Kidnapped in the dead of night and told by a stranger that her Kingdom was on the verge of collapse, Aurora showed no sign of fear.
Despite being wary of the Soldier before her, Aurora maintained her elegance and politeness, her words and actions displaying a maturity unbefitting her age, completely unlike a pure and ignorant little princess who had never left the palace.
"Why do you say the Kingdom will be destroyed in a few years? Do you have any evidence?" she asked.
The Soldier smiled:
"You might have heard of Ender kingdom, our neighboring country that always covets our land and resources, a powerful military empire, a tyrannical bandit nation!
"I used to serve in the army. A few months ago, my companions and I captured an Ender kingdom noble. He had been invited as a foreign guest to a grand event in our Kingdom over a decade ago.
"According to him, at that event, Black Witch Maleficent cursed Rose Kingdom, vowing to destroy it in over fifteen years! From now, it's estimated there are only five or six years left!
"By then, the Kingdom's land will be overgrown with thorns and thistles, and everyone will die miserably, bleeding from all seven orifices.
"However, the King deceived us, he deceived all of us! He did not tell the secret to the people."
Evidently, the Soldier did not know that Aurora, standing before him, was the source of the curse.
"That noble also said that Ender kingdom was considering revealing the secret and informing our people of the truth of the curse.
"Once everyone knows the secret of the curse, the entire Kingdom will fall into chaos. Everything will become a mess.
"But there's no need to be afraid, I can protect you and take you away from the Kingdom beforehand."
At this point, the Soldier tried his best to straighten his back and display his masculinity.
To be honest, the Soldier was half-believing, half-doubting the captive noble's words. But this didn't stop him from presenting it as an established fact to the princess before him.
He believed that a terrible crisis would make the ignorant girl panic, and this was his chance to win the princess's heart!
Even if the girl didn't believe his words at all, he had the tinderbox and could forcefully take her with him!
Anyway, there would be plenty of time in the future to build a relationship.
After listening to the Soldier's impassioned speech, Aurora's expression remained as steady as a mountain, still looking half-believing, half-doubting.
The Soldier felt a little impatient and added:
"It was the incompetent royalty and nobles who angered the terrifying Black Witch, yet we are the ones who must suffer the disaster.
"Let me be King, I will do better, and I would never dare to offend a powerful witch!"
Unexpectedly, this time Aurora retorted righteously:
"Even if everything you say is true, the culprit should be Black Witch Maleficent, who brought the curse upon the Kingdom!
"If the King committed any crime, it should be the crime of cowardice.
"He should declare war on the Black Witch, even if it means using the entire army of the country and hiring all the mages he can find, he must kill the culprit and end the curse. Even if everyone dies in battle, it's better than sitting idly by and waiting for the end of the world."
For 10 years, Aurora, raised jointly by Rhine and the 12 Witches, deeply loved this land and this country.
She enjoyed listening to the gurgling of streams, loved the human activity in the alleys of the towns, would play ball with the children in the town (and no one could beat her!), explored the Kingdom's long history from books with scholars who were her teachers, and was even transported to many famous scenic spots within the Kingdom by her magical mentor, Rhine.
Although she wasn't sure if what the stranger said was true, hearing that the Kingdom was about to fall into chaos and be completely destroyed in a few years, she still felt a deep anger from the bottom of her heart.
The Soldier was stunned.
He hadn't expected that this girl, beautiful as a flower and whose height didn't even reach his waist, would retort him with such a stern tone.
She even spoke terrifying things like "gathering the nation's strength to kill the Black Witch" and "even dying in battle is better than sitting idly by and waiting for death"!
The Soldier felt a hint of unease.
This stunningly beautiful blonde girl carried a dangerous aura that made him fear.
How dare she retort him, how dare she say such things.
Wasn't she the princess who had been hidden deep in the palace since birth, never having touched the outside world?
No, it shouldn't be like this.
She should have obediently listened, trembled with fear after hearing him describe the Kingdom's future, and nestled into his arms.
Then he would stroke her soft blonde hair and comfort the trembling princess in his embrace!
The Soldier felt a hint of displeasure: he was an adult, a Soldier who had experienced life-and-death struggles, a mere little girl had no right to reason with him.
"This is for your own good, beautiful Princess—if you truly are a princess. When the Kingdom truly falls into great chaos, you will understand."
After speaking, the Soldier commanded the giant dogs beside him, whose eyes were the size of teacups:
"Take this girl and leave here!"
