NEOMA smiled when Hanna greeted them when they came out of the courthouse.
Her cousin went out earlier to personally check on the people outside the courthouse as the Crown Princess of the empire.
And, of course, to buy them some time.
[I think we took almost an hour before we came out? Our family had to talk about the things we'd confess to the public, after all.]
But Hanna did a wonderful job in an hour.
The people waiting in front of the courthouse was organized. They were seated on the ground with a blanket under them. There were also food and drinks for everyone.
Each one had a tasty-looking clubhouse sandwich, a bag of different pastries, and a cup of tea for the adults and a cup of milk for the children. The food and the drinks came from 'Hanna's Choice.'
[Ah, Hanna's café. So, she provided food and drinks for the people. Gosh, she's really kind and considerate.]
Neoma also noticed that there were Black Hawk Knights– the Quinzels' private army– around, as well as doctors on stand-by.
Even the nobles who were at the courtroom earlier had a separate space allotted to them.
And the most interesting part?
The reporters. Yes, there were reporters in the front line.
Someone really worked hard in such a short period of time, huh? Well, it was easy to mobilize people if you have the resources. And the Quinzel Princess sure had it all.
Even so, that didn't mean Hanna's hard work wouldn't be acknowledged.
[Yep, Hanna deserves to be the Crown Princess.]
"Your Majesty, Lady Roseheart, Princess Neoma, and Prince Nero," Hanna greeted them formally. "The video recording devices are already set-up. You may begin your speech any moment now."
Neoma smiled at Hanna proudly when their eyes met.
[Good job, Hanna~]
Hanna smiled back at Neoma as if she was saying, "I did well, didn't I?"
"Thank you, Young Lady Quinzel," Papa Boss said, addressing Hanna formally in front of a crowd. "We've made the citizens wait for too long already, so let's begin right away."
[It's showtime, huh?]
The entire Imperial Family, including Hanna (presumed as the Crown Princess), stood before the waiting crowd.
It was already noon, but it was still cold outside since it was the end of autumn already.
[Winter is coming~]
"Everyone, you don't have to stand up to greet us," Papa Boss said when the citizens tried to stand up in order to greet them properly. "You may listen comfortably in your seats. We won't take it as a discourtesy to the Imperial Family, so do not worry about it."
As expected, everyone was shocked after hearing what Papa Boss said.
[They're probably shocked that the cold-blooded emperor they know is actually being considerate for once.]
Fortunately, the citizens listened to Papa Boss.
Well, it was probably hard for them to move anyway.
The people were sitting close to each other in order to share warmth, perhaps. After all, even though they were dressed properly, the temperature was still pretty cold.
[And it will only get colder from here on.]
It was touching that the citizens even went out of their house and stood in the cold just to watch the royal mess that happened earlier.
[But I'm worried about them.]
Neoma couldn't feel it since she was naturally warm, but that wasn't the case for the citizens.
["Tteokbokki, come out and keep the area warm for the people."]
She already checked on Tteokbokki earlier, and the Soul Beast was fine.
[We haven't figured out yet how Callisto de Luca managed to harm Tteokbokki when it was Skewer that he stabbed with the Moonblood, but we'll think about it later.]
Neoma's thoughts were cut off when she heard a collective gasp from the crowd.
She realized it was because Tteokbokki materialized in his baby dragon form. But ever since Tteokbokki became an adult, his "baby" dragon form was him as a 1-meter red dragon. Hence, everyone could see him clearly.
"Everyone, this is my Soul Beast– Tteokbokki," Neoma said, smiling at the people. Of course, it was a genuine smile and not an arrogant one. "He's a Red Dragon, and he's here to keep us warm."
Tteokbokki's entire body glowed for a moment as he released his aura. It was enough to make the area warm.
[His fire is too hot, so we only need the burst of his Mana.]
"It's a pretty dragon!"
"Mother, I'm not cold anymore!"
"Thank you, Mr. Dragon!"
Of course, it was the children who snapped out of their trance first.
The adults soon expressed their gratitude.
Neoma realized that the children in the crowd looked like children from underprivileged families. They only probably came out because of the free food and drinks that Hanna distributed to the people there.
[We should end this soon.]
Neoma turned to Papa Boss and subtly nodded at him.
"Everyone, let me properly introduce my children once again," Papa Boss said. Although Papa Boss was calm, his voice and overall aura were still intimidating. Perhaps it was something that he couldn't change even after he mellowed out. "You already know the Crown Prince– Nero Roseheart de Moonasterio. And for the first time, Princess Neoma Roseheart de Moonasterio greets you as the Imperial Princess– not as her twin brother's substitute."
Her Papa Boss turned to her, giving her a subtle sign that it was her turn to speak.
