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HRHL# Chapter 109: Gringotts' Sincerity
🕑 Added 2025-03-01 19:07:46 +0000 UTCNo such treasure?
Harry maintained his smile, but the amusement in his eyes faded.
He was patient and tolerant—but that didn’t mean he could tolerate negligence from Gringotts.
If it were merely a matter of a few Galleons, he might have let it slide. But due to their inaction, he and Veratia had lost an incalculable amount of alchemical materials—materials that were crucial for Veratia to break through the constraints of time and fully manifest in the present.
At least, after spending a year at Hogwarts, Harry was no longer as impulsive as when he had dealt with Ranrok—where his first instinct upon seeing a goblin was to unleash an ancient spell.
The goblins, of course, noticed the subtle shift in Harry’s expression. Bodrig discreetly stepped on Skard’s foot, preventing him from letting out a sharp yelp.
"Mr. Potter, Gringotts will mobilize all its resources to help you find these two items!" Bodrig’s voice was piercingly high-pitched. "Please believe in Gringotts, believe in our sincerity—once we locate these two items, Gringotts will cover the full cost of their purchase as compensation for your losses!"
"Additionally, Gringotts still holds the Hogwarts Board of Governors seat that originally belonged to the Lestrange family, and we will transfer it to you for your discretion."
Hearing this, Harry finally nodded in satisfaction.
After all, if Gringotts truly didn’t have Angel’s Feather and Basilisk Fang, he couldn’t very well force them to produce them out of thin air.
Gringotts’ influence spanned the globe, with branches in many countries. Having them search for these materials was far more efficient than him aimlessly scouring the world himself.
"I think Gringotts has demonstrated sincerity," Harry said. "Even though your past mismanagement of the vaults was severe, your efforts to make amends are commendable."
"Thank you, thank you for your praise," Skard quickly bowed, his heart finally settling back into place.
By the Galleons above! For a moment there, he thought he was about to—
"As Mr. Potter just stated," Bodrig added, "Gringotts provides impeccable service to every wizard who entrusts their wealth to us because we are partners."
Harry picked up the documents certifying his control over the Gringotts-endorsed and Lestrange-inherited Board of Governors seat, nodding in approval.
"A true partnership."
"So then, Mr. Potter..." Skard hesitated, then lightly tapped his lips. "No, I mean, Governor Potter..."
Harry considered for a moment and decided it would be best to assign the title to someone else for the time being—perhaps Poppy.
Rather than serving as a governor himself, he was more interested in seeing how people would react to a unicorn holding the position.
"My schedule is quite packed, so I’ll be delegating the governorship to an old friend for now," Harry said, tucking away the documents. "I’ll appoint them when the time comes."
"Understood, Mr. Potter," Skard patted his chest. "Whoever you choose, Gringotts will fully support them!"
"Good." Harry nodded.
"Then... Mr. Potter," Skard asked cautiously, "if we receive any news about the Angel’s Feather or Basilisk Fang, how should we contact you?"
"Use a two-way mirror," Harry replied. "It’s convenient and fast."
Skard quickly nodded and instructed a nearby goblin.
A short while later, the goblin returned with two two-way mirrors.
"This is for you, Mr. Potter," Skard said, handing him one mirror while giving the other to Bodrig. "Bodrig will use this to contact you directly once we locate the materials."
Then, Skard produced a small pouch.
"This pouch has been enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm and can hold up to ten cubic meters," he explained, passing it to Harry. "Such items are now exceedingly rare, and this is a gift from Gringotts to honor a distinguished client like yourself."
"Alright, thank you." Harry gave Bodrig an approving glance, then placed the mirror inside the pouch before tucking it into his inner pocket.
Now that both sides had exchanged their terms candidly, Harry had no reason to linger.
After leaving Gringotts, he wandered through the street for a bit, deciding to buy some treats to bring back for Poppy.
Hmm... since Poppy was a Hufflepuff girl, she would probably enjoy something from Honeydukes?
