Royal Secret: I'm a Princess!

"TREVOR IS still one of my people," Neoma said, her eyes glowing red. "If you attack him, I will consider it as an attack to myself as well."

She was the one who was betrayed, so it was none of the Spirits' business.

But of course, she understood why the Spirits got riled up. She was just in a bad mood so she failed to handle the situation calmly.

"I understand that you're worried that Trevor might attack the Spirit World now that he has turned his back on me," she said in a calmer tone, the gathered Mana in her hands slowly disappearing. "But I guarantee you that it won't happen. So let him leave in peace."

<"We apologize, but our priority is the safety of the Spirit World, Your Royal Highness.">

After saying that, she felt a strong wind passed her by.

It was probably the Spirits who were very adamant to "take care" of Trevor.

[Ah, this is pissing me off. Should I just suck their energy or something since I can't see the Spirits?]

Well, why not?

If she could "eat" Darkness, why couldn't she eat Spirits?

[Let's see if it will work.]

She opened her mouth to suck the life out of the Spirits that she couldn't see. This was the first time that she would try this technique, but for some reason, she was positive it would work.

And it did.

She TASTED the energy from the air coming into her mouth…

… until a certain big and warm hand covered her mouth and forced her to stop sucking the Spirits' energy.

"Are you trying to declare war on the Spirit World?" William hissed at her, then he pulled his hand away from her mouth. "And when did you even learn that technique? I didn't teach you that."

"Nobody taught me this technique," she said, pouting. "I just thought it would work, and it did."

The Grand Spirit looked at her as if he was looking at a specimen he didn't understand. "You just thought it would work… and it did?"

She nodded. "There are techniques that I can pull off in one try as if I've always known how to do them."

It was probably stuck in her sealed memories.

After all, they already established that she had been revived after Nero stabbed her in her first life. She probably gained power back then with the help of the people around her.

"When you feel like you're coming up with a technique you haven't tried before, consult me first," William said while shaking his head at her. "Don't just use it on the spot. We don't know if it will have a recoil on your body, so don't be impulsive."

She nodded. "Alright, Master," she said, then she looked around. "I can't see the Spirits, but they're quiet now. Did they leave?"

"No, they passed out when you tried to eat them."

"That wasn't my intention, Master," she said defensively. "Well, I thought of eating them the way I ate Darkness before. But I changed my mind, and I only intended to suck their energy to immobilize them."

He let out a frustrated sigh. "That's why I said don't act on impulse."

"I'm sorry, Master."

"You're apologizing to the wrong person, Neoma de Moonasterio."

"I will apologize to the Spirits I've hurt," Neoma said obediently. "I guess I also owe Queen Tara an apology."

"Set your personal feelings aside, Neoma de Moonasterio," William said sternly. "Tara and the Spirit World still helped and protected Nero all this time."

***

"MY DEEPEST apologies for my misbehavior, Your Majesty," Neoma said sincerely to the queen of the Spirit World. She also slightly bowed her head. "I heard the Spirits I've hurt are still unconscious. I would like to apologize to them once they wake up."

"You don't have to, Princess Neoma," Queen Tara, who was surprisingly in her human form now, said kindly. Her kind voice and gentle demeanor actually suited her classic beauty. "We were also at fault. The Spirits listened to your conversation with Trevor, then they tried to attack him despite your warning." The queen bowed her head. "On behalf of my people, I apologize to Your Royal Highness."

After that exchange, she walked with the queen to the garden while talking about her next plan now that Nero had slightly recovered after consuming her Moonglow and Roseheart Blood.

All Nero had to do was drink from the vials.

Trevor also left the devices that he used to extract her Moonglow and Roseheart Blood. Since she saw how the syringes were used, she could use them next time. Or she could also ask Paige Avery to do it for her.

The important thing was she could now supply Nero with her Moonglow and Roseheart Blood to help him recover faster.

"Since the air in the Spirit World isn't good for Nero now that he's back to his physical body, I believe it's time for my baby brother to return to the surface," she said to the queen. "It's time for him to return, anyway."

"Seeing how the Spirit World is rejecting Prince Nero's presence now that he's back in his physical body, I also believe it's time for him to return to the surface," the queen said. "It's a shame that the time Prince Nero spent here was brief."

"Don't worry, Your Majesty– Nero will be back here after he recovers," she said, assuring the queen while thinking of evil thoughts.

