Harry Potter and the Hidden Treasure (Volume 3)

Chapter 456 The Mobile School Of Magic!

Harry and Ron secretly gulped. They were taken aback by the strict regimen of the Japanese School of Magic.

If Hogwarts were to do the same, and each young wizard were to be given a magical robe to indicate their performance and transgressions of school rules; based on the past experiences of several of them, they could have been expelled from the school long ago and even imprisoned in Azkaban.

In recent years, they had broken countless school rules. If school uniforms could change color, they would now all be white, the whitest of the white.

"There are two schools of wizards left, one of which is located in Tibet, China. It is said to be on a sacred snow-covered mountain, inaccessible and snow-covered all year round. All the wizards there wear thick robes to protect themselves from the cold," said Sirius.

Evan had seen a related description of this in Lockhart's "A Year with the Yeti." But he couldn't remember the details clearly.

If Hermione were there, she would remember everything.

Overall, Lockhart once observed the mysterious Eastern School of Magic from afar when he was hunting with the Yeti.

In the white snow, through the thick mist, he saw a magnificent building emerging in the mountains.

The exterior of the building looked like a splendid palace with a rich oriental style and a mysterious vibe.

The eaves at the four corners of the palace rose high as if about to take flight.

Behind the eaves were many auspicious beasts, each with different meanings.

With the wizards' magic, they all seemed to be infused with life and special magical effects.

The top of the palace was covered with turquoise tiles, brightly colored, stacked one upon another.

Under the reflection of the rising sun, magical creatures resembling golden dragons could be seen circling the palace in the air.

Mysterious magical runes shimmered occasionally, a powerful sign of defensive magic; all uninvited visitors couldn't easily enter.

Lockhart mentioned regretfully that he couldn't enter because he wasn't invited. Of course, this was certainly not true.

He surely had never been to Tibet, let alone seen the mysterious Eastern School of Magic.

But this experience must have happened. It was the experience of the wizard whose memory was stolen by Lockhart.

Although he hadn't read the book carefully, Harry remembered it vividly.

Among the many astonishing creatures, the Yeti was probably the most impressive to him.

Almost two years ago, Lockhart asked him to portray a fifteen-foot-tall Yeti many times in class. According to the story in the book, he played the character of the snowman.

At Lockhart's request, they even went to the lower grades to perform this "game" in the classroom.

Because Lockhart mentioned it many times in a lamentable tone, Harry recalled the School of Magic in Tibet, China.

"Just like in Japan, the management of the school of magic is equally strict in China. In fact, it's a bit like Durmstrang. They only accept pure-blood wizards. For centuries, they have only accepted applications from students of pure-blood magical family origins," said Sirius, "When I was in the second year, I read it in the Daily Prophet, and the debate was particularly intense. The International Confederation of Wizards had planned to send a research team to investigate the matter and was prepared to take strict punitive measures to stop them. But in the end, they did not, and the school still upholds this ancient tradition."

"Why?" Ron said incredulously.

"Everyone thinks this is extremely unfair," explained Sirius. "Think about it. Because of this unreasonable admission requirement, all talented wizards born in Muggle families in China have no access to magic. Most of them don't even know about the existence of the magical world. They can only live among Muggles..."

"But isn't it the same for Durmstrang?" Harry asked.

"That's the problem. They have their own admission criteria for these schools of long-standing magic tradition. Many traditions can span centuries, even thousands of years. It's hard for outsiders to control them, even if their traditions are unreasonable or unfair!" Sirius said, "The environment in Asia is different from ours. If they don't go to Durmstrang, young wizards from Europe can also go to Hogwarts and Beauxbatons. But in China, if you're not of pure blood, that means you never have a chance. Under the restrictions of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, magic schools in other countries cannot directly recruit students from China."

This was truly unfair, but as Sirius remarked, no one could alter this ancient tradition.

China had an exceedingly large population and numerous Muggle-born wizards with magical talents.

Nevertheless, due to this stringent admission criteria, most of their talents had been wasted and left unexplored.

Upon experiencing their first magical "awakening," the young wizard's magical ability would gradually diminish with age.

Unless remarkably fortunate, these Muggle-born wizards would invariably end up resembling Muggles in adulthood.

Following the tale of the Chinese School of Magic and Sorcery, a moment of silence ensued.

"Sirius, you just mentioned there are three magic schools in East Asia; where is the last one?" inquired Harry.

"No one knows, for the final school was known as a Mobile School of Magic," Sirius replied.

"A Mobile School of Magic?!"

"Yes," Sirius affirmed. "No one knows which country it belongs to. It has been sighted in China, Japan, South Korea, and even Australia. The school drifts on the sea, carried by ocean currents, with no fixed location."

"Drifting at sea, that sounds intriguing!" exclaimed Ron.

What a marvelous image to envision; a magical school adrift at sea with ocean currents.

"It's also the most mysterious of all magic schools, and this goes beyond just its location!" Sirius continued, "Even how they recruit students, the number of students, teaching methods, and overall strength are unknown, and the outside world has no way of knowing anything about it."

"How can we confirm the existence of such a school?" Evan inquired.

"It's because they have already registered with the International Confederation of Wizards, which seems to have happened a long time ago. Yet, they still retain recognition in the magical world!" Sirius replied, "Although they have little contact with the outside world, there are still records about them. If you are interested, you can explore further information at the library."