The Resigned Bookstore Manager

That's it?

"What's so funny?" Kate, who was quick to anger, was the first to complain as she looked at the scene in mid-air.

"I remember you were also Third Year student, Ryan."

"Moreover, the content of 'The Monster Book of Monsters' is very detailed, only less extensive than Newt's, but it is Magic Book, which makes it even better."

"Isn't this a good thing?"

"As for the course on Care of Magical Creatures," Penelope said, questioning the quality of the book itself.

"The real show isn't over yet," Ryan said with a mysterious smile.

Scenes in mid-air

Inside the Flourish and Blotts in Diagon Alley.

"Wait, maybe this is a textbook for another subject."

"Maybe they're from another grade," Harry said, shaking his head with a glimmer of hope.

"Wait, didn't you choose the Care of Magical Creatures Class?"

"Or are you just too mature-looking, and actually only first or second-year students?" The manager's voice trembled, revealing boundless joy.

However—"We chose it. And we're in Third Year this year." Ron's answer ruthlessly shattered the manager's hopes.

Just as the manager lowered his head again and walked toward the iron cage with his thick, scarred cane, Harry couldn't help but speak.

"The textbooks for each course are assigned by the professor of the corresponding subject. Professor Kettleburn must have mentioned some tricks for dealing with these books,"

"After all, how are students supposed to attend classes if the books stay like this?" Harry's words seemed to touch a nerve with the bookstore manager.

"He didn't say anything."

"Usually, when a professor doesn't say anything, it means he thinks we can't handle it."

"Like the Invisible Book of Invisibility. Professor Wenk, the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at the time, didn't say anything."

"It wasn't until we wrote to ask that he tentatively taught us the incantation to counter invisibility."

"But the result is that we still haven't found those two hundred expensive and troublesome books." The bookstore manager's words puzzled Ron.

"If you can't do it, can't you invite that professor, or the corresponding expert, to come?"

"Just spend a little Galleons."

"And with invisibility, even if the books are invisible, you can still find them by feeling around inch by inch with your hands." Ron's words made Harry nod in agreement.

"These books are the Magic Book that Professor Wenk himself created."

"No one else can handle it."

"Professor Wenk himself, a month after being invited to become the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, was admitted to St. Mungo's's because of a magical experiment and has not been discharged yet."

"As for using your hands to find it, those books contain the most advanced invisibility techniques. Professor Wenk used them as the textbook for seventh graders."

"This means that it is impossible to find it through non-magical means."

"You could say that even if we emptied the bookstore and covered it in dust, we still wouldn't be able to find those books," the bookstore manager sighed.

He resignedly gripped the two books tightly with his gloved hands, while using his cane to keep the others that tried to pounce and tear them apart.

Immediately afterwards, he sat down on the two books he had taken out.

He pulled a brand-new hemp rope from the bookshelf and skillfully tied the two books together.

"A total of 8 Galleons."

Do you need anything else?

"If you 'Third Year, you should also need 'Intermediate Transfiguration' and 'Standard Book of Spells (Level 3)', right?"

"If you also chose Divination or Arithmancy, you should also need a copy of Cassandra Vablatsky's 'Unfogging the Future'," the bookstore manager asked.

He seemed unwilling to give up, having gone through countless hardships to sell only two books.

"Wait, what about Ancient Runes?"

"What kind of teaching materials does it need?" Harry asked, puzzled.

"This course has always been taught by Professor Burbage."

"If she hadn't retired, the textbooks would probably still be things like 'Advanced Rune Translation,' 'Easy Introduction to Ancient Runes,' 'Magical Hieroglyphs and Logograms,' 'Runes Dictionary,' and 'Spellman's Syllabary.'"

"But Hogwarts has these books, and they are all reference books that are not needed in class but for doing homework."

"If you insist on buying it, I will—"

The bookstore manager suddenly froze, as if he had realized something. "You haven't received the book list yet, have you?"

Or are you actually students of Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, or Castelobruxo?

"But you'll want these two books anyway, won't you?"

The bookstore manager looked at Harry and Ron with a pained expression.

"We haven't received the book list yet."

We will take both books.

"We also need the Intermediate Transfiguration you just mentioned, Standard Book of Spells (Level 3), and Unfogging the Future," Harry quickly added.

Ron, however, was very dissatisfied.

Don't you recognize my face?

"I am Ron Weasley!"

"I even got the Skywalker's gold card here when I was in first grade!"

"I was even featured in The Daily Prophet!"

"How could I possibly be a student at those other three crappy schools?" Ron angrily clenched his fist.

"Weasley?"

"The son of the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement?" But the bookstore manager didn't look at Ron; he turned to Harry. "Black hair, Harry Potter!"

Harry, however, was secretly groaning.

He knew what kind of guy Ron was.

He's a decent person, but he cares a lot about his reputation.

Especially when he thought he was the center of attention.

Even though Ron hadn't mentioned Harry, the bookstore manager still thought of him and focused all his attention on him.

If this continues, I estimate—

Just as Harry was about to grab Ron and cover his mouth, Harry was surprised to find Ron standing there dumbfounded.

His face flushed bright red instantly.

Its mouth opened as if it wanted to say something, but only some strange little sounds came out, as if its throat was stuck.

The same goes for bookstore managers.

Harry looked in their direction and saw a beautiful woman.

She walked in gracefully.

Her long, cascading silver hair reached her waist, which, combined with her large, bright blue eyes and perfectly white teeth, made her exceptionally charming.

"You also think that compared to Hogwarts, the other three schools are utter garbage?"

"And what about Beauxbatons?" the woman asked softly with a smile.

"It's me!"

"That's what I just said!"

"Beauxbatons? It's located in France. You can imagine its quality."

"Don't even mention Hogwarts, I think it's not even as good as the most degenerate Durmstrang."

"..." Ron covered the bookstore manager's mouth behind him and began to flatter the unfamiliar woman with French words.

"May I have your name?"

Ron Weasley.

"Then you go outside and shout 'I, Ron Weasley, am an asshole!' ten times. Oh, and don't forget to cast the Sonorus!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Ron walked out with a dazed look in Harry's eyes.