MDL | Chapter 1.2

That morning, the prince woke in his bedroom as usual. And he said:

“Damn it.”

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I’m sorry, everyone… You must have heard something strange just now. Haha, it’s fine. Let me try again. Let me adjust my voice a bit… Ahem, ahem.

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And so, time passed until the day foretold by the thirteenth wizard finally arrived.

The prince’s twenty-seventh birthday.

That morning, the prince woke in his bedroom as usual. And he said:

“Damn that wizard.”

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Ahem, ahem! Cough! Ahem…

…That morning, the prince woke in his bedroom as usual. And he said:

 “I’m really going to lose my mind.”

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Yes! Yes, yes! That’s exactly what happened! The prince… had met that damn wizard!

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But when on earth did he meet him? Who exactly was that damn wizard? Why, on the morning of his birthday, a day that should have been joyful, did the prince wake up cursing and saying he was going to go mad? And why… why don’t I, the narrator and storyteller… know anything about it?

……I’m truly sorry, everyone.

I don’t know either. I’m so sorry…… What am I supposed to do now, hahaha. Honestly, I feel like crying a little.

Please, give me just a moment. Just a brief moment.

I’ll be back soon.

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Thank you! You’ve been waiting a while, haven’t you? Haha, thank you so much. First… let me take a deep breath… just one… and then……

Hoo, hoo, hoo……

Alright, I’m ready! My hands and feet are still trembling, and my heart is pounding like crazy… but I think I’m okay now. Huh? Why am I so physically weak, you ask? Why am I making such a fuss after just running out for a bit? That’s such a hurtful thing to say…… It’s because I’m a wizard! Wizards are naturally weak in physical strength. Don’t ask why. It’s just how it is!

Anyway……

Now, everyone, can you guess what I’ve brought with me?

Yes, that’s right. Blue ink and a pen. They may seem like ordinary ink and pen, but they’re enchanted with a very special spell. Watch this… dip the pen into the blue ink… and then rewrite over the already written text in this book……

Ta-da! See? The sentences are magically corrected!

Hehe, that’s right. From now on, I’ll use this ink and pen to fix the story that the prince has so rudely altered. A mere character like the prince saying and doing things I don’t even know about… it’s truly, truly horrifying. As the narrator and storyteller, as someone who must deliver a perfect story to you all, I simply cannot tolerate such unexpected disruptions. Occasionally, some great authors say, “Even as an author, you can’t fully control your characters! Sometimes, as you craft a story, the characters come to life on their own and start speaking and acting independently! Paradoxically, it’s when the characters grab the author by the hair and drag them along that great stories are born!”

……But that’s the case for great authors. I’m just a mere storyteller, repeating and delivering a story that’s already been written… so when something like this happens, I’m utterly flustered.

Unfortunately, the prince has gained a life force that I simply cannot handle. But don’t worry, everyone. With this ink and pen, I’ll restore the story to its original form. It may take a long and complicated detour, but it’s not impossible.

Hmm, so first… let’s change the narrative style a bit.

Until now, I’ve been telling the story under the assumption that we know everything about the prince’s past, future, and innermost thoughts. But sadly, due to this small anomaly, I can no longer know the prince’s past, future, or thoughts…… So instead, I’ll introduce a wizard. From now on, the story will unfold through this wizard’s eyes.

A plain wizard wouldn’t be interesting, so let’s add a little twist to the character.

This wizard is…… hmm… ah, that’s a good idea!

This wizard is none other than the thirteenth wizard. Remember him, everyone? The one who cursed the prince to die by pricking his finger on a needle. Yes, that’s the one. Alright, good. From now on, my story will follow him.

Haha, don’t worry too much, everyone. What’s important isn’t the narrative style or the characters themselves. What’s important is the fate of the story. The protagonist, the prince, must prick his finger on a needle on his twenty-seventh birthday, fall into a deep and peaceful sleep for a hundred years, and then awaken with a kiss from a beautiful princess to live happily ever after. That’s all that matters. Don’t worry too much. The path may twist and turn, but the prince will never defy his fate.

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Now then……

Here stands a wizard.

He is a wizard who never forgets a grudge. If he isn’t invited to a birthday party, if he’s excluded, he will surely show up and cast a terrifying curse. Yes, he’s a bit petty. He’s no magnanimous figure. He’s a little timid… but he’s consistent, persistent, and meticulous.

