<h4>Chapter 118: Viin Simtor, Ch 117</h4>


    "Haha, judging by that look on your face, I was just kidding," Alice waved her hand with augh. "Just keep ying the role of Klee''s dad. I''ll handle the rest."


    Although it seemed like Alice was merely "requesting" this, Lucas knew full well that rejecting her would likely have some unpleasant consequences. It was better to ept and earn her goodwill.


    "Understood," Lucas nodded. "After all, I do genuinely like Klee."


    "Don''t worry; I never leave debts unpaid." Alice reached out, pinching Lucas''s cheek with a yful smile. "I''ll make sure you''re wellpensated."


    Lucas, with his cheeks squished, could only manage a garbled reply, "Th-thank you..."


    "Let''s see... how about a little treat?" Alice said, and then, suddenly, she leaned in and gave Lucas a gentle kiss on the lips.


    There was a faint scent of cinnamon.


    [Talent Acquired: "Witch''s Prank"]


    [Rank: S]


    [Effect: Once per day, you may randomly cast a spell as a "Witch." The level, effect, and power of the spell are entirely unpredictable.]


    "Muah!"


    Alice wiped the corner of her mouth, smiling slyly. "Take it as a small gift from me. Maybe it''lle in handy if you''re ever in a pinch."


    Alice''s exnation was far simpler than the system''s description of the talent.


    This was less a "reward" and more of a prank on Alice''s part.


    Random magic? It sounded like a recipe for chaos.


    Any D&D yer knows that a wizard''s spell list is vast, with effects as varied as they are strange. Who knew what odd urrences might result from using Alice''s magic?


    Still, to grant an S-rank talent with just a casual kiss—Alice''s power was... truly terrifying.


    "Since you''ve epted my gift, the contract is nowplete. You Liyue people value contracts, don''t you?" Alice looked mischievously at him. "If you dare break our contract, I''ll just have to pay a visit to Zhong... I mean, to the Geo Archon himself to discuss it!"


    Wait... did she almost say Zhongli just now?


    Does she actually know that Zhongli is the Geo Archon?


    "Don''t worry, Miss Alice," Lucas replied, feeling both amused and helpless. "Even if I had the guts, I''d never dare to mess with you."


    "Wrong," Alice wagged a finger yfully. "Our rtionship is that of husband and wife now, remember? How should you address me?"


    "Um... Lady? Madame?" Lucas guessed, unsure.


    "Those are much too formal," Alice giggled. "Just call me wifey. Go on, give it a try."


    Lucas''s face turned a deep shade of red as he mumbled, "Wif—wifey..."


    Alice found it amusing to be called that by a young boy, though... she didn''t dislike the feeling.


    Though her marriage to Lucas was something that had happened in a parallel world, those dreams and memories felt almost like they had been real experiences. So, in her heart, Alice did hold some special affection for Lucas.


    "Well, I''m counting on you, then," Alice whispered into Lucas''s ear, her voice sultry, "my dear husband."


    Lucas felt his ears turn hot, and memories from the Simtor flooded back to his mind—memories of the things he and Alice had done there.


    For him, that had been far more than just a dream.


    ---


    "Mom! Dad!" As the two returned, Klee ran over to them with curiosity, asking, "What were you two talking about?"


    "Oh, just a little chat," Alice pinched Lucas''s cheek with a smile. "After all, it''s been a long time since Ist saw your dad."


    "Is that so?" Klee pondered, rubbing her chin. "I thought maybe you two were doing some ''grown-up things.''"


    At Klee''s words, Jean''s expression shifted, and she quickly asked, "Klee! Who told you about that?"


    "Brother Kaeya!" Klee replied without hesitation. "Brother Kaeya said that when husbands and wives don''t see each other for a long time, they do grown-up things together. But... what are grown-up things?"


    "This Kaeya..." Jean muttered with a frown. "Telling Klee things like that..."


    Then again, it was just like Kaeya to make such jokes.


    "Oh, it''s just... kissing," Alice said, picking Klee up and nting a kiss on her soft, squishy cheek. "Just like this."


    Klee giggled with delight, but then her eyes widened with surprise as she looked at Alice''s hand. "Mom, what''s happening to your hand?"


    Alice nced down and saw that her hand had begun to dissolve into particles of light, along with the rest of her body.


    "It seems my time here is up," Alice said with a helpless smile. "I was summoned here, after all, so now it''s time for me to go back."


    "But Klee doesn''t want you to go!" Klee''s eyes filled with tears as her happy expression faded.


    "Mom wille back to see you again, and..." Alice nced at Lucas with a smile, "you''ll have your dad with you. Be good, okay?"


    "Klee... Klee will be good!" Klee''s words were brave, but her tears still flowed despite her best efforts to hold them back.


    After all, she was still a child, and it was hard for her to part with her mother.


    "Oh, I almost forgot—I have a gift for you, Klee." Alice held out her hand, and a soft, fluffy stuffed toy with a big tail appeared as if by magic. "If both Mom and Dad aren''t around, you''ll have this to keep youpany."


    "Wow! I love it!" Klee hugged the toy with joy. "I''ve decided—I''ll call you... Dodoco!"


    "Thank you, everyone, for always taking care of Klee... Goodbye." Alice''s voice faded as she disappeared along with the light particles.


    But before vanishingpletely, she gave Lucas onest, meaningful look—a message that needed no words.


    Farewells always carry a hint of sadness. Alice''s departure left everyone quiet for a moment, especially Klee, who turned her back to the group, her usual cheerfulness dimmed.


    Just as the three were about to gofort her, they saw Klee wipe her eyes, then turn back around with her usual, carefree smile.


    "Let''s keep adventuring!" she said with a slight redness still in her eyes but a bright smile on her face. "Mom was right. I''m already so lucky to have you all with me!"


