Royal Secret: I'm A Princess!

He chose the name 'Zev' because he read a story before where the wolf was named that way.

Anyway, he pretty much got along well with his Soul Beast after he tamed him. He became his sparring partner. In that dimension, his soul felt like his physical body. Aside from improving his physical strength, he was also able to learn how to control his Mana properly.

But of course, the only thing that he was able to train was his mind and soul. This was the first time that he applied the things that he learned on his physical body.

"You pass the Mana test, Neoma. I can feel that you've been training diligently with your Soul Beast," Nero said. After Neoma summoned her Soul Beast, he clearly saw the strong aura around her. His Majesty said that his twin sister was "lazy" when it comes to training. That meant their father was either stupid or negligent towards Neoma. Or maybe both. "Now, for the final test, I want you to show me your killing intent."

"Nero, you inherited our father's crazy gene," Neoma said while shaking her head. "You're making me want to knock some sense into your head, Nero."

"Your way of speaking has changed, Neoma," he said, amused. Now that Neoma wasn't acting like a sheltered little girl, he could clearly see how different she was from the Neoma that he protected in his mind and heart all these years. But the real Neoma wasn't bad at all. "I think I like you more now."

Before his twin sister could even react, he already leaped towards her direction with his ice claws ready. He didn't want to ruin Neoma's face even further. But he knew how vain his twin sister was.

That meant ruining her beauty would enrage her the fastest.

I'm so sorry, Neoma.

He didn't have any more time left because he could feel the curse in him reactivating. So, in a swift movement, he used his right hand to maul Neoma's left cheek…

… that was the plan.

But for some reason, everything around him suddenly turned black.

Then, from where Neoma stood a while ago, he saw Princess Nichole instead. The Devil was holding the Death's Scythe. And she slashed it towards him.

Nero didn't plan to use his full strength but he couldn't let his guard down when facing the Devil– even if it meant fighting his aunt. "Zev," he called his Soul Beast. The mere fact that he was raising his Mana to prepare for a serious fight was already enough to make his insides bleed. Ah, his curse had been reactivated. "Kill her."

***

"ZEV, KILL her."

To say that Neoma was shocked when she heard Nero order his Soul Beast would be an understatement. She raised her head to confront her twin brother, she was surprised when she found herself in the middle of a dark space.

The place where Nero was supposed to be was occupied by something else.

To be precise, it was a crow with big, shining red eyes. It almost looked like the crow's eyes were rubies. And it was almost the same size as an adult phoenix.

She didn't want to admit this but she felt terrified. For the first time after a long while, she seriously felt like her life was in danger. Although she knew that she shouldn't act recklessly while she didn't know what was happening yet, she couldn't help but feel the strong urge to protect herself from the crow.

Because yes, she found herself shaking in fear before it.

"Tteokbokki," Neoma said. Much to her annoyance, she heard fear in her own voice. "Burn the crow."

***

"FATHER!"

"Stay there, Hanna!" Rufus said to his daughter firmly. He didn't like yelling at Hanna, and he hoped that she knew that he only raised his voice because of urgency. After all, he didn't want his only daughter's life to be put at risk. "I'm fine," he said, then he smiled at his daughter to assure her that he was really fine. "I'm not going to die."

Hanna sobbed, then she covered her mouth with her hands. "But the White Tiger is…"

His daughter wasn't able to finish her sentence when she cried hard.

After all, White Tiger was currently trying to rip his arm off.

He didn't know what happened to Prince Nero and Princess Neoma a while ago. But for some reason, the twin royals released a terrifying bloodlust directed at each other. In short, both Prince Nero and Princess Neoma tried to kill each other using their Soul Beasts.

When Princess Neoma summoned her Soul Beast with the intention of killing Prince Nero, the White Tiger and the Black Tortoise returned to their original forms to attack the royal princess.

Fortunately, he and Lewis Crevan were able to move fast and put themselves between the two angry Soul Beasts and the frozen Princess Neoma.

He used his Shadow Veins (from the shadows of the plants and trees around them) that sprouted from the ground to hold back the White Tiger. He succeeded. But unfortunately, the Soul Beast was still able to bite into his arm. And it wouldn't let go.

If only I brought my sword…

But the palace rules dictate that only the royal knights were allowed to bring weapons in the residences of the royal family members.

