บท 18: Chapter 18: Dispute

When Harry saw Luke, his first reaction was pure delight.

Luke had been the first wizard his age that Harry had met, and he carried himself with such charm and confidence that it left an impression.

Although they hadn't spent much time together, Harry genuinely liked him.

"Long time no see, Harry."

Luke greeted him with a flawless smile that radiated warmth and sincerity.

"Long time no see…" Harry responded, but suddenly found himself at a loss for what to say next. Thinking quickly, he pulled Ron over to introduce him.

"This is Ron, my new friend."

Before Ron could react, he was pulled in front of Luke, who was now looking right at him. This made Ron feel a little nervous.

For one thing, he'd already heard about Luke countless times over the past month. His parents, and even Fred and George, often mentioned Luke's recent reappearance, his lineage, and the substantial inheritance he'd come into.

Out of curiosity, Ron had even done some reading about the Gaunt family, and what he found had left him uneasy. From everything he'd read, the members of the Gaunt family seemed unlikely to get along well with the Weasleys.

Would a family known for its disdain toward Muggles, and even Muggle-borns, really produce someone who'd get along with a Weasley?

Ron had his doubts, but since Harry had already introduced him, remaining silent would seem rude. His mother had occasionally reminded him to show respect in front of certain people, even if he didn't like them. At least not in formal social occasions.

When Ron first heard his mother's advice, he was puzzled. Did his family really have any "formal social occasions" to attend? He'd asked her about it, to which she had scoffed, then sighed, explaining, "We may not like these things, but the fact remains—we're part of that world. Even if some people dislike us, they can't push us out. And even if we wanted to leave, we wouldn't be allowed."

After that, Ron stopped asking about it. For now, it was beyond his understanding, so knowing more didn't seem to mean much anyway.

"Hello, I'm Ron—Ron Weasley."

The introduction was simple, his tone a bit stiff, and his expression somewhat wary.

To Hermione, who was standing next to Luke, Ron's tone seemed odd, and she wondered where this underlying hostility might be coming from.

Clearly, Luke's charm didn't work on everyone.

Hermione gave a small, thoughtful nod as she observed the interaction.

After speaking, Ron felt a bit of regret. He didn't actually have anything against Luke; he was just shy, and his own assumptions made him feel distant.

"He probably won't be very friendly to me after this…"

Yet, instead of the cold reception Ron anticipated, Luke's response was gentle.

"I've heard about your family, the Weasleys. I envy you for having so many siblings—there aren't really any people my age around in my family, or anyone else at all, actually."

Luke extended his hand with the same warm smile, his expression tinged with a faint sadness.

Ron hadn't expected such a response. Surprised, he quickly took Luke's hand, trying to keep his composure.

"Well, it's not always as good as it sounds"

Ron said, a hint of frustration seeping into his voice as he looked at his worn-out robes.

Luke understood Ron's feeling. Luke preferred to buy new items rather than rely on hand-me-downs unless something was truly valuable.

"There'll be a chance to change that one day."

Luke knew that, while the Weasley family was far from wealthy, Ron and his siblings were capable and had a bright future ahead of them.

And he couldn't help but admire their large family. Wizarding families didn't usually have many children, so among the Malfoys, only Draco was left to inherit the family legacy.

From Luke's own family records, the Gaunts had a similar story. Starting from one of the split branches, they'd continued with only one heir per generation. During a visit to his family's old, abandoned estate, Luke had confirmed this by copying down the family tree. He hadn't lingered—just noted what he needed and left.

He knew that one of the Deathly Hallows, the Resurrection Stone, was there. He also knew that the ring embedded with this treasure had been turned into a Horcrux, so he didn't touch anything.

As for destroying the Horcrux, that wasn't something he could handle right now. Besides, he currently didn't have the ability to do so.

Of course, he also realized that, in the Gaunt family, each generation usually had only one or two male heirs at most.

The Weasley family, which was clearly going to grow in size, made many of the pure-blood families envious.

Afterward, Luke withdrew his hand and looked at the Malfoy trio, who hadn't yet fully recovered.

"You're Draco Malfoy?" Luke asked, with a hint of scrutiny in his voice.

At the sound of his name, Malfoy snapped back to reality, his pale face flushing as anger surged within him.

"Yes! I'm Malfoy! You attacked me! You're in for it! My father's a Hogwarts board member—you'll be expelled!"

Luke observed Malfoy's complexion with some curiosity; This guy didn't seem particularly healthy. Even in his anger, his face only showed a faint pink tinge. Perhaps he needed more nutritious foods, like red dates, to boost his vitality.

As for Malfoy's threats, Luke just took them as empty words.

"So I thought the Malfoys were supposed to be proud. Turns out you're just a bully, ganging up on others."