Chapter 30: Chapter 31: The Tinderbox’s Ending

Outside the city, among the crowd of onlookers, the silver-haired boy in the hood watched the soldier being hanged from afar.

“It seems your Tinderbox got wet and is no longer usable,” he muttered.

The boy, of course, was Rhine.

After animating the rope to bind the soldier, Rhine had taken the Tinderbox from him. Later, when the soldier begged for help retrieving the Tinderbox, Rhine only pretended to walk away, then returned to hand it back.

As a magician who granted wishes, Rhine had indeed fulfilled the soldier’s request, at least in the most literal sense. But he had twisted the wish slightly—what he gave back was the waterlogged and damp Tinderbox!

—Earlier, when Rhine first obtained the famed magical item, he had performed a divination on it. The results confirmed that a waterlogged Tinderbox would temporarily lose its power for a period of time.

“Ha, I’m like one of those devils in stories, exploiting loopholes in people’s desires. I grant their wishes literally, but in a distorted way,” Rhine muttered to himself in a low voice, a hint of self-mockery in his tone.

“The Tinderbox that summons the three dogs is now mine!”

With a flip of his right hand, Rhine whispered a spell.

With a soft whoosh, a cloud of mist swirled, and the Tinderbox that had been in the soldier’s pocket appeared in Rhine’s palm.

“Retrieve objects once touched.”

This was a new magic Rhine had acquired after fulfilling the soldier’s wish to “retrieve the Tinderbox.” The ability even extended to items Rhine had touched before learning this spell.

“Quite a powerful conceptual ability,” Rhine thought to himself, his mind racing with ideas for its potential uses.

“What should I call it? Ugh, I’m terrible at naming things! I can’t exactly call it ‘Zrumji’s Instant Retrieval,’ right? ‘Return to Owner’? Doesn’t feel quite right either. Never mind…”

Shrugging, Rhine dismissed the naming issue.

A while later, once the damp Tinderbox had dried and regained its magical power, Rhine teleported himself and the Tinderbox to a deserted wilderness.

Strike. Strike. Strike… One, two, three!

Rhine struck the Tinderbox several times. With a series of whoosh, whoosh, whoosh sounds, the three dogs appeared in succession, their enormous eyes gleaming—each pair larger than the last. 𝐫ἈNŏBƐS̩

As expected, the injuries they had sustained were completely healed. Their fur shimmered under the sunlight, looking as if they’d never been hurt at all.

“Truly magical creatures, with incredible self-healing abilities,” Rhine remarked.

Unlike before, the dogs now crouched submissively at Rhine’s feet, obedient and docile. It seemed they had completely forgotten their former master and were ready to follow the commands of their new one.

“These dogs were even able to locate the princess outside the palace, in a small town beyond the capital—a truly fascinating power!”

“Can they always sniff out the targets designated by their master, no matter where they are? Be it money or anything else? That’s quite an intriguing extension of their [dog] characteristics. I’ll have to experiment to see just how far their abilities go…”

“This Tinderbox will certainly prove useful in the future!”

“And Aurora’s 10th birthday is coming up. According to Grandma Rosa’s wishes, the Tinderbox will be her gift!”

The air around Rhine rippled and distorted. His slender figure shimmered for a moment before vanishing from the wilderness.

Two days later, Rhine hosted a grand birthday celebration for Aurora.

All 12 witches attended, just as they had 10 years ago when Aurora was born. The gathering was not just for celebration; the witches also quietly discussed when it would be appropriate to tell Aurora about her true identity as a princess and the heavy burden she carried. It was a mission too weighty for a 10-year-old, but it was a truth she would have to face sooner or later.

Grandma Rosa kissed Aurora’s cheek and personally handed her the Tinderbox—just as she had planned all along.

The elderly witch also expressed her gratitude to Aurora for defeating the soldier who had nearly killed her.

“I heard that on the day of the soldier’s execution, nearly everyone in the capital rushed outside the city to witness it. You ensured that a criminal received the justice he deserved!”

All the witches had heard about Aurora’s defeat of the three massive dogs. They praised her as an extraordinary hero, one who seemed to have stepped straight out of bardic tales and mythic legends. Like those heroes, Aurora was brave, skilled, and—most importantly—possessed a heart of gold.

“Aurora, my dear child, you are already a hero in your own right.”

“And just like in the stories, every hero needs a steed. Now you can strike the Tinderbox and summon the magical dogs to be your mounts!”

Grandma Rosa pulled Aurora into a warm embrace.

The Violet Fairy, leader of the 12 witches, smiled warmly.

“Indeed, you should try it. It’ll be a marvelous sight!”

Aurora nodded softly.

Together with the witches, she stepped out into an open field and struck the Tinderbox.

Strike. Strike. Strike…

With a series of whoosh, whoosh, whoosh sounds, the three dogs appeared one by one. The smallest among them had eyes as large as teacups.

Aurora climbed onto the smallest dog and rode it across the field, the other two dogs trailing behind her.

