Royal Secret: I'm a Princess!

"I'M NOT your master," Nero said, pushing the White Lion off him. "You're heavy."

The de Moonasterios were known for their brute strength.

However, no matter how strong he was, he still failed to push the White Lion off him.

Fortunately, Zeru came to his rescue.

His Soul Beast was back in its beast form.

The ice phoenix was thrice the size of an adult eagle. To be honest, although Zeru was huge, he still didn't expect the Soul Beast to grab the White Lion's collar using its talons.

But it did.

Zeru managed to lift the White Lion and throw it away.

However, the next thing Nero knew, his Soul Beast was already howling in pain. The talons that Zeru used to lift the White Lion were now covered with Darkness.

Come to think of it, the White Lion's collar was strange.

"Zeru, come here," Nero said when he stood up, reaching for the ice phoenix's talons. "It's alright, I'll fix them."

The ice phoenix let him touch its talons.

He didn't properly study how to purify Darkness. But simply touching Zeru's talons with the intention to purify the Darkness that clung to it did the trick. His hands emitted some red light. Obviously, it wasn't his Moonglow or divine power.

[It's the Roseheart Blood in me.]

He was born with the innate ability to purify Darkness with his touch.

And he could also tell that Zeru's strength had been drained when it touched the Darkness that covered the White Lion's collar.

[Tsk.]

"Zeru, Sev, return," Nero ordered his Soul Beast. "I can't use either of you to fight right now."

It was a shame, but he didn't have a choice but to let his Soul Beasts rest in the meantime.

Zeru let out a cry, then it disappeared in some bluish lights.

Sev, who was lying on the floor unmoving, also disappeared.

After that, Nero faced the White Lion.

He noticed that the collar around its wide neck was now producing a black flame. It was like a new variant of Darkness. He had a feeling that it wouldn't be easy to purify it, but he still had to try.

<"Why do you have the same scent as my master?">

Scent?

So, the White Lion had mistaken him as its master because of his scent and not his face.

[So, it's the reason why the White Lion didn't react this way when he met Neoma.]

But why would he have the same scent as Nero Roseheart?

He was aware that Nero Roseheart was the first Holy Knight in history, and he also happened to the first master of the White Lion.

[Am I the reincarnation of Nero Roseheart or something?]

That would be laughable.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Nero said, looking at the White Lion with dead eyes. "But let's talk again after I purify that disgusting thing around your neck."

After saying that, he came at the White Lion.

Without wasting a second, he grabbed the collar.

His hands burned as soon as he touched the collar, causing him to flinch. However, he didn't let go. He gathered all his Mana in his hands in an attempt to purify the Darkness.

[Argh!]

His hands were starting to get burned for real.

He didn't like getting hurt because he knew Neoma would also feel his pain. But he couldn't let go of the collar. The Darkness was trying to burn him alive. Hence, he had to cover his entire body with his Moonglow in order to prevent himself from literally burning.

<"Let go, Little Master!"> the White Lion yelled in his mind worriedly. <"This collar is imbued with Darkness and dark spell that not even I could quell! You'll get burned alive if you don't let go!"

Nero knew that, of course.

[I'd let go if I could since I don't want Neoma to feel my pain!]

***

[NERO!]

Mona, who was busy fighting Calyx Dalton, paused for a moment to check on her son.

Nero was trying to remove the White Lion's collar, but to no avail. The level of Darkness and dark spell around the collar was something that her son couldn't purify yet.

[I need to help my Baby Pumpkin!]

She faced Calyx Dalton.

[No, it's definitely Callisto de Luca using that boy's body!]

"You've always been a thorn in our side, Mona Roseheart," Callisto de Luca growled at her. "I should have killed you myself back then."

"Try it if you can," Mona said coldly, gathering the Mana in her hands. "You can't kill me."

Callisto de Luca sneered, then he came at him.

But the fallen half-god wasn't able to move from where he stood.

She smirked, then she pointed at his legs.

It was true that Callisto de Luca broke her rose-gold staff into two earlier. But it didn't mean that her weapon was already useless. In the first place, no matter how many times it broke, it would return to its original state.

Moreover, the veins around the rose-gold staff could move on their own.

Hence, while the fallen half-god wasn't looking, the veins from her weapon wrapped themselves around his legs– keeping him in place.

