After seeing Lucius off, Lewis returned to the tent and happened to see Tonks rubbing her shoulders as she walked out of Hermione's room.
Her strange appearance immediately piqued everyone's curiosity.
"Hey, Tonks, what happened to you?" Zhang Qiu asked curiously.
"Just now, Shirella recommended Miss Granger's massage technique to me."
Tonks's voice trembled slightly.
"Her massage technique is absolutely terrible compared to yours."
Lewis saw Shirella awkwardly cover her face with a newspaper, mumbling, "I didn't do it on purpose. Penelope was the one who recommended Hermione's massage to me."
Tonks and Zhang Qiu looked toward Penelope.
Penelope, who had just been secretly laughing, immediately covered her mouth and stammered, "Well… Luna was the one who recommended it to me first. I thought her technique was really good."
"Because Lewis looked like he was enjoying it."
Luna's sing-song voice immediately rang out, though Lewis could detect an almost imperceptible tremor in it.
"My boyfriend was the one who kept it from me first."
"Don't call him your boyfriend."
Shirella reminded her irritably.
"That's not your boyfriend. That's my boyfriend."
After that kiss on the pitch, Shirella's aggression had definitely increased.
But everyone else was already accustomed to Luna saying whatever came to mind, so nobody was particularly surprised by her astonishing declaration.
Zhang Qiu even gave Lewis an ambiguous wink.
Lewis awkwardly rubbed his nose.
Tonks paid no attention to the girls' covert battle and continued describing her experience.
"It felt like she was interrogating me. I really wanted to confess, but I didn't even know what I was supposed to confess to."
That immediately made Zhang Qiu burst out laughing.
Just then, Gianna walked out of the study and announced in a clear voice:
"Tonks, Shirella, Penelope, we should head to the Ministry of Magic."
Despite not sleeping all night, she still looked remarkably energetic.
"We arrested so many people that they all have to be tried individually. We'll probably be working overtime at the Ministry for the next few days, so don't prepare any food for us."
"Oh, right. Little brother Lewis, perhaps you'll soon receive another Second-Class Order of Merlin."
Gianna looked at Lewis and smiled warmly.
"The reason is that you transported the wounded during the battle, allowing them to receive treatment in time. Fudge has decided to try to secure a Second-Class Order of Merlin for you."
"But we all know that isn't really the reason. He's doing it because the Bulgarian Minister ended up on his knees in front of Fudge. Fudge thinks that was your achievement."
Gianna smiled at Lewis, her expression clearly showing that she was taking credit for this little favor.
All right. So this medal is the little surprise she prepared for me.
Even though a Second-Class Order of Merlin was no longer particularly significant to Lewis, he was still very happy to receive such a surprise.
"Big Sister Gianna is too good to me."
He took the initiative to step forward and hug the blonde woman.
As she felt the boy in her arms, the Princess of Kul Tiras wore a satisfied expression.
It was almost like a smoker who had quit for years suddenly being handed a fresh pack of cigarettes.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, interrupting their intimate moment.
Lewis opened the door.
The moment he saw who was standing outside, he almost forgot to look away.
A remarkably beautiful girl stood outside the door.
She was so beautiful that it almost seemed unnatural.
She had long, waterfall-like silver hair cascading all the way down to her waist. Her large azure eyes were bright and lively, while her slightly pointed ears revealed her mixed-blood, non-human heritage.
"Excuse me, do Shirella Raylen and Lewis Green live here?"
The beautiful girl's voice was slightly husky, with a sexy, magnetic quality to it. When she spoke English, she carried a slight French accent.
Lewis immediately came back to his senses.
Why would such a beautiful girl come looking for Shirella and me?
"...Wait. You're Lewis Green!"
Before Lewis could even answer, the girl had already recognized him.
She rushed forward with astonishing enthusiasm and planted two kisses on each of Lewis's cheeks.
Even Lewis's reaction speed had failed to help him dodge.
Truly terrifying.
"Who came looking for you?"
Tonks's voice sounded from behind Lewis as she came over to see what was happening at the door.
Then she saw Lewis embracing and being kissed by an unfamiliar beautiful girl.
