After some time.
For the first time since arriving in the Lands Between, Lloyd was "defeated."
When the fight began, facing the puppet's relentless assault, Lloyd struggled to keep up. But in the end, he couldn't hold on, and then…
…he burst out laughing.
Pfft—
"Sorry, I really couldn't hold it in…"
To be fair, Ranni had been perfectly serious throughout the entire fight.
Whether swinging her sword or casting spells, every motion carried the cold elegance etched into her as the Dark Moon Princess.
With the moonlight flowing around her, her robes drifting, and her delicate features, it looked less like combat and more like a dance.
But that alone wasn't what made Lloyd laugh.
The real problem was that, despite her graceful poise, she kept wearing that perpetually sullen, resentful look.
Combined with the peculiar aura surrounding her…
Lloyd tried to hold it back.
But in the end, he couldn't.
And when he noticed her resentment deepen, even Lloyd felt a bit embarrassed. So, the moment her "resentment gauge" ran dry, he surrendered.
"Alright, alright, you win…"
Holding the petite doll in his arms, stroking her hair, Lloyd tried to soothe her.
"Our Moon Princess is far too powerful. You left me completely helpless…"
Is that comfort—or mockery?
Hearing this, Ranni tried to endure it—but failed, biting Lloyd's hand.
Time passed. After finding ways to force down her lingering frustration, Ranni raised her hand and placed the Dark Moon Greatsword before Lloyd.
[Acquired Weapon: Dark Moon Greatsword]
Lloyd took the weapon and examined it.
Strangely, while its stats were displayed clearly, its description was blurred, as though smeared out by someone.
He didn't think much of it. After a quick test confirming its usefulness, he tossed it back into his inventory, then…
"What about mine?"
Silence.
Lloyd glanced down at Ranni's face from the side.
She stayed quiet for a while, then turned her head away.
Lloyd thought for a moment, then leaned over to her other side.
Ranni turned her head again, avoiding his eyes.
After going back and forth several times, she finally broke first.
"I'm still useful."
"Useful for what? Wasn't everything already finished?"
"I'm still useful."
After teasing the Ranni in his arms for a moment, Lloyd felt the time had come. He stopped stroking the little blue kitten in his lap and spoke.
"You're ready, right?"
Ranni's body stiffened, then she gave a small nod.
"Yes, I'm ready."
After her reply, just as she had asked during their earlier talks, Lloyd drew the Dark Moon Greatsword—the very weapon she had given him—to end her life with his own hands.
"Good girl. Don't be afraid. I promise it'll be quick—I won't let you suffer…"
"I'm not afraid."
Her words were defiant, but as she watched the cold gleam flicker before her eyes, her gaze wavered. Then, softly, she added,
"Just make sure you strike true. Don't miss…"
"Relax. I'm a professional at this."
Before the words were fully out, with a sharp thrust, the Moonlight Greatsword pierced Ranni's heart.
In the next instant, magic flared. The doll's eyes dulled, and she went limp in Lloyd's arms.
Ranni was dead.
Then she lived again.
When she opened her eyes, she immediately felt the difference in her body.
No longer stiff like a doll, no longer creaking with each movement.
Her skin was soft and radiant to the touch. Her reflection in the mirror still resembled her old form, but softer, more delicate.
Most importantly, when she opened her eyes, she heard it—her heartbeat.
The rhythm of life, proof that she was alive.
"I…"
Regaining her senses, Ranni lifted her head, ready to apologize to Lloyd.
But when she turned, she saw him holding her old doll body on the other side, striking a grand, bird-like pose while chanting nonsense.
"Hee—haah—"
Ranni: "..."
Then, noticing movement from the Ranni in his arms, Lloyd looked down.
"You're awake?"
"Mhm."
"How do you feel? Anything uncomfortable?"
"Not physically. But mentally, yes."
Lloyd froze, then followed her gaze to the doll body in his hands and realized what she meant.
"Ahem… I was just killing time while waiting for you to wake up…"
With an exasperated glance, Ranni sat up in his arms and began trying different movements, determined to get used to this new body as quickly as possible.
Lloyd set the doll body aside. Watching the little blue person in his arms fidget for a moment, he stood up. The doll then took a few tentative steps.
Seeing how awkward she looked, Lloyd walked over and cupped her under the armpits.
