"Hey, Alice..."
"'Alice'" raised her head to look at "'Nero'"... Though, phrasing it that way felt oddly confusing.
"Who was the noble who gave you this necklace?"
From what Nero could vaguely recall, the noble who handed this artifact to the royal family likely had sinister intentions—planning to swap bodies with the prince, become one of the most powerful figures in the kingdom, and regain their youth in the process.
"Eh? Why are you asking, Nero-nee?"
"'Nero'" tilted her head in an adorable gesture before answering, "I think the one who gave us this necklace was… wait, that's strange. I can't remember?"
An unexpected development—no matter how hard Alice tried to recall, she couldn't remember which noble had delivered the necklace.
Something was definitely off. Forgetting only the identity of the noble responsible for presenting the necklace? It was suspicious, to say the least.
"Isn't this too strange? Maybe we should just throw this thing away... No, something this dangerous should be destroyed outright," "Alice" declared, reaching for the necklace hanging around her neck.
"No, you can't, Nero-nee!"
"'Nero'" quickly reached out to stop "Alice," explaining anxiously, "This was entrusted to my brother. Since he isn't here, we can't just handle it however we please!"
"What's the point of keeping such a cursed object? Besides, the noble who offered it must have had ulterior motives—something dark and despicable. They're probably like a parasite, draining life from others without contributing anything of their own. My empire could tolerate arrogant lions and bloodthirsty wolves, but parasites that survive by feeding off a nation's lifeblood? Those are absolutely unacceptable!"
Even without knowing the culprit's identity, "Alice" couldn't help but sneer at them.
After all, Nero had never been particularly fond of nobles as a class.
Just then, a knock echoed at the door.
The sound drew the attention of Yunyun and the others, followed by a familiar voice from outside.
"Lady Nero, I thought I heard Princess Alice's voice just now. Is Her Highness in your room again?"
Judging by the tone, it was Claire.
Ah, great—this was going to be a headache.
"'Nero'" and "'Alice'" exchanged nervous glances. Sure enough, the one in Nero's body—Alice—was visibly on edge.
"Mhm! Claire, is that you? I... I was just listening to Nero-nee's stories about her adventures in Arcanretia and the Crimson Demon Village. So many exciting things happened, I almost wish I'd been there myself. Is something the matter, Claire?"
"Something about Your Highness feels... slightly different," Claire said thoughtfully. "But I apologize for interrupting. It's time for your lesson. Today's class is swordsmanship. Once the lesson is over, you can come back and listen to Lady Nero's stories. After all, she and Miss Yunyun will be staying in the castle all day."
Swordsmanship lessons, huh?
The word felt oddly unfamiliar to Nero, for some reason.
"Alice, do you have classes today?"
"'Alice'" looked puzzled at "'Nero,'" who nodded in response.
"Y-Yes, I was just planning to visit you before class started. Is it time already?"
"So what now? You probably can't attend class like this, can you?"
They could either confess the situation to Claire...
Or...
"I'll take your place," "Alice" offered after a brief moment of thought.
"It's fine. Skipping one class won't cause the sky to fall or the kingdom to collapse," she said with a soft smile, easing "Nero's" tension.
"Being overly rule-abiding has its downsides, you know. Running a little late or forgetting an assignment doesn't mean the world is ending. But if you live too rigidly, life becomes unnecessarily stressful. Why don't you take this chance to go out and have some fun with Yunyun? It's been a while since you've had a proper break, hasn't it?"
Hearing this, "Nero's" eyes lit up.
"Isn't that… a bit irresponsible?"
"Ah, I almost forgot—you're as much of a rule follower as she is, Yunyun."
"Alice" turned to the flustered Yunyun and said matter-of-factly, "If you ask me, one of the reasons you struggle to make friends is because you're too well-behaved."
"E-Eh?!?!"
Yunyun was shocked. She had never considered that being "well-behaved" could be seen as a flaw.
"Being well-behaved isn't wrong," "Alice" continued, as if hearing Yunyun's thoughts. "Your mistake lies in being different. Humanity is notorious for rejecting what's different. Even the slightest divergence will be exaggerated, leading to exclusion, belittlement, and ridicule. It's how they create a false sense of superiority. When everyone else is gray, the one who stands out as pure white is seen not as unique, but as wrong."
"Princess Alice?"
Claire's voice came again, urging from outside the door.
"That's settled, then. I'll attend class in Alice's place, and Alice can go explore the castle with Yunyun. You two may have played together in Axel, but this is your first time doing so in the royal capital, right? Enjoy it—opportunities like this don't come often."
"'Alice'" smiled as she continued, "This will be my first time standing in for someone in a lesson. I must admit, I'm a little excited."
"If... if you say so," "Nero" mumbled, clutching the hem of her dress. "But... but, Nero-nee, don't do anything weird with my body, okay?"
"'Alice'" dismissed the concern with a wave.
Both of them were girls—what weird things could she possibly do?
"What's wrong, Claire? Your gaze feels a bit... unusual," "Alice" asked as she walked through the castle's hallways with Claire.
The knights and servants they passed all bowed respectfully. "Alice" responded gracefully, nodding to each one in turn.
"It's just that... how should I put this… Her Highness seems to have changed a little," Claire said earnestly, her cheeks tinged with pink as she watched the serene smile on "Alice's" face—a smile that exuded confidence and composure.
"Her Highness feels… even more dazzling now."
"'Alice'" nodded, clearly pleased by the compliment, and gave a radiant smile.
"Mhm! Isn't that a good thing?"