HP: I beat the otome game at Hogwarts

Chapter 166 The First Invitation

While Harry was still worried about whether Lyra would accept Cedric Diggory's invitation, a second invitation soon followed.

Lyra, clutching her textbooks, stormed into the auditorium alone. She plopped down between Angelina and Arya, and before her two roommates could ask about Cedric's invitation, she preemptively asked—

"Have you two seen Fred and George?"

In the morning, Lyra used a flock of canaries to peck the two red-feathered birds hard. Before she could even hit them herself, the twins had already run away in a flash.

"Uh, no, weren't the three of you taking a divination class together?" Angelina was completely out of it.

"Ha, if they're so capable, let those two redheads never come to the auditorium to eat again—" Leila said angrily.

"Hi, Layla—"

A voice came from behind, and the three girls turned around at the same time to see a blue-eyed Ravenclaw standing there.

“Hi, Dexter,” Lyra said, temporarily putting aside the annoying redhead and greeting her friend in a relaxed manner. “Thank you for the reference book you recommended last time. Professor Snape gave my paper an O, all thanks to you.”

“Congratulations, getting an O from Professor Snape isn’t easy,” Dexter Fusco said, then paused, “Actually, I didn’t come to see you about homework…”

“I hope you don’t find this presumptuous,” Dexter said, his blue eyes sincere, though a closer look might reveal a hint of nervousness. “I wanted to ask—”

"Lyra, would you like to come to the ball with me?"

"Wow--"

Angelina, Aria, and several other girls sitting nearby couldn't help but let out excited screams. Soon, the girls covered their mouths, restrained themselves, and tried their best not to disturb the Ravenclaw boy who had mustered up the courage to invite a dance partner in public.

"Oh..." Leila was a little surprised, yet somewhat reasonable.

She knew Dexter had always liked her, but she assumed he would invite her privately in a place like the library. She never expected Dexter to invite her publicly in the auditorium during lunch.

She hadn't considered going to the ball with Dexter, even though he was a nice guy; Lyra simply wasn't interested in him. She kept expressing that she only wanted to be friends, but Dexter had never brought it up directly.

This was the first time he had ever done this... and in public no less. Lyra didn't want to reject him in public; it would embarrass him.

“Thank you for the invitation,” Leila smiled. “I will consider it seriously. Can I get back to you later?”

“Of course—” Dexter’s eyes sparkled like sapphires in the candlelight, “I will wait for you forever.”

After the blue-eyed Ravenclaw boy walked away, Angelina and Arya excitedly patted Lyra's arm.

"Another ball invitation!" Angelina exclaimed excitedly. "Tell me, who do you want to accept?"

“I hope it’s Cedric—” Arya said, “not because Cedric is Andrew’s friend, but because he’s really exceptional. He got all O’s in the OWL! And he’s fantastic at Quidditch!”

Ron and Harry, who were eavesdropping nearby, couldn't help but purse their lips when they heard this, but they didn't dare to say anything. All the girls thought that pretty boy Diggory was perfect, and it would be easy to provoke everyone's anger if they disagreed now.

But Harry, Ron, and Hermione, or rather, everyone at the Gryffindor long table, pricked up their ears, eager to hear who Lyra would choose.

“Hmm… my words,” Leila deliberately dragged out her tone, trying to pique people’s interest.

She took a piece of strawberry cake from the table and placed it on a plate. Slowly, she used a fork to pick up the strawberries. Seeing everyone staring intently at her, she suddenly smiled sweetly.

"Of course I'll think about it before I decide!"

A chorus of disappointed sighs filled the long table.

“Harry,” Ron whispered encouragingly to his somewhat dejected friend, “you still have hope… So far, Lyra hasn’t said yes to anyone…”

After being comforted by his good friend, Harry couldn't help but feel a glimmer of hope. He then turned to look at another good friend, Hermione.

“Harry, it’s better to try than to regret not speaking up—” Hermione wasn’t sure what Lyra was thinking either, but she firmly supported her friend.

*

Draco Malfoy was in a terrible mood while waiting in the owlhouse.

He overheard Daphne and Pansy talking and learned that Diggory from Hufflepuff had actually invited Lyra to be his dance partner at the Christmas ball.

He immediately sent Gore and Crabbe out to inquire, and the two quickly verified the information.

That Diggory is just an ordinary, pretty boy from the common people!

His father was just an insignificant clerk at the Ministry of Magic!

If Malfoy wanted to, he could make his father lose his job in no time!

Draco grew increasingly angry and paced back and forth in the owl house.

Two minutes later, he craned his neck to look outside, but still couldn't see a black-haired girl. His expression worsened.

She actually dared to be late!

Diggory's audacious invitation was one thing, but she didn't even refuse immediately! She showed absolutely no loyalty as a girlfriend!

The platinum-haired young master kicked the wall hard, startling many owls who were resting with their eyes closed. Instantly, a chorus of coos rose and fell.

"Shut up! You stupid birds—"

“You shouldn’t be so rough with these lovely messengers—” a crisp voice rang out from inside the owlhouse.

Draco turned around and saw Lyra with her long hair flowing down her back. Her black hair, like silk, cascaded over her shoulders, making her face appear even whiter and more innocent.

Presumably, this is what Diggory saw when he extended the invitation, right?

Draco's face grew even darker.

Lyra received a letter from the golden eagle, revealing that the Platinum Boy had asked her to meet him at the Owlhouse. Remembering her wonderful experience in the Slytherin common room, Lyra decided to postpone her conversation with the twins and prioritize her date with the Platinum Boy.

To her surprise, when she arrived, she saw that the other person had a sour face and was being rude to all the furry creatures in the room.

She didn't come here just to see some rich young master give her a hard time!

Thinking of this, Leila's face turned somewhat indifferent.

"Did you ask me to come here for something?"

"What have you done?" Draco was surprised to be greeted by a cold-faced Lyra. "Don't you know yourself?"

"I don't think I did anything wrong."

Leila is always more responsive to gentle persuasion than force. The last kiss was indeed wonderful, and she has recently become quite interested in this handsome platinum-haired boy, but that doesn't mean she'll give in when he's being unreasonable.

With so many adorable boys around, if this platinum prince is unruly, she wouldn't mind replacing him with someone more sensible and understanding.