With that thought, Harry soon found himself spending over twenty Galleons.
Oh well. Time to head back, he thought.
Once again, he transformed back into his twelve-year-old appearance before entering the Leaky Cauldron.
As he reached the second-floor landing, he noticed a house-elf standing by the door.
"Hello," Harry greeted with a nod.
House-elves and goblins were entirely different creatures. The former were bound to a specific wizarding family, serving them with unwavering loyalty for life, while the latter were highly intelligent humanoids with long, dexterous fingers and toes, coexisting with wizards in the magical world.
Goblins excelled in metalwork, particularly in crafting silverware and minting the magical currency. Their deep expertise in finance and banking allowed them to control a significant portion of the wizarding economy through Gringotts.
Throughout magical history, goblin rebellions had erupted multiple times—the most recent one being the very uprising Harry had experienced firsthand.
Needless to say, he had no fondness for goblins.
But house-elves were different. When he first arrived at Hogwarts, Professor Weasley had arranged for a house-elf to assist him with daily needs during school terms and holidays.
That elf’s name was Deek—gentle and kind-hearted. Because of Deek, Harry had developed a certain affection for house-elves.
The house-elf standing at the door now widened his large, round eyes upon seeing Harry. His bat-like ears twitched twice, and he clasped his hands together.
"Harry Potter! Are you the great Harry Potter?"
"If you mean Harry Potter, then yes, that’s me," Harry replied with a smile. "But if you mean ‘great,’ that’s not me."
"Harry Potter defeated the Dark Lord and brought peace to the world! He deserves the title of ‘great!’" the elf declared.
Harry thought of his mother.
"No, actually, it was my mother who defeated the Dark Lord," he said with a sigh.
"Harry Potter’s mother was also a great witch! And a great mother!" the house-elf whispered, before suddenly beginning to bang his head against the wall. "Bad Dobby! Bad Dobby! Making Harry Potter think of sad things! Bad Dobby!"
"Your name is Dobby?" Harry asked, grabbing the elf’s thin and slightly grimy arm. "Stop punishing yourself. It’s not your fault."
His first impression of the elf was quite good—after all, he had called his mother great.
A good elf, with good taste.
Dobby paused his self-punishment and looked up at Harry.
"So, what brings you here?"
"Dobby has been entrusted by his master to deliver an invitation to Mr. Harry Potter," Dobby said, sniffing as he spoke. "But Dobby does not want Mr. Harry Potter to accept, because Master..."
Before finishing his sentence, Dobby started banging his head against the wall again.
Thud!
"Bad Dobby, bad Dobby!"
Sigh.
Harry grabbed Dobby and said, "Whatever it is, let's talk inside."
He didn’t want to attract a crowd—especially since a few people were already eyeing them from the side.
Once inside the room, Harry gestured for Dobby to sit down.
"Alright, Dobby, tell me—who is your master?"
"Dobby serves the Malfoy family," Dobby's voice was barely above a whisper. "Dobby's master is Lucius Malfoy, the current head of the Malfoy family."
The head of the Malfoy family?
Well, isn't this convenient?
Harry had originally planned to visit Malfoy Manor after leaving Gringotts. But now that Lucius had extended an invitation himself, that saved him the trouble of finding an excuse to visit.
"Then why don’t you want me to go?" Harry asked curiously.
There was an old saying—when someone offers a gift, they likely have a request in return. Harry didn’t believe that a soon-to-be second-year student like himself warranted such formal treatment from Lucius Malfoy.
Well... then again, perhaps he did. The Potter family had dwindled down to just him, and technically, that made him the head of House Potter.
"Because… because the Young Master has been found with the Dark Lord’s Mark…" Dobby trembled in fear. "The Dark Lord... Mr. Potter and his mother went through so much to defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named... but now he has returned. Dobby fears that Master may mean you harm..."
Harry acted swiftly, using a spell to freeze Dobby’s arms and legs before he could start harming himself again.
