97
Chapter 97
The Puppeteer Doll successfully completed its Limit Breakthrough.
It even achieved Evolution, becoming a species named Princess Doll.
"Our baby, you've gotten so pretty! You look exactly like a Princess!"
"...!"
Ailee tightly hugged the Princess Doll.
Her eyes were filled with deep affection.
The Princess Doll felt slightly more mature than before.
Even the clothes it was wearing had changed.
It was now draped in an elegant, antique dress.
Just like its species name, it was dressed like a true Princess.
Unfortunately, it still didn't seem able to speak.
"Kuo, so pretty!"
"Mama has become so beautiful, yong!"
"Woong, woong!"
"Since you evolved, can you pee now?"
Everyone's attention was drawn to the Princess Doll.
I slowly approached the Princess Doll and touched its head with my Cane.
Bonk!
"...?!"
[Princess Doll lv.27]
┗Pw.108
┗Rnk.Rare
[Domain: Doll]
┗Rank - Uncommon
The Princess Doll's information floated in the air.
It was an Information Window that everyone else could see as well.
"...!!!"
"Baby, did you get startled? This is the new Appraisal skill that Bear Baby just acquired."
Ailee explained my skill on my behalf.
It was quite convenient having a designated explainer in the group.
"But our baby, it wasn't just your outfit that looked like a Princess. You really are a Princess."
"Ho-eh... The Domain name is Doll."
"Woo-woong."
"Yong-yong? Tosun Mama is keeping her guard up, yong. She feels a sense of rivalry, yong."
"Woong?"
"Or maybe not, yong."
We stared intently at the Princess Doll's Information Window.
I had already checked it earlier, but I still couldn't take my eyes off it because of one fascinating change.
[Domain: Doll]
┗Rank - Uncommon
I remember it clearly.
The Doll Domain's rank was definitely the lowest, Normal.
In other words, the Domain's rank had increased.
How did this happen?
Could the Doll Domain actually be a growth-type Domain?
Or was it possible for a Domain's rank to change in general?
Helper, tell me!
[Question confirmed.]
[A Domain's rank can be changed.]
[However, rank changes do not occur frequently. Instances of rank changes are extremely rare, and most of them result in a rank drop. Rank increases almost never happen.]
[Analysis of the cause of the rank increase for the Doll Domain.]
[.......]
[Confirmation complete for the achievement unlocked by the Princess Doll in the past.]
[Achievement Name: The first to belong to a specific Domain.]
[.......]
[The Doll Domain was born at the same time the Princess Doll was born. In other words, it is presumed to be a Domain created by the Princess Doll.]
[Those who will belong to the Doll Domain in the future will have a hard time affecting the Domain's growth, but the Princess Doll is different. Because the Domain was created by it, and it was the first to belong to the Domain, it can have a massive impact.]
[Conclusion. A Domain created by a single creature has the possibility of being a growth-type Domain limited to that creature. This rank increase is presumed to be the effect of the Princess Doll's growth.]
[.......]
[Currently, the Domain Assimilation Rate of other creatures cannot be checked.]
[However, the Princess Doll's Assimilation Rate can be estimated.]
[Estimated to be over 90 percent.]
Helper finished the explanation.
Well, I completely understood the gist of it. Probably.
Anyway.
The first to belong to a Domain.
That's a pretty cool achievement name.
It's nothing special right now, but it might become an incredibly amazing Domain later.
***
My Umbrella Magic Tool had completely turned into a Cane.
None of its functions from when it was an Umbrella Magic Tool remained.
It seemed to be the same for the Princess Doll.
A Necklace equipped with the ability to deploy a transparent shield.
The appearance of that Magic Tool had completely changed.
The silver Necklace was dyed gold, and the Scales it had been tightly holding in the basement were integrated into the Necklace with their shapes slightly altered.
While everyone else was showing interest in the Princess Doll's dress, I was the only one staring blankly at its Necklace.
Then, the Princess Doll noticed my gaze.
"...?"
Realizing that I was intently staring at its neck area, the Princess Doll slowly raised its hand and stroked the Necklace.
It was then.
Flash!
A brilliant light instantly burst forth from the Necklace.
"...!"
Soon after.
The space in the direction the Princess Doll was looking distorted, and something was summoned.
A red military uniform.
A tall, black hat towering upwards, secured by a chin strap.
An expressionless face maintaining a stiff posture, holding something like a Matchlock Gun in one hand and leaning it diagonally against its shoulder.
It was an adult Human-sized Toy Soldier.
For reference, it was a medieval-style military uniform, not a modern one.
So it was a Necklace capable of summoning.
As expected, the Princess Doll's Magic Tool had changed as well.
It probably gained a skill with a name like Summoning Necklace, losing the functions of the original Magic Tool just like mine did.
Thwack!
