性瘾者

Of course, they had to sneak in because the security around the academy was tight.

Even so, they still managed to find a good spot to watch the match- and that spot was the roof of the arena’s left-wing. They had to use a concealment spell so no one would see them, though.

But they weren’t the only ones who thought that it was a good spot to watch.

Jeno Dankworth, one of Neoma de Moonasterio’s “children,” was watching the match while standing on the roof of the arena’s right wing. He concealed himself with his Mist. The young man noticed her and Yoan earlier, but he ignored them since he recognized Yoan as ‘Ruto.’

“That Princess Neoma de Moonasterio...”

Sienna turned to Yoan whose eyes were glued to Neoma de Moonasterio. “What about her?”

.....

Yoan clutched his chest tight. “She’s a madwoman, isn’t she?”

She turned to the ring again where the ‘match’ was still ongoing.

[What a one-sided match...]

Calyx Dalton was lying down on the floor while Neoma de Moonasterio straddled his hips. The royal princess who seemed to have lost her mind, kept on throwing punches at the young crow’s face.

[God, Neoma de Moonasterio sure has monstrous strength.]

The royal princess wasn’t even using Mana or divine power with her punches- it was all brute force. If Calyx Dalton didn’t have the natural sturdy body of the de Moonasterios, his face would have been destroyed by now.

[Neoma de Moonasterio is a madwoman, indeed.]

But this would surely ruin her reputation as the Crown Prince.

[This is overkill. Calyx Dalton already revealed that he’s a de Moonasterio. If she doesn’t stop punching the hell out of him even though the young crow can’t fight anymore, she’ll become the villain.]

See?

The crowd was already silent, and most of the people were looking at the royal princess with fear in their eyes.

“Sienna, please punch me.”

She turned to Yoan, surprised. “Huh? Why would I punch you?”

“Because a thirteen-year-old girl is making my heart flutter,” Yoan said, as if he was disgusted with himself. “I should be arrested and locked up in prison.”

She just smiled and shook her head.

[Yoan is always too hard on himself.]

But to be honest, she was relieved that Yoan’s plan- before he lost his memories- seemed to be working.

She was skeptical at first because his order sounded ridiculous to her.

Ah, she suddenly remembered their conversation back then...

[“Sienna, once I lose my memories, all you have to do is bring me to where Neoma is. I just need to see her.”]

[“Huh? What would seeing Neoma de Moonasterio do to bring your memories back?”]

[“Sienna, do you know what happened the first time I saw Neoma during the first timeline?”]

“Love at first sight,” Sienna said, cringing hard. “Did you really fall in love with Neoma de Moonasterio at first sight?”

“Love at first sight?” Yoan whispered to himself. “Is my heart that weak for me to fall in love with a child at first sight?”

[Well, Neoma de Moonasterio wasn’t a child the first time you met her in your first life.]

***

MONA’S job wasn’t over yet.

Ruto killed the God of Recollection and brought the god’s remains with him when he left the palace earlier.

She also sent Genevieve back since she wouldn’t need the goddess’s assistance this time.

After all, she would be dealing with humans and not gods.

[The barrier around the palace wasn’t broken. It was temporarily deactivated to let the God of Recollection in. And once the god was inside, the barrier was activated again. Nikolai isn’t in the Royal Palace at the moment, so the barrier should be controlled manually to deactivate and activate it.]

And the control of the barrier was hidden in the throne room.

Suspiciously enough, the royal guards who should be guarding the throne room weren’t present. The throne room was even unlocked. Thus, she easily opened the doors without the need to break them.

“Stop,” Mona said, gripping Nydia- her staff- tighter as she pointed the end at the hooded man standing in front of the throne. “Turn around and don’t do anything funny, if you don’t want your head to roll on the floor.”

The throne room was poorly lit since the only source of light was coming from the space between the doors that she didn’t close completely.

However, she could clearly see the figure of a tall man standing in front of the throne, his back turned to her. It was hard to figure out his identity because of the black-hooded robe he was wearing, and she also couldn’t feel any Mana from him.

[He’s concealing his presence well.]

The only reason why she could tell that it was a man was because of her gut feeling.

“You shouldn’t have returned,” the familiar voice of a man said, then he slowly turned around while pulling down his hood as if he wanted her to see his face clearly. “This empire doesn’t need you, Lady Roseheart.”

Why wasn’t she surprised by the man’s identity?”

“And here I was, wondering why you haven’t shown your face to me yet,” Mona said indifferently. “Have you been well, Kyle Sprouse?”

***

[WHAT DID that crow bastard say to my daughter?]

Nikolai clenched his hands tight while watching the match.

The crowd had gone silent while Neoma was punching the living daylights out of Calyx Dalton who could no longer move.

He knew that the Crown Prince’s reputation would plummet, but he couldn’t care less.

[Neoma has a nasty temper, but she knows her limits while acting as the Crown Prince. The fact that she lost it could only mean that Calyx Dalton might have said something that triggered my daughter’s wrath.]

Was that the reason why the crows used an enchantment around the ring that would conceal Neoma and Calyx Dalton’s conversation?