"Well, well, Lewis. You're getting pretty good at this. Where did you find another beautiful girl?"
Tonks teased him.
But Lewis could sense a faint trace of jealousy in her voice.
"This… I don't know either."
Lewis finally managed to separate himself from the girl and wiped the saliva from his face, still completely bewildered.
At that moment, a young man wearing an Auror uniform stepped out from behind the girl.
"Commander Tonks, it's like this. This young lady is Fleur Delacour. She specifically came here to thank Mr. Green and Miss Raylen for their help."
Although the young Auror spoke seriously as he explained the situation for Lewis, the boy could still sense the intense envy, jealousy, and resentment coming from him.
Who wouldn't want a girl of this caliber throwing herself into their arms?
After hearing the girl's name, however, Lewis finally understood.
So she was the witch who would represent Beauxbatons Academy in the Triwizard Tournament in the original story.
Fleur was not a pure-blooded human.
She possessed one-quarter Veela blood, inherited from her grandmother.
Veela were humanoid magical creatures. They resembled young, beautiful women, with platinum-blonde hair and moonlight-like skin, and originated from Bulgaria.
Their appearance, especially their dancing, possessed a hypnotic allure to almost any man. This often caused men to act recklessly and impulsively in an attempt to approach the Veela and win their favor.
The mascots of the Bulgarian team had been Veela.
When they appeared, they had caused more than one disturbance among the spectators.
In Lewis's view, these magical creatures were closely related to nymphs—more specifically, the Dryads, the famous nature spirits of DND.
They were likewise born among the wilderness, maintained a close connection with nature, and possessed terrifying beauty and charm.
Fleur had inherited Veela blood and naturally inherited part of that terrifying charm as well.
In this regard, she did indeed share some similarities with Lewis, who had transformed [Charm Person] into a natural talent.
Perhaps because it was rare for her to encounter a male who could break free from her charm so quickly, or perhaps because she sensed a similar aura from him, Fleur's interest in the boy before her immediately increased.
Even after being pushed away, she still held tightly onto Lewis's arm, speaking to him with great enthusiasm.
"When I heard that you and Miss Raylen were the ones who saved my grandfather, I could hardly believe it. I never imagined that besides being such talented Quidditch players, you would also be such powerful wizards…"
It was only through her words that Lewis finally understood why Fleur had come looking for them.
She had come to thank them.
The elderly wizard whom he and Shirella had taken over from Kingsley and helped treat was none other than Fleur's grandfather.
When Lewis brought Fleur into the tent, he immediately felt wave after wave of displeased gazes.
The moment the girls saw Fleur, they had already sensed the threat hidden within her.
Fleur, however, paid no attention to the situation.
As a half-Veela, she was accustomed to seeing couples quarrel because of her beauty.
But the situation surrounding Lewis was somewhat more complicated than she had expected.
Nevertheless, she quickly defused the tension.
The moment she saw Shirella, she immediately released Lewis, rushed over, and gave her two kisses on the cheeks as well.
Shirella looked as though she had been frightened.
Lewis could not help laughing.
After that, almost everyone present—apart from the somewhat longing-looking young Auror—received a hug from the extraordinarily charming girl.
This French-style enthusiasm made it impossible for the girls present to truly dislike her.
After thanking everyone briefly, Fleur left the tent with the young Auror.
No one noticed that, before leaving, she slipped a piece of paper into Lewis's hand.
It was the contact information of the half-Veela girl.
After she left, Gianna also hurriedly departed with Tonks, Shirella, and Penelope, heading to the Ministry of Magic to work overtime.
Even Onyxia, who belonged to the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, was dragged along to help.
The remaining people packed up the tent and returned to the tower.
The accompanying image was a concept illustration of Fleur Delacour, generated by the author.
{TFC}Chapter 282: The Newspapers and the Reaction
By the time Lewis and the others returned to the tent, the sky was already beginning to brighten.
After receiving the notification that everything was over, Hermione, Zhang Qiu, and Luna returned to the tent.
The moment she saw Lewis, Zhang Qiu was the first to rush over.
