HP: The Stellar Witch [OFC]

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That was a highly venomous snake, an accidental live specimen that had been brought in by mistake.

And now, this little elf-like girl had actually stuck her fingers into the cage!

"Lam, if she dies, you've got to promise this won't affect our friendship or our business!"

"Don't touch it randomly!" The African wizard let out a heavy sigh of relief when Lam's spell flung the little elf to the ground. "I really need to get rid of this snake. This is the second time something like this has happened! Last time it nearly escaped!"

Senna glanced at the snake with its triangular head, upturned snout, and caterpillar-like crawling motion, and began to calculate in her mind.

"Why don't you leave this snake as a gift? It seems my assistant is quite interested in it. Besides, you can use it to salvage your reputation after the low-quality venom you brought this time."

"Are you planning to extract venom from it? Then I must warn you, Gaboon vipers are extremely dangerous. If you're certain about keeping it, it's yours. But you'll have to promise to order your next batch of materials from me," the wizard replied.

As the two of them began discussing the risks of smuggling and the ratio of rewards, Lys, who had just dusted herself off after being thrown to the ground, squatted by the cage and repeatedly muttered, "Gaboon, Gaboon."

The African wizard had an accent, and Lys thought "Gaboon" was the snake's name.

"Gaboon."

Oh my, this snake is so adorable! It's about ten inches long (20 centimeters), and no matter which direction you call it from, it would unhesitatingly turn its amber-like eyes toward you.

That feeling, as if you were its entire world, filled Lys with an unusual sense of satisfaction.

Look at me, just at me.

The African wizard, however, was starting to feel increasingly uncomfortable. Watching a goblin with pale green skin, sagging features, and a pair of donkey-like ears circling his goods with a look of obsessive longing in her eyes was unnerving.

Africa didn't have goblins, but after years of smuggling in Britain, he had learned just how much trouble a greedy goblin could cause.

In a tone that brooked no argument, he confirmed the time for their next transaction. "Let me know what you need, Lam," he said before hurriedly handing over the snake cage, wrapping his cloak tightly around him, and disappearing into the next shop with his goods.

Senna placed the cage to one side, planning to deal with it after a nap and extract some venom.

Extracting venom could be done either from a live or dead snake. Although extracting from a dead snake was more troublesome and yielded lower quality venom, she simply didn't have the time to care for a live one.

Yawning, she warned, "Don't touch the snake. Be careful, it might bite you." She cast a dual protective charm on the cage and went to bed.

Ever since the little brat came, the bedsheets had been clean every day. Not bad.

When Senna woke up, it was already dark, but there was no smell of food wafting through the air.

This puzzled her. Normally, the little brat, who acted like a house-elf, would have already prepared food and been waiting for her to eat. What happened today?

Cautiously holding her wand, Senna walked to the front of the shop, only to find that there was no danger at all. The child was simply sitting on the floor, staring at the snake.

She was so engrossed that she had apparently forgotten to cook.

"Cook. I'm hungry," Senna said, nudging the child's foot with the tip of her shoe. "What's this? You like the snake that much? Fine, you can keep it as a pet. That way Noah can stop giving me those disapproving looks, as if I'm abusing you."

Senna had meant it as a joke. But as she glanced sideways at Lys, who was squatting on the floor and looking up at her with eyes full of longing and disbelief, she realized that while she had been joking, Lys was taking it seriously.

Mom is giving me a pet! And it's my favorite little snake!

Lys immediately hugged the snake cage. "Thank you, Mom! I'll take good care of it. From now on, its name is Gaboon! I'll go make dinner now, Mom!" In her excitement, she called her "Mom" several times in one breath.

Senna, sipping from her water cup, couldn't figure out why the usually cautious little brat was so excited today, even after Lys served dinner.

But a venomous snake... as a pet? Well, it's not impossible. Looks like I'll have to take some precautions.

If she gets poisoned, Noah will be furious…

Senna pulled out several books on magical contracts. The Blood Pact, the Unbreakable Vow—none of them seemed quite right.

Senna and Lys both leaned over the counter, flipping through books. Until she found a way to ensure the snake wouldn't bite people indiscriminately, Senna forbade Lys from doing anything that might provoke it.

"Mom, can I feed it? It's hungry," Lys asked.

"Hungry? How do you know? Did it tell you?" Senna replied absentmindedly, turning to the next page.

"No, snakes can't talk, Mom. But I can feel it's unhappy," Lys answered earnestly. She still didn't quite understand the concept of jokes or casual remarks.

"Feel it?" Senna closed her book and looked at Lys again. "What do you mean by 'feel'?"

Although she didn't fully understand why her mother was asking, Lys tried her best to describe it accurately. She explained that she could vaguely sense whether someone—or something—harbored true hostility toward her. Animals were harder to read, but with long-term interaction, she could get a faint sense of their emotions.

Though Lys's explanation was fragmented and imprecise, Senna roughly understood what the little brat was trying to convey.

Wizards were born with innate talents. Some had a heightened sense of the future, others were deeply attuned to potion-making, and some were natural communicators with magical creatures.

Senna gestured for Lys to go ahead and feed the snake. She told her to cut a piece of raw steak from lunch, use a glass rod to hold the food, and not get too close.

It seemed the little brat had inherited some extraordinary intuition from her own convoluted bloodline.

However, this type of talent would gradually weaken and disappear as she grew older.

This ability was something weak creatures developed to avoid danger and survive. Once they became strong, they no longer needed it.

Why not attribute it to the Black family? Other than her husband, the Blacks were all lunatics.

They were just short of marrying their own siblings in their pursuit of pureblood supremacy. Their bloodline couldn't possibly be "convoluted."