Rhine stood up again, bowing respectfully in the manner of a Sage: "Congratulations, Your Highness the Princess, or rather, Your Majesty the Queen."
"Thank you too, teacher."
Aurora smiled and nodded, completely relaxing and closing her eyes.
The gentle breeze caressing her ears, the crisp chirping of birds, the fragrance of flowers and grass—the beauty of the world that Aurora had not noticed for many years—intoxicated the little princess, slowly lulling her into a dream.
Countless past memories flashed by in fragments, weaving into a dream, and she felt herself reliving everything at an incredible speed:
Her rigorous training in her youth, which astonished the Sword Master with her talent and immense strength; defeating the Soldier who had committed crimes, and retrieving the the tinderbox with her teacher, earning praise from Granny Rosa and feeling like a little hero for the first time; learning about the Rose Kingdom's curse, understanding her noble identity, and resolutely bearing a mission not meant for her age; embarking on a journey with the kingdom's Sage, her teacher…
Meeting Princess Ariel in the deep blue sea and becoming friends; overcoming the Old Witch's schemes, breaking through all difficulties and obstacles, helping Ariel and Prince Eric marry, and bestowing Ariel with an immortal soul through her love; personally witnessing the Sea Kingdom and the human kingdom form an alliance, and witnessing mermaids shed their stigma, transforming from terrifying monsters in sailors' legends into sailors' friends…
Defeating the evil Queen, impersonating the Queen, governing the country with the magic mirror, personally initiating the great reform of the White Kingdom, and personally witnessing the reconciliation between the Queen and Snow White…
Meeting her fated enemy on the high seas, chasing her all the way to Oz; slaying the Eastern Witch, and then experiencing interesting adventures with Dorothy and other friends; witnessing Oz transform from a great swindler into a true magician, seeing Scarecrow and Pinocchio fulfill their wishes, and Dorothy returning home…
Finally, on this Green Field, she slew Black Witch Maleficent, settling all grievances!
Aurora awoke from her hazy, semi-conscious state.
"My story with my teacher is quite epic, isn't it?" she thought with a smile.
"Aurora, you have borne too much that is not meant for your age."
Rhine sat on the grass beside the girl, looking up at the brilliant starry night, his tone relaxed and at ease:
"It's been a long journey."
Aurora was about to say "It's nothing," but suddenly felt a pang in her nose, a slight warmth in her eyes, and the star-filled night sky suddenly became blurry and indistinct.
A moment later, Oz also ran to their side.
The short old man looked joyful and excited:
"That's wonderful, everyone has turned back into humans from fish, and my kingdom and city are back.
This beautiful land has returned to its original appearance.
"I truly don't know how to thank you!
It is you who saved this land!
"How on earth did you do it?"
Rhine looked at Oz, who was so happy he was practically jumping, and replied calmly:
"I found the Middle Eastern Witch and, in some way, made her voluntarily lift the curse on Oz Country."
He then turned to Aurora, who was lying on the ground, her eyes closed, seemingly concealing something:
"Now, with Maleficent killed by you, the Witch Society has lost 5 members, and the entire organization is effectively destroyed.
"According to the Sea Hag's intelligence, among the only two remaining members, Red Heart's magic is far less powerful than Maleficent's and the Middle Eastern Witch's, so there's no need to worry about her.
"Now that the Rose Kingdom's curse is lifted, the only thing I care about in this world is finding the founder of that Witch Society."
Aurora agreed:
"Yes, indeed.
Now we have finally killed Maleficent.
I promised my teacher that I would go with you to find the founder of the Witch Society and find a way for my teacher to return to his original world!"
"No rush," Rhine's tone also conveyed an unprecedented sense of ease—clearly, the death of Black Witch Maleficent had also brought him great relief.
"We can first return to the Rose Kingdom and tell your King and Queen and all the citizens that the curse has been lifted!
We also need to hold a grand banquet to celebrate properly."
At this point, Rhine let out a long sigh, then chuckled self-deprecatingly:
"Haha, I'm not even sure if that Witch Society founder truly has a way to send me back to my homeland.
It's just a thought."
"You definitely can, teacher," Aurora said seriously, clenching her fists.
"Since Maleficent died here, I can find information about the Witch Society's founder from her belongings…"
Rhine stood up and walked to Maleficent's corpse, wiggling his fingers at the body on the ground.
A delicate cosmetic mirror flew out of her pocket and landed in Rhine's hand.
The members of the Witch Society communicated with each other using mirror magic!
"Time to check the communication records."
Rhine felt an unprecedented sense of relief, joking inwardly.
He pulled out a clear, transparent crystal ball, preparing to divine the communication content between Maleficent and the Witch Society founder.
Suddenly, ripples like water spread out on the mirror's surface, and a blurry figure appeared on the mirror.
Although her face was unclear, from the outline and color blocks, it seemed to be a young girl with long black hair.
"Black Witch Maleficent, are you there?" the girl's voice came from the mirror.
