Royal Secret: I'm a Princess!

"IS THERE anything I can do to help?" Hanna asked. "I know exorcising hundreds of evil Spirits inside Nero won't be easy, so please let me know if there's something I can do to help you, Dahlia."

"Once Prince Nero gets out of the barrier, he will definitely try to escape to the outside world since the gate is still open," Dahlia said worriedly. "Can you help me restrain the Crown Prince then, Princess Hanna?"

"I understand," she said, nodding. "But oh, you should address me by my noble title again. Since I already quit as the Crown Princess, it doesn't feel right to be called a 'princess' anymore."

"But it's not official yet…"

"It doesn't matter– I will never change my mind."

Hanna was aware that it might be a bit unfair to Nero that she decided to quit as the Crown Princess without asking for his opinion.

But she was doing this for the Crown Prince.

[I don't want him to feel guilty. And it's to avoid people of accusing Nero of cheating on me with Dahlia. If that happens, his reputation would hit rock bottom.]

"I-If that's what you want, Lady Hanna."

Hmm?

Hanna thought it would feel weird to be addressed as a 'lady' again instead of a 'princess.'

But, surprisingly, it felt as if a huge load was taken off of her shoulders.

[I'm fine– I'll be fine.]

"Let's do this, Dahlia," Hanna said, trying to sound as cheerful as she could. "How should we proceed?"

"I'll unseal my power first," Dahlia said. "Uhm, please be careful, Lady Hanna. It took five adult Black Witches to seal my power– and they all still got injured. I'll have Lapiz to make a barrier for my lady, but please don't lower your guard."

She nodded. "Alright. I'll make a barrier of my own, too."

The Black Witch nodded politely, then she took several steps away from Hanna.

When Dahlia deemed that it was a safe distance, only then did she close her eyes…

… and she cut her long and wavy red hair with a dagger.

[Wait, what?]

Dahlia's now short hair only fell on her shoulders.

But not for long.

Soon, the Black Witch's hair grew back to its original length in just a span of a few seconds.

However, this time, the color of the lower part of Dahlia's hair was black and not red.

[She has two-toned hair now, just like Neoma…]

Not only did Dahlia's hair color change– it also became prettier because of the twinkling "decorations" attached to it. Little star-shaped lights were attached to her black hair. Hence, it looked like a starry night sky if you looked at it.

But it wasn't only the Black Witch's hair that changed drastically.

Moreover, Dahlia's current Mana right now was… astounding, to say the least.

<"Lady Hanna, please brace yourself,"> Lapiz, the Blue Whale that was currently the size of a salmon, said while creating several powerful layers of barriers for Hanna. <"Dahlia's way of exorcising Spirits is a bit violent.">

Hanna was surprised to hear that. "I can't imagine Dahlia acting violently."

The Elemental Guardian laughed softly. <"Then please enjoy the show, my lady.">

Hanna was still doubtful.

Until she saw Dahlia punch the barrier where she trapped Nero.

Hanna was ready to help, but honestly?

[I don't think Dahlia needs my help to restrain Nero…]

Because Hanna saw when Dahlia grabbed Nero by the neck, the Black Witch's lavender eyes glowing dangerously.

Ah, what a sight.

"I now believe that our sweet and innocent Dahlia is capable of violence," Hanna said. "I should help in another way."

Hanna noticed that "Nero" tried to run towards the open gate as soon as he was freed.

Hence, she used her shadows to cover the gate.

[You're not going anywhere under my watch, Nero.]

***

PHYSICAL CONTACT.

Dahlia needed to establish firm physical contact with the host of the evil Spirits that she needed to exorcise.

Hence, she grabbed Prince Nero by the neck when he tried to run past her.

To be honest, she didn't mean to do that.

Dahlia tried to grab the Crown Prince by the arm, but his hostility triggered her "fight response," so she grabbed him by the neck to make sure he couldn't attack her.

But since she had just unsealed her power, she couldn't control her strength yet.

"Argh!" Prince Nero let out a painful groan. "Unhand me, you wench!"

[Ah, this isn't Prince Nero talking.]

The Crown Prince's eyes were glowing red, which was normal for a de Moonasterio. However, there was a strange craziness in his eyes at the moment.

[I mean, Prince Nero is crazy. But not like this…]

"I'm sorry, Prince Nero, but I have to use violence on you," Dahlia said nervously. "I can't control my strength yet, so I apologize in advance if it hurts."

And then she punched Prince Nero on the chest.

To be precise, Dahlia punched the Crown Prince on the part of his chest where his heart was located.

The evil Spirits that Prince Nero devoured were absorbed in his soul.

But the best way to summon the evil Spirits was to literally shake Prince Nero's Core in order to create a disturbance in his soul– forcing the evil Spirits to get kicked out.

And it worked.

