“Master, it’s time for dinner, are still you working on your grimoire?”

“…? You’re not going to eat? It’s been a week, Master. You have to eat a proper meal.”

“-?! A nuisance? I’ve been trying to take care of you so you don’t starve to death. The least you could do is thank me. You haven’t helped me with my training for weeks.”

“Hmph. Sorry isn’t going to cut it, Master, but you don’t have to worry. I’ve been studying a spell I found in one of the grimoires in the back of your library.”

“Eeeeh? Those were forbidden tomes? The spell seemed safe enough to me. I can cast it with no side effects.”

“What, you don’t believe me, Master? Eeeh?! You’re saying I’m nowhere near good enough to use spells from that tome? You’re such a jerk, Master! Just because you’re a Court recognized magician doesn’t mean you should pick on me.”

“Grrr… Stop laughing. I’ll show you I can use that magic. In fact, I’ll prove it to you!”

“… Oh? Feeling hesitant now that you can see the magic circle? I thought you said I can’t use forbidden magic at my level? I’ll show you the difference between us isn’t as big as you think it is. Just stand right there, Master. I’ll make you my target and you’ll see how strong of a magician I’ve gotten without your help.”

“Don’t run away, Master. S’alowducer!”

“Aha! Direct… hit?”

“Hm…? Nothing happened? That’s weird. It’s supposed to work on living creatures too- Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Stop pulling on my ears! I need them to hear, Master!”

“I get it already! I get it already! I’m sorry I scared you, but it’s your fault for not paying attention to me. I came here to learn, and you haven’t taught me for so long!”

“… Jeez, my ears are all red now… Fine, I’ll accept your apology, Master. Now let’s go eat dinner.”

“… What? You still aren’t leaving? For the love o- You haven’t learned a thing at all, Master? Your cute apprentice is asking you to eat with her. Put down the books for an hour and just go eat already!”

“… Come on! Budge, you big research addict! Goddesses! Get out of that chair alrea–”

Crash!

“Ouch. I pulled too hard. Looks like we both fell over. Are you okay, Master? Why did you suddenly stop fighting all of a sud… den…?”

“It worked! I told you it worked! Look at that, Master! I told you could use that forbidden spell. You’ve gotten smaller!”

“Here, stand up Master… Would you look at that? You only come up to my stomach now. How’s that for skill? A great magician like you is now looking up at your apprentice.”

“… Hehehe… You’re pretty cute like this, Master. You’re around the height of my little brother. Lemme pat your head a little. It’s been a while since I’ve gone home to my family, so this is a little nostalgic.”

“… Let go? What’s this? You can’t take my hand off you, Master? Heh, I guess you got weaker. Makes sense since now I’m the bigger person. Maybe now you’ll think twice before taking me for granted.”

“Heh? Did I learn the spell to change you back? Of course! You don’t take me for an idiot do you, Master? … But I won’t just yet. Come on, Master. You’re coming with me so we can have dinner.”

“… Wow, you really are light, Master. Hey, stop struggling or I’ll grab both of your arms… Ahahahaha~! It hurts? Is your little apprentice’s grip too strong for… you…?”

“You shrank again! The spell really is working like it’s supposed to. Look at that, you’re barely past my knees. And you’re so light I can lift you up without even trying now. I think even a baby is heavier than you.”

“… No, I still won’t be changing you back, Master. I’ll be enjoying every bit of this. Just think of this as punishment for ignoring me every time you work on your spell books. So let’s go little Master. Would you like me to hold you like a baby or should I just carry you under my arm?”

“Fufufufu~ Prideful, aren’t we? Fine, I’ll put you down so you can walk, but you better head to the table fa- Pfft! You can’t even reach the door knob, Master! Look at you tip toeing and jumping uselessly. ‘I can do it myself,’ you said. Doesn’t look like you can do anything like this.”

“I’ll be a good apprentice and open the door for you, little Master, but you should hurry. Doesn’t look like you’ll be getting to the dinner table any time soon… Hehehe…”

“…”

“………”

“…………… Yup. I knew it. I gave you a head start and everything, and you’re still not even half way there… I caught up to you in five steps. Actually, have you gotten smaller? Hold on a moment, Master.”

