Royal Secret: I'm A Princess!

[I'm glad he wasn't around when I accidentally complimented him.]

Anyway, he watched the Sorcerer turn the gigantic terrarium into a small crystal ball that fit perfectly in his hand.

[That's not something an ordinary Sorcerer is capable of doing.]

"I'll be delivering this filthy thing to His and Her Majesties to the Spirit World," Trevor said. His words were polite, but his tone? Not so much. "Your Imperial Majesty, will you be alright being the only member of the Imperial Family left here in the palace?"

Nero scoffed at the Sorcerer's concern. "Who are you to worry about me? I'm fine and I'll be fine. If you're done with your business here, then scram. I have so many things to do."

The Sorcerer just chuckled.

[He looks fine when he's acting like that. But if I have to guess, then I'd say the problem may lie in his heart. His Mana is unstable, and it's definitely because his Core is now too weak and too small to handle the new power that he gained.]

"Your Imperial Majesty, are you done checking on my condition?"

"You better say your farewell to Neoma now before it's too late," Nero said, waving his hand. "And tell my parents I said 'hi.'"

"I will, Your Imperial Majesty," Trevor Kesser said, laughing softly while bowing towards him politely. "See you later."

And, just like that, the Sorcerer had vanished.

[It's time to get back to work.]

"Where is Calyx de Luca?"

It was hectic switching with Neoma back and forth.

He couldn't really focus on Calyx de Luca.

"Duke Jasper Hawthorne apprehended Calyx de Luca, Your Imperial Majesty," Sanford Devon reported to him. "According to the message that Melvin sent earlier, Calyx de Luca is currently being guarded by Duke Jasper Hawthorne and Duchess Hanna Quinzel."

Hanna?

[Why does she keep on putting her life in danger for the sake of the Imperial Family?]

Nero sighed while shaking his head. "Send a message to Duchess Quinzel and tell her to meet me at my palace."

***

"WHY the long face, Duke Hawthorne?" Hanna asked worriedly when he noticed that the young duke didn't look happy even after successfully apprehending Calyx de Luca. "Thanks to you, we finally put Calyx de Luca in prison."

To be precise, Calyx de Luca was currently knocked out inside the prison cell.

Hanna and Duke Jasper Hawthorne slipped away from the public eye while Lord Manu and Prince Skylus started a prayer rally again.

[The new saint is really working hard.]

That was the reason Hanna and Duke Jasper Hawthorne were together in the prison under Nero's palace.

[This prison has the tightest security out of all the prisons in the Imperial Palace.]

"I didn't apprehend Calyx de Luca because I defeated him," Duke Jasper Hawthorne said bitterly. "He suddenly stopped fighting and let himself get knocked out. I saw him smirk as if he knew that even if we caught him, we still wouldn't be able to kill him."

Oh.

"Did it look like Calyx de Luca received a message in the middle of the fight?"

"That seems to be the case."

"Then it probably has something to do with Neoma's business with Helstor," Hanna said, trying to console the young duke. "I just received a message from Neoma telling me that we can't kill Calyx de Luca."

"…"

That only seemed to make the young duke even more disappointed in himself.

"Lord Jasper, don't be too sad," Hanna said, addressing the young duke more casually this time. "I know you want to kill Calyx de Luca yourself. But if I get the chance to do it on my own, I'll make sure I'll avenge you first. How do you want me to punish the bastard?"

Duke Jasper Hawthorne turned to her with a surprised look on his face, and then he suddenly burst out laughing.

Hmm?

[Did I say something funny?]

"I'm sorry to say this, but cursing doesn't suit you, Lady Hanna," Duke Jasper Hawthorne said, still smiling widely while shaking his head. And, yes, he also addressed her casually this time. "I can clearly see Princess Neoma's "bad" influence on you."

It was Hanna's turn to laugh softly because he knew he was only joking when he called Neoma a bad influence on her.

[Lord Jasper would rather stab himself than insult Neoma in any way.]

***

TSK.

Lewis suddenly felt irritated for some reason.

Well, the fact that the Abyss took Commander Ruto's form was already annoying. But it seemed like his irritation was coming from something else.

[I hope everything is fine in Princess Neoma and Lady Hanna's end.]

"Commander Lewis, you're spacing out," Paige Avery said, patting Lewis' back. Well, she tried to. In reality, her palm barely touched his back. "Have you figured out how we're going to take that thing down?"

The "thing" the mage was referring to was obviously the Abyss.

Right now, the kids were attacking the fake Commander Ruto.

Jeno Dankworth was shooting it with his double guns.

Juri Wisteria was trying to hit it with her sledgehammer.

Xion Redgrave was throwing poisonous dagger at it.

And Greko…

[He's cheering everyone energetically.]

Sadly, their attacks didn't even put a scratch on the fake Commander Ruto who just kept on avoiding their attacks.

However…

"That thing is gathering its power slowly yet consistently," Paige Avery said, having the same observation as Lewis. "We have to figure out how to take it down before it starts fighting back. That thing looks like its trying to analyze the kids' power and movements, hence it's only defending for now."

In short, the human form of the Abyss could think.

"Does the Abyss only copy the form of the human it transformed into?" Lewis wondered out lould. "If it can think, then…"

"Oh," Paige Avery said. As expected, she was quick-witted. It seemed like she had already realized what Lewis wanted to do. "This is why Princess Neoma always tells us to think outside the box."

Right?

***

"ARE YOU sure about that Neoma?"

"What's wrong?" Neoma asked Ruto while looking around her man's bedroom. "Do you have a complain about my decision?"

"I was so sure you'd choose Lewis Crevan to be your "human weapon" for your fight against Helstor," Ruto said, obviously confused and curious. "Why that person?"

Ah.

[So, my man is curious about my thought process behind that decision.]

But, honestly?

Her reason was...

Neoma shrugged casually. "Just because?"

***

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