Royal Secret: I'm a Princess!

"LORD NOVAK, how are we going to proceed?" Mona asked curiously. "The man called Yoon Jung is going to die a year earlier before the woman called Go Areum and their baby. Does it mean Emperor Nikolai has to leave first as well?"

"As I said earlier, time flows differently between the two worlds," Novak reminded her. "We just need to send Nikolai to that world three days earlier before you and your daughter."

That made her wonder about one thing.

"My lord, what happened to His Majesty back in my first life?"

"Do you really want to know the answer to that?"

She gulped and clenched her hands. "Yes, my lord. As I stated a while ago, I don't care about what happened during my first life since it was already in the past. But I'm curious."

"Yule's descendant, Nikolai de Moonasterio, chose his throne over you and your child."

She already expected that but it still hurt.

"Nikolai de Moonasterio decided to stay in this world," Novak continued casually. "But do not fret, Daughter of Nature. The future that I saw this time is different. I wouldn't waste my time helping you if I knew that you would just repeat what happened last time."

She smiled, relieved to hear that. "Thank you, my lord."

"Thank me once you've successfully crossed over to the other world."

"I will thank you again once we've succeeded," she said with a smile, then she turned serious. "Now, will you tell me what you want in return of helping me? What did I offer then, and would you like to have the same thing this time, too?"

"You're being rude, child. You are aware that the Cosmic Tree personally asked me to help you."

"I know that, my lord," she said, still not backing down. "But I'm a Summoner so I also know that an Ancient Spirit like you wouldn't easily help a human just because the Cosmic Tree asked him to do so. I will apologize if I'm wrong though."

Novak fell silent for a while, then he laughed. "You're not wrong," he said, making her smile. "Tame the wild Imoogi under the ocean. It's an Ancient Spirit like me but since you're Mona Roseheart, I'm sure that it will be possible for you."

"I don't mind but can I do it later?" she asked. "I still need to find Commander Gavin."

"No."

"No?" she asked, surprised. "My lord, I won't run away."

"You can't leave yet, Mona Roseheart," Novak said. "I need to train you."

"Train?"

"You're the strongest Summoner in this world but you're getting weaker by the moment," he explained, then his gaze fell on her stomach. "The seed in your womb is sucking in your energy."

"My lord, please don't say it as if my daughter is doing something bad," she said defensively while hugging her stomach. "My baby can eat my energy as much as she wants. I don't mind if I grow weak as long as she grows strong and healthy."

"No, you need to be strong," Novak said firmly. "I need to make you stronger so you'll have enough power to open the door."

"But Commander Gavin–"

"I don't have the ability to see humans with strong Darkness attribute like the Quinzels–  especially when they're being protected by the God of Eternal Darkness," Novak said. "However, the Messenger of that god is an elf. I can ask some of my old friends from the Elf Tribe to locate the Messenger."

It seemed like she had no choice but to follow Novak's will for now. "I understand."

"We'll begin your training by taming the Imoogi," Novak said, then he turned to the Black Ocean. "I won't let you leave until you've successfully tamed it."

Mona sighed while shaking her head. But she couldn't help but smile later. An Imoogi was a creature that failed to be a full dragon. Thus, it was also a creature filled with anger and hostility. It would definitely be hard to tame an Imoogi.

[But if I was able to tame William, I will be able to tame any Spirit.]

William was the personification of anger and hatred, so no Spirit could be worse than that rude punk.

***

MONA didn't expect that she'd be stuck in the Black Ocean for three months.

Nathaira, the Imoogi living under the Black Ocean, was harder to tame than she thought at first. But taming Nathaira wasn't as hard as taming William so she succeeded in the end. And now, she was back in the Royal Palace.

[Nikolai must be worried.]

"Mona!"

She was happy to see Nikolai after quite a long time. But she couldn't openly show it because she was worried. When she teleported in the garden where only she and Nikolai could use, she immediately noticed that something was strange.

The barrier in the Royal Palace was stronger now, and there were Royal Knights patrolling the area as if they were looking for an intruder.

"Nikolai, what's going on?" Mona asked when Nikolai was standing in front of her. "Why does the palace seem to be on high alert?"

She also noticed that Glenn and Dion Skelton, two of Nikolai's Paladins who were standing behind the emperor, were wearing their armor.

