0716 Gringotts

Not many wizards in magical community knew about the connection between Bryan Watson and the highest echelons of the goblin world, but among the goblins themselves, it was no secret.

Unfortunately, when Bryan arrived at the Parisian headquarters of Gringotts, he discovered that the goblin Barnah wasn’t present. Responsible for overseeing goblin financial operations across numerous countries throughout Europe and elsewhere, Barnah was typically occupied with far more busy matters than Bryan.

Visiting various Gringotts branches across different countries for routine inspections and high-level negotiations was entirely normal for a goblin of Barnah’s status. The junior goblin who had greeted Bryan in the luxurious reception area had explained this with a mixture of respect and regret.

Thankfully, due to Bryan’s renowned reputation among the goblins, it didn’t require much effort or persuasion for him to secure a meeting with Engel, the goblin who maintained a ‘friendly’ relationship with Ludo Bagman.

“Please wait just a moment, Mr. Watson—” Engel requested in a croaky voice as Bryan sat into an armchair that was clearly designed for someone of considerably shorter stature.

Like those goblins responsible for overseeing Gringotts business operations in various countries across the continent, Engel wore a black suit complemented by a bow tie. His appearance perfectly embodied the image of a shrewd financial elite.

After hearing Bryan’s request, Engel showed no excessive surprise or concern, just a flicker of something unreadable in his dark eyes.

Snap—

The goblin, who appeared to be in his prime years by the standards of his race, though it was notoriously difficult for wizards to accurately gauge goblin ages, snapped his fingers.

In response, a spark of bluish-white light emanated from his fingertips, and a bookshelf along the far wall slowly rotated. The books upon it remained perfectly in place despite the movement to reveal what lay hidden behind.

As the bookcase completed its rotation, it revealed a circular metal door embedded in the wall behind it. The door was covered with complex mechanisms—miniature gears, dials, and levers all working in perfect synchronization.

The toxic potions contained in glass tubes running along the door’s circumference, combined with the defensive magic spells permeating the entire structure, emitted an eerie glow that switched between green and blue.

The combined security measures, which Bryan recognized as incorporating both the goblin craftsmanship and powerful protective enchantments, made him raise a surprised eyebrow in appreciation of their complexity.

After a crisp, clanging sound of the disconnection of multiple locking mechanisms, the door swung half-open with a soft hiss of escaping air, revealing what lied out there.

Glancing through the gap between door and frame, Bryan saw that the room’s interior space had been magically expanded, and was filled with organized stacks of magical contracts. These columns of parchment stretched up like the pillars of some ancient temple, like as if it was supporting the weight of the building by itself.

A stack of magical contracts several inches thick floated out from behind the metal door and landed in Engel’s hand.

“Is this the wager that group of Germans signed with you?” Bryan asked in a casual tone, maintaining an appearance of only mild curiosity as he accepted the contract that Engel handed to him with a slight bow.

Bryan began scanning the betting content, his eyes carefully examining each magically-signed name at the bottom of the document, committing them to memory while searching for any that might trigger recognition.

“That is not entirely accurate, Mr. Watson—” Engel replied in his gruff voice.

“They did indeed claim they were originally from Germany when they first approached our bank,” He continued thoughtfully, his dark eyes narrowing slightly as he recalled the encounter, “but during my conversations with various members of their group, I couldn’t help but notice that not all of them spoke German with native fluency or even demonstrated basic familiarity with the language.

Most appeared significantly more comfortable conversing in English, though with different accents suggesting diverse origins. Based on these observations and certain cultural mannerisms I detected, I believe they likely came from many different countries throughout Europe, and perhaps even beyond our continent—”

Bryan nodded thoughtfully, absorbing this information while maintaining his outward appearance of casual interest.

“Then how exactly did this rather mysterious group choose to introduce themselves during your initial meetings?” He inquired, turning another page of the contract.

“They rather vaguely claimed to be a team gathered through shared interests and somewhat obscure hobbies,” Engel explained, his expression becoming energetic as he recalled the details.

