"In the Name of the Dragon" by Hunter Qijie

Once upon a time, long before the silver dragon calendar year now recorded, dragons were creatures that existed only in legends.In the extreme north of this world, surrounded by the endless sea, there are many islands of more than 1000 sizes.Named after one of the whale-shaped islands, people established the Kingdom of Whale that has been passed down from generation to generation.

The resources of the sea are inexhaustible and inexhaustible. The Kingdom of Will was originally a rich and fertile country, but it was no longer favored by the gods under the apocalypse a thousand years ago.

On the day when the disaster struck, one-third of the Kingdom of Will was sunk by a fallen comet, one-third was submerged by monstrous waves, only one-third of the land remained, and most of it was eroded by magma.Volcanic ash shrouded the sky, and the islands of the Kingdom of Will, which had been ravaged, were in ruins.

Fortunately, in the court of Will Kingdom at that time, an apprentice magician who was only 11 years old showed his talent of prophecy, and used his powerful magic power to save the lives of most people.In order to thank the magician for his help, the king not only gave him the Whale Island, which symbolizes the origin of the Will royal family, but also built a castle for him and made him a king, allowing him to choose his own people.

Needless to say, the residents of the same village who used to be with him have long been convinced by his magical power; now more and more islanders believe that if they can be protected by a powerful magician, they will no longer have to be afraid, so they swear to swear to the magician allegiance.

"I am grateful for the love you have shown me. However, I don't want to be king at all, and I have to get out of here."

But the magician categorically rejected the king's kindness, and at the same time announced without warning that he would leave the island and travel across the ocean to pursue the avenue of magic, or the footprints and will of the gods.

As if knowing everyone's worries, he said with relief: "The magic I cast will continue to protect this country from disasters, and everyone can stay at ease; but those who want to leave, please be careful. The outside world is quite dangerous."

People failed to stay.Despite the magician's warnings, not long after he left, many islanders followed their respective kings and left their decaying lands, eager to reach far overseas places to restore their former glory and glory.They never came back.

So eight years have passed, and the people left behind are still living in this land abandoned by the gods and turbulent. In the disintegrated Will kingdom, only the believers of the magician and his faithful people remain.

One day, the missing magician set foot on Whale Island again and brought back a baby boy who was still in his infancy. People were very happy.The castle built back then has long been vacant, and the people of Whale Island still regard him as the king.

The child has hair as black as the night sky, the light shining on it is like stars, and a pair of golden amber eyes brighter than the sun are full of curiosity about the world.No one has seen him cry, only know that when his rose-like face smiles, all the flowers in the surrounding area bloom for him, the air is fragrant because of him, even the birds flying in the sky stop and perch high beside the trees. Singing, all the animals in the forest shouted and sang.

"The magic I cast will disappear completely when the boy is 12 years old, and disaster will strike again, but it will also bring new hope."

Inheriting the talent of the magician and the wishes of the people, the boy became the little prince of the country.

It is a pity that the magician did not stop there after bringing the little prince back, and he did not even explain who the child's mother was, and soon he left again.His prophecy has been kept in mind, and there are only a few loyal servants left in the castle of Whale Island.

The years are like the arrows shot by the old gods that never stop. The little prince has gradually grown up in people's expectations. He looks very handsome and handsome, as if he was carved out of the same mold as the magician back then.Especially those eyes burning like fire, and the smile that is more beautiful than the rainbow bridge, the existence of the little prince brings endless joy and hope to the people of Whale Island.

But the little prince doesn't like to study, he prefers to be with nature rather than cold books.All day long, whenever he had the opportunity, he always ran to the forest on the mountain behind the castle, playing with his good friend, the big fox and bear, and often came back as if he had fallen into a mud nest, which was not what a prince should have at all. look.Because the ministers doted on him, they let him be happy. His Aunt Mitt, who also took over as the queen of this small country after the magician left, was originally the princess of Will Kingdom who wanted to marry the magician. Even if she was angry, there was always nothing she could do about him.

This makes the little prince far from having the knowledge to master it even though he possesses magical powers.He is more like a warrior or knight charging with a sword than a magician.

Although the little prince is playful, he also has an eager heart to help others. He often sneaks to the bottom of the hillside where the castle is located to herd sheep and farm with the villagers, and asks everywhere if anyone needs help; Of course he wanted to try fishing too.Although he is a little prince, he has no aristocratic airs at all, so people naturally like him very much.

