As Ryan entered the open vault door, he was still in a dream. It wasn't just the flowing lake water that seemed blocked by some invisible barrier, blocked from the vault door. Nor was it just that his body didn't show a single sign of being wet.
Even more fantastical was the knowledge of the vault's origins.
Neil the goblin's words explained it all—the vault existed before Gringotts was founded. In fact, the entire existence of Gringotts was commissioned by the goblin Ragnark I to protect it. And the owners of the vault were undoubtedly his four teachers!
"It seems that after I left, the four teachers went to Ragnark I specifically and asked him to leave this vault... Poor fellows."
Although Gringotts was founded in 1474—a considerable time after Ryan's four teachers existed—Ryan didn't find it surprising. As magical creatures, goblins have a much longer lifespan than wizards. Goblin kings like Ragnark I boast lifespans exceeding five hundred years.
Ryan's only curiosity was how much "reason" the Goblin King had to listen to before agreeing to help.
"That guy's a stubborn bastard—the teachers must have some kind of handle on him," Ryan muttered, but he was soon captivated by the contents of the treasury.
First, the treasury was unconventionally vast, so vast that Ryan even thought it looked more like a castle The castle's floor was densely packed with countless items. At the very center, a mountain of gold. Literally, a mountain of gold Galleons inscribed with goblin script, so bright it almost blinded Ryan.
Beneath it was a message:
[Don't forget exploration and courage]
"Excellent! Excellent! Mr. Godric, you've done well!"
Ryan instantly confirmed that this was exactly what he had been thinking about—the Galleons Gryffindor had extorted... well, accepted as gifts from the Goblin Kingdom! But it was clear that Galleons were far from the only important item in the vault.
Or, to be more precise, they were actually the least important part of the entire treasury.
Around the golden mountain, Ryan could see a number of magical plants and their corresponding seeds. They had been meticulously preserved and carefully sealed in herbal bags.
"Devil's Snare..."
"Chinese Chomping Cabbage..."
"Greek Basilisk..."
"Kunlun Chalcedony..."
A Potions Master or Herbalist present would have immediately noticed. The combined value of the magical plants here even surpassed that outrageous mountain of gold. Many of these magical plants were even extinct in this era! And within this vault, they were piled up like mountains, almost too numerous to count!
Beneath each of these magical plants was a message:
[Don't forget diligence and health.]
Beyond these herbal bags, on one side of the vault, lay massive bookshelves filled with thick magical tomes. The books were a bit dusty, but the elegant blue handwriting still etched itself across the shelves. There were also numerous books within—treasures long lost in time.
[Don't Forget Knowledge and Calmness]
Finally, at the edges of this treasure trove, a seemingly incongruous collection of objects lay. These ranged from magical props emitting a dark aura to the heads, hearts, and bones of magical creatures. Ryan could at least recognize the wings of a thunderbird, the feathers of a griffin, and even the heart of a Zouwu.
[Don't Forget Caution and Ambition]
Without leaving a name, Ryan could simply look at these gifts, passed down through the millennia, and he could tell who each one came from. Finally, at the deepest part of the treasure trove, Ryan saw the final gift within.
It was a wand, meticulously presented in a gift box.
The wand was approximately fourteen inches long, and surprisingly, its color began to shift from the handle, eventually embodying a shifting, intertwining hue of four colors: red, yellow, blue, and green—the colors symbolizing Hogwarts.
Beneath this wand, a message was also written:
[We left something for you at school—don't try to find us until you get it.]
[Finally, happy birthday to you... our disciple.]
And so, all of Ryan's thoughts fell silent.
A thousand years ago, and during those seven years, Ryan had never truly possessed a wand of his own. The reason was simple—in that era, the rules of the wizarding world were very primitive. There were no magic academies, and all wizards worked under a master-apprentice system.
Dark wizards had no need to hide themselves in the wizarding world and could appear openly.
Wizards back then wouldn't explain the rules of dueling, nor would they wait for you to draw your wand and bow before engaging. Therefore, wandless spellcasting, silent spellcasting, using someone else's wand, and even combat played a significant role in the wizarding training of that era.
Only after achieving a satisfactory level of skill in all of these could a wizard be gifted his own wand by his mentor. It was a symbol of a wizard's successful apprenticeship—a wizard's 'coming of age.'
Of course, Ryan, having been mentored by the four founders, had already earned their approval by his seventh year. They had even told him he would receive his wand on his eighteenth birthday. But alas, three days before his eighteenth birthday, Ryan returned to this era.
He hadn't received his wand, hadn't even seen it.
But now, he had it.
A thousand years later.
And with that, an uncontrollable question rose in his mind.
"You knew I'd come back, didn't you?" he asked softly, knowing no one would answer.
This treasure trove, along with the goblin's testimony, all suggested that his four teachers, the Four Great Founders of Hogwarts, had long known of his return to the wizarding world. They even seemed to know the exact date of his return.
But even so, "They left me no explanation," Ryan realized.
On the way to Diagon Alley, he had hinted to Flitwick that, in the eyes of the people of this era, the Four Great Founders of Hogwarts were long dead. Flitwick could even clearly pinpoint the deaths of two of them. Gryffindor was said to have died at the age of eighty-five, while Ravenclaw died much earlier—a mere fifty-five.
But Ryan didn't believe it. He knew all too well the strength of his teachers and the depth of their magical journey. Any ordinary wizard could easily survive a century with potions—how could they have died so young?
And now, what he saw in this treasure trove confirmed his conviction. If the Four Great Founders were truly dead, they couldn't have left Ryan any last words.
Quite the opposite...
"They left me something at the academy, telling me not to look for them until I find them..." Ryan's eyes pierced. "They might not be dead—at least not as early as Professor Flitwick said. Instead, some reason forced them to disappear!" He said in realization. "Professor Flitwick also said that Mr. Slytherin had a disagreement with the other three teachers and ultimately chose to leave Hogwarts... That's also unusual!"
No one knew better than him the depth of the friendship between the founders. Slytherin would never choose to leave his three best friends over a disagreement. So, even though it was just a guess, he was now absolutely certain—the Big Four weren't dead; they were simply hiding somewhere in the world for some reason. All he needed to do now was find them. After realizing this, Ryan suddenly felt relieved.
But then, a dilemma came over him.
"How am I going to carry all these things with me?"
Did he have to dive into the water every time he came to retrieve something from the treasure vault?
But just as Ryan was fretting, he felt a dizzying sensation. His body was instantly pushed out of the vault, the familiar chill of the lake water washing over him. But then he saw the door to the vault before him swirl. Then, the vast, castle-like vault transformed into a gray ring, which he placed on his right index finger before quickly vanishing.
"This ring... a chain metal item crafted by Mrs. Rowena using the Eternal and Invisible Retraction Charm?"
Ryan didn't have time to wonder before the scene shifted, and he was back on the train. But now, the train was stationary, and the goblin Neil was fast asleep inside. Below, the surface of the underground lake continued to ripple.
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Author's note
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