Royal Secret: I'm A Princess!

NEOMA felt embarrassed after crying like a baby while hugging her Papa Boss.

But when she saw her father's tear-stricken face, she realized that this wasn't the time to be embarrassed. In the first place, being open with their feelings should never be a source of embarrassment. She should be happy that finally, she and her Papa Boss had this conversation.

Even her father looked relieved that they were able to take the first step into becoming a real family.

[Now I can trust my Papa Boss more. I still have a lot of questions regarding what happened to Aunt Nichole in the past and the truth about the Soul Beasts. But unlike before, I will try to understand my father's past actions with an open mind.]

"Have you calmed down?" her Papa Boss asked softly while brushing his fingers against her cheeks. "Blow your nose."

"I don't have snot," Neoma said, but she accepted her father's handkerchief and cleared her nose by blowing through it into the hanky. "Thank you for believing me, Papa Boss."

Her father stood up, pulled his chair closer to hears, and sat down while facing her. "Thank you for telling me the truth, Neoma," he said sincerely. "It must have been tough reliving all the pains that you've been through."

"It's okay, Papa Boss. I've begun healing a long time ago," she said carefully as she was about to open the topic that might her Papa Boss this time. "My second life was filled with bliss. I was born in a different world where magic doesn't exist. In that world, my eomma or mother looks exactly like Mama Boss except for the hair and eye color."

Her father's face lit up.

But it instantly turned grim when the realization hit him.

"Gavin Quinzel," her father said stiffly. "Is he your father in your second life?"

She slowly nodded her head. "Yes, Papa Boss. He's my appa. And…"

To be frank, she debated with herself whether to say this or not. But in the end, she decided to be completely honest with her father.

[Yeah, we should fix everything.]

"Papa Boss, it seems like eomma and appa have the memories of their past lives as well," she said hesitantly.

She saw the devastation on her Papa Boss's face.

And she understood why her father had that kind of reaction.

If her eomma and appa had the memories of their first lives and the two still decided to be together, then it meant her Mama Boss had truly chosen the former Commander Gavin Quinzel over her Papa Boss.

The pain in her father's eyes stopped her from telling him that according to her appa, her Mama Boss was still alive in the other world.

Moreover, she could tell Papa Boss that her appa asked her to return to Korea with him.

[I told appa that I wanted to return back then. But now…]

Her heart hurt while looking at her Papa Boss who looked like he was trying hard not to cry again.

She couldn't leave her father like this.

[Plus, I made a deal with Lord Yule. I can't leave this world until I become the empress for a few years. I still have plenty of time left to think about how I'd gently tell Papa Boss that I wish to return to Korea.]

But to be honest, she no longer knew what she wanted to do.

At first, she already accepted the fact that she was stuck in this world. And thus, she decided to become a lady of leisure once her work here was done.

But her appa appeared and told her that there was a way to return to Korea…

"Was Gavin Quinzel good to you?"

She felt her heart squeeze as she answered her father's question. "Yes, Papa Boss. Appa took good care of me."

"Did he treat your mother kindly?"

"Yes, Papa Boss," she said in a cracked voice. "Eomma was happy with him."

She felt a lump in her throat when her Papa Boss smiled. It looked like he was trying to assure her that he was fine. But her father's eyes looked like they were crying despite the lack of tears.

[He took it better than I expected but…]

"It's okay to get angry, Papa Boss," she said between hiccups. Her father looked so pitiful that she'd rather see him losing his mind than getting his heart broken. "I won't ask whether Mama Boss really cheated on you or not because it's between the two of you. But if you're angry because you feel betrayed, it's okay to lash out. I will understand."

Her father looked surprised at first, then he laughed softly.

It was a forced laugh though.

Ah, seriously. Her heart was breaking for her Papa Boss. Who'd knew she'd feel this way toward the man that she used to call "scumbag?"

"I'll admit that I'm hurt," her Papa Boss said gently. "But Mona was happy, and that's all that matters to me."

A loud hiccup escaped her lips as she tried to hold her tears back.

She was hurting for her father for real.

"Neoma, when I was at the camp, I asked Mona a question," her father said carefully. "I asked her if it was alright if I choose you this time. If it was alright to love you and Nero more than I loved her."

She gasped softly and covered her mouth with her hands.

"I already lost Mona a long time ago," her father said carefully. "Although she's still in my heart, I can't allow myself to dwell on my heartbreak after hearing your story. Moreover, I already have the resolve that you and Nero will be my priority this time. I won't chase Mona anymore. I'm just glad that she already found her happiness."

She sobbed again.

[He knows.]

She had a feeling that her Papa Boss already knew that her Mama Boss was still alive in another world. The pained look on his face said so.

"Just don't leave me, Neoma."

Ah.

Papa Boss really knew.

"Please give me a chance to be a good father to you this time," her Papa Boss begged. "Gavin Quinzel is here and he expressed his desire to take you away from me."

She bit her lower lip as she didn't know what to say.

[I love Papa Boss but I also love my appa…]

"I know I don't have the right to stop you from leaving if you want to. But I also know that you can't leave easily because of your deal with Yule," her father said, proving that he understood her predicament. "So until you can decide when to leave, can I ask you to choose me over Gavin Quinzel? Will you allow me to support you until you reach your goals?" Her Papa Boss held her small hands in his. "Neoma, please stay here with me."

Looking at her father's pleading eyes made it easier for her to make a decision.

She couldn't leave anyway until her deal with Yule was fulfilled. Staying in the empire with Papa Boss wouldn't be hard. But she knew that it would be hard for her to meet with her appa because he was considered as an enemy after siding with the Devil.

Until she knew what to do, she was determined to stay here and heal with Papa Boss. They needed to fix their relationship, too. It was time for them to have a proper father-and-daughter relationship.

[I'm sure appa will understand because he's a good person.]

"I won't go anywhere for now, Papa Boss," Neoma assured her father. "I will stay by your side until I reach my goals."

Until she reached her goals.

It was the best compromise that she could come up with. She was afraid that her Papa Boss would get disappointed. But he looked relieved instead.

Was her father that desperate to have her stay with him for a longer time?

"Thank you, Neoma," her Papa Boss said sincerely, then he turned serious. "Now, it's my turn to answer your questions."

Neoma took a deep breath, then she nodded.

[Finally.]

***

"ISN'T it time for you to step out of the shadows?" Ruto, who was standing on the deck of a ship sailing through the seas under the dark night sky, said to his guest hiding in the darkness. "I know that you've been following me all this time, Gavin Quinzel."

He heard a soft laugh.

Then, it was followed by light footsteps. If it wasn't for his sharp hearing, he wouldn't have heard it. The sound of the waves swallowed the sound of his movements.

"You're strange, Ruston Stroganoff," Gavin Quinzel, who was dressed in all-black that allowed him to blend in the darkness easily, said in an amused tone. He finally showed up, but his body was still covered with a dark aura as if he didn't intend to stay visible for long. As the "Shadow King," it was natural for him to take advantage of the darkness when "working." "You seem to know too much."

"What do I know?"

"The doors that lead to the other world."

"Mm," he said, vaguely confirming his assumptions. "I don't know about that but I am certain of one thing."

The former commander raised an eyebrow at him. "And what is it?"

"The way to trap you inside a huge block of ice," Ruto answered coldly. "Isn't that method very familiar to you, Gavin Quinzel?"

Gavin Quinzel glared at him. "You're dead, Ruston Stroganoff."

A day later, a strange block of ice the shape of a ship was found in the middle of the sea.

No one exactly knew what happened in there...

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