So now, this wizard is loitering in front of the royal palace, waiting to see the results of the curse he cast twenty-seven years ago. He’s persistent and meticulous, after all. He needs to see it with his own eyes to be satisfied. To ensure no one recognizes him as the wizard from back then, he’s disguised as a beggar, wearing tattered rags. His disguise is meticulous…… I told you, he’s that kind of person.

Normally, the guards wouldn’t let a beggar loiter in front of the palace gates. But today was a special day. It was the day the kingdom’s only prince turned twenty-seven. On days like this, all sorts of poor folk gather around the palace gates, hoping to get leftover food. The guards are a bit more lenient. They frowned at the disguised wizard but didn’t chase him away. Thanks to that, the wizard could loiter freely in front of the palace, waiting for the curse to take effect.

About two… no, three hours after the wizard began loitering in front of the palace…

 Normally, the guards wouldn’t let a beggar loitering and begging in front of the palace gates stay for long. But today was a special day. It was the twenty-seventh birthday of the kingdom’s one and only prince. On days like this, all sorts of poor folk would gather around the palace gates, hoping to get leftover food. The guards were a bit more lenient. They frowned at the wizard disguised as a beggar but didn’t chase him away. Thanks to that, the wizard could loiter freely in front of the palace, waiting for the curse to take effect.

About two… no, three hours after the wizard began loitering in front of the palace…

The morning sun, which had been shining like freshly baked bread, rose high in the sky and began to emit a sharp, stinging light. Carriages carrying envoys and nobles from distant neighboring kingdoms arrived one by one at the palace gates to attend the prince’s birthday celebration. Servants of the palace began scattering silk flowers and colored sand around the outer walls of the palace.

It was a good day.

A day that should have been filled with celebration and joy.

But the expressions on everyone’s faces were not particularly bright. Yes, it was because of the curse. If the prince pricked his finger on a needle and fell into a hundred-year slumber… what would happen to the kingdom? Would the entire kingdom fall asleep with him? For a hundred years? And when the promised hundred years passed and the prince awoke, would the entire kingdom wake up with him? Could that even happen? People… can’t sleep for a hundred years, can they? A hundred-year sleep… isn’t that just another name for death?

A strange tension hung in the air, visible on the faces of the guests, the servants, the guards, and even the beggars loitering for leftover food. Everyone was laughing and chatting, but they couldn’t hide their unease. Their laughter and chatter carried the weight of a nervous breakdown on the verge of explosion.

Then it happened.

Just as a young beggar, unable to contain his rising fear and irritation, suddenly lashed out and spat into an old beggar’s bowl…

At that moment, the sound of the drawbridge lowering echoed from inside the palace walls. The guards stationed at the outer walls hurriedly opened the gates in response to the commotion inside.

Someone riding a white horse with a golden mane was crossing the drawbridge at an incredible speed. Behind them, at a fixed distance, armed knights followed in pursuit. The rider on the white horse with the golden mane was, of course, none other than the prince. The prince celebrating his twenty-seventh birthday, the protagonist of the day! And the ones chasing after him, gritting their teeth, were his royal guards.

The guards, the guests, and even the beggars stopped what they were doing to watch the scene. Well, it’s only natural for the prince’s guards to chase after the prince… but something felt off. It looked more like… a pursuit.

“Your Highness! Your Highness!” shouted the captain of the guards.
“You mustn’t! You mustn’t leave the palace!”

But the prince didn’t stop. Instead, he spurred his horse faster.

“Damn it, you fools! What are you all standing around for? Close the gates! Close them now!”

At the captain’s frantic shout, the guards snapped to attention. They began hurriedly closing the gates of the outer wall. As the gap between the gates narrowed, the prince’s breathing grew heavier. Just as the gates were about to close, leaving only enough space for a grown man to squeeze through, the prince leaned close to his horse’s ear and whispered something. The white horse leaped forward with incredible force, its golden mane fluttering like wings in the air. Fearing they might be trampled by the horse’s hooves, the guards screamed and scrambled away from the gates. In that instant, the prince and his horse slipped through the narrow gap and dashed out.

“Open them! Open the gates now!” the captain cursed and shouted. First, he cursed at them to close the gates, and now he was cursing at them to open them. Honestly, these knights are so uncouth… Even training a dog has its limits, don’t you think?