Thump!

“Oops! Sorry. I guess stepping over you was a bad idea. You ran right into my boot… Yup, it looks like you’re half the height of my knee. My legs must be like giant trees to you now.”

“…You seem speechless, Master. Don’t tell me… are you finally taking a good look at your beautiful young apprentice? I know I’m a bit short of my age, but that doesn’t seem to be the case for you, does it?”

“Eh? What was that? I’m afraid I couldn’t hear you very well down there. You’ll have to speak up…”

“… My dress…? It’s short… Oh my, are you getting flustered, Master? I didn’t think someone who only looked at research for most of his life could even get excited from just peeking at a girl’s skirt. It doesn’t really bother me. It’s just underwear, right?”

“I should be more worried? Why I should care about a little doll leering at me when I can just knock you down like this.”

Kick!

“Did that hurt? Aww… Can you get pull my foot off your body? I think I’m starting to like this spell, Master. It was hard being your apprentice because you were such a big, serious magician that it you were hard to talk to. Now, the shoe is on the other foot… no pun intended”

“Well, since dinner will get cold by the time you get there on your own, I’ll have to take you there myself. Come along, my doll sized Master.”

“... Hey, stop fighting back, Master. I’ll drop you if you struggle too much… Ah good, you’re finally listening.”

“… Okay. We’re here. What do you think, Master: Pumpkin stew, bread, and roasted pheasant. Doesn’t it look good?”

“… What’s that? I was wasting money? Where’s my ‘Thank you’ for taking my time in making sure you got something filling in your stomach?”

“…That’s better. And all it took was a little squeeze. Here’s your seat, Master.”

“………”

“………………Ahahahaha~! I was just joking. Of course I know you can’t reach the table from the chair at your height…”

“… Someone’s mad. You don’t have to yell. Those of squeals of yours may be high pitched, but you still shouldn’t be raising your voice at a girl. A little girl like me just might not take it very well against a doll like you…”

“…Oh… Looks like you’re an even littler doll now. Did you lose half of your height? Now it looks like I can easily hold you in my hand. Here, let me pick you up.”

“-!? H-hey, what are you doing trying to cast a spell? Are you really trying to attack me? Uwah!”

Puff!

“……… What…? Wait, was that it…? You’re kidding me.”

“……… Hohoho~! Looks like being small has made it impossible for you to cast spells. I guess that makes me the better magician of the two of us at the moment, doesn’t it?”

“Heh, are your legs shaking there, Master? They should be. Let me show you just how much stronger I am than you. I won’t even need magic. Here, all I have to do is turn around and…”

Crush!

“Haha! Oh Goddesses, did you even try to put up a fight, Master? To be beaten by your apprentice’s butt, if the Court heard of this, you’d be their laughing stock for the next decade.”

“... Are you trying to say something down there? I can barely feel your tapping through my dress. I wager you can feel every bit of my weight on you, though. Be thankful I’m not sitting on you with all my weight.”

“…….. Hm… Maybe you should be calling me Master now that I’ve defeated you… No, that’s a tad bit unfair when I caught you off guard and you were already afflicted by my spell. I’ve got to obey proper dueling rules if I want this to be official, don’t I?”

“………..”

“……… Okay. Let’s actually eat dinner. Get out from under ther- Ah! Looks like you’re half as taller as before. Did you shrink again? It’s hard to tell the difference from my height, but everything must be doubling in height to you so I must look enormous now.”

“There we go. Did you have a good time, Master? I hope all of this has taught you to be more respectful of my apprenticeship. I’m not here just to do all of your chores, got it?”

“… Good! Then, I’ll change you back after dinner since you finally look apologetic.”

“What? I can’t really hear you at your height, but are you asking why not now? It’s not like I memorized the spell to change you back, so let’s eat first.”

“Hm… Let’s see here… Wow, you’re smaller than the bowls. If that’s the case, we’ll just have to do it this way…”

“Sorry, Master, but you’ll have to make do with this. I put a bit of everything onto one spoon. That should be enough for you, right?”

“What’s with that face? Is it too much? Well, it can’t be helped when you’re so small. I said I’ll change you back after dinner, so please deal with being a bug for now. It’s not like I can hear you anymore anyways so it’s not like you can refuse. Let’s chow down.”

