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[HP] 79: A Girl's Bashfulness Is a Delightful Thing
🕑 Added 2025-08-05 15:45:01 +0000 UTCJust as Louis finished speaking, he saw the system notification pop up.
> [You have completed Phase One of the “Wizard and Nightmare” mission]
> [You have received 21,000 Trick Points]
> [Mission reward is settled at double points: You receive 42,000 Trick Points. Current total: 84,920 points]
> [Phase One complete. Phase Two reward issued: You have received 10 Perfect Draws]
So Hermione was the final person who hadn't believed in Louis’s supposed bloodline, simply because he hadn’t directly told her. The moment he admitted it himself, she believed.
It was honestly touching—Louis had almost let the truth slip. Thankfully, he held himself back at the last second, preserving the mission’s outcome.
"But the Phase Two reward is less than Phase One’s?" Louis quickly did the math. The second phase only gave 20,000 base Trick Points, which was 1,000 less than the 21,000 from Phase One.
Probably because he hadn’t activated the “Perfect Reward” during Phase One, making its value seem inflated. What a loss.
“What did you say?” Hermione asked, noticing Louis's lips moving without hearing any words.
“Oh, nothing. I was just marveling at how much you actually trust me,” Louis said casually.
“Of course I trust you... we’re friends, after all.” Hermione spoke with a suspicious little pause, but Louis deliberately acted like he didn’t catch it.
Who would've thought Hermione had the potential to be tsundere? Louis decided not to call it out, choosing instead to quietly observe her reactions.
He lowered his head to work on his homework, but his gaze—filtered through the twisted magic of his enhanced Mystic Eye of Distortion—was watching Hermione.
The Mystic Eye of Distortion, now strengthened, distorted many things, including light.
Though Hermione kept her head down, appearing to write, she’d sneak glances at Louis from time to time, quickly darting her gaze back down as if afraid to get caught.
It was cute, but keeping this up wouldn’t help Louis's plans. Clearly, Miss Granger had forgotten what had shattered her shyness in the first place and made her wait for him here in the library. So Louis decided to jog her memory.
He finished his homework quickly and looked up—just in time to catch Hermione in the act of sneaking another peek. Her face flushed red, and she hurriedly looked back down, pretending to be focused. But the tips of her ears were visibly glowing red.
Louis glanced at her parchment—completely blank.
Ah, the curse of my irresistible charm. Simply too sinful.
With a chuckle, Louis said, “Hermione, do you remember what I wrote in that letter?”
Hermione raised her head, trying to appear composed. But the moment she met Louis’s eyes, her mind wandered to that night on the Astronomy Tower under the starlight. Her focus slipped.
“Hermione? Hello?” Louis waved a hand. “Why are you spacing out?”
“Sorry, I hit a tough problem in the homework,” Hermione answered awkwardly.
“You? Stumped? Want me to take a look?” Louis leaned over to check her parchment, but Hermione quickly blocked him.
“No… no need. I figured it out,” she said, pressing her arms over the parchment as if shielding state secrets. “I don’t need help.”
“Alright then, back to our conversation.” Louis grinned, clearly enjoying her flustered state. “Do you know who Nicolas Flamel is?”
Hermione shook her head. “I’ve heard the name, but I don’t know much. I was curious, so I thought I’d ask.”
“He’s an incredibly powerful alchemist—famous for being the only one in centuries to successfully create the Philosopher’s Stone,” Louis explained. “Also known as the Sorcerer’s Stone. It’s said to turn any metal into gold.”
“The Sorcerer’s Stone?”
“Yeah. And it’s rumored to also create the Elixir of Life.” Louis nodded.
“Sounds priceless,” Hermione murmured. “Turning metal into gold... how magical. But why are you telling me this?”
“I thought it was fascinating, so I wanted to share it with you.” Louis smiled innocently.
But Hermione didn’t buy that surface explanation. She stood up slightly and leaned over the table, drawing close to Louis and whispering while scanning the room, “Does this have something to do with your prophetic abilities?”
Louis didn’t answer. He just breathed steadily, letting his warm breath brush past her ear.
Hermione pulled back to find Louis’s eyes filled with mischief. He leaned in and whispered, “You know, Hermione, from this angle, it really looks like you're trying to ask for a kiss.”
Hermione’s face turned scarlet. She immediately ducked down and buried her head in her arms like an ostrich.
Louis happily savored the view of her current state. What a shame he couldn’t see her face—it must have been priceless.
“Alright, alright. Don’t be mad,” Louis said as he gently nudged her elbow. “I’ll tell you more. What I saw was a vision. You were in it. So were the so-called Savior, Harry Potter, and his sidekick, Ron Weasley. You three were going through a very dangerous trial. In the end, only Harry made it to the finish.”
Even in her embarrassed state, Hermione perked up at that.
She lifted her head and gave Louis a fierce glare—but the bashfulness in her expression only made Louis even more satisfied.
“What kind of adventure? Why were we involved?”
“Something to do with Nicolas Flamel, I think. I’m not sure of the details,” Louis said, beginning to pack up his things. “But Harry Potter isn’t an ordinary boy. His identity alone guarantees his life won’t be peaceful.”
“Where are you going?” Hermione asked, watching him gather his things. “You finished your homework?”
“Of course. While you were busy sneaking glances.” Louis winked as he stuffed his stationery into his top hat, then plopped it on his head.
“I—I wasn’t sneaking glances at you!” Hermione panicked, grabbing his sleeve in protest.
“Okay, okay, you weren’t,” Louis said with a mock-soothing tone, like talking to a child. “But I’ve got to go now. You’re being way too adorable—I might not be able to stop teasing you if I stay.”
“You—!” Hermione was both embarrassed and flustered, almost breaking the silence rule of the library. All she could do was glare at him, fists clenched in mock fury.
Louis raised a hand and gently patted her head, immediately calming her. She stood there frozen, as if someone had cast a Petrificus Totalus on her.
“Hermione, sweet dreams tonight. See you tomorrow.” He softly ruffled her fluffy, silky hair as he spoke.
Hermione lowered her head, her face glowing red from the warmth atop her head. When she looked up again, Louis was already gone.
***