“They presented themselves as enthusiasts who had become particularly interested in the potential outcomes and participants of the current Triwizard Tournament. They had significant internal disagreements about the likely competition results, resulting in rather heated debates among their members. However, this particular faction represented here in the contract had eventually reached consensus on one specific prediction.”

The goblin gestured toward the document in Bryan’s hands before continuing.

“They all believed that Miss Hermione Granger, having received formal magical education for considerably less time than the other three champions, would very likely encounter potentially deadly danger in the upcoming two rounds and consequently withdraw from the competition—”

Bryan continued his examination of the numerous names inscribed on the contract while asking in a deliberately conversational tone designed to disguise his interest,

“When I discussed with Ludo whether there might be a carefully concealed trap in this unusually specific wager, he told me that you and your colleagues had expressed great confidence in both myself and Dumbledore. He claimed you believed these mysterious individuals wouldn’t dare to provoke either of us by attempting anything unpleasant—”

Bryan paused his reading briefly, placing the contract on his lap before reaching for the porcelain teacup on the table between them and took a sip of the hot tea. With a satisfied exhalation, he smiled slightly at Engel.

“I must sincerely thank you for your apparently boundless trust in my abilities and vigilance,” He said with a hint of irony coloring his tone, “but frankly, this surprising level of confidence doesn’t align with what I understand to be the goblins’ usual cautious approach to potentially problematic financial transactions.

Engel, although this is apparently a goblin-organized wager arranged through proper channels, you wouldn’t knowingly conduct business that presented a significant risk of large financial loss, would you? In my view, you must have perceived the inherent risks in this unusual scenario and taken proper measures to protect your interests, correct?”

“In fact, we would be absolutely delighted to see these people make foolish attempts to win the bet, Mr. Watson—”

For the first time since their meeting began, the previously stern-faced Engel allowed his thin lips to curl upward into what could only be described as a smile, though on his goblin facial features it manifested as something closer to a knowing smirk.

The expression revealed the shrewd, calculating demeanor that wizards throughout the centuries had become familiar with when dealing with the goblin nation.

Bryan raised his eyebrows, immediately grasping the implications behind Engel’s unexpected display of satisfaction. He lowered his head once more to carefully examine the contract in his hand, now scanning the light-colored but exceptionally fine-quality parchment with new attention, meticulously rereading precisely the worded terms of the wager.

Suddenly, his expression changed slightly as his gaze was fixed on the patterns decorating the borders of the document—patterns he had previously overlooked as just decorative elements.

“These patterns surrounding the text?” He inquired softly, tracing one fingertip just above but not touching the shimmering designs.

“Your wisdom is admirable, Mr. Watson.” Engel smiled pleasantly.

“This is a specialized type of script once used exclusively by an ancient branch of our goblin tribe, it is extremely old and has been deliberately kept in circulation for only a very short period of time. The knowledge of its meaning has been carefully safeguarded, so even the most knowledgeable wizarding scholars cannot identify or translate it accurately.

The particular pattern incorporated into this contract contains binding magical language specifying that before the Triwizard Tournament officially concludes, if Miss Hermione Granger suffers any form of malicious attack outside the designated competition arenas from either party to the bet or any forces evidentially related to them, the entire sum wagered will automatically and conclusively become the sole property of Gringotts—”

Engel couldn’t hide the satisfaction at the corners of his mouth, but when he noticed the flicker of displeasure in Watson’s eyes, his heart skipped a beat, and he hastily explained.

“Oh, please don’t misunderstand our intentions, Mr. Watson,” He said, his gravelly voice taking on an appeasing tone.

“We goblins value honest dealings and contractual integrity far more than many wizards give us credit for. We generally wouldn’t resort to such seemingly deceptive practices in our standard business operations, but these people were so clearly harboring ulterior motives that I felt compelled to take reasonable precautions.

Ah, and naturally, I must emphasize that we would never actively orchestrate or permit any attack on Miss Hermione Granger. Your friendship with Mr. Barnah is considered far too valuable to jeopardize through such dishonorable actions!”

“I should sincerely hope so—” Bryan responded with a smile that appeared pleasant enough on the surface but never quite reached his eyes.

