Potion

Fern walked over.

Ruby was circling around Himmel, who was still posing under the tree, her large blue eyes scanning him up and down, seemingly assessing the effectiveness of his "pure knight" performance. Hearing footsteps, she turned her head, her eyes lighting up.

"Oh! Fern! You're back?"

Fern stopped a few steps away, glanced at the crowd in the open space, and nodded slightly.

"Hmm. How's the rehearsal going?"

Ruby her hands behind her back, hopped closer, a smile spreading across her face.

"Hmm... still a little short. Lowell's acting needs special training, Lupa's emotional depth isn't rich enough, Linié is easy to manage, but her role is a bit small... As for Himmel, hehe, perfect!"

She paused, then suddenly stopped, tilting her head to scrutinize Fern. Her gaze swept from Philon's pale purple hair over her fair, serene face, down to her well-fitting dress, and then back again.

"Speaking of which, Fern..."

Her voice trailed off, carrying a hint of inquiry.

"Three days at home... did you have a good time?"

Fern blinked, his expression unchanged, and simply answered truthfully.

"Yes... that's true. My father and mother treat me very well, and I'm very happy."

She paused, then looked at Ruby with a hint of confusion.

"What's wrong?"

Ruby's lips curved into a sly, mischievous grin. She held up a finger and pointed it at Fern in the air.

"Only three days, little Fern..."

She deliberately dragged out her tone, her eyes curving into crescents.

"... You seem to have gained quite a bit of weight~"

Fern: "!?"

The slight doubt on her face froze instantly.

Fern was shocked.

Her pale purple eyes widened slightly, and almost without thinking, she looked down at herself, then immediately looked up and gently touched her cheek.

Then, without saying anything, she immediately turned around and quickly walked to a mirror.

She stopped, looked at herself carefully in the mirror.

She first turned her head slightly and gently touched her cheek with her fingertips. The sensation from her fingertips and the reflection in the mirror seemed normal, but her brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

Then, she lowered her head, looked at her flat stomach, and even gently pressed it with her hand.

Still seemingly unsure, she turned around, facing the mirror sideways, and carefully turned her head to try and see the lines of her waist and hips.

Her movements were a little clumsy, carrying a rare hint of panic that was out of character for her usual composure.

Lowell leaned against the tree, watching Fern's series of swift and earnest "self-examination" actions, silently rolled his eyes, turned his face away, and said nothing.

Frieren had somehow joined in, standing next to Fern and mimicking her mannerisms. Her emerald eyes curiously glanced at Fern in the mirror, then at Fern herself, her head tilted slightly.

"Huh... is there?"

Lupa scratched her head.

"No, I think so. I look the same as before."

Beside her, Linié's pink gothic dress remained perfectly still. She raised her icy blue eyes, calmly scanning Fern's entire body, and then, in her soft, monotone voice, stated her observations, word by word:

"No. Fern has a great figure."

She paused, as if searching for a more accurate description.

"Where it should be big, it should be big; where it should be small, it should be small..."

"Ugh!"

Before she could finish speaking, Lupa blushed and quickly reached out to cover her mouth.

Ruby Fern examined himself in the mirror, looking at himself from left to right with a serious expression, and finally couldn't help but cover her mouth and burst out laughing, her shoulders shaking slightly.

"Hahaha... I'm dying of laughter, Fern's panicked look is so funny..."

Her eyes narrowed into slits as she laughed.

"Just kidding, Fern! How can you be so easily fooled!"

Fern stopped moving.

She remained in the position of looking in the mirror sideways, silent for two seconds, then slowly turned around. The rare panic on her face had long since faded, replaced by her usual calm. Only the word "helplessness" was clearly reflected in her pale purple eyes, and the corners of her mouth turned down slightly.

"... Lady Ruby, please don't joke Ruby that."

Her voice was flat, but you could hear a hint of sullenness from being teased.

Himmel, having ended his "pure and beautiful" reverie at some point, walked over. He wore a hearty smile and gently ruffled Ruby's fiery red curls.

Ruby.

The tone was gentle, with a hint of reminder.

Ruby stuck out her tongue, made a face at Himmel, then turned to Fern, her smile still bright, but with a hint of mockery gone.

"Okay, okay, Fern, I'm not teasing you anymore."

She skipped over to Fern, hands behind her back, leaning slightly forward, her large, bright blue eyes sparkling.

"As an apology, I'll teach you my newly developed magic another day!"

She deliberately dragged out her words and drew a large circle with her arm.

