HP: I beat the otome game at Hogwarts

Chapter 173 The First Invitation

Harry stood on the fourth-floor corridor, continuously casting the Snowflake Weather Charm on a Christmas tree in the corner.

"No problem, you even got through the dragon, you can definitely do it this time too—" Harry whispered to himself, trying to encourage himself.

Ron just came running up, panting, to tell him that Lyra is in the library, and Hermione is holding her up talking about alchemy.

He quickly used a wet comb to vigorously comb his unruly hair, barely managing to tidy it up before running to the fourth-floor corridor, the only way back from the library to the Gryffindor Tower.

"No problem...no problem..."

The longer it dragged on, the more nervous Harry became. He kept talking to himself, trying to hypnotize himself and ease his anxiety.

“Harry?” Lyra had only walked out of the library a short while when she saw the black-haired, green-eyed boy muttering to himself in front of a Christmas tree.

“No problem—” Harry answered instinctively.

"What do you mean no problem?" Lyra looked at Harry, who seemed a little confused.

“Uh, nothing, Lyra, you finally came out… no, I mean,” Harry quickly corrected himself, “what a coincidence, you’re passing by here too—”

“You pass through here to get back to the Gryffindor tower,” Lyra asked naturally, though she didn’t understand Harry. “Want to go back to the common room together?”

“Okay,” Harry said obediently, taking only a couple of steps after Lyra before suddenly remembering his purpose. “No, wait—”

"Oh, is there anything else? I'll be going now—"

"No, no, no—I'm fine, no, something's wrong—" Harry panicked more and more, feeling his tongue about to spasm, so he simply shut his mouth, reached out and waved his wand, casting a spell at Lyra.

With a whoosh, snowflakes drifted down from Lyra's head onto her shoulders, much to her surprise.

"Is this a new spell you learned?" Lyra reached out and grabbed a snowflake, examining it closely. "Perfect hexagonal shape, so beautiful."

"Would you like to—" Harry blurted out as he looked at the smiling face of the dark-haired girl.

"what?"

Harry's nonsensical words puzzled Lyra.

“Excuse me,” Harry said, slowing his pace and pronouncing each syllable as clearly as possible, “would you like to come to the ball with me?”

“Oh…” Leila finally heard clearly this time, but she didn’t seem to have thought about the romantic side at all.

Harry felt like his cheeks were hot enough to fry an egg, but when he looked at Lyra across from him, her expression remained completely unchanged after he invited her.

“I remember now,” Lyra said with a smile. “All champions are required to dance the opening dance at the ball, Harry. You’re looking for a girl you know to be your dance partner, aren’t you?”

She's completely misunderstood. Or perhaps she hasn't even considered that I'm no longer that simple, shy little boy? Harry thought resentfully.

Harry was torn between the fact that Lyra hadn't immediately rejected him and the fact that she didn't treat him like a man at all. The only good thing was that, in his indignation, he was no longer nervous.

“I’m sorry Harry, I’m afraid I can’t help you—” Lyra said. “You’d better ask other girls.”

"Then who did you promise?"

Harry's anxiety finally subsided, and he began to ask questions more boldly.

"Is it Cedric Diggory?"

“Cedric? No, he’s not my dance partner.”

Lyra couldn't help but recall Cedric's handsome, dejected face. That morning, she had found an opportunity to turn him down; she could sense his desperate attempt to hide his sadness, casually asking her who the lucky guy was.

"It's Fred and George—"

Lyra told Harry the same thing she had told Cedric before.

"They were too lazy to find dance partners, so they tried to coerce me into fulfilling my duty as a good friend. I couldn't bear to leave them alone at the dance, so I agreed."

"So, you only agreed to be their dance partner out of friendship?"

Harry was unaware that his first reaction was exactly the same as Cedric Diggory's.

"There's nothing I can do, those two awful redheads are my best friends!" Leila repeated the same explanation.

She had a feeling that she might have to repeat this explanation to other guys who had politely declined her offer several more times.

"Light of Wonderland," Harry said to the portrait of the Fat Lady.

He was relieved to finally be back in the Gryffindor common room.

He had been chatting with Lyra as they walked, and although he was relieved that she was only going to the ball with the twins, his own invitation had failed. This result was only slightly better than a complete breakup.

Not to mention he still faces the predicament of having no dance partner to start dancing—he is probably the most disgraceful warrior in the history of the Triwizard Tournament.

Harry just wants to get away from Lyra as soon as possible, find his two friends, and be comforted by them.

To his surprise, as soon as he and Lyra entered the lounge, they saw a group of people gathered in the corner, with Ron surrounded in the middle, his face as pale as a ghost.

“What’s wrong, Ron?” Harry asked.

Ron looked up at Harry, still shaken, without saying a word, but his expression looked like he was about to shatter.

“He just invited that champion of Beauxbatons, that silver-haired beauty, I think her name is Fleur or something, to the ball with him,” Ginny explained to Harry, patting Ron’s arm reassuringly.

Everyone around them was an acquaintance. Angelina and Aria suppressed their laughter, patted Ron on the back sympathetically, and whispered to him that everyone would soon forget about it.

“It’s alright, it’s alright,” Arya said. “That Fleur Delacour rejects countless boys every day, no one will remember you, Ron.”

“Yes, these days, who hasn’t experienced rejection or being rejected a few times?” Angelina said.

Harry felt as if he had been shot several times in the chest.

He was starting to regret it—if he had known that Lyra would end up going to the ball with George and Fred, he would have just picked one of the girls who had approached him earlier as his dance partner!

"What are you all doing here?" Hermione asked, estimating the time as she returned to the common room from the library.

"Oh, it's nothing. Ron just invited a girl out, but she didn't accept."

Harry casually remarked that he had deliberately obscured the girl's name for Ron.

"Who did Ron invite?"

But Hermione seemed particularly concerned about the girl's identity, and she pressed her for details.