Royal Secret: I'm A Princess!

Chapter 279 - PARTNERS IN CRIME

"FIRST things first," Nikolai, seated on the sofa across from Trevor, said as he put his teacup down on the table. "Is Nero safe?"

He brought Trevor back to his palace because he couldn't stay long in his hellhole.

Right now, he was having tea with the demon boy in the tea room of his palace. Geoffrey Kinsley stepped out for a moment to wait for Neoma's arrival.

"Of course, Your Majesty," Trevor answered his question while putting several sugar cubes in his tea. "The Devil didn't come for Prince Nero. He just accompanied Saint Dominic Zavaroni in my estate using the portal that we forgot to close."

He flinched after being reminded of his mistake.

It may sound like an excuse but the unknown memories that he saw last time kept messing with his head. Moreover, he was busy searching for the temple's weakness. He was already aware of the corruption happening in the temple but he needed something more shocking– something that would make people forget about the saint's betrayal.

[But so far, we found none.]

"Why did the former saint come to you?" he asked the demon boy. "Is it related to Neoma?"

Saint Zavaroni was close to his daughter.

Perhaps, the saint wasn't able to reach out to Neoma because of the shield that he put around the Royal Palace. And thus, His Holiness probably decided to pay Trevor a visit to relay a message for his daughter.

The demon boy sipped his tea before he spoke. "Yes, Your Majesty," he said. "His Holiness asked me to deliver a Divine Item to Princess Neoma."

"And what Divine Item is that?"

"Apparently, it's the Moon God's last prophecy that he sent to the saint."

He stopped lifting his teacup midway. "You're kidding."

"Nah," the demon boy said, then he casually picked up a cookie on the plate. "I checked the item. It's "alive.""

"Living" Divine Items were things that gods send to earth with their unique divine energy.

That meant it was nearly impossible to replicate a Divine Item. Even after it served its purpose, the items that used to be owned by gods could still be sold at an astronomical price.

"Did the former saint say why he wanted Neoma to have it?"

The demon boy nodded while munching on a cookie. "His Holiness said that he doesn't know the content of the prophecy. But he believes that it will help Princess Neoma get away from the temple's scrutiny."

"How?"

"His Holiness said Princess Neoma can figure it out on her own."

He let out a long sigh.

To be honest, he didn't want to completely trust the former saint after his betrayal. But he would let Neoma decide whether to use the "gift" or not.

Moreover, he needed to get all the help that he could for his daughter.

[I'll discuss this with Neoma later.]

"I agree with the saint," he said, then he changed the topic. "Who from the Spirit World fetched Nero?"

"Your best friend."

"Excuse me?"

"It was William, Your Majesty."

"That scoundrel isn't my best friend," he said with a frown. He knew that Trevor was just messing with him. But he still hated it. "Why did you let William Roseheart take my son away?" He glared at the demon boy. "You remember that you'll die if you fail to uphold your promise to treat Nero, don't you?"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty," the demon boy said. "I won't die until I get to marry Princess Neoma–" He glared and the sly boy faked his cough before changing the topic smoothly. "Uh, Your Majesty, I believe that the Spirit World is the safest place for Prince Nero at the moment. As you can see, now that His Holiness has joined the Devil's side, they can break into my place anytime since my power is weak against divine energy."

Logically speaking, the Spirit World was indeed a better place for his son than the hellhole.

But…

"Do you believe that the Spirit World will treat my son kindly?"

He had to ask because he was banned by the Spirit Queen to enter any part of the Spirit World. But it wasn't like he could blame the queen. After all, he almost blew up more than half of the Spirit World out of anger when Mona left him.

[The queen hates me.]

"Your Majesty, William is fond of Prince Nero," the demon boy assured him. "William is probably delighted to meet a living male Roseheart, you know?"

He flinched when he remembered something. "Was it you who told Neoma the truth about the Soul Beasts?"

"That the Soul Beasts used to be humans? To be precise, they used to be male Rosehearts?" the sly boy asked, then he smirked. "Yes, Your Majesty. It was me."

He glared at the demon.

"I'm sorry but unlike you, I prefer being honest with my Moon Princess," he said confidently. "Your Majesty, you should know Princess Neoma by now. She hates being kept in the dark."

He just sipped his tea.

[Sharing the sins of our family with my daughter isn't easy.]

When he put his teacup down on the table, he felt Geoffrey Kinsley's presence. Then, they heard soft knocks on the door.

"Your Majesty, I apologize for intruding," Geoffrey said, then he continued. "Princess Neoma has arrived."

Now that it happened the second time, he was no longer surprised that he didn't feel Neoma's presence even though his daughter wasn't hiding it.

On the other hand, Trevor also didn't surprise.

He told Geoffrey to open the door before he turned to the demon and asked softly. "Did you already know that Neoma got stronger?"

Trevor smirked arrogantly. "I know, Your Majesty," he said, then he pointed at thumb at the monster around me. "Princess Neoma can already see this dude."

If that was the case, then his daughter did really get stronger than ever.

Nikolai could only sigh and shake his head.

[Neoma is still so young and yet, she's already so strong.]

***

"JEANNE, please bring Greko to my room first," Neoma instructed Jeanne who was carrying the sleeping Greko in her arms. "Can you stay with him until I return? If he wakes up when I haven't returned yet, kindly take care of the child's needs then."

Jeanne Audley, the only female Paladin in the palace, smiled and nodded. "As you wish, Your Royal Highness."

