Bizarre.

—

Moving down to the hatch of the ship with the help of Lanfear and Moiraine, Richard was finally able to walk normally, although he was still stuck to the ceiling. Looking at the upside-down hall with decorations stuck to the floor on the opposite side, he noticed that the hall, which had been a straight line just a moment ago, now split into two, each a perfect replica of the other.

Not only that, but the path ahead that formed the two halls began to bend up and down, each with its own distance: one seemed to stretch into the beyond, while the other just led to the next corridor. Laughing bitterly at the increasingly bizarre situation, Richard suddenly didn't know how they would ever reach the city where the Spren is located.

Luckily, the lady who permanently resides in this realm knows how to navigate the ever-changing path using her moon necklaces; otherwise, he would probably be stuck inside the Skidbladnir for most of his life. Wanting to ponder further, Richard was suddenly subjected to a new set of physical rules, where he floated three meters above the ground while twirling in all directions.

Even his propulsion didn't help, as the length of the ionized fire became like a noodle, moving in every direction. One part formed the shape of an elephant, another the shape of a heart, another the shape of Pochacco, and so on, filling his entire body with patterns that, if sold on Etsy under the Baby category, would probably become a star seller.

"By the light, this is so befuddling," Moiraine exclaimed, looking at the ever-changing road and transforming hall.

"Yes, Lanfear. If the hall leading to the city is like this, by Mother Kyen, I can't imagine what everything is like in there," Ervine stated with concern.

Letting go of Richard, who was suddenly floating flat in the air, Lanfear waved her hand to shrink their size to that of an ant and said, "Don't worry; on a smaller scale, the effect is minimal." Looking at Richard, who was still spinning like a gyroscope, Lanfear continued, "Well, to the minimal effect it can have, that is."

"Hmm… Richard… What is that?" Moiraine asked, finally noticing something, while pointing at the Pochacco dancing atop his head.

Dread of embarrassment filled his entire being as Richard waved his hand, trying to remove the bizarre jet of flame that he couldn't control. But instead of erasing it, the fire stuck to his hand and rubbed its cheek affectionately, leaving him torn between dying of shame and embracing the complex endearment.

Not only that, but the other shapes also started hugging him as if they didn't want to be separated, especially the Stitch, whose eyes were begging Richard like a puppy. The scene was peculiar, with his face turning as red as a tomato, caught in limbo between exasperation and fondness.

"Oh my, I've never seen this side of Richard before!" Ervine said with a teasing smile while pinching the cheek of the flame Pochacco.

"Richard… I didn't know that beneath that cold exterior… Tch, tch. Hmm, now I remember there is a function in Seon OS that captures the scene of view… I wonder…" Moiraine said mischievously as she flipped her watch.

Looking at the peculiar Richard, Lanfear noted, "Oh, look, he's walking on the floor," and then chuckled, realizing something. "Well, it seems our dear Slayer will have to keep the little guys if he wants to walk normally again."

—

[Two hours later.]

"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahhaha!"

Gazing at Ciri, who was laughing uncontrollably and rolling on the ground, Richard put on a thick-skinned face, as if this was just a normal part of his daily life, while looking at the ground, which suddenly seemed interesting.

"Don't be like that. These new basic Spren just have strange and peculiar shapes. Come, come, let Syl pinch your face. Hmm, that's right, it's soft and doughy. Those eyes, yes… The ears, yes, yes… The itsy-bitsy nose, yes, yes, yes… It's cute and adorable. Alright, Syl has already decided. From now on, all of you will become my subjects," Sylphrena said, nodding to herself, not understanding why Richard kept looking down at the ground and turning redder by the minute.

"Oh my… Is that you, Richard? Wow, is this—"

Unable to control his embarrassment any longer after Yennefer's question, Richard instantly propelled himself to a distant land in Shadesmar inside Skidbladnir, as far away as possible from the city of Lasting Integrity.

"Richard! Where are you going?! These adorable Spren will be sad if you escape! Don't leave them alone!" Sylphrena exclaimed loudly.

Boom!

In a flash, Richard disappeared from sight.

"Huft, irresponsible Richard! Just you wait, when you come back, I will not be shy about giving you a piece of my mind! How dare he leave his newborn children alone?!" Sylphrena fumed, stomping her foot on the ground, not understanding why Richard was so ashamed of his cute creations.

"Wait—Pfft—Did you say they're Richard's—Hahahah, oh fuck—Hahaha, I just can't—Pfft, I just can't take it, hahahahah!"

Frowning at Ciri's laughter over Richard's adorable children and not understanding why it was so funny, Syl simply huffed in dissatisfaction. Observing Richard's trail of flame that glided through the air and formed all kinds of adorable shapes, and seeing the father of these creations flying off to who knows where, Syl realized she had misjudged her bonding partner. Nodding to herself, Syl decided that from now on, she would give Richard a thorough lecture on how to be a good parent.

"Alas, the footage has ended," Moiraine said, turning toward Yennefer with a look of contempt. "If not for you, I would still have had an extra dozen minutes or so."

"Wait, what do you mean? I agree that he becomes adorable and lovable seeing these Spren dancing all over his body, but that's not—Ahhh, I see… Fuck! My mind hasn't adjusted properly yet! Curse me, it's still in research mode!" Yennefer exclaimed, frustrated.

"Such a shame, such a shame," Ervine said, shaking her head as she pocketed the recording crystal ball.

Seeing the four Heralds recording embarrassing moments of her dragon, Lanfear secretly cataloged another strange rule in the Cognitive Realm that wasn't currently affecting Richard. Glancing at them for a split second, she devised plan after plan to present these bizarre rules to them while making it look like an accident. After weaving a spell to message Richard and receiving his confirmation, Lanfear smiled wickedly for a moment before returning to her normal expression when Syl looked at her with suspicion.

—