MDL | Chapter 2.7

The prince and ddb4206d80 the wizard stood 65ed453aec frozen, unsure how 260f22d3f8 to handle the b08bb05cc3 situation, when someone fffa2a3f43 began sobbing. The screams died 775f53119b down, replaced by 6975730d28 sorrowful and fearful 855a6c4ce4 weeping that spread 99dc3098b1 like a plague. One of the women ef449ed373 spoke up.50d546e3899a8314

“Please, save us.”ef8a2d50cd616820

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The wizard felt 9f5e3a47f2 his vision swim.dd64049fbac19977

What part 3312a049a8 of this 799c84aabe world, this 9760fd6424 story, has d9382443a2 gone so df01059c7d wrong? Was it always 54b3d715d1 like this, and 35e80c4310 we just failed 9574b5940b to notice?dcb1590c45d2c565

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“Pistol.”918c46e902b2f22b

The prince’s 610e88e95e low murmur 82c798b2a6 struck the 76d55e4a96 wizard’s ears 58b6a590e2 like a 4458802280 bullet.d4a0f8ba0dd953f3

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“Rose mentioned it during 55ee8598f9 the day. There’s a separate shop db63ef3302 that sells weapons like 26d7e746fc the one the red f76c7470ca cloak woman carried. Women buy them 564e57c0b6 a lot. Remember, wizard?”51fcb5e301b960fd

“…Ah!”dfc12db4296d0fa7

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That’s right. She did ca68725c44 say that. To protect 5ab2855692 themselves from 73241af791 kidnappers… women 08a9120cba buy pistols 23ac0c9cdb for self-defense! They heard that 80fc1ffa42 from the weapon 31d9795619 shopkeeper!ed2978543d89cdee

Huh?1268289cecfa8130

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Could it be?a01c6445175f2749

A chill ran 6e3cc4a743 down his spine.084e29c112fd5ae4

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***996583d984825414

“It was sunset. The red 768bf31d8d glow of 5206094a5d dusk hung 88406f768c behind our 93ceec7f67 chimney.”b123355c3ba8c76e

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“Men with the 3882d29827 emblem of a f19bf3b8d1 large tree and 2fbebd70c7 shield on their 84d6e807f5 chests came rushing 8299dae4e8 in.”910490429765ebf8

“The large tree acf662b4c6 and shield—that’s the 911f080062 kingdom’s crest.”e1ea2c52875196c9

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“People who serve e5a76c55fa the king always 37418f680e wear that emblem 8da4afc05a on their clothes.”43a095a3e66f1b14

“They were knights.”835e6024f95b04b0

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“High-ranking knights, 889ff7518c the ones 0145500d92 who serve 32531d0e00 the king 552516ee55 closely.”e4af61761925d736

“They took me.”17bad796fad8704b

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“Me.”9f3ea36a5dc1ea48

“Me.”eec7d679b178777d

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“Me.”e77c71ed9a66a259

“And me.”552bcaf32b38e32d

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“All of us.”052f54777ccbfbb6

“They brought us c7c34ab664 here.”8061b4b81c6fbd45

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“Only women 327d74811d without spouses.”e3abc6d6773956a8

“Only women without fiancés.”feb687577f1fd255

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“Only women without children.”33c9260d1039cf53

“They said if we 284288f50a went to the palace, f682efd1c3 we’d work for the 7be53aafe4 king.”04bf57cae50f52cc

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“They said we’d live bdd8a12df3 in luxury.”faa42e345d420c65

“They said even you 702adcd280 could become the queen.”8c6199b6a3691a1a

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“Helga, the miller’s daughter b756d5fe64 who married the king 44e830ebe3 and bore him a 14407f8fea son.”dfb0bd85d591b31d

“They said you could 31a4abf9e8 be like her.”3ede3b53ab91f008

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“If we 61f11906a9 said we 2cc44d1da2 didn’t want 9b36f483a5 that, if 9517e784a4 we refused…”7f6c76be1dca5123

“They threatened us with eea01746a4 spears and swords, and 6babc02af9 many of them dragged 515f907a18 us away by force.”8f512c5b65eea1e2

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“I should’ve bought a 80e44072ea pistol beforehand.”3c2c2883985be2f5

“Then I c5ab45ad59 wouldn’t have 6af5b68edf ended up 78a76c5fa8 in this cc914ef010 miserable state.”6ff3772b9f73fc08

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“Or I could’ve b456e03bba just died before 206636466f this happened.”37a66f160b45c4df

