Royal Secret: I'm a Princess!

NERO knitted his eyebrows after he heard what kind of match Dahlia wanted to do after she challenged him to a fight. He, who was standing on the porch of the villa he was using, turned to the Black Witch standing beside him. "Come again?"

"Geez, Prince Nero," Dahlia, who was still wrapped in a blanket, complained. "Weren't you listening to me earlier?"

Hah.

Look at this little crybaby.

[Every time she's pissed, she becomes outspoken.]

That was… interesting.

"I said let's compete by making an ice sculpture of Princess Neoma," the Black Witch said. "Whoever makes the prettier ice sculpture of the princess wins. Let's make the Fletcher Twins and the gracious king of Hazelden decide the winner."

Yes, that was the "match" that Dahlia suggested earlier.

Thus, he was taken aback.

"That's it?" he asked, still confused. "When you challenged me to a fight, I thought you wanted us to engage in a one-on-one combat."

"Why would I beat up a person who just woke up from a long slumber?"

He raised an eyebrow, offended at what she was implying. "Excuse me? You're speaking as if you're confident that you'd defeat me in a physical fight."

Her face turned red as if she was embarrassed, then she gently tapped her mouth. "I apologize, Prince Nero. I've misspoken."

[I don't think you've misspoken, though.]

Although Dahlia was awkward and clumsy most of the time, he could tell that she meant it when she implied that she could beat him up.

"I won't pick a physical fight with a person who went to away from home to recuperate," Dahlia said, avoiding his gaze. "So, let's just compete by using our Mana. It won't take a toll on your body, will it?"

"It won't, but I'm not inclined to waste my energy on something like that."

"I guess Your Royal Highness isn't confident that you can make a pretty sculpture of Princess Neoma."

"Excuse me?"

"I can do it," she declared confidently.

Then she took her arm out from under the blanket. When she opened her hand, a wand that looked like a twig with pink flowers attached to it materialized.

[Ah, yes. Black Witches use wands as well, just like the other witches.]

"I've only met Princess Neoma once in person, but I can still remember her face clearly," Dahlia said while waving her wand as if she was leading an orchestra. "After all, Princess Neoma's face is not something you can easily forget."

"Of course," he agreed wholeheartedly. "My sister is the prettiest girl in the entire world."

The Black Witch just laughed softly.

[Oh, she can laugh like that when she's not crying and trembling, huh?]

His thoughts were distracted when he caught the ice sculpture that Dahlia was making in his peripheral vision. The head and the torso were already done.

Ah, it was indeed Neoma's face.

But his eyes twitched because Dahlia's ice sculpture that was modeled after his precious sister did not satisfy him.

"Your ice sculpture doesn't justify Neoma's beauty," he complained, then he raised his hand and gathered his ice Mana at his fingertips. "My sister is a lot more beautiful than that. And if you're going to make an ice sculpture of the empire's royal princess, you must also capture her charisma." He closed his fingers tight. "Just like this."

And then Neoma's clear image in his mind came to life in the form of his ice.

He wasn't satisfied with his creation, though.

"This is not it," he said, frowning. When he opened his hand, the ice sculpture in front of him crumbled. "Neoma is flawless, so I have to make her ice sculpture as perfect as possible."

The Black Witch laughed softly. "Prince Nero, you really adore Princess Neoma."

"I do," Nero said, then he closed his hand again while trying to make a prettier ice sculpture of Neoma. "So you don't have to worry about me getting obsessed with you in this lifetime."

"I'm not worried about that, Prince Nero," Dahlia said in a soft voice. "And Your Royal Highness must remember that strong denial is an affirmation." She turned to him with an awkward look on his face. "To me, it sounds like Your Royal Highness is convincing yourself that you won't get obsessed with me."

Nero wondered why he couldn't deny Dahlia's false assumption.

***

[I'M FINALLY FREE.]

That was the first thought that crossed Mona's mind when her consciousness returned.

It happened after her soul found its way back to her physical body. This time, she could move her body freely, as if she hadn't been trapped in a massive block of eyes for thirteen years.

[Time really stopped for me while I was trapped.]

She slowly opened her eyes when she felt a whip made of water snake itself around her waist, then it lifted her. As expected, it was Nathaira. The head of the giant serpent greeted her as soon as she opened her eyes.

<"Welcome back, dear Mona.">

"Thank you, Nathaira," Mona said softly, then she gently patted Nathaira's head. "Thank you for keeping me safe all this time."

<"I'll do anything for my precious friend.">

She smiled and nodded, then she turned to look around.

[The Black Ocean is on fire.]

And the red flame that set the ocean on fire was intense.

[No wonder Delwyn's ice melted.]

"Mona, you're awake."

She turned in the direction of where the voice came from, and her eyes fell on William who was floating in front of her with a relieved look on his face.

As a response, she just gave the Grand Spirit a cold look.

But she got distracted when she felt the fluctuating Mana of a strong individual.

When she looked up, she gasped softly when she saw her baby Neoma free-falling from the sky along with her Red Dragon. It seemed like the two had fainted.

[Considering the intensity of the red flame, it was a miracle they didn't faint sooner.]

