Lucien glanced at Scabbers in Ron's hand, and a question arose.
"Ron, do you carry this pet rat with you every day?"
"Yeah, Scabbers is very old, and I have to take care of him all the time."
As he spoke, Ron gently stroked Scabbers' head, but the rat remained listless and sleepy.
Ron's expression and actions made Lucien's gaze even more peculiar.
"Very old? How old is Scabbers?"
Ron looked up and thought for a moment.
"Well, he's been with our family for twelve years, anyway."
Lucien was silent for a few seconds, then said: "A house rat living that long must be quite rare…"
"Yeah, but my mum says it's the magic of love that makes Scabbers live so long."
That nearly made Lucien lose his composure, but thankfully, he was professionally trained and managed not to laugh.
Magic of love—truly astonishing.
Is it because of the existence of magic that Wizards are so quick to accept bizarre phenomena?
Watching Ron pull out a biscuit and feed it to Scabbers, Lucien imperceptibly shook his head.
I hope you still love him this much after Scabbers turns into a bald, short man.
There's no need to expose Peter Pettigrew's true identity for now. When I reach the Animagus stage, he'll be a perfect subject for reference.
An Animagus who's maintained his transformation for over a decade is a rarity.
Moreover, Peter Pettigrew is unregistered, and given his betrayal back then, he wouldn't dare seek help.
Once I teach Ron alchemical mechanics and we get to know each other better, borrowing Scabbers for a few days shouldn't be a problem.
…
Deep in the Forbidden Forest.
Lucien walked with Lumen under the moonlight, shadows flickering between the trees.
"Lumen, can you sense the Unicorn from last time or any of its kind?"
Lucien planned to find the Unicorn again, record more data, and then send it along with a letter to Newt.
If Newt thinks I've gained some understanding of magical creatures, then I should be able to exchange for Erumpent Fluid to create the Delayed Truth explosive potion.
Of course, if I encounter other magical creatures first, I'll record those and pay off the pet growth loan later.
"Master, I found one."
"Oh? Where?"
But just as Lucien finished speaking—
Two swift, silver-white figures darted through the trees and stopped a few meters in front of him.
Lucien watched as the two Unicorns stood before him, their silver-white coats shimmering even more ethereally under the moonlight.
One was likely the same Unicorn he had seen last time. The other was noticeably smaller, with a shorter and more slender horn, and less distinct spiral patterns.
Ah, it seems this one is female. They must be mates.
The male Unicorn approached first, with the female following closely behind.
As they drew near, both Unicorns gently bowed their heads toward Lumen.
Lucien had already begun pulling out paper and pen to record information about the Unicorns.
Not long into his notes, Lucien noticed the moonlight on the page had been blocked by a shadow.
Looking up, he found the female Unicorn's large head very close, peering curiously at the paper in his hands.
"Uh, Lumen, can Unicorns read human writing?"
"Master, Asterion says they can't understand it. Seleneia is just pregnant and curious about many things."
"Asterion? Seleneia? You gave these Unicorns names?"
"Yes, Master. Isn't it more convenient to call them that? And they seem to really like the names!"
Lucien looked at Lumen in mild surprise, not expecting the little Qilin to have learned how to name things so quickly.
Should I say it's truly a divine beast? Its innate intelligence is remarkably high.
It seems that most of what I've taught it has already been absorbed. Time to begin a new teaching plan.
Lucien then turned his gaze to the female Unicorn—Seleneia.
She's already pregnant? Do Unicorns become more curious during pregnancy?
He made a note of this on the parchment.
"Lumen, can you ask them what they usually like to eat and what their habits are?"
"And also ask what changes Seleneia has gone through since becoming pregnant?"
Lumen immediately began translating between human and magical creature.
Lucien rapidly recorded this rare and valuable information—details most people would never get the chance to learn about Unicorn behavior.
Especially the unique changes that occur in pregnant Unicorns.
Phew, the intelligence of magical creatures like Unicorns is quite high. Unlike most magical creatures, even with Lumen helping me translate, communication wouldn't be this smooth—they'd only be able to answer basic instinctive questions.
After finishing his notes, Lucien called out to the system:
"System, does this Unicorn data count as a magical creature observation record?"
Relatively complete, but the sample size is insufficient. Please record more individuals of the species.
The system's response didn't discourage Lucien; this had only been a casual attempt, after all.
Unicorns were solitary magical creatures, usually only gathering with their mates to reproduce.
Even if Asterion and Seleneia were willing to lead him to others of their kind, it would likely take a long time.
Lucien put away his paper and pen, then looked at Seleneia.
He took a small bottle from his pocket, extracted a drop of qilin saliva, and used his wand to float it in front of Seleneia.
Lumen's saliva had extremely potent healing properties; after feeding some to Aragog, the creature had clearly become more energetic.
Maybe it had a nourishing effect as well. Time to see how Seleneia would respond.
But to his surprise, Seleneia swallowed the drop of qilin saliva almost without hesitation.
The silver-white patterns on her abdomen visibly brightened, then became more intricate.
"Thank you very much."
"Master, Asterion and Seleneia asked me to convey this to you. Seleneia says she feels the baby in her belly is stronger."
Lucien nodded; it seemed his guess was correct.
"Master, do you need me to spit a little more for them?"
"Not yet!"
Little Qilin's suggestion made Lucien's vision go dark.
A Qilin and a Unicorn—both sacred and ethereal creatures—exchanging spitts under the moonlight?
He couldn't even begin to imagine how "beautiful" that scene would be.
After the pair of Unicorns bid farewell and left,
Lucien continued exploring the Forbidden Forest in search of the final magical creature.
"Master, something's approaching from that direction."
Lucien looked toward where Lumen pointed, raising his wand slightly.
"Lucien Grafton, the unknowing future, Lord of the Qilin… Centaur Firenze, I extend my greetings to you."
__________
11 Advance Chaps- P@treon/DarkDevil1