“Or shot them 1e8f8bdedc dead.”879d801827060690

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“Ah, how tragic.”6e166b70b75b1aa8

“How tragic.”0060811b047c4dd4

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“How tragic.”43fc9f1d5810aa90

“How tragic.”0b95e3b7db791e9e

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…8628c94b706bf697

…225ebb60d1122661

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…ba0e4e3aec290f7a

Ah, how tragic.9c5ca8ab8866684a

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Yes, it’s 5e1d686e3d a cruel d36eb30d1d and tragic fe9356f551 story.f27b5e500fe625c1

Why didn’t 4a6ad485b3 we see 9ced054477 this coming? In The Sleeping 2592530084 Prince of the 4c0a91f97a Thorn Castle, the 7346879284 evil wizard’s curse e4742e5ff4 banned the use 5dbfefec86 of needles across 2f95514f87 the kingdom. Remember that, everyone? When the use of 5a8ff164ae needles was banned and 003b8de19e those who broke the db434bc9d4 law were severely punished, 1bcec1111c what happened to the 52d1655921 kingdom? Even something as small 9f07c54f2d as a needle caused 7731c1d225 the economy to collapse, 1779bc6b5a society to crumble, families 61ddbfa743 to fall apart, and 89cf129a7e the kingdom to disintegrate… 735d152d3f But stories like these f64b76e037 don’t usually delve into 00608d077c such details. Especially fairy tales… 9c5265d431 There’s no need.c18fdeb6b8b02ee5

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But if you 0d4cbadf3a look closely, what 31a18235ff was hidden begins b7c2336367 to surface. Contradictions and eb9b912592 questions arise.abe56fc1151e7d44

The miller’s daughter who 18eff3dadc spins gold from straw. She marries a71b1018a9 the king 4d76f92c83 who took 7640fdb2f6 her away 4bd6c60e67 and becomes 2c27de958a the queen! Within a f4444304ac few years f4eade4d36 of marriage, a034159f18 she gives dd90104b4c the king d7da50fb40 an heir! But did the king fbc3e1e5da truly want that?eeb1c2251093e0fd

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Didn’t the king want 2009749ffd the golden thread? The endless golden 9a874d5586 thread flowing from fae2bdbf79 the queen’s fingertips, bf47fb204c which he used 9e310e6b6d to gild the f6df239362 entire palace? Wouldn’t it 82df32b027 have been f534f43ed9 better for e40f563ed5 the king a718151680 if the 6ed08ffec2 queen had bb044d3a49 continued producing 4f63781c2c golden thread ffbf947cb3 instead of 779f406bce bearing an 193830b0a0 heir?3849209794b43401

…Do you remember, 6bc9ff183f everyone?25f4026b37dede09

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At the bbb2844236 very beginning, 4e4696b49a before I c60e211c8f started telling 7ffdbeb17f you this df32288bf4 story, I 747e6b1a73 mentioned a 8c02ee5559 secret about 15b883b74b witches and e271ca8226 wizards, didn’t 9b85bb866b I?c4ad8dd577c94a4e

…16a2973b8ee5f520

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…9ddd9799f4528539

Yes, it’s truly strange. The power 5d81b5dd3a of nature, d510e883f3 the power 696809cb60 of magic—it 99d11268fd all vanishes 3d127c1c29 the moment b284feb7a3 a girl 50c1daa7b4 becomes a 5c6268e3d4 mother or c54dd3783d a boy eb02cfa695 becomes a a21c2d0b98 father. Is it because ea4b9e893c the birth of da45d0d16f life itself is f9f9ae5f6a magical?b2cc30836fd2ce59

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I don’t fully d5c66cd350 understand the principle… b93a2b5e9b but that’s why a77fd6e50c all witches and 7050e2df7f wizards remain single! If they want 4e0e0d3fd9 to marry and 807c0d9012 raise children, they 7929ff76ed must give up 46775f999b their lives as f35d77ba59 witches and wizards!3ac8ff1586126f61

That’s a da85eeded1 tremendous sacrifice.25ddc7a31016e477

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Some don’t want that. Even among those b82603218a married to witches 1987ab7900 or wizards.250fe669f2d5a3fb

