Ram had no time to mourn Grin.
The White Whale was already turning and slowly drifting toward her.
There seems to be life over there.
That thought seemed to pass through the White Whale's mind as its mountain-sized jaws opened again, thick mist beginning to gather in its throat.
"Oh no…"
Ram frowned and tightened her grip on the magic mirror, her fingers trembling slightly.
Squeak. Squeak.
A sharp little cry rose from the earth.
A fat white mouse crawled out from the clump of dirt beside Ram.
In the stillness of the night, even that tiny sound seemed infinitely magnified.
The White Whale halted its charge.
It floated closer, then tilted slightly, its enormous pupils fixing on the little rodent.
The mouse looked as if it had been frightened senseless by the giant shape above it. Its whole body shook violently, then stiffened and toppled onto the ground.
So it was only a mouse.
Light as dust.
The White Whale exhaled once, and the gust sent the little white mouse tumbling away.
Then it turned and drifted off to search elsewhere for Ram.
Ram remained hidden for another half hour.
Only after the White Whale had completely vanished beyond the horizon did she dare move.
"Are they finally gone…?"
Her pounding heart slowly settled back into place.
The distorted light around her shifted again, then gradually faded, revealing Ram's figure.
She collapsed to the ground and let go of the magic mirror.
"You little brat, your grip is way too strong! You nearly squeezed my body out of shape!"
Floating in midair, the magic mirror cried out miserably and loudly condemned Ram's treatment of it.
Ram said nothing.
She only stared at the shattered remains of the dragon carriage in silence.
After a while, she stood and bowed deeply forward.
"Mr. Grin Andersen, Ram will never forget your kindness. Thank you for saving Ram's life."
As she lowered her gaze, she noticed the white-furred mouse lying frozen nearby.
Then, to her surprise, the rat suddenly stood upright like a person, planted its hands on its hips, and tapped one foot on the ground with rhythmic smugness, as if graciously accepting her worship.
Ram blinked.
And then the mouse spoke.
"Hahaha, Ram, wasn't I amazing just now? You seem pretty moved. How about recognizing me as your godfather?"
A trace of surprise flickered through Ram's eyes.
Then the gloom on her face eased, and she smiled faintly as she crouched and lifted the white mouse by the scruff.
"Mr. Grin? So you really are a rat."
With his fate held between her fingers, Grin replied flatly,
"You're the rat."
The moment he finished speaking, his Transformation Magic automatically dispelled due to drained mana, and he instantly returned to human size.
The sudden weight nearly tore from Ram's grip.
Smack.
Grin dropped right on top of her.
"Mm—!"
Ram winced and shoved him off with force.
"You despicable white rat. Don't think saving Ram gives you the right to behave so rudely."
Grin lay sprawled on the ground, panting heavily.
"Pah. Narcissist. I just ran out of mana. You were the one who lifted me that high. Still, good thing you were there to break the fall. Heh. I almost got hurt."
Seeing that Grin was alive and more or less intact, the magic mirror buried itself in his arms and began sobbing dramatically.
"Master, you're far too reckless! Waaah! What am I supposed to do if you die?!"
Grin held the mirror and actually felt a little touched.
"I didn't expect you to be this loyal."
The magic mirror nodded fiercely.
"You absolutely cannot die, Master! If you die, I'll slowly turn to stone too! Next time this happens, we can just throw that brat out as bait!"
Grin's face darkened instantly.
Without hesitation, he slammed the mirror into the sand and ground it around.
"Ah! Master, no!"
The magic mirror wailed, then could no longer endure the abuse. It turned into a streak of light and vanished back into Grin's body.
This old thing really was ridiculously durable.
The damage Elsa had left on it before had long since healed, and every time it was summoned, it looked good as new.
After resting for a while, Ram spoke first.
"Grin, we have to leave here immediately."
Grin nodded.
The two supported each other as they began walking toward the nearest town.
They had to rent a dragon carriage there. Without transportation, it would take three or four days to walk back to the mansion.
And even the nearest town was nearly a full day away on foot.
The night wind was colder than expected.
And the endless road only made the unease worse.
Grin had suffered internal injuries, and even with Ram helping him, the long march was wearing him down fast.
Fine beads of sweat had also formed on Ram's pale forehead.
"How much farther do we have to go? Ram, I can't do this anymore."
"It's only been about four hours. Shouldn't Mr. White Mouse be more energetic at night?"
Ram still never spared him with her words, but Grin knew she was not far from her own limit either.
Their bickering had become little more than a way to check on each other's condition and keep their minds from sinking.
Among the demon twins, the peach-haired one was especially lacking in physical stamina.
Without her horn, every step she took burned through energy she could not replenish.
Another hour passed.
Ram finally stumbled, nearly collapsing when her foot slipped.
Grin quickly caught her.
This time, Ram sagged weakly against his shoulder, too exhausted to even struggle free.
"Grin… Ram has wanted to ask for a while now. Can you turn into an Earth Dragon? If you can, then please do."
Even Grin, already half-dead himself, felt veins bulge in his forehead.
"You bastard… I really want to strangle you…"
"If you strangle Ram, the world will become a little less cute."
"But I feel like that would count as perfect merit."
Even so, Grin bent down, hooked Ram's smooth legs, and swung her onto his back.
"Stay awake, Ram. Show me the way!"
Grinding his teeth, he forced himself to keep moving.
Fortunately, Ram's body was light, and the soft warmth against his back was at least some small comfort.
"Then let us be off, Lord Earth Dragon."
Ram gave a tired smile and raised one wrist, pointing weakly ahead.
And at that very moment of despair—
Clatter, clatter. Clatter, clatter.
The sound of wheels rolling over dirt broke the silence of the night.
Grin suddenly lifted his head and searched the darkness.
Then he saw it.
A dragon carriage approaching from the distance.
"There's always a way out! Ram, we're saved! Hahaha!"
Grin burst into laughter like a traveler in the desert catching sight of an oasis.
A brief surge of clarity returned some strength to his body, and he staggered forward toward the carriage.
The first thing he saw clearly was the Earth Dragon pulling it.
Its broad back rose nearly to a man's height. Its head was blunt and angular, and its wide flat snout looked almost like a shovel.
At this moment, though, that Earth Dragon looked unbelievably lovable to Grin.
"Mr. Grin!"
A familiar voice came from the carriage.
Grin looked up and saw the driver in a green robe and green hat.
"Waaaah, Otto! Is this a dream? Waaaah! I kept taking from you and never once said thank you! Only after growing up did I understand how hard you worked! Waaaah! Please accept my bow!"
But just as Grin was about to throw himself into the moment, his legs gave way.
The last of his strength drained out at once, as if his adrenaline had finally burned itself dry.
"Why does my body… suddenly feel so heavy…"
His eyes rolled back.
Darkness rushed over his vision.
Then, with a thud, Grin collapsed and lost consciousness.
"Mr. Grin!"
Otto jumped down from the dragon carriage in horror and rushed over.
Mr. Grin had been laughing, crying, and talking nonsense all at once.
He had clearly gone delirious.
After getting both Grin and Ram into the carriage, Otto took the reins under Ram's direction and drove the dragon carriage back toward the border.