As soon as the Toy Soldier was summoned, it raised a military salute toward the Princess Doll.
It had taken the present arms stance.
"Loyalty to the Princess!"
A resounding voice echoed out.
...Wait, it knows how to speak?
Fake Dolls can't speak, though?
Is it because it wasn't born from the Doll Encyclopedia, but summoned from the Princess Doll's Necklace?
"...!"
"Loyalty to the Princess!"
"...! ...!"
"Glory to the Princess!"
By the looks of it.
It seemed it could only spout predetermined lines.
If that's the case, it's no different from not being able to speak.
Just like my 'gom-gom' or Tosuni's 'woong-woong', the sounds didn't contain any actual meaning.
"Oh my... Baby, did you summon it?"
"...!"
Nod, nod.
The Princess Doll bobbed its head.
It was thoroughly going down the summoner skill tree.
"Yong-yong. It's holding a weird weapon, yong."
"It's not a weapon, it's a stick!"
"Woo-woong?"
"Kuo? Why does the stick look like that?"
"That's not a stick, it's probably a weapon called a gun."
It wasn't strange that Ailee knew about guns.
The Human civilization beyond the sea, outside our continent, wasn't as backward as one might think.
Ailee had talked about Human civilization to the Luna Rabbits last time.
As a side note, she said the level of civilization varied from country to country.
She mentioned that one closed-off country had achieved tremendous Development beyond imagination.
"Gun? What's a gun?"
"A gun is......."
Ailee kindly explained it to the guys who were seeing a gun for the first time.
Chatter, chatter.
Explain, explain.
After hearing the explanation, they all nodded at the same time as if they understood.
Half of them probably didn't understand and were just pretending they did.
For one, Fox definitely had a look on her face that said she didn't get it.
"I completely understand...!"
Stop lying, you brat.
It's obvious from your expression.
"Kuo, I understand too. But how do you use that gun thing?"
"Umm, well... The way it works is you light the wick, lower it, and when it ignites the gunpowder, the explosive force...."
Ailee answered Jjokkomi's question.
Perhaps because she had never used one herself, she couldn't explain it properly and was rambling.
Why is she even trying to explain the mechanics?
It probably just shoots if you click it.
I'm not saying this because I'm ignorant.
Even if the gun the Toy Soldier is holding is an old-fashioned gun that looks like a Matchlock Gun, it's highly likely to be something like a magic weapon anyway, so it would probably shoot endlessly if you pour Mana into it.
I glanced at the Princess Doll.
Catching the intent behind my gaze, the Princess Doll patted the leg of the Toy Soldier standing next to it a couple of times.
"Glory to the Princess!"
The Toy Soldier took a stance.
It adjusted its grip on the gun and aimed the barrel at the ceiling.
At that moment.
Pop!
A Flag popped out of the barrel.
It was a Flag with the Princess Doll's face engraved on it.
"Gom?"
"...Eh?"
"Woong?"
Witnessing that scene, we were left speechless for a moment.
Everyone's faces, including mine, were colored with bewilderment.
"Kuo? What is that?"
"A Flag popped out, yong. It wasn't a weapon, yong...."
"Uh... I guess it wasn't a gun, sorry."
Scratch, scratch.
Ailee scratched the back of her head, seemingly embarrassed.
"......."
Scratch, scratch.
The Princess Doll also scratched the back of its head, as if it felt awkward.
Anyone could tell they were mother and daughter; even their Actions were the same.
***
"Loyalty to the Princess!"
Another Toy Soldier was summoned.
"Glory to the Princess!"
Yet another one was summoned.
"Loyalty to the Princess!"
"Glory to the Princess!"
"Loyalty to the Princess!"
"Glory to the Princess!"
"Loyalty to the Princess!"
"Glory to the Princess!"
The light from the Princess Doll's Necklace never ceased.
Toy Soldiers continued to be summoned.
Wow, it's endless, simply endless.
Just how many can it summon?
Before long, an army made up of numerous Toy Soldiers was completed.
It didn't feel reassuring at all.
I'm sorry to say, but honestly, they seemed useless no matter how many there were.
Because they were guys who just pulled Flags out of their gun barrels.
Well, it's still too early to conclude.
I haven't checked their combat abilities yet.
I should call a few Fake Dolls later and have them spar.
While I was having those thoughts.
Thwack-!
Out of nowhere, the Toy Soldiers turned their bodies toward me.
What is it?
Did they notice me badmouthing them in my head?
No, there's no way.
All the Toy Soldiers were staring intently at me.
What are you looking at.
You wanna fight?
The moment I was preparing to throw a Bear-Bear Punch.
Thwack-!!!
The Toy Soldiers uniformly took a present arms stance toward me.
"Loyalty to the Prince!"
"Glory to the Prince!"
...Suddenly?