The Enchanted Music Labyrinth

(Katarina’s Perspective)

The instant that self-proclaimed Jester Dahlia snapped his fingers, a wave of dizziness crashed over me.

The scenery before my eyes warped into a kaleidoscope of colors.

When I came to, we were already somewhere else…

A maze, it seemed, but every wall was a mirror. There was no way to tell which way was forward.

And… every single mirror showed distorted reflections.

Tall, short, fat, skinny—every ridiculous variation imaginable.

…What was truly strange, though, was that no matter which mirror I looked into, only Ailena and I appeared.

Where had everyone else gone?

“Ailena… hm?”

I turned around, looked toward Ailena’s spot, and froze on the spot.

Right now, Ailena had turned into the most adorable little munchkin, stretching her tiny hands toward me as if begging for a hug.

“Y-Y-Young… eh?”

Even her voice was babyish—utterly, devastatingly cute.

Confusion was written all over her little face.

She had clearly noticed something wrong with herself too.

She kept rubbing her chubby cheeks with those tiny hands, then let out the softest, most explosive squeak.

“Eh… e-eh… eeeeeeh!?”

It was just…

“Too cute!!!!”

I couldn’t hold back—I scooped her up, spun her around, and rubbed my cheek against her unbelievably squishy, mochi-like face.

So soft, so cute!

“Y-Young Miss!?”

Tiny Ailena looked even more bewildered; her eyes were practically spinning.

But this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance! I had to savor every second!

Only after I’d rubbed my fill did I finally set her down.

“Awawawa…”

She swayed dizzily, barely able to stand…

But with my help, she quickly regained her balance.

So… why had Ailena turned into this form?

She was insanely cute, though.

If possible, I’d love for her to stay like this forever. On holidays I could use her as a hug pillow and fall asleep holding her.

Normal-sized Ailena is wonderful too, but a pocket-sized one is far more huggable.

Mmm…

She pressed a tiny hand to her chin, head lowered in thought.

The gesture was meant to look mature, but on her miniature body it only made her even more adorable.

I bet it’s these funhouse mirrors’ doing…

Funhouse mirrors?

Every now and then she’d blurt out words I’d never heard before, completely naturally.

Is that what she meant by these mirrors?

Uh…

Her gaze started darting away.

W-well… um… I heard it from Lady Beglit…

Hm?

Beglit had never mentioned anything like that even to me, someone she’s closer to. Why would she tell Ailena…?

Well, I’ll let it slide for now.

Ahem… Anyway, I can sense a faint trace of magic inside these mirrors…

The change in appearance is probably caused by looking into them.

But I looked too, and nothing happened to me.

Hmm… maybe your change just isn’t very noticeable.

Honestly, I feel like you’ve grown quite a bit taller than before.

…Isn’t it simply that Ailena is way too short right now?

…

Ailena fell silent.

She clearly didn’t want to accept that reality.

Anyway… let’s get out of here first.

We’ll probably turn back to normal once we do.

When she said that, I suddenly didn’t feel like leaving anymore.

But we did come here to conquer this «Paradise»…

And we needed to regroup with the others and make sure they were safe.

“You’re right, but… how exactly do we get out?”

Every direction was nothing but mirrors; there was no visible path.

“It’s simple… Just keep one hand on the mirrors and walk in a single direction. Eventually you’ll reach the exit.”

With that, Ailena reached out to touch a mirror.

Yet the instant her hand made contact, it sank straight through with no resistance.

“Hm!?”

Then, as if being sucked in, her arm vanished deeper.

In the blink of an eye, her whole arm was about to disappear.

“Ailena!”

I hurriedly wrapped my arms around her and yanked her back.

With a soft pop, Ailena came free, safely pulled away from being devoured by the mirror.

“Ugh… okay, that method won’t work.”

“Then let’s try mine.”

I set Ailena back on the ground and drew my sword.

But the moment the blade left its sheath, the once-gleaming longsword instantly transformed into a giant, long, floppy carrot plushie.

“…Huh?”

Staring at the limp carrot in my hand, my brain short-circuited for a moment.

“L-Leave it to me!”

Tiny Ailena swung her short arms, trying to fire wind blades at the mirrors.

Yet her attack fizzled midway, turning into harmless, glittering sparks.

“…”

Now it was Ailena’s turn to freeze.

As we stood there confused, Jester Dahlia’s image appeared on the mirror surfaces.

Because of the mirrors’ effects, his already comical figure warped into even more laughable shapes.

He raised one finger and explained.

“Oh dear, oh dear… Dear guests, everything in the «Paradise» exists for laughter, so any act of harm is forbidden~”

He turned toward the carrot plushie in my hand.

“All harmful actions will be nullified. This time it was merely transformed…

But who knows what might happen next time~?

So please be careful~”

“…Then if you tried to hurt us, wouldn’t we be completely defenseless?”

I shot back.

“Rest assured on that point~

Within the «Paradise», all harmful actions are blocked—even for me.

With those words, he threw a dart at us.

The dart actually passed through the mirror and multiplied into dozens, flying from every direction.

“Look out!”

Ailena instantly raised an ice barrier, but before the darts could hit, they all went poof and turned into flowers that stuck harmlessly to the ice.

“And as you can see, defensive actions are not blocked~

So please enjoy yourselves without worry~”

After a brief pause, he continued.

“The «Paradise» is a place dedicated to bringing joy. Simply clear every attraction and collect all the «Joy Stickers» to beat the park~

I guarantee no one will be harmed in the process~”

Ailena was almost swallowed by a mirror just now, though?

“That was merely a little design feature~

If you’re carelessly sucked in, you’ll only change form and be sent back to the start—completely harmless~

If you don’t believe me, feel free to stuff that plushie in and see~”

I did as he said and tossed the carrot plushie into the mirror.

Surprisingly, it suddenly reappeared above me in miniature size and dropped into my hands.

Perhaps, as he said, this place really was perfectly safe.

“By the way, clearing this «Illusionary Funhouse Labyrinth» will also earn you one «Joy Sticker»~

Please take your time and clear it amidst laughter and cheer~”

With that, he gave a deep bow and vanished from the mirrors.