I don't want to be a heroic spirit

Although the door was not opened, Nero still heard Darkness's voice behind the door with his super hearing.

"Listen carefully, in front of Her Highness Alice, you just need to focus on eating. Don't do anything stupid! You could lose your head if you're not careful!"

Although Darkness gave many warnings, Nero really wanted to say... Instead of expecting these funny guys to stay out of trouble, it's better to expect Xiaoyu to listen to Jackie Chan and stay in a safe place and not run around.

The door was pushed open.

When Nero saw the figures behind the door, his eyes lit up.

First up was Darkness standing in the front. Today she had changed out of her armor and was wearing a pure white dress. Her long blonde hair was braided into a neat braid near her collarbone and fell down from her right shoulder. Dressed like this, Darkness exuded a mature charm.

Then there was Huihui, whose dress was black, a contrast to her skin tone, and the off-shoulder design left large areas of her skin exposed.

And Aqua, after all, is a goddess. Wearing a pure white dress, she is undoubtedly the most stunning one among all the people present... provided that she doesn't open her mouth. The holy temperament of her goddess-like body will be shattered as soon as she opens her mouth.

Darkness, who rarely showed the temperament of a young lady, walked over and bowed deeply to Alice and the others.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting, Your Highness Alice. Dustinis Ford Lalatina, along with her fellow adventurers, would like to greet you."

He is very polite and has no flaws at all. He is not at all like the masochist who would rush forward and get blown up every time Huihui uses explosion magic on a monster.

Only in front of Alice, Darkness still cares about her own image.

It's just...

"Eh? Iris!"

"Isn't this Iris?!"

"Why is Iris here?!"

Behind Darkness, Kazuma and the other two looked at Alice with shocked eyes.

"You insolent bastard! How dare you shout and holler in front of Her Highness Alice, and even look directly at the royal family with that kind of gaze! Even for a rude adventurer, this is too much!"

Claire, who was already in a bad mood, could no longer bear it and even drew the sword from her waist.

Chapter 311 Give Alice a Gift

"Hmph! The one before you is not only Her Royal Highness the Princess of this country, but also my adventuring partner! Belzec Stellihue Thord Alice!"

Under the gazes of Kazuma and the others, Nero proudly stated Alice's real name.

After sorting out the situation, Kazuma scratched his head and said.

"So, Iris is actually the pseudonym Alice uses when she's adventuring?"

"Who allowed you to call Her Highness Alice by her first name? At least add 'Your Highness' to my name! Or just call her Princess!"

"Sword! Sword! Sword! The sword is about to hit me!"

During Alice's adventure in Axel, she also dealt with several members of Kazuma's team.

It's normal to be recognized.

only……

"Didn't you tell them about Alice's identity before you came?"

Nero glanced at Darkness with a strange look in his eyes.

"Yeah! Why didn't you tell me! Do you know how much I was looking forward to meeting the princess?!"

Having broken free from Claire, Kazuma immediately jumped in front of Darkness, yanking on her braid and angrily saying, "I was hoping to make a great first impression on Her Highness by carefully selecting this dress. Then, I'd tell Her Highness about my heroic adventures and try to win her favor. And now, Her Highness has persuaded me to stay as her personal guard and move me directly to the capital, where my career has soared! It couldn't be better!"

"You bastard! How smoothly did you think things would go... And why do you both like to pull my braids so hard?! Give me some time and respect for the time and place! Things like this should at least wait until we get home and there's no one around..."

Darkness tried to strangle Kazuma, but Kazuma resisted by pulling Darkness's braid.

Huihui went to find Youyou.

"Hey, Youyou, you already knew this, didn't you?"

"Huh? This...that..."

"Alright, you Youyou! I originally thought you were just big-breasted and brainless, but I didn't expect your heart to be as evil as your appearance! You deliberately didn't tell me such a big thing, you want to see me embarrass myself in front of Her Royal Highness the Princess, right?"

“No…no! I really don’t think that! And… isn’t it too much to say that big breasts mean nothing?! They’re not as big as I thought they would be. My shoulders ache every day, and I can’t sleep well. I have to worry about sagging… It’s hard for me too, okay! Huihui, you idiot!”

"Enemy! From now on, I officially declare you my biggest class enemy! Enemies like you should be tied to a cross and burned to death!"

The banquet hall was spacious, creating a sense of luxury without being overly luxurious. However, it suddenly became noisy with the arrival of Kazuma and the others.

Alice raised her hand and laughed as clear as a silver bell, her eyes slightly curved like bright crescent moons.

As for Aqua, who is the best at making trouble... she is currently lying on the ground, and no one knows what she is doing.

"Okay! Done!"

What Nero didn't expect was that Aqua completed an extremely detailed sand painting in such a short time.

The sand painting is very well done and is not inferior even to photos.

"Please accept this as a token of friendship. I've tried to perfectly recreate even your tangled, uncombed hair."

Nero turned around and found that Alice did have a strand of alopecia on her head.

Because of what Aqua said, Alice's face suddenly turned red, and she tried to smooth out the ahoge on her head in a panic, but after a lot of work, the ahoge was still standing upright, showing her amazing perseverance.

