WILLIAM was blindsided.
He was inside Nero's soul while working to weaken the curse when, suddenly, he was attacked by the Kiss of Death that came out of nowhere.
It was hiding deep within the Crown Prince's soul.
[No wonder Nero was acting crazier than usual.]
Fortunately, the Kiss of Death was sucked out right away.
William didn't have to be outside to know that it was Neoma who saved Nero. After all, only the Imperial Princess had the power to purify the most corrupt things in the world.
[That little princess has already surpassed Mona's purifying abilities.]
His thoughts were distracted when he finally reached the place where the two Neros would meet. It was his way of treating Nero, so every time the Crown Prince would lose consciousness, he would bring him to the Nero with memories of Neoma.
[I should warn Nero first about what happened…]
William trailed off, then his eyes widened at what he witnessed next.
The real Nero stabbed the 'fake' Nero in the heart with an ice dagger.
And, just like that, the fake one disintegrated and turned into dust– disappearing as quickly as it crumbled.
"Nero, are you okay?" William asked worriedly. "Why did you do that?"
"I don't need that thing anymore," Nero said as he brushed his fingers through his hair, his eyes glowing red. "Stop asking stupid questions, William. I need to go."
"Do you want me to help you wake up?" he offered. "You're currently unconscious, and it's because your energy was drained. I can share mine with you."
"I don't need it," the Crown Prince said, scoffing. "I can wake up on my own."
"How?"
"I'm determined enough to see Neoma again," Nero said, growling as if he was mad at himself. "And kill all the suitors who dared to ask for her hand in marriage."
The Crown Prince then disappeared.
[Ah, his memories are back.]
William clicked his tongue while shaking his head. "I should warn Mona that his sister-obsessed son is back."
***
NERO'S memories flooded his mind nonstop.
His first memory was with Neoma, of course.
[Neoma's chubby cheeks when we were babies were legendary.]
One by one, all of the memories that he shared with his precious twin sister. Unfortunately, he also remembered all the horrible things that he said and did towards Neoma. That included agreeing to her stupid plan of finding a husband.
[I want to kill my old self for being so careless!]
"You and Dad could kiss later. Just let me know in advance so I could leave the room."
And that was the first thing Nero heard when he regained consciousness.
Everyone in the bedroom was too busy to notice that he was already awake. No one even turned to him when he got up even though he wasn't particularly careful about it.
Neoma and Ruto were the only adults in the room aside from him.
Well, the baby in Ruto's arms was obviously a baby god, but he didn't care about that.
Nero was already too pissed to care about something as trivial as a reborn major god. "Why would they kiss?"
"Right? Why would we…"
Neoma trailed off, then she turned around and met his gaze.
His twin sister's eyes were as red as his, but he could tell those weren't Neoma's eyes. However, he didn't care about that either.
"Neoma, are you going to kiss that bastard?"
His twin sister avoided his gaze to turn to Ruto.
"Ruto," Neoma said, grabbing Ruto's hand. "Let's run."
As if.
Nero immediately ran after Neoma and Ruto who bolted out of the room at lightning speed.
However, as soon as his foot stepped outside the room, he was met by silence in the hallway.
Neoma and Ruto disappeared without a trace.
"Dang it!"
"It's rare for you to lose your cool, Nero."
Hmm?
A silhouette appeared in the middle of the hallway, then it quickly took the form of a human.
"What happened?" Hanna asked worriedly as she stepped out of the dark, approaching him with the utmost grace that gave her the title of the most refined lady in the empire. "Are you chasing Neoma and Lord Ruto?"
Nero, for some reason, calmed down when Hanna touched his arm as if she was checking if he was fine. "I heard Neoma and Ruto talking about kissing as soon as I woke up, so I immediately lost it. There was also a baby god, but I don't care about that one."
"Neoma and Lord Ruto already broke up, so they couldn't be talking about kissing for personal reasons," Hanna said calmly. "That's probably the only way they found to save Neoma's life."
He knitted his eyebrows, confused. "Is Neoma's life in danger…"
Ah.ραпdαs `n?ν?| сom
He trailed off when he remembered blacking out because he was attacked by a Darkness that ate away at his lifespan.
If there was someone in the empire who could save him, it would be Neoma.
"No," Nero said weakly. "Is Neoma dying because of me?"