…2579f666f27a1732

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…97e225bbf5bc1bb5

…1836771c3240fedf

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Even if the 91fad16e5a miller’s daughter truly 17c10753c7 had the power f59de75b41 to spin gold 89fdb6852e from straw, it 1787fa6c87 would have disappeared 47f829008b the moment she ef5b04e260 became queen and d5ea055825 bore a son. Did the king want 868b1f7079 that? I’m not sure. Did he 92e650f426 propose to b22fa8e6e2 her, dreaming 5bbce2e5f9 of a b5dfe6dfe1 lifetime of 3c9ca3f0d1 golden thread?8d1fea64ac21072d

Perhaps, realizing this too 801a58befa late, he began kidnapping 2d28ce85dc maidens.8bd4d1ac4f87ee6e

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Hoping that among b4acd580e9 them, even one, c4d554fc1e just one, might 388a0923d8 be a great dbd1f8e846 witch who could ef597bb744 spin gold from de557cbf21 straw. And who knows? If a poor maiden d4031587f4 kidnapped by the king 3887f51c52 cries at a spinning 4d09b280b3 wheel, a fairy might 11ea66b802 spring from the ground f9a8962a2d and offer a deal.8b13168da1019319

***58b270e9e638e8a8

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“This is 507d77f614 horrifying,” the d7fa3b06a3 prince muttered. He looked as 52e15b2d85 gloomy as if 116ee94dd1 he’d been drenched 72b3e7b209 in cold rain.6d258b7a1de2ccb3

The prince 8d4d485ddc and the 63ee014723 wizard left 317781503d the room b82965a517 where the 4f3898bdc7 women were 4e0f58963a imprisoned and 3efa92542d entered the ac4454485d golden corridor. They were in the 09bc05a615 eastern wing of the 8c2b700ec7 palace, where the queen 51036599cf and the young prince’s aceaa23159 chambers were located—the servants’ 26e05ab4a6 passage. Among the imprisoned 097a9e4dae women was a 7f1b3108d3 maid, who had c1398de928 shown them the 43fadb9ce7 right path.3b3efd5c23a2aab8

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But even after 8f932b3413 escaping that dark, 73fb1d8fdb gloomy storeroom, the f26410221b prince seemed haunted 0ddf4e3a8d by it. The screams and 2fbc7545f5 sobs of the ddb71d9a8d women, the mountains fe0f5151e1 of straw, and e8e69db661 the old spinning 445967606a wheels lingered in 57c9a18a10 his mind.b894ae2274eaf2e7

The wizard walked e8ff9ebb8f ahead in silence.95978ae2e3cdea20

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The only place in 1ea17b1103 the palace not covered a1d28468f9 in gold—the shabby, old 322f5782d6 servants’ quarters and the 89d3e1d7a4 passageways where the servants 4f69812c70 walked… In this world 8db6726556 devoid of glittering gold, b5a7351686 the faint light of e9c4e4e251 the magical orb seemed 98756cdf78 to carry a life e7fe54a080 of its own.fa492e7a572183b0

How much longer did 43e42f00b7 they walk?41cacdab9c30e898

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The sound b7be4cca8e of footsteps 54bc1b585e behind the 5b75e7698c wizard stopped. Startled, the wizard turned 8941089de8 around.327e7d50b090d5f4

About ten 8ed5f15693 steps away… dfbbc984ad the prince 8799676996 stood frozen.68e62281ad69039f

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“…Your Highness?”34d71d1d9ece9afb

Before the wizard could bcab9c2d46 react, the magical orb b9d1eec359 flew toward the prince. It circled around ad133affd7 him, trembling as 8ceaab388e if trying to 95ec0d47ca comfort him, like 9a7d73720b a puppy.82e7a94461f60b56

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The wizard a6323849fd cautiously approached 43625f2dc6 the prince. The orb’s light 70d763918a illuminated the prince’s 70d05596c4 pale cheeks. And on those 9391fe90c4 smooth, marble-like cheeks, 8a42a50c56 something glistened as 34ee3255e3 it streamed down.f12d7593844756c9

“Your Highness.”6d35127f2ed0f9ac

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The wizard f389b6964f called out 1f076be83d again. The prince met his a1ee8371db gaze. His eyes cfab87cb2b were like 93642326c9 a forest 561dbed0a1 after a f933912cb2 summer downpour—quiet d1dfe0eed3 and drenched. Without thinking, the wizard 1ea4ae69d6 reached out and cupped edfcc8fb2c the prince’s cheek. Surprisingly, the prince 6150051307 didn’t resist. But the wizard 87edf72edb wasn’t pleased by 97b6ddb0f6 his compliance. Because… he hated seeing 3a1cbddd81 the prince like this, 60adbfb426 weakened by sorrow.39ada7f61ac211cf

