"Sorry, sir?"
The goblin handling the reception seemed unable to believe his own ears and asked again.
"Hello, I'm here to rob the place," Wayne repeated very politely.
Goblin: "..."
This time, he was certain he hadn't misheard.
Could someone actually dare to rob Gringotts?
Hogwarts and Gringotts had always been touted as the safest places in the world. Countless people had set their sights here, but very few had succeeded.
The most recent attempt was a few years ago when someone tried to steal from Dumbledore's vault. Although they successfully broke into the underground vaults, they were discovered by the guards and fled in panic.
And... even if someone came to steal, they would sneak in covertly.
What kind of robber was this polite?
"Sir, your joke is rather poor," the goblin ultimately decided Wayne must be joking and shook his ugly head.
Bang!
A tremendous force sent him flying, crashing heavily onto the floor. The dull thud made all the wizards queuing and the goblins weighing gold look over.
After a brief silence of a few seconds, the goblin lying on the floor screamed!
"Help! Someone's robbing Gringotts!"
Ding-a-ling!
An old goblin behind a counter immediately pressed a red button under the desk, and a piercing alarm quickly sounded throughout the Great Hall.
"Sir, drop your wand." Several wizard guards inside Gringotts had already surrounded him, and more wizards kept Disapparating into view.
"If I drop my wand, how am I supposed to rob the place?" Wayne looked at the wizard who had just spoken as if he were an idiot, casually flicking a spell at him. The wizard didn't react in time, but a protective shield appeared in front of him.
Hm?
Wayne was mildly surprised inwardly; he hadn't expected this person to be carrying protective gear of his own make.
But thinking about it, it made sense. Gringotts was immensely wealthy—it would be strange if their guards weren't equipped. He had indeed received many orders from Gringotts back in the day.
Was this a case of producing and consuming his own goods?
As he pondered, dozens of spells came flying towards him. Wayne casually drew an arc with his wand, deflecting all the spells. He waved his wand freely, easily suppressing over a dozen wizards. If not for each of them carrying several protective items, many would have been injured long ago.
The rest of the people in the Great Hall screamed and fled the scene, while the goblins hid themselves. The guards grew more and more alarmed the longer they fought—just where had this formidable man come from!
Suddenly, a sharp-eyed wizard recognised the uniquely shaped wand in Wayne's hand and cried out in disbelief, "Grindelwald! That's Grindelwald's wand! He's Grindelwald in disguise!"
"I hadn't expected such an exquisite disguise of mine to be seen through by you."
The middle-aged man's voice changed, and his body gradually transformed into Grindelwald's. A surge of formidable magical power lashed out like a whip, its power skyrocketing compared to the playful spells from before.
Defensive shields shattered one after another, and the Gringotts guards instantly lost their ability to fight, collapsing to the floor.
"Don't kill me!" One guard begged in collapse.
"Shh!" 'Grindelwald' placed a finger to his lips. "Don't worry, child. I'm here to rob, not to kill."
Snap!
He snapped his fingers, and a ring of blue flames immediately rose around him, encircling the entire Great Hall.
"Don't even think about Apparating." Wayne cast a spell, knocking out a wizard who was about to activate the escape spell. "Within the range of my fire, Apparating will leave you utterly annihilated."
People looked at him with terror-filled eyes, trembling and desperately crowding towards the centre, afraid the flames might reach them.
The unique wand, the signature blue flames.
No doubt about it, this man was Grindelwald!
Even if someone told them it was an imposter, they wouldn't believe it.
"Ah!"
A Goblin, ignoring the warning, forcibly activated a device to escape. Before his body could fully dematerialise, a wisp of flame coiled around him, burning him to ashes.
Wayne watched coldly, showing no intention of stopping it.
"Every wizard is a precious resource, but Goblins are not. They control vast amounts of wealth and send curse-breakers all over the world to search for treasures that originally belonged to wizards..."
"Fellow wizards, haven't you realised it yet? The Goblins are exploiting wizards; you're just tools for them to make money."
Playing the part to the full, since he was using Grindelwald's identity to do some good, Wayne naturally had to perform convincingly.
In just a few sentences, he had already turned many wizards' gazes towards the Goblins into hostility.
Twirling his wand, Wayne said softly, "I'm a bit short on funds lately. Who'd like to do me a small favour and take me to the richest vault here?"
"No one speaking? Then I'll pick someone at random. You." Wayne selected a Goblin who had once served him, pulling him forward and pressing the wand against his head:
"Choose: life or death?"
"Don't kill me! I'll take you!"
The Goblin trembled and pointed at another companion, an older Goblin. "The keys to the deep vaults are with him!"
Thump!
A bundle of keys weighing dozens of pounds was thrown over.
Taking the keys, the captive Goblin searched through them and quickly found one.
"This is the key to Lawrence's vault. He's Gringotts' wealthiest client!"
Wayne: "..."
'Isn't this a bit of a boomerang?'
'Robbing myself?'
Bang~!
The Goblin holding the key instantly exploded into a mist of blood, splattering the nearby Goblins and nearly stopping their breath.
"How dare you! Lawrence is a prodigious talent, immensely powerful, a great wizard unmatched in history. You want me to rob his vault? How dare you try to drive a wedge between us!"
With his anger, the blue flames surged again, completely sealing off the space.
"You." Wayne pointed at the old Goblin from before. "Take me to the underground vaults."
Gringotts has many vaults, broadly divided into three types.
The first type is located in a massive cavern, filled with countless small holes of various sizes, each cavity serving as a storage vault.
