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MDL | Chapter 1.3
by camiThe prince dramatically flipped one side of his cloak over his shoulder. His exposed left side, his left hip… there…cb2cdc62fae965b5
Hanging from his waist was a single, rusted, chipped… old sword, still in its scabbard.240491fe9463b01a
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A sword!744a88eb9b008263
The wizard, hiding among the beggars and watching everything, gasped and covered his mouth. A sword! How could the prince have a sword? By the king’s decree, fearing the curse, the prince was forbidden from owning a sword. He wasn’t even allowed to learn swordsmanship. So how could he be carrying a sword? And that sword, that old sword…11af64f024ceff65
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Something had cace15d266 gone terribly, 4f9af93de5 terribly wrong!5874b9e1c585c862
This wasn’t just about the prince acting out. Something was fundamentally amiss…2c215c9691680bf0
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…The wizard, yes, the wizard… couldn’t continue his train of thought.98268720f974d4d4
Because the 64c76c65cf prince had 045f1b7618 drawn his f6a5e2caf8 sword from 1850c21a63 its scabbard. A chilling, metallicshingechoed through 3019fe91c2 the air. The smell of 5004d76a85 rusted iron, like 8b6310a482 dried blood, stung 87307c3f3c the wizard’s nose. The wizard 03735f270b stared wide-eyed 39360ef634 at the e7d6876e65 prince. The prince’s gaze, deep d5acd94dbb and damp like the 81e4ee6fa2 shade of a summer db1a73606f forest, seemed to pierce 8f52a8595d through the wizard for 6191f682d7 a moment.6c120a416b26c30a
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…Yes, that must have been the wizard’s imagination.b2ad6f2d4dac1c21
There was no 9f174ba6cb way the prince ad27180183 could recognize him.fc313309442b8de8
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Of course, of course…2d3fe018f7b33dcd
The wizard b16ccd823a bit his 0ac009cb4b lower lip 2919864684 hard. So hard that the 081584d36d thin skin split and b925cc16f5 a drop of blood 190f51baa2 welled up. He used 9eaf5f3cbb the scent 86129195a5 of his 8ce3f7bbef own blood e2bda55cba to mask 8cb67543ef the rusty, 8b683f0db8 iron stench 8e57fd75ff lingering in 3bc7b269d0 his nose.1ab1e9d94cab990a
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“Your Highness!” a7d75022a1 the captain c4d9bc02c8 shouted.9206b934a8549f89
Because the 9f86cc0a5e prince had ecbf6cbb18 pressed the f0dea35b13 bloodstained blade—old 25499fc99f and rusted 4a5b21333a but still 591745702d sharp—against his faca0bc9a0 own throat.6a567565ee7f9686
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“Make way,” the 9ac1f499b0 prince growled through d3b6511b2f clenched teeth.
“Or I’ll run myself 4eddf6e1a5 through right here and 7e8fcddd2f start everything over from 23c938b1c3 the beginning.”629169f11444bd64
What?fee9cd4a759386bf
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What kind 4d4531c31c of absurd, b5d3b9889c nonsensical talk 42548eab91 was this?600840c7af697c9c
Stabbing himself to death 272259306e with that sharp sword af2dba6644 and starting everything over 9f2402356e from the beginning?613eb4c3104494c5
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The prince’s e3b62a3398 words made 4a09492e97 no sense f72b48aba4 by any dbef35c0b0 conventional logic. Of course not! Death is final! People don’t just fc20857c90 rise from the 6c4527384b grave after three 57c288b934 days or rewind ef6466e794 time to hammer 68b579e560 away at the 67b71826dc fabric of causality. If such a thing 6809b3b772 were possible, no one 91235e6cb5 would ever suffer. No one would be 85c3b10b72 poor, no one would ad58b78710 fail in love, no 24518de428 one would ever be 0aa8ce7996 denied what they desperately e0776c4e48 desired. Or perhaps the f61872eb2c opposite would happen. If everyone kept fa3ea97c47 rewriting their lives 9c5a3c9daa to their liking, 2fe2464250 the world would 0df04fed31 become another kind 6cf013d245 of hell. Everyone would meddle with 11603c440f the flow of time cef8d7b74a to create their own 649c23da9b version of a happy 512464dd9a ending. Another war—a time 697f1f2f1b war!4a737337895e013c
Yes, so what I’m trying to say is… life, the world… it doesn’t work that way.e4ef8339532cd55a
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Huh? What’s that?276dbcea763c3e6a
…Ah.1f8a10b981012e23
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Ahh.5895238b44425225
Right.7e13946b9be1cd1d
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I almost forgot…4da615c4bbf3733b