"There's no need to punish yourself, Dobby. But let me ask you—" Harry paused briefly before continuing, "Why do you hate the Dark Lord?"
"Because that Dark One... treats us like vermin..." Dobby shuddered. "Those were truly dark times..."
"But from what I’ve heard, the Dark Lord returned just a few weeks ago, and yet Harry Potter foiled his plans and even defeated him face-to-face!" Dobby said with admiration, his large round eyes gleaming with awe.
"That’s right," Harry said with a grin. "But I have my own reasons for visiting Malfoy Manor. I need to ask Lucius Malfoy something important, and, Dobby, this concerns the life of a friend. I must go."
"A friend?" Dobby murmured.
"Yes, a very good friend," Harry said softly. "Dobby, as a Malfoy house-elf, have you ever heard of someone named Cassandra Malfoy?"
"Oh..." Dobby hesitated. "You mean Miss Cassandra Malfoy? Dobby’s mother once served her. But from what Dobby’s mother said, she disappeared at a very young age. However—"
"However what?" Harry pressed.
"However, Dobby doesn’t know much more. But if Mr. Harry Potter wants to learn more, perhaps Cassandra Malfoy’s father can tell you." Dobby said.
"Cassandra’s father?!" Harry’s heart skipped a beat. "Wait a moment—are you saying that Septimus Malfoy is still alive?!"
"No, Dobby has only seen the old master’s portrait in one of the rooms," Dobby explained. "But the old master was very refined—he never spoke harshly to us lowly house-elves."
Harry caught the implication immediately—so, in contrast, Lucius Malfoy was not refined and had quite the foul mouth, didn’t he?
"Since that’s the case, I have even more reason to go." Harry told Dobby, "Go back and tell Lucius Malfoy—I’ll be there at exactly five o’clock this afternoon."
Dobby hesitated. Emotionally, he wanted to stop Harry from going; the Malfoys were staunch Death Eaters and could pose a great threat to the Boy Who Lived.
But since it was his master's order—and more importantly, since Harry himself had agreed, with an important reason behind it—he had no grounds to stop him.
"Dobby hopes Mr. Harry Potter stays safe," Dobby said before leaving the Leaky Cauldron.
After Dobby left, a small head popped up from inside a trunk.
"Harry, Harry, your guest is gone?"
"Gone. I’ll be visiting the Malfoy Manor tonight." Harry pulled out his wallet and retrieved some treats. "Here, I got these for you. You probably haven’t had anything like this while living in the forest, have you?"
"Wow!" The little creature, Poppy, cheered, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
She nudged Harry with her head and precisely snatched a candy from his hand with her mouth.
Watching Poppy rapidly devour over ten donuts, a serious thought suddenly struck Harry.
"Poppy…" Harry twitched slightly. "I just realized—you’ve been staying in that trunk for the past two days. How have you been… you know… going to the bathroom?"
Regret. Utter and absolute regret.
I should have installed a vanishing-charmed toilet inside the trunk!
He didn’t even want to imagine the state of the trunk’s interior right now.
"Oh, you mean that?" Poppy flicked her tail casually. "Unicorns have a special biological structure—we don’t need to, um, relieve ourselves."
"Really?" Harry asked skeptically.
"Of course it’s true," Poppy replied cheerfully. Then, narrowing her eyes at Harry, she suddenly said, "Wait a minute—Harry, I feel like you were just thinking something very inappropriate!"
"I wasn’t," Harry denied immediately. "How could I possibly let my mind wander like that?"
"Hmph." Poppy let out a small snort and continued munching on her bread. "Don’t worry, your concerns are completely unfounded—does that make you feel better now?"
"Uh, actually, I also brought you some fruit." Harry quickly changed the subject and pulled out a handful of berries. "These are your favorite—blueberries! Eat as many as you like!"
"Yay!" Poppy cheered, immediately tossing Harry’s previous "offense" out of her mind.
Harry let out a silent sigh of relief. Thank Merlin she didn’t press the issue any further...
