To the teleporter~!

"...ange of my ability increased significantly but it's still nowhere near what you saw in the last playthrough. The potential of size and overall power of the form I can achieve is still ridiculously constricted without the relevant side quest that can unlock it."

It was the morning of the following day, and Zane, sitting by the table, had just finished answering Melinda's question.

"That's right…! I almost forgot about the power-unlocking side quests! Hmm... Hold on…! Does my Gargantuan have those, too? I don't recall doing anything for Lazurii in game..."

The gold-haired girl still on her bed nodded with a studious expression before furrowing her brows and questioning curiously.

"Gragrantuan?! Heaven's, no! Gargantuan is THE crown of all Royal-type abilities! Royal–types give their users access to their full strength right from the start, and it's the user's job to learn how to wield them properly. I mean, could you imagine? Your strength stat is already past the orbit and moon and skyrocketing even higher with each baseline stat increase!"

The monstrous servant gasped with utter horror before shaking his head and pointing out.

"...fair enough…"

Melinda tilted her head, making an understanding face, before getting up and approaching the table - or, more specifically, Zane - from behind.

"It's nice that you can control yours enough now that you can stay the same height while sitting. It was cute but also troublesome when you would tower over everyone no matter your position."

"Well, I just don't feel the need to…"

As she stood right behind him, the gold-haired girl pointed out and gently touched his head. Playfully running her fingers through his hair, halting Zane's boastful response before he could finish it.

"..."

Zane said nothing, but Melinda could see his nape and ears getting reddish from blushing so much.

"Look at how much your hair grew. The natural color is so much more noticeable ~"

The girl hummed, delicately ruffling the black hair with pure white roots that completely took over the monstrous servant's head.

"I… I'll dye them right away…"

"Nooo~ don't~ I think your natural hair color looks so pretty…"

Zane gasped hurriedly in embarrassment, but Melinda purred slowly, lowering her head as if to have an even better look.

"D-do you think so…? B-but in-game, Meli…"

"...~"

Zane fidgetted and pointed out shamefully, but then he felt the softest sensation touching his head, and all thoughts were erased in a flash.

"Hmhm~"

Melinda smiled and straightened her back, moving her hands back to make sure her slick hair didn't try to break free. Then, she walked around Zane to sit right next to him.

"I am Melinda, though. Haven't you told me that before~?"

"!!!"

The gold-haired girl put her elbows on the table and hummed, resting her chin on her hand and playfully touching her lips with the tips of her fingers... Which appeared to have the effect of completely freezing any functions in Zane's brain, including the ones responsible for basic actions like blinking, keeping his mouth closed, and breathing.

"My lady, the teleporter array is functional. We have a reservation, and we can go after breakfast."

At that exact moment, Adrianna entered the room and announced right after closing the door behind her.

"Also, the breakfast will be served soon."

She added, taking a seat by the table with calm Melinda and flustered Zane.

"Thanks, Adi~!"

The gold-haired girl leaned back in her chair and smiled brightly at her maid.

"Oh, Adi, we were just talking about the potential of abilities getting stronger. Did you notice something happening with yours? Or maybe you suddenly realized that there was something you could do to make it stronger. You know, as if a new task just was added to the mental list you keep or something?"

Melinda's eyes darted towards the deeply embarrassed Zane, so she leaned in towards Adrianna, preemptively changing the subject just in case.

"I don't belie… hmm…"

The brown-haired maid fist shook her head, sounding confused about the question, but then she furrowed her brows, and her eyes wandered to the side.

"Actually… Back when we were hunting those ents, I did have the urge to deliver as many sneak attacks as possible… but it passed before we moved on to golems, so…"

"Adi~! That must have been your ability's power-unlocking side quest! It means your inborn ability grew stronger!"

The maid recalled and pointed out in hesitation, causing the gold-haired noble to cheer out and grab her hands, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"I-is that so…? It felt a bit too bland to be the famed power-unlocking guest..."

"I'm sure of it! Adi, you're amazing. You've already completed your power-unlocking side quest on your own!"

Adrianna hesitated but Melinda wouldn't stop showeirng her with praise until the innkeeper personally brought the food to their room and the conversation had to be paused.

"Hmm? This looks different than the other day."

Melinda furrowed her brows after taking a closer look at the dish presented to her.

"A-ah! My lady, that's for me…!"

"...?"

In response, and after a closer inspection, Adrianna let out a troubled gasp and pointed out, making Melinda and Zane turn to her.

"I… I didn't like the taste of those green vegetables, so I asked the innkeeper for them to be replaced by either pickles or plain cucumbers in my portion…"

The maid admitted with an embarrassed face while hurriedly swapping the plates.

"Awww~! Adi! You don't like green bell peppers?! That's so cute~!"

"I am deeply ashamed…! P-please, don't laugh at me, my lady…!"

Melinda let out an awestruck gasp, instantly making Adrianna lower her head and murmur while picking up a portion of her altered dish and nibbling on it timidly.

After their meal, the trio got their belongings in order and left the inn for the last time.

The superstorm on the Amber Sea was making the weather in the Chainlink port city bearly bearable, but one could hardly tell that from the faces of the people Melinda's group passed.

Even though buffeted by the heavy rain and wind, everyone seemed to be looking forward to the future.

Well, maybe the precious monster materials most of them clutched in their arms had something to do with it?

One could never be too sure.

The formalities at the teleporter array took only a moment, and soon enough, the trio approached the proper formation.

There, surprisingly enough because they were promised to have the priority regarding the use of the teleportation array, they came across people other than the staff of mages maintaining the site.