"Nydia," Mona said, calling her weapon. "Come here."

The broken rose-gold staff floated in the air while fixing itself. Then Nydia moved towards her in its own. When her main weapon came to her, it was already back in its original state as if it hadn't been broken in two earlier.

She grabbed the rose-gold staff.

And before Callisto de Luca could even react, she already stabbed the sharp end of her weapon through the boy's chest– causing him to cough up blood.

"Burn," Mona said, then she used an old incantation. "May your soul burn for eternity."

Callisto de Luca screamed agonizingly when Calyx Dalton's body was suddenly covered in thousands of roses– then the flowers combusted in a red flame, burning the two (body and soul) in the process.

And just like that, Calyx Dalton and Callisto de Luca disappeared.

***

NERO was seriously pissed off.

First, he couldn't get burn marks because Neoma valued physical beauty.

Second, he couldn't let his precious twin sister experience the same pain she was going through at the moment.

[But this crazy flame is testing my patience!]

His thoughts were cut off when, all of a sudden, his mother appeared and touched the collar.

"Mother, don't," Nero said worriedly. "You'll get burned–"

He didn't get to finish his sentence when his mother broke the collar in two with her Mana-covered hands EFFORTLESSLY.

Just like that, the Darkness in the form of the black flame was purified.

Even the White Lion looked shocked by what happened.

[Wow.]

His mother purified the strange Darkness that enslaved the White Lion for god knows how long without breaking a sweat.

[Mother did something I struggled with so easily...]

It was probably why his mother was THE Mona Roseheart.

"Nero, baby, are you alright?" his mother asked worriedly, then she held his hands and frowned when she saw that his hands were burned. "Don't worry, Baby Pumpkin. Your mother will make the pain go away."

His mother's hands turned cool while healing his hands.

In just a few seconds, his hands were already as good as new. No trace of Darkness was left. And everything happened in a jiffy.

"Thank you, Mother," Nero said sincerely. "You're amazing."

"Not really," his mother said as if she was embarrassed. "If I was in my prime, Calyx Dalton and Callisto de Luca wouldn't have escaped. It seems like my skills got rusty since I was stuck in Delwyn's ice for thirteen years."

"They escaped?"

"They managed to escape," his mother confirmed while nodding sadly. "But I'm sure Calyx Dalton's body was burned severely. Moreover, I'm also certain that Callisto de Luca's soul was damaged heavily. It's just a shame that they still escaped in that condition."

It was indeed a shame that the two had escaped.

However, Nero was satisfied to know that both had suffered in his mother's hands. Even so, his heart was still in pieces.

[Dahlia…] He clenched his hands tight. [I'm sorry I failed to save you.]

"Ah, right," his mother said as if she just remembered something important. "I also attached a Rose Petal in Calyx Dalton's skin and Callisto de Luca's soul when I burned them to death earlier. It's a tracking device, so we can find them and rescue Dahlia."

Nero's eyes went wide, then he hugged his mother because he thought it was the best way to express his gratitude and happiness to his mother. "Thank you, Mother!"

***

"AH, I'M SORRY for erasing the inn off the map," Trevor said cheerfully while scratching his cheek. "Don't worry, we will compensate everyone with gold since gold is valuable on the East Continent."

Gin, his partner in crime, let out a sigh while shaking his head. "I'm glad the Devil let us spend as much as we need."

Right now, just like what he had said, the inn was no more.

Fortunately, the guests and the staff managed to escape so no one died. There were some who got injured, but they were willing to compensate everyone.

[I'm sorry, humans.]

But, at least, he got what he needed.

"Sleep well, my son," Trevor said while patting Lewis' back. The fox boy was draped over his shoulder, bleeding and unconscious. "I need you to lure out your "mother.""

He was about to leave and let Gin handle the people they needed to compensate when…

"Trevor!"

He let out a sigh when another rival appeared.

"Duke Jasper Hawthorne," Trevor said, shaking his head. "Why are you here?"

"Put Lewis down," Jasper growled at him. "Where do you think you're bringing my nephew to?!"

Nephew?

[Ah, right. Princess Neoma considers the young duke her "oppa."]

"Well, Lewis is just your "nephew,"" Trevor retorted, scoffing. "But he is my son!"

***

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