"Wow, that's super amazing!"

Fern glanced at her, but didn't reply. He simply walked to a nearby bench and sat down. She crossed her arms, turned her head slightly to the other side, and her fair cheeks puffed out slightly.

"Snort..."

Then he stopped talking, leaving everyone with only a profile that seemed to say, "I'm angry."

Ruby blinked, her smile deepening, tinged with a smug "I knew it" kind of pride. She swaggered over to Fern, crouched down, looked up at Fern's deliberately averted gaze, and drawled out her words:

"It's the magic of 'eating whatever you want without gaining weight'~" Her voice was low and seductive.

Fern: "..."

She maintained her profile, her body stiffening almost imperceptibly.

Her long eyelashes trembled slightly twice.

Then, very slowly, she turned her face back.

Her pale purple eyes met Ruby's smiling face, Ruby scream "Ask me, ask me!"

Their eyes met.

The silence lasted for about three heartbeats.

The slight sullenness on Fern's face Melt and dissipated at a visible speed. She loosened her arms, straightened her posture again, and her expression returned to its usual calm. Only her ears seemed to be slightly flushed.

She coughed softly, her voice steady and her words clear:

Please teach me.

Ruby finally couldn't hold back any longer, burst into laughter, stood up, and patted Fern on the shoulder forcefully.

"Hmph~ That's more like it!"

After she finished laughing, as if suddenly remembering something, she reached into her small bag, which never seemed to contain anything unusual, and rummaged around in it.

Then, she took something out.

A transparent glass bottle, about ten centimeters long. The bottle is slender and not particularly well-made, showing signs of age and wear. It is filled with a viscous liquid that slowly changes color. The colors are not static, but flow, blend, and separate silently within the bottle, sometimes shimmering with a soft, pearly sheen, sometimes settling into a deep, dark hue, and occasionally flashing with a barely perceptible, arc-like glimmer.

The stopper was made of some kind of dark wood, with several extremely small, crooked symbols engraved on it.

"By the way, I found this recently while exploring that newly discovered ancient ruin in the south."

Ruby shook the bottle in her hand, and the colorful liquid inside rippled, reflecting a mesmerizing halo in the sunlight.

"It was placed in a very hidden, magically protected small stone box. Next to it was a stone slab with instructions written in Ancient Elvish."

She held the bottle up to her eyes, squinting at the changing liquid inside, while tapping the symbol on the stopper with her other hand.

"I translated it; the stone slab and the words on it mean something like..."

She paused, as if trying to recall the exact translation.

"A potion that temporarily reverses one's personality? Or... a potion that drastically changes a person's personality in a short period of time?"

"Well, the vocabulary in Ancient Elvish is sometimes rather vague, but it's generally about things that can influence personality."

Frieren, who had been sipping her water, immediately looked up when she heard this. Her emerald eyes lit up and she stared intently at the bottle in Ruby's hand, like a cat that had spotted a new and fascinating toy.

"Huh?"

She made a short sound, clearly showing interest.

"That sounds interesting. Hmm... it does indeed mean something similar..."

She put down the water pouch, took a few steps closer to Ruby, bent down slightly, and carefully examined the bottle of liquid, a look on her face a mixture of curiosity and reminiscence.

"And the kind of 'Clothes-Dissolving Potion' that Flamme used to like researching..."

"Ugh!"

Before she could finish speaking, Lowell reached out and covered her mouth.

Frieren blinked, her mouth covered, only able to make muffled "mmm" sounds. She turned her head, her emerald eyes looking at Lowell, a clear question in them.

Lowell released her hand, glanced at her helplessly, and said in a low voice:

"Don't talk about that strange potion here."

Frieren raised her hand and rubbed her lips, muttering to herself:

Okay, okay, I won't say anything then.

But her gaze as she looked at the bottle of medicine remained bright and full of interest.

Ruby chuckled and shook the bottle in her hand, the colorful liquid drawing mesmerizing patterns inside.

"Hmph... Anyway, this potion looks quite special, and its effects... well, that makes me a little curious."

Her gaze, filled with amusement, swept over everyone present— Frieren, whose eyes shone; Lowell, whose expression was somewhat subtle; Fern, who appeared calm but whose eyes unconsciously followed the bottle; Lupa, who looked on with curiosity; Linié, who remained expressionless but kept staring at the potion; and Himmel, who crossed her arms and wore a hearty, amused smile.

"You..."

She drew out the melody, her smile growing even brighter, radiating an undisguised, eager excitement.

"... How about we give it a try?"