Chapter Seven: Your Little Prince Has Such a Distinctive Look

"I heard Bluebeard caught a cold?"
"Yes, apparently he caught a chill from squatting in the snow for too long. Coupled with a double blow to his spirits, it'll likely be half a month before he can leave the infirmary."
"Poor thing, let's pay him a visit today!"
"Good idea. No matter what, he did manage to teach the little prince a lesson!"
"What, what, has the little prince changed?"
"I heard he turned blue."
"What?"

Early in the morning, as the Mage Association was in the midst of heated discussion, a major event befell Linley!

Inside the bedroom, Lin Wenqiang was stifling his laughter, shoulders shaking as he watched Linley stand before the mirror like a stone statue, covering his mouth. Linley had been standing there for over half an hour, still unable to accept that the thing in the mirror was himself. Reflected back at him was a blue figure, blue from head to toe. He had checked carefully—there was no mistake. From his hair to his toenails, even his private parts had turned blue.

"My style has suddenly turned into 'Avatar'!" Linley recalled the aliens from the movie Avatar looked just like this. Depressed, he lost his appetite for breakfast. This had to be the dragon egg's doing—so it was poisonous, after all. If he'd known, he never would have eaten it!

Lin Wen's shoulders shook with laughter; ever since the royal physician had declared there was nothing seriously wrong with Linley, he couldn't contain himself. To think his fearless brother would have such a dismal day—and all because of his own antics.

After a long while, Lin Wen caught his breath and grinned, "Linley, we need to head out soon. Since you wrote that code of laws, you haven't seen the Guardian. He sent me to fetch you."
"I'm not going!" Linley refused to go out looking like this. He'd wait until the color faded.
"But you have to go." Lin Wen said, eyes twinkling, "You spend all day playing with the mages. Should I tell Father about the mischief you've been up to?"
Linley's face fell. He had indeed been acting out lately, plundering quite a bit. If their father found out, he'd definitely get a scolding.
"Fine... I'll go." He glanced at the mirror. "But I need something to cover myself up!"

He searched high and low, but found nothing suitable. In the end, he commandeered an innocent guard's armor, which covered him completely, leaving none of his skin exposed. Disguised from head to toe, Linley followed Lin Wen to the Mage Tower. The well-informed royal mages had all heard about Linley's predicament and came out to gawk. But with Lin Wen present, no one dared to mock him openly.

Still, as they passed, the mages lined the roads, pointing and whispering with barely concealed schadenfreude, making Linley grit his teeth in frustration.

When they arrived at the Guardian's Hall—
"Why are you dressed like that today?" The glowing orb scrutinized its disciple for a long moment before asking.
Linley replied gruffly, "I'm too handsome, so I decided to look a bit more menacing!"
The orb hesitated. "Wearing your armor inside out makes you menacing?"
"Ah... So I did put it on inside out." Linley shifted awkwardly. "No wonder it felt so stiff."
"Hahahaha!" The surrounding mages couldn't contain their laughter anymore.

Seeing the mages burst into laughter, Linley grew annoyed. Suddenly, he began stripping off his armor right there, exposing his blue skin. The mages' laughter grew louder.
"Hahaha, what kind of color is that?" The orb hadn't known Linley had changed color, but now it was laughing uncontrollably too. "Did you fall into a dye vat? How did you turn entirely blue?"

Linley had regained his composure; he was unfazed. The little tyrant was always quick to see the bright side. A few hours of frustration was enough—now he was over it. He looked at the laughing mages around him.

These bastards—if they thought this could hurt him, they were hopelessly naive! Linley's philosophy was that, no matter how he felt, he'd never let his enemies enjoy themselves at his expense. To prove it, he decided to show his resolve.

"Ahem, ahem, I'm going to sing..." Linley coughed twice, then belted out: "Beyond the mountains and across the seas, there lives a blue sprite—lively and clever, mischievous and nimble..."

The mages were stunned: What song was this? It actually sounded pretty good!
"Oh, lovely blue sprite, lovely blue sprite..."

Linley kept singing. The mages stopped laughing—wait, blue sprite? What did the little prince mean by this song? Was he praising himself for being just as adorable in blue?

"Heavens, his shamelessness knows no bounds!"
The mages' faces fell.
"Even this kind of mockery doesn't faze him. How thick-skinned can this kid be?"
"And he made up that song on the spot—it’s actually catchy."
"The little prince has a talent for singing after all."

Of course, some couldn't help but admire him, while others grew even more exasperated.
"This is outrageous! Doesn't he know shame?"
"This kid is getting more dangerous by the day!"

Elves were masters of the arts, and even the most discerning music aficionados had to admit Linley's song was memorable. This clever, mischievous prince might really have a gift for music.

Lin Wen watched his brother with a fond smile. He'd known all along Linley couldn't stay down for long over something like this. Linley always stood out, which was probably why the Queen of the Night Elves was taken with him—though perhaps it was his wicked side she liked best.

A multi-talented brother was a blessing, but being too conspicuous sometimes made Lin Wen worry about all the trouble he might attract as he grew up.

"That was a good song!"
When Linley finished, the orb commented, "Now, tell me, how did you end up like this?"
"The royal physician says it’s because I ate a dragon egg."
"You ate a dragon egg?" The orb was astonished. "No wonder. Dragons pass on their abilities strongly—maybe you absorbed some of its power."

The orb wasn't too surprised, but the royal mages were stunned.
"Guardian, what do you mean?" They cried, "If you eat a dragon egg, you can gain abilities?!"
Damn, why had they never heard of such luck? If they'd known, they'd have hunted down a few dragon eggs themselves!

But a bigger problem loomed—if the little prince had absorbed the dragon egg's power, their days would grow even darker!
The orb chuckled, "It's not so easy to gain power from a dragon egg. Linley might be special. In ten thousand years, there have only been three such cases."
Linley's eyes lit up. "So what ability did I get?"
"I suspect it's color-shifting, a common ability," the orb replied. "Your skin will return to normal in a few days, and then you’ll be able to change the color of any part of your body at will."
"...That's it?"

"That's it."
"Pfft..." The mages couldn't hold back, breaking into laughter again. "Hahaha, what kind of ability is that!"

They were relieved; they couldn't help but grin.
Color-changing wasn't a difficult spell—any royal mage could do it. Aside from making Linley the butt of jokes, this ability was hardly useful.

Linley shot the mages a disgruntled look, but the orb spoke again, "You know that array you wrote in 'The Ancient Elven King's Codex'? Give it to me."
"An array?" Linley perked up. "What's in it for me?"
He only did things for two reasons: if he was in the mood, or if there was a benefit to be had.
"I've created some cultivation runes for the new spiritual arts system. I can teach you."

At this, the mages almost fainted.
"Guard—Guardian... you've created cultivation runes?!"
"Why didn't you ever mention it?"

They were dumbfounded. The little prince's progress was already shocking enough, but to think the runes so often described in cultivation novels had actually been invented by the Guardian!

The orb replied calmly, "Those runes can only be used by cultivators. Telling you would be pointless."
It was still exploring the cultivation system; the most difficult part was transforming the body for spiritual practice, not inventing runes. Adapting spells to be powered by spiritual energy was easy enough; how to make Linley a cultivator was the real challenge. The orb needed to study his array.

"Any other benefits?" Alas, Linley seemed unsatisfied with the reward.
The orb knew what he wanted: "I’ll double your allowance."
"Deal!" Linley clapped his hands. But the array he'd written had been designed for himself; for any other elf to use it would take time and study.

He and the orb agreed on a deadline, then Linley left with Lin Wen, planning to rewrite his previous program once home. But just after leaving the Mage Tower, Linley unexpectedly saw a group of short-eared beings heading for the council chamber.
"Humans—Brother, are those humans?" Linley asked Lin Wen eagerly.
"Yes, those are envoys from the Kingdom of Victoria," Lin Wen nodded. "Victoria is our ally, and their king is a cunning old man with a long beard."
Linley stared intently at the humans, feeling a little disappointed. He’d hoped to see East Asians, but these humans were all blond and blue-eyed. In fact, compared to the slender elves, they were taller—more like Westerners from his previous life.

While Linley was lost in thought, the group of humans noticed him as well.
"Everyone, look over there!"
"What is that blue thing?"
"A new species?"

They were delighted, never expecting to see an unheard-of humanoid creature in the Elven Palace.
The leading guard glanced at Linley, utterly calm. "That's not a new species; that's our little prince."
"What?" The humans were stunned. "Your little prince is certainly unique!"

Suddenly, they felt a newfound respect for the Queen of the Night Elves. To wage war for the sake of such a prince—her taste was clearly far superior to ordinary people!