Magical Studies at Hogwarts...

Chapter 257 Rome

This time, Ike abandoned flying and chose a more magical way to travel north.

His experience in Egypt taught him that wizards had their reasons for choosing Apparition and Portkeys, the most crucial being their greater concealment and difficulty in tracking. After all, the magical world, except for a very few places, was like a house without doors, completely undefended.

However, Ike couldn't use this method. Having never been to Italy, he couldn't simply apparite there, nor did he have access to the Portkey. Moreover, after the Albayzin incident, he felt emboldened to choose an even more audacious approach.

Crossing the Mediterranean Sea.

Starting from Cairo, he traveled north along the Nile River, eventually arriving at the beach north of Lashland. Looking at the Mediterranean Sea before him, Ike cast a spell into it with his wand. With a gentle wave of his hand, the seawater instantly gathered into the shape of a small boat on the shore.

With a slight twitch of his fingers, his body floated up and then gently landed on the boat. Even though the entire boat was made of seawater, it felt like a real wooden boat.

Stepping on it feels very solid.

With a casual wave of the wand, the seawater beneath the boat naturally propelled it forward. It moved quickly, like a speedboat, creating large splashes on the surface and leaving a white trail before disappearing from the sight of those who arrived a moment later on the beach.

"Mr. Albakin, what should we do now?" a wizard asked.

"Notify the Italian Ministry of Magic and tell them to prepare," Albakin said with a sigh. "In any case, the wizarding world cannot be exposed to Muggles, and judging from the situation, he clearly doesn't care about that now."

Some people immediately teleported away, and others followed suit, disappearing one after another until only Albayzin remained standing on the beach, quietly watching the empty sea.

After a long while, Albayzin's figure finally disappeared.

He wasn't wrong; Ike truly didn't care anymore, or perhaps it was intentional. His experience in Egypt and Albayzin's words told him that he was now being watched. As a member of the International Wizarding Federation, and wanted almost worldwide, he was convinced that the moment he set foot on Italian soil, he would be pursued by the Italian Ministry of Magic.

This is beyond doubt.

However, if the Italian Ministry of Magic's officials were distracted by something far more important, their actions would undoubtedly be much easier. And what could be more important than the wizarding world being exposed?

No matter how the wizards try to justify themselves, the fact remains that Muggles possess far greater power, enough to destroy the world. No matter how much they yearn for the wizarding life or crave magical power, their first reaction when a wizard actually appears before them is undoubtedly panic.

Then comes fear, but after that fear is overwhelmed by a strong thirst for knowledge.

What's the difference between wizards and ordinary people? Can wizards still be considered human? Where exactly is magic stored in a wizard's body? Would an autopsy reveal the answer?

Ike had no doubt about the evil and cruel part of human nature, and that was what he used to exploit.

Sure enough, as soon as he entered Italian territorial waters, Ike was surrounded by a dozen wizards. They stood on several ships, all dressed in black trench coats and wearing black bowler hats, looking more like the Mafia than the Aurora.

"Stop! Ike Streid!"

A wizard shouted, but unfortunately he spoke in Italian, which Ike couldn't understand at all. The small boat didn't even slow down and rushed through their encirclement in the blink of an eye.

"Damn it!" the man finally realized what was happening, cursed angrily, and shouted, "Chase after them! Chase after them!"

"Tell those guys on the beach to stick to the plan!"

A dozen nautical miles is both far and near. After breaking free of the encirclement, Ike sped up, and soon the beach came into view. It was densely packed with tourists. At the same time, several speedboats were rapidly approaching him, and the people on board were dressed exactly like the ones who had stopped him earlier.

Ike smiled, judged the distance, and gently waved his wand. The small boat beneath his feet came to an abrupt stop, going from extreme speed to stillness in an instant. The speedboats, however, couldn't do the same; even with their desperate attempts to slow down, they couldn't and simply overshot the boat.

They hurriedly adjusted their direction and chased after him, but Ike didn't move at all. Only when they were close did he turn around and reveal a bright smile.

With a wave of his hand, carrying the briefcase in one hand and wielding his wand in the other, he flicked the air, and the small boat beneath his feet instantly dispersed and merged back into the sea. His body vanished from the spot, leaving behind only a broken Italian sentence:

"goodbye!"

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

A wizard was so angry that he stomped his feet and waved his arms wildly.

"Go back and tell the minister we've failed! And tell those guys at the Vatican, good luck to them!"

"Damn Englishmen!"

"Damn it!"

Ignoring the furious onlookers, Ike reappeared on the beach, his suitcase a stark contrast to the people dressed in mere strips of cloth. Of course, thanks to the Disillusionment Charm, they couldn't see him either.

After getting his bearings, Ike left the beach and headed towards Rome.

He didn't want to cause any more trouble, so he maintained the Disillusionment Spell and boarded the train to Rome. Half a day later, he arrived in Rome.

Stepping out of the station, night had already fallen, but Rome was brightly lit. I casually picked up a map of Rome from a small stall in the station, checked my bearings, and headed straight for the Vatican.

The Vatican City, situated on a hill in the northwest corner of Rome, is not large in area, yet it holds an extraordinary status, both in the secular and magical worlds.

In the secular world, this is a holy site for Christians and the seat of the Papacy. In the magical world, it is also a unique place, preserving a magic distinct from all other places. This magic is magnificent and sacred, possessing a strong exclusivity, and particularly powerfully suppresses existing European magic.

Otherwise, such a bloody storm wouldn't have swept through the Middle Ages, nearly destroying the magical world of Europe.

It can be said that this is the place that all European wizards hate the most.

But it is also the place I yearn for the most, because it is the place where the most ancient magic has been preserved. There are even rumors that there is a complete ancient magic system here.

This is also Ike's biggest purpose for this trip!

(End of this chapter)