Hogwarts: I'm Really a Model Wizard

Hagrid held the bottle above his head, looking curiously at the ruby-like liquid inside, and murmured, "Special rat tonic?"

He had only learned today that tonics for pet rats existed, and specially formulated ones at that.

Hagrid examined the bottle in his hand again. He didn't doubt Kyle's words — after all, the brewing had taken about half an hour, and something requiring that much time to produce a single bottle must be of good quality. He just couldn't quite understand why anyone would bother.

After all, rats were the most common and cheapest pets. In Diagon Alley, they cost less than half the price of toads and even less than a good package of owl treats.

Additionally, pet rats had the shortest lifespan, generally only about seven years — worth noting that young wizards attended Hogwarts for exactly seven years as well. Other pets like toads or cats could live for over a decade, and owls even longer.

Therefore, few young wizards truly valued their rats, let alone spent money on custom tonics for them.

"Yes." Kyle said, packing the stove and cauldron back into his bag as he stood up, "This is for the Weasley family's pet rat. It's been around for several years now. Percy used to come to me for it at the beginning of each school year. I just remembered that the rat became Ron's pet this year, and Percy seems to have forgotten to tell him about this."

"The Weasleys' rat?"

Hagrid wasn't very familiar with Percy, but he knew Ron, the youngest Weasley boy, who had visited with Harry just yesterday.

But did he have a pet rat?

Hagrid thought carefully and vaguely remembered that Ron's pocket had indeed been bulging when he visited, but the next second, he wasn't so sure anymore.

His attention had been almost entirely on Harry at the time, and he hadn't paid much attention to the red-haired boy, so it was natural that he couldn't remember clearly.

Hagrid handed the bottle back to Kyle and asked, "Besides rats, can you brew tonics for other pets too?"

"Of course, for all four types of pets allowed at Hogwarts."

"What about others, like magical creatures?" Hagrid asked.

"Magical creatures are possible too." Kyle said after a moment's thought, "But it depends on which type. Something like Fluffy, that large magical creature, wouldn't work... Of course, they don't need tonics anyway."

"What about spiders?" Hagrid blurted out.

Kyle looked at him thoughtfully, "What species?"

"Well, Acromant—uh…" Hagrid's voice faltered, suddenly becoming vague, "No, I mean, just regular spiders, but a bit larger."

"Larger... a bit?" Kyle raised an eyebrow.

Hagrid nodded firmly, "Yes, larger!"

Kyle stared at him steadily until the gamekeeper began to look guilty, then finally drawled.

"I don't think..." Hagrid's face had just begun to show disappointment when Kyle continued, "However... I could try to research it."

"What?" Hagrid asked reflexively, not having processed what he heard.

"I mean, I could make several attempts to see if I can concoct a suitable tonic for them." Kyle said, "I've done this kind of thing before. If you need it, I can give it a try."

Realizing what Kyle meant, Hagrid exclaimed with delight, "That's great... I mean, if it's not too much trouble."

"It's not troublesome, but I can't guarantee how long it will take." Kyle shrugged, "Could be as quick as a month or as long as a year."

"That's fine." Hagrid said dismissively, "Is there anything I can help with? If you need any herbs, just tell me, and I'll find them in the depths of the Forbidden Forest."

Although Professor Sprout had moved most of the precious herbs into the greenhouses, the Forbidden Forest was so vast that he could always find some if he went far enough.

"I have plenty of herbs here, no need to look for more, but..." Kyle frowned and said, "You'll need to bring me a sample specimen. I need to test the effectiveness."

Hagrid's eyes darted nervously as he said, "Um... wouldn't it work to test on... ordinary spiders?"

"No!" Kyle shook his head firmly, "Different species react differently to herbs. Sometimes even a slight mistake can turn a tonic into poison. Just like belladonna root — it's highly beneficial for Murtlap rats, but ordinary rats would certainly die from it."

"Well..." Hagrid suddenly hesitated.

He wanted the spider tonic for an Acromantula named Aragog.

It was a pet he had kept fifty years ago, and it was very old now. He had been thinking about how to help it live a few more years. A spider tonic seemed like a good solution.

But the problem was that Acromantulas weren't ordinary magical creatures — they were XXXXX-Class dangerous beasts that were forbidden to keep. Hagrid certainly wouldn't hand one over to Kyle.

He might be able to convince Aragog or its descendants not to harm the kid, but what if someone else found out?

Kyle would certainly be expelled, just like Hagrid was years ago. At the same time, Aragog and its colony in the Forbidden Forest would not escape being exterminated.

Hagrid's expression grew increasingly determined as thoughts ran through his mind.

But just as he was about to give up on the spider tonic, Kyle thoughtfully said, "Wait... if it's a venomous spider, we could actually just use their venom."

Hagrid's emotions had been like a rollercoaster several times now, falling and then quickly rising again.

He looked at Kyle and said irritably, "Couldn't you just say everything at once next time?"

"I wish I could." Kyle explained, "It's mainly because I don't particularly like spiders, and my knowledge about them is limited to a book I read a few years ago. It's been so long that I need to think carefully to remember many details."

Hagrid grew nervous again.

"About that venom you mentioned..."

"That's definitely true." Kyle stared at him and suddenly smiled, "Looks like you're keeping a venomous spider, huh?"

"Not me, I don't have one." Hagrid's voice suddenly rose in pitch as he shook his head repeatedly, "I have a friend, yes... a friend who likes venomous spiders. I'm just asking for him."

"Ohh~" Kyle said with sudden realization, "So it's your friend."

"That's... right." Hagrid's ears turned red as he turned his head away, quickly changing the subject, "How much spider venom do you need? I'll go — uh, I mean, I'll have him prepare it for you."

"Hard to say, depends on the efficiency." Kyle pondered for a moment before adding seriously, "But to be safe, the more the better."

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