"Don't worry about it," Nikolai said while scanning her from head to toe. "Are you hurt? Are you alright? I ran here as soon as I felt your presence."

"I'm fine. I'm not hurt," she said, then she turned to Glenn. "Glenn, what's happening?"

Glenn turned to Nikolai first and when the emperor nodded, only then did he answer her. "Welcome back, Lady Roseheart," he said politely. "The palace is on high alert because, for the past three months, Spirits and other beings have been barging in and out. The mages and the Summoners that we've gathered said that the Spirits are angry. Unfortunately, they can't understand why the Spirits are acting that way. Even His Majesty who has the ability to hear Spirits couldn't understand them this time."

"Even the elves and the fairies have stormed the palace," Nikolai added, then he crossed his arms over his chest. "Those little bastards were looking for you so I kicked them out. But strange creatures keep on appearing here and there. They all look angry while demanding me to bring you to them. And so, I declared war on them."

She let out a deep sigh while shaking her head.

But it wasn't like she didn't know why Nikolai acted that way. The Royal Palace wasn't somewhere that anyone could just step foot on. Breaking the barrier meant intruding, and the emperor had the right to deal with intruders as he deemed fit.

"Mona, what's happening?" Nikolai asked worriedly. "Why are those little bastards looking for you and why are they angry?"

"It's because of the Cosmic Tree," she said in a sad voice. "The Cosmic Tree was put into a long slumber by the gods. It was a Divine Punishment."

Nikolai looked shocked by what she said.

Even Glenn and the stoic Dion Skelton couldn't hide their shock. Anyone would have the same reaction if they found out that the gods had directly bestowed their Divine Punishment upon a sacred being such as the Cosmic Tree.

"And it's my fault," Mona said, shocking the three men again. "The Cosmic Tree was punished by the gods because of me."

Nikolai, after recovering from the shock, clicked his tongue. "It's not your fault, Mona. I'm sure the gods are being unreasonable as usual."

Sometimes, she couldn't believe Nikolai.

[He's a descendant of Yule, the Moon God and one of the Major Gods at that, and yet he talks and acts like a non-believer.]

Or maybe it was just a testament to how arrogant the de Moonasterios truly were.

It was said that the Royal Family was so high and mighty as if they were god themselves and not just mere descendants of Yule.

[My precious daughter, I hope and pray that you don't inherit your father's arrogance.]

"Let's talk about that later. I will calm the Spirits first," Mona said in a hurry. "Then, we will go and save Gavin."

Nikolai's eyes widened in shock. "You know where Gavin is?"

"Yes, my new master told me where to find him."

Nikolai looked curious about the "new master" that she spoke of. But he didn't get the chance to ask because someone else spoke first.

"That's a relief, Lady Roseheart," Glenn said cheerfully. "House Quinzel will finally calm down."

"C-Calm down?" she asked, then she gulped. "What did House Quinzel do?"

Glenn laughed softly before he answered. "Nothing much," he said casually. "They just destroyed all the households that they had beef with in the past thinking that one of them must have abducted the Commander."

The fire in Glenn's eyes told her that it wasn't only the House Quinzel who ran wild.

[Of course, the Paladins would also wreck havoc while finding their Commander.]

She turned to Dion Skelton with questioning eyes.

Dion Skelton slowly avoided her gaze. "The Paladins may have destroyed an evil organization or two."

"Gavin is the Commander of the most important Order in the empire," Nikolai said defensively. "It's only right that we do everything we can to find him."

Mona let out a sigh. "Contact the Quinzels," she said. The place where the Commander was supposed to be was in one of the restricted territories that the Quinzels owned. They couldn't simply go there without permission from the ducal family. "Gavin is buried under the Forgotten Graveyard."

***

"BROTHER, what were you doing in the Forgotten Graveyard?"

Gavin, who was sitting on his bed, smiled and put his hand on Rufus' shoulder. "I was just there to do my job, Rufus," he said, vaguely answering his brother's question. "But I'm alright. Don't worry too much."

"How can you tell me not to worry about you, Brother?" Rufus, who was sitting on the chair next to his bed, asked. His brother was obviously frustrated. "And what kind of job requires you to be in a comatose state for three months alone in a cold and dark place? Do I need to ask His Majesty about it, huh?"

"Rufus, calm down."

"I can't!" his brother said, his face now red with anger. "I don't care if we were branded as traitors but if His Majesty truly made you work until you fell into a coma, I will never forgive–"

"Rufus Quinzel."

