What happens now?
The magical world had spent centuries hiding from humanity, then after a single night, after a single announcement, it had all come to an end. The world was supposed to accept that an entire civilisation had been living hidden in plain sight amongst them for apparently just as long as they had, capable of things that, in the broadest sense, bordered on miracles in their eyes.
How could that be so easy?
Maverick had been prepared for this question from the beginning, in fact, he had someone staged to ask it if no one brought it up before the press conference ended. And it didn't matter who responded, they were all on the same page, the script having been shared amongst all seven of them over the previous two days.
Takamura in this case, there was no particular reason for him to answer other than the fact that the question had come from a Japanese reporter.
To the rest of the world, this old wizard didn't look like anything particularly special, aside from the way he dressed. His clothing looked traditional, perhaps from Japan, but that hardly seemed strange inside the UN headquarters, where cultures from every corner of the world came together.
However, the moment he began speaking, there was a brief pause across the world as his English sounded every bit as fluent as that of a native speaker. It was perhaps not what most people had expected, especially considering his appearance, many had assumed he would speak in Japanese and leave the translators to do the rest.
Or was it a magical thing, being able to speak any language?
The rest of the world still had no idea how old these new "neighbours" of theirs actually were.
Picking up a new language was only natural when one had centuries on their health bar, right?
In any case, their thoughts wandered for a moment, but just as quickly focused back on his answer.
Takamura's response began with the most immediate action the wizarding world would take, which was to establish a more cooperative relationship between the governments of the world and their respective wizarding governments.
He briefly touched on the history between the two sides, explaining how there had been little to no cooperation before the World War, how some cooperation had gradually been established afterwards, and how that relationship would now be expanded and developed further.
Both the magical and non-magical sides would need reassurances, new agreements would have to be made, and new guarantees would need to be established.
"...The work has already begun, as I speak, our people are working tirelessly to establish the regulations that will govern our conduct in this new reality. Where magic may be used, when it may be used, and under what circumstances its use must be restricted. We already have laws governing these matters, but those laws were written for a world where magic was hidden from yours. Naturally, they will have to be changed to suit the reality we now find ourselves in…"
The world listened, hanging on to every word, while reporters frantically wrote down notes.
"Here, I am addressing my own people, so please do not misunderstand what I am saying. These changes are not meant to place unnecessary restrictions upon you. We will not take away your freedom, nor your right to practise your magic. Within the wards of your homes and communities, little will change. These new laws will mainly concern how you conduct yourselves when dealing with the wider world. And likewise, the United Nations will be given the opportunity to study our regulations, our constitution, and then… adapt."
He paused there and didn't elaborate any further on the subject. Next, he moved from government cooperation to something equally important, establishing open commerce between the two worlds. Once again, new laws would need to be established, something that would happen sooner rather than later, even if it couldn't all be settled in a single afternoon.
Commercial hubs would be established first, followed by branches in different parts of the world, giving magical companies and even individual families a place to trade their goods and skills openly.
The world's interest seems to have risen considerably by this point, especially among the wealthy and powerful, many of whom were now listening with a noticeable gleam in their eyes.
"…just as you have computers and other forms of technology, our world has developed its own forms of technology as well, which we generally refer to as alchemy. However, the two do not normally work well together because of certain properties of magic. Electrical devices, particularly modern electronics that rely on transistors and other delicate components, can malfunction or stop working when exposed to a sufficiently strong magical presence. The stronger the concentration of ambient magic, the more severe the interference can become, and devices carried or operated by witches and wizards can be affected as well…"
"This is not something we have designed, nor is it something we can simply turn off. It is a natural interaction between magic and electronic technology, much like certain materials react differently when exposed to other materials. We have lived with this limitation for centuries, and perhaps that is also one of the main reasons why our world has developed entirely different methods of achieving many of the things your technology does."
Jarvis quietly refilled Tony Stark's glass of orange juice for the third time. Tony barely noticed, his attention fixed entirely on the television. Once the glass was placed in his hand, Jarvis poured himself a drink as well and settled into the nearby sofa finding himself just as interested in what was coming from the television.
"…likewise, alchemical creations have their own requirements to function as well, particularly when they are being used by someone who does not have magic flowing through them. Strictly speaking, they rely on the magical energy of the person using them, or on the ambient magic present around them. Without either of those sources, the device simply will not function, much like a machine without power…"
"But these limitations are not necessarily permanent. There are already ways around some of them, and with both worlds finally working together, I believe we will discover many more."
After saying that, whether deliberately or not, Takamura gave a brief glance to Maverick, who also, whether deliberately or not, curled the corner of his lips up a bit in that moment. The small movements were only brief, which most people didn't notice, nor did they know the meaning behind them… just yet.
"…I will not go too deeply into this today, as I am sure you will learn much more about it in the coming days. What I can say is that sharing technology between our worlds is entirely possible. It could be something as simple as an alchemical device that provides light in your home and continues to function wherever there is sufficient ambient magic, or a car, a common technology in your world that could be adapted for use by witches and wizards. If we can find ways to overcome the limitations that currently exist between our two forms of technology, then I believe both worlds stand to benefit greatly from what the other has developed."
He paused, "I have always been fond of change myself, and I must say, this is one change I am very much looking forward to."
From technology, Takamura then moved on to another foundation of international trade, the question of currency and how the two economies would interact.
Unlike the non-magical world, where almost every country has its own currency, the magical world has mainly relied on a single system, the Galleon, along with its smaller denominations, the Sickle and the Knut. The problem was that the entire system was, for all practical purposes, controlled by the goblins, and that was not something they could simply change overnight.
Immediately, that is.
Maverick already had plans to knock those greedy little shits off their throne, and he wasn't planning to wait forever. It wouldn't necessarily be difficult now that he had all seven Archmages on the same page. Sure, it would take some convincing with the old fogies, but who asked him to have the biggest fist?
In any case, it would happen, and this matter too would be dealt with sooner rather than later.
The only reason the wizarding world had never done anything about it was simply because they had grown too used to the system. The most powerful didn't really care who controlled the money, while everyone else, even if they wanted change, didn't have much of a voice.
Why fix something that wasn't broken? That was the general mindset of the wizarding world.
The system worked, at least well enough, so nobody had ever bothered to change it. And when something has been working the same way for generations, people stops questioning it.
Takamura didn't spend too much time on the subject, simply explaining the magical world's currency system in simple terms, its denominations, and how they compared to the United States dollar and the British pound. Once that was covered, his address moved on to the next major subject.
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