"I can manage on my own. No need for your help," she said.
She said it, but her body didn't resist at all. With Lloyd's support she began learning to walk, slowly getting used to the new body.
Time passed.
After a while, Ranni had mostly adapted. She could walk and run fine, and even handled light combat and spellcasting without issue.
Once she reached that level of comfort, Ranni checked her inner state, kept her expression composed, and activated the function she'd been looking forward to most.
She grew larger.
Magical Power swelled inside her.
Although there weren't enough materials to build the big body she'd first planned, she used Magical Power to fill in the missing parts during the body's reformation, compensating for the material shortfall.
Normally, filling body parts with Magical Power is theoretically possible, but in practice mismatches between the power and skin tone cause visual dissonance. However, because the skin of Ranni's new body matched the color of her Magical Power, the infusion caused no jarring color differences. Once enlarged, the glow of the power even added extra grace and beauty to her form.
When the enlargement finished, Ranni conjured a water mirror with Magical Power and examined her larger self. Satisfied, she nodded.
She turned to Lloyd and, pretending not to notice him, glanced past him. Then, as if remembering something, she slowly lowered her head and looked down at him.
Seeing Lloyd forced to tilt his head back to look up, Ranni couldn't hold it in; a smile lifted the corner of her mouth.
She then bent down, reached out, and picked him up.
"Now I'm bigger than you."
Lloyd didn't struggle.
This child had been short for so long; let her enjoy this body.
But—
"I suggest you don't stay in this form long. Especially now—you should change back right away."
"Why?"
"Because—"
Lloyd hadn't finished when Ranni sensed something wrong.
Having only just entered this body, her Magical Power reserves were already thin, and there were no Glintstones nearby to replenish them. Coupled with her uncontrolled enlargement, the transformation began to drain her remaining power.
As the Magical Power faded, Ranni's body started to shrink.
At first she didn't grasp how serious it was—she assumed the worst would be reverting to her original size and then recharging. But when Lloyd kept getting taller and taller until it was ridiculous, she realized something was very wrong.
"Hey, what the hell is going on—"
The words had barely left her mouth before she noticed more problems: her voice had become higher and more childish as she shrank.
Watching the tiny Ranni before him, Lloyd shrugged.
"I told you to change back. You wouldn't listen…"
"I already told you: the materials you gave weren't enough for two forms, especially not that huge form…"
"To save materials and as a safeguard for that large body, I added a third form to the blueprint—the smallest model."
"When you suffer serious injury or run out of strength, you can change into that form. It avoids a lot of damage and costs nothing to maintain…"
As he spoke, Lloyd picked up the palm-sized Ranni from the ground.
"Now, you just entered this body. Normally, after adapting you'd recharge first, but you grew right away and drained everything inside."
The tiny Ranni in Lloyd's hand was stunned. She looked at her small arms and legs, then at the enormous Lloyd, and blurted out.
"How do I change back?"
"Usually a little strength is enough to revert, but you haven't even adapted to recharging yet…"
Lloyd stared at the small Ranni, thought for a moment, then shook his head.
"Because you started in this state, if you don't want to damage your core you'll need to adapt for at least half a month. Only after you fully master the form and fully recharge can you change back."
"...Half a month?"
"At minimum, half a month."
He paused, then remembered something.
"Oh—right. In your current state I can't easily replenish your energy; I'm not skilled with the kind of Magical Power inside you. But the Queen of the Full Moon knows you well and specializes in Glintstone magic. If we send you to her, it should only take a week."
"No!"
The tiny girl in his hand screamed. She'd rather be stabbed by Lloyd again than let anyone see her like this.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
"You never asked," Lloyd said calmly.
"Besides, you looked like you were having so much fun earlier—I didn't want to ruin your mood."
"You… you… you…"
A blush crept across Ranni's pale blue face. She yanked her hat down to cover herself and gnashed her teeth.
"You've brought shame upon the Witch Ranni…"
After letting the tiny Ranni in his arms calm down, Lloyd spoke again.
"So, what now? Your problem's solved. Should I send you back?"
"No."
Ranni rejected the idea immediately, lifting her head to glare at him with all the fierceness she could muster.
With her shrunken body and the soft, childish pitch of her voice, she looked like a fluffed-up kitten—adorably ferocious.