“Your Majesty,” Geoffrey Kinsley, who was standing next to him, leaned down and whispered to him while covering his mouth with his hand. “I believe we have to stop the match. If Her Royal Highness ends up killing Calyx Dalton, the Crown Prince will be criticized heavily. Moreover, the crowd’s reaction isn’t looking good at the moment.”

He hated to admit this, but his Paladin was right.

[Even if Neoma wins this match, we’ll still lose in the end if she lost the respect and admiration of her schoolmates.]

It was time for him to step in.

He was about to stand and stop the match, when, all of a sudden, a hooded figure interrupted the match while yelling.

“Stop this cruel match at once!”

The familiar voice sent a shiver down his spine.

[No way...]

The hooded person threw a white handkerchief on the floor while crying. “I’m giving up the match in place of my son!”

[Son...?]

The last punch Neoma threw at Calyx Dalton created an airwave that pushed the person’s hood- revealing her face, shocking everyone in the arena who recognized her.

Red hair.

Green eyes.

Porcelain skin.

Nikolai stood up, his world moving in a slow-motion as everything else faded in the background- everything but the woman his eyes were glued to. “Juliet?”

***

“I HAVE BEEN well until you returned, Lady Roseheart.”

Mona laughed, amused by Kyle Sprouse’s response. “You’ve grown, Kyle,” she said, smiling at him. “You can talk back to me now without trembling.”

“You’re mistaken,” Kyle said indifferently. “I’m still afraid of you.”

“If you are still afraid of me and still dared to do this sort of thing, then is it safe for me to assume that you’re being backed up by someone you think is stronger than me?”

“You could say that.”

“Kyle, I understand that you hate me,” she said solemnly. “But what I do not understand is your reason for betraying Nikolai.”

She looked calm, but there was turmoil inside her.

Nikolai trusted Kyle as much as he trusted Glenn, since both Kyle and Glenn were his childhood friends.

.....

[Kyle’s betrayal will devastate both Nikolai and Glenn.]

“I have a lot of questions, but arresting you for treason comes first,” she said sternly. “Kyle Sprouse, if you don’t want to get hurt, then don’t resist.”

“I have no intention to resist,” the count said. “After all, I know that I won’t be imprisoned for so long.”

“What makes you so confident?”

“I did not betray the throne,” Kyle Sprouse insisted. “I did what I had to do to protect the Royal Family.”

Now she was even more confused. “Protect the Royal Family from what?”

“From you, Lady Roseheart.”

It was so ridiculous that she couldn’t help but laugh bitterly. “Do you hate me that much? You betrayed Nikolai just to get rid of me?”

“I do not hate you,” he denied while shaking his head. “I just simply believe that you do not have the right to be the empress. Only one woman is fit to stay by His Majesty’s side- then and now.”

“I know that you’re talking about Juliet, but she’s-”

“Empress Juliet is still alive,” Kyle Sprouse said, cutting her off with a smile. “And Her Majesty has finally returned to the empire.”

To say that Mona was shocked would be an understatement. “Juliet is back...?”

***

Neoma’s fist stopped when she heard both Lewis and Tteokbokki’s voice in her head simultaneously.

When she came to be, she found herself straddling Calyx Dalton’s hips. The crow psycho was unconscious, and his face was bleeding all over. He had a broken nose and busted lips. He’d probably get a black eye, too.

In short, his face was almost unrecognizable.

[I... did this?]

Judging by the blood and the blisters in her hand, yes, she really punched the living daylights out of Calyx Dalton.

If he wasn’t a de Moonasterio, then he would have already died.

[Shit.]

She lost it, and now that her head was clear, she knew very well that she fucked up.

[“You had a baby with Commander Yoan, but you killed that baby while the poor thing was still in your womb.”]

She clutched her head tight when she heard Calyx Dalton in her head. The crow psycho was repeating the things he had said to her earlier, as if it was a mantra. Thus, she felt like going crazy again.

[I had a baby with Yoan? And I killed it? It can’t be!]

Her Mana fluctuated along with her jumbled emotions.

[Calyx Dalton... should I just kill this bastard since my reputation as the Crown Prince has already plummeted anyway?]

This time, her bloodlust oozed out along with her Mana.

“Please don’t kill my son, Your Royal Highness!”

She was surprised when a crying woman suddenly knelt beside her and grabbed her arm- the one with the bleeding hand from beating Calyx Dalton to a pulp.

Thankfully, she managed to stop herself from hitting the woman out of reflex.

She turned to her side to see what the woman who called Calyx Dalton her ‘son’ looked like, and she was blown away by her beauty.

Red hair.

Green eyes.

Porcelain skin.

[Wait... this face...]

Every year, her Papa Boss would visit the Royal Shrine to celebrate a memorial service for the late empress.

[Ah...]

The woman in the portrait hanging on the wall of the Royal Shrine, and the crying woman in front of her right now...

... they looked the same.

Of course, the crying woman in front of her looked older than she did in the portrait. Even so, her beauty remained clear.

Neoma felt the strength in her body leave when the realization hit her. “Empress Juliet?”

How did Empress Juliet become Calyx Dalton’s mother?

***

NOTE: A pyrrhic victory is, according to webster dictionary, “a victory that comes at a great cost, perhaps making the ordeal to win not worth it.”

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