Though he should still be thankful that the White Tiger wasn't using its full strength. If it did, his arm might have been ripped off as soon as it bit him.

Maybe the White Tiger has recognized me as His Majesty's cousin.

Rufus turned to Lewis Crevan and saw him struggling with the Black Tortoise and the Black Serpent.

The fox boy was able to crack the Black Tortoise's hardshell– which was a huge feat– with a kick a while ago. But unfortunately, the little black snake was now choking the life out of Lewis Crevan. It seemed like the Black Tortoise had paralyzed the child.

I need to help Lewis Crevan!

Rufus knew that increasing his Mana would aggravate the White Tiger. But he couldn't let the young boy die right before his eyes. Right before he summoned his full Mana, he heard an angry voice that made the ground shake hard.

"What the hell is happening here?!"

It was Emperor Nikolai…

… and his voice was enough to knock the White Tiger and the Black Tortoise (including the black snake) out.

Ah, his Veil of Darkness also disappeared in an instant.

Rufus, despite having a bleeding arm, was relieved that he and Lewis Crevan were both safe now. But he couldn't say that they would be safe from His Majesty's wrath. Especially since Prince Nero and Princess Neoma both remained unmoving.

Just what is happening with the twin royals?

***

NIKOLAI already expected to be stressed out when he arrived at the training ground covered with Rufus's Veil of Darkness.

But he wasn't prepared at the scene that greeted him.

Rufus and Lewis Crevan were being attacked by his Soul Beasts, Hanna Quinzel was crying silently, and his children were frozen like statues.

"What the hell is happening here?!" Nikolai yelled angrily.

Nikolai couldn't help but yell angrily. "What the hell is happening here?!"

As soon as he yelled, his Soul Beast dropped unconscious. Then, they returned to their spirit form and were absorbed back by his soul.

Rufus's arm was bleeding like crazy.

On the other hand, Lewis Crevan fell on the ground while catching his breath. The mark around the foxy boy's neck was a clear sign that the black snake almost choked him to death.

"Glenn, bring Madam Hammock here," Nikolai ordered the knight standing behind him. "And make sure that our guests, Princess Brigitte Griffiths and Nowell Elwood, won't come near the training ground."

"As you wish, Your Majesty," Glenn said, then he bowed to him. "I'll be on my way now."

He just nodded, then he walked towards his children.

"Your Majesty–"

"I'll hear the full report later," Nikolai said, cutting-off Rufus. He stood between Nero and Neoma. Much to his relief, both his children were breathing. But for some reason, they weren't moving as if they were paralyzed. "I just need to know for now what triggered the White Tiger and the Black Tortoise to attack."

Rufus gulped before he spoke. "Prince Nero and Princess Neoma tried to seriously kill each other, Your Majesty."

His brows furrowed in disbelief. "What?"

It seemed like his cousin was about to repeat himself. But he was interrupted when Gale, in her white bunny form, literally fell from the sky and plummeted on top of Rufus's head.

And she wasn't alone.

Trevor, the demon boy, also appeared beside the duke.

"Shit," Trevor said while checking on Nero, his purple eyes glowing dangerously. "His Royal Highness used his Mana and it activated his curse. But it seems like some unknown force has manipulated the Crown Prince into drawing out his power." The demon boy's brows furrowed in confusion. "It's not hostile though."

"It's their Roseheart blood," Gale, still seated comfortably on top of Rufus's head, said while looking at Neoma. "It seems like their Roseheart blood has shown the twins a glimpse of the future after they clashed."

Now that Gale mentioned it, he remembered that Mona would often stiffen when a vision hit her. It seemed like even that part of her ability had been inherited by their children.

Nikolai was relieved to know that Nero and Neoma ended up that way because of their Roseheart blood, and not because of an enemy. But on the other hand, it made him worry. If the twins only saw a glimpse of the future, then why did the two almost kill each other?

***

NOTE: Hi. I've always wanted to say this but I always forget. But since I remember it now, I'll share it with you: Royal Secret: I'm a Princess! (RS) is a concept/story that I finished drafting first before Mommy Villainess (MV). 

But since RS isn't heavily-focused on romance, I decided to write a romance novel because I'm more confident in that genre. Thus, I ended up writing MV first. Readers of both RS and MV already noticed a lot of similarities (and I often switch up the characters' names) between the two.

I just want to say that RS is the "blueprint." Hehe. I just happened to write MV first. ^_^

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

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