“…Mmmmm! Yup. Not bad if I do say so myself. What do you think Master, how does your first good home cooked meal in a week taste?”

“Hmmm, looks like you’re having a tough time nibbling the meat. Do you want me to chew it for you? … Just kidding. Even I know that’d be disgusting to eat… ”

“… Hm…? What’s wrong, Master? You’re still staring… Ah, don’t tell me. Did I scare you with my teeth? I suppose you are small enough to fit in my mouth. Don’t worry. I’m sure you don’t taste good.”

“… Well, I’m having seconds, and it looks like you haven’t made a dent in that spoon. How about I take that off your hands, Master? Mmmm… I just love pumpkins…”

“Sorry. Did I spill? Wow, I guess even one drop is enough to soak your robe… Ah, are you still getting smaller? Now you really are bite sized. You could fit in this spoon with room to spare now.”

“You’re climbing on? You’re must be curious, brave, or stupid. After all, all I have to do is lift this up and you’re trapped. There’s nowhere you can go but down.”

“Are you terrified, Master? You have to turn your head just to get a full view of my face, don’t you? I wonder if you even remember I’m your apprentice. You look so awe struck; I think I have to remind you that I’m not the big one but you are the small one.”

“Do you like being the size of your apprentice’s lips? If you were a bit younger and cleaned up better, I might have considered giving you the kiss of a lifetime, but I’d sooner eat you than do that.”

“Fufufu~! Those words scared you? I told you before I’m sure you wouldn’t taste good. I’m not that cruel. The most I’d be willing to do is just give you a good look at the inside of my mouth, like so: Aaaaaah~!”

“Whoops. Almost blew you off with my breath, didn’t I? You’re so pathetic at this size, Master. I should just keep you like this instead of changing you back, though you’d probably shrink away to nothing. Speaking of which, it looks like it’s happening again, isn’t it?”

“Wow, you are puny. Another half of your height is gone. I bet if I put you on the floor, you wouldn’t even be able to reach the top of my toes. I’m pinching you between my finger now and it feels like I could squish you easily by accident.”

“… I guess we should return you back to normal size. The dishes can wait. Let’s head to your library. Here, you can just sit in the middle of my giant palm.”

“………”

“…………..”

“We’re here. I’ll leave you on the desk on this coin, Master. I shouldn’t lose you if you’re on thi- You’re shrinking again? That coin must be a massive stage compared to you now. Okay, I guess I’ll have to hurry up. Just stay there, Master… Not like you have a choice or anything.”

“…………Okay let’s see here…”

“………………………… Ah, here’s the book. Now for the spell… Where was it again?”

“……………………………………………. Ending the shrinking curse should be just a few pages after the original spell…”

“Aha! I found it. Master, I’m ready to change you back now… Master?”

“Oh my, is that speck you, Master? Did you shrink another time? How small are you now?”

“Jeez. I didn’t think the curse would get you this small this quickly. You must be looking up at me like a goddess. My eye must be filling up the entire sky for you. I’m struggling to even see you… And are you shrinking again? Oh no, I’ll stop the spell immediately.”

“Right. So the magic circle goes like this… and the hand gestures go like this… and the incantation…”

“S’aleturino!”

Boom!

Cough! Cough!

“Haaah… Haah… Okay. I cast the spell… Didn’t expect the smoke, but I felt it activate properly. Master, are you o…kay…?”

“Master? Master?! Stay with me! Hey!”

“… Phew… It looks like he just fell unconscious. And he’s gotten bigger again too so that means I dispelled the first spell. But still…”

“The size of a kid, huh? I guess I still need to practice improving my mana capacity. I ran out before I was able to turn him back all the way yet. Master’s totally going to scold me when he wakes up…”

“Well… Master’s probably going to think twice about messing with me now that I know this spell anyways… right? Ah, but will that make it harder for him to want to teach me? Or could I get reported for this? Oh no, it was fun while it lasted but maybe I should’ve thought this whole thing through more…”

“… Let’s just do the dishes for now and figure things out later. Good night, Master. Please don’t wake up until morning.”