The Christmas holidays at Hogwarts had drawn to a close. As the students boarded the Hogwarts Express to return to school, Cassandra actively sought out Wentworth.
However, when they met in the library, Wentworth was startled by Cassandra's appearance.
Despite wearing light makeup, she couldn't conceal the dark circles under her eyes. At first glance, Wentworth even thought she had intentionally applied smoky eye makeup.
Just as Wentworth was about to ask what she had been up to the past few days, Cassandra tossed a thick notebook onto the table in front of him and said:
"This notebook contains records of all the fireplaces in Hogsmeade that are connected to the Floo Network. The names listed beside each fireplace belong to the wizards who have used the network to travel in and out of Hogsmeade in recent times."
Hearing Cassandra's words and noting her pale complexion, Wentworth felt a surge of gratitude. Without thinking, he grabbed her hands and said emotionally:
"Thank you, Cassandra. Leave the rest to me!"
However, Cassandra calmly withdrew her hands from his grasp and replied:
"There's no need. I've already filtered through the names for you. I can say with absolute confidence that the wizard you're looking for isn't among them."
Wentworth frowned and glanced at the thick notebook, deep in thought. After a long silence, he finally asked:
"Then… are there any fireplaces in Hogsmeade that have been illegally connected to the Floo Network?"
Without hesitation, Cassandra shook her head and explained:
"An illegal Floo connection refers to a fireplace that has been magically linked to the network without being registered with the Ministry of Magic.
"Unless such a fireplace remains completely unused, the Ministry would eventually detect its presence.
"I can't say for certain whether any illegal connections exist in Hogsmeade, but I can be sure that no wizard has used an unregistered Floo connection to enter the village in recent times."
Wentworth furrowed his brow even deeper, murmuring in disbelief:
"That doesn't make sense… Could it be that they didn't arrive via the Floo Network? Did they Apparate instead?"
But even as he voiced the possibility, he shook his head and dismissed it:
"Impossible. Not only is Hogsmeade rather remote, but due to its proximity to Hogwarts, Apparition is strictly prohibited in the area. Anyone attempting it would need exceptional skill and an immense reserve of magical power to succeed."
As Wentworth fell into deep thought, Cassandra hesitated as if she wanted to say something but held back.
Wentworth, noticing her hesitation, asked curiously:
"Cassandra, is there something you want to tell me?"
She considered his question for a moment before responding slowly:
"Wentworth… I'm not sure whether I should tell you this."
Wentworth waved a hand dismissively and smiled.
"Cassandra, if it's something you're uncomfortable sharing, you don't have to tell me. Don't force yourself."
But Cassandra shook her head and finally spoke.
"It's not exactly a secret… There's just one rather unique place in Hogsmeade. The fireplace there isn't monitored by the Ministry of Magic. Even my father has no knowledge of how frequently it's been used."
Wentworth's heart skipped a beat. For a moment, a voice echoed in his mind, telling him—
This is it!
Suppressing his excitement, Wentworth asked calmly:
"Oh? There's such a place in Hogsmeade? Even the fireplaces within Hogwarts itself must be monitored if they're connected to the Floo Network. I'm very curious… Who has enough influence to bypass the Ministry's supervision so openly?"
Cassandra simply gazed into his eyes and, after a brief pause, uttered a name—
A name Wentworth knew all too well.
"Gringotts."
At that moment, Wentworth froze in place. He hadn't expected this answer, yet the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
During the Goblin Rebellions of the past, goblins had been the ones forced into making countless concessions after their defeat at the hands of wizardkind—one of the most significant being the absolute prohibition against goblins owning or using wands.
The importance of wands in the wizarding world needed no explanation—especially for human wizards.
Before wands were invented, human wizards often found themselves at a disadvantage when facing magical creatures in battles of equal numbers. Their victories relied primarily on overwhelming numerical superiority.
But everything changed with the invention of wands.
To ensure that wizards retained complete control over the use of wands, the International Confederation of Wizards enacted legislation known as the Wand Ban. This law officially stripped goblins and many other intelligent magical creatures of their right to wield wands.
The moment the law was passed, it sparked widespread outrage, with goblins leading the resistance.
As tensions escalated, the conflict culminated in the Goblin Rebellions of the 18th century—a large-scale uprising against wizarding oppression.
In the end, however, the goblins were defeated.
As the war neared its conclusion, in an effort to bring a swift end to the bloodshed and reduce wizarding casualties, wizards and goblins entered negotiations. While goblins were forced to make significant concessions, they were granted certain privileges—seemingly minor in the eyes of wizards, but symbolically important to goblins.
One of these privileges was that the Ministry of Magic would not monitor goblin-operated fireplaces.
This knowledge was part of the core curriculum in Hogwarts' History of Magic classes, so it didn't take long for Wentworth to recall it.
As he reflected further, more memories surfaced—such as the goblins who had appeared at the Hog's Head Inn and the sudden, unexplained establishment of Gringotts in Hogsmeade.
A bold theory formed in Wentworth's mind. But instead of voicing it, he simply turned to Cassandra and said in a serious tone:
"Don't tell anyone about this—no one at all!"
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