“F*CK OFF.”

Neoma almost choked on her saliva when the first thing that she heard after waking up was Lewis cussing at Nero.

She knew her son was talking to her twin brother because she could feel Nero’s bloodlust.

[Why is Nero here?]

Wait, that was a stupid question.

If she felt it when Nero’s heart stopped beating, her twin brother probably felt that something bad happened to her while she was in the dimension that Trevor called “hellhole.”

“Duke Quinzel,” Nero said.

Neoma’s eyes widened.

[Duke Quinzel is here?!]

She had a soft spot for the duke. After all, in her first life, Duke Quinzel was the only person who treated her right. She had always wanted to meet him in this lifetime.

“You heard that animal cuss at me, didn’t you?” Nero asked in an eerily “playful” tone. “It is enough ground for him to be executed, isn’t it?”

Neoma was shocked to hear that.

[Did he just call my son an “animal?”]

“By our law, cussing at the royal family is punishable by public execution, Your Royal Highness,” Duke Quinzel answered hesitantly. “I understand that the fox boy is in the wrong, Prince Nero. But please don’t be hasty. After all, he serves Her Royal Highness.”

[See? Duke Quinzel is really a decent person.]

“An animal who doesn’t know his place doesn’t deserve to serve my precious twin sister.”

[This brat…]

Neoma couldn’t take it anymore. She got up and immediately caught Nero’s eyes who looked shocked to know that she was already awake. “A royal prince who can’t treat other people as human beings doesn’t deserve to be the next ruler of the empire.” She glared at Nero. “And most of all, you don’t have the right to call yourself my brother if you treat my people poorly, Nero.”

Yes, she purposely didn’t call him “brother” this time.

Nero looked hurt by her words. “Neoma…”

She ignored her twin brother, then she turned to Lewis. “Lewis, I don’t know what happened but you can’t just cuss at someone like that.”

[OH GOD I’M SUCH A HYPOCRITE!]

She hated preaching when she couldn’t walk-the-talk but she had to scold Lewis. Nero probably provoked her sweet little son but still, in this world, cussing at the royal prince was equal to death sentence.

Gosh, she suddenly remembered that Lewis had sharp hearing. Maybe he heard her whenever she cussed at the emperor. That probably made her son think that it was okay to curse at a royal family member.

[I’m so sorry, my son.]

“Neoma, are you taking your butler’s side?” Nero asked, obviously hurt.

“I’m not taking anyone’s side,” she said, then she got off the bed. Then, she looked at Lewis and Nero back and forth. “Nero, Lewis, I want you to apologize to each other SINCERELY.” Before Lewis or Nero could complain, she already turned to Sir Glenn. “Sir Glenn, can you bring me to where Papa is?”

Sir Glenn looked confused but he still slightly bowed to her. “As you wish, Your Royal Highness.”

“Neoma, I came here because I was worried about you,” Nero said in an obviously annoyed tone. “Why are you acting cold to me?”

“Thanks, but I didn’t ask you to come so don’t make it sound like I owe it to you,” she told him. “I’m not happy to know that you’re treating my people like this, Nero. Let’s talk after you reflect on your actions.”

Nero didn’t respond but he scowled at her.

It was the first time that he did that to her but to her, it was a relief. She’d rather see Nero’s real emotions than watch him hide his real feelings in a creepy smile.

[I created a monster so it’s my job to return him to being human.]

She turned to Duke Quinzel. Even without looking at her reflection, she knew that her face instantly softened up. “Your Grace, I’m leaving Nero and Lewis to you. Please help them settle their differences.”

She’d love to spend time with the duke but at the moment, her priority was to face that Trevor dude again. She had so many questions for the talking book.

Anyway…

Duke Quinzel looked surprised by her request. But in the end, he smiled and nodded. “I will help them as much as I can, Your Royal Highness.”

“Thank you, Your Grace,” Neoma said, then she turned to Sir Glenn and Tteokbokki. “Let’s go, gentlemen.”

Before she left the room, she gave Lewis and Nero one last glare.

Lewis looked like a puppy hurt by his owner, while Nero’s face was as blank as Emperor Nikolai’s usual poker face.

