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nChapter 448: NIKOLAI X MONA

nMONA didn’t return to the villa, even though it was the excuse she gave Nero when she ran away earlier.

nShe was ashamed that she ran away just because of Nikolai.

nBut she didn’t have the time to dwell on that.

nA god’s presence…?

nShe looked up at the sky when she noticed the strange sensation in the air.

nThe sky was clear and bright, and the weather in the Hazelden Kingdom remained the same. But she couldn’t be wrong. She was certain that a strong divine power was lingering in the air.

nMy babies…

n…..

nShe followed her gut feeling and ran towards where her children were.

nWhen she was near the entrance of the Frozen Woods, the sky roared angrily. And it was never a good sign. Thus, she ran using her maximum speed.

nShe was still late, though.

nNo!

nA bolt of blinding white lightning descended on the ground- and it was about to strike her children who were hugging each other.

nShe hated that she had to shut her eyes when the lightning’s glow hit her eyes.

n“Neoma! Nero!”

nShe immediately opened her eyes when she heard Nikolai call their children’s names.

nNo…

nIn her peripheral vision, she saw Glenn and Queen Brigitte who were able to protect themselves well. Glenn had drawn Ebony- his sword- and created a barrier in front of them.

nNorth- the Black Tortoise- was also standing in front of the royal couple. The Black Tortoise was Nikolai’s Soul Beast known best for its defensive skills. The emperor probably sent North to protect Glenn and the queen.

nNikolai, on the other hand, rushed towards their children who were falling to the ground- unconscious.

nShe moved at the same time he did.

nThe emperor grabbed Nero first because their son was closer to his reach.

nAnd thus, she caught Neoma.

nShe plopped down on the ground while cradling her daughter in her arms, relieved that she caught her in time.

n“Neoma…” Mona whispered to herself worriedly, then she turned to Nero. Like her, Nikolai plopped down on the ground while cradling their son in his arms. “Nero…”

nThe fact that Neoma and Nero were unconscious wasn’t the only problem.

nTheir bodies have become empty shells.

nShe raised her head to meet Nikolai’s eyes.

nHe needed to know the condition of their children.

nBut whatever she was about to say flew out of the window when she noticed that Nikolai was looking at her like she was the only person he could see at the moment.

nShe hated to admit this, but her heart fluttered.

nMany years have passed and yet, the way he looks at me didn’t change…

n“I’m glad that you’re back safely, Mona,” Nikolai said, then he turned to their children. “Th lightning that hit the children has Yule’s Moonglow. It must have been him.”

nShe was a little surprised that Nikolai, who seemed to have been in a trance earlier, snapped out of it. For her, it was a testament to how much he cared about their children. This would sound arrogant coming from her. But in the past, she was the most important person in the emperor’s life.

nThis time, she could tell that Nikolai had become a proper father.

nI should act like a proper mother, too.

n“Neoma and Nero’s souls aren’t here,” Mona informed Nikolai. “They must have been summoned by Lord Yule.”

nHe clenched his jaw hard.

nGod, that was… sexy.

nShe screamed internally for having inappropriate thoughts while their children were in a predicament.

nFocus, Mona Roseheart- focus!

n“Nikolai, what happened?” she asked calmly, pulling herself together. “Why would Lord Yule summon our children in a seemingly dangerous way?”

n“We’re getting punished,” he said, pissed. But it was obvious that his anger was directed at the Moon God and not at her. “We’re about to commit blasphemy against him, so he probably took the children to reprimand them.”

nShe knitted her eyebrows, confused. “Blasphemy?”

n“Let’s head to the villa first. I’ll explain everything to you there,” Nikolai said, then he paused for a moment before he asked hesitantly. “If that’s okay with you, of course.”

nOh.

nNikolai was being considerate of her.

nIt was the bare minimum, but it still gave her butterflies in the stomach.

n“I understand,” Mona said, then she turned to their children and turned to their unconscious children. “Let’s bring Neoma and Nero to a warm place first.”

n***

nNEOMA panicked a little when she woke up in her Spirit form.

nShe thought she had died and gone straight to hell. If not for her gut feeling telling her that she was still alive, she would have really believed that she was already dead.