"Oh, thank goodness! Thank goodness!"
She threw her arms around Lewis's neck. The boy patted her back reassuringly, his expression a mixture of happiness and helplessness.
He could already feel everyone's eyes focused on him, and at least half of them were far from friendly.
"Ahem. Everyone's watching, you know!"
Lewis coughed awkwardly a few times and gently tried to push Zhang Qiu away.
He really did not want to start a Shura field under these circumstances.
Zhang Qiu also realized what she was doing.
The clever girl immediately released Lewis and then enthusiastically embraced everyone else in turn—Gianna, Tonks, and the others.
Especially Shirella, whose gaze had been the most hostile just moments ago. Zhang Qiu pulled the witch hunter tightly into her arms.
This enthusiasm transformed the displeasure on Shirella's face into helplessness.
With a potential crisis successfully defused, everyone entered the dining room.
The three girls placed plate after plate of sumptuous food on the dining table.
They had cooked all of it while waiting.
Lewis stared silently at the food on the table for a moment before hugging each of the three girls again.
"Sorry for making you worry."
The girls' eyes immediately reddened.
There was both worry and self-blame in their eyes.
While she had been hiding in the tower, she had been so worried that she could not sleep. Following Hermione's suggestion, she had simply kept cooking food over and over again.
When they could not participate in the battle, this was the only thing they could do.
Although nobody had much of an appetite after the battle, everyone still sat down together and enjoyed the sumptuous…
Breakfast?
"Why did you come back so late? I saw a lot of people leaving the campsite before dawn," Hermione asked curiously after finally putting her worries aside.
"This incident threw the Ministry of Magic into complete chaos, and they were desperately short of manpower. Even people who were on vacation were urgently recalled."
Tonks explained while chewing on a piece of buttered bread.
"We fought all night too, so we were given this time to rest."
"We planned this for so long. Everything should have achieved the results we expected."
Gianna made the announcement softly.
The moment she finished speaking, everyone's attention focused on her.
"Congratulations, Tonks. If everything goes smoothly, the authority of the Aurors will be greatly expanded in the future. The division between combat personnel and administrative personnel will also become much clearer."
Gianna looked at her most capable assistant, her eyes filled with trust and expectation.
"You will also gain command of the most elite combat force. In addition, you will be responsible for the equipment selection, training, and combat operations of all Aurors."
"Tell us quickly, Gianna. What exactly happened?"
Tonks could not help urging her.
"Your performance tonight, along with that of your subordinates, was extremely impressive. Scrimgeour took the initiative to express his willingness to cooperate with me."
"He has always wanted to lift the ban on lethal magic for Aurors, and that happens to align perfectly with our plans. I took the opportunity to demand an expansion of your authority."
"Although your position cannot be raised any further, your power can be expanded."
Gianna put down her utensils and patiently explained.
"However, Scrimgeour hesitated at first. He believed the conditions I proposed were too high and did not serve his interests."
"So I suggested expanding the scope of the Aurors' duties as an exchange. That would increase his authority while also satisfying our needs. In the end, he agreed."
"But what about Minister Fudge? Surely he wouldn't just sit back and watch you expand your authority so freely?"
Penelope asked.
She felt there was still a problem hidden somewhere in all of this.
As soon as she finished speaking, several owls flew through the tent window.
Thick newspapers were tied to their legs.
"Fudge is still somewhat hesitant about lifting the Aurors' ban on lethal magic. But once he sees this morning's newspapers, his attitude will change."
Onyxia announced this smugly.
She and Gianna had naturally taken Fudge into consideration.
Given Fudge's weak personality, their countermeasure was to bring public opinion into play.
And that was precisely the part Onyxia was responsible for.
Everyone immediately stopped eating and began looking through the morning newspapers.
Gianna picked up one of the newspapers and quickly scanned the front page.
Tonks leaned over her shoulder curiously.
Lewis, meanwhile, unhurriedly flipped through the other newspapers, occasionally frowning as he took a sip of the milk tea Hermione had prepared.
There was no sugar in the milk tea, which Lewis found somewhat difficult to get used to.
