Gringotts was a towering white building located at the corner of Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley.
Run by goblins, it was the only bank in the wizarding world, a place where one could deposit money or rent a Vault.
It was said to be the safest place in the world after Hogwarts.
The old man and the boy passed through two sets of doors, one bronze and one silver-white, and entered the spacious marble hall.
About a hundred goblins sat on high stools behind the long counters on either side.
Some weighed coins on copper scales, while others examined gemstones through eyepieces, all the while scribbling entries into large ledgers.
Countless doors filled the hall, each leading to a different place, and many goblins were guiding visitors in and out of them.
Ethan turned his head from side to side, studying the goblins at work.
They had pointed ears, shrewd, calculating faces that looked perfect for hanging from lampposts, and long limbs that did not match their short bodies.
“Ethan, look away,” Professor Fig whispered.
“Goblins don’t like being stared at like that.
They’re very clever, but they aren’t exactly friendly.”
Ethan ducked his head and stopped looking around, obediently following Professor Fig to an unused counter.
“Hello,” Professor Fig greeted the goblin behind the counter.
“We’re here to collect the Hogwarts new student allowance.”
“Documents,” the goblin said, holding a quill and writing something.
He looked up at the two of them as he spoke.
Professor Fig took out a piece of parchment and handed it over.
“Here you are.”
The goblin placed the quill back into the ink bottle, took the parchment, and examined it carefully.
“Mr.
Ethan, yes?
The total for this school year is thirty Galleons.
Keep it safe.” The goblin took out a palm-sized pouch and placed it on the counter, then counted thirty gold coins from behind the counter and poured them into the pouch.
The coins clinked as they fell inside.
Ethan picked up the pouch, which had not bulged much despite the coins inside, took out twenty Galleons, and handed them to Professor Fig.
“Professor, this is the money you gave me earlier in the name of the allowance.”
“Keep it.
You need the money more than I do.” Professor Fig pushed Ethan’s hand back.
“Besides, a professor’s salary is not low.”
“Thank you, Professor.” Ethan did not argue further and put the money back into the pouch.
“One more thing.” Professor Fig leaned closer to the goblin behind the counter and lowered his voice.
“We’re here to retrieve something from Vault 12.”
“Vault 12?”
The goblin pushed up his glasses and looked the two of them over carefully.
“Key?”
“Here it is.” Professor Fig took out the key and handed it to the goblin.
The goblin took it and examined it closely.
“No problem.
Please follow me.”
The goblin pressed a button on the counter, then stepped down and led the two of them to a door no one else seemed to be paying attention to.
Ethan saw another goblin run out from a different door and take over his place behind the now-empty counter.
After passing through the door and leaving the hall, the goblin led them to a narrow stone corridor sloping downward.
Torches set into the walls on both sides lit it brightly.
At the end of the slope was a railway track.
The goblin gave a sharp whistle, and a small cart came racing along the rails, stopping right in front of them.
“After you,” the goblin said with a polite bow.
The two of them climbed into the passenger seats on the right side of the cart.
Ethan noticed there was nothing like a seatbelt to secure him, so he silently gripped the railings on both sides of his seat.
“If you don’t want to lose your hands, you’d best not stick them outside the cart.” The goblin gave a strange laugh as he climbed into the driver’s seat and pushed the lever.
“Off we go, then.”
The cart sped along the winding tracks.
Ethan found that it ran very steadily, so he gradually loosened his grip on the railings and began looking curiously at the Vault doors flashing past on both sides of the tunnel.
He asked the goblin, “Sir, how many Vaults are there in Gringotts?”
“Thousands upon thousands.
Too many to count.
You’ll see quite a few just on the way to Vault 12,” the goblin driver replied.
“We’re directly beneath the Gringotts main hall now.
Ah, the Vaults we’re passing at the moment were only built recently.”
The cart shot deeper along the tracks.
The clattering of the wheels and the icy air rushing past battered Ethan’s senses, but that did not stop him from opening his eyes wide and trying hard to see everything around him.
“Please hold your breath for a moment,” the goblin suddenly warned.
Ahead of the tracks was a waterfall.
Caught off guard, the two hurriedly protected their heads, closed their eyes and mouths, and endured the sudden drenching.
“That waterfall just now can wash away all Magic.
It is one of their anti-theft measures,” Professor Fig explained, casting a drying spell on both himself and Ethan.
“Oh, so you’ve seen Thief’s Downfall before?”
“I’ve only heard a little about it.”
The cart passed a fork in the tracks and emerged from the tunnel into a vast underground cavern.
At the bottom of the cavern was a lake, with many stalagmites rising out of the water and connecting to the huge stalactites hanging from the ceiling.
Countless Vault doors lined the stone walls around the cavern, and many other carts, likewise driven by goblins, sped past on different tracks.
“This area contains the lower Vaults,” the goblin explained to them.
“How much farther down are we going?” Ethan shouted to the goblin.
“Still a ways yet.
Gringotts has more than six hundred years of history, and Vault 12 is nearly as old.
So next, we’re heading to the deepest section.
Sit tight.”
They descended deeper and deeper, picking up speed.
At the sharp turns, the air grew even colder and more biting.
The cart clattered over a mountain stream, and its path gradually leveled out.
Only a few Vault doors were scattered along the sides of the track.
Ahead of them, a uniformed goblin with an unfriendly expression stood on the stone steps beside the track, waving for them to stop.
“Vault number?” the uniformed goblin asked.
“Vault 12,” the goblin driver replied.
“A most extraordinary day today!”
“Go on.” The goblin guard snorted and waved them through.
Ethan saw a strange flash from the bracelet on the goblin’s arm and whispered to Professor Fig, “Professor, the bracelet that goblin is wearing is glowing.”
“Glowing?
The same light as the box and key earlier?”
“No.
The light on the bracelet is red, and dimmer.
It gives me an uncomfortable feeling.”
“What?” the goblin in the driver’s seat asked.
“Nothing.
We were only saying that the goblin just now seemed rather unusual,” Professor Fig quickly explained.
“Oh, he’s responsible for the oldest area of the bank.
No one’s been there in a very long time,” the goblin said indifferently.
The cart finally stopped at the entrance to a tunnel.
“We’re here,” the goblin said, gesturing for the two of them to get off.
“Finally.” Ethan stepped down and stamped his numb legs.
At the end of the passage was a Vault door.
The goblin walked up to it, took out the key, and inserted it into a hole in the door.
With a series of clicks, the mechanism on the Vault door began to operate on its own.
Amid a puff of blue smoke and a strained creak, the door slowly opened to one side.
“Vault 12,” the goblin announced to them at last.
“Thank you for your help.” Professor Fig thanked him as he stepped over the threshold into the Vault.
“Stay close to me, Ethan.”
Ethan followed Professor Fig into the Vault.
“What do you think we’re supposed to find here, Professor?”
“To be honest, I’m not sure either.
Sir, may I ask…” Professor Fig turned to the goblin outside the door.
“According to the rules of Vault 12, I will open the door for you…” The goblin gave a strange laugh and waved a finger.
“And then close it.”
The heavy Vault door slammed shut at once.
“Wait!” Professor Fig stood there with his hands outstretched, staring blankly at the firmly sealed Vault door.
The goblin’s voice came from the other side of the door, accompanied by the sound of machinery starting up.
“Good luck to you both.”