nAfter all, the room they were in looked dark and ominous. The floor looked like a giant chessboard, and there were broken chess pieces around. She couldn’t see much because the only source of light in the room was the window where the moonlight passed through.

nBut there was an empty throne blocking it.

n“Neoma, are you alright?”

nIt was Nero, and her twin brother was sitting on the floor while leaning against the broken black knight chess piece.

n“I’m alright,” Neoma said, then she got and leaned against the surprisingly intact white queen chess piece behind her. “Are you alright, Nero? We’re not dead, are we?”

n“We’re not yet dead,” Nero assured her. “But our powers seem to have been nullified.” He put a hand over his chest. “I can still feel my connection to Sev, but I can’t summon him. I also can’t use my Mana here. Can you try if yours would work?” 𝗼𝐯𝐞𝐥．𝐜𝐨𝗺

n“Okay.”

nShe tried to summon Tteokbokki- it didn’t work. The other Spirits didn’t come out, too. Not even Skewer.

n“Yeah, I can’t also use my Mana,” she said, then she looked around. “But I think we’re safe here. Even if this place looks ominous, I don’t feel any threat. Plus, I think I felt Lord Yule’s Moonglow from the lightning that hit us earlier.”

nHer brother nodded in agreement. “I felt it, too.”

nAn awkward silence ensued after that.

nAh, right. We fought earlier. And despite being the older one, I acted like a kid.

n“Nero, I was harsh earlier, right?” she said, breaking the awkward silence. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lost my temper and cursed.” She slapped her mouth gently. “This noona will be more patient and careful in the future.”

nNero fell silent for a while before he spoke again. “I’m sorry, too, Neoma. I overreacted.”

nShe smiled, then she scooted over next to her twin brother. “Nero, I was wrong when I spoke harshly. But please consider what I said. I don’t want you to end up hurting Hanna and Dahlia.”

nHer twin brother nodded. “I will be careful not to hurt either of them, Neoma,” he said. “I intend to keep my promise with Hanna, but I also want to get along with Miss Dahlia since I chose her to be one of my people. I need her strength, Neoma.”

n“As long as your reason for keeping Dahlia by your side is platonic, then I won’t say anything anymore,” she said, then she held Nero’s hand and gently squeezed it. “Please be careful with their hearts, Nero.”

nNero nodded. “I won’t hurt them, Neoma.”

n“It’s touching to see you getting along as usual, Ne-Ne and Ro-Ro.”

nNeoma and Nero stood up and held each other’s hand when they faced Yule who suddenly appeared sitting on the throne.

nIs Yule here to scold us for our plan to commit blasphemy?

nBut something was different from the Moon God.

nHe doesn’t look like he’s here to scold us.

nYule was blindfolded, and there were streaks of bloody tears on his cheeks as if he had just cried blood.

nLord Yule looks like Gojo-sen… no! Stop! Neoma scolded herself. This isn’t the time to be a weeb!

n***

nNIKOLAI, for the first time after a long while, felt happy and complete.

nHe still couldn’t believe that his whole family was in the same room now.

n…..

nNero and Neoma, who were still unconscious, were lying down on the bed while holding each other’s hands like usual.

nThe twins are really close, huh?

nMona, on the other hand, was sitting on the chair beside the bed.

nGod, she’s so beautiful.

nMona let out a deep sigh. “What’s taking Lord Yule so long to return our children?”

n“Oh.”

nHe didn’t realize he let out that stupid “oh” until Mona turned to her with a questioning look on her face.

n“What is it?” she asked gently.

n“Nothing,” Nikolai, who was sitting on the chair across from Mona, said. “I was just happy to hear you say the words “our children.” It finally hit me that our family is really complete now. Thank you for not excluding me, Mona.”

nShe fell silent for a while.

nAnd that made him extremely nervous.

nHe knew he had a lot to apologize for, so he didn’t really know where to begin. Moreover, the fact that he was breathing in the same room as Mona was making him feel weak.

n“While waiting for the kids to gain consciousness, let’s talk,” she said sternly.

nHe gulped hard. “About what?”

nMona smiled “sweetly” at him. “How about we start talking about how you tried to marry Neoma off to the Draytons when she was still a baby, Nikolai de Moonasterio?”

nNikolai shut his eyes tight while clenching his hands tight.

nI’m dead meat.

n***

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