Volume 4: The Sea and the Ship Heading North Chapter 265 The Northernmost Magic School
Jon didn't know what kind of discussions and arrangements had been made between Dumbledore and Grindelwald.
But now they certainly had no reason to refuse to go to Durmstrang, whether it was a visit or something else. Under the leadership of the witch named Vida, Jon and the others were apparated and disappeared on this coast.
Soon they emerged beside a large lake surrounded by mountains.
This was a place where the wind was howling and the temperature was definitely below zero, but the lake was not frozen, and there were several dark black boats slightly smaller than the Hogwarts docked on the shore.
The sails of these ships were decorated with authentic double-headed eagle and deer head emblems, and they were obviously the property of this northernmost magic school in Europe.
"Your ship will be brought here soon. Come on, follow me into the castle. The school has prepared a dinner specially for you tonight."
The witch, whose full name should actually be Vida Rosier, spoke to the Hogwarts students who were standing by the lake.
Jon took the lead and followed her, heading towards the dark castle not far from the mountain lake.
Hermione frowned slightly, and she was obviously uneasy. She walked quickly to Jon's side and lowered her voice so that only the two of them could hear.
"I have read some introductions to Durmstrang in the books in the library. It said that this school excludes Muggle students from enrolling..."
Jon was naturally aware of such things, he said softly.
"Hogwarts Castle used to treat students of all bloodlines equally. Rules can be changed. What kind of changes are made depends on the ideas of the person who controls the rules."
His words eased some of Hermione's doubts, but previous experiences had made this clever girl much more alert. She trusted Jon's judgment, but she would not let her guard down.
The group soon arrived at the foot of the castle.
Compared to Hogwarts Castle, Durmstrang Castle is obviously much smaller. From the outside, it is only four stories high. The black stone walls are covered with a lot of white snow that has not yet melted. Under the howling cold wind, it presents an ancient desolation.
Jon knew a little about Durmstrang's history.
This magic school was founded by the great Bulgarian witch Nerida Vukanova.
However, none of the wizards who founded magic schools had a good ending. Nerida died mysteriously not long after she founded Durmstrang, and no one has yet figured out the cause of her death.
The person who truly established the style of this school was its second principal, Harvon Mount.
Mount established Durmstrang's reputation for dueling and all forms of martial magic, which is the root of why the school is so open to the Dark Arts.
Compared to the academic research atmosphere of a normal magic school, the teachers and students of Durmstrang are keen on wizard duels and spells with powerful attack power.
And such spells are more or less related to black magic.
But being open to the Dark Arts does not mean equating it with Dark wizards. No matter which headmaster of Durmstrang is, he will not tolerate students with bad behavior and who are crazy about studying the Dark Arts. This leads to it being the school with the most expulsions of students every year among the three magic schools in Europe.
Rosier brought John and his group, as well as the two ghosts Nick and Gabriel, into the Durmstrang Castle.
They were greeted at the castle's foyer by two wizards also wearing blood-red robes, one of whom was a Hogwarts student and everyone was stunned when they saw his face.
That was the person that Jon had been impersonating with Polyjuice Potion, a professor of Transfiguration named "Spence Johnson".
After seeing the genuine Johnson, John's expression was a little strange. He originally thought that the identity he was pretending to be might not exist, and it was just a smokescreen jointly released by Dumbledore and Grindelwald. Unexpectedly, there really was such a person.
Faced with the somewhat strange looks from Jon and the others, the genuine Professor Johnson behaved much more friendly.
Perhaps because he is British, he always has a gentle smile on his face when he sees Hogwarts students.
He has a rough appearance, with a thick beard and a big belly, a bit like a normal-sized Hagrid.
"Welcome to Durmstrang."
Next to him was a tall, thin, middle-aged wizard with a cold face. One could tell that his welcome in broken English was not perfunctory, but it did not convey much joy.
"The principal shouldn't have asked you to come here. You should have sat by the fireplace to dry off the negative energy coming from your body." Johnson complained, and at the same time gave Jon and the others a kind smile, "I'm glad you can come here, kids."
The Hogwarts students thanked him politely, and then followed the three Durmstrang professors into the castle, which was much warmer inside than outside.
A long red carpet was laid on the floor leading to the corridor, and the surrounding walls were hung with murals with Nordic style, including fully armored knights holding lances and tightening reins, pirates jumping off the ship, shouting and holding notched axes, and beautiful girls wearing white gauze skirts and wreaths on their heads...
The students of Hogwarts looked around curiously. Most of them had been staying in the Hogwarts carriage since they entered school and had never been to a real magic school castle.
Even Hermione and the others, who had stayed in Hogwarts Castle for more than a year, were curious about their surroundings. They were not qualified to walk in corridors like this in their previous "school", and they were also very confused about what the place where normal little wizards went to school was like.
As they gradually went deeper into the castle, they finally saw the students from Durmstrang.
It seemed like the get out of class was just over, and students of similar age came out of the classroom from time to time, holding books and parchments, chatting and laughing.
Under normal circumstances, they didn't seem to wear the blood-red robes that were characteristic of Durmstrang, but their clothes were not ostentatious either. When they walked out of the classroom, many students had already seen Jon and his friends, and there was curiosity in their eyes.
But after seeing Rosier's cold face, the group of students who were brave enough to come up and talk to her all avoided her with sullen faces. It can be seen that these students have great respect for this witch.