These are generally for ordinary wizards, basically storing salaries with no real treasures.
The second type is the private vault, like Harry's family's, which requires a short train ride deeper underground. These are more concealed and larger.
And the final type is the deepest part of Gringotts' vaults, the core area, guarded by a dragon.
Generally speaking, the smaller the vault number, the more it signifies either vast wealth or ancient lineage, with early-established cooperation with Gringotts.
Of course, there were exceptions – like Wayne himself. Gringotts had repeatedly offered him vaults with lower numbers, but he found it too bothersome and simply opened two more instead.
Now, it seemed even the third one was nearly full.
The old Goblin drove the cart downward with Wayne aboard. After several sharp turns, a waterfall appeared ahead.
This was one of Gringotts' security measures – passing through the waterfall would reveal one's true form.
Wayne pointed a finger, and the rock wall above the waterfall crumbled violently. The old Goblin slammed on the brakes as both figures flashed, teleporting along with the cart onto the tracks beyond.
"Don't try to stall. The Ministry of Magic can't save you."
The old Goblin felt terribly wronged – he wouldn't dare play tricks before the Dark Lord. His slowing down had been purely instinctive.
After a few more minutes, the cart finally reached the deepest level.
The old Goblin led 'Grindelwald' before the massive door of Vault 005.
"Which family's is this?" Wayne asked casually.
"Silvertear," the old Goblin answered dutifully. "The Silvertear bloodline died out over three hundred years ago, but they were once extremely prosperous. There must be vast amounts of Galleons and treasures inside."
Wayne had heard of the family but said nothing more, gesturing for him to open the door.
The old Goblin looked troubled. "Mr Grindelwald, the top-level vaults have special protective measures. The key alone won't open them."
"Useless." Wayne glanced at him, sending him flying back with a shockwave before beginning an incantation.
Had he been using his own identity, Wayne could have easily breached the door through numerous methods.
But posing as Grindelwald... required the use of Dark Magic.
After chanting for a full five seconds, green sludge bubbled up from the ground. The door sizzled and quickly corroded, creating a gaping hole.
The old Goblin hadn't lied – inside the vault, Galleons were piled into over a dozen small mountains, each containing tens of thousands of coins. Exquisite armour and swords lay scattered about, their gemstones' glow dimmed beneath layers of dust.
Producing a dragon-hide bag charmed with an Undetectable Extension Charm, Wayne began his zero-cost shopping spree.
In under five minutes, the vault stood empty.
He was certain hidden treasures remained here, much like with the Black Family, but he wasn't actually here for profit. Having collected everything visible, he turned to leave.
"ROAR!"
Just as Wayne opened his mouth, the roar of a dragon echoed through the cavern.
This was Gringotts' ultimate security measure – an Ironbelly, nearly a hundred feet long, its grey-white scales bearing numerous iron bars and scars from other tortures that made it appear even more terrifying.
"A dragon?" 'Grindelwald' sneered contemptuously. "So old it can barely move. What use is it?"
The Ironbelly dragged its chains with a clatter, seemingly understanding Wayne's mockery. Dangerous light gleamed in its crimson eyes as its massive jaws opened, unleashing ten fireballs that roared forth.
A blue shield materialised, blocking the flames beyond the barrier.
"Find yourself a grave to spend your remaining years, you pathetic old creature," Wayne said calmly, sweeping his hands through the air. Several blades of magical power sliced through the chains that had bound the dragon for centuries.
The iron-bellied dragon seemed not to have expected this wizard to actually help it, remaining stunned for quite some time before realising—it was already free.
Then, its scarred wings spread wide, and it soared skyward without looking back.
The old goblin watched this scene with tearless despair, knowing Gringotts in Britain was utterly finished—not only would it be plundered by the Dark Lord, but even its foundation had been set loose.
"Let's go, time to visit the next one." Having done a good deed, Wayne was in even better spirits.
The two arrived at the neighbouring Rosier family vault, then Malfoy, then Selwyn.
And Black.
Though it felt somewhat inappropriate to rob Sirius, he couldn't be left out either. Using the excuse that he already had enough Galleons, Wayne only took some antiques and jewellery.
Finally... the old goblin brought Wayne to the Lestrange family vault.
Violently blasting the door open, Wayne entered the vault. The surrounding torches ignited, illuminating the dazzling reflections from the gold.
With a flick of his wand, everything floated into mid-air. It appeared he was searching for valuable collectables, but in reality... Wayne was looking for Hufflepuff's Cup.
But to his disappointment... There was no sign of Hufflepuff's Cup here, not even a trace of it.
'Just as expected... Voldemort no longer dares to entrust Horcruxes to others carelessly.'
After demolishing the entire vault, even destroying the hidden chambers,
Wayne still hadn't found what he wanted, and his enthusiasm waned.
"Let's go."
When Wayne and the old goblin reached the thirteenth pure-blood family vault, a group of goblins arrived with Aurors in tow.
"Grindelwald!"
"It really is Grindelwald!"
"My family's vault! Merlin's beard!"
The Aurors all stepped back in terror, except for one wizard who fired a spell in bitter fury—for the vault Wayne was currently visiting happened to be his family's.
"Money lost can be claimed from the goblins, but life lost means everything is over."
Wayne chuckled as he deflected the spell, "I'll thank you for your contribution to the great cause, this... Mr Dawlish."
With his objective achieved, Wayne lost interest in continuing his plunder.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, 'Grindelwald' gave an elegant bow, gradually fading until he disappeared completely.