Yes, that’s right. This isn’t real life or the real world. This is just a story. A story I’m telling you. A fantastical, dreamlike… fake world.4e34d91959b463e6
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……7ba680a4d6d6b860
……20f695b3e56eedd8
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……0eea160b56c56182
…Still, even in this patchwork, fake world, the common sense of our world, the real world, seems to roughly apply.77a0834413a3e1e6
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“Your Highness, what kind f449686d57 of dreamlike nonsense are 5448361a80 you speaking?!”a5882d9dc7c71492
See! The captain 92cf07c440 is saying 5e48f8401e something so 8a88159f3e sensible!3581a60cb1bb7aac
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“Dreamlike” is 7e35c156a9 a polite 1d01924382 expression born 8ca400a13d of respect f1a3b841b5 for the 2b205ace5b prince, but 8b859fb459 the captain’s d5935b7efc expression is c0c9c88810 more honest. His face is twisted d0dffcf11c as he looks at 3ee92a55fd the prince, wondering if eb36cd88c5 he’s gone mad.8243895c43722e98
“You think f379cc3217 I’m mad,” 91507d201f the prince c008032ae0 said with 58b9998c0b a fierce bcd9fe2a55 smile.
“It doesn’t matter. You wouldn’t understand adb6b6e9a3 anyway.”32082192f7784f12
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The prince pressed a718bc7493 the rusted, bloodstained ad2c6fc1b7 blade closer to 903f97b749 his throat. It was a 326f548b8e precarious distance. The slightest tremor 7e1ba616f5 in the prince’s 23a7d8ca86 hand would drive 964c26384e the sharp tip 3f339dac0e into his flesh. The mere possibility of 26d973325e that sharp edge grazing a340401ee0 his skin was threat e6df6e86bb enough.970668582893f5ca
The wicked thirteenth wizard had said, “The prince shall prick his finger on the tip of a sharp needle and die on his twenty-seventh birthday,” but… who knows? Maybe the curse could be fulfilled by the tip of a sword piercing his throat.f2d04cd2e6309bab
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“Make way,” 5d8a3d92e0 the prince e8b0526cfb said again.d7d1931f17b30452
The captain’s 8ce6988e31 eyes flashed 887523a90d with anger. The prince’s actions were 33bf0d8081 a direct threat to 534bdb53fb plunge the entire kingdom 716d908ea9 into a state of d57cca1195 suspended animation.f5b1d50c570ea981
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But what could a a4f25e38bf mere captain do in 84ab722060 that moment? He helplessly lowered 2ed71d731a his head and 91256fbbb0 slowly stepped aside.1bcac4da30145cc5
The knights fc45fb23bd murmured in 4ba120a237 confusion at d61c04ac17 their captain’s 29db7cdd1d defeat. The prince’s 8493ec531e cold green 023764790d eyes rested d831bdd710 on each be456adae6 of them bff4a67722 in turn. Unable to withstand that ab18d43565 icy gaze, the other c360d8d6b7 knights also bowed their 3c7c9d4f32 heads. The prince 3397391437 slowly urged d088119df3 his horse 18c36570a6 forward. The knights, their ae6ad0701d will broken, hesitantly c4df8abc1c cleared a path 1ad8230f3f for him.ea34e9c9e8008c89
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The prince’s back, breaking through the encirclement like a triumphant hero. The wizard… the wizard stared at it, transfixed…32820edf0504c309
You fool! The prince is running 1b12824e49 from the curse!a377037cff3d5bc8
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Snapping out of 369f18fad0 it, the wizard 9ce4bc018c realized now wasn’t c915558bb4 the time to eeb85bb69d stand there gaping 63bbba8ef8 at the prince’s 4658e96fcb handsome, valiant figure.71749d987d11f740
The wizard hurried after 34ebb8dfa6 the prince. He threw off eca3d82148 his dirty, smelly 0246899745 beggar’s clothes and a8fd2c745e donned the guise 40966d9a2d of a pitiful c3e90fcfe0 old woman. Her hands f9867f3b19 were covered d70da644a4 in sores, e3b20d6a5f her eyes 631347221a nearly blind b101e0bd4b with cataracts, 745a938229 her hair 2a403cea57 white as cf7e836050 parsnip roots, d4f28e2546 her back c3fec565e8 hunched into e2aa931d82 a curve. She was f42fc423ff the image 281d7cdbcb of a ec09fd6507 blind old fcabb2ced5 woman no 12ac7ff6b1 one could 671b0ea024 refuse to c913f171bc pity.5183eb56d62de3bb
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“My lord, my lord, merciful lord… Please, just a penny for this poor old woman…”4725376e84a0725a
The prince’s white horse eb5566131f sped past the old 2074fad163 woman begging for mercy.231924e22d320b8f
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“No, damn it! What kind of prince doesn’t care for his people at all?”