"I am Neoma Roseheart de Moonasterio, the First Star of the Great Moonasterion Empire," Neoma introduced herself calmly. "And I am the only First Star the empire has."
Of course, she wasn't struck by the Divine Punishment since she was only spitting facts.
"Prince Calyx is really not His Majesty's son…"
"Don't call him a 'prince.' He's a fraud– a fraud!"
"But the Imperial Family also lied to us…"
Neoma heard the last part, and fortunately, she didn't flinch.
[Well, the people have the right to get upset.]
"That's right," Papa Boss said. "I only have children with Lady Mona Roseheart. My short marriage with the late Empress Juliet was nothing more than a business contract. I know that the late empress was dearly loved by the people. But I wish to let everyone here know that the late Empress Juliet neither wished to become a wife nor a mother. Hence, despite being married, the late Empress Juliet and I only stayed as friends who never crossed the line."
When Papa Boss didn't receive Divine Punishment, the people "whispered" among each other.
"His Majesty is telling the truth…"
"So, His Majesty didn't betray the late Empress Juliet…"
"It's normal for nobles and monarchs to marry out of convenience anyway…"
"After the late Empress Juliet's death, I was reunited with Lady Mona," Papa Boss continued with his speech. "Princess Neoma and Prince Nero were born soon after. However, during that time, my relationship with Lady Mona was at its worst due to a complicated situation where she almost lost her life. I thought I already lost Lady Mona forever, hence I lost my mind and neglected my children. It was the reason why I kept Princess Neoma and Prince Nero hidden. Only a few of my people knew about their existence."
Wow.
Papa Boss was good at telling the truth without going into too much detail.
[Right. We should be honest with the people as much as we could, but that doesn't mean we should share every single detail with them.]
"Princess Neoma showed more potential than Prince Nero when they were toddlers as she was the first one to awaken her Soul Beast," Papa Boss said. "But I needed a male heir, I chose Prince Nero and showed him to the world while keeping Princess Neoma hidden."
The people in the crowd, mostly women, frowned.
But, of course, the women couldn't voice out their disgust.
However, Neoma still felt touched that there were people who recognized that Papa Boss was such a scumbag before for favoring Nero over her just because Nero was a male heir.
[Thank you, ladies.]
"However, an unfortunate incident took place when the children were five years old," Papa Boss said. "An assassin almost took the life of Prince Nero. They used black magic to put my son under a powerful curse– a curse that slowly rots his internal organs."
A loud and shocked collective gasp from the crowd erupted.
"What a horrible curse…"
"And to do that to a young prince…"
"Unforgivable!"
Okay, Neoma was starting to get nervous.
[I'm glad that people are showing concern towards Nero, but the future is looking bleak for the Devil who cursed my twin brother… and I have demonic power in me.]
Uh-oh.
"As I said earlier, I needed an heir. But Prince Nero, unfortunately, fell into a comatose state," Papa Boss continued with his story. "Hence, I ordered Neoma to pretend as her twin brother. The children had almost the same face and build when they were toddlers. Hence, it was easy for Princess Neoma to act as Prince Nero. We also used a device that gradually changed her voice as she got older to hide the fact that she was a girl all along. Hence, aside from the few people who knew the truth, no one noticed that the "Crown Prince" was actually the Imperial Princess in disguise."
Aww, Neoma suddenly felt nostalgic.
[I suddenly miss the choker I used to wear to change my voice.]
"The treatment took eight long years," Papa Boss said. "Hence, the Prince Nero that you met as a toddler up to five years ago was actually Princess Neoma in disguise."
"Your Majesty, does it mean the Prince Nero during the Crown Prince's ceremony was actually Princess Neoma?"
The question came from a reported.
[Oh, it finally begins.]
"Yes, that's right," Papa Boss confirmed with a nod. "It was Princess Neoma who was officially hailed the Crown Prince during the ceremony."
"If it was five years ago, then the one who passed the Royal Moon Academy's entrance exam was Princess Neoma and not Prince Nero? Or was Prince Nero already fully recovered during that time? I remember the Crown Prince showing proof that he was a male back then, but..."
As expected, that question came from a student of the Royal Moon Academy– based on the uniform that the boy was wearing.
"Yes, it was me who took the entrance exam," Neoma confirmed while nodding. "Nero and I switched after the exam when a student suspected that the Crown Prince was actually a princess..."
She wasn't done talking yet, but Nero suddenly dropped a bomb.
"I'll quit," Nero announced in a voice full of remorse. Even his handsome face was working hard to look pitiful, and it was damn effective. "I will drop out of the Royal Moon Academy as soon as this ordeal is over."
Neoma controlled her expressions or else she would have frowned already.
[Gosh, Nero is good at acting.]
Just like his noona, of course.
***
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