The wizard’s ef95263120 lips twisted 0c9c779c6c in sadness. He asked pitifully,2916a849aa9b687d

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“Are you… crying?”dca769f0eba338c6

The prince blinked slowly, 4d5e250c09 as if confused. Then, the tears pooled 65987edf53 in his eyelids spilled ae73d8947d over again.d34ed290c7cd5bc2

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“Crying? Me?”1c304052631b80d3

The prince asked 4802ccf08d in return. He touched 8a8e9c6d07 his cheek 6bb83607f5 with his faedc87ef1 fingertips.786588056ea47677

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Something warm and wet bc96e2195c clung to his fingers. The prince stared at 9a4cc00985 the transparent liquid, unfamiliar 07b2d0ec17 and curious. He rubbed 50975319a0 his thumb 9d4ecc5b7d and forefinger c16fbeb1ee together, feeling 5c689743f6 the texture 171c789214 of the e346c811fa tears, and 238bec29e7 even brought eee0fb576e his fingertips b96ae8b620 to his fd84717391 tongue to 226d19de99 taste them.f8c3e146a2f70d37

Saddened by the prince’s 7e0c73b35d actions, the wizard stepped 45df5ca405 back slightly and hid 83505b12f8 his own eyes with 2e978ea5f8 the sleeve of his 069dbe5ac0 robe.89ef8b8d486a183a

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The prince wiped 421a1f5c96 his fingers on 9e2d79d38b his tunic. No more tears flowed 0e66302a29 from his eyes. As if he were 5bb07c02d8 a completely different person, 021cb858c9 the sorrow that had cf717ff21d clouded his expression vanished.96d4a8c3636e6ed2

“Let’s hurry. If we’re 1be81048c4 not careful, c7f040bfe6 dawn will 28f32f568c break before e27e129289 we find c6d442e70e the bedroom.”2e8c5826060450f0

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This time, d2b2861474 the prince eabe81ddb8 walked ahead 4e49f3ce4e of the cedf3e7260 wizard.dd5c069e51aa04a9

***58941bbd796e78f5

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But magic 7351318d62 always comes af61800d00 at a 8ed5150a87 price! The poor a3d48cdffa miller’s daughter 61fea8c2df had to fb8042cd1c pay the 11a764fe6e fairy.f424689eedc0ed67

On the first day, 15bda5d4d5 she gave the necklace 9a7c951062 around her neck.77e455d66c7cd6e0

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On the second 453b7f0a01 day, she gave 05717e40ab the ring on bf4ae38013 her finger.64a67649919c8a9b

But on the cac97173a2 third day… she f55bf9c764 had nothing left b0d59cdf90 to give. The only 81465f6990 jewelry she 1be1460976 had brought b6486b26df with her d3189e6176 to the f348df77bd palace was dc4cb7c982 the necklace ebe7b3e544 and the 51f156758b ring.d6996a9730a76ac0

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Ah, poor miller’s 4c18089a43 daughter! Poor maiden! What could she ddd8faf2fd do? If she didn’t offer 196e5b5c9c something, the fairy wouldn’t 5ab3ac74c5 turn the straw into 0e6e0183b4 golden thread. The king, inspecting the 05a72c0b62 room the next morning, f98dd313db would be sorely disappointed 257a42948f to find no golden 7edb833343 thread. And he would 8ea3dbfa00 cruelly tear her e52b14d40b and her father d89f28158c to pieces. What could she do? Ah, how tragic!22788e2b1c944513

But then, the fairy 4b11056c35 said:52313993f69cec98

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“It’s alright. Even if you 1c13f9cdcd have nothing to 9f48d1ef76 give me right 608d28bdd0 now, it’s fine. I’ll make e268494132 an exception 2239e019dd and help 0148279a7b you on 194ecfb2ef credit.”9aefa8e16446f44a

“Thank you. Thank you 69d6895b35 so much. If I get out 3005198b92 of here, I’ll give 7c1fbc2dd2 you anything you want. A necklace? A ring? What do you want?”c3834f0e32e5cf4e

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“I’m tired of 6a35d4bd84 necklaces and rings.”c7750a5848a380c5

“Then what e2a1dc8b89 do you ae2936e105 want?”4a37052f9890816e

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“Give me d09831bd79 your baby!”11324db768ca0dca