But what could the guards do? When the high-and-mighty knight barks an order, they must obey. With dazed expressions from the sudden chaos, the poor guards groaned and struggled to open the gates again. Ten horses carrying the knights galloped out through the wide-open gates.

The knights were skilled riders, but the prince was even more so. Of course, he was. Despite being confined to the palace for twenty-seven years due to the curse, the prince had been gifted with all sorts of talents by the twelve wizards—including exceptional equestrian skills!

Unable to catch up to the prince, the most hot-tempered of the ten knights drew his bow and arrow. Of course, he had no intention of hitting the prince. He only meant to threaten the horse and slow it down. The sharp arrow flew from his drawn bowstring, slicing through the air with a piercing sound. His arrow… its tip was sharp… needle-like… The arrow grazed the prince’s hair, barely missing his earlobe…

Ah.

Ahh.

So this is how.

This is how fate barely finds its place.

The wizard, hiding among the beggars, narrowed his eyes and watched the arrow skim past the prince with the most fervent anticipation.

“Hey, Zig!”

The captain of the guards shouted, alarmed by his subordinate’s extreme action.

With a thud, the arrow embedded itself into the ground. The startled white horse reared up and whinnied. And the prince…

The prince… unfortunately, remained unharmed. The arrow fired by Knight Zig had only cut a few strands of his dark, beautiful hair, leaving no mark on the prince’s body.

What a pity.

The wizard sighed.

“Shall I consider this,” the prince spoke. While calming his startled horse with gentle strokes, he turned his cool, forest-green eyes, now filled with icy anger, toward the knights.
“an act of treason?”

The flustered knights exchanged uneasy glances, unsure how to handle the prince’s wrath. The prince spoke again.

“Sir Zig, your master asks you: Is this treason? Were you hired by the Sharp End Society? Did you intend to prick me with a sharp point and plunge me into a hundred-year slumber?”

“Your Highness, I… I only…!”

Knight Zig hastily dismounted and knelt on the ground, one knee pressed into the dirt.

The prince likely didn’t truly suspect Sir Zig of treason. But even if Sir Zig had no such intention, aiming a bow at the prince was treason in itself.

Sir Zig hung his head and choked back tears, unable to offer a defense. The captain of the guards stepped in front of him, shielding his subordinate from the prince’s icy glare, and spoke respectfully.

“Forgive me, Your Highness, but this is not treason.”

“You shot an arrow at me, and it’s not treason?”

“We were merely following the orders of someone higher than Your Highness. In the process… Sir Zig acted rashly and made a grave mistake. But His Majesty the King will surely take Sir Zig’s loyalty and stubbornness into account and not punish him too harshly.”

The captain was indeed the captain. He didn’t look particularly old, but he was far more experienced than the other knights and adept at wriggling out of difficult situations like a slippery eel.

Mentioning the king seemed to leave the prince with no choice. He let out a short, derisive laugh and turned his horse toward the northern part of the kingdom.

“Do not try to take me back. Do not follow me. I will not return to the palace until after midnight tonight. Inform His Majesty of this.”

But the captain was not so easily swayed.

“I cannot obey that command.”

The captain gestured to the other knights. They quickly surrounded the prince in a circle, hands resting on the hilts of their swords.

“As I mentioned earlier, His Majesty’s orders take precedence over Your Highness’s. Forgive our rudeness. We will gladly accept any reprimand for today’s events later.”

After saying this, the captain, like the other knights, lowered his stance, hand on his sword hilt, ready to draw at any moment.

What was it about his words, his demeanor, that softened the prince? The icy chill in the prince’s gaze melted away. With a slight smile, he muttered:

“‘Later,’ you say.”

It sounded almost incredulous, but there was a warmth in his laughter.

“Do you believe I have a tomorrow?”

“I do, Your Highness. You will pass through today unscathed. No needle, no thorn, no spear tip, no sharp object in this world will graze your flesh. You will safely celebrate your twenty-eighth, twenty-ninth birthdays, and beyond. So please, return. You will be safe within the palace. We will protect you, Your Highness.”

“…It feels like something very sharp and pointy just grazed me a few minutes ago. Was that my imagination?”

At the prince’s pointed joke, Knight Zig’s face turned pale. The prince glanced at him sideways, then leaped down from his horse.

“It seems you won’t let me go so easily.”