Reincarnated as a Princess's Pet: With Trash Stats, but SSS-Rank Skill

The grand hall fell silent as Max, Neros, and Dorian stepped forward.

The echo of their footsteps faded into the high ceiling. Light filtering through the stained glass painted the floor in soft colors... far too calm for what had just happened.

Max felt it immediately. Something was wrong. The king wasn’t sitting upright like usual.

There was no smile. No childish glint in his eyes.

He was... slouched.

His hands gripped the armrests of the throne tightly, and his gaze—empty, distant—barely lifted when he saw them approach.

"Your Majesty..." Dorian began, bowing his head slightly.

The king cut him off with a weak gesture.

"They took her..."

His voice had no strength. Low. Broken.

Max felt a knot form in his chest without quite knowing why.

"They took... my pet..."

Silence. The weight of those words hit harder than any shout.

"I..." the king continued, swallowing, "I know I could... perform another ritual..."

His fingers trembled.

"I could summon another pet..."

His eyes grew moist.

"But... in such a short time..."

A sad smile—completely out of place on someone like him.

"I’d already grown attached..."

Max looked away for a second. He hadn’t expected that.

Not from him.

"She was..." the king hesitated, "...different..."

Silence again.

Then, barely a whisper:

"Please... bring her back..."

The air turned heavy.

And then—the sharp sound of impact.

Neros dropped to one knee. His armor rang loudly against the floor. He lowered his head.

"Do not worry, Your Majesty," he said firmly. "I will take care of this."

There was no doubt in his voice. Not a trace. It was a promise.

The king nodded slowly, clinging to those words as if they were all he had left.

Max watched the scene... then leaned slightly toward Dorian, lowering his voice.

"Is this guy really not going to take off his armor for a rescue mission?"

Dorian didn’t even look at him.

"I’ve told him several times already."

"And?"

"He’s still wearing it."

Max raised an eyebrow.

"Must smell... terrible in there."

Dorian let out a small breath through his nose.

Max couldn’t help but chuckle under his breath.

Neros, of course, didn’t react. Didn’t move. He remained still, like a statue.

Then—

CLANG.

The massive doors of the hall opened. Slow. Heavy.

But...

No footsteps followed.

Max frowned. He turned—there was nothing behind him. The hallway stood empty. The doors fully open. Absolute silence.

"...?"

A chill ran down his spine. Something... didn’t add up.

And then he felt it. A powerful presence, right behind him.

He turned sharply and looked forward again.

And there she was.

A woman. An elf with long reddish hair cascading past her waist like a waterfall. A green dress that seemed to move as if it had a life of its own. And a pointed hat, large... far too large for someone like her.

A gentle smile. Bright eyes. Watching him directly.

Max blinked.

"Uh..."

"So you must be Max," she said casually, as if she had been there all along. "It’s a pleasure to finally meet the fiancé of one of my students... and the father of another."

Max went blank. Processing. Recalculating.

The woman extended her hand gracefully.

"I am Seraphine."

Max reacted late—but he reacted. He took her hand with both of his, nodding his head several times in a row.

"Then you must be the famous mage known as The Wand of Eldoria..."

When he looked up, he froze.

Her feet weren’t touching the ground. She floated, suspended over a faintly glowing magic circle slowly spinning beneath her.

"..."

"I’d prefer you call me Seraphine," she replied with a light smile.

Max nodded quickly. Too quickly.

"Yes, yes, of course, Seraphine, totally normal, nothing strange here."

"Miss Seraphine," Dorian cut in, stepping forward calmly. "I see time has treated you well."

His gaze traveled up and down her figure without the slightest bit of subtlety.

Seraphine tilted her head.

"I wish I could say the same about you, Master Dorian."

Her smile was kind—but sharp.

Dorian let out a small laugh.

Max looked from one to the other. Then at Neros. And frowned.

He wasn’t moving. Not speaking. Not even... looking at her. It was as if she didn’t exist—or he was deliberately ignoring her.

"...?"

Max turned back to the mage.

Seraphine sighed softly.

"I have no problem going on a mission with my ex-husband," she said in a casual tone, "but the least he could do is greet me."

Silence.

Max blinked a couple of times. Recalculating.

Again. Harder.

"..."

He slowly turned his head toward Neros.

Then to Dorian.

Then back to Seraphine.

"..."

Dorian couldn’t hold it in anymore. He burst out laughing.

"I knew this would happen," he said, amused. "The knight can’t even look her in the eyes."

He gestured toward Neros with his head.

"He’s still hopelessly in love with her."

Max opened his mouth. Closed it.

Opened it again.

"..."

And finally said—

"Neros was married to the most powerful mage in Eldoria!?"

Neros spun around instantly. And looked at Max.

Not at the king. Not at Dorian. Not at Seraphine.

At Max.

With an expression... completely out of place for someone like him. It was pure fear. Raw. Desperate. As if he were silently begging, get me out of here without saying a word.

Max froze for a few seconds, unsure how to react.

"Don’t look at me like that..." he muttered, taking a small step back. "You’re scaring me."

Dorian burst into laughter.

"HA! Look at him! The great royal knight asking for help with his eyes!"

The king cleared his throat, trying to maintain some dignity... though he was clearly struggling.

"Neros..." he said, more firmly. "Please... greet Miss Seraphine."

Silence lingered for a few seconds.

Neros closed his eyes.

Tap.

He gave himself a small smack on the forehead with his palm. Took a deep breath. Then stood up.

The movement was stiff. Forced. As if every joint weighed twice as much.

He turned. Walked toward his ex-wife. Step by step.

He stopped in front of her. Extended his hand. Awkward. Uncertain. Blinking several times in a row, like he was trying to survive an emotional storm in real time.

"M-Miss Seraphine..." he said, with a calm that clearly wasn’t real.

Seraphine looked at him.

And, to everyone’s surprise—

She blushed. A soft laugh slipped from her lips as she took his hand.

"It’s a pleasure to see you again, Sir Neros."

The silence turned awkward.

Neros blushed too. He turned his head. Looked away. And said absolutely nothing.

...

A second passed.

And then Max and Dorian burst out laughing. No filter. No mercy.

The king brought a hand to his mouth, trying to hold it in... clearly failing. His shoulders trembled.

"...khm..."

Seraphine gently let go of his hand, still smiling.

"Putting that aside..." she said, regaining her composure. "You can’t go on a mission in the black market wearing that armor."

Max raised a hand immediately.

"We already told him!"

"Several times," Dorian added, crossing his arms.

Neros frowned, still not looking at her directly.

"As long as I am in the castle... I must wear it. It is my work uniform."

The king tilted his head.

"Didn’t you tell me something else earlier?"

Silence.

Neros froze.

"You told me you wanted to wear the helmet... to avoid looking her in the eyes... and so it wouldn’t be as obvious."

Max slapped both hands over his mouth.

Dorian outright turned away to laugh properly.

Neros turned red all the way to his ears.

"T-That was a secret, Your Majesty!"

The king blinked.

"Oh..." pause. "My apologies."

It didn’t sound like it. Not at all.

The laughter continