Chapter 322: Consular Conference III : Seclusion and Development
The reason Phineas did not directly request the reinstatement of the Malfoy family but instead proposed increasing the number of Pledged Families was to provide the other three Consular Families a share of the benefits.
After all, trying to monopolize the gain would surely lead to resistance. Phineas's aim was to return the Malfoys to the status of a Pledged Family, while also giving the other families equivalent benefits—ensuring the proposal passed smoothly and without obstruction.
The second day of the Consular Conference concluded with Phineas, representing the House of Black, proposing an expansion of the Pledged Families and addressing the current situation in which pledged families in the wizarding world despise ordinary pure blood scholars.
Everything progressed exactly as Phineas had planned.
On the third day, the Selwyn family presented a proposal, accusing several pure-blood families of monopolizing certain magical industries—excluding magical technologies, but focusing on production. For example, the Selwyns were the only family in Europe with a monopoly on breeding and exporting Reom cattle.
Elrond argued that pure-blood families should not monopolize most magical biological industries. Even if full access couldn't be granted, families should at least be prohibited from refusing to sell resources to their rivals.
After all, beyond their own magic, wizards rely heavily on potions and alchemical tools—both of which demand rare materials. If a producing family were to indefinitely stop selling a specific material, certain potions and magical tools could be lost to history.
It would mirror how many potions vanished over the centuries due to the extinction of key ingredients.
Like Phineas's proposal, this one benefitted not just the proposer but the entire alliance of families. As a result, it too was passed with little resistance.
On the fourth day, the Lestrange family proposed expanding the Council of Elders. Several families had elders who had reached legendary status and continued to influence internal matters. Corvus Lestrange hoped to elevate these elders formally into the Council of Elders.
Phineas, Elrond, and Kuzan agreed in principle but clarified that elders should only interfere in family matters when absolutely necessary—specifically when a wizard of legendary rank or higher was involved.
While the Consular Families were nominally under the jurisdiction of the Council of Elders, they were not subordinate to it and required autonomy.
Because the proposal was jointly submitted by the four Consular Families, the Chief Elder suspended the session and spent two days in deliberation with the other elders.
In the end, the Council agreed not to interfere in pure-blood family affairs lightly. However, they insisted on retaining authority over any matter affecting the broader magical world, the Muggle world, or the rule of the Council itself.
Corvus's proposal to increase the number of elders—meant to dilute the influence of the Lestrange elders within their own family—was ultimately rejected.
The other families simply did not support it.
Indeed, this situation was unique to the Lestranges. While the Selwyn elders occasionally interfered, it was a reflection of their family's consolidated power. The Black and Rich families treated their elders as assets. They would not diminish their own authority due to one family's internal conflict.
In essence, Corvus's proposal offered no tangible benefit to the others and even threatened their positions, making rejection inevitable.
On the sixth day, it was the Rich family's turn to propose.
Kuzan observed that in most European magical nations, the dominant pure-blood families had seized actual control, reducing other pure-blood families in the region to vassal status.
He proposed that these ruling families loosen their control and allow the entry of outsiders. Additionally, he demanded safeguards for the direct descendants of Pledged and Consular Families under the Council's jurisdiction.
Even in times of family conflict, no bloodline should be driven to extinction—no family should vanish from history like the Gaunts had.
This suggestion was met with silence.
It was a double-edged sword. On one hand, it allowed for greater mobility and protection for their heirs. Incidents like what happened to Hope would be far less likely.
But it also meant opening one's own territory to infiltration and being unable to completely eliminate rivals in future conflicts.
It was, in short, a proposal that left enemies alive.
Due to this tension, the proposal was tabled for further discussion with the elders of each Consular Family.
After another two days of debate, the proposal passed.
The Council, seeking to maintain a balance of power, supported this instability among the Consular territories. They also endorsed the idea that family wars should never lead to total extermination. Many families harbored ancient blood magics, dormant for generations. The Council saw value in preserving those lineages—perhaps to later reawaken and use those blood magics to their advantage.
Thus, Kuzan's full proposal was approved.
