Chapter 174 Gilderoy Lockhart

Chapter 174 Gilderoy Lockhart

It was a man wearing a blue robe with forget-me-not flowers, and his blue eyes were exactly the same color as the robe.

He sat there with a bright smile, revealing dazzling white teeth. He was signing autographs, and every time he signed a book, he would look up and wink at the fans, who would then let out a scream.

Screams erupted all around, making it as lively as a fan meeting.

Oh, actually, this was just a fan meeting.

The table was piled high with his photos, all of them winking at the crowd, flashing dazzling white teeth.

In several photos, she's still posing, sometimes resting her chin on her hand, sometimes tilting her head back, sometimes turning her face to the side—she's very busy.

"Giddy Lockhart!" Hermione whispered, "My God, he's even more handsome than in the photos!"

Ron rolled his eyes.

"What's so handsome about him? He looks like an idiot when he smiles."

Hermione glared at him, indignant on Lockhart's behalf: "What do you know! He's a third-class Sergeant in the Order of Merlin! And a five-time winner of the Most Charming Smile Award from Wizarding Weekly!"

"There's such an award?" Ron felt a little nauseous.

"Of course!" Hermione glared at him.

"That just means he looks silly when he smiles," Ron said, scoffing.

Hermione stomped her feet in anger.

The line continued to move forward, and finally, they were almost at the front.

Ron noticed Lockhart signing an autograph for a witch, then looking up as his gaze swept across the crowd.

Then he saw Harry, and his eyes lit up like a dung beetle seeing dung.

"Harry Potter!"

His voice was loud, and the entire bookstore fell silent.

Everyone turned to look at Harry.

Lockhart stood up and strode toward Harry.

His robes billowed behind him, making him look like the protagonist in a slow-motion movie.

"Harry Potter! Oh my god, I've finally met you!"

He grabbed Harry's hand and shook it warmly. He was quite strong, and Harry felt a little pain from his grip.

"I've been wanting to see you! The boy who survived! Do you know how touching your story is? A baby who defeated someone whose name couldn't even be mentioned! It's simply legendary!"

Harry's expression was complicated; he didn't know what to say.

Lockhart continued to hold Harry's hand and turned to the surrounding crowd.

"Everyone! Look who this is! Harry Potter!"

A gasp rippled through the crowd, and everyone turned to look at Harry.

Several witches gathered around, whispering excitedly to each other.

Lockhart picked up a thick stack of books from the side.

"Harry, I have to give you a set! My complete collection! It's a perfect gift for our first meeting!"

He shoved the stack of books into Harry's arms; the books were so thick and heavy that Harry almost couldn't catch them.

"Come on, let's take a picture together!" Lockhart shouted to a photographer next to him. "Take one! To commemorate this great moment!"

The photographer raised his camera, and with a click, a puff of purple smoke emerged from the camera.

Lockhart nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Henry.

His smile faltered for a moment, then his eyes widened.

"This person—this person is—"

Lockhart's mouth opened.

"Wells—His Highness Prince of Wells's man—"

He clearly knew who Henry was; if he wasn't mistaken, he must have done his homework beforehand, and his expression immediately became quite interesting.

"Your Highness!" He immediately switched to a more enthusiastic tone, "My goodness, what an honor! You actually came to my book signing! This means you're interested in my work, right? Have you read any of my books? Which one is your favorite?"

"I came with a friend," Henry said with a smile.

"It's alright, it's alright! Since you're here, I must give you a set! The whole set!" Lockhart said without any discouragement.

He picked up another stack of books and stuffed them into Henry's hands.

Henry politely accepted it and then handed it to George. George quickly took it and hugged it to his chest.

Lockhart then took another photo with Henry.

The photographer snapped another shot, followed by another cloud of purple smoke.

Lockhart nodded in satisfaction.

"This is wonderful! Today was such a perfect day! Seeing so many adorable children!"

He clapped his hands and looked at the crowd.

"However, they will soon receive something far more valuable than my humble work, 'Me, the Magical One'—in fact, they and their classmates will receive a real, magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am extremely pleased and proud to announce that this September, I will become the Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

The crowd applauded and cheered, but Ron rolled his eyes and muttered a complaint under his breath.

"Oh, I don't think it's worth much."

Lockhart returned to his seat and continued signing autographs. Harry and the others finally squeezed out of the crowd, all of them covered in sweat.

He held the stack of books, his expression complex.

Why did he give me so many books?

"Because he wants to be in the newspaper," George said.

"Because he wants to ride on your coattails," Fred added.

"You can tell this guy's a professional at riding the coattails of trending topics," Ron quipped. "Look at the way he was acting just now, like he'd seen gold."

Hermione glared at him: "How can you say that about him! He's a celebrity! What's wrong with him being nice to his fans?"

'

Yes, my brother works so hard, why are you criticizing him like this? That's just how it is.

Ron rolled his eyes.

"A celebrity? I think he's an oddball among celebrities. Listen to what he says—is that praising a person? That's praising a monkey!"

Hermione was so angry she couldn't speak. They stood at the bookstore entrance, waiting for the others to come out.

Just then, a familiar voice rang out.

"Look who this is!"

Several people turned their heads.

Draco Malfoy stood not far away, with a tall man beside him.

The man wore an expensive black robe, and his platinum blonde hair was meticulously combed, each strand seemingly glowing.

He held a cane with a snake's head in his hand; the snake's eyes were two rubies that sparkled in the sunlight.

His face wore an arrogant expression, his eyes sweeping over them before finally settling on Harry.

Lucius Malfoy.

He is Draco's father.

"Potter." Draco raised his chin, his tone full of sarcasm. "You must really like this, the famous Harry Potter, that even going to a bookstore can't escape making headlines."

"Don't talk nonsense, he didn't want that!" Ginny said.

This was the first time she had spoken to Harry on her own initiative, glaring angrily at Draco.

"Potter, you've got a girlfriend!" Draco drawled.

Ginny blushed, and Ron and Hermione squeezed in, each carrying a stack of Lockhart's books.

Surprisingly, Ron didn't immediately attack Draco verbally. Instead, he said, "If you say that, you'll get Henry into trouble—it wasn't just Harry who took a picture with Lockhart; Henry took a picture with him too."

Yes, Henry did it too.