FIRST THINGS first.

To be honest, Neoma was physically, mentally, emotionally, and probably spiritually exhausted.

She just transformed into a tree, for **'s sake.

After that, she had an unexpected meeting with Dahlia– the person she bullied in the past. Moreover, the Black Witch said something shocking to her before she left.

Papa Boss, you have to explain to me later.

For now, she had to fulfill her duties as the

"Crown Prince.

"

And so, she went to check on her

"children

" as soon as she returned to the Hazelden Kingdom's Royal Palace.

Jeno and Xion were together in a heavily secured room while lying on separate beds.

They're still asleep.

Juri and Greko were resting in the same room after they exhausted their Mana from healing their hurt

"siblings.

"

Lady Sera and Countess Jade Wisteria excused themselves after she said she wanted to have privacy with her people.

"Everyone, good job,

" Neoma said proudly while addressing her

"children

" with her gaze.

"We encountered some hiccups, but I'm happy and proud of how we all adapted and improvised to get things done.

" She clapped her hands.

"You deserve a round of applause.

"

Lewis, Juri, and Greko looked confused.

But after she encouraged them to clap, the three followed her lead.

I'll clap for Jeno and Xion later.

"Eomma also did a good job,

" Greko said brightly while clapping harder.

"Eomma also deserves a round of applause.

"

Lewis and Juri also clapped their hands harder.

That made her laugh softly.

"Thank you,

" she said, then she did a mock bow to show her appreciation to her cute

"children.

"

"Princess Neoma,

" Juri said, addressing her that way because the room had a soundproof barrier.

"Please take a rest in the meantime. Jeno and Xion will be fine since Greko and I already extracted the toxins from their bodies.

"

"I'll rest after I check on Princess Brigitte,

" she said, then she turned to Xeno and Jeno.

"For now, I'd like to purify Jeno and Xion to make sure that the Darkness they absorbed earlier wouldn't be a problem in the future.

"

As she said earlier, she had faith in Juri and Greko's healing abilities.

But Darkness, when used by the crows, could be tricky. Just like the time the Dark Elf managed to dwell inside her soul without her knowing. She wouldn't let something like that happen to her precious people.

"Don't overdo it, Princess Neoma,

" Lewis scolded her lightly.

"If you faint again, I'll get mad for real.

"

Neoma laughed at Lewis' light threat.

"`Gotcha.

"

***

"YOU'RE AWAKE?

"

To say William was shocked would be an understatement. When he opened his eyes, he was greeted by the being he didn't expect to see.

She's already awake…?

His thoughts were distracted when he heard someone let out a hiccup.

When he turned to his right side, he saw Delwyn. Just like him, the Ice Spirit was shocked (and a little scared) by the presence of the 'grandmother' standing in front of them.

"Is that how you greet the grandmother you didn't see for almost a decade?

"

That snapped them out of their trance.

William and Delwyn kneeled properly in front of their

"grandmother,

" then they bowed their heads politely.

"Greetings to the Mother of Nature, Lady Irina.

"

Irina.

Mother of Nature.

Those were two of their

"grandmother's

" nicknames. But there was one title everyone knew her for: the 'Cosmic Tree.'

How did we end up in the Cosmic Tree's garden?

The last time he remembered, he and Delwyn were attacked by Neoma de Moonasterio, who had turned into a tree. It was embarrassing to admit, but he fell unconscious after his Mana and divine power were absorbed by the filthy bug. Obviously, the same happened with the Ice Spirit.

And now, the two of them woke up in the Cosmic Tree's garden.

Only Lady Irina could have summoned us in her realm even though we were unconscious in the Middle World.

"It's been a while since I saw you two, and yet you still cause troubles wherever you go,

" Irina, an old lady that looked elegant and wore fancy clothes in her human form, said. Then she put her hands on her hips.

"The two of you had a hand in the big changes that occurred in this world while I was asleep.

"

He flinched, and Delwyn did, too.

"Both of you plucked two of the flowers that the current moon treasures.

"

Again, he and the Ice Spirit flinched.

Irina combed her hands through her long and wavy gray hair, then she glared at them with her glowing light brown eyes.

"I can forgive Delwyn for trapping Mona in his ice since I can see why he did that,

" she said, talking straight to William.

"But you, on the other hand, have been acting like a moron, William. You were involved with what happened to the late empress, weren't you?

"

"I did not kill Juliet–

"

"You didn't kill her directly, but you played a part in her death,

" Irina cut him off coldly.

"And now, you're trying to kill the innocent Neoma de Moonasterio.

"

"That child isn't innocent, my lady,

" William said bluntly.

"She has a foul mouth.

"

"Little Neoma's pronunciation when cursing is also very articulate,

" Delwyn added in an amused voice.

"I also heard from her Spirits that the princess has already memorized all the curse words in every language spoken in other continents. That child is indeed far from innocent.

"

The Cosmic Tree let out a deep sigh.