The Soldier had used the dogs to deal with bandits on the road and knew very well how terrifying these three dogs were!
They were immensely strong, their skin was tougher than rock, and their bones were stronger than steel.
The Soldier even suspected that just three dogs would be enough to defeat the King's guard—an ordinary army would instantly collapse in morale upon encountering three such monsters. If he wished, he could become the new King at any time.
The dogs opened their mouths, as large as vats, and lunged at the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Aurora, intending to forcefully drag her away!
Unexpectedly, this little girl, whose height was less than the Soldier's waist, moved with extraordinary agility, skillfully dodging the dogs' movements with a swift sidestep to the left.
Aurora's movements were so fast that they left afterimages in the air.
"Ah?"
The Soldier's body trembled in surprise.
The girl's rolling movement was so practiced, as if she had rehearsed it thousands of times. Even he couldn't see it clearly.
What was going on?
Wasn't she the beautiful Princess?
Why did she have such outstanding skills?
As an out-and-out Soldier, he knew very well that neither he nor his comrades in the team possessed such skills!
"It's nothing, it's nothing, just a little girl. At most, she's a bit agile, am I going to be afraid of a little girl?"
The Soldier comforted himself while instinctively retreating, putting distance between himself and Aurora.
The girl's movements were practiced, like a seasoned warrior, using the momentum of her roll to the left to smoothly press against the wall.
The Soldier's eyes widened, and he suddenly understood the blonde girl's target!
His sword was hanging on the wall!
The next second, with a crisp drawing sound, the sharp sword on the wall was pulled out.
Aurora stood holding the sword.
Nothing gave her more security than the weapon in her hand.
The dog, larger than a Lion, did not forget its previous command and lunged at Aurora once again.
The blonde girl moved, her sharp sword slicing through the air, making a piercing whooshing sound!
In just an instant—a brief instant too fast for the Soldier's naked eye to catch—the dog fell, collapsing in a pool of blood.
The severely wounded dog trembled and struggled on the ground, letting out pained whimpers. Everyone in the entire inn—no, the entire street—was awakened.
Scalding blood gushed out like a fountain, instantly staining the entire luxurious room crimson.
"How is this possible?"
The Soldier could hardly believe his eyes, even wondering if he was dreaming.
Since summoning the dogs with the tinderbox, he had never seen the three dogs shed even a single drop of blood!
These three large dogs were almost like wish-granting monsters, capable of doing anything.
Aurora stood in the dog's whimpering pool of blood, the blood already dyeing her pure white nightgown crimson.
The blood-soaked blonde girl walked slowly, her golden hair and beautiful half-face already scarlet, blood dripping from the long sword in her right hand, yet her expression remained as composed as before, as if nothing had happened.
This eerie and chilling scene transformed into a sharp blade of fear, deeply piercing the Soldier's heart.
Monster!
This was a monster in a girl's skin!
"Oh my god, what kind of creature did the dogs catch!"
The Soldier ran out of the inn in a panic, rubbing the tinderbox several times, his hands trembling from fear, almost unable to hold the treasure steady.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The other two large dogs appeared in the night.
One dog's eyes were as large as a carriage wheel, and the other dog's eyes were as large as a round tower top.
"tinderbox... you are indeed the Soldier who went back on his word and injured Granny Rosa..."
As soon as she saw the Soldier pull out the tinderbox, Aurora immediately understood, she understood everything.
The Soldier before her was the culprit who attacked Granny Rosa and stole the tinderbox!
Aurora chased after him, her gaze sharper than ever.
The Soldier was afraid, completely afraid, he had never been so utterly terrified—not even on the battlefield.
This sharp killing intent was almost pressed against his back, making his undershirt damp with sweat.
"She's going to kill me, absolutely! She must want to kill me!"
The Soldier fled frantically towards the end of the street, into the depths of the night, almost crying.
"Dogs, attack her, protect me!"
He ordered the dogs as he ran, as if the monster in the girl's skin would devour him if he was even a step late.
The two dogs lunged at Aurora simultaneously!
The dog with eyes as large as a water wheel bit Aurora's shoulder, and this time the girl did not dodge.
But it was useless; the sharp teeth couldn't even leave a scratch on the girl's skin.
The dog with eyes as large as a round tower top also bit Aurora's body with its teeth, but this was equally useless.
Both dogs used all their strength, trying to bite through the girl's body, but it was like biting something harder than iron.
Crack! The teeth of both large dogs broke simultaneously!