"England Wins Glory! Lewis Green Named Best Chaser!"
"The World Cup Ends in Glory! England Crowned Champions!"
"Passion Runs High on the Pitch! Lewis and Shirella Share a Deep Kiss, Taking the Best Partnership Award!"
"Shocking! At This World Cup, the Golden Snitch Was Actually Caught by a Chaser…"
As Lewis flipped through the newspapers, he immediately caught sight of an astonishing headline.
He hurriedly turned his head, cleverly avoiding the embarrassment of spraying milk tea all over the newspaper.
"The Famous Seeker Viktor Krum's Romance Exposed—His Lover Is Actually a Man!?"
Zhang Qiu noticed Lewis's subtle reaction and curiously leaned over.
She had always been extremely interested in all kinds of gossip and romantic scandals.
The moment she saw the accompanying photograph, Zhang Qiu laughed so hard that she could barely stand.
She grabbed onto Lewis for support and almost collapsed against him.
Lewis could not help wondering whether she was doing it on purpose.
The photograph showed Krum tackling Ron, with their lips touching and Ron's eyes wide open.
The scene was repeatedly depicted throughout the newspaper, making it look as though Krum had forcibly kissed Ron.
"Isn't this the scene from the box? Which newspaper has such amazing connections that they actually managed to photograph this?"
Zhang Qiu was brimming with excitement and urged Lewis to keep turning the pages.
"It's The Quibbler. The special World Cup edition."
Lewis suddenly understood.
"It must have been Luna's work."
As if she had heard his thoughts, Luna raised her head.
Their eyes met.
Luna widened her pale-silver eyes and gave him a mischievous smile before shaking the small camera in her hand at Lewis.
"Sure enough, it was you."
Lewis nodded and continued reading.
Then he laughed again.
"Look at this one. 'Bulgarian Minister Beaten to His Knees—Was It Actually Minister Fudge Who…'"
In the photograph, the Bulgarian Minister wore an expression of complete disbelief, while Fudge was desperately suppressing a smile.
The moment she saw it, Zhang Qiu, who had just taken a sip of milk tea, immediately spat it out while laughing.
"This headline, this story… This is completely ridiculous! Who wrote this? Ah… it's her…"
"Rita Skeeter!"
Zhang Qiu flipped directly to the end of the article, where she saw the author's name.
"I got quite a lot of money for that," Luna added.
Seeing how interested Zhang Qiu was in scandals involving men and men, Lewis simply left The Quibbler to her and picked up another newspaper.
"Tonks, they mentioned you here."
Lewis suddenly spoke.
He raised the Daily Prophet in his hand, excitement flickering in his eyes.
"Where? Read it to me!"
Tonks asked impatiently, clearly very interested in her own news.
Lewis began reading aloud.
"Compared with the older generation of Aurors, the new generation has demonstrated an outstanding level of training and coordination. Their handling of public disorder was organized and efficient, while their ability to subdue rioters was remarkably swift."
"Even more noteworthy is the fact that the Aurors have now been released from the restrictions on lethal magic. Does this herald the beginning of a new norm? We will continue to monitor developments closely."
"Where's my name?"
Tonks looked somewhat anxious as her eyes searched all over the newspaper.
"I know you're in a hurry, but don't be in such a hurry."
Lewis patted her hand.
He continued reading.
"The training methods used by the older generation of Aurors have become outdated and are no longer suited to modern demands. Clearly, they should make way for the new generation and transition into logistical or administrative positions, where they can better make use of their remaining experience."
Lewis smiled at Tonks.
"Listen to that. This is your article."
He pointed to a photograph in the newspaper.
It showed an elite Auror with pink hair commanding a group of uniformly dressed trainee Aurors.
They were calmly and politely assisting civilians, presenting a striking contrast to their ruthless appearance during the battle.
"Look. Isn't that you?"
After saying this, Lewis handed the newspaper to Tonks.
He stood up and stretched, a trace of exhaustion appearing on his face.
He felt that he needed to freshen up.
After all, Lucius Malfoy would be arriving soon.
That was what they had agreed upon last night.
He could not afford to be lacking in etiquette.
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