Conflict at Flourish and Blotts

After taking the photos, Lockhart then announced to everyone in a high-profile manner that he would soon become the new Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts...

"Whether it's Harry Potter or his classmates, they will all get a real, Magical Me when Hogwarts starts on September 1st!"

The crowd immediately burst into applause and cheers.

Several middle-aged wizards, whether fans or shills, were so excited they cried.

It was as if the students would be safe as long as Lockhart went to Hogwarts.

As long as Lockhart goes... the curse of the Defence Against the Dark Arts will cease to exist!

Amid cheers, Harry suddenly felt a weight on his arm. Looking down, he realized he had received Gilderoy Lockhart's complete works, so heavy that he staggered as he walked.

The good news is that he finally doesn't have to stay here anymore.

Harry struggled to step out of the center of attention and reached the wall.

Kyle is chatting with Ginny right here.

"These are for you... I'll go buy the rest myself." Harry poured the books he was holding into Ginny's new cauldron, then looked at Kyle and couldn't help but ask, "Where were you just now?"

"Oh, I see you're having a good chat, so I'll go buy some other textbooks first." Kyle pointed to a stack of books on the long table next to him.

To avoid unnecessary trouble, he slipped into the crowd as soon as Lockhart called out Harry's name.

Originally intending to avoid Lockhart, she unexpectedly managed to dodge Harry's backstab...

That old rascal has become so wicked.

"What do you need me for?" Kyle asked, his expression unchanged.

"No, it's nothing!"

Harry was stunned by the thick stack of books; he counted them—there were seventeen in total.

Although he knew there would be two more elective courses in his third year, this was still too much.

"It's just two more classes...do I really need to buy so many books?" Harry asked with difficulty.

"Normally, it's not necessary, but I've chosen a lot of courses."

Kyle explained, "Moreover, in Ancient Runes needed five books, plus the seven books for Defense Against the Dark Arts; those two courses alone take up two-thirds of the total."

"Ancient Runes..." Harry secretly vowed that he would never choose this unfriendly course next year, even though its name sounded so unfriendly.

After a brief chat, Kyle took the books to the counter to pay.

Because of the book signing event, Flourish and Blotts relocated most of its staff to Lockhart's office, offering a one-stop service for book selection, signing, and checkout.

However, this only applies to Lockhart's books; other books still need to be paid for at the counter.

With limited staff and the start of the school year approaching, the store was packed, and Kyle had to wait in line for a long time before he could finally pay.

When he returned after packing the books, he saw Mr. Weasley confronting a middle-aged man with blond hair.

His face was extremely pale, and he was incredibly serious.

"If you're really as fearless as you claim, why did you sneak off to search the Knockturn Alley?"

"You need to provide evidence, Weasley," Lucius Malfoy drawled. "I only brought Draco to Flourish and Blotts to buy his textbooks for next year; I never went to Knockturn Alley."

"But you... with all those raids before, they must have paid you overtime, right?"

Lucius Malfoy reached into Ginny's cauldron and pulled out a tattered copy of "The A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration".

"I'm afraid that, given the current situation, it's not yet..."

"What's the point of being a disgrace to the wizarding world if I can't even get a decent reward?"

Mr. Weasley's face was even redder than Harry's when he was on stage.

"It seems we have very different understandings of 'scoundrels,' Malfoy," he said.

"That's obviously the case," Lucius Malfoy said.

His eyes darted around, finally settling on the the Grangers, who were watching them with trepidation.

"Look at the friends you've made... hanging out with Muggle, Weasley. I thought your family had sunk to the very bottom."

With a clang, Ginny's cauldron flew out.

Because it happened so fast, Kyle didn't even see whether it was Mr. Weasley who threw it or Ginny herself.

But that didn't matter anymore; the crucible was like a fuse that ignited a barrel of explosives, and the scene instantly descended into chaos.

Although Lucius Malfoy managed to dodge the cauldron, he was then bumped into a bookshelf by Mr. Weasley.

Dozens of thick spellbooks fell down, completely stunning him.

"How dare you bump into me!" Lucius scrambled to his feet and swung his snake-shaped cane at Mr. Weasley.

But the next second, a large hand grabbed his arm tightly.

Hagrid strode over, stepping over the books scattered on the ground, and pulled him up in the blink of an eye.

Lucius Malfoy seemed unwilling to give up, but he couldn't break free from Hagrid's grasp and could only glare fiercely at Mr. Weasley.

This isn't over!

"Let's go, Draco..."

Lucius shook off Hagrid and turned to walk towards the door.

As he passed the cauldron, a malicious glint flashed in his eyes, and with his back to everyone, he threw the book he had been holding, "A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration," into it.

"Here, little girl, keep your book safe... This is the best thing your father can give you!"

After saying that, he left Flourish and Blotts with Draco Malfoy.

"Luckily Kyle called me over."

Hagrid reached out to smooth Mr. Weasley's robes, nearly lifting him up. "You shouldn't listen to him, Arthur. That guy's rotten, his whole family is rotten... Their words aren't worth listening to."

Mr. Weasley did not speak.

Ginny threw that cauldron, so he had to make a move to get everyone's attention on him.

And to be honest, he had always wanted to do that... After beating up Malfoy, he felt instantly refreshed.

It felt like drinking a hot, Butterbeer in winter—indescribably comforting.

Hagrid straightened Mr. Weasley's robes and then led the group away from Flourish and Blotts.

"Let's go outside!"

The shop assistants seemed to want to stop Mr. Weasley, but the tallest of them only reached Hagrid's waist, so they didn't dare to do anything rash.

The group walked down the street, the the Grangers trembling with fear, while Hermione comforted them.

Mrs. Weasley was still angry about what had just happened.

"Setting a good example for the children... fighting in public... what will Gilderoy Lockhart think...?"

"He was so happy!" Fred said. "He even asked that guy from the Daily Prophet if he could include the fight in his report..."