The Bard of Hogwarts

Chapter 14 Farewell and Return

After confirming that Ino was truly uninterested in the gold coins, Old John tied the money bag back up with the rope.

"Thank you for your story last night; it changed my mind. As you might have guessed, these are the matches my daughter left behind, her only keepsake."

Ino also noticed that, compared to the relief he felt after unloading his burden last night, Old John now seemed more like a rebirth after being redeemed.

Even when mentioning her daughter's belongings, there was no trace of regret or sadness as before.

"But... since you gave me another big bag of new matches, I want to leave it for you, and also let the story of the 'Little Match Girl' live on in this land."

Old John laughed heartily, his laughter seeming to pierce through the clouds.

……

Outside the town, there is a narrow gravel road.

Although this road is somewhat narrow, barely wide enough for one horse-drawn carriage to pass, it is the only road leading to the nearby city.

"Old John, this is enough, really," Ino said gently.

After spending a month together, he understood the old man's mindset very well; his appearance... was really familiar.

It was like the scene of his elderly grandmother seeing him off after he had worked hard away from home for a whole year and returned home for a short reunion during the Spring Festival.

They escorted him from his home to his doorstep, and from his doorstep to the village entrance... Even after the car had driven far away, the old man remained standing there, unwilling to leave for a long time.

"Alright! I'm about to embark on a new journey, to try and catch up with the footsteps of spring. And you too must begin your own story; may I still hear your legend from afar."

Goodbye, old John!

To avoid the sadness of parting, after saying goodbye, Ino turned and stepped onto the long, gravel road without looking back.

On the other side, old John did not respond, but stood quietly in place, waving his aged arms as if saying goodbye.

After a while, Ino suddenly heard a distant poem coming from behind her.

That was Old John's voice, though the tone was a bit awkward, it was undoubtedly the meter commonly used by bards.

The voice was deep and resonant, and even though the distance was considerable, Ino could still clearly hear the contents of the poem, which was people's blessing to those who were far away from home.

……

London, on the banks of the Thames.

"I never expected you to have this trick up your sleeve..."

Ino returned to her original world, intending to cook a simple lunch, rest for a while, and then go out to buy food in the afternoon.

But to everyone's surprise, when they opened their bags, they found a familiar item hidden inside.

Old John's money bag containing gold coins.

This discovery left him both amused and exasperated. He had planned everything perfectly, but he hadn't expected Old John to possess such a skill. He could slip the money bag into Old John's bag without anyone noticing.

While he was touched, he was also relieved that the discovery hadn't been made; if it had, he would never have brought it out under any circumstances.

But now... this kind of unintentional approach is actually the most perfect solution.

Not only did he break the rules of the fantasy world and get a bag of gold coins, but he also didn't develop any greed, achieving the best of both worlds.

As for Old John's future livelihood, he wasn't worried at all.

As the next "protagonist" in the puzzle of this small town, to put it bluntly, even if everyone in the town were to die, Old John would still escape unscathed.

"This has solved our immediate problem... Thank you, Old John!"

Ino looked at the gold coins in front of her, silently thanked them, and then carefully placed the money bag inside her coat lining.

With this money, his only thought now is to sell all those secondhand items and replace them with new ones.

Especially that plain-colored robe, so worn it had developed a patina; if he weren't so broke, he wouldn't have picked it up even if it were lying on the ground.

"You can buy new robes, new cauldrons, and even book a room at the Leaky Cauldron..."

While calculating how to spend the money, Ino pondered the Gringotts exchange rate. A full bag of gold coins would be enough for him until graduation, provided he didn't squander it recklessly.

……

Diagon Alley.

Unlike the last time when it was rushed, Ino was clearly in a relaxed mood this time.

Of course, he didn't forget the purpose of his trip, and his first stop was the wizarding bank chain—Gringotts.

Stepping into this magnificent marble hall once again, I saw a hundred or so fairies, each less than two feet tall, sitting behind a long row of counters, either weighing coins on bronze scales or carefully examining gems with eyepieces.

In short, these fairies seemed to have endless work to do and appeared extremely busy.

"I need to exchange some Gallon! But you need to tell me the exchange rate first."

Ino walked to the counter and took out a gold coin that Old John had given him from his pocket.

The golden voice, distinctive to him, immediately transformed the somewhat impatient fairy into a fawning one, who spoke:

"Of course! Dear guest, Gringotts' exchange rates have always been open and transparent."

"That would be perfect!" Ino placed the gold coins on the counter and urged, "My time is precious! I think you know what to do."

Ino's tone was somewhat arrogant, but the fairy opposite him had a completely normal expression. In its eyes, the little wizard opposite him was dressed a little... excessively simply.

But the calm and confident temperament that comes from within is something that many children from pure-blooded families cannot possess.

"I will weigh and calculate the cost for you as soon as possible! It won't take too long."

The fairy's smile grew even brighter. It knew very well that in Gringotts, judging a client's identity by their clothing and appearance alone was far from enough. With that in mind, it immediately began to work.

Color, weight, hardness...

After a series of actions, the fairy was 100% certain that the gold coin in front of her was pure gold. However, what troubled her was that the coin looked like an antique with some history. If she were to exchange it only at the price of gold...

After some thought, greed ultimately triumphed over reason, and the fairy cautiously said:

"The gold coin is of considerable purity and weighs a total of 1.2 ounces, so... this gold coin can be exchanged for 145 Galleons."

Upon hearing this, Ino quickly calculated in his mind. He had done some research before coming. In 1991, the international gold price was $350 per ounce, while the exchange rate between the US dollar and the British pound was 1:1.95.

"800 pounds for 145 Galleons is a pretty good price."

After some deliberation, Ino made up her mind and immediately took out two more gold coins from her pocket, saying, "Exchange them for me too."

But what he didn't know was that this casual gesture made the fairy opposite him feel awkward.

At this moment, the fairy seemed to be wearing a mask of pain. After hesitating for a few seconds, she whispered:

"Actually... this gold coin might be considered an antique, provided you tell me its history, and..."

"No need! This is just a work of art; you can exchange it for gold." Ino interrupted the fairy.

He had considered this question, but fabricating a story out of thin air just to make more money would be the most foolish thing to do.

After all, a few hundred grams of extra gold is no big deal in the magical world, but the emergence of an undiscovered piece of history out of thin air is something that's hard to ignore.

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(End of this chapter)