It pained her to discipline the two but she had to if she didn’t want them to kill each other.

Gosh, her charm really knew no bound.

[It really do be like that sometimes.]

***

NIKOLAI raised a brow at the strange boy who drank his tea when he hadn’t even touched his teacup.

Every noble in the empire knew that those who were in a lower rank shouldn’t drink or eat first until the one with the highest rank does. In this case, he was obviously the person with the higher rank. How dare this strange child drink his tea first?

[Insolent.]

“So, what do you want to know first?” the strange boy asked when he put his teacup down on the coaster. “Ah, I should introduce myself first. Where are my manners?”

“You obviously lack one,” Nikolai said bluntly.

Right now, they were in the parlor room in the tower where the child was locked up.

On their way there, Kyle received a call from Glenn. According to the knight, Neoma asked him to escort her to the tower.

And so, Nikolai asked Kyle to wait for the two outside the parlor.

“My name is Trevor and I’m the Devil’s Grimoire,” the child said with a blank look on his face. Then, he made a finger gun and pointed it at his temple. “All the forbidden and ancient spells that many seek are stored in here.”

Nikolai, once again, raised a brow at that. “”All?””

Trevor smiled brightly before he answered. “Yes, Your Majesty. All– including the ancient spell that could cure the royal prince’s curse.”

“How did you know about the royal prince’s curse?”

“I met Princess Neoma,” the child said. “I can read the desire of the people who seek me. One of the royal princess’s wishes is for her twin brother to be cured.”

“”One of her wishes?””

“Her second wish is none of your business, Your Majesty.”

[I want to crush this child so bad.]

But he held back because he still needed this rude talking book.

“I know you won’t cure the royal prince for free,” Nikolai said, then he sipped his tea before he continued. “Tell me what you want in return.”

“House Kesser.”

He froze when he heard the name of one of the oldest families in the empire. It was so old that the new generation of nobles hadn’t probably heard of it yet. He couldn’t blame them though. After all, House Kesser was one of the families that had been erased in the history of Moonasterion Empire.

Of course, he knew the Devil’s Grimoire couldn’t be an ordinary child. But he still didn’t expect him to bring up House Kesser all of a sudden.

“I will cure the royal prince if you restore House Kesser, Your Majesty,” Trevor said seriously. “His Royal Highness is your only heir, isn’t he? I’m sure you can’t afford to lose him.”

That was true.

Still, restoring an old family wouldn’t be that easy. Even though Nero’s life was on the line, he couldn’t easily give in to the demand of a talking book.

“Forget it,” Nikolai said, then he stood up. “If you don’t want to cooperate with me, then I’ll just find a way to force you to cure the royal prince.”

He was about to leave the parlor when the strange boy spoke again.

“Do you know that the fox boy’s Marble is powerful enough to bring back someone from the dead?”

He turned to the talking book. “Are you saying that the royal princess’s foxy boy is being targeted because of his Fox Marble? That someone wants to revive a dead person?”

“Your Majesty, you can’t be this slow,” the strange boy said playfully. “Duke Sloane was approached by the Devil because of his strong desire to bring someone dear to him back to life. Who do you think is the person that the duke wanted to revive no matter what the cost is?”

He felt shivers down his spine.

Duke Sloane had always been notorious for his awful personality. But everyone also knew that he was kind to only one person. And that was none other than his precious sister.

“Empress Juliet,” Nikolai said in disbelief. “Are you saying that Duke Sloane was trying to bring the late empress back to life?”

Trevor laughed softly. “Your Majesty, have you checked if the late empress’s body is still in the shrine?”

***

NOTE: Hi! I’m not sure because I forgot the date when I’m supposed to go premium. If I remember it correctly, I think it will begin tomorrow (November 5th). So my next update will probably be locked by then.

I am hoping for your support. If you enjoy Royal Secret: I’m a Princess and you think my story deserves your coins, please consider purchasing the locked chapters. Please help me earn enough to have a merry Christmas next month. Thank you~ T_T

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Hi. You may now send GIFTs to our Neoma. Thank you~

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