After spending several days preparing and waiting for the perfect opportunity, I finally decided it was time to return to Diagon Alley.
This time, I would not have Professor Dumbledore following me around.
There were several things I needed to investigate, and some questions I wanted answered that I couldn’t exactly ask while standing beside one of the most intelligent wizards alive.
My first destination was obvious.
Gringotts.
The wizarding bank stood proudly in the center of Diagon Alley, with its towering white marble structure and intimidating goblin guards standing at the entrance.
The moment I stepped inside, I immediately noticed the atmosphere was completely different from the rest of Diagon Alley.
While the shops were filled with excitement and curiosity, Gringotts felt ancient.
Powerful.
Almost like entering a fortress.
The original Tom Riddle had known about his connection to Salazar Slytherin, but he had never truly taken advantage of everything his bloodline offered.
He had been obsessed with proving his superiority through fear and domination, but he had ignored something far more important.
Legacy.
Money.
Influence.
Knowledge.
Those were the foundations of true power.
I approached the front desk where several goblins worked diligently.
“I would like to request an inheritance test.” The goblin sitting behind the desk looked up at me with sharp eyes.
“An inheritance test?” “Yes.” “I would like to know what family lines I possess.” The goblin studied me for several seconds before nodding.
“The fee is one Galleon.” I paid the required amount without hesitation.
A few minutes later, another goblin arrived and gestured for me to follow.
“Come.” I followed him through the enormous halls of Gringotts.
The deeper we went, the older everything became.
Ancient stone corridors stretched endlessly beneath the earth, and every section of the bank seemed to contain centuries of history.
Eventually, we arrived at a large ritual chamber.
In the center of the room was a circular stone table with an ornate silver basin placed upon it.
Various magical instruments surrounded the basin, including enchanted parchment, silver needles, and strange crystal objects that I couldn’t immediately identify.
The goblin placed a ritual dagger in front of me.
“Place your blood within the basin.” I picked up the dagger and carefully cut my finger.
A single drop of blood fell into the basin.
Immediately, the wound closed.
I raised an eyebrow.
“Interesting.” The dagger itself possessed healing properties.
The ritual activated the moment my blood touched the liquid.
The contents of the basin began glowing, the parchment floating above it as magical energy surrounded the room.
Slowly, ink began spreading across the paper.
Lines.
Names.
Titles.
Bloodlines.
Everything appeared one after another.
Finally, the parchment stopped moving.
I picked it up.
The results were far more interesting than I expected.
Name: Thomas Marvolo Riddle Father: Thomas Riddle Mother: Merope Gaunt (Deceased) Paternal Grandfather: Tobias Riddle Paternal Grandmother: Mary Riddle Maternal Uncle: Morfin Gaunt Confirmed Bloodline Claims: Heir of Gaunt — By Blood and Magic Heir of Slytherin — By Blood and Magic Heir of Le Fay — By Blood and Magic Heir of Peverell — By Blood and Magic Heir of Pendragon — By Blood and Magic I stared at the parchment.
“So the system wasn’t lying.” The Pendragon bloodline wasn’t simply an ability.
It had actually become part of my history.
The magical world itself accepted it.
The next page revealed my inherited assets.
My eyes widened slightly.
Family Vaults: Slytherin Vault Balance: 41,788,933 Galleons Contents: Dark Artifacts.
Rare Magical Books.
Ancient Treasures.
Experimental Research.
Various Magical Items.
Peverell Vault Balance: 995,443,331 Galleons Contents: Deathly Hallows Research.
Ancient Artifacts.
Rare Books.
Treasures.
Family Relics.
Le Fay Vault Balance: 91,866,311 Galleons Contents: Dark Artifacts.
Rare Magical Books.
Ancient Treasures.
Magical Research.
Pendragon Vault Balance: 61,533,766 Galleons Contents: Ancient Artifacts.
Rare Books.
Treasures.
Family Relics.
I stared at the numbers.
The original Voldemort had wasted everything.
He could have possessed unimaginable wealth and influence.
Instead, he chose to hide in forests and attack people from the shadows.
“Power isn’t just magic.” It was resources.
It was information.
It was connections.
The next section listed properties.
Slytherin Properties: Hogwarts Castle.
