It was a true "humanoid" Acromantula. Aside from the exaggerated, voluptuous female outline, everything inside that body was still made of twisted, repurposed spider limbs.
Even its face had been forcibly reshaped into a pointed, human-like one, and its massive body squeezed unnaturally into a human silhouette.
In short—absolutely revolting.
"Well, that failed," Leonard said calmly, staring at the eye-burning monstrosity.
"What were you even thinking? How do you end up creating something this weird?" Fred crouched near the drying swamp, disgust plain on his face as he glanced at the humanoid creature and then at Leonard.
"I was just trying to see if I could turn an animal into a human," Leonard replied. "Clearly, I failed."
"Turning an animal into a human? That's insane!" George exclaimed. "Professor McGonagall would flip if she heard that."
"Flip?" Leonard raised a brow. "Professor McGonagall only emphasized not casting Transfiguration on people. She never said you couldn't turn an animal into a person, did she?"
George and Fred paused. After a moment of absurd realization, they traded a glance.
"…Yeah, she didn't."
"Then why not try? According to Muggle studies, humans are technically animals anyway. No special classification there."
Leonard flicked a fireball, incinerating the half-humanoid creature along with the remaining Acromantula.
He couldn't look at it any longer. One more second and he might've thrown up. It looked like a lump of meat paste forced through a mold.
"Hey! Don't burn them all!" Fred shouted, heartbroken as he watched the Acromantula burn. "That's money!"
"Think first about how you're going to sell the venom. Sure, it's valuable, but venom isn't the same as Galleons. You only get Galleons once someone buys it—and no one's going to buy Acromantula venom from students."
Leonard dumped a bucket of cold reality over their heads.
"That's not a problem. We've got channels," George said confidently.
"Channels? So you two know some shady folks, huh?" Leonard said without surprise, eyeing their smug expressions.
As for him—so long as no one uncovered the truth, he'd remain an upstanding citizen.
"Yep! In Hogsmeade, there's a thief at the Hog's Head. Sells dangerous stuff," Fred said proudly. "We're regulars. Always get great things from him."
"Regulars? More like walking wallets." Leonard scoffed. "Anyone selling contraband to students is obviously no big shot. Guys like him mostly scam customers—selling fakes as the real deal."
"Seriously? That explains why some of our prank items never worked right…"
"That bastard! George, I wanna knock his teeth in," Fred growled.
"Me too… but I don't think we could take him," George said, glancing at Leonard. "Leonard, what do you think?"
"What's there to think? You definitely can't beat him," Leonard replied bluntly. "Weak or not, he's still an adult wizard working in the gray zone. You picking a fight with him is just suicide."
"What if you came with us?" Fred asked hopefully. "With you, we'd destroy him!"
"Don't drag me into your embarrassment. I'm not interested." Leonard cut him off. "Even if you waste a bit of money getting scammed, it's fine. Just stop dealing with him afterward."
The twins nodded together, full of righteous fury—only to slump moments later.
"If we stop dealing with him, who else is there?" George sighed. "No one else sells to us."
"Yeah. Even finding Monsgerton took forever," Fred said. "Without him, half our experiments can't happen."
"You could come to me," Leonard said with a sly smile. "I have a friend. He has access to some… remarkable supplies, and at fair prices."
To avoid revealing his connection to Midgard, Leonard deliberately said "he," not "she."
"Really? Does he buy things too? Like Acromantula venom?" Fred asked excitedly.
Clearly, they still hadn't given up the dream of getting rich off Acromantula.
"Honestly, I'm not sure," Leonard said, pretending to think. "Maybe. The price won't match market value, but it'll be higher than whatever that Montongus guy offers."
He sounded unsure, but he was absolutely nudging them forward.
Acromantula venom was rare and absurdly valuable—gone the moment it hit the market.
Even Knockturn Alley rarely saw any. Leonard simply didn't want to waste time hunting spiders for pocket change—he neither needed the money, nor had the time.
But George and Fred? They had plenty of enthusiasm.
Better to guide them than stop them. They'd learned his anti-tracking techniques and would likely wander into the Forbidden Forest often. Sooner or later, they'd be tempted to hunt Acromantula again.
Since he couldn't stop these two maniacs from picking fights with Acromantula, he might as well train them into reliable suppliers for the Werewolf Wizard's shop.
Acromantula venom could instantly turn a no-name shop into a booming business. Distributing it evenly would let these shops avoid trouble while raking in profits.
The plan was rock solid. The only challenge was teaching George (Money-Hungry) and Fred how to survive against swarms of Acromantula.
With enough Portable Swamps and proper training, it was doable.
But Leonard had no intention of suggesting it outright—he wanted them to come up with the idea themselves.
The difference between choosing voluntarily and being assigned the task was massive. People stick with what they choose, learn faster, and work harder.
If Leonard suggested it, he'd have to train them, push them, nag them—risking rebellion.
But if they decided to do it, he wouldn't need to push them at all. They'd learn on their own, fired up by the promise of profit.
A little bit of money was all the motivation they needed.
All Leonard had to do was offer hints—simple, cost-free incentives.
...
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