His brother flinched at the stern voice that he used.

"Don't speak that way towards His Majesty," he scolded his younger brother. "I said that I did my job. But I didn't say that it was His Majesty's order."

Rufus looked confused.

"His Majesty didn't order me to go to the Forgotten Graveyard. In fact, His Majesty didn't order me to do anything other than my usual tasks," he explained to his younger brother. "But I know the current circumstances of Lady Roseheart and His Majesty. As their loyal servant, I wanted to be of help. Thus, I moved discreetly to try and help them. I didn't expect that I'd get bewitched by the evil spirits lurking in the buried mausoleum."

'Bewitched by the evil spirits' was Lukas's idea.

Apparently, the elf didn't want Lady Roseheart and His Majesty to know that he helped him retrieve the memories of his second life. But even if Lukas didn't do that, it wasn't like he had any intention of letting the two know about his life as Kim Won-shik.

He smiled bitterly when Rufus remained quiet. "I guess I'm not as strong as I thought I was for me to be bewitched just like that."

"You're already plenty strong, Brother," Rufus commented, breaking his silence. Then, he let out a deep sigh. "I apologize for almost committing blasphemy against the Royal Family, Brother. I will apologize to His Majesty later."

[Rufus is too nice for his own good.]

He smiled and squeezed Rufus' shoulder before letting go. "Rufus, we're a part of the extended Royal Family," he reminded his brother. "His Majesty is our cousin. We do not serve him just because he's the emperor. We've sworn our loyalty to him because he's family. Remember that."

His younger brother smiled and nodded. "I will remember that, Brother."

Gavin smiled and patted Rufus' head. "Now stop nagging me and go back to Amber's side," he said. He already heard that his sister-in-law was pregnant. And he had congratulated Amber when she paid him a visit earlier. "I need to report to His Majesty."

"You can't, Brother," Rufus said while smiling brightly. "Father said that you're grounded."

Grounded… at his age?!

***

"I REMEMBER that I told you that you're grounded for a whole month, Gavin."

Gavin, who was standing in front of Duke Desmond Quinzel's desk in his study, smiled brightly at his father. It was the smile that he knew his father couldn't turn down. "Father, I have an important business that I have to attend to in a few days. I need to leave the house to prepare for a present."

His father's brows furrowed. He didn't want to say this but even though his father had a semi-permanent frown on his face, they still looked alike. "A present for whom?"

"The birthday girl."

He purposely answered his father vaguely.

And just like what he expected, the duke got the wrong idea.

"Ah, I remember now," his father said while nodding his head. "It's Lady Sera Wisteria's coming-of-age ceremony in a few days."

He just smiled and tilted his head at one side, acting innocent.

But since he always acted "cute" in front of his father, the duke didn't notice that he wasn't confirming that the "birthday girl" he mentioned wasn't Lady Sera Wisteria.

"Alright, you're no longer grounded," his father, who seemed to be in a good mood now, said while nodding at him. "Make sure to prepare the best gift for Lady Sera Wisteria, Gavin."

Gavin just smiled and nodded.

***

"MY LORD, I have returned."

Gavin, who was having tea on the balcony of his room, smiled and raised his head to meet Chester's gaze. "How did it go?"

Chester, his butler since he was a child, was standing straight in front of him. As usual, Chester was dressed neatly and his face was void of any emotions. "As you instructed, I went to all the jewelry stores in the Royal Capital and bought all the newest collection that they have."

"Uh-huh."

"In return for our big purchase, I asked the store owners for a small favor," his butler continued. "I told them that if Lady Sera Wisteria visited their store and asked for a specific piece of jewelry that we already purchased, I wanted them to tell the young lady that Commander Gavin Quinzel has already purchased it as a birthday gift. I also specifically asked the store owners to say that the commander seems to have the desire to impress the lady with the help of that piece of jewelry."

He smiled in satisfaction. "Very good, Chester."

Chester just bowed politely, then he dismissed the butler.

Everyone in the Royal Capital knew that Lady Sera Wisteria was obsessed with jewels.

He used that information to begin his plan.

Yes, he purposely wanted Lady Sera Wisteria to think that the present he bought was for her. It was necessary for his plan.

Gavin smiled bitterly when he realized how evil his scheme was.

[I'm sorry, Lady Sera Wisteria.]

***

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