Chapter 527: The Lestranges' Vault
Chapter 527: The Lestranges' Vault
Even though the ball had ended, the students' enthusiasm remained unabated. Instead of going to bed, they continued discussing the event in the common room.
As a result, everyone woke up late the day after Christmas. When Kyle went for breakfast, the usually bustling Great Hall was nearly empty.
"Kyle, there you are." Sirius walked in from outside and said with a smile, "I was just thinking about whether I should go to the Gryffindor common room to look for you."
"Look for me?" Kyle asked, "What's the matter?"
Sirius looked around and said in a low voice that only Kyle could hear, "Do you remember the vault key from the holidays..."
At this, Kyle stood up from his seat excitedly.
"So, you can go to Gringotts now?"
"I've been able to go for a while," Sirius said. "Otherwise, where do you think I got the money for the crossbow?
"But you were still in school, and I've been busy with other things. Now we finally have some time...
Of course, if you have other plans for the Christmas break, we could also go at the end of the year."
"No, now is fine," Kyle immediately replied. "But there's one problem—am I allowed to leave the castle?"
"In principle, no," Sirius said. "Unless we get the headmaster's permission."
"Then what are we waiting for..." Kyle stuffed the remaining bread from his plate into his mouth and headed toward the headmaster's office on the eighth floor with Sirius.
...
"You wish to leave school?" Dumbledore was slightly surprised by the duo's request.
"Yes, Headmaster Dumbledore," Sirius said, glancing at Maxime and Karkaroff in the office. He continued in a casual tone, "I have prepared a special Christmas gift that couldn't be delivered to the school, so I thought I'd take him to see it."
Dumbledore hesitated, "But this is a special time, and with Kyle participating in the Triwizard Tournament, many eyes are on him..."
"We're going to Diagon Alley," Sirius said. "It's safe there."
"Exactly," Kyle added.
"If you're just going to Diagon Alley..." Dumbledore hesitated for a moment before nodding, "Alright, I agree...
"But how will you get there? The train left yesterday, and it won't return until the end of the holidays."
"The train?" Sirius made a face, "That thing is too slow. I had enough of it when I was in school. We plan to go to Hogsmeade and use the fireplace at the Three Broomsticks."
"In that case, you don't need to make an extra trip," Dumbledore said, extending his finger and pointing at the fireplace in the office.
In the blink of an eye, the flames turned green.
"Is Hogwarts also connected to the Floo Network?" Sirius asked in surprise.
"It's usually closed off," Dumbledore explained, "but temporarily opening it for a few hours won't be a problem."
"Five hours should be more than enough," Sirius said, leading Kyle toward the fireplace. "We'll probably be back before lunch."
As the pair disappeared from the office, Maxime and Karkaroff's expressions changed slightly.
It was unusual for Kyle, one of the champions, to leave Hogwarts just before the second task. This sudden departure seemed highly suspicious to them.
And the excuse about the gift not being deliverable to the castle... it all sounded a bit too fake, as if they were taking the rest of them for fools.
"Olympe..." Karkaroff asked, "At Beauxbatons, are students who stay during the holidays allowed to leave the school so easily?"
"Of course not," Madame Maxime said. "Unless they didn't sign the stay-over list in the first place, students are not allowed to leave the school grounds, even during the holidays."
"It's the same at Hogwarts," Dumbledore smiled, "but this time is a bit special. Kyle helped Professor Black with something significant during the holidays, and he probably wants to express his gratitude.
"Anyway, don't worry about them. Where were we? Oh yes, regarding the scoring criteria for the second task, I believe..."
As Dumbledore deliberately steered the conversation away, Maxime and Karkaroff became even more certain that Kyle's sudden outing was related to the Triwizard Tournament.
With this thought, their gazes toward Dumbledore subtly changed.
Unbelievable! Even though Hogwarts is the host school, they still resort to underhanded tactics... Disgusting, truly shameless.
But Dumbledore paid no heed to their thoughts and calmly continued expressing his views.
On the other hand.
After exiting the fireplace in the back room of the Leaky Cauldron, Kyle and Sirius made their way straight to the back courtyard.
It was the day after Christmas, and being early in the morning, the pub was deserted except for old Tom, who was wiping a row of empty glasses behind the bar.
"Little Kyle, and Black?" He greeted them with a smile, "What can I get you?"
"No thanks, Tom, maybe next time," Sirius shook his head.
The pair then made their way through the entrance into Diagon Alley, heading straight for Gringotts.
Staring at the gleaming bronze doors, Sirius asked, "Do you have the key?"