    Seeing Klee''s resilience, the others felt a wave of relief.


    "Alright, I guess it''s my turn!" Barbara took the dice in her hand, but she felt a bit nervous.


    What if something strange or dangerous happened again?


    Seeing her worry, Jean gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder with a smile. "Don''t worry, no matter what happens, as long as we work together, we can handle it!"


    Encouraged by her sister, Barbara finally mustered the courage to roll the dice.


    A one and a six—seven steps.


    "Wow, it''s a one!" Klee eximed. "Are we going to change back... huh?"


    Before she could finish, her body had already transformed from that of a grown woman back into her usual little girl self.


    And the other three had also reverted to their original ages.


    "Aww, that''s too bad..." Klee mumbled in slight disappointment. "Now I''m short again."


    "I''m short again too..." Barbara sighed as she looked down at her chest, which had shrunk back. "I have to admit, being grown up was actually kind of nice."


    Just then, a new event appeared on the board—


    [The dice roller bes a giant for one turn]


    "A giant...?"


    All four of them looked a bit puzzled.


    "L-look!" Klee suddenly eximed. "Barbara... she''s growing bigger again!"


    Lucas and Jean both turned to see that Barbara''s body was indeed erging at a visible rate.


    But rather than aging up, she was simply growing in size.


    Luckily, her clothing also grew with her body; otherwise, her clothes would have surely torn apart by now.


    Two meters, three meters, five meters, ten meters... she kept growing until she towered over the surrounding trees.


    "W-what''s happening to me?!" Naturally, Barbara was the most astonished of all. She watched as her body rose further and further from the ground, while everything around her—including the others—seemed to shrink smaller and smaller.


    If this were the real world, a sudden ergement of the human body would cause all sorts of issues. But here in this game, somehow, it all worked perfectly.


    Finally, Barbara''s "growth" stopped, but her body had reached an enormous, astonishing size.


    "Barbara, try not to panic!" Lucas called up to her. "It''s only supposed tost one turn!"


    However, as he tilted his head back to look up, Lucas''s expression became somewhatplicated.


    Due to Barbara''s enormous size, her skirt was now like a vast, dark cloud hanging over the three of them.


    And, of course, the "scenery" beneath that "cloud" was also... entirely on disy.


    What''s more, everything was so magnified that every detail was clearly visible, down to the very pores.


    Barbara seemed to realize this as well and squeaked in embarrassment, "D-don''t look!"


    Due to her size, Barbara''s voice boomed louder than usual, and her sudden shout left the others dizzy and shaken.


    "S-sorry, I didn''t mean to!" Barbara stammered, her face red with worry.


    She tried to adjust her position, but, still not fully used to her new size, she wobbled and suddenly lost her bnce,nding heavily on the ground with a thud.


    "Klee, watch out!"


    Jean''s first thought was to protect the youngest among them. Using her Anemo powers, she quicklyunched Klee to safety.


    But a huge shadow fell over her just as Barbara''s giant form was about tond on top of her.


    At that critical moment, Lucas dashed forward, shoving Jean out of harm''s way.


    "Lucas!"


    Jean''s shout was cut short by the deafening thud as Barbara, seated in a ducking position,nded on the sandy ground.


    And Lucas... was nowhere to be seen, seemingly buried beneath her.


    "Lucas!" Jean cried out in horror. "Barbara, quick... get up!"


    Even Jean herself didn''t realize her voice had taken on a tremor.


    "D-daddy..." Klee stared, wide-eyed, mumbling, "He really got squished by Barbara... waaah!"


    "I-I didn''t mean to!" Barbara quickly scrambled to her feet, but she couldn''t bring herself to look down.


    Being crushed by such a weight would tten even a Ruin Guard, or squish a Geo Slime into paste.


    But, to their surprise, there was no bloodied corpse on the ground where Barbara had fallen.


    "Eh?"


    Suddenly, Barbara''s face flushed crimson, and her voice trembled as she said, "L-Lucas... he''s... he''s still alive."


    "Really?" Jean asked immediately. "Where is he?"


    "Where''s Daddy?" Klee asked, her voice filled with worry.


    "L-look over there first!" Barbara pointed behind them in a flustered gesture.


    Jean and Klee turned to look, only to see nothing but the open sea stretching out before them, with no sign of Lucas.


    "Barbara, you''re teasing us! Daddy isn''t... huh? Daddy!"


    As Klee turned back, she saw Lucas in the palm of Barbara''s hand. "Wow! Barbara''s doing magic and made Daddy appear!" Klee squealed with delight.


    Barbara said nothing, though her expression wasplex. She carefully set Lucas down on the ground, and Klee immediately dashed over to him, asking in concern, "Daddy, are you alright? Eh? Why do you smell funny?"


    "Lucas, what exactly happened?" Jean asked as she came over, looking baffled. "Weren''t you... just crushed?"


    "I..." Lucas''s face flushed. "I was lucky enough to find... a gap."


    "A gap?"


    Jean didn''t quite understand at first, but ncing at both Lucas and Barbara''s faces, she seemed to catch on.


    In that split-second of survival, Lucas finally understood the meaning behind the saying, "When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes back."


    "A gap?" Klee looked around at the patch of ground where Barbara hadnded. "Where''s the gap?"


    The enormous weight from Barbara''s body had ttened thend into two shallow oval-shaped depressions, more dramatic than anything Klee could achieve with her bombs. There was clearly nowhere to hide.


    "Klee, let''s not ask too many questions," Jean interjected at the right moment. "Your father just went through something very dangerous and needs a little time to calm down."


    Yes, he very much needed to calm down.


    ----


    Author''s Note: So many diddies