Royal Secret: I'm A Princess!

[A few weeks ago…]

"WHAT IS it?" Lewis asked Lady Hanna awkwardly. "You're not the type to stare at other people, Lady Hanna."

"I want to say something, but I'm afraid it might offend you."

He avoided the young lady's gaze, and then he stared into the pond in front of him.

Right now, the two of them were in Princess Neoma's favorite pavilion by the pond. The Imperial Princess granted Lady Hanna access to that place.

[Only a few are allowed here.]

"Can I say it, Lewis?"

"Go ahead, ma'am."

"You don't need to speak so formally to me, you know?"

"I have to get used to talking formally to the future Duchess Hanna Quinzel."

"You don't have to do that," Lady Hanna said while shaking her head. "Of course, you must talk to me formally in front of an audience. But if it's only the two of us, or if we're just with our friends, then you may talk to me casually."

"My informal speech is quite crude," Lewis said bluntly. "I learned from Princess Neoma, after all."

The young future duchess laughed softly.

Lewis couldn't help but compare the difference between how Princess Neoma and Lady Hanna laughed.

Princess Neoma often laughed like a villainess.

However, Lady Hanna's laugh always sounded expensive and elegant.

[It's nice to hear.]

Of course, Princess Neoma's laugh was also music to his ears.

"You may even call me by my first name without honorifics, Lewis," Lady Hanna said cheerfully. "Isn't it about time for us to be on a first-name basis? You call your "siblings" by their first names."

Hmm.

Lewis tilted his head to one side while reminiscing a memory that he would never ever forget in his entire life. "This reminds me of the time Princess Neoma asked me to always call her by her title. Princess Neoma didn't give me permission to call her by her first name."

"Why?"

"Because, back then, Princess Neoma was a neglected princess. Princess Neoma told me to always call her by her title so she wouldn't forget that she was the empire's one and only Imperial Princess."

"I see. But Neoma isn't a neglected princess anymore. If you ask, I'm sure she'll grant you the permission to call her by her first name."

"No, I don't wish to call Princess Neoma without her title."

"May I know why you don't want that?"

"I'm Princess Neoma's Guardian Knight— it doesn't change whether she's a neglected princess or a beloved one," Lewis said. "The only time I'll stop calling her 'Princess Neoma' is the time she ascends the throne and becomes the empire's first empress regnant."

"I still don't understand."

"Calling Princess Neoma by her name is the line I wouldn't dare cross. Because I know my place— no, I like where I am right now."

"Have you gotten over your feelings for Neoma? You don't have to answer if you're not comfortable talking about it."

If someone else had asked Lewis about his feelings, he would have ignored them.

But Lady Hanna wasn't someone he couldn't ignore— someone that he didn't want to ignore, to be precise.

[Because Lady Hanna is one of the few people that makes me feel safe.]

"I loved Princess Neoma the first time I saw her, I still love her, and I will definitely love her forever," Lewis said sincerely. "Princess Neoma isn't just a friend or a family to me. I don't love her the way Commander Ruto loves her, but I'm confident that my love for Princess Neoma is greater than Commander Ruto's.

I don't need to turn back time like the commander did because I would never choose the world over Princess Neoma in the first place. Even though it's not romantic love, my love for Princess Neoma is unparalleled."

He paused for a moment.

To be honest, it wasn't his style to talk much.

In the first place, he wasn't good at speaking.

"I'm sorry, Lady Hanna," Lewis said when he realized that he might not be making sense. "It might be hard to believe that the love I have for Princess Neoma is no longer romantic, but it's the truth."

"Why would I find it hard to believe?"

"Hmm?"

"Romantic love isn't the greatest love of all," Lady Hanna said, smiling. "You don't have to put a label on the love that you have for Neoma. And you don't have to make other people understand. Your bond with Neoma is special, Lewis."

As expected.

[Lady Hanna really understands me.]

"Now that I'm done sharing my feelings, do you feel like doing the same, Lady Hanna?" Lewis asked, gently changing the topic. "I'm curious about what you want to say to me."

"Promise me you won't get mad."

"I don't think I'm capable of getting mad at you, my lady."

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Lady Hanna laughed softly, and then she avoided his gaze while talking. "Lewis, you actually look pretty when you cry."

"Huh?"

"You make me want to protect you…"

Lewis wasn't offended, but he frowned.

[Do I look weak?]

"You said you won't get mad."

"I'm not mad, though?"

"You're frowning."

"I just don't know how to react."

"It's not a bad thing, you know?"

Lewis let out a sigh. "Give me one benefit of "looking pretty" when I cry, Lady Hanna."

"You can melt Neoma's heart with just one cry, Lewis," Lady Hanna said, obviously teasing him. "Neoma likes pretty faces— so, I'm sure a crying pretty boy is one of her weaknesses."

***

[Present...]

"ARE YOU SMILING, COMMANDER?"

"I'm not," Lewis said indifferently in response to Juri's question. "I just remembered something amusing."

Talks with Lady Hanna were always amusing to him.

[Lady Hanna makes me talk a lot.]

"Whatever, Commander," Juri said, rolling her eyes. "So, what is this trick you're talking about?"

Lewis just walked towards the mirage of Princess Neoma instead of talking.

Fortunately, the mirage neither attacked nor avoided him.

He then stopped in front of the fake Imperial Princess, leaving a decent space between them.

"Please help us beat the fake Commander Ruto," Lewis said, looking straight into the fake Princess Neoma's eyes. And then a single tear rolled down his left eye. "Please protect us… Mother."

***

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