to fight another great war, but I will if I must."

"Then you will have your war, and I will defeat you."

"No." The French representative called.

"What?"

"You heard me. You will not conquer Britain, and we will fight you to prevent you. You lost the first Great War, do you really wish to fight another?"

"This is not another Great War. I will fight to stop this boy from killing us in our beds."

"It is a great war. You are threating to invade countries to expand your throne. If you defeat Britain, where will you turn next? France? Spain? Poland? The Italian States?"

"Nowhere. I fight only Britain. I promise that."

"Grindlewald promised the same after Poland fifty years ago. And there were those in my country who were foolish enough to believe him. I was not. I will not be foolish enough to believe you."

"You will do this?"

"I told you." Harry called with a smirk.

"You." The Emperor screamed. "I will kill you foolish boy." Emperor Frederich stormed out.

Cagri Sadik tried to restore order, but that was a fool's errand. As Harry left the room, there were only two people with a smile on their face.