"You both know that's not what I meant with what I said,

" she scolded them, then she turned to Delwyn.

"I know you tried to protect Mona your own way, Delwyn. But it doesn't change the fact that you betrayed your own master. If you intend to make it up to my daughter, I know you already know what to do.

"

Ah, right.

Mona was the 'Daughter of Nature'– one of the select few that the Cosmic Tree allowed in her garden.

"Little Neoma and I made a bet, and she lost technically since William meddled in our fight,

" Delwyn said.

"But in the end, I still lost to Little Neoma when it comes to strength.

" The Ice Spirit smiled that rarely happened.

"Her tree form reminds me of you, Lady Irina. I can't possibly beat a person like that, so I decided to serve her temporarily.

"

"Temporarily, you say?

"

"Lady Irina, you know I don't like being tied down for long,

" Delywn complained lightly.

"I'm a free Spirit, after all.

"

The Cosmic Tree let out another sigh.

"As long as you serve Neoma de Moonasterio well, I won't complain.

"

Delywn nodded firmly.

"I'm fond of Little Neoma, so it won't be a problem, my lady.

"

"Very well,

" Lady Irina said, then she turned to her. This time, the Cosmic Tree looked serious.

"William, you were able to act on your stupidity for the past ten years since your leash came off when Mona and I both disappeared. But now that I'm awake, I won't let you get in the way anymore.

"

He was getting in the way?

But he had done nothing wrong.

"My lady should be taking my side,

" William insisted stubbornly.

"The prophecy that we, the High Spirits, received before says that only one of the three flowers that the current moon treasures would bloom– and the other two would wither. I assume those flowers referred to Mona, Juliet Sloane-de Moonasterio, and Neoma de Moonasterio. In order to ensure Mona would be the one to survive, I thought I needed to get rid of the other two.

"

"Do you think Mona would be happy if you do that for her?

"

"It doesn't matter,

" he said firmly.

"As long as she's alive–

"

"This world wouldn't survive if Neoma de Moonasterio died.

"

He knitted his eyebrows.

"I understand that the de Moonasterios are special, but compared to how big the world is, they're still insignificant–

"

"Out of all the beings in the world, including the gods, the de Moonasterios possess the brightest and the purest Light that could defeat the Absolute Darkness,

" Irina said firmly.

"Have you forgotten who Lord Yule's wife was?

"

"Lady Roxana wasn't someone you could easily forget,

" William said, speaking Roxana's name with extra respect.

"She was the greatest Light Goddess in history, and her power called 'Glow' had literally lightened up the world during the Ancient Period. Moreover, she gave up her divinity to descend on the Middle World in order to protect the human race from being swallowed up by the Absolute Darkness.

"

The war against the Absolute Darkness that happened during the Ancient Period was one of the longest wars in history. Without Lady Roxana, the gods and the humans wouldn't have won against the Absolute Darkness.

I don't want to admit this, but Lord Yule and Lady Roxana being the de Moonasterios' ancestors is very impressive.

"The Moonglow is the result of the combined blood and divine power of Lord Yule and Lady Roxana, and it's passed down to every de Moonasterio born in this world,

" Irina explained carefully.

"And out of all the de Moonasterios born in this world so far, Princess Neoma's Moonglow is the closest to Lady Roxana's Glow.

"

William clenched his hands when he heard that. The filthy bug is that special?

"Now I know why Little Neoma is arrogant,

" Delywn said while nodding.

"She has the skill to back it up.

"

"William, if you kill Neoma de Moonasterio, this world would end,

" Irina said firmly.

"What use is saving Mona when she'd die anyway if this world crumbles?

"

He hated to admit this, but it made a lot of sense.

But I didn't know the world would end once that filthy bug died!

He wanted to think Irina was just exaggerating, but she wouldn't be hailed as the 'Cosmic Tree' if she sprouted nonsense.

Do I really have to get along with the filthy bug?

"I'm not telling you to love Neoma de Moonasterio, William,

" Irina said, then she let out a frustrated sigh.

"But if you truly want to protect Mona, then you have to work with her. After all, Neoma de Moonasterio is the human destined to create the biggest miracle in this world– and that might include breaking all the prophecies related to her.

"

If that was true, then he had no choice.

"I'll try not to kill the filthy bug again,

" William said, finally giving in.

"And I'll work with her if it means saving Mona for real.

"

***

"BRIGITTE unnie, do you trust me?

"

Brigitte knew in her heart that she trusted Prince Nero.

But the Crown Prince's smile at the moment made her nervous. And why was the royal prince looking at the snowy mountain with an evil glint in his eyes?

His Royal Highness looks scary when he's being like this. Still…

"I trust Your Royal Highness,

" Brigitte said sincerely.

"But may I know what Your Royal Highness is planning?

"

"Avalanche,

" Prince Nero said cheerfully, then he turned to her.

"I'll bury the Hazelden Kingdom with an avalanche.

"

EXCUSE ME???

He will what?!

***

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