Rhine pulled up his dust-stained cloak and slowly walked behind the King.
Although this was a familiar story, to truly experience it firsthand, witnessing everyone's joys and sorrows, was a different feeling altogether, making the young man feel a bit melancholic.
Compared to the more popular version of Sleeping Beauty, the curse cast by the Black Witch was far more cruel; it would not only kill the little princess but also bring about the end of the entire kingdom.
And the princess piercing her finger with a spindle and dying tragically was merely an incitement for the curse to come true and for disaster to descend, just the prelude to this grand ceremony of destruction.
However, it made sense that the curse would be like that.
According to the original story's development, it was the 12th Witch who used her final blessing opportunity to weaken the curse, changing 'death' to 'sleep'.
And even with the curse weakened, after the princess pricked her hand with the spindle, the curse's magic still plunged the entire kingdom into slumber.
Afterward, the entire kingdom was also filled with malicious thorns, thistles, and vines, becoming a cursed land that travelers dared not tread.
It wasn't until a hundred years later that the fated prince broke through the thorns, entered this cursed land, and kissed Sleeping Beauty, finally lifting the curse.
Since the weakened curse could make the entire kingdom sleep for a hundred years, the original curse could, of course, destroy the entire kingdom!
Is this what magic is?
Powerful mages can, on a whim, humiliate monarchs and cause mighty kingdoms to crumble.
Will I also master such powerful magic in the future?
Rhine felt quite emotional.
Just now, he had gone all out, yet he hadn't posed any substantial threat to the Black Witch.
In fact, the Black Witch was clearly in her most exhausted state, right after casting a powerful curse!
If she were at her peak, crushing all of us would probably only take a few seconds...
Black Witch Maleficent is indeed far, far more powerful than I am now. As expected of a legendary Witch who can easily destroy a kingdom... I wonder how long she has lived. This gap definitely cannot be bridged by just helping three or four protagonists of destiny...
Rhine sighed softly.
The King seemed to have aged 10 years in an instant, his face completely drained of color.
He forced himself to stand up, looked at the 12 Witches behind him, and almost pleaded:
"Save my daughter and this kingdom!
"There are so many of you, and you all possess powerful magic!
"You must have a way, right?
"You must be able to break this curse, right?"
The 12 Witches exchanged glances, unsure of what to say for a moment.
"The Black Witch's magic is a hundred times more powerful than ours; her spell is not something we can break..."
One of the Witches said timidly, her voice growing softer and softer until she fell silent.
Silence.
A deathly silence lingered in the dust-filled, fragmented, and chaotic palace.
Whether it was the monarch of a kingdom or the highly skilled Witches, all lowered their heads, not uttering a word.
Suddenly, Violet Fairy, the leader of the 12 Witches, broke the silence!
"No, there's still a chance! We still have a way!"
Violet Fairy looked at the silver-haired mage beside her, who wore a pure white cloak and appeared overly young:
"We still have Sir Rhine!
"The kingdom's sage, the court's mage, Sir Rhine, has not yet bestowed a blessing upon the little princess."
The King looked bewildered, seemingly not understanding Violet Fairy's meaning.
At a time like this, he was still thinking about blessings?
Princess Aurora wouldn't even live past 15!
Violet Fairy spoke with increasing excitement:
"The curse was cast upon Princess Aurora. When she pricks her finger with the spindle and loses her life, that's when the kingdom's disaster will begin!
"We can have Sir Rhine bestow a blessing upon the little princess to counteract the curse's magic!"
The other 11 Witches, upon hearing Violet Fairy's words, had their eyes simultaneously fixated, as if they had seen hope.
They understood the miraculous power of blessings better than the King!
"That's right, there's still this method."
"I almost forgot, Sir Rhine is also an excellent mage."
"Although all 12 of us have granted blessings, Sir Rhine has not yet bestowed one."
The original atmosphere of despair was instantly diluted.
Both the Witches and the King, whose expressions had been helpless, now showed hope again.
The eyes of everyone fell upon Rhine.
The King's eyes lit up, as if he had grasped a life-saving straw, and he hastily asked Violet Fairy:
"So, if Sir Rhine bestows a 'Curse Removal' blessing upon Princess Aurora, the Black Witch's curse will disappear, right?"
At the same time, he stared intently at Rhine, who was deep in thought beside him.
The boy's small figure, leaning against the wall in contemplation, cast a long shadow under the flickering lamplight.
A few minutes ago, this seemingly gentle child had turned the tide and saved everyone.
Now, he had once again become everyone's last hope.
Violet Fairy shook her head:
"I'm afraid not, Your Majesty.
"Even the power of a blessing cannot remove the Black Witch's powerful curse.
"Every potent curse has only a fixed method of removal.
"This curse can only be lifted by killing the Black Witch. And Maleficent has just proven that she is far, far too powerful for us, even if we combine our strength."
A look of despair once again took over the King's aged face.
Violet Fairy quickly added:
"However, Rhine's blessing can weaken the curse! By modifying some of the curse's wording, we can transform the destined disaster into a solvable crisis!"
Rhine, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke:
"Yes. I still have one opportunity to bestow a blessing upon Her Royal Highness.
"Fairy, what blessing do you think I should bestow to resist this dark curse?"