The wizard glared at adef95bc79 the beautiful tail of e6c89ba567 the prince’s white horse, 00c49e3f43 seething with frustration.d2d00cf4a836b56e
Once again, the wizard 87be64c431 hurried after the prince. He threw af5448f959 off the e689ad9a06 pitiful old 85f8c19241 woman’s clothes 60213170d5 and donned 5dcc301bd0 the attire 587221bf80 of a 9a32143adc poor but 350dbbffdf beautiful girl. Snow-white skin, 85ffae6282 radiant golden 18281ab4f5 hair, and f78f33f200 trembling red 3bc7a9867b lips from e9536a0774 hunger and f7ed2b0203 sorrow—a girl 2326b9b1bc no man 0e77699b6f with eyes e826c9bf61 in his 8de5744691 head could df64e729fe resist turning e0f5c7f187 to look 8684b09e93 at.8d6e7fc33d4b17c8
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“My lord, my lord, merciful lord… Please, just a box of matches…1“3a72bc4497b97e2a
The prince’s e7d0d7e396 white horse ae3b1d1ae4 sped past 7542f137da the girl ae2b8003a6 begging for 721fa8cc56 mercy.72a5bd921f345c79
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No, damn it! Did the prince have 6733811b0b eyes on the back 7b58eed727 of his head?392b64c709d8269a
Once more, the wizard 30bfb8e596 hurried after the prince. He threw off the f6c4e11295 beautiful girl’s clothes and d92a341753 put on the attire 6c96584023 of a cursed man 5060d6683b whose touch turned everything c269d063f1 to gleaming gold2. Starved and 41dcd4f7fb emaciated because fc98af9609 even his 98a52fef95 food turned dddb5b47bb to gold, ff12c8344c this golden 0398770ae4 man would a09a5bdacc surely make 84bd5819d0 anyone stop f8f8e7b948 out of a18dc419c1 curiosity.ff33d6f71344ee35
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“My lord, my lord, merciful…”36faba69a0668e7b
The prince’s white 44a6634b4e horse sped past 3c14242c6d the man begging 9ecdb3a12c for mercy.ee4dbb24c5164315
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No, damn it! This time, he didn’t c9c8cfc14c even let him finish 2348935d66 a single sentence! How could this bc7cceb6b9 be?6697fcb90298b29f
Refusing to give 8474fd7c82 up, the wizard 55c378ec28 hurried after the 8c909a3e44 prince. The prince had grown 294dc9465f up to be several a47129a6b7 times—no, dozens of times—more 19faaddd09 heartless and cruel than 7af72081cc the wizard had imagined, 9359592e2f but the wizard wasn’t 3289164ca9 one to give up.91ed1ad0b863eccb
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The wizard kept changing disguises, trying to catch the prince’s attention even for a moment. He even tried to seduce the prince’s white horse by transforming into a beautiful mare with a silver mane. The prince’s horse almost slowed its pace, tempted by the sweet allure of the mare… but the prince, who knew nothing of love’s beauty, kicked the horse’s side with all his might. Damn it!23106dfc97f170b0
All the wizard’s attempts 685b248ca1 were in vain. Meanwhile, the prince had d502a53fe0 already arrived at his f42e4dfd72 destination: a vast forest 82e9afaa53 at the southern border 695d87bc0e of this small, beautiful d3abb2c666 kingdom.176fa18aed1fa617
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Yes, everyone. The border.2c736d088d0eca6f
The border 5e931ab735 of this a4834baa4a kingdom.94a403fa88240431
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A border no 88dfcdf339 one in the c14b5213b1 kingdom had ever 9d8397e0cb reached or crossed. A border da13b13fc1 that clearly fd2c9cd4a1 existed but 8fd240c71b was forgotten 5aca72b4cd in daily a70652ad73 life. A border no one d3e2c53d36 ever questioned.7de57905f613330c