"Of course, I've been carrying it with me," Kyle said as he reached into his pouch and pulled out a golden key, handing it to Sirius.
Sirius took the key and strode into Gringotts.
"Ahem..." Sirius cleared his throat and said, "We need to access the vault of Bellatrix Lestrange."
Hearing the commotion, the goblin across the counter looked up and spoke in a sharp tone:
"You don't seem to be Miss Lestrange."
"I'm her... cousin." Sirius replied with a grimace, as if he had just eaten a nasty-flavored jelly bean.
"She asked me to pick something up for her."
The goblin gave Sirius a once-over and then seemed to recall something. "Ah, yes, you are permitted to meet with her.
"Well then... Mr. Black, do you have the key?"
"Oh, right here." Sirius tossed the key onto the counter. "She gave this to me; it should be the right one."
The goblin picked up the key and examined it closely.
"Indeed it is..." he said, "Mr. Black, I must remind you that you are only permitted to take one item from the vault."
"I'm well aware of that." Sirius said impatiently, "That junk, I don't even want to lay eyes on it."
"Very well." The goblin said, "I will send someone to escort you to the underground vault, Rahl."
Rahl was another goblin who led Sirius and Kyle through a door behind the counter, away from the large hall, and into a narrow stone corridor.
A small cart was waiting nearby, and they boarded it and set off.
The location of Gringotts' vaults was like a maze, and they rode the cart through winding passages for nearly twenty minutes.
Sirius' expression grew more and more uncomfortable, and he covered his mouth with his hand as if he might vomit at any moment.
However, Kyle didn't seem affected and only felt a slight chill from the breeze.
Compared to the Phoenix's Disillusionment, this ride felt like a child's rocking horse—weak in comparison.
The surroundings grew darker, and the cart picked up speed.
They passed through a waterfall, soaking their clothes, and the subsequent breeze made them shiver.
But there was no other way; they had to pass through the Thief's Downfall, or Rahl wouldn't take them any further.
After another ten minutes or so, Kyle heard a feeble, whimpering dragon's roar.
The sound was devoid of the proud demeanor one would expect from a dragon.
"This is Gringotts' ultimate defense." Rahl said proudly, "The fire dragon ensures that any thief coveting the gold here will pay a heavy price."
Kyle observed him calmly, his face expressionless.
At that moment, the cart finally came to a stop in a mountain gorge.
A creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human stood in their path.
A Sphinx, a professional guardian among magical beasts, adept at riddles and word puzzles, often employed by wizards to protect valuable items and secret locations.
Newt had one in his case, but since there weren't any precious jewels or gold, it had taken a liking to the Mooncalves... Every time Newt went to collect the Mooncalve manure, he had to spend a long time bargaining with the Sphinx.
Rahl stepped forward and spoke to the Sphinx, which reluctantly retreated into the shadows.
"Come on over." Rahl waved them forward. Kyle and Sirius immediately followed.
There was only one vault in the gorge. Rahl took the key, placed it in his palm, and then pressed his hand against the door.
Kyle curiously observed the goblin's actions.
"Anyone other than us goblins who tries this will be sucked into the door and trapped inside, unable to escape." Rahl glanced at them and smiled maliciously.
"Could you hurry up?" Sirius said irritably, "Stop wasting time."
"As you wish."
As soon as Rahl finished speaking, the tightly closed vault door gradually disappeared.
For a moment, Kyle thought someone had turned on the lights, as the dazzling golden glow blinded him momentarily.
He saw a ten-foot-tall mountain of gold, various exotic animal pelts, potions in bottles, and a crowned skull...
"Hurry up." Sirius said, "Take what you need, and let's get out of here."
"Okay." Kyle said, turning to Rahl, "Can I go in? Are there any special protective spells inside?"
"There's a Fire Charm and a Replication Charm." Rahl said, "But since you have the key, those charms have been temporarily disabled and will only reactivate once the door is closed. If you're concerned, I can retrieve the item for you."
"No need." Kyle stepped into the vault and deliberately kicked a nearby Galleon.
The coin flew a good distance and finally landed with a ding among the other Galleons, never duplicating itself during the process.
Only then did Kyle relax and continue further into the vault, with Rahl following closely behind, seemingly on guard to prevent him from taking anything extra.
Kyle didn't mind; while the gold here was tempting, he had something even more important to find...
This vault was quite spacious, containing a variety of items. Kyle searched for about five minutes before finally spotting what he sought.
On a raised stone platform at the very top of the vault was a tiny golden cup, intricately engraved with a lifelike badger, and on each side, there were two handle-like ears.
(End of Chapter)
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