Professor McGonagall gently patted Sterling on the shoulder and retrieved her wand from his grasp.
She understood Sterling's overwhelming feelings perfectly. Few young wizards from Muggle backgrounds could remain indifferent to their first glimpse of Diagon Alley's entrance. This was the magical world unveiling its deepest mysteries to them for the very first time.
However, Sterling's thoughts differed considerably from what Professor McGonagall assumed. After all, he wasn't truly ignorant about magic. He had already witnessed far more wondrous magical scenes than most people could imagine.
Sterling gazed in fascination at the omnipresent "magical energy" that manifested as countless fine threads floating throughout Diagon Alley, nearly obscuring the sky above like an intricate web.
He had seen Andrew's magical energy before... a slender, almost transparent gray-white thread. He had also observed many wizards passing through Charing Cross Road, each carrying magical strands of various brilliant colors, generally as thick as several hundred yarn threads bundled together. And Professor McGonagall herself carried an impressive bundle of vibrant orange-yellow threads...
Countless wizards filled every corner of Diagon Alley, their individual magical threads interwoven together, creating an absolutely overwhelming tapestry of power.
Even more surprising to Sterling was discovering similar "threads" floating around the buildings themselves, appearing in even greater numbers than those surrounding ordinary wizards.
This was truly extraordinary, Sterling thought to himself. Perhaps he should purchase additional books about magical theory and practice.
As for consulting Lady Maleficent about this phenomenon... unfortunately, his ability to visually perceive "magical energy" seemed to function only in the waking world. Sterling had never observed such threads during his visits to the dream realm.
"Professor McGonagall, what should we purchase first?"
Sterling pushed aside his complex thoughts as McGonagall took his hand and began walking purposefully northward down the cobblestone street.
"Our first stop must be to exchange proper wizarding currency. We don't use pounds to purchase magical items, so we'll start at Gringotts, the wizarding bank."
"Professor, how many pounds exchange for wizard money?"
"That depends entirely on Gringotts' daily exchange rate. It fluctuates constantly, but generally it's about eight pounds to one Galleon. Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts are our three wizarding currencies."
Sterling already possessed some understanding from his conversations with Andrew, but he carefully pretended to hear this information for the first time.
Andrew obviously didn't want to reconnect with a magical world that had likely caused him considerable pain, so Sterling decided he wouldn't burden his guardian with unnecessary involvement. Hiding Andrew's knowledge seemed the kindest approach.
"One Galleon converts to seventeen Sickles, and one Sickle converts to twenty-nine Knuts."
After explaining this, McGonagall expected to see a puzzled expression cross Sterling's face, but she was genuinely surprised by his calm reaction. He didn't seem shocked by the extremely illogical conversion rates compared to Muggle currency systems.
Indeed, Sterling wasn't surprised at all. The magical world's exchange rates were admittedly terrible, but was the dream world's currency system really much better?
At least the magical world maintained consistent conversion rules. The dream world mostly relied on ancient gold coins or simple bartering systems.
So to Sterling, having a poorly designed currency system in a magical world seemed perfectly reasonable. Viewed differently, these strange rates were magical in themselves.
"That means one Galleon equals exactly four hundred and ninety-three Knuts."
Sterling didn't mind playing the role of a clever student. Teachers always appreciated quick mathematical skills.
Sure enough, McGonagall smiled with obvious pleasure.
"This child is remarkably intelligent. He'll definitely be sorted into Ravenclaw... a born little eagle."
"Ah, we've arrived, Mr. Page."
They stopped before an imposing snow-white building that towered above them. Sterling glanced up at its massive bronze doors, but his attention was immediately captured by a "goblin" wearing an elaborate red uniform with gold trim stationed nearby.
"Those are goblins. Gringotts is entirely their domain."
Before Sterling could voice his question, McGonagall provided the answer. This was an extremely common inquiry from Muggle-born beginners.
Sterling studied the goblin carefully. A deeply wrinkled face, cloudy protruding eyes, and an extremely pointed long nose and ears... it was difficult to connect the word "goblin" to this particular being.
He sincerely hoped he would never think about this goblin while in the dream world, or he might completely lose his cherished image of beautiful fairy sisters dancing gracefully in enchanted forests and flower fields.
To Sterling's way of thinking, these creatures were clearly dwarves or gnomes, not goblins at all.
Following McGonagall past the uniformed goblins, through the imposing bronze doors, and then through silver doors engraved with stern warnings, they entered a spacious marble hall.