He believed Engel was most likely telling the truth about their intentions, not because he trusted these goblin’s character or ethical standard but because he trusted his own judgment and ability to discern deception.

The goblin’s explanation aligned with what Bryan understood of their financial philosophy: they had created a situation where they would profit regardless of the outcome, particularly if anyone attempted to manipulate events improperly.

Setting down the teacup, Bryan resumed his examination of the magically signed names inscribed at the bottom of the contract. Several pages later, as he worked his way through the list of signatories, a particular name suddenly jumped out at him from among the dozens of others, causing his eyes to narrow and his heart to momentarily skip a beat in recognition.

‘Jasna Vogel’

According to the smuggling list that Kingsley had provided, apart from the primary suspect Angus Aeschylus, forty-seven individuals had secretly left Britain for Germany in recent weeks, all leaving individually at different times. Among those names had been one Jasna Rosier.

‘Vogel and Rosier?’

Bryan mentally questioned.

Bryan’s brow unconsciously furrowed in concentration as he considered the potential connection. Neither of these two surnames was insignificant in certain circles.

Both had historical associations that raised immediate red flags in Bryan’s mind—connections to old families with questionable allegiances during the rise of dark wizards throughout recent European history.

Swish—

Bryan moved his finger, and this particular page of the contract flew out from the stack of papers with a soft rustling sound, hovering shortly in the air before floating to position itself in front of Engel’s startled face.

“Would it be possible for me to see what this woman looks like, Engel?” Bryan aske.

There was only one reliable way to view her appearance given the circumstances—through the extraction of memories.

Engel hesitated for a moment as he considered the request. Finally, he responded somewhat reluctantly. “Very well, Mr. Watson, if you insist—”

“Thank you sincerely for your cooperation, Engel—” Bryan responded with a gentle smile. “I can provide my personal assurance that your safety won’t be compromised in any way during this process.”

With that solemn promise, Bryan rose smoothly from the sofa, approached the goblin and under Engel’s enduring uncomfortable expression, Bryan drew out his wand and placed its tip against the goblin’s forehead.

The method of extracting goblin memories differed slightly from the technique commonly used with wizards. Bryan carefully drew several strands of faintly green-tinted silver threads from Engel’s temple. Then, with a flick of his wand, Bryan caused the silvery threads to burst open while rapidly spinning in the air between them, revealing a three-dimensional scene that materialized directly in front of his intensely focused gaze.

The memory showed a tavern with yellowish lighting cast by enchanted lanterns suspended from wooden beams. The tavern appeared to be somewhere in magical Paris, based on subtle architectural details and the snippets of French conversation perceptible in the background.

Many people in the crowded tavern were hunched over nearby tables and benches, using the surface of the tables to sign their names on parchments they had received from Engel himself.

Bryan manipulated the unfolding scene with subtle movements of his wand and, with Engel’s occasional murmured guidance, quickly focused the memory on a woman who had already signed her name and was now passing her copy of the wager contract back to Engel.

She was dressed in an expensive-looking gray coat, perfectly fitted blue jeans, and a high-necked black sweater. The woman had a beautiful appearance, though her expression was somewhat cold and sharp.

After his gaze lingered on the woman for a while, Bryan continued controlling the three-dimensional memory scene with wand movements. He carefully observed the appearances and demeanors of the other people near Jasna.

It wasn’t particularly difficult to notice that these people, each writing down their names on similar contracts, all had at least part of their attention focused on this Jasna woman. Clearly, she held a special position among this group.

“If I wanted to locate this Mrs. Vogel,” Bryan said thoughtfully.

“I’m sincerely sorry, Mr. Watson, but we are unable to assist you with that particular line of inquiry—” Engel seemed to have anticipated this question and responded candidly as the memory scene dissolved into mist in front of them.

“Miss Vogel is not currently a client of our Gringotts banking system and not just her—these wizards who jointly placed this bet, each of them apparently maintains and manages their personal wealth by themselves. So, we have no information regarding their current whereabouts, properties, or financial activities beyond what happened during the specific interaction you’ve just witnessed.”

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