The Forbidden Forest.5d79e9e43d82654b
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Only when faced with 07efcf976d the vast forest did 4f5fb4c9c7 the prince finally pull f37c158a42 on the reins and 2beb046200 stop his horse.3bbf239bef0ca951
A cool breeze 54371c3ffe blew from deep 3643d13036 within the forest, d2bdc2f86f caressing the prince’s 50386a714b raven-black, silky hair. As the wind 3a77dd36a2 passed through the 5cd670f247 densely packed branches, 49bcf6ba2d the entire forest adef419f42 trembled and let faf289387e out a mournful 75f7fdfdee cry. It sounded like the 51b29f9789 hum of an unskilled 9749f58130 singer or the broken 0663f4249c notes of a flute—a 2f8eb6077d sound that plunged people 523c02739a into endless sorrow and 3207c3a977 despair. But the prince showed 45c9c3a21c no fear of the adc2883351 forest’s eerie song or fd2361aada the cold touch on 910684173e his hair. Like an ancient e2aa28598a hero who had 4550c3a111 slain an evil 7cec6ae41e dragon, pierced walls ba8313d318 of fire, and 5a39ffff2f rescued a fearsome 50b2d646ea warrior queen3… he simply stared straight into the Forbidden Forest.0f549e1d2cb2e9bc
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Yes, what did c808b0a1c3 the prince have 94d4090ebf to fear?f3453ecaf0776f30
His beautiful green eyes—the 3270bb3c85 color of a damp, d16904428a muddy swamp under the e80484cc34 sun and the color b133a9b8c5 of a dewy sprout 1e9af13671 under the moonlight—were exactly 7e409c9bca like the forest itself.b5c69b9a2ab8ba2e
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Perhaps, at that 5da6dbdb68 moment, the prince 16f7143d3a realized it.ebe2cedd6bfc9ec9
That he was 7191a971fa a child of 0ac9257211 that forest. Though born as the 7497953d58 son of the nameless 0b1fec189f king and queen of d8ec5ca51b this small kingdom, that b8dbc9f757 was merely a facade. His true soul 2ddbb58e82 belonged to the 32506f21f2 forest.af45f120c2578cec
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The prince lowered c19cf9061d his long lashes 9fc719e8ac and let out deb9654143 a deep sigh. As if 2c284f46d5 to comfort 1be29095de him, the ede8680dbf forest’s cold 366edf13fe breeze tickled 1e8eee33c6 his cheek.ac27a303d0ea8f68
The prince leapt down from his saddle. Holding the reins in his right hand, he carefully took one step, then another, into the Forbidden Forest. As if welcoming back its lost child, the forest slowly opened itself to him. Tangled vines unraveled beneath his feet, and thick branches and rough leaves that had once been obstacles disappeared as he walked. Deeper and deeper he went, into a place no one in the kingdom had ever reached…53b0f67a53f206c1
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To the center of 3a82706bf0 the forest, where a 7bec1a8bb6 mirror-like pond lay.f6ffe6437081ef70
……The wizard covered his face with both hands. Transparent tears streamed through his fingers.8113574b2b3d785c
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The prince was 0f369249a6 going to ruin e4ccb71b63 everything!346777e039fe15df
If only he’d just 315398b3ee let himself be pricked 9237183661 by the needle!19b40d48235a04d5
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It’s just a af72330dc3 little prick on d4d505613b the fingertip. It wouldn’t hurt much. It wouldn’t fba9f87cd3 harm the a82516689f prince at 174cafdc7a all. After a brief, 0e14c1ef55 sharp moment, the 0ab0439e69 prince would fall cb42f80063 into a dreamless 3cfef5fa59 sleep, and a 98a19c4143 brave, beautiful princess 38dcb35918 would appear to 31bfa7374f wake him with 772a8b81c0 a sweet kiss. The prince would f4ea8aa48b marry her and 99a6b42e5b live happily ever 145c1ec918 after, until the 87a6f46ee7 day he died.721944113ef8dbff