Slytherin Manor.
Slytherin Laboratory.
Various Hidden Estates.
Le Fay Properties: Le Fay Castle.
Le Fay Manor.
Le Fay Laboratory.
Various Magical Holdings.
Pendragon Properties: Ministry of Magic Headquarters.
Pendragon Castle.
Pendragon Manor.
Peverell Properties: Peverell Manor.
Various Ancient Family Estates.
I stared at one entry for several seconds.
“Ministry of Magic Headquarters?” That was certainly unexpected.
Apparently the Pendragon family had once held an unbelievable amount of influence.
The final section revealed businesses.
Current Business Holdings: 25% Ownership — Ollivanders.
30% Ownership — Dragon Reserves.
I frowned slightly.
“That’s all?” After centuries of history, those were the only major businesses remaining.
Then again, the Gaunt family had become completely impoverished, and many ancient families had lost their wealth over generations.
Most of my current fortune came from the older families.
Slytherin.
Peverell.
Le Fay.
Pendragon.
The businesses were useful, but the real value was the knowledge and influence attached to these names.
After the inheritance examination was completed, I met with the goblin assigned as my account manager.
His name was Ragnok.
He was clearly experienced, and his expression showed the intelligence typical of goblins.
“I would like you to continue managing my family accounts.” Ragnok nodded.
“That can be arranged.” However, I wasn’t willing to simply trust someone handling hundreds of millions of Galleons.
“I have one condition.” The goblin looked curious.
“What condition?” “We enter a magical oath of fairness.” Ragnok raised an eyebrow.
“A fairness oath?” “I don’t want either side attempting to exploit the other.” Fortunately, the system provided exactly what I needed.
I used all 100 of my System Points.
Purchased: Fairness Oath Spell.
The spell itself was simple.
It prevented either party from intentionally creating unfair agreements or attempting to exploit the other through hidden conditions.
It worked both ways.
I couldn’t scam him.
He couldn’t scam me.
Perfectly reasonable.
I cast the spell, and magical energy surrounded both of us as the contract was formed.
Ragnok examined the magic before nodding approvingly.
“This is acceptable.” He seemed genuinely pleased.
“I must admit, young heir, this arrangement benefits me greatly.” “Managing the accounts of Slytherin alone would have been an honor.” “Adding Le Fay and Pendragon…” He smiled slightly.
“It grants me considerable influence.” I nodded.
This was exactly why I wanted a good relationship with goblins.
The original Voldemort underestimated them.
A mistake.
Goblins controlled the wizarding world’s financial system.
They possessed incredible craftsmanship, access to rare magical materials, and knowledge of ancient forging techniques.
Especially goblin silver.
Their skills were something I desperately wanted to learn.
If I intended to rebuild the wizarding world…
Goblins would be valuable allies.
After the contract was complete, Ragnok waved his hand.
Four ornate boxes appeared on the table.
“These contain the heir rings of your ancient houses.” “The Lord Ring of Gaunt is currently unavailable.
Your uncle Morfin possesses it.” “According to magical law, you may only claim lordship after reaching magical maturity.” “However, you may use the heir rings.” I nodded.
“Then I’ll take these.” I reached for the first box.
The Pendragon ring.
Inside was a magnificent red and gold ring.
The crest displayed a sword being pulled from a stone.
The symbol of Arthur Pendragon.
Next was the Le Fay ring.
Black and purple metal formed the design, with a black raven carved into the center.
A fitting symbol for Morgana Le Fay.
Then came Slytherin.
A green and silver ring with a serpent coiled around the surface, its fangs extended.
The symbol of Salazar Slytherin.
Finally…
The Peverell ring.
Unlike the others, it was surprisingly simple.
The symbol of the Deathly Hallows was engraved into the metal.
The legendary mark of the Peverell family.
Ragnok watched carefully as I examined each ring.
“Be warned.” “Ancient family rings are not ordinary objects.” “They often test the person attempting to claim them.” “Usually this only applies to Lordship rings.” “But occasionally…” “The heir rings test their wielders as well.” I looked down at the four rings resting before me.
A challenge.
A test.
A way for ancient magic to judge whether I was worthy.
A smile slowly formed on my face.
“Good.” “Then let’s see what they think of me.”