Prince Nero, who fell to his knees after getting punched, threw up.

Small "marbles" came out of the Crown Prince's mouth, and each "marble" was actually the essence of an evil Spirit.

After Prince Nero got everything out of his system, he collapsed to the ground.

[Now, it's time to catch them.]

Dahlia opened her hands and grabbed her wand as soon as she materialized, then she waved it while writing a spell in the air. "Stop."

***

[AMAZING.]

Hanna looked up at the "marbles" that were suspended in the air.

She suspected that the "marbles" were actually the souls of the evil Spirits that Nero had devoured.

Those Spirits tried to scatter and escape.

But as soon as Dahlia uttered a spell, the "marbles" floated up in the air and each "marble" ended up trapped inside a pink crystal flower.

[Beautiful…]

Hanna couldn't help but smile in admiration. "Dahlia, you did well."

She did not hear a response from Dahlia.

[Hmm?]

When Hanna turned to Dahlia, her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the Black Witch sprawled to the ground while clutching her chest.

Of course, she immediately ran to her friend's side.

"Dahlia!"

<"It must be because Dahlia isn't used to using her power yet…">

It wasn't only Dahlia who was sprawled on the ground.

The Black Witch was next to Nero, and the two looked like they were in pain.

That was when the reality hit Hanna harder.

[Ah, Dahlia and Nero can't really live without each other…]

"I'm alright, Lady Hanna. Please don't worry about me," Dahlia said, trying to get up slowly. "My body just needs to adjust to my new strength…"

That didn't look that simple.

Dahlia was pale, and she was breathing quite heavily.

It was clear that the Black Witch was struggling.

[Dahlia needs to make a vow with Nero in order for her to recover…]

Hanna offered her hand to Dahlia. "Let's wait for Nero to wake up, then ask him to make a vow with you."

Dahlia accepted Hanna's hand as she stood up, but she hanged her head low. "I'm sorry, Lady Hanna."

"I accept your apology, Dahlia."

The Black Witch didn't respond, but her shoulders shook when she cried.

"None of this is your fault, Dahlia," Hanna said, hugging Dahlia while gently patting her back. "I'll be fine, you'll be fine."

Dahlia just nodded while hugging Hanna back.

[And maybe Nero will be fine with this, too.]

***

A VOW similar to marriage.

Nero didn't have all the memories of his first life.

All that he had seen so far in his dreams were fragments that often times didn't make sense.

The only thing that was clear to him was the fact that he had loved Dahlia in the past to the point of obsession.

However, in this timeline…

"I can't make that kind of vow with Dahlia," Nero said firmly. "I'm engaged to Hanna."

"Hanna?"

"Hanna Quinzel."

"Ah, the Pirate Princess," the emperor said. "Our cousin."

"That's just the simple way to describe our relationship with her. She's the daughter of our father's cousin."

"I don't care– I didn't care about her in the past."

"Well, I do now."

"If you want to be stubborn, then go ahead and die," Emperor Nero said, scoffing. "Unless you can control your Lunacy and take back your control of your own body, I don't think you can survive this. Good luck– you need that."

Nero was about to use Neoma's teachings (aka swear words) to good use when, all of a sudden, a strong force grabbed him.

[What the heck happened?]

Nero was surprised when he finally opened his eyes and found himself back in the Cage when he was just talking to Emperor Nero a moment ago.

He didn't expect to wake up in his body with his consciousness intact.

[And the male Rosehearts inside my soul seem to have disappeared…]

"Are you awake, Nero?"

Ah.

Nero was both happy and nervous to see Hanna and Dahlia standing side-by-side.

Obviously, the two ladies saved him from getting devoured by the male Rosehearts. But the two ladies also looked like they were attending his funeral when he survived.

Hanna spoke up first and broke the awkward silence. "Nero, let's break up."

Nero's eyes widened in shock. "What?"

[Seriously, what happened before I got out…?]

"I've already heard about the vow that you need to make with Dahlia in order for the two of you to live," Hanna said quite coldly. "I'm sorry, but I can't marry you knowing that you can't literally live without Dahlia. A marriage should only be between two people. I don't want to feel like an outsider in my own marriage."

"I don't need the vow–"

"Dahlia will die if you don't make the vow with you," Hanna said, sternly cutting him off. "And you need to get rid of your Lunacy for good."

"But I can't lose you, Hanna!"

Nero didn't mean to raise his voice, but his emotions were starting to get out of control.

To simply put, he was agitated.

"I'm sorry, but I won't change my mind, Nero," Hanna said firmly. "Be a man and accept my decision, Nero."

"No!" Nero said, grabbing Hanna by the shoulders. "You can't leave me, Hanna Quinzel!"

"I can," Hanna said, her green eyes glowing menacingly. "Unhand me before I cut off your hands, Prince Nero."

***

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