Unlike Aurora's slightly sharp and resilient voice, the voice of the girl in the mirror was incredibly gentle and sweet, like a calm, windless, beautiful lake, yet beneath the surface of the lake, countless undercurrents seemed to surge.
Rhine's heart trembled.
As one of the world's few prophecy masters, his intuition told him who had arrived.
The founder of the Witch Society!
How should he respond to her?
Should he tell her Maleficent was dead?
According to the Queen and the Sea Hag, that president didn't care much about the lives of the other members of the organization, but was that really true?
Just as Rhine's thoughts were racing, the girl behind the mirror seemed to suddenly sense something and said:
"Oh, the Black Witch is dead already?
You killed her."
The black-haired girl's tone was very calm, as if she was talking about a very ordinary matter.
"Yes.
We killed Maleficent; she deserved to die," Rhine admitted.
The black-haired girl, whose face was indistinct, paused, then raised her slender right hand, rubbing her index finger and thumb together a few times, as if calculating something.
Calculating with her fingers?
Rhine's eyes widened, immediately realizing what the other party was doing.
A completely different method of divination from mine!
"The Middle Eastern Witch is also planning to leave the Witch Society."
The black-haired girl in the mirror instantly knew this newly occurred event.
She looked at the two people outside the mirror, revealing a sweet smile:
"You must be the magician Rhine and the warrior Aurora, right?
I know you've done a lot of great things, and I've always been very interested in your journey!
"I asked Maleficent about you many times before, if you don't believe me, go ask her if I cared about you—oh, sorry, dead people don't seem to talk."
Mid-sentence, the black-haired girl suddenly giggled.
Strange fellow… Rhine maintained the highest vigilance against the founder of the Witch Society.
The black-haired girl stretched, leaning back in her seat, and said with a rather disappointed tone:
"The Sea Witch, the Queen, the Middle Eastern Witch have left, and the Black Witch and the Slave Owner are dead.
Thanks to you, the Witch Society can declare its disbandment.
In that case, I can only…"
"Are you going to avenge the two witches we killed?"
Aurora, beside him, was startled and placed her hand on the sword at her waist, worried that the Witch Society founder might suddenly rush out of the mirror.
Rhine also narrowed his eyes, maintaining the highest vigilance.
He was now a legendary magician who surpassed Maleficent, and Aurora, after her fated battle with Maleficent, had certainly become a mythical warrior.
Behind them, there were also the White Kingdom and the Sea Kingdom, as well as the Rose Kingdom and the 12 Good Witches!
"In that case, I can only invite you to join the Witch Society, just to fill up the numbers!"
The black-haired girl yawned, saying something that greatly astonished both Rhine and Aurora.
"I don't think I'm very suitable," Rhine calmly refused, his mouth twitching slightly.
Isn't your organization called the Witch Society?
"If it's about gender, there are many ways to solve it. After all, this is a continent with supernatural powers," the black-haired girl said with a relaxed smile. "Whether it's changing you, or me changing the name of the Witch Society, it's not a problem."
This is a continent with supernatural powers? Sage Rhine was startled, vaguely feeling that the words of this Witch Society leader were strange.
"I refuse too! I don't want to join such an evil organization!" Aurora also vehemently refused.
"Don't be so heartless," the black-haired girl propped her chin. "It seems you two have a lot of prejudice against me. I don't think I've done anything bad yet, have I?"
"Since neither of you is willing to join the Witch Society, I'll just reluctantly…" The voice of the girl in the mirror suddenly turned cold.
Sage Rhine and Aurora's hearts tightened, and they once again prepared for battle.
"I'll just reluctantly inform Red Heart that the Witch Society has disbanded. There's no need to call it an organization with only two people left."
The black-haired girl in the mirror, while enjoying the instantly tense expressions of Sage Rhine and Aurora, said with a smile.
At this point, the black-haired girl clapped her hands:
"Congratulations to you two, you have successfully eliminated the mysterious, terrifying, and powerful evil organization I founded!"
What a guy with bad taste!
Sage Rhine muttered in his heart.
The personality of this Witch Society founder was completely different from what he had imagined!
Sage Rhine tried to recall:
Among the fairy tales and strange stories he had read, was there such a playful yet incredibly powerful girl? He couldn't find anyone who fit the description.
Who exactly is this Witch Society founder?
"You don't seem to care about the survival of the Witch Society at all, just as the Queen and the Sea Witch said," Sage Rhine said.
"That's right. The Witch Society was just a gathering I formed on a whim when I traveled to the West years ago. I haven't managed it for a long time," the black-haired girl said with a hint of self-pity. "Who told me I'm a person with a three-minute passion?"
Seeing that the other party didn't seem like an enemy, Sage Rhine said tactfully:
"Miss, some of your gathering members are not good people. They have harmed many people."
"It's fine," the black-haired girl shrugged indifferently. "Anyway, I'm not exactly a good person either."
She smiled, narrowing her eyes as she looked at Sage Rhine:
"Unlike you, you are a complete good person. I've heard many stories about you and know that you've helped many kingdoms along the way."