"I'm sorry for making you do this, Jeanne," she said with a guilty heart. "I know that this isn't a part of your duty. I'm sorry for making an esteemed Paladin like you to babysit my son…"

"Please don't apologize, Princess Neoma," the female Paladin said, her face full of understanding. "It's my duty to serve you. Protecting and taking care of your people falls in that category."

She smiled gratefully at her. "Thank you," she said even though she already told Jeanne to stop with the thank-yous since she didn't deserve it. She just quickly changed the topic. "Please look after my son in the meantime."

After saying that, she dismissed Jeanne who quickly head to her room.

She, on the other hand, proceeded to her father's office while Lewis was walking behind her. Geoffrey Kinskley greeted her and opened the door for her and her "firstborn son."

"Did you pick up another child?" her Papa Boss asked while shaking his head. "Who is that boy?"

Ah, her father probably heard her voice earlier.

"His name is Greko, Papa Boss. I'll explain it to you later," she said, then she walked towards her seat while looking at Trevor. "How's my brother?"

She was glad that Trevor was here.

The fact that her father was calm and the demon boy was eating peacefully told her that her twin brother was fine. But still, she was worried.

"How's Nero?" she asked worriedly, then she sat beside her Papa Boss. She wasn't being clingy. She was simply minding her manners. "He's safe, isn't he?"

"Prince Nero is safe, Princess Neoma," Trevor said cheerfully. "He wasn't the target of the Devil's group this time."

"Who is it then?"

"The former saint asked me to deliver a Divine Item that might help you with your problem with the temple, apparently."

Now that was what she called useful information.

She turned to her father for confirmation.

"I checked the item and it seems safe," her Papa Boss told her. "The former saint doesn't know how it will be of help to you but he believes that you can figure it out." Her father looked at her as if he was observing her. "Do you still trust His Holiness, Neoma?"

She clenched her hands.

To be honest, she wanted to be resentful to the saint because of the consequence of His Holiness's betrayal.

But deep inside, she was hurt as his disciple.

[Still, I know that this is for the best because despite everything, I still want Aunt Nichole and Saint Zavaroni to be happy. And if they're happy together, then it's better.]

"It's not like I trust Saint Zavaroni," Neoma said, her heart hurting with the realization that she couldn't trust the saint completely now. Yet, she knew that he wouldn't harm her. After all, the Devil and his comrades were aiming to put her on the throne. "However, I'm not in the position to be stubborn," she said. "I need as much help as I could."

"Atta, my lovely Moon Princess," Trevor said proudly. "Do you need my help?"

As soon as Trevor saw Neoma's evil smirk, he regretted asking that.

***

NEOMA asked her Papa Boss to allow her to talk to Trevor in private.

And so, here she was now– alone with the demon boy in the parlor room. Well, not completely alone since Lewis was standing quietly behind her seat.

"Trevor, you've probably heard that the temple and the other nobles are already suspecting that I have an affinity to the Devil," Neoma said seriously. "I consulted one of Papa Boss's Paladins who know a lot about the temple. According to him, it wouldn't be wise to reveal the truth."

"Of course, it would be dumb to reveal that to people who hate the Devil with a passion," Trevor said while shaking his head. "I don't think His Majesty would have allowed you to be that reckless."

"I know. It was just a fleeting thought anyway," she said, admitting her mistake. "That's why I thought of another way to cover up my secret."

"What is it?"

"I need a scapegoat."

The demon boy fell silent for a while.

Then, in a span of half a minute, he went through different facial expressions. At first, he was confused. After that, his eyes widened. He looked enlightened in one second, sad in the next. But in the end, he laughed merrily.

He probably guessed her plan correctly.

"And I'm the scapegoat?" he asked, confirming her thoughts. But thankfully, he didn't look angry or hurt. "Princess Neoma, are you saying that you want to reveal my existence to the world? You want me to take the blame for what happened at the camp?"

She nodded seriously. Of course, she knew that she was asking for too much. But it wasn't like she would force Trevor to do something out of his will. "I also want to put a grand show," she added carefully. "I want to act like I caught and arrested the Devil's Grimoire. To earn the trust of the temple and the nobles, can you go along with my plan?"

He fell silent while humming to himself. "That's a good plan, but it's not enough," he said. "I have a feeling that the temple and the nobles who wanted to dethrone you would accuse you of conniving with the Devil."

"That's what I thought, too."

"We have to prove that you divine energy that you inherited from Lord Yule is still as abundant as ever," he said seriously. "We have to prove to those bastards that you are a child of the Moon God and therefore, you cannot be influenced by the Devil. Not that you were."

The de Moonasterios inherited the blood of Yule and therefore, people would sometimes call the Royal Family "children of the Moon God."

"Do you have a plan, Trevor?"

"Princess Neoma, we can use the Divine Item that His Holiness gave you to prove that you're still the beloved child of the Moon God," Trevor said with a smirk, a glint of evilness now visible in his eyes. "We should present the Divine Item in a very, very dramatic way that will make people think that you might be the new "saint" of the empire."

"You crazy bastard," Neoma said, laughing as manically as Trevor did. "I'm in."

Outside the tea room, Geoffrey Kinsley and Dion Skelton were silently wondering how could such an evil laugh come out of the two children. Of course, the two Paladins had no way of knowing that Neoma and Trevor were actually both (twisted) adults inside.

***

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