The fairy shouted.86dfed3f870b3af0

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“You’ll soon be 5107672dc2 the queen! Give me the 0e7403a39e first child you 8650253db0 bear!”47221544b685ec92

The maiden promised. The fairy, as she df62124a20 had done on the 715a5bbe0d first and second days, 77fd0ce0ee turned all the straw d8a734836b in the room into d34df453cb golden thread. The king, overjoyed, 5ef3c222e5 welcomed the maiden 98111d8fed as his queen.1023588bf46e9b6d

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And as time passed… 0d4ec8af4e the queen gave birth 61340f5dbf to a healthy baby d5500c1eab boy.7d2665de9b0c98cb

The time 86eb545f15 of the c6497a9f55 promise had 0ac6149656 come!6cd1a91fe02162f3

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The time d9a467142f for the 2196922409 fairy to 70fdd59bb6 claim her 7387b2fa4e payment!f14cff190a09e050

The fairy appeared 5608f51480 before the queen, 1770aad5a7 who was burying 9733d8db11 her nose in 3ef5ea17f8 the baby’s soft 980004495f hair, lost in d848a640d1 happiness. Just as she a55d7b2600 had when she 65f92976f3 first came to a6353e24a8 help the queen, 393174e896 the fairy popped c608c18833 up from the 7e2405c92c ground with a 3c9e56a317 whoosh!cec16290fe8e7159

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The fairy said:e3b7fe170193c705

“I’ve come 8277799f6d to take 227b623510 your baby.”7f1feb62bcc5d60f

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The queen wept and 04c4b78fd4 pleaded:98a1d92a4161d79e

“Oh, no! Don’t take 115dd83659 my child! Please! Please!”14c177077b5b8ff1

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Did the f2e2974514 queen’s desperate 744e29787a pleas move 992fa8683a the fairy’s 582c8b4c75 heart, which 91f9fa9afe knew no deb75597e6 mercy? Surprisingly, the fairy a40c78e324 nodded graciously.c1e255ff0d4202f5

“Alright. If you f2061ee166 insist, I’ll 82522a9ba1 give you 5a9eaa1912 a chance, 879d42f6ed out of f7d7ed1829 old friendship.”40ef70c934cca6f6

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“What kind 71caca1cee of chance?”d243a46a4031c297

“A wager with me!”679883e52ad7d5f6

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The fairy 335aecc2fe exclaimed excitedly.4e3082841127b74e

“What kind of 088ab3d3a8 wager?”e8ea5d51ca274448

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“A fun 5892967fd3 and exciting 17c75c393f riddle game!”225a7f544dc63ae8

The fairy 8d741d0eaa chattered away, 73227a03a2 explaining to c9ef83d0c9 the wide-eyed d3e22b9215 queen:38d0f67fe9d381e4

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“Three days. I’ll give f649385071 you exactly 10ac885d38 three days. During that 78d88dff46 time, try 1ad8254c35 to guess ab4515497c my real b7846c3ec7 name. My true name. For the c5c98d8e72 next three 0842a7e674 days, I’ll 32ca0fb874 come to e5a7224658 you at 6e532a3a97 this hour. For the next three 7a39ebc004 days, I’ll give you 5dfa1b9e9f time until the rooster 26f6adf4ba crows at dawn. You can guess a 6958eabdb6 hundred, a thousand wrong 98d0614ffb names, and it won’t aff3bd8e2d matter! Just one name! If you 02575e7252 can figure 7ee28eb0b2 out my 17a05bf447 real name, 503bd89f53 I won’t e7531c4e2f take your f3974113bd baby! How about it? Isn’t it a 51c567bf23 fun wager?”a0f5d3fb0880d66a

With that, the fairy 50d4546786 danced joyfully and then 485a683892 disappeared into the ground f651295bca with a whoosh! From where 361fe271e3 she vanished, 087bd1a876 the sound 4450a0e515 of her 04e47931da humming could 325a5615d2 be heard:cf76ca2379eaca98

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‘Today I’ll bake 55d9436205 bread, tomorrow I’ll 39426b0aab brew wine. The day a131c6a076 after, I’ll 5acbda8f89 take the 8ff3a1bf6d queen’s baby!’51dc8ab8cdebe4d4

Heeheehee, heeheehee…f052b9aabaafa286

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The fairy’s 9ae6d49db0 humming faded ca4804b416 into the 1a6d71f857 distance.d73a26105bd13c9f

…4fcea0722011e280

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…b84abb006d1b9871

…d5f0c8324eca9aa5

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