"Of course not. It's not your fault, Nero," Hanna said, cupping his face between her hands. "Neoma won't die anytime soon. But I need to let you know that she only has a few years left to live."
"What do you mean by that?"
"According to what the reborn God of Death said, Neoma only has at least three years to live."
Only three years left…?
To say that he was devastated to hear that would be an understatement.
He had just retrieved his precious memories of Neoma, and then he had to find out that his beloved twin sister only had three years left to live?
[As if I'd let that happen.]
"Nero, I know it's hard, but please calm down," Hanna said gently while caressing his cheeks in the most caring way possible. "We won't let Neoma die– not that early, at least."
He sighed and leaned into Hanna's touch.
His fiancée's words and kindness helped him to calm down.
[Blaming myself wouldn't help Neoma. I need to pull myself together and think of a way to extend Neoma's lifespan.]
Hanna was right– they wouldn't Neoma die that easily.
"Neoma and I were born the same day," Nero said, placing his hands on top of Hanna's hands. "We will die the same day, too."
Hanna looked displeased by what he said, but she understood where he was coming from. Hence, she didn't say anything.
And he appreciated that.
[Hanna really gets me.]
"I'm sorry for making you upset," Nero said softly. "I didn't mean I'd give up on living easily. I'm simply saying that I won't let Neoma die alone."
"The best option is for you and Neoma to live a long and happy life," Hanna said, smiling. "Shall we go and put our brains into use now for the sake of our dear Neoma?"
***
"PRINCE NERO, welcome back. I know that you just woke up from a life-threatening ordeal, but we're running out of time. If you could kindly sign this, then I shall inform the candidates who passed the screening–"
"Shut up for a minute, Melvin," Nero said, grabbing the documents from his secretary. He glanced at the list of the successful candidates aka Neoma's suitors, then he frowned. "Ruto Solfrid and Jasper Hawthorne got the highest scores?"
Now he regretted going to his office.
Nero and Hanna were summoned by his parents as soon as they found out that he was already awake.
But because he was addicted to work, he decided to drop by his office first.
[If I knew Melvin would bring this trash to me, I would have gone straight to Mother and Father.]
"Lord Ruto Solfrid aka Lord Ruston Stroganoff is a royal from the Eastern Continent, and Duke Jasper Hawthorne is the most sought-after bachelor in the empire at the moment, Your Royal Highness," Melvin explained. "The two of them are the most qualified candidates to become Princess Neoma's–"
"I'll kill you if you finish that sentence."
Melvin acted like he was zipping up his mouth.
"You don't have to be mean to Sir Melvin who's only doing his job, Nero," Hanna scolded her lightly while patting his back. "And let's not focus on the list in the meantime." She grabbed the documents from him, then she handed it back to Melvin with a gentle smile on her face. "Sir Melvin, I apologize but we're quite busy at the moment. We'll get back to you later."
"You don't have to apologize, Princess Hanna," Melvin said politely, bowing his head. "I should be the one apologizing for bringing work to Prince Nero as soon as he woke up. Clearly, I should have known better than bring up Princess Neoma's marriage when our dear Crown Prince is currently unstable–"
"Get out, Melvin."
Melvin bowed towards Nero. "Gladly, Your Royal Highness."
And, just like that, Melvin bolted out of the office HAPPILY.
"That punk is getting ruder and ruder as days pass by," Nero complained while shaking his head. "He's probably hoping I'd fire him once he crossed the line."
"You should lessen Sir Melvin's workload if you don't want him to quit as your secretary," Hanna said gently. "Sir Melvin is the only fit candidate to become your chancellor once you ascend the throne. You can't lose him."
"I know."
"So, why are you stalling?"
"Huh?"
Hanna laughed softly while shaking her head. "It's obvious that you're not yet ready to face your parents now that you're in your right mind, Nero."
Ah, he couldn't really hide anything from his dear fiancé.
"I'm just embarrassed. Mother and Father didn't abandon me, but I resented them when I lost my memories," Nero said, then he sighed. "But most of all, I don't know how to beg for Neoma's forgiveness."
***
IT WAS DEFINITELY not Neoma's first kiss with Ruto, but it was definitely the first one in this lifetime.
She didn't expect that a mere brush of Ruto's lips against hers would make her feel things.
[I should stop reading erotic novels…]
If Neoma could turn back time a little, she would pull the baby god's ear for putting her into this awkward situation with Ruto.
***
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