At first, Aurora’s movements were a bit clumsy, but the blessings she had received granted her an exceptional physique and astonishing learning abilities. Before long, she rode with the grace of a seasoned rider.

She cut a strikingly heroic figure!

The dogs, too, seemed jubilant, their enormous eyes gleaming wider than ever before.

As the birthday celebration drew to a close, Aurora carefully tucked away her beloved Tinderbox.

She clearly cherished this birthday gift, but there was also a hint of worry in her expression. Even amidst the festivities, her anxious demeanor couldn’t be entirely concealed.

“What’s troubling you, my little Aurora?” Grandma Rosa asked gently.

Aurora recounted everything the soldier had said after she encountered him.

"In recent years, relations between Enderland and us have grown worse. Small skirmishes break out every so often.

"If what that Enderland captive told the soldier is true, they might soon reveal the truth about the curse. Once everyone knows that our Rose Kingdom has been cursed, the nation will descend into chaos. That will be a disaster!

"And even if the King and the royal family successfully cover up the truth, it will only make things worse!

"If this curse really exists—and I already asked my mentor, and he confirmed it’s absolutely real—when disaster strikes, there will be no way to fix it.”

At this moment, Aurora didn’t seem like a 10-year-old girl celebrating her birthday, someone who should have been frolicking in fields of flowers. Though her tone still carried a childlike quality, her demeanor reflected genuine concern for her nation.

Rhine and the witches exchanged glances, their brows furrowed.

Even though the King had locked down all information about the curse, keeping the citizens unaware of the events at Aurora’s birth ceremony, foreign guests had also attended that grand feast 10 years ago.

Expecting them to keep the secret was obviously unrealistic.

It might have been manageable during peacetime, but now, relations between the Rose Kingdom and Enderland were anything but harmonious.

Aurora’s voice trembled slightly as she continued. Her bright eyes locked onto Rhine—only now did the golden-haired girl realize that her mentor and adoptive father, who had taught her so much and whom she deeply respected, wasn’t much taller than she was anymore:

“Teacher, why are the King and Queen trying to hide the truth about the curse?

"If a disaster will strike the Rose Kingdom in a few years, shouldn’t everyone be told?

"Shouldn’t everyone who can leave the kingdom—regardless of their occupation, class, or gender—be given the chance to escape this cursed land?”

As she spoke, Aurora grew increasingly passionate, her small fists clenched tightly.

“Teacher, you’ve taught me the principles of being a good person. If the curse really exists, shouldn’t we... shouldn’t we tell everyone the truth—before the enemy exposes it?

"The people of the Rose Kingdom have the right to know the truth and to leave this cursed land in advance!”

By the time she finished, Aurora was practically shouting, her voice carrying an undeniable conviction.

The blessing-enhanced power of her voice—melodious and resonant—now seemed almost magical, tugging at Rhine’s emotions despite his knowledge of the full truth.

With her blessed charisma, Aurora was a natural-born orator. Even I, who know the entire truth, nearly agreed with her for a brief moment, Rhine thought to himself.

The Violet Fairy, seeing Aurora so agitated, hurriedly stepped forward to soothe and explain, planning to tell her the harsh reality: “Even if you flee the kingdom, the curse is relentless. At most, it would only buy a few more years of life.”

But unexpectedly, Rhine raised a hand to stop the Violet Fairy.

Rhine’s mind wandered back to 10 years ago, recalling the King’s expression. When he had first suggested sealing the truth about the curse, arguing that “once people learn of the curse, they’ll all flee the kingdom,” he had seen the King’s conflicted reaction.

He was certain the King’s first thought had been to flee the kingdom himself to avoid the disaster.

It was only after Rhine personally explained that “the curse cannot be avoided by fleeing the land” that the King reluctantly abandoned that idea.

Rhine, the silver-haired magician, stood up and gently placed a hand on Aurora’s shoulder.

“Aurora, let me ask you: if one day, you were to become the ruler of this nation, replacing the current King, would you do better than him?”

Aurora didn’t hesitate. She nodded vigorously.

“Tell me, what would you do?” Rhine asked.

“I know how to fight with a sword, and I know a little magic. I’d find Black Witch Maleficent’s whereabouts, gather as many warriors as possible, seek your help and the witches’ help, and unite the entire kingdom to challenge her. I’d defeat her and force her to reveal the method to break the curse—or, if killing the one who cast the curse is enough to break it, then that would be even better!”

Rhine’s lips curled into a faint, satisfied smile.

“But the world doesn’t deal in ‘what ifs,’” Aurora said, lowering her head. “Only the King’s child can become King.”

Then, in a quiet mumble, Aurora uttered a line that nearly made the witches lose their composure:

“At this point, even overthrowing the royal family wouldn’t help, would it? It would just make things worse.”

Rhine raised his hand and ruffled Aurora’s soft, golden hair.

“You don’t need to become King to do any of the things you just said. I can take you right now to travel abroad, searching for Black Witch Maleficent’s whereabouts. We’ll find her, and we’ll defeat her!”