In the adult world, neither gratitude nor fear can keep a person loyal forever. There is always a limit, and always a possible breaking point.
But interests can.
Voldemort was a perfect example of that. Fear was not nearly as useful as it seemed...
Compared with Voldemort, Lucius used the prestige of the Sacred Twenty-Eight and the deep roots of the Malfoy family to overawe most of the wizards and followers gathered here.
With that as the foundation, and with a little extra benefit on top, it was enough to make those wizards who had come for the name genuinely submit. When it truly mattered, they would be far less likely to make mistakes or betray him.
But what kind of benefit could gather so many wizards?
Advanced magic?
Or a mountain of Galleons?
Draco found himself curious.
Then, a few days later, he saw someone here whose presence could never be ignored no matter where she went, and that curiosity only grew stronger...
It was a witch.
Her robe could not hide her stunning figure in the slightest.
The moment she saw Draco, the bright corners of her lips lifted despite her obvious attempt to hold them back, making her look vividly alive.
Together with that waterfall of silver hair, she seemed to glow in the candlelight.
It was also because of this witch that Pansy, who had been halfway through her meal and wondering why the restaurant had suddenly gone quiet, instantly raised her head in alarm and glared at her.
Like Draco, Pansy knew her too.
Because this witch was...
"Fleur... Delacour, why are you here too?!"
"Oh my~ Isn't this Miss Parkinson?"
She covered her mouth with one hand in mock surprise. If her eyes had not been wandering so obviously, Pansy might actually have believed Fleur had only just noticed them.
In the next second, Pansy caught Fleur's gaze drifting toward Draco, whether on purpose or not. She shot to her feet like an angry cat and stepped in front of her line of sight.
"I knew it. There was no way you'd give up that easily!"
Now that she thought about it, Fleur seemed even more enchanting after graduating.
It was hard to tell whether her growing magic had strengthened her Veela blood, or whether maturity alone had made her more attractive.
"...I have no idea what you're talking about."
"You don't even believe that yourself."
No wonder Pansy was reacting so strongly.
Leaving aside just how lethal Fleur looked as she swayed her way over...
The matter with Ginny had not even been cleared up yet. And only a few days later, an even more threatening Fleur Delacour had appeared...
A year had passed.
The Fleur Delacour who had once still carried a trace of girlishness now possessed a womanly charm that Pansy and the others did not.
Every gesture seemed to draw men's eyes without effort.
It was also worth noting that the old Fleur, who had always disliked her Veela gift a little and deliberately suppressed both her magic and charm, now had no intention of holding any of it back. If anything, she seemed to be actively releasing her own allure.
Such unusual behavior...
Perhaps that was exactly why Pansy had become so tense and guarded.
Still, compared with the changes in Fleur Delacour herself, Draco was more curious about why she had appeared here in the first place. Pansy ended up asking that question before he did...
Staring closely at Fleur, who sat down at their table as if it were the most natural thing in the world, Pansy returned to her earlier question.
"So, you're one of us now?"
"If you want to put it that way, that wouldn't be wrong. But don't misunderstand. I didn't come here because I wanted to."
"..."
"...Another tsundere."
"Who are you calling that?!"
Faced with Fleur's annoyed glare, Pansy only pursed her lips.
As for Draco, he gathered from Fleur's words that her appearance here was not entirely her own decision, but the result of some special reason.
Noticing the curiosity in Draco's eyes, Fleur seemed to understand what he meant. She curved her lips slightly and brushed back her silver hair with one hand.
"You should know how little status people like us... half-bloods, or even Veela, have in the wizarding world."
Compared with when they had first met, Fleur now seemed much more open about her bloodline. That change made even the silent Astoria glance at her a few more times.
The insecurity was gone.
In its place was a new confidence.
As for what had changed her...
Astoria suddenly shot Draco, who remained completely unaware, a rather exasperated look.
...
After a few seconds of thought, Draco finally understood what Fleur was implying.
"I see. Is it because my father can influence the French wizarding world?"
"Huh? Is that why? But Draco, your father isn't..."
Lucius Malfoy hated people like them the most.
Pansy did not say those words aloud, especially not in front of Fleur herself.
Even so, everyone there knew what she had meant to say. Realizing her slip, Pansy looked toward Fleur with visible regret.
She had not meant it that way.
But Fleur showed no sign of discomfort at Pansy's slip. If anything, she even had the leisure to comfort her.
"Why are you all looking at me like that? If it were the old me, maybe I really would have been angry, but now..."
Even Pansy had to admit that Fleur, looking this confident, was incredibly captivating.
The only thing that gave Pansy some relief was that Draco did not seem drawn in by that kind of beauty.
Draco tapped the table lightly and looked at Fleur.
"Why us?"
"Oh, you're asking why I chose you?"
As she spoke, Fleur pulled out what looked like a newspaper report from inside her robes. It seemed she had already expected Draco to ask this and had prepared it in advance.
"It seems you still don't know about this."
"What is it?"
"If you had seen it, you definitely wouldn't be asking that. You should know by now that everything you've done has already spread across our country... no, across the entire wizarding world."
Draco took it and looked.
Only then did he realize it contained a detailed account of everything that had happened that day.
In that report, Draco's figure was printed on the page in striking prominence.
Flying broomsticks.
Flashes of magic.
And most of all, Draco's feat of defeating numerous Death Eaters on his own had been given special emphasis...