Sean had reason to believe that Castelobruxo's secret weapon was a two-person combination spell.
Among the six competitors, at least two must share wands with identical cores and possess a level of perfect coordination.
Cassius thought for a moment after hearing this.
"Castelobruxo sounds like a tough opponent."
"And don't underestimate Uagadou either," Chris added.
"That's right," Sean said, turning to Cassius. "Do you know what counts as victory in the third event?"
Cassius nodded.
"When all members of one team are unconscious, the other team wins."
Sean explained further.
"Uagadou's special ability is wandless magic. Normally, knocking away an opponent's wand would disable them in battle—but for Uagadou's competitors, that doesn't work. Even without their wands, they can still cast spells."
"No way… wandless magic? Are all Uagadou students geniuses?" Cassius said in shock.
In his mind, only exceptionally talented wizards could perform wandless magic.
Even at Hogwarts, only a handful of top students in the higher years could manage it.
The idea that all six competitors from Uagadou possessed this ability was hard for him to believe.
But Uagadou's wandless magic was actually different from what Cassius imagined.
Sean himself had misunderstood it at first, until Professor McGonagall explained the difference.
Uagadou's wandless magic wasn't like Sean's method of constructing magical frameworks with one or both hands.
Instead, it required full-body movements—essentially a ritual dance.
Many African tribal wizards still practiced magic this way.
Exaggerated dance movements combined with chanting fulfilled two of the three elements of magic: incantation and magical framework.
Each movement of the dance helped construct the magical framework.
Although the entire process was flashy and somewhat lengthy, it made wandless magic far easier compared to building frameworks purely with the hands.
However, this style of wandless magic lacked the element of surprise.
Only methods like Sean's—such as secretly forming frameworks with both hands while flying on a broom during his ambush on Snape—could truly exploit the advantages of wandless casting.
"I get it now," Cassius said quickly. "The shamans of Native American tribes use similar casting styles."
Sean laughed.
"Not bad, Cassius. You know your stuff. But Ilvermorny doesn't preserve that indigenous magical tradition. They consider it outdated and unnecessary."
"Of course I know," Cassius said proudly. "I do read books, you know."
As for Ilvermorny, it didn't seem to have any unique tricks.
Mostly because Hogwarts didn't either.
Ilvermorny's teaching system was nearly identical to Hogwarts.
Its founder, Isolt Sayre, was an Irish immigrant. She and her husband modeled Ilvermorny directly after Hogwarts.
Both schools practiced a form of elite education.
If a student didn't want to study, they weren't forced. The worst consequence was an ugly report card—and perhaps a beating from their parents when they got home.
The best teachers focused their energy on the few students who truly wanted to learn.
As a result, those top students often developed extraordinary abilities.
While the three of them discussed the rival schools casually, someone else was pacing anxiously in the Headmaster's office.
He was deeply worried about the arrival of the three teams tomorrow.
"Dumbledore, are you really comfortable entrusting it to the centaurs?" Mick asked.
"You should drink some warm milk and relax, Mick," Dumbledore replied calmly.
"How can I relax?" Mick said anxiously. "My teacher Quintus is dead. They've already tracked us to London. Tomorrow even more outsiders will arrive at Hogwarts. Who knows if some of them are among those people?"
Mick Jarger was a graduate of the Sanctum Tribunal and the prized student of Quintus.
The headmaster of their school, Oleg Silky, had sensed that his life was nearing its end. Before dying, he entrusted a certain object to his trusted old friend—Albus Dumbledore.
Quintus was responsible for transporting it from Greece to Hogwarts.
Knowing that certain people were searching for it, he traveled alone to London by airplane.
Meanwhile, the object had been secretly given to his trusted student Mick.
Mick arrived in London by sea.
During the seven days Quintus stayed at the Leaky Cauldron, he had been waiting for Mick.
But those people found Quintus first.
And killed him.
By the time Mick reached the Leaky Cauldron, it was already the day Sean returned to school.
With no other option, Mick mailed the object to Hogwarts using Tom the innkeeper's help.
That led to the moment when Sean received the mysterious package—only for Dumbledore to intercept it before he could even open it.
"I understand your concerns," Dumbledore said gently. "But trust me. This is Hogwarts. I am, after all, a wizard with some reputation. I will fulfill Silky's request—and I will ensure your safety."
"Some reputation" was quite an understatement.
Dumbledore was called the greatest wizard alive for a reason.
Anyone who wanted to cause trouble at Hogwarts would first have to ask whether Dumbledore allowed it.
Still, Mick's constant suspicion of everyone wasn't entirely unreasonable.
Even with Dumbledore's reassurance, it would be another sleepless night for him.
The next day—October 1st.
Starting at ten in the morning, the three teams began arriving at Hogwarts in different ways.
Under the crisp autumn sky, a small airship glided over the castle and slowly descended toward the Quidditch pitch.
The airship had a strong industrial appearance.
But only a few people noticed what was pulling it through the sky.
Thestrals.
"Good heavens… is that a Muggle airplane?" Cassius said in shock, leaning against the window.
Sean sighed and explained patiently.
"That's an airship—but not the Muggle kind. It's being pulled by Thestrals."
"Which school do you think it's from?" Cassius asked.
Sean considered the design.
"With that industrial style… it's probably Ilvermorny."
Among the three visiting schools, the American Ilvermorny was the most likely to use such a machine.
Professor McGonagall was in charge of welcoming them at the Quidditch pitch.
The Ilvermorny team stepped out of the airship.
Their leader was a young blonde professor.
She looked about thirty years old, tall and elegant, with refined features—almost like a beauty pageant contestant.
Among the six competitors, there were five boys and one girl.
After their long journey, their faces showed clear fatigue.
McGonagall instructed Hagrid to take care of the Thestrals before leading the seven visitors to specially prepared guest quarters.
"Professor Lindsey, please take some time to rest," McGonagall said. "A welcoming banquet will be held tonight."
Kellyn Lindsey smiled politely.
"The rooms are arranged with great care. I'm sure we'll rest well."
"That's good to hear."
The second team arrived at twelve thirty in the afternoon.
They landed in the courtyard on a massive flying carpet.
It happened to be lunchtime, so many students gathered in the courtyard to watch the visitors arrive.
"Welcome, representatives of Uagadou," Professor Sprout greeted them warmly.
Seven dark-skinned figures leaped gracefully from the enormous carpet.
Their leading professor flashed a bright white smile as he shook hands with Sprout.
Sean watched the group from the crowd.
Seeing their confident, dazzling smiles, a joking phrase suddenly popped into his mind.
When a man smiles like that… you never know whether it means life or death.
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