Hearing that Sage Rhine had agreed to his request, Maleficent burst out laughing.
"This fated duel should be more formal. Let's agree on a time and place for the duel. Aurora needs a little time to warm up." Sage Rhine looked up at Maleficent in the sky and pointed to the distant mountain, "How about you duel behind that mountain tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow is too long, I refuse!" Maleficent said viciously, "I'll give you half an hour at most to warm up. No, 10 minutes. No, 5 minutes!"
"Alright," Sage Rhine agreed immediately.
Black Witch Maleficent sneered and flew behind the distant mountain:
"Hurry up, I'll be waiting for you there!"
Seeing her teacher agree to Maleficent's terms so readily, Aurora was both surprised and doubtful, unsure of what Sage Rhine was thinking.
"Could it be that Teacher has a way to ensure I defeat Maleficent? Or is he pretending to agree to Maleficent's terms but actually has another plan?"
Seeing Maleficent disappear from sight, Sage Rhine pulled Aurora and walked back into the basement.
As he walked, he revealed his plan.
As she listened, Aurora's eyes gradually brightened:
"Yes, this is indeed a good method. It can both defeat Maleficent and save Oz Country, which is under a curse!"
Sage Rhine grabbed Aurora's shoulder, and the heels of his silver shoe clicked together as he walked forward.
The next moment, a silver whirlwind enveloped the two, making them disappear from where they stood.
"Maleficent didn't realize that for me, who is fully prepared and can reach any point on the continent within three steps, there is so much that can be done in 5 minutes."
At this moment, 4 minutes remained until Aurora and Maleficent's duel.
...
Rose Kingdom.
This was the cottage where Aurora had grown up.
After Aurora grew up, the 12 Witches of Rose Kingdom fulfilled their duties and left, scattering across the kingdom, only appearing once to help during Ender Kingdom's subsequent invasion.
However, at this moment, all 12 Witches were reunited here!
They waited in the living room for Sage Rhine's summons.
A few days ago, Sage Rhine had used his silver shoe to return to Rose Kingdom, traveling to every corner of the kingdom to gather them all.
Violet Fairy, the leader of the Witches, looked out the window, towards the east, which was the direction of Oz Country.
What Sage Rhine had said that day still echoed in her mind:
"The opportunity to lift Rose Kingdom's curse is before us."
"This curse concerns all of us. Lifting the curse is not just my and Aurora's responsibility, but a mission for all of us!"
"Therefore, I hope to receive your help."
"..."
She had originally thought that she would remain within Rose Kingdom and eventually hear the good news of Sage Rhine and Aurora defeating Maleficent, cheering for the heroes' success like every ordinary person in the kingdom.
But now, she had the chance to personally participate in this glorious mission that was related to everyone's fate!
Granny Rosa, the oldest of the 12 Witches, looked out the window as well, her wrinkled face half worried, half relieved:
"I wonder how Aurora is doing now. I should be able to see her very soon."
Granny Rosa recalled Aurora's beautiful face, remembered her avenging her by killing the Soldier who took the the tinderbox, and her heroic demeanor when riding the large dog.
At this moment, outside the window, a silver stream of light descended from the sky, landing on the ground and transforming into the figures of Sage Rhine and Aurora.
"I beg of you. Aurora is about to fight Maleficent, please cast as many spells and blessings as possible to strengthen her!" Sage Rhine walked forward quickly.
"Alright," Granny Rosa said, seeing Aurora, and a kind, benevolent smile appeared on her wrinkled face, "Leave it to us!"
The Witches all bestowed blessings upon Aurora, granting power to this brave little princess:
"I bless your sword to be incomparably sharp!"
"I bless your shoes to grow wings, able to soar through the sky."
"I bless you to be bathed in radiance, your shining soul enough to weaken and dim even the most defiled curses."
"..."
They seemed to be back to that night more than 10 years ago, bestowing blessings upon the same girl.
Today's blessing magic, while not as powerful or permanent as the blessings imbued with the power of fate during the baptismal ceremony back then, was enough to sustain her until the end of the upcoming fated battle!
Rhine saw layers of brilliant radiance light up on Aurora's body.
He didn't delay for a moment, gently clicking the heels of his silver shoe together, and took three more steps forward.
At this moment, there were still 3 minutes until Aurora and Maleficent's fated duel.
...
White Kingdom, Royal City
Now, after the reforms of the past, this kingdom, which had been in ruins, was revealing an atmosphere of prosperity.
People on the streets wore smiles, and the city was peaceful and harmonious.
Inside the palace, the Queen, as always, questioned the magic mirror about matters within the kingdom.
Just then, a silver stream of light landed behind the Queen, taking on the appearance of a young man:
"Your Majesty, I have arrived."
