HP: I beat the otome game at Hogwarts

There are no secrets at Hogwarts.

Lyra White of Gryffindor publicly invited Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff in the corridor after class, and the news spread throughout Hogwarts in less than fifteen minutes.

Not to mention the male and female protagonists in this bombshell news: one is the most beautiful girl in Gryffindor, and the other is the most handsome boy in Hufflepuff.

"Perfect Boy"—that's what Hufflepuffs call the best boy in their house. Because he has everything: looks, character, grades, talent, and he's a pureblood, even if he comes from an ordinary family.

With more and more Mongrel and Half-blood wizards flooding into the wizarding world, it is becoming increasingly difficult for exceptionally talented pure-blood wizards to emerge, and idiots like Goyle and Crabbe are the majority.

Even among the sacred twenty-eight pure-blood families, there are quite a few mediocre wizards. It's already good enough if they can maintain their achievements, not to mention that many have died out and their families have been wiped out.

The Black family, once a top-tier family in the wizarding world, now has most of its members, except for those who were expelled from the family, waiting to die in Azkaban, with only Narcissa Malfoy remaining after marrying into the Malfoy family.

Therefore, Cedric Diggory is indeed outstanding, and even though he is from Hufflepuff, the largest house in terms of student numbers and average academic achievements after graduation, no one underestimates him—he has a bright future ahead of him.

The pure-blood wizards who currently occupy the upper echelons of the wizarding world are more willing to promote other pure-blood wizards and cultivate their own people to counter the growing number of half-blood and Muggle wizards who are trying to seize power and interests in the wizarding world.

When the news reached Slytherin, Draco was in his dormitory. He didn't remember how he got out of his dormitory to go to the Great Hall for lunch; he only remembered that he smashed his teacup to pieces in a fit of anger.

The house-elf Didi, who served him at school, was so frightened that he banged his head against the wall. It was his roommate Blaise who heard the noise and chased the house-elf away.

Draco refused to believe that this latest romantic gossip from Hogwarts was true.

He felt that although they had never said it outright, the black-haired girl must have had a silent understanding with him—they had been through thick and thin together, held hands, and even... kissed.

Although she took the initiative first, showing none of the reserve and dignity expected of a lady, he did not resist and tacitly allowed it to happen. Or rather, he gladly accepted it.

Draco believed that the dark-haired girl, with her intelligence, must understand what it meant for a Malfoy to tacitly allow a Muggle witch to kiss him. The secrecy was due to practical concerns and inconveniences, but his feelings were genuine, just as she felt for him.

I'm sure she understands this, otherwise, given her open and honest approach to relationships, she wouldn't still be only secretly contacting him.

But he will make up for it all later. They are all minors, and there is plenty of time. They can take their time, and he is willing to wait.

Draco Malfoy mentally listed eight hundred reasons to analyze and verify that the news was false, desperately trying to convince himself to be rational. He thought Hufflepuff's penchant for spreading all sorts of misleading and contradictory information was an old tradition, and he shouldn't take it to heart...

But as they walked towards the Great Hall, hearing this increasingly believable detail repeatedly, and finally stepping inside, seeing Cedric Diggory's smug (just kidding) face on the Hufflepuff table, and the Weasley twins on the Gryffindor table behaving strangely (no mistake there)—

Draco Malfoy's rationality completely snapped.

The inexplicable school brawl at Hogwarts over the past two days has left Draco wondering how it was started, but he's happy to take the opportunity to trip up Hufflepuff and their beloved perfect boy—he hardly even has to lift a finger himself.

If he just gave a hint to those who wanted to curry favor with the Malfoys, there would be plenty of people willing to cause trouble for him among the Hufflepuffs, especially that Diggory.

In less than half a day, his handsome face was unrecognizable.

But simply tormenting Diggory couldn't quell Draco's anger. So, during another "accidental" brawl, he seized an opportunity when no one was looking, grabbed the dark-haired girl from the crowd, and dragged her into a secluded storage room.

*

Draco Malfoy has grey-blue eyes.

Normally, those beautiful eyes were perched high on his head, carrying the arrogance of a pure-blooded nobleman, never once giving a second glance to anyone else. But now, he had shed his pride, lowered his neck, and was staring intently at a Muggle-born girl.

Today, she styled her long hair into a high ponytail, revealing her smooth, full forehead and rosy cheeks, perfectly showcasing her outstanding features. She looked so sweet and radiant.

It's so beautiful, so beautiful that you just want to hide that face, so beautiful that it makes Draco's anger burn even brighter.

"I heard you're going on a date with that Hufflepuff pretty boy," she said, her grey-blue eyes veiled in a thin mist, her expression icy. "Is he your new boyfriend?"

Leila gazed at the exquisite, proud, yet stormy face before her.

Those grey-blue eyes are so beautiful, like the sea in deep winter, concealing angry waves and carrying surging emotions.

Leila smiled softly.

"What are you laughing at?" Anger blazed in those grey-blue eyes, and Lyra felt the fury emanating from him surge towards her like a tangible force. "You're laughing at how a Malfoy was just—"

...to manipulate at will.

Draco had intended to question the ungrateful black-haired girl, but her next move froze him completely, along with his tongue that was about to angrily question her.

“I’m laughing because,” the dark-haired girl’s large, wet eyes sparkled with amusement as she gently rested her head on the arm that was holding her captive, “you look so beautiful when you’re worried about me.”

Draco felt the dark-haired girl's soft cheek pressed tightly against his arm, and as she spoke, a warm breath gently caressed him, like a feather lightly tickling his heart.

"You—" Draco wanted to say that he shouldn't try to escape the problem this way, but the dark-haired girl seemed to have seen through his stiff bluff.

She blinked gently, and tears immediately welled up in her eyes, threatening to fall, which startled Draco, leaving him completely flustered.

"You—" The anger in her grey-blue eyes had vanished, replaced only by panic. "Don't cry, I didn't—"

The platinum-rich young master, who was terrified that the black-haired girl's tears would fall, hadn't yet realized that his aggressive and long-planned interrogation had already ended in failure before he could get the answer he wanted.