[IT'S ALMOST over.]
Nero secretly let out a sigh of relief while looking at the Spirits of the male Rosehearts that he took out from the Cage.
Each malevolent Spirit was locked up in a semi-transparent "bubble" that Dahlia made.
When they released the "bubbles" in his private training room, the Spirits inside were barely visible because of how thick the black energy was inside.
That black energy was the male Rosehearts' deep resentment.
It only had been a few days since they began purifying the wrath of the male Rosehearts, but they had already made that much progress.
[Mother and William are helping us, after all.]
"The Spirits will wake up soon, Your Imperial Majesty."
Nero turned to Dahlia, who was holding his hands, and nodded in agreement. "I can tell."
"Your Imperial Majesty has already absorbed most of their resentments, but we don't know if it's enough for them to regain a bit of their sanity," Dahlia explained, still holding his hands, while observing the Spirits around them. "Some of them might still act aggressive, so we have to strengthen the barrier around this room."
"…"
Nero was listening, but he couldn't help but stare at their hands.
Every time he needed to absorb the wrath of the male Rosehearts in that room, Dahlia had to be there to make sure he wouldn't lose to his Lunacy.
And Dahlia had to hold his hands while devouring his Lunacy in return.
[Any form of physical contact will do, but this is the safest.]
"We might need a barrier that's as strong as what Princess Neoma uses," Dahlia said, then she looked at Nero worriedly. "Your Imperial Majesty, any news about the Imperial Princess' current state?"
Oh, right.
Neoma hadn't woken up yet.
"I'll check on Neoma after we're done here," Nero said awkwardly. "But don't worry too much about her, Dahlia. She's fine. She only needs to rest."
Dahlia nodded politely, then she slowly let go of his hands. "How are you feeling, Your Imperial Majesty? You absorbed a huge chunk of black energy today. Is your Lunacy acting up?"
"Fortunately, it's not. You did well, Dahlia."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
The Black Witch looked proud of her work, and she had the right to feel that way.
However…
"You should rest, Dahlia."
"I'm alright, sire. If I take a rest, I don't know how long I'd be asleep again."
The last time Dahlia took a proper rest, she fell asleep for the whole day.
[Does she still feel guilty about it?]
"Dahlia, my mother and William are here to lessen our burden, so don't be too harsh on yourself– hey!"
Nero quickly grabbed Dahlia and carried her in his arms before she hit the floor.
He almost had a heart attack because he thought someone bad happened to the Black Witch. But he felt relieved when he heard Dahlia's light snoring.
[Ah, she's just asleep.]
"This is why I told you to rest, dummy," Nero whispered to himself while looking at Dahlia's peaceful yet tired face. "No one here will blame you even if you rest longer."
He didn't know how long he was watching Dahlia sleep in his arms when he heard a knock on the door.
"It's me, sire."
"Come in, Count Lucchesi."
Of course, this 'Count Lucchesi' who entered the room was the young one and not the old count who had already retired.
"Sire, I already told you to stop addressing me by my formal title," Melvin whined right away. "Anyway, I have urgent news for Your Imperial Majesty."
"Go ahead."
"Princess Neoma has already woken up– sire!"
Nero already bolted out of the room, with the sleeping Dahlia still in his arms, as soon as he heard Melvin's news.
And he didn't listen to the rest of what his secretary was saying.
Nero would come to regret that later.
***
"SO, bad omens keep on happening to our people, especially the poor?" Neoma said while leaning against the chair and having coffee. She thought coffee would keep her awake better, so she asked for it instead of tea. "That's why our people are thrown into chaos once again?"
Her mind was clear now after taking a long bath after she woke up.
Hanna was patient enough to wait for her.
And while Neoma was in the bath, her best friend had already informed all the necessary people about her current state.
That was why her "children" were already in her bedroom.
Lewis, in particular, was standing behind Neoma.
"It seems like the crows are testing the faith of our people in Lord Yule again," Neoma said, sighing while shaking her head. "How is Skylus dealing with the issue?"
Skylus was the Moon Saint, after all.
"Prince Skylus and Lord Manu are roaming around the Imperial Capital while doing prayer rallies to boost the morale of the people who are slowly losing their faith because of the bad things that keep on happening," Hanna said. "But it's not enough, Neoma."
Of course, it wouldn't be enough.
"What are the nobles doing, Hanna?"
"Well, they're disoriented after I manipulated the economy," Hanna said as if she was embarrassed. "I made sure that the commoners won't be affected by what I did. Anyway, the nobles are busy taking care of themselves, so I don't think we can ask for their support this time. I'm sorry. My timing was bad."
"Nah, you did well. We can't have the nobles gain too much power when the Imperial Family hasn't stabilized yet after Nero's ascension to the throne," Neoma said, tapping her fingers against her temple. "And I already made a counterattack plan in my head anyway."
The young duchess was about to ask what her plan was.
But the door suddenly burst open.
The fact that none of them, not even Neoma, felt the presence of the "intruder" could only mean one thing.
[It's not an enemy.]
And that person was very strong to be able to keep his presence hidden.
"Neoma, how are you…"
Oh.
It was Nero…
Holding (the sleeping) Dahlia in his arms…
In front of Hanna…
Neoma clicked her tongue, annoyed by Nero's inappropriate appearance.
[Talk about awkward.]
***
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