The Tinderbox's Ending

Outside the city, among the onlookers, a silver-haired boy wearing a hood watched the soldier being hanged from afar.

"It seems your Tinderbox is damp and unusable."

The boy was naturally Rhine.

After manipulating the animated rope to bind the soldier, he had taken the soldier's Tinderbox.

Later, when the soldier came to him for help retrieving the Tinderbox, he simply pretended to walk away for a moment, then returned and gave the Tinderbox back.

As a Magician who fulfills wishes, Rhine had indeed fulfilled the soldier's wish in the literal sense, but with a slight twist.

What he returned was a waterlogged, damp Tinderbox! — Rhine had divined this well-known magical item as soon as he got his hands on it, confirming that the dampness would temporarily disable it for a while.

"Ah, I'm like the devil in the stories, exploiting loopholes in people's hearts, fulfilling wishes literally, but twisting them at the same time."

The boy mocked himself softly.

"The Tinderbox that summons the Three Dogs, I've retrieved it!"

Rhine flipped his right hand.

With a soft thud, a cloud of mist emerged, and the Tinderbox, which had been in the soldier's pocket just moments before, appeared in the palm of his hand out of thin air.

"Retrieve items once touched."

This was the new magic Rhine had learned after fulfilling the soldier's wish to "retrieve the Tinderbox."

This even included items Rhine had touched before learning this magic.

It's quite a powerful conceptual ability!

The boy thought. Many interesting uses immediately popped into his head.

"I wonder what to call it. I'm terrible at naming things! I can't call it 'Instant Zomji Summon,' can I? 'Return to Original Owner'? That doesn't seem right either, oh well..."

Rhine shrugged and put the naming matter out of his mind.

After a while, when the damp Tinderbox had dried again and regained its original magic, Rhine teleported with the Tinderbox to a deserted wilderness.

Rub, rub, rub... One! Two! Three!

Rhine rubbed the Tinderbox several times in a row. With a few whooshing sounds, all Three Dogs appeared, their eyes bigger than the last.

The injuries on the Dogs had indeed all healed, and their fur shone in the sunlight, making them look nothing like they had been injured.

"They really are magical creatures, their self-healing speed is astonishing."

Unlike before, the Dogs were now lying prostrate beside Rhine, obedient and docile. They seemed to have long forgotten their old master and were ready to follow the orders of this new master of the Tinderbox at any time.

"These Dogs can actually find the princess not in the palace, but in the Small Town outside the Royal City, what a wonderful power!"

"Can the Dogs always smell which direction the target their master designates for them is in? Whether it's assigning them to find money or something else?"

"That does highlight the characteristics of the [Dog] somewhat. I can try it out when I have time to see how far away they can detect a target..."

"This Tinderbox will definitely come in handy in the future!"

"Aurora's 10th birthday is coming up soon. According to Grandma Rosa's idea, let's give her the Tinderbox as a gift!"

The space around Rhine suddenly twisted, and his slightly thin figure blurred again, disappearing into the wilderness.

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

The 12 Witches all came, just as they had ten years ago when the girl was just born. They gathered together again.

They were not only gathering to celebrate the birthday, but also to quietly discuss when they should tell Aurora about her identity as a princess and the mission she bore—a mission that was too heavy for a 10-year-old girl, but it was inevitable sooner or later.

Grandma Rosa kissed Aurora's cheek and handed the Tinderbox to Aurora herself—just as she had originally planned.

The elderly Witch also thanked Aurora for defeating the soldier who had almost killed her.

"I heard that on the day the soldier was executed, almost everyone in the Royal City ran out of the city to watch. You made sure the sinner received the punishment he deserved!"

All the Witches knew about Aurora's defeat of the Three Big Dogs, praising her as an outstanding hero, just like those heroes in the bards' legends and myths—Aurora was as brave as those heroes, as skilled as those heroes, and most importantly, as kind-hearted as those heroes.

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

"Just like in the stories, every hero has their own mount. You can now rub The Tinderbox, summon the magical Three Dogs, and they will become your mount!"

Grandma Rosa gave Aurora a big hug.

Violet Fairy, the leader of the 12 Witches, also smiled brightly: "Yes, you should try it. It will definitely be a beautiful sight!"

Aurora nodded gently.

She and the others came to an open field, and she began to rub The Tinderbox.

