The Wizard of Fairy Tale World

Chapter 129: The Confident Eastern Witch

Today was the day Sage Rhine would leave.

The herald’s horn blared, flute melodies drifted down from the high towers, and the ceremonial guard sang farewell songs. The sergeant major waved bright banners as Rhine and Aurora, mounted on their steeds, rode toward the eastern border of the kingdom, escorted by a grand troop of soldiers.

Brilliant sunlight bathed the streets, where crowds of people gathered to see them off.

Children threw scarlet flowers, women dabbed their tear-streaked faces with handkerchiefs, and even birds sang sweet melodies in the air.

"Is that the great Sage Rhine? He looks so young."

"Age doesn’t matter when it comes to magicians!"

"Thank you, Sage of the Kingdom!"

"Lord Rhine, we will be waiting for your return!"

Among the crowd were Old Carpenter Geppetto and Hunter Angus, their voices drowned out by the mix of songs, flutes, tears, and cheers.

"It’s all thanks to Sage Rhine that White Kingdom has become what it is today…" Geppetto mused, thinking back over the past three months, as if waking from a dream.

He felt like a witness to history, something the records and bardic songs would forever remember:

A wandering magician arrived in White Kingdom, enlightened a misguided queen, and rewrote history!

"By the way, has that murderous witch been caught yet?"

Geppetto suddenly recalled the series of killings, remembering how his neighbors had been found suffocated to death on land.

"Doesn’t seem like it," Angus scratched his head. "She’s probably hiding somewhere."

"What a pity," Geppetto sighed. "I was hoping to see that witch captured by the Sage, brought to justice!"

Even a witch with powerful magic shouldn’t be able to escape the law—if such a moment came, it would be a passionate and inspiring symbol for the new order of White Kingdom.

"Wait, old man," Angus suddenly thought of something. "Where’s Pinocchio? That little rascal was running all over the place."

"Oh, that wooden brat? He’s been summoned to the royal palace."

"Summoned?!" Angus looked stunned.

"Yeah, the Magic Mirror put him on the 'Talent List.'"

"Wait, Pinocchio? What talent does he have?"

Over the past two months, ever since Pinocchio had gained mobility, he had been nothing but trouble, constantly stirring up chaos like a wild child.

"The herald said a talking, walking puppet is extremely rare.

"And since the Queen is setting sail for the Western Asia Kingdom, they thought—why not take Pinocchio along to perform a puppet show?"

"...What?"

Angus was utterly dumbfounded.

"A puppet… performing a puppet show… by itself?"

Who even comes up with ideas like this?!

Riding on his horse, Rhine glanced down, idly playing with three small straw dolls.

These weren’t ordinary dolls—they were magical artifacts, formed from the wishes of White Kingdom’s people.

Each doll could only be used once, making them consumable, but they held immense power.

They combined both cursing and protection magic—a fusion of a "voodoo doll" and a "substitution talisman".

As long as Rhine obtained a strand of hair, a drop of blood, or any bodily tissue from a target, he could bind one of the straw dolls to them.

Whenever the doll’s owner was in danger, they could activate the doll, triggering an instant fate swap with the bound target.

Their wounds, curses, and even physical location would be exchanged!

For example:

If Rhine managed to get a strand of Maleficent’s hair, he could craft a doll linked to her.

Then, if Rhine was ever stabbed through the heart, he could activate the doll—and in that instant, it would be Maleficent, not him, who suffered the fatal wound!

"Fate’s Substitute"—that was what Rhine had named these dolls.

They were the physical manifestation of the strange twists of fate that had already occurred, like Aurora replacing Snow White, or Aurora disguising herself as the Queen.

"In this world, the strength of a magician isn’t just about their personal magic—it's also about the artifacts they collect, the ones that defy common sense!"

"Ordinary magicians spend their whole lives hunting down just one or two powerful magical tools… but all I have to do is fulfill people’s wishes, and I get them for free!"

Rhine could feel it—after absorbing the wishes of countless people from Sea Kingdom, Western Asia Kingdom, and White Kingdom, the magic within his soul had surged to new heights.

The power inside him had reached a critical threshold, pushing him toward an entirely new realm of magic.

"Just one more power boost, on the same level as White Kingdom’s, and my magic will evolve—I'll reach an entirely new state!"

"But… what kind of level would that be?"

There were no rigid magical ranks in this world—only vague titles like Grand Magician or Legendary Magician.

For example, Rhine was often called a Grand Magician, while Maleficent and the Middle Eastern Witch were considered Legendary Magicians within the Coven.

So even he didn’t know exactly what new realm he was about to step into.

"Both targets have left the capital, traveling along the eastern road. They are escorted by approximately one hundred soldiers."

A lean man in a black cloak crouched on a hillside, watching Rhine and Aurora's convoy from afar.

A gust of wind lifted the edge of his cloak, revealing the armor underneath—marked with the insignia of Enderland’s military.

"Report to Lord Magrito!"

He barked the command toward the seemingly empty forest behind him.

But the leaves rustled, revealing hidden movement among the trees.

The branches swayed, and footsteps crunched softly against the forest floor.

Magrito stepped out from the shadows, approaching the Eastern Witch, who stood silently in a clearing, her back to him.

"Everything is going smoothly," he said with a grin.

"I’ve received confirmation from our scouts—Rhine and that sword-wielding girl are approaching White Kingdom’s eastern border. They’ll be outside the kingdom soon."

"Unbelievable," the Eastern Witch smirked. "They’re just walking away like that, leaving no one to protect the Queen."

She shrugged.

"It’s almost too perfect—like a trap, baiting us into attacking the Queen."

Magrito chuckled.

"At this point, whether it’s a trap or not doesn’t matter. We’ve prepared far too well—failure is no longer possible."

"Exactly," the Eastern Witch’s wrinkled face twisted into a sinister grin.

They were fully prepared. There was no way they could lose.

By the end of today, both Rhine and the Queen of White Kingdom would be dead.

"By the way," Magrito asked, "did you convince her to join us?"

"More or less," the Eastern Witch said. "She’s interested in that so-called Sage of Rose Kingdom.

"She said she’ll watch from the sidelines, and if we struggle, she’ll step in."

Magrito grinned.

"Then we have nothing to worry about."

The Eastern Witch scoffed.

"She always acts superior. But honestly, we don’t need her at all—we can kill the targets ourselves!"

With that, she tossed an ornate, engraved gourd to Magrito.

"Don’t forget your task."

As Magrito caught the gourd, he laughed, setting off toward his prey—Rhine and Aurora.

Meanwhile, the Eastern Witch soared into the sky, heading toward the Queen’s departing ship.

Neither of them noticed—

Every word they spoke, every move they made, every secret they revealed…

Was reflected in the bright, intelligent eyes of the singing birds.