Royal Secret: I'm A Princess!

Then an ominous feeling suddenly overwhelmed her.

[It's as if something bad is about to happen…]

"Demons…"

Hanna turned to Lewis who was standing on the balcony. "The demons are attacking us?"

The fox just nodded.

She immediately ran to the balcony.

Then, much to her shock, she saw a hoard of demons approaching the mansion.

[I thought we could go unnoticed for a few more hours…]

"Don't worry, I'll protect you," Lewis assured her, his hand already touching his scabbard. "Just stay here, Princess Hanna–"

"How many times do we have to tell you that a fox fights with his claws and not with a sword?!"

Huh?

Hanna was surprised when two people suddenly fell from the sky, causing the ground to shake when they landed on their feet.

"Ah."

Hanna turned to Lewis who looked like he recognized the "guests." "Who are they, Lewis?"

"Lisica, Rustin," Lewis said casually. "Dead foxes."

Dead… foxes?

Hanna blinked, tilting her head to one side. "You mean your ancestors?"

Lewis just frowned, obviously displeased to call their "guests" his ancestors.

"Would you look at that?" the female Silver Fox, who looked too seductive for Hanna's conservative taste, said while shaking her head. "He's still as rude as ever. But what do I expect from a child raised by the rude Imperial Princess?"

Lewis growled lowly at the female fox. "Don't insult Princess Neoma."

The female fox just laughed.

"Hey, kid. We hate to be here as much as you hate seeing us," the male fox said, laughing. "But what can we do? Lord Levi's son threatened us."

"Lord Ruto?" Hanna asked, surprised. But perhaps she shouldn't have been surprised. "Lord Ruto is really as dependable as Princess Neoma."

"Me, too."

She turned to Lewis, confused. "Huh?"

"Me, too," Lewis said, tilting his head to one side. "Dependable."

Hanna couldn't help but laugh at Lewis' competitiveness, then she gently patted his shoulder. "Of course, Lewis is also dependable."

***

IT WASN'T a pretty sight.

When Rufus came out of the tent, the first thing he saw was the severed limbs of his men.

Jaxson Emmett, the vice-captain of his army, was still leading the troop despite losing his Mana just a moment ago.

[This stubborn fool…!]

"Jaxson, get out of here and take those who can't fight with you!" Rufus said, yelling at his vice-captain. He usually avoided raising his voice, but it wasn't the right time to be polite. "I'll take care of them!"

The enemies that ambushed their troops were gigantic monsters– the type that feasted on human flesh.

It would have been an easy fight if the Extons were there.

But, unfortunately, the Extons were at their estate under the emperor's command.

"I can't leave you alone to fight, Your Grace!" Jaxson Emmett said stubbornly. "I promise not to get in your way– just let me stay here and fight with you!"

For the first time, Rufus wanted to smack his vice-captain at the back of his head.

More and more of their men were losing their power because of the strange vapor. Hence, those who suddenly lost their Mana became an easy prey for the flesh-eating monsters. He thought he was going to lose his mind while watching his men fall one by one.

[We should get rid of the vapor first…!]

"Duke Quinzel isn't alone."

Huh?

Rufus looked up when a huge shadow was cast over them.

And then he saw Duke Jasper Hawthorne, riding on the back of a huge serpent.

Ah, right.

[Duke Hawthorne and his knights are also here.]

Rufus knitted his eyebrows. "Where did you get that serpent, Duke Hawthorne?"

Jasper Hawthorne patted the head of the serpent. "This is my Elemental Guardian, Your Grace."

"The duck?!"

"He's actually a water serpent," Jasper Hawthorne said. "His curse was lifted after I officially became his new master. But let's talk about that later, Your Grace."

Rufus nodded in agreement, his hand already touching the scabbard tied around his waist. "I agree."

"Let me deal with the vapor first," Jasper Hawthorne said, surprising Rufus. "Duckie, do it."

<"Let's fucking go!">

That was what the water serpent yelled, and then Rufus felt a chill in his bones.

Uhm.

Rufus had heard that strange phrase before.

[Did the Elemental Guardian learn that phrase from Princess Neoma?]

Hearing that made Rufus miss the Imperial Princess who was like a daughter to him.

[I should finish my job here and return to the palace and visit Princess Neoma.]

Emperor Nikolai hadn't released an official statement yet about Princess Neoma's "death," hence Rufus wanted to believe that the Imperial Princess was still alive.

