The bustling and lively Diagon Alley, with its old-fashioned style, stands in stark contrast to the modern urban setting, which filled Harry with curiosity and interest.
There were already many young witches and wizards, accompanied by their families, preparing their school supplies.
This made Harry, who had always felt friendless, feel a glimmer of hope.
"Is this Diagon Alley?"
"It's beyond what I imagined, but it looks really fun."
"Hey, Hagrid, is this the cauldron I need to buy?"
Walking into Diagon Alley, Harry immediately spotted the nearest cauldron shop, Patil's Cauldron Shop, located right next to the Leaky Cauldron. He looked at the cauldrons displayed outside and asked Hagrid with a smile.
Hagrid chuckled in response, "That's right, that's the cauldron you'll need when brewing potions."
"Before that, though, we need to stop by Gringotts. It's the second safest place in the world after Hogwarts, and we need to withdraw some Galleons to purchase supplies here."
"Modern currency doesn't work here, Harry."
"What's a Galleon?" Harry asked, curious.
"A Galleon is the wizarding world's gold coin. Merchants love this shiny gold thing," Callister explained with a smile.
"Besides Galleons, there are Sickles and Knuts."
"Sickles are silver coins, and one Galleon is worth 17 Sickles."
"Knuts are bronze coins, and one Sickle is worth 29 Knuts."
"Trust me, your parents left you a very wealthy inheritance. It's more than enough for you to splurge."
When Hagrid heard Callister's words, he gave him a deep, somewhat wary look and said, "Mr. Callister, if I may ask, how do you know Harry has a considerable fortune?"
Callister turned to Hagrid, smiling, "Hagrid, trust me, I mean no harm towards Harry."
Despite being a rough, towering giant of a man, Hagrid had a keen mind. He remained cautious about Callister, and in his mind, the name "Callister" seemed vaguely familiar, as if he'd heard it somewhere before.
"I believe you, Mr. Callister!" Harry said with a smile, looking at Callister.
Callister smiled back, saying, "Thank you for your trust, Harry."
The liveliness of Diagon Alley, along with the strange and unusual things it offered, caught Harry's eye, and he was filled with interest.
There were all kinds of owls, wizard hats, and the Flying Nimbus 2000 broomsticks, among other things.
Gringotts
Gringotts, the only magical bank in the wizarding world, was as Hagrid had said, the second safest place after Hogwarts. This was why witches and wizards trusted Gringotts to store their gold, silver, and other valuables.
Gringotts was operated by a group of goblins. These goblins had strict rules—only they were allowed to guide people onto the mine carts that spun down to the vaults, and only they could open the vaults to retrieve the stored treasures.
The goblins had their own ways of preventing intruders, and they adhered to a set of rules to prevent their own kind from leaking bank secrets.
"Welcome!"
At the entrance of Gringotts, two goblin guards, dressed in scarlet and gold uniforms, stood by each side and bowed as Harry entered.
They appeared small, but underestimating these goblin guards would come at a cost.
After passing through the second door, Harry had a special feeling about the bank.
He also noticed the phrase on the door and couldn't help but read it aloud.
"Enter, stranger, but beware. Greed brings its own consequences. Those who take without labor, seeking to acquire what does not belong to them, will face the severest punishment. If you attempt to take treasure from our underground vaults, know this, thief—you've already been warned. Beware, for what you seek may not be a treasure, but a curse."
Standing next to Harry, Callister quietly listened until Harry finished reading, before chuckling and saying, "These are the goblins' warnings for anyone with malicious intent."
"It's said that there's a dragon living in Gringotts, a very powerful one. At least, it only takes one flame from it to turn you to ash, scattered in the wind."
Harry's eyes lit up, and he was astonished as he said, "Wow, that's so cool!"
"I don't think I'd accept a fire dragon's kiss," Harry added.
Callister raised an eyebrow slightly at Harry's words. A kiss? Harry, is that really something you should be saying?
Hagrid, overhearing Harry, turned around, walked up to him, and patted his head. "Harry, you're still a minor. You shouldn't have those thoughts. Even when you're an adult, you shouldn't be wishing for a fire dragon's kiss. It could be deadly."
"Unless you have magic stronger than Dumbledore's."
Harry, a little embarrassed, realized that his words had been misunderstood by both Hagrid and Callister.
The spacious marble hall was bustling with dozens of goblins, all dressed in matching attire, sitting behind long counters, carefully and diligently recording things. They were very busy.
Some were weighing coins with scales, others were inspecting gems with magnifying glasses, and some were flipping through documents, stamping them with a heavy hand.
Harry looked at the goblins, marveling, "Hagrid, there are so many goblins here, and they all look so busy."
"Yes, they're goblins, and very smart ones at that. But they're not very friendly, especially when they're busy."
"So, you'd better stick close to me and not disturb them."
Harry nodded, staying close to Hagrid, and they approached a goblin.
This goblin was wearing glasses, had a long nose, and long ears. After Hagrid's warning, Harry felt that these goblins indeed seemed a little unfriendly.
"Good morning, we need to withdraw some money from Mr. Harry Potter's vault, sir," Hagrid greeted the goblin with a smile.
The goblin looked at Harry and asked, "Mr. Harry Potter, did you bring your key?"
Although Harry had seen goblins before, he felt a little nervous seeing the goblin look down at him and speak in such a tone, with a hint of red on its teeth, making him feel slightly uneasy.
But Harry overcame his fear and asked, "Key?"
Since Harry didn't know what the key was, he felt confused.
Hagrid paused for a moment, then suddenly realized with an awkward chuckle, "A key? Oh, I think I have it. Let me find it."
The goblin's eyes turned toward Hagrid.
After a short while, Hagrid retrieved the key from his pocket and smiled at the goblin, "It's so light that I almost missed it. I couldn't feel it because it was so small, and my big hands can't quite grasp it."
After a brief pause, Hagrid pulled out an envelope from his coat and handed it to the goblin. "This is something Dumbledore asked me to handle."
"It's about 'that thing' in vault 713," Hagrid said mysteriously.