Numerous tall counters stood throughout the vast space, with goblins perched on high stools facing their clients. Some were carefully weighing coins on delicate scales, while others inspected precious gems through small magnifying lenses.
Sterling wondered why they insisted on using such tall counters, since constantly climbing up and down those stools seemed exhausting and highly inconvenient.
McGonagall led him directly to an available counter and addressed the goblin, who was busily calculating figures on parchment. "A Hogwarts first-year student needs to exchange some pounds for proper wizarding currency."
The goblin looked up from his work, pushed his small broken square glasses higher on his nose, and his sharp yellow eyes showed a trace of obvious disdain. However, he displayed complete respect toward Professor McGonagall.
"Oh, Professor McGonagall, certainly... today's exchange rate is seven pounds to one Galleon, but recent Ministry budget cuts have unfortunately lowered our exchange limits somewhat..."
McGonagall frowned deeply. This was definitely bad news for Sterling's shopping expedition.
"What's the maximum number of Galleons we can convert today?"
"My apologies, Professor, but no more than thirty-five Galleons. This limit has already cost Gringotts considerable profit. We all understand that Muggle currency is essentially worthless."
"Mr. Page, we'll probably need to visit the secondhand bookstore later... though secondhand textbooks aren't necessarily inferior..."
Sterling quietly raised his hand, revealing several magnificent rubies nestled in his palm.
"Professor, do goblins accept precious gems or gold?"
"Oh, young sir, we absolutely welcome such profitable trades!"
Before McGonagall could respond, the goblin straightened up with obvious excitement, stretching his long fingers eagerly toward the gems in Sterling's hand.
How remarkably realistic these goblins were. His tone became far more humble and flattering than when he'd addressed Professor McGonagall, one of the most respected witches near the Forbidden Forest.
The goblin eagerly retrieved his magnifying lens and began inspecting each gem with meticulous care, as if he wanted to push his eyeballs directly into the precious stones.
"Mr. Page?"
"Professor McGonagall, after I received my acceptance letter yesterday, I correctly guessed that ordinary pounds couldn't possibly purchase items like dragon hide gloves, so there must be an exclusive wizarding currency system... Whether French Francs, American Dollars, or British Pounds, they can all be exchanged for gems or gold, correct?"
"Absolutely accurate reasoning, Mr. Page. I'm now certain you will make an outstanding Ravenclaw."
McGonagall applauded softly, truly convinced that this brilliant boy had no other possible House assignment.
Among all the students she had personally guided over the years, plenty had been sorted into Ravenclaw, but she had never encountered one who reached such logical conclusions immediately upon receiving their Hogwarts letter.
Sterling smiled with modest embarrassment.
"This distinguished young gentleman, we can offer twenty-three hundred Galleons for these exceptional gems! Would you like to open a personal vault here at Gringotts?"
The goblin's face flushed with excitement. These gems were extraordinarily rare, both in size and quantity, for an eleven-year-old child to possess.
Of course, these treasures came directly from Lady Maleficent's vast hoard... carefully selected gems from the Dragon Witch's private collection.
"Er, Professor?"
Vault procedures were completely beyond Sterling's knowledge, so he confidently deferred to McGonagall's expertise.
"Well... Mr. Page, if your family has no objections, opening a vault is perfectly acceptable. Gringotts maintains an excellent reputation for security and reliability. Of course, nothing too elaborate would be necessary."
After careful consideration, McGonagall offered this advice, believing Sterling was intelligent enough not to be treated like a completely clueless young wizard.
"Then please have this goblin open the smallest available vault for me. I'll store..."
"Keep one hundred Galleons readily accessible. After purchasing everything on your required list and perhaps a delightful pet, it should cost approximately seventy-five Galleons. The remainder can purchase additional books or serve as spending money."
Seeing Sterling's questioning expression, McGonagall, who was thoroughly familiar with Galleon values, planned this budget precisely.
Sterling nodded to the goblin to proceed exactly as McGonagall had suggested and received a satisfyingly heavy money pouch from the grateful creature.
The goblin informed him that for deposits under five hundred Galleons, no personal vault visits were required. Sterling felt genuinely relieved, as this would save considerable time.
Walking away from the imposing bronze doors, McGonagall glanced at the sun's position and spoke with a slight apology. "I still need to escort another student this afternoon, so we'll need to move efficiently."
"I'll take you to purchase your wand first. I suspect you'll need considerable time trying different options. Meanwhile, I can handle purchasing other standard items like cauldrons and scales."