Then, Alice looked at Nero again and found that he was staring at her, and the blush on her cheeks suddenly deepened a little.

Huh? Isn't that aloof hair on top of his head intentionally left there for cuteness?

Nero thought that the ahoge on Alice's head was the same as the one on King Ahoge, and was also a kind of hairstyle.

Aqua's sand painting was handed to Alice, who couldn't let it go. She could see stars twinkling in her jewel-like eyes.

Are you so happy? Speaking of which...should I give Alice some gifts too?

Nero couldn't help but think so.

…………

Team Nero and Team Kazuma were allowed to stay in the royal capital temporarily, and they stayed in the castle.

I heard that it was Alice who repeatedly requested it. Claire felt that it was inappropriate and wanted to let Nero and others live somewhere else, but for some reason she didn't tell Alice.

"Since returning from Axel, Her Highness Alice has become... how should I put it... a lot stronger? She's now able to make decisions on her own in many situations."

This is what Rain said to Nero.

"Hmm! That's really good news."

"Yes, that's great news... Your Highness Alice has grown as well."

Rain couldn't help but sigh.

Following Rain, Nero came to a room.

By the way, isn’t this the room Nero lived in when he lived in the castle?

"Sir Nero, this will be your residence for the rest of your stay... It's still the same as when you left. Due to Her Highness Alice's request, we've tried to keep it as it is."

Did Alice always think that she would come back here?

Is it really necessary to do this?

Nero glanced at Rain before entering the room.

"Hey, Rain, I have a question..."

"Mr. Nero, do you wish to know the location of Miss Youyou and Her Highness Alice's rooms?"

"I still know Alice's room...if her room hasn't changed during the time I was away."

Nero had broken into Alice's bedroom without her consent many times.

Of course, the "others" here refers to Claire. Alice herself actually agreed, and she might even welcome Nero to her room and tell her those novel and interesting adventure stories.

"So, you just need to tell me the location of Youyou's room... and you can tell me Huihui and the others too."

After saying goodbye to Rain, Nero entered the room prepared for him.

It looked exactly as it had when she left.

"Hmm... What gift should I prepare for Alice?"

The idea had already come to Nero's mind when he saw Aqua giving Alice the sand painting, but until now he still couldn't make up his mind.

Alice is twelve years old. What gift should be given to a child of this age?

Five years of college entrance examination and three years of simulation?

Chapter 312 You came at the right time

"Boom boom boom!"

There was a knock on the door, and then the door opened, and Alice timidly poked her head in from outside.

"Sister Nero...can I come in?"

"Of course."

After getting Nero's permission, Alice walked in happily and hugged Nero again.

Alice's longing for Nero did not diminish during the time they were apart, but instead became stronger, like a richer wine.

"Hehe...it smells like Sister Nero..."

While hugging Nero tightly, Alice continued to rub Nero's face.

She was acting like a kitten, acting like a spoiled brat towards Nero. This was the look she only displayed when they were alone.

During the meal, Alice mostly listened to Kazuma and the others' adventure stories.

Because she knew that after the meal, she could come to Nero at any time and ask her to tell her adventure stories.

"Sister Nero...you haven't finished the story you told me before."

"Okay, okay, come sit here and I'll continue telling you...where were we before?"

Unable to refuse the kindness, Nero smiled dotingly and started telling Alice the story again.

After a while, there was a knock on the door again.

Then, Youyou's voice came through the door.

"Sister Nero...can I come in?"

Yunyun and Alice both have the same shy personality.

"Nero...sister?"

For some reason, after hearing Youyou's address to Nero, Alice turned her head and stared at Nero with a frown.

"Hmm?"

Nero saw some... dissatisfaction in Alice's eyes?

Why are you upset? Did anyone offend Alice?

However, before Nero could take a closer look, Alice got out of bed, opened the door and let Youyou in.

When Yunyun saw that it was Alice who opened the door, she showed a surprised expression.

"Eh? Alice? Why are you here?"

As soon as the words fell, the clever Youyou had already guessed what was going on, and her eyes moved back and forth between Alice in front of her and Nero on the bed.

"Um...did I come at the wrong time?"

"How could that be? You've arrived just in time."

Alice took Youyou's hand and led her into the room, then they came to Nero together.

"Sister Nero was telling me about your time in the City of Water and Hot Springs. I heard it's the headquarters of the Axis Cult, and it's known for its hot springs that are said to heal all wounds... From what I've heard, it seems you encountered Toxic Slime Hans, one of the Demon King's generals, there, right? I bet it was a tough battle, wasn't it?"

"It's not that difficult..."

Although it was difficult to launch an effective attack on that guy, Nero was still able to pin him to the ground and beat him.

In her opinion, the most difficult thing at that time was not the battle with the poisonous slime Hans, but dealing with those crazy Akusis cultists.

She went to buy an apple, and then the store owner would shout, "There's a promotion going on in the store right now! Just sign this form and become an Axis believer! You can pick any fruit in the store for free."