Plap! Plap! Plap!
The sound of small slaps echoed through the dimly lit room.

“Ow! Hey! Stop slapping me!” Rion shouted, swatting away the tiny hands mercilessly smacking his cheeks.

“Wake up, wake up, wake up!” Ravell yelled from Rion’s chest, his face stern like a battle commander.

Rion cracked his eyes open, half-asleep. “What is it, Ravell?! It’s five in the morning!”

“Lazy commoner,” Ravell scolded, crossing his arms. “There’s an old saying: ‘If you rise late, the dragon will steal your diamond.’”

Rion blinked at him, struggling not to laugh.
(That’s probably their version of ‘early bird gets the worm,’ huh.)

“What’s so funny?” Ravell asked suspiciously.

“Nothing, nothing,” Rion said quickly, yawning as he stood up. “Come on, let’s go to the place where I found you.

........

The morning air was damp, dew still clinging to the grass as sunlight slowly filtered through the trees.

Ravell sat on Rion’s shoulder, alert like a prince surveying his battlefield.

After several minutes of walking, they arrived beneath the large tree—the same place where their fates first crossed.

Ravell leapt down gracefully. “Alright, help me search for the magic circle around here.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Rion replied, giving an exaggerated mock salute.

They both began brushing aside leaves and branches. The soil was still damp, and the air cool and misty.

Minutes passed before Rion suddenly called out,
“Ravell! I think I found something!”

He crouched down before a faint circle etched into the ground—symbols carved in the dirt, strange and unreadable.

Ravell ran over, his blue eyes widening.
“Yes, this is it! The magic circle! Thank goodness I still have a bit of crystal magic left.”

He pulled out a small fragment of crystal from within his clothes and placed it at the center of the circle.

Instantly, a bright blue light flared up. The symbols glowed, and a cloud of white smoke rose, swirling thickly around them.

“Did I... do it? Am I returning...?” Ravell said, voice trembling with hope.

But it wasn’t him who appeared.

From within the mist, another doll emerged—similar to Ravell, though slightly shorter, dressed in tiny armor like a knight.

“Your Highness!!” the doll shouted.

Ravell stared, stunned. “You... Arden?!”

The little knight immediately bowed deeply.
“Yes, Your Highness! While searching for you, I was ambushed by the court mages and struck by a curse. I was thrown into another world... but your summoning magic drew me here!”

Before they could exchange another word, the light in the circle began to fade rapidly.

“No! The magic circle is disappearing!” Ravell cried.

Moments later, the glow vanished entirely, leaving only faint burn marks on the earth.

Ravell stared at it in despair. “And... I have no more magic crystals.”

Rion gently patted his tiny shoulder.
“Hate to break up your reunion, but I’ve got school to get to, you know?”

Arden spun around sharply, eyes narrowing at Rion.
“Who is this insolent commoner, Your Highness?!” he shouted, pointing his miniature sword right at Rion’s face.

“Whoa, whoa! Keep that toy sword away from me!” Rion stumbled backward.

“Enough, Arden,” Ravell said firmly. “Though his manners are questionable, he is the one who saved my life.”

Arden immediately lowered his sword and bowed. “Forgive me, Your Highness.”

Ravell glanced at Rion, then cleared his throat awkwardly.
“Rion... for the time being, may we stay with you?”

Rion narrowed his eyes. “Fufufu... so the mighty prince can be polite when he needs help, huh?”