"Alright, what question do you need me to ask the magic mirror?"
Sage Rhine's sudden appearance did not surprise the Queen in the slightest.
—A few days ago, Sage Rhine had already returned to White Kingdom, informing the Queen that he and Aurora would soon battle Black Witch Maleficent and might need her help with the magic mirror at any time.
"Time is short, come with me to Middle Eastern Country, now!"
Sage Rhine placed one hand on the Queen's shoulder, grabbed the magic mirror with the other, gently clicked the heels of his magic silver shoe together, and stepped forward.
A silver whirlwind swept through the room, making the two, along with the large full-length mirror, disappear.
At this moment, there were two minutes left until the fated duel.
...
Middle Eastern Country, in an unknown small country.
Sage Rhine appeared in a town with the Queen and the magic mirror.
Hot, sand-laden winds blew in their faces.
Sage Rhine had never been here before, but with the Eastern Witch's magic silver shoe, he could now freely travel to places he had never reached!
"Queen, please ask the magic mirror now. The question is as follows: Where is the Middle Eastern Witch of the Witch Society currently? I need the precise location of this Witch!"
"Leave it to me..." The Queen faced the magic mirror and repeated the question.
"My dear, great, beautiful master, I will try my best to see. But I cannot guarantee that I will definitely see. Because that Witch seems to be able to evade my scrying to some extent."
As the magic mirror spoke, ripples like water waves spread across its dark surface.
Unlike the previous attempt, this was Middle Eastern Country.
Compared to being in White Kingdom, it was much closer, making it easier to probe!
However, after only a few seconds, the mirror's surface began to show blurry images.
"That's great, I can see it after all!" The Queen said, surprised.
However, those blurry images never became clear, as if blocked by some invisible barrier.
"No, no, I still can't see clearly..." The magic mirror emitted a rather helpless sound.
Just then, Sage Rhine's slender right hand also rested on the mirror's surface, causing the magic mirror to glow with a dark blue light.
"Let's try together with my divination magic."
The magic mirror felt an enormous, ocean-like magical power pouring into it, and its "vision" was better than ever before, as if it could clearly perceive everything in this world. Under the illumination of infinite sunlight, not a single shadow between heaven and earth could escape its gaze.
On the mirror's surface, the previously hazy images became increasingly clear, finally settling on a richly dressed lady.
"I see it, I see it!"
The magic mirror announced happily, displaying line after line of information on its surface:
"That Middle Eastern Witch of the Witch Society is the wife of a young king. Her kingdom is located at..."
Sage Rhine quickly wrote down this information.
While Aurora and Maleficent dueled, he would personally go find that Middle Eastern Witch!
He grabbed the Queen and the magic mirror, using the silver shoe on his feet to send them back to the palace of White Kingdom.
Immediately after, Sage Rhine stepped forward again, disappearing into a silver whirlwind.
The Queen looked at the empty space where Sage Rhine had disappeared in the room, feeling as if everything that had just happened was a dream.
"In just one minute, I went to Middle Eastern Country and then came back just like that?"
"Oh my, this is too incredible!"
"But it's quite interesting."
"Good luck, Sage Rhine!"
At this moment, there was 1 minute left until Aurora and Black Witch Maleficent's fated duel!
...
In front of the cottage in Rose Kingdom, a silver stream of light descended once again, transforming into Sage Rhine's figure.
At this moment, Aurora had just finished receiving the new blessings, and the brilliant radiance on her body was slowly fading.
"Teacher, it's done!"
The girl's emerald eyes sparkled.
She felt an endless surge of power welling up from her flesh and soul.
"Good, let's go now!" Sage Rhine pulled Aurora and turned to walk forward.
Granny Rosa looked at the girl's slender but strong back, and various memories from the past flooded her mind, a mix of emotions, which transformed into her final blessing:
"Aurora, you can do it!"
Aurora looked back, a brilliant smile blossoming on the girl's face:
"Thank you, I will definitely win! I will kill Maleficent and completely end Rose Kingdom's curse!"
And so, witnessed by the Witches, the child they had raised together disappeared into a silver whirlwind.
The Witches, their faces slightly pale from expending all their power, sighed:
"It seems that we also played a part in defeating Black Witch Maleficent!"
...
Maleficent, transformed into a black dragon, landed behind the mountain, at the agreed-upon duel location, and soon saw a silver stream of light descend, transforming into Sage Rhine and Aurora.
"Begin, this is your moment, Aurora."
Sage Rhine looked up at the black dragon in front of him: "I will keep my promise and not interfere in your fated battle."
Having said that, the magician consciously retreated, transforming into a silver stream of light and disappearing into the horizon.
Aurora drew her sword and charged at the black dragon!