Knowledge Is The Greatest Wealth
From time to time, magical creatures patrolled the area, flying overhead. A fire dragon, its wings nearly invisible due to degradation, spewed flames, illuminating the cave in a fiery red glow. Goblins were also visible on patrol, equipped with miner's lamps, guarding in front of each vault. Other wizards, like Braun, were also there to access their money.
The Braun family's vault wasn't very deep, and the mine cart stopped after a short journey. They got off and saw dozens of vaults, both large and small. Vault 117 belonged to the Braun family. Acorn was handed the key, and upon confirmation, he lightly and regularly knocked on the vault's door with his fingers.
"What is this for?" Hermione asked curiously.
"The unique magic of goblins is intricately tied to the safety of Gringotts' vaults. See that skeleton on that vault?" Braun pointed to a nearby door where a white bone in a black robe lay. Hermione flinched in fright.
"That's what happens to thieves; they get stuck to the door and are taken away by goblins on patrol. It seems this person was just unlucky, perhaps caught during the goblin's rest time. So, in the future, if you have money, you can also rent a vault here," Braun explained, trying to comfort Hermione.
Acorn seemed pleased with Braun's praise for Gringotts. After opening the vault and seeing the hill of galleons and sickles, the true wealth of the Braun family was revealed. However, the real treasure lay against the walls - books carefully protected by magic shields. This was the greatest wealth left to Braun by the Rowle family: knowledge, which was precisely why Braun had come.
"Wait for me!" Braun said to Hermione and moved towards the bookshelves. He touched the Ministry of Magic shield, and despite the initial pain and a drop of blood falling on it, he easily walked through it. He found the booklet he was looking for, carefully wrapped in black dragon skin with golden letters. This was the primary purpose of his visit. He also picked out a few other books before leaving.
With Braun's departure, the blue mask once again shrouded him. He casually grabbed a Galleon and left the vault.
"Mr. Braun Rowle, are you interested in considering trading those books? Our Gringotts also provide sales services..." Acorn glanced at Braun's backpack with some reluctance.
"Sorry, this is out of the question!" Braun replied with a smile. He knew the books were too precious to be sold.
"How unfortunate!" Acorn said, feigning disappointment, hiding his true regret.
They made their way back much faster this time. The minecart was safe, and soon, they were back in the hall where the Grangers had just finished exchanging galleons.
"Let's go first," Braun said to Acorn, and the latter bowed respectfully. Mrs. Granger voiced her dissatisfaction, feeling deceived by the exchange rate.
"Gringotts is so deceitful; five hundred pounds were only exchanged for one hundred galleons! And these gold coins are just alloys! This is simply fraud," she complained.
Braun explained patiently, "Galleons are made of a magical alloy, and only students can exchange British pounds for galleons. The pound is of no use to us and cannot be circulated. Gringotts charges for the exchange because of the students at Hogwarts, and each student can only exchange up to 200 galleons per year."
Mrs. Granger, feeling slightly more at ease after Braun's explanation, muttered a few more complaints but acknowledged the situation.