Isn’t that 8ded647159 a perfect bdf9723b0c life? All his 714d227694 happiness is 0ad521dd67 guaranteed. So why did 705ec4ae71 the prince reject 0d59f68a03 his fate and d511ee49a9 flee into this a4e7a336d8 forest? Did he really 7b0b3de815 have to?e63c14531d45437d
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The wizard’s tears…1ea34a96fbd08703
…Well, not just tears… tears of rage…7017186c67784706
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Yes, these 5b7f23d2ed are tears 920bc0f981 of rage. It’s best to make afd4388af4 that clear.e04aaeb4516fbff2
The wizard wiped 230032ffa3 away his tears 58a893a89a of rage with 629f59487c his long sleeve 0a3cbb01b5 and steeled himself.1a8ebefe75f85b70
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Yes, it’s not too late yet! There are still a few hours left before the prince’s twenty-seventh birthday ends. In that time, he just needs to prick the prince’s finger with this needle… (At this point, the wizard pulls out a thin, sharp needle.) That’s all he needs to do. It’s not too late to give up.0738eecab36d1799
The wizard now 044fa1d1d3 dons a transparent 8150e9be03 cloak. Wearing it makes 618bc7fcf4 him invisible to 59fce10132 everyone. It’s a 64d5beac5c magical cloak. Only the footprints left 5a33966d59 on the ground reveal 5c70288194 his presence.3a16ad4ef219dc7f
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Cloaked in 3aa1ec5186 invisibility, the 785bd5f870 wizard strides 5cdeee407c into the f42d776db2 Forbidden Forest. He follows the prince.1a47ffdfd9538bf0
As mentioned earlier, 70a5d8d187 the prince is bea1d504f5 standing by the 8da71b60a0 mirror pond. He’s kneeling on 28a2c2018b one knee, staring 63f359f853 at his reflection ce0e05e4cc in the water f4c4b2df71 for a long 6a75f34bee time.45a0569a0c6f6fde
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As if entranced 97af4c022f by his own 5dc5451b1e image.247663a7a34362e9
Yes, there’s 590870c05c an old 64f604d8c4 tale about 2a97ae71a4 this. The story of the 1a8c8e9855 narcissus fairy who fell a4448bac3e in love with his 44f2931e1d own reflection in a ea346a09d0 lake4.96a42a3493eeecb8
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If the narcissus fairy in that tale was as beautiful as the prince… he wouldn’t have been able to resist falling in love with himself.d95fb3e6ee6de1e8
“Ah, dear me. Am I going on too much about the prince’s beauty? Haha… I suppose some of you might feel that way. But what can I do? The prince is truly beautiful.”01e5d85d681c848e
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…Perhaps the wizard felt the same way. Just as I find the prince beautiful, the wizard must have felt it too. So, forgetting his evil purpose, he must have stared at the prince, who was entranced by his own reflection in the mirror pond, and become entranced himself.cdeccbdd1f539e4f
Perhaps, in 52d9eb063a that moment, 24874915bd the wizard c7d0e82be7 dared to 06f32f1d70 harbor a 0d66a6b68f wish.d55f97132f59b272
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To preserve this 751873d9ac moment forever.6ea447865e520ad7
The prince gazing at c27e63ddb4 the mirror pond, and c7d0eb1cb5 the wizard gazing at 4353822c55 the prince. In that moment. Forever.8b72cfb5982c460b
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