Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Water Margin

Harry walked briskly, with Ron and Hermione close behind, their footsteps echoing loudly on the stairs.

Seeing that these troublemakers were about to leave, Lockhart finally felt relieved, and the chill on his neck dissipated.

This fellow was about to say some polite words, but his own tendency to be ambitious and eager for self-importance suddenly flared up, and he exclaimed:

"Harry, do you need my help? You know, I once befriended a vampire and a werewolf with just my words."

As soon as Lockhart finished speaking, he wished he could tie himself up and slap himself ten more times.

Damn it! Why did I bring this up?!

Hearing his righteous words, Harry cupped his hands and exclaimed, "Professor, you are truly amazing! That damned Quirrell is a disgrace to the Defense Against the Dark Arts class!"

Lockhart felt as if he had been struck three times on the head by his words, and when he heard him talk about Quirrell, that headless ghost, a chill ran from the top of his head to his tailbone.

"Well, thanks for the compliment, Harry. If you don't need me—"

"Oh! Professor, how could I refuse your kind offer? Let's go together!"

Before he could come up with an excuse, Harry grabbed his wrist and they went downstairs together.

When I got downstairs, all I could hear was a cacophony of voices from the hundred or so heads inside the bookstore.

Harry jumped onto the table to look, and saw that everyone's heads were turned toward the northwest corner of the bookstore, where a tuft of fiery red hair and a head of flowing silver hair were clearly visible.

The red-haired man was indeed Arthur Weasley, but Harry, with his long silver hair, looked unfamiliar.

Ron jumped up to look with him, and upon seeing the silver hair, exclaimed, "That must be Draco's dad!"

"The entire Malfoy family looks prematurely aged with white hair!"

"I remember my dad telling me, let me think... Oh! His name should be Lucius!"

Harry already disliked Draco, and upon learning that the man was his father, he sneered, "Like father, like son. I don't think this guy is any better."

He pushed forward, knife in hand, and Lockhart used the opportunity to escape backward. "Oh! Harry, wait for me—hey, stop pushing, I'm about to be pushed out!"

This guy is a master of acting; he leans forward while his feet move backward. Even Michael Jackson would exclaim, "What a moonwalk!"

Seeing his anxious expression, Ron and Hermione both believed he wanted to help Harry, so they pushed him from the left and right sides, calling out:

"Go ahead, Professor Lockhart, we're here to help you!"

Lockhart scoffed when he realized the two were trying to push him. He was a grown man weighing over 100 pounds, and these two teenagers thought they could move him?

Before the thought had even formed in his mind, Ron and Hermione behind him put all their strength into it, channeling the energy they had honed with Harry in the Burrow into their limbs.

Lockhart felt as if someone was riding that light wheel 2000 and crashing into him from behind. His feet left the ground, and he had no time to think about escaping. He was only thinking about one thing.

Where did those two kids get such strength?!

He lunged forward, landing between Arthur and the silver-haired man.

"Look, it's Lockhart!"

"He must have come because he heard people arguing!"

Now that he was in a difficult situation, Lockhart straightened his back, tossed his hair, and said, "That's right, I came here specifically to break up the fight. I don't want my fans to start fighting."

Having said that, he crossed his arms, one hand holding Arthur's and the other Lucius's, and forced a smile, saying, "Well, you two, the children are here."

"Give me some face."

Lucius withdrew his hand and sneered, "Get this straight, Mr. Lockhart, it's this Mr. Weasley who's been stopping me."

Arthur, usually so amiable, was now enraged, his red hair blazing as if on fire. "Then apologize to my daughter and prove her innocence! I promise I won't stop you anymore!"

Lockhart, sensing there was more to the story than met the eye, couldn't resist asking his curiosity. He quickly inquired of the wizards watching, and learned that the two men's argument stemmed from Ginny's encounter with Draco while buying a book.

Now, Ginny had several dozen Galleons given to her by Harry, so she was well-off and generous.

Ginny casually bought three romance novels she had been wanting for a long time, and had just paid for them when Draco came to call her, causing everyone in the bookstore to stare at her, making Ginny blush with embarrassment.

Lockhart listened, nodding and swaying, completely absorbed. Seeing the wizard fall silent, he quickly asked, "And then? What did Mr. Draco say?"

The wizard, wary of the Malfoy family, only glanced at Lucius before quickly lowering his hat brim and turning away.

Lucius chuckled coldly, exchanged a glance with Draco, and the younger one mustered his courage and called out:

"She clearly bought three books, but only paid for one!"

Ginny cried out, "I didn't!"

Harry found this strange, narrowed his eyes, and gripped the knife.

He knew Ginny was a good woman and would never do such a shady thing. He figured it must be the Malfoy family causing trouble, but he didn't know what despicable schemes they were up to.

He stepped forward and shouted, "Since you claim my sworn sister underpaid for the books, are there any witnesses?"

When Malfoy saw Harry, it was like a little devil meeting the King of Hell, or a heavenly soldier encountering Li Jing, and he was filled with fear at first sight.

Hearing Harry say that he had adopted the Weasleys as his godsons, he became even more wary.

He glanced at Lucius, saw his father nod in approval, and mustered his courage, shouting, "I see it!"

Harry sneered, "You saw them? Did you see the waiter? Did you see the manager behind the counter?"

"Why didn't any of the others come to call? Why did you have to come and summon them?"

Harry pressed Draco relentlessly, leaving him unable to answer.

Seeing the electric scar on his forehead, Lucius said, "Ah, Mr. Potter, honesty seems to be the best virtue for young wizards, don't you think?"

"Ha! How could my sworn sister be dishonest? I gave her several dozen gallons for her travel expenses; how could she not afford a few books?"

Draco, quick-witted as ever, exclaimed, "She bought all Lockhart's books! They're very expensive!"

Lockhart was listening with great interest when he heard this and was greatly alarmed, feeling as if a pair of tiger eyes were staring at him.

"Ahem! Mr. Draco, if you continue to slander me like this, you'll be facing legal action."

"I'm having a book signing today, and everything is 20% off. Is that expensive?"

Lockhart, fearing that Harry would target him, quickly said, "Besides, I also believe that Miss Ginny is not that kind of little wizard. Please, I'd like to ask you to refund the money for these three books to Miss Ginny as my apology."

Lockhart wanted to settle things peacefully, willing to pay to avoid further trouble. Lucius, however, was relentless, squinting as he said:

"Oh my, so much money! That could buy so many books! Director Arthur, why didn't Miss Ginny show it off sooner?"

"Isn't this bullying an honest person?"