"You're the one who turned me into this. Until I return to normal, you're responsible. You're not allowed to refuse."
And just like that, a little blue figure nestled itself inside Lloyd's clothes.
The reason was simple: petite Ranni didn't fit into the inventory, and Lloyd's armor had no pockets.
Though reluctant, she had no choice but to crawl into his clothes to stay hidden. This way, no one would see her, and she could issue commands while forcing him to do her bidding.
"Honestly, I think you're pretty cute like this. It wouldn't matter if you stayed out in the open…"
"Impossible!"
Seeing she clearly didn't want to dwell on that, Lloyd changed the subject.
"Well, even if you're smaller, this body's durability and elasticity are pretty high. If you're bored, you could stretch yourself out like a rubber band…"
"Shut up! I don't want to hear that!"
But despite her words, Ranni inside his clothes gave it a try.
Sure enough, it worked. Not only was her elasticity far beyond what she expected, but the sensation was completely natural, without the slightest discomfort.
The strength of it even made Ranni briefly wonder—if something were stuffed inside her body now, would it actually expand her form?
After finishing her little test, Ranni made Lloyd promise not to let anyone see her like this and strictly forbade him from telling a soul. Only then did she reveal her real request: for him to check on Blaidd.
...
"What? You already dealt with the Two Fingers?"
Inside the Evergaol, Blaidd—crouched low on the ground—flinched when he saw someone appear. Instinctively, he hid the tiny Ranni doll he'd been holding.
Because he was the shadow of the Two Fingers, he'd feared that if Ranni moved against them, they might seize control of him and force him to betray her. So Blaidd had willingly sealed himself inside the Evergaol to keep that from happening.
Now, recognizing the visitor, Blaidd let out a breath of relief. He pulled the Ranni doll back out, fiddling with it while chatting with Lloyd, soon learning that Lloyd had already resolved the Two Fingers problem.
But the issue was...
"I don't feel anything."
Even after Lloyd had sent the Two Fingers into the dungeon, Blaidd inside the Evergaol hadn't felt a thing.
When Lloyd relayed this to the Golden Two Fingers, they flicked their digits irritably, saying the "model" didn't even match, so of course the backdoor was useless.
Blaidd might not have felt it, but someone else did.
More precisely, the tiny figure hidden against Lloyd's chest did.
Sensing through her connection that Blaidd was toying with her doll, Ranni flushed with embarrassment. She'd already confiscated two of those this month—how could there still be another one?
And as their conversation went on, her mortification only grew.
Since Blaidd didn't know she was there and was on familiar terms with Lloyd, he spoke freely, blurting out whatever came to mind.
"By the way, Lloyd, have you ever counted how many books Miss Ranni sits on? I've always been curious, but she's never let me check..."
"Don't be fooled by how impatient she looks with you. Every time you leave, she stares into space for ages..."
"She even keeps track of the days. When it's about time for your visits, her mood improves, and she prepares ahead of time..."
"What's with you today? Why do you keep trying to change the subject, and your face looks strange... Are you feeling unwell?"
Blaidd frowned at Lloyd's odd behavior and constant attempts to redirect the conversation, but he didn't think too much of it.
In fact, after that, another thought came to mind.
"Oh, right. Did you know? Miss Ranni's been preparing her own Dark Moon Greatsword. It's a Carian royal tradition..."
"Blaidd!"
A sharp roar erupted from Lloyd's chest.
A furious little face popped out, glaring at Blaidd with a terrifying intensity.
"Shut your mouth!"
Silence.
Blaidd blinked at the tiny head peeking from Lloyd's chest, then slowly raised his eyes to him.
"How did you make that doll? It's unbelievably detailed. Could you make one for me too..."
Lloyd went quiet for a moment, then reached up to help the tiny blue figure climb onto his shoulder.
"This isn't a doll."
"Then what—"
"It's me."
Ranni's expression was dark as she spoke.
Another heavy silence. Blaidd finally realized what was happening.
Thinking back to everything he had just said to Lloyd, then glancing down at the doll in his hand, he froze. After a long pause, he stood up.
"Uh… I just remembered, I've got something I need to do..."
Blaidd tried to flee.
Blaidd failed to flee.
Petite Ranni used Ranni's Dark Moon.
It was super effective.
Blaidd collapsed.
(Faking it)
...
[Up to 20 chapters ahead for now]
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