NIKOLAI was surprised when all of a sudden, the ruby gem in his brooch exploded. As the emperor, he was required to dress accordingly. But it wasn't the reason why he always had that particular brooch on him.
[It's a signal from the demon boy.]
"Your Majesty!"
It was just a small explosion that didn't hurt him and yet, Geoffrey Kinsley already barged in his office.
"Are you alright, Your Majesty?" Geoffrey, who just returned to the palace after dropping Neoma off at the Red Sky Tower, asked worriedly. "Are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine," Nikolai said, then he tore the brooch off of his suit and threw it away. Then, he stood up and walked past the worried Paladin as he explained the situation. "Trevor sent a signal indicating that his place is infiltrated."
The Paladin, who was walking behind him, gasped. "Then, Prince Nero…"
"My son might be in danger."
That was when he rembered that Trevor made two portals connected to his hellhole.
The first one belonged to him, of course.
And the second portal…
[It's a gate created for Saint Zavaroni.]
He clenched his hands when he realized that he had forgotten about the fact that the saint had access to the demon boy's lair. Now that His Holiness had joined forces with the Devil, he might hurt Nero to achieve the Devil's goal.
[I should have destroyed the door accessible to His Holiness earlier!]
"Geoffrey, prepare the portal," Nikolai said sternly. "I'm going to the demon boy's lair."
***
TARA, while in the middle of watching William and Prince Nero "fight," suddenly froze when she felt a distress signal wrapped in demonic power.
That signal contained a ssage that she understood right away.
[Oh, no…]
"William!"
The Grand Spirit instantly stopped playing with Prince Nero. In just the blink of an eye, William was already dragging his feet in her direction. This man probably felt that she was about to order him around again.
"What is it this ti, Your Majesty?" William asked in a bored and irritated voice. "If it has anything to do with the filthy– I an the royal princess, I will not go."
"The demon boy has sent a ssage," Tara said in an urgent voice. "The place where Prince Nero's physical body is hidden has been infiltrated by the Devil."
The Grand Spirit cursed.
She would have scolded William for cursing had the situation been different. But for them and the Spirit World, Prince Nero was very important.
"I hope the Devil injures my physical body heavily, but not to the point that I'd die."
She and William both turned to the royal prince with a shocked look on their faces. However, Prince Nero maintained a calm expression despite the scary thing that he just said.
"Don't worry– I have no intention to die," Prince Nero said with a bright smile on his face. "I just thought that if the Devil hurt again, then Neoma wouldn't forgive him this ti. I want to end my twin sister's "relationship" with them badly."
William frown at what the royal prince said.
Tara, on the other hand, was appalled once again.
[Prince Nero has quite the twisted mind…]
***
"THIS IS the last prophecy that I received from the Moon God."
Trevor instinctively caught the round and transparent ball that Saint Dominic Zavaroni threw in his direction. That damned thing was hot so he imdiately put it in the Bookworm's mouth and made it swallow the ball. After all, the Bookworm's stomach was a huge storage.
[More like an inventory.]
He glared at the saint but he couldn't really move from his spot.
As of the mont, he was standing in front of the bed where Prince Nero's physical body was laid.
He was outnumbered and overpowered.
Well, actually, he only had two guests. But those two were the saint and the Devil himself. If it was only the saint, then maybe he might have had the chance to run away with Prince Nero.
[But the damned Devil is here…]
"Are you still scared of , Trevor?" the Devil asked in a calm yet mocking tone. "Where did you get the guts to propose to Princess Neoma when you're still shaking in front of ?" He clicked his tongue and shook his head. "Pathetic."
"Hey, this is called 'trauma,'" he complained. "You're the one who caused my trauma and you do not have the right to put the bla on ."
The Devil let out a deep and long sigh. "I'll step out for a mont," he said to the saint, then he turned to the sleeping Prince Nero. "I may not be able to stop my urge to kill the little prince if I stay here any longer."