The little prince is not a personality who only sits on the top of the mountain and is sleepy. Occasionally, he will sneak around in a small boat along the currents of the endless sea, visit countless nearby uninhabited islands, and rush home before sunset go.If you accidentally stay at night, you should wear the stars and follow the guidance of the wind to return to the direction he came from.The starry sky of Whale Island is his most cherished treasure.

On this day, he accidentally found an island that he had never been to before. The island was overgrown with wild grass, shrouded in mist, and the high sun could not shine clearly. The little prince took a closer look, only to see that there was an abandoned towering castle there. The castle, the outside of the castle is covered with vines and green leaves, which looks particularly eerie.But the little prince was not afraid, on the contrary, he was even more curious. When he stepped on the hedge entwined with thorns, the castle seemed to wake up from a deep sleep in the dark. the avenue.

The huge stone door, which was pulling heavy chains and making muffled noises, opened by itself, allowing the little prince to enter the castle smoothly.The space inside is astonishingly wide, but it is also much colder than the place where the little prince lived. What is strange is that the interior of this castle that should have been abandoned is actually resplendent and spotless. It seemed dreamlike.

"Excuse me. Is anyone there..."

As soon as he entered, the door closed automatically with a "bang", the lights went out in an instant, the wind blew, and it was as if some huge creature was breathing quietly in the depths of the ground.

Since childhood, the little prince has a pair of eyes that can still see things even in the dark, just like the eternal flames in the land of fire, just like the stars, like the sun and the moon.This may be the unique skill he has practiced in the forest for many years, or it may be the reason why he has the blood of a magician on his body. In short, he followed the breathing sound all the way to the depths of the palace effortlessly.

Walking down the stairs, I found that the vision in front of me gradually opened up and became brighter. The warm fire was crackling and burning underground, and there was nothing in the empty cellar.The sound of breathing that I heard just now had already stopped abruptly, and the little prince was still wondering, when suddenly a icy cold breath fell behind his ear: "Who are you?"

He was startled, and when he turned around, he saw a silver-haired boy appearing silently behind him.The boy was wearing a gorgeous dress of good texture, with a light silver-purple glow, and the long sleeves and the flowing satin at the neckline further brought out his lazy and elegant temperament.Only the silver hair was disheveled as if he had just woken up, half covering a pair of blue eyes that were as bright as the jewels on his chest, he looked more noble than the little prince.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend... I didn't expect anyone here." The little prince apologized sincerely, even though he was always playing like a wild child outside, he still knew the basic etiquette taught by Aunt Mitt .

The little prince took off his emerald green straw hat with a feather, straightened his emerald green cloak, and bowed formally to the boy.His eyes looked like two dancing flames in the glow of the fire, and he focused on the silver-haired boy.

This made the originally indifferent boy laugh. He bent his upturned blue eyes and said amusedly, "You are really strange. Don't you look like a magician?"

"My father is a magician, and I think so am I. But I haven't received formal education yet." The little prince answered truthfully, and then explained under the boy's puzzled eyes: "Because my Aunt Mitte didn't want me to leave So far, although she found a teacher for me, I think I will leave one day."

"why?"

"I want to find my father—I heard that he is a very powerful magician. At the age of 11, my father helped the country survive with his powerful magic power, but he refused the king's reward and resolutely chose Leaving here, even after bringing me back, he is still wandering outside... I really want to know what he is pursuing to do this."

"Oh, is it really that powerful?" The boy said disapprovingly, the existence of the little prince obviously made him more curious than this story, "...how old are you?"

"11. Almost 12."

"Well—what a coincidence, me too." The boy took a step back with a smile while talking, his upper body leaned forward slightly, and he stretched out his hand, "My name is Qiya."

"I'm Xiaojie." The little prince shook hands with him and tightened them, feeling that the temperature of the other party's gloves was actually quite cold, just like his eyes and the sapphire on his chest.

Qi Ya quickly let go of his hand first, and both of them laughed.They probably thought it was a novelty to make friends in this place.

Xiaojie couldn't help asking curiously: "What about you, Qiya? Why are you here alone? Where's your family?"

Qi Ya's skin is very fair, and there is a faint fragrance of irises on his body.He blinked and said happily to Xiaojie: "Just think of me as a duke in distress. I couldn't bear the lack of freedom at home and ran away from home. When I saw this castle left by the old man, I moved in for a while. Ju—I hope my family will never find me! If you’re okay, you can come and play with me anytime!”

The author has something to say:

PS The prince itself is actually the title of duke

Qi Ya here is just laughing at himself as a troubled nobleman, he is not from the Kingdom of Will, and he may not really be a nobleman