Following the conclusion of the conference, Phineas and seven others convened a meeting with the Pledged Families waiting at the Council's headquarters. There, they shared the outcomes of the Consular Conference, designated tasks, and appointed responsible parties for implementation.
The Consular Conference, held once every ten years, lasted thirteen days this time—nearly a fortnight—and finally concluded.
Family representatives were granted the option to remain in the Vatican for another two weeks. During this time, they could enjoy the scenery or consult the vast archives and materials within the Council's library.
But after that, they were required to leave. Their destinations were of no concern to the Council.
Of course, each of the four Consular Families maintained a permanent representative at the Council's headquarters.
"At the last consular meeting, even though Phineas was attending for the first time and was the only direct descendant of the Black family, they still retained the previous permanent representative."
This time, however, the Black family would appoint a new permanent representative. On one hand, long-term residency was restricted to relevant wizards. Most permanent representatives still resided with their own families elsewhere.
Originally, permanent representatives served ten-year terms and were rewarded upon their return.
However, the current Black representative had served for twenty years—it was time for him to retire.
There was also the risk of detachment. Without continued guidance and leadership, a representative might grow distant and potentially betray the family.
Phineas chose as the new representative a member of the Blacksmith branch who had once forged the Ravenclaw ring for him. The man was unmarried—and had no known romantic entanglements.
Phineas hoped that, while stationed here, this man would find a partner among the residents and eventually marry.
Such a step would disqualify him from serving as a representative and even require a symbolic separation from the Black family.
But Phineas welcomed this. The Blacksmith and other Black branches were deeply loyal. Even if they separated in name, they would still serve in spirit.
Through this, Phineas planned to infiltrate the Council headquarters with loyal agents, gaining intelligence about the First Elder and passing it to him via the permanent representative.
Phineas and Sirius did not remain for the two-week period. They departed once the new representatives arrived.
Sirius returned early to prepare for Christmas, having no interest in the Council's collection.
As for Phineas—he had already explored what his clearance permitted ten years ago. The rest remained inaccessible, so he preferred to return and focus on magical study.
His chosen place of retreat was not in England, but at the secluded French manor left to him by Nicolas.
Only Phineas knew its precise location. It was safe and rich in magical resources, ideal for secluded study.
His goal: to advance his magic—specifically, the next stage of his original energy-shaping magic.
He had reached a plateau before achieving the legendary level. Without other means to grow stronger, Phineas turned once again to research.
He could either invent new spells or deepen his mastery of energy transformation. He chose the latter.
Shaping Magic still had untapped potential.
Currently, Phineas used it to manipulate elements into summoned creatures—an application that, while powerful, was crude.
The true essence of Shaping Magic lay in two foundations: the spiritualization of soul consciousness, and the elemental transformation at its core.
He had previously published a paper on the basics of this transfiguration.
Now, his retreat aimed to push that foundation further.
If successful, his understanding of Transfiguration could one day rival Dumbledore's.
And if his magical development continued uninterrupted, his divine path would clearly lead through energy-shaping magic.
Phineas broke his studies into two parts:
1. Transfiguration – deepening his understanding of elemental transformation.
2. Elemental Control – mastering the manipulation of elemental forces.
Right now, he could only gather elements and shape them with Transfiguration. In theory, elemental energy should be summoned in its required form—without reshaping—ready for immediate use.
To explore elemental control, he studied several spells:
Fiery Shield – Grindelwald's signature war spell, whose research notes had been gifted to him by Nicolas.
Water Prison – used by Dumbledore against Fiendfyre, a spell that manipulated water to imprison foes.
Fiendfyre – not the curse itself, but its counterspell, representing high-level fire element manipulation.
Lumos – the spell Phineas valued most. It summoned formless light and transformed it into a visible light source.
Lumos distilled advanced elemental control into a form even beginner wizards could manage. Its simplicity made it incredibly valuable.
To master it, Phineas first aimed to restore the original form of the spell.
This included analyzing variants like the colored fireworks version used in dueling and celebratory magic.
By deconstructing the spell into its summoning and control components, and studying the underlying runes and magical flow, Phineas could dramatically enhance his elemental command.
Fortunately, his Ravenclaw inheritance gave him the necessary ancient rune knowledge to do so.