Chapter 7: A Trip to Gringotts
Momo Ran Publishing Company is located at number 18 on the south side of Diagon Alley.
Its most famous publication is “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” written by Newt Scamander.
Well, everyone is from Hufflepuff.
Although this was Douglas's destination today, he needed to go to Gringotts more urgently now.
Gringotts is a Wizard bank run by Goblins.
Although in Douglas's memory, it was not as safe as the Goblins described, there was no other choice.
He couldn't just leave a large pile of Galleons at his residence, could he?
His manuscript fees were usually directly transferred by Slynn to his personal vault at Gringotts.
It was regrettable that although the journey to Gringotts was not far, it was destined not to be smooth sailing.
It was the start of the school term, making the already narrow street even more crowded.
This made Douglas recall the first time Professor McGonagall brought him into the magic world.
At this moment, a shout woke him from his memories.
It turned out that he had already arrived at the entrance of Momo Ran Publishing Company with the crowd.
And that senior, Slynn, was calling him while moving towards him.
“Oh, merlin's beard, Douglas, I thought I would never see you again in this lifetime.
You've come to Diagon Alley, and you're not coming to find me first. Where are you going?”
Slynn's face showed three parts genuine and seven parts feigned anger, as he grabbed Douglas.
Although he valued this junior who was also from Hufflepuff, and they had cooperated for ten years.
However, besides the time he was in school and could write manuscripts on time, he had been running all over the world after graduation.
He claimed it was for inspiration, and several times Slynn sent out owls,
They either flew exhaustedly to Egypt or to the distant East, and once they were almost caught in North America.
He was very hard to find.
Seeing Slynn directly come up and put his arm around his neck,
Douglas gave an awkward smile and quickly cleared his throat.
“Oh my! Senior, long time no see. You're looking radiant lately, there must be good news!
I'm just going to Gringotts to withdraw some Galleons so I can treat you to a big meal!
Let's celebrate your good news together!”
Slynn looked him up and down and snorted disdainfully:
“A big meal? Which big meal is better than the cooking of someone like you, who has his own private kitchen in the Hogwarts kitchen?
The last time I ate your cooking was when you had just graduated, wasn't it?
Besides, what good news do I have?
Just now I was threatened by your fans with a Howler!”
Douglas took the opportunity to free himself from the other's grasp and quickly took out a thick manuscript and a small snack from his bag.
“I told you long ago, when fan letters arrive, just find a room and put them away.
You can read them slowly when you have time. If there's any special material, you can even add a dish.
Speaking of Hogwarts, I have good news for you. I successfully…”
Before he could finish, Slynn directly took the things from his hand, regardless of what they were.
Then he said with a troubled expression:
“Your good news can wait. I have some bad news now, and it's related to you.”
Douglas frowned. He rarely came to the magic world, so what bad news could be related to him here?
Slynn put the items in one hand, then freed a hand and patted Douglas's shoulder.
“You know Gilderoy Lockhart, right? The author of 'Voyages with Trolls' and 'Magical Me,' I mentioned him to you before.”
Douglas felt strange hearing that name again.
Although he had taken his Professor position, they had never met, so there was no enmity between them.
Besides, Dumbledore had said that he had refused first.
Moreover, they were not signed with the same company, so there would be no conflict.
Seeing Douglas remain silent, Slynn said with a look of disgust:
“Oh, merlin's beard, my dear Holmes, you really should pay more attention to the British magic world.
Mr. Lockhart is being promoted by our old rival—Rumi Hart Publishing Company. Today, he even held a fan meet-and-greet at Flourish and Blotts.
He even showed Dumbledore's invitation letter inviting him to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts Class Professor at Hogwarts…”
Douglas thought he was going to say some terrible news.
He moved aside to avoid passersby and said:
“Don't worry, my dear Slynn, what I'm giving you is the latest volume of 'Master of All Professions,'
And it's an update exclusively for the magic world version; the Muggle World version hasn't started yet…”
Slynn didn't pay attention to what Douglas said next, his attention completely drawn to the envelope in his hand.
Immediately, an astonished expression appeared on his face, and he slapped Douglas hard on the shoulder,
“That's great, young man, there's no better news than this, unless you're willing to reveal your true identity as the author.
That would be even better…”
At this point, Slynn cautiously glanced at the surrounding crowd again.
He clutched the manuscript in his arms tightly and then whispered:
“I need to go back quickly and read the rest of the story. No, sorry, I mean review it, and then arrange for it to be published as soon as possible.
I also need to do promotions, after all, the last volume update was a long time ago. This might even boost the sales of the previous books again…”
After speaking, he didn't bother with Douglas and ran directly towards the company.
Douglas looked at the hurried figure and shrugged helplessly.
He knew this guy constantly urged him for manuscripts purely for his own enjoyment.
After all, the speed of publishing in the magic world was not fast, and he was already considered prolific.
He had published three sets in ten years, each set about twenty volumes.
He was already very prolific, so occasionally taking a year or so off, the publishing house could understand.
Without Slynn nagging beside him, Douglas quickly arrived at the entrance of Gringotts.
A tall, snow-white building with a bronze main entrance where Goblins stood dressed in scarlet, gold-trimmed uniforms.
Douglas was glad the other party didn't shout:
“Welcome! One male guest…”
Otherwise, he would have thought he had entered a bathhouse.
The Goblin led him into a tall marble hall.
Although there were many customers inside, the Goblin who led him was very perceptive and helped him find a counter with no queue.
After verifying his identity, the Goblin quickly led him to the vault.
A very small vault, containing all of Douglas's assets in the magic world.
Approximately over four hundred thousand Galleons, wealth accumulated over nearly ten years.
Besides this, there was nothing else in the vault that could show wealth.
After all, in the vaults of old Wizard families, there might be various precious alchemy equipment and magic items.
Unfortunately, Douglas was so poor he only had Galleons.
It wasn't that he truly had no magic items; he had obtained some good things during his travels over the years.
But he still couldn't compare to those people.
Of course, this money was not fixed; every month, some royalties would be transferred from the Momo Ran Publishing Company's vault.
Similarly, Douglas's deposits in the Muggle World had exceeded two million pounds.
If it weren't for his unwillingness to publicly market himself and his refusal to authorize any peripheral industries,
Otherwise, his wealth would have increased dozens of times.
Enough money to spend, enough food to eat.
Before the system appeared, he had achieved the 'lying flat' state expected of a useless transmigrator.
If the system hadn't added a time limit back then, Douglas felt he could have continued to lie flat indefinitely.
Soon, he withdrew ten thousand Galleons, as well as some loose Silver Sickles and copper knuts.
Then, guided by the Goblin, he returned to the surface.
Stepping out of Gringotts' bronze doors,
Looking at the bustling crowd on the street, Douglas suddenly felt a trace of confusion.
Why had he come to Diagon Alley?
Oh, right.
Slynn had requested to meet, but unfortunately, after getting the manuscript, the other party quickly abandoned him.
Douglas suddenly thought of a good place, a shop called the Junk Shop.
This shop was like a ghost market hidden in various cities.
It gave people the joy of treasure hunting.
During his school days, Douglas had found some textbooks and notes from former Hogwarts seniors there.
These senior notes had greatly helped him on his magic path.