Sage Rhine didn't want to argue with this Witch Society founder anymore. He said with a serious expression:
"Your Excellency is the founder of the Witch Society, you must be a knowledgeable and legendary Master of Magic. I have a question I'd like to ask you."
"Tell me," the black-haired girl leaned lazily against the back of the chair, tilting her head. "I don't promise to answer. Nor do I promise to tell the truth."
Sage Rhine paused, not caring about the black-haired girl's strange personality, and asked this Witch Society leader the question about his pursuit of his wish:
"In the Sea Kingdom and many places in the world, people believe that human souls are immortal and will reincarnate after the body perishes, perhaps even transmigrating to other worlds…"
"There is such a saying," the black-haired girl raised an eyebrow, still in a casual tone.
"May I ask, Your Excellency, if you know the method to travel to other worlds?"
Sage Rhine deliberately asked very subtly, without directly mentioning the existence of Earth.
"Oh, I know."
The black-haired girl's tone was quite calm, showing no shock at all at Sage Rhine asking this question.
"Legend has it that in the Middle Eastern Countries, there is a Godly Lamp. If you obtain that Godly Lamp and make a wish to it, you can go to another world."
Does Aladdin's Godly Lamp really have such great magic? Sage Rhine had no doubts about this, but he still felt he should try.
"It's just a pity, a pity."
Mid-sentence, the black-haired girl suddenly sighed regretfully, her tone tinged with a hint of loss:
"That magical Godly Lamp was lost many years ago.
"Legend has it that it was sealed in an unknown treasure vault.
"A sealing spell was cast on the treasure vault, and even omnipotent mages and warriors like gods must follow specific methods to open the seal.
"Now, probably no one in this world knows how to open the seal of the treasure vault and find the Godly Lamp."
I know!
Sage Rhine thought.
As long as he finds a boy named Aladdin, he can open the seal of the treasure vault.
Now that Maglido is dead, he might be the only one in this world who has a chance to obtain the Godly Lamp!
"That's all I know about the method to go to another world."
After the black-haired girl finished speaking, her tone suddenly shifted, revealing a playful smile:
"Guess if what I said is true?"
This guy is so boring, who exactly is she? Sage Rhine wondered in his heart.
"I'll take it as true for now." Sage Rhine looked at the blurry-faced black-haired girl in the mirror and asked as if casually:
"May I ask, Your Excellency, what is your name?"
"Night Ruge," the black-haired girl said, completely unconcerned, revealing her name. "If you need anything, you can contact me again using this mirror. Or you can come directly to the Far East Empire to find me."
After she finished speaking, the image in the mirror gradually disappeared, returning to darkness.
Night Ruge? A name he had never heard before.
"That Witch Society founder said that as long as we find the Godly Lamp, we can go to other worlds," Aurora recalled everything that had just happened. "Is she lying to us?"
"Let's try it first," Sage Rhine said.
This was his last hope of returning home. Besides, he had already planned to obtain the Godly Lamp.
"Let's go back to the Rose Kingdom first and tell everyone the good news that Maleficent is dead and the curse is lifted!"
Aurora also smiled excitedly:
"That's great! Father, Mother, and everyone will cheer for us!"
Sage Rhine lightly touched Maleficent's corpse—this would allow him to summon the corpse to his side at any time later, as proof of the Black Witch's death.
Then, Sage Rhine took Aurora and bid farewell to Oz and the people of Emerald City.
The people in the city cheered for them, knowing that they were the heroes who had saved this beautiful kingdom.
Amidst the cheers, Sage Rhine lightly tapped the heels of his feet, which were wearing the magic silver shoe. A silver whirlwind enveloped the two of them, turning them into a silver stream of light that shot towards the horizon.
The world spun, the wind howled, and countless scenes changed.
Sage Rhine brought Aurora back to the Rose Kingdom.
What greeted them were the twelve good witches of the kingdom.
"Granny Rosa, Violet Fairy, Lilac Fairy…" Aurora affectionately called out each witch's name.
"We succeeded! Maleficent is dead! The curse on the Rose Kingdom is lifted!"
Although they had anticipated the outcome, the witches were still overjoyed upon hearing Aurora's words.
Aurora embraced each witch in turn, and everyone praised Aurora's courage and resilience.
"Quick, let's tell King and Queen the good news!"
Sage Rhine led everyone, and in the blink of an eye, they arrived at the Rose Kingdom's palace.
Sage Rhine bowed to the King, and with a wave of his hand, Maleficent's corpse appeared at his feet:
"Your Majesty, Princess Aurora and I have successfully slain Black Witch Maleficent. Please quickly inform the ministers and the people throughout the kingdom of this news!"
The King and Queen received the good news and saw their beloved daughter again. They cried tears of joy, each embracing Aurora.
"That's wonderful, great Sage Rhine. The Rose Kingdom will forever remember Your Excellency's achievements."
The King's eyes welled up with tears, as if he had returned to the night of the baptism ceremony more than ten years ago, recalling the promise Sage Rhine had made when giving his blessing.
"The kingdom will erect a statue for Your Excellency, so that Your Excellency's great deeds will be passed down forever!"