He clicked his tongue in annoyance. [The Devil is acting like William. Why is it hard for the Devil to understand that if he wants Neoma to take his side, then he better not lay a finger on Prince Nero.]
Was he the only person here with a working brain?
"Thank you, Lord Devil," the saint said, calling the Devil in a cringey way.
The Devil just scoffed before disappearing.
He would admit that he felt a little relieved now that the Devil was out of sight. Still, he didn't let his guard down.
"Mr. Trevor, I apologize for using the portal that you created for this way."
He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't care. The damage has already been done and I'm too upset to accept your apology," he said firmly. "Anyway, did you really just co all the way here just to hand the last prophecy that you received from the Moon God?"
"Yes," the saint said and wow, he sounded convincing.
[Is it because he's the forr saint known for his benevolence?]
"Mr. Trevor, it wasn't easy convincing the Devil to take here without killing Prince Nero," the saint said gently. "The only thing that convinced him to listen to is the fact that we have to prioritize Princess Neoma's safety at the mont."
He knew what the saint was talking about.
While he was roaming aimlessly at the Royal Palace, he heard all the latest gossips from the servants. From the High Priest's arrival at the Royal Capital to the "Crown Prince's" reckless movent that endangered the life of the young higher nobles with "him."
Since he wasn't dumb, he knew that the incident that happened in the camp would jeopardize Princess Neoma's position for many reasons.
First, her affinity to the Devil would be discovered.
Second, the Hellgate that she opened would definitely cause her to be accused of being a demon herself.
And lastly, the issue regarding the Death Camp.
[The biggest issue is the High Priest. If the High Priest declares that the "Crown Prince" has an affinity to the Devil, then Princess Neoma will be dethroned.]
Once the "Crown Prince" was captured, it would only be a matter of ti before the whole empire finds out that the "Crown Prince" was actually a hidden royal princess. The crows would have a field day if that happened.
[I can't rely on His Majesty to protect my Moon Princess.]
"It seems like you already know Princess Neoma's predicant," the saint comnted. "I can tell what you're thinking and you are correct, Mr. Trevor. The temple is currently the biggest problem at the mont."
"How would the prophecy that you handed help Princess Neoma?"
As he said, he wasn't dumb.
What would a demon like him use the prophecy for? Obviously, the saint sought him because he knew that he was the only one he could use to deliver the Divine Item to Princess Neoma.
[I'm that aweso.]
"I believe that Princess Neoma would know what to do with the Divine Item," the saint said vaguely. "To be honest with you, I haven't read the content of the prophecy yet."
"Huh?" he asked, confused. "Doesn't a prophecy usually just "speak" in your mind? I thought the Divine Item you handed contained the written version of the prophecy."
His Holiness fell silent for a while before he spoke again. "It's the first ti in a while that the Moon God sent a Divine Item. I was supposed to open it but I received another ssage telling to head to Mount Kimbro," he said carefully. "I have a feeling that the Moon God has already seen this coming. My gut feel tells that the Divine Item is ant for Princess Neoma."
"Are you saying that the Moon God sent an item in advance to save Princess Neoma from the problem caused by your betrayal?"
The saint smiled bitterly while nodding. "This will be the last ti that I'd follow the Moon God's will."
[I doubt it.]
He didn't say it out loud because he didn't care about the saint's business.
"Whatever," he said casually. "I'll deliver the Divine Item to Princess Neoma."
"Mr. Trevor, I'm touched," the saint said in a surprised voice. "Do you trust ?"
"Not at all," he said bluntly. "I will deliver the Divine Item to my Moon Princess because the Bookworm assured that it's safe. But only Princess Neoma can decide whether she'll trust you or not."
His Holiness smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Trevor."
He was about to tell the saint to drop the formalities since it was giving him goosebumps. But suddenly, they heard a sizzle in the air. The violent aura could only belong to one Spirit.
"I do not wish to fight with the Grand Spirit," Saint Dominic Zavaroni said. "We shall take our leave, Mr. Trevor."