"Rain…?"

Rufus' train of thought was interrupted when he heard what Jaxson Emmett said.

Only then did he notice that it was, in fact, "raining."

"The vapor is disappearing," Rufus commented when the vapor that served like a smokescreen quickly vanished. That was when the realization hit him. "Did the water serpent turn the vapor into rain?"

He also remembered that he felt a chill earlier.

And then he belatedly realized that the chill he felt was actually due to the sudden drop in the temperature– not because of an ominous feeling.

"Duckie has control over the water element as a water serpent," Jasper Hawthorne said, and he sounded proud of his Elemental Guardian. Rightfully, of course. "He lowered the temperature of the water installed in his body, then he released it to make the air cold. And that was how he turned the vapor into liquid."

<"After that the vapor has turned into liquid, I can control it now!"> Duckie said energetically. <"I'll purify it so that it won't be harmful anymore. But I don't want to deal with the monsters! They're not worth a penny!">

Jasper Hawthorne just sighed and shook his head.

Rufus, on the other hand, laughed in relief. "Don't worry, Sir Elemental Guardian." He then pulled out his sword. "We'll deal with the monsters."

"As expected of my brother."

Hmm?

Who in the world had the audacity to call Rufus his "brother?"

[I only have one older brother, and he's already living a different life in a different world.]

"Uhm, Your Grace…" Jasper Hawthorne called him hesitantly, then the young duke gulped before asking. "Does the former Commander Gavin have a twin?"

Rufus felt a chill once again when he realized why the young duke asked such a question.

The chill he felt this time wasn't due to the cold weather, but due to the fact that the "person" in front of him sent a shiver down his spine.

"Gavin…?"

The person leading a new batch of monsters looked like a replica of Gavin.

To be precise, that person looked like the younger version of Rufus' older brother.

[I can't clearly see the monsters behind him since they're covered by a strange smoke…]

"Are you surprised that I look like your brother?" the "replica" asked, wearing the same stoic face that Gavin used to wear when he was around that age. "You shouldn't be surprised yet, Rufus Quinzel– I need to shock you with my ability first."

And then the smoke that hid the monsters behind the "replica" finally vanished.

That was when Rufus saw that the monsters were actually Shadow Beasts.

"How dare you?" Rufus asked, clenching his jaw. "How dare you bring out a replica of my brother and steal our Shadow Manipulation Technique?"

***

NERO SCOFFED after freezing the strange vapor that emerged from the ground.

He was on his way to "feed" the Frost Wyverns with his ice when that stupid thing tried to touch him.

Now the crows had resorted to using harmful vapor, huh?

"How dare you try to touch the body of a member of the Imperial Family?" Nero asked, clenching his fist. "Know your place."

And as soon as he closed his hand, the frozen vapor broke into tiny pieces.

"Wow," Melvin commented while clapping his hands. "I'm impressed, Prince Nero. This is why I still serve you even though you're worse than a demon– you're good at everything you do."

"Of course," Nero said, scoffing once again. "I'm Neoma's twin brother, after all."

"Shouldn't Your Imperial Highness say that you are the Imperial Majesties' son at a time like this? You were born perfect because of your parents and not because of Princess Neoma…"

"Neoma was the one who raised me and not my parents."

"That doesn't make sense since raising you have nothing to do with the abilities you inherited, but I know Your Imperial Highness' logic doesn't work when it comes to Princess Neoma."

"Melvin, you're getting good at your retorts these days," Nero said, smirking at his secretary. "Do you want me to officially declare you as the future Chancellor as a reward?"

"I made a mistake, Prince Nero," Melvin said immediately, bowing his head. "I'll keep my mouth shut now."

Nero stopped walking, and it wasn't because of his secretary.

It was because he saw Dahlia.

Since Yule asked him to always bring the Black Witch with him, he asked Dahlia to tag along when he visited the Exton Estate.

However, they didn't share a carriage.

Hence, this was the first time that he saw the Black Witch.

[What is she doing?]

Dahlia was staring at the dark sky, and it looked like she was listening to someone or something that only she could hear.

Oh, right.

[Dahlia can hear the Stars.]

"Prince Nero."

Nero flinched when Dahlia suddenly called his name, then the Black Witch turned to him.

[Ah, her eyes are glowing.]

"We must return to the palace at once," Dahlia said in a strange voice. "Empress Mona's blood won't be enough."

Nero knitted his eyebrows. "My mother's blood?"

***

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