"William, keep the dragon safe," she said while shooting up the sky with her flight magic. "I'll take care of my baby."

She didn't wait for the Grand Spirit to respond.

When she went past the falling Red Dragon, she noticed that it was shrinking.

[Poor dragon. He must have spent a lot of Mana in order to melt the ice. You did well, my baby's Soul Beast.]

Of course, her precious Neoma did well, too.

She didn't let her daughter hit the water, of course.

Thankfully, she was able to catch Neoma in her arms. Her heart broke when she realized how exhausted her baby was. Her supposedly overflowing Moonglow also depleted.

"Neoma," she whispered softly. "My baby…"

She thought her daughter had already fainted.

So she was pleasantly surprised when she slowly opened her eyes.

"Mama Boss?"

Hmm?

['Mama Boss?']

Was that supposed to be her?

[Ah, right. Nero mentioned to me before that Neoma calls Nikolai 'Papa Boss.']

Aww… that was so adorable of her baby.

But Neoma, at the moment, looked confused. It was as if she couldn't decide whether she was having a dream or not.

"You're not dreaming, my precious baby," she said, her voice cracked. She suddenly became emotional when the reality finally hit her– she was really now holding her precious baby in her arms. She couldn't help but kiss Neoma on the forehead. "Thank you for saving me, my pretty Neoma."

Neoma laughed softly, as if she was relieved to know she was dreaming. "I know, right? I'm still pretty even if I look haggard," she said, then she closed her eyes again. "I inherited your pretty genes, Mama Boss…"

And just like that, her daughter fell asleep.

She didn't know how to react.

Of course, she was happy that her baby was confident about her looks. It was just that…

[My daughter sounds a little… uhm, narcissistic?]

Well, perhaps her daughter was just saying it to cheer herself up after a long day.

After convincing herself that Neoma couldn't be as vain or as conceited as she feared, she slowly and carefully descended while carrying her daughter in her arms.

She then let out a sigh upon landing.

When her feet touched on the sand, she found the two men she didn't want to see yet kneeling in front of her with their heads hanging low.

"We're glad to have you back, Mona," William and Delwyn said at the same time.

"Well, I'm not that thrilled to see you two," she said bluntly. "But since you helped my baby rescue me, I'll give you the chance to explain." She turned her cold eyes on the Ice Spirit. "Especially you, Delwyn."

Delwyn bowed so deeply that his forehead almost touched the sand. "My utmost gratitude for your generosity, Mona."

"It's not like you to show me that amount of respect, since you were always rebelling against me in the past."

"You're angry," Delwyn said bluntly. "No Spirits could face you head-on when you're that angry."

She nodded in agreement. "You should be glad that my baby is in my arms. If Neoma wasn't here…"

"I know," Delwyn said. "I'd be dead now."

"I'm glad you know that. You must thank my baby later for saving your life," she said, then she turned to William. "Where is Nero? Is he still in a slumber?"

"Nero has already woken up," William said. "He's currently recuperating at Hazelden Kingdom."

She was relieved to hear that Nero wasn't at the Moonasterion Empire.

[I'm sorry, but I'm not yet ready to meet you, Nikolai.]

"We will go to Hazelden first to meet my baby Nero," she said while hugging Neoma closer to her. "William, I want you to fetch my baby Neoma's physical body wherever it is at the moment. Then bring it to Hazelden. I want to be reunited with my children properly."

"Neoma de Moonasterio's physical body is currently being guarded by Nikolai de Moonasterio," William said. "I don't think it'd be easy to do what you asked me, Mona."

"It's your problem," she said. She was being cold, but she had the right to do so. "Delwyn, get up and bring me to Hazelden. It's the kingdom of snow, so I'm certain you've already been acquainted with the Spirit that rules the kingdom. Ask them to open up a portal for me– the Daughter of Nature."

Delwyn raised his head and politely nodded. "As you wish, Mona."

"Very well," Mona said, then she turned to Neoma who was still asleep in her arms. "I'll make a quick trip to the Spirit World first."

***

NIKOLAI was shocked and devastated after he heard what William had come to say upon his return.

He didn't like how William scooped up Neoma's sleeping physical body, but he was too shocked to react.

Lewis, on the other hand, was shooting daggers at the Grand Spirit with his sharp eyes.

"Bring me, too," Lewis said stubbornly while glaring at William. "I won't let you take Princess Neoma without me."

William rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood, fox."

"My name is Lewis."

"Do I look like I care?"

"Mona is headed to Hazelden with Neoma to meet Nero?" Nikolai asked, interrupting Lewis and William's banter. "She wants you to bring Neoma's physical body to Hazelden?"

"That's correct," William said bluntly. "It's Mona's order, so you won't stop me from fulfilling my duty, will you?"

Yes, he couldn't do that.

As the emperor, he shouldn't let William take the Crown Princess to a foreign kingdom. But as a father, he knew Neoma deserved to be with her mother in her physical form.

And Mona deserved to meet their children after being trapped in the ice for thirteen years.

[It's just that…]

But what about him?

Nikolai clenched his hands tight. [Do you not want to see me, Mona?]

***

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