"Ah, you need to pay for my service first," Trevor said with a smirk, reminding the saint that demons would never work for free. "Hit , Your Holiness."
***
WILLIAM was relieved to see that Prince Nero was still in the demon boy's lair when he arrived.
However, he noticed that the whole place was a ss.
Most of all, the demon boy was seated on the floor while coughing blood. Was he that weak to be beaten up that bad by the Devil?
[His strength does not match his arrogance.]
"At least you're useful enough to protect Nero's body," William said when he went past the demon boy. Then, he carefully carried Nero's physical body in his arms. "Queen Tara has accepted your proposal. I will bring Nero with to the Spirit World," he said, then he turned to the demon. "Fix yourself before you return to the Spirit World. The queen is expecting to hear the full report from you."
"Alright," the demon boy, called Trevor if he rembered it correctly, said weakly before waving his hand to shoo him away. "I need a mont to recover so go ahead."
"I do not have the intention to wait for you in the first place, demon bastard."
***
TREVOR, despite the ache in his body, couldn't help but smirk.
He asked Saint Dominic Zavaroni to beat him up to make it look like a fight had broken out in his lair. If the Devil just left quietly, William would have suspected that sothing was off. He couldn't lose the trust of the Spirit World.
[I'm a genius.]
It wasn't the only reason why he made that small sacrifice.
He covered his face to hide his smirk when an official door opened in his residence. Yes, it was the door that he created for His Majesty. As soon as the emperor saw his state and realized that Prince Nero was no longer there, panic and anger crossed his eyes.
"Prince Nero has been safely evacuated, Your Majesty," Trevor assured the emperor before he went on a rampage. "The Spirit World decided to aid us in protecting the royal prince's unconscious physical body."
He thought His Majesty would get angry at him for not getting his permission.
But Emperor Nikolai remained silent, a profound sadness crossing his eyes at the mont.
***
"PRINCESS NEOMA, I didn't think that we'd have the sa idea."
Neoma smiled awkwardly at her Jasper Oppa.
Right now, they were in the conference hall of the Red Tower Sky.
Juri Wisteria and Jeno Dankworth had been released and escorted back safely to their families. Greko, on the other hand, was sleeping on the couch. She would bring her "youngest son" to her palace later.
As of now, she needed to finish her eting with Duke Jasper Hawthorne first.
Of course, Lewis was already there. Her son was standing behind her while listening to the plan intently.
"I'm glad that we're on the sa page," Jasper Oppa said with a bright smile on her face. "You're really smart."
She just laughed softly.
Well, she was smart.
But the strategy that she shared with her oppa was just a copy of what the young duke had done in her first life.
She felt guilty but she had to do that to defend herself and protect Nero's position.
"Oppa, I'll summon Trevor later to discuss the issue with the High Priest with him," Neoma said, changing the topic. "Can I leave everything to you?"
Her oppa smiled and nodded. "Of course," he said, then his smile turned sad. "This is my responsibility. I'm sorry for dragging you into this ss, Princess Neoma."
That wasn't the first ti that Jasper Oppa apologized to her.
In fact, he also apologized to her children earlier.
"Oppa, you have nothing to apologize for," she said seriously. "We both decided to do this for the sake of the children in the empire. You're a noble and I'm a royal. We have the duty to protect the weak."
Jasper Oppa smiled gratefully at her.
She was about to say sothing when they heard an urgent knock on the door. Then, Dion Skelton entered the room with a worried look on his usually grumpy face.
[Okay, I'm nervous.]
Jasper Oppa noticed that Dion Skelton couldn't give his report because of his presence. Therefore, the young duke gracefully excused himself.
"Princess Neoma, His Majesty ordered that we must return to the Royal Palace at once," Dion said in a calm yet urgent voice once Jasper Hawthorne left the room. "We received a report that Trevor's lair, the place where Prince Nero is being treated, has been infiltrated by the Devil and the forr saint."
Neoma let out a long sigh. "Goddammit."
***
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