[Nero will return to take over the Spirit World, you know?]

"Princess Neoma, you're also welcome to return to the Spirit World anytime you want."

Oh.

She almost raised an eyebrow at the queen's remark.

But she was scolded by William earlier, so she was keeping her behavior in check.

[It's funny, though. The Spirit World rejected my existence in the past because they chose Nero over me. But now, they're opening their doors to me?]

Very sus.

This was the first time the queen showed interest in her.

[Her Majesty probably saw my value.]

After all, if she remembered it correctly from what her Papa Boss told her before, the Spirit World would also benefit a lot if she became the next Aether.

[The Spirit Queen is also greedy, huh?]

"It's not only Prince Nero who's welcome here," Queen Tara said, smiling "kindly" at her. Well, the queen still looked nice. But there was a strange emotion in Her Majesty's eyes– she was looking at Neoma as if she was a rare item that she must acquire at all costs. "We should spend time together some time, Princess Neoma."

Neoma smiled because, as a greedy person herself, she knew exactly how to deal with people similar to her. "That would be lovely, Queen Tara."

***

"SHOULD I piggyback you, Nero?" Neoma teased Nero who still looked sluggish. Well, admittedly, she was just half-joking. [I will piggyback my dongsaeng if I have to.]

"I'd rather die than have you give me a piggyback ride, Neoma," Nero, who looked insulted by her offer, said while frowning. "I am not an invalid person."

Nero already drank some of her Moonglow and Roseheart Blood.

Thanks to that, he could now talk and move. But he was still sluggish, and he could barely maintain his balance while standing. Yet, her baby brother was too prideful to admit that he still needed her support.

[Well, Nero didn't want to drink my Moonglow and my Roseheart Blood after he learned that Trevor betrayed me. But I assured him that it's fine. Nero doesn't trust Trevor, but thankfully, he has complete faith in me.]

"You and your pride," William, who was in the same room as her and Nero, said. Then the Grand Spirit grabbed Nero's arm when the latter stumbled when he tried to walk. "I will carry you, Nero. It will be faster if we do it that way. You want to leave this place as soon as you can, don't you?"

Nero frowned, but he didn't deny William's words.

"We're not in a hurry, though," she said. "You can say goodbye to your friends here."

Nero turned to her with a confused look on his face. "I don't have friends here."

"Huh?" she asked, confused. "You stayed here for years. Why didn't you make friends?"

The queen may have an ulterior motive for being kind to Nero, but she and the Spirit World still treated her baby brother well.

Based on the stories that she heard from William from time to time, the Spirits also grew fond of Nero. Plus, her baby brother spent time training with the Spirits along with Sev, his Soul Beast. Thus, she was shocked to hear Nero didn't consider the Spirits as 'friends.'

"I have a positive relationship with Queen Tara and most of the Spirits here, but I don't consider them as friends," Nero said bluntly, his eyes and voice both cold. "They are just tools I need to gain power over the Spirit World."

William looked proud of Nero.

Neoma, on the other, felt shivers down her spine when she caught a glimpse of cruelty in Nero's eyes.

[Those are the same eyes he had in the past…]

She thought she had already tamed Nero, but here he was– treating people and Spirits (that were also kind of living things) as tools.

"Let's hurry," Nero said when he turned to her. "Hanna is coming home too, right? I want to see her and talk about our official engagement."

Neoma clenched her hands.

[I don't want Nero to end up with Hanna if he continues acting like a tyrannical d*ck.]

***

SHE smiled when she realized that he hadn't noticed her presence yet, although she had been following him for a few minutes now.

She felt proud of herself for concealing her presence from a person of his caliber.

[My training paid off.]

She happily followed him when he took a turn in a dark alley.

Of course, at that moment, she already realized that he had already noticed her following him.

But she was still surprised when he came at her all of a sudden.

The next thing she knew, she was already pushed to the wall while a dagger was pressed against her neck threateningly.

Hanna couldn't help but laugh. "Hey, it's me. It has been a long time, huh?" she said, while slowly removing the hood of her robe. At that point, he already recognized her voice, so he didn't move when she took off her hood. "How are you, Lewis?"

Lewis, who looked shocked at first (probably because he didn't recognize her presence right away), smiled a rare smile at her. "Welcome home, Lady Hanna."

***

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