Rub, rub, rub, rub...

With "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh" sounds, the Three Dogs appeared one after another. The smallest of them had eyes as big as teacups.

Aurora rode on the dog with eyes as big as teacups, driving it to run across the field. The other two big dogs followed behind the girl.

At first, Aurora's movements were a bit clumsy, but the Blessing had given her an outstanding physique and amazing learning ability. Before long, she was as skilled as an experienced rider.

What a heroic figure!

The dogs ran happily, their eyes wider than ever before.

The birthday celebration was coming to an end.

Aurora carefully put away her beloved The Tinderbox.

She seemed to love her birthday gift, but there were clearly still some worries and concerns. Even at the birthday ceremony, she couldn't hide her worried expression.

"What are you worried about, my little Aurora?" Grandma Rosa asked with concern.

Aurora repeated everything the soldier had said after she met him.

"If what that Engeland prisoner said is true, Engeland may soon reveal the truth about the Curse. Once everyone knows that our Rose Kingdom is cursed, the country will be in chaos, and it will be a disaster! Moreover, even if the King and the royal family successfully cover up the truth, everything will only get worse!

"If there really is such a Curse—I've already asked my teacher, and he said that this Curse definitely exists—then when disaster strikes, there will be no room for remedy."

At this moment, Aurora didn't look like a little girl who was celebrating her 10th birthday and should be enjoying her carefree youth. Although her tone was still childish, she looked like she was concerned about the country and its people.

Rhine and the Witches exchanged glances, their brows slightly furrowed.

Although the King had blocked the news, the people in the country did not know the full details of the princess's birth ceremony and the existence of the Curse.

However, at the grand banquet 10 years ago, there were also a large number of foreign guests in attendance.

It was obviously impossible to expect them to keep the secret.

Speaking of this, Aurora's tone trembled slightly. Her eyes were bright as she stared at Rhine—until this moment, the blonde girl realized that this teacher, whom she had respected for many years and who had taught her valuable knowledge, was not much taller than her:

"Teacher, why do the King and Queen want to hide the truth about the Curse?

"A disaster will arrive in the Rose Kingdom on time in a few years. Since that's the case, shouldn't everyone be informed?

"Let everyone who can leave the kingdom, regardless of their job, class, or gender, stay as far away as possible from this cursed land!"

The more the girl spoke, the more excited she became, clenching her small fist: "Teacher, you once taught me the principles of being a person. Since there really is such a Curse, should we...should we...tell everyone the truth—before the enemy country reveals the truth?

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

When she said the last sentence, Aurora was almost roaring, and there was even a hint of unquestionable meaning.

The girl's voice, empowered by the Blessing, that heart-stirring voice, now seemed to have magic, making Rhine unable to stop his emotions from surging.

With the Blessing, Aurora is truly a natural orator. Even I, who know the full truth, almost agreed with her statement for a moment... Rhine thought to himself.

Violet Fairy saw that Aurora was so excited and hurriedly wanted to step forward to comfort and explain, telling her the fact that "even if you escape the kingdom, the Curse will never end, and at most you can only live a few more years."

Unexpectedly, Rhine made a gesture, stopping Violet Fairy who wanted to explain.

The silver-haired Magician boy stood up and gently placed his hand on Aurora's shoulder: "Aurora, I want to ask you, if one day, you were to become the King of this country—replacing the current King, would you do better than him?"

Aurora nodded vigorously without even thinking.

"Tell me, what would you do?" Rhine asked.

"I will use a sword, and also a little bit of magic. I will find the whereabouts of the Black Witch Maleficent, gather as many Warriors as possible, and then seek the help of you teachers, gather the strength of the whole country, challenge this culprit, defeat her, and force her to tell us how to lift the Curse—or, if this Curse can be lifted by killing the caster, then that would be even better."

The corners of Rhine's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a gratified smile.

"But there are no 'ifs' in this world." Aurora lowered her head. "Only the King's child can become King."

Then, the little princess muttered something that almost made the 12 Witches lose control of their facial expressions: "At this point, even if we overthrow the royal family, it won't help. It will only make things worse."

Rhine raised his hand and stroked the top of Aurora's head, covered with soft golden hair. "You don't need to be King to do these things. I can take you abroad right now, search for the whereabouts of the Black Witch Maleficent everywhere, catch her, and defeat her!"