12-第十二章：西部荒野国王的加冕(15)

I promise that I shall do this, or die in the attempt!’ ‘HOORAH!’ roared the Vikings in a trumpet of applause, for they had forgotten who they were for a second, and now they remembered. They were Heroes. Heroes of the Dragonmark. The Druid Guardian put the Crown on Hiccup’s head. ‘By the powers of the Guardians, both dragon and human, by the will of Destiny and Thor, and Grimbeard the Ghastly, and the Peoples of the Archipelago, I crown you KING OF THE WILDERWEST.’ The Crown was quite a bit too large, so the Guardian sort of rested it lopsidedly on Hiccup’s ears. Thor, it was heavy. And then the Druid Guardian motioned for him to sit upon the Throne.

Hiccup refused. ‘I’m so sorry,’ he said. ‘I’m happy to become King, but I will not sit on that Throne. It is clearly cursed.’ Hiccup had a point. There had always been something malevolent about that Throne. Maybe it was the brown stain of Hiccup the Second’s blood, still faintly visible on the seat. Who knows? But it seemed a good moment to start a new tradition. ‘I shall sit here on this large Stone instead,’ said Hiccup. ‘Excellent!’ said the Druid Guardian. ‘You’re going to make a wonderful King.’ Hiccup sat down on the large Stone. ‘Hear ye! Hear ye!’ cried the Druid Guardian, hanging the Dragon Jewel around Hiccup’s neck. ‘As I tell the King the secret of the Dragon Jewel!’ The crowd leaned in to listen. ‘The secret of the Dragon Jewel is this,’ said the Druid Guardian. ‘The Jewel contains two dragons caught fighting in the amber. One of those dragons is suffering from a sickness that is so dangerous to dragons that it would wipe out the entire dragon population, were it ever to escape.’ The crowd murmured sadly. ‘So the way to use the Jewel against the dragons