Jax was beginning to think his job as the King's Shadow was less about solving problems and more about babysitting a particularly eccentric toddler with a kingdom. That belief solidified when Quindlehurst burst into his chambers at dawn, wide-eyed and clutching his ever-wobbly monocle.
"The King needs you!" Quindlehurst exclaimed, tripping over his own feet.
Jax sat up, groaning. "Quindlehurst, it's barely morning. Can't this wait?"
"No!" Quindlehurst squeaked. "The King… he's been… shrunk!"
Jax blinked. "Shrunk?"
"Yes! Reduced! Miniaturized!" Quindlehurst flailed his arms.
Suppressing a sigh, Jax followed the flustered advisor to the royal study. When he walked in, he found King Azgar sitting cross-legged on the desk, no taller than a goblet, munching on a crumb that seemed to be his breakfast.
"Finally," Azgar said, his voice the same as ever but hilariously out of place. "Took you long enough."
Jax blinked. "What in all of Ylor happened here?"
Azgar waved dismissively. "Some wizard cursed me. He said something about teaching humility. I don't know—I wasn't listening. Anyway, he zapped me, and now I'm fun-sized."
"Humility?" Jax asked, arching an eyebrow.
Quindlehurst interjected, wringing his hands. "This is a disaster! The kingdom can't respect a king who's… tiny!"
Azgar smirked. "Honestly, it's not so bad. Nobody's asking me to choose artifacts or attend feasts. I might stay like this."
"You might not have a choice," Jax muttered, rubbing his temples. "Where's this wizard now?"
Azgar shrugged. "Said something about heading back to his tower. Lives in the forest. You'll fix this, right?"
Jax sighed. "Do I have a choice?"
---
The journey to the wizard's tower was mercifully uneventful. Azgar, nestled in Jax's pocket, alternated between napping and complaining about how boring the forest was.
When they reached the tower, Jax knocked, and the door swung open to reveal a tall, gangly man with a crooked hat and a perpetual sneer.
"You're here about the curse, aren't you?" the wizard asked, crossing his arms.
"Yeah," Jax said. "Fix it."
The wizard snorted. "I can't. The curse wears off when he learns humility."
Azgar's tiny voice piped up from Jax's pocket. "Well, that's stupid. Who even needs humility?"
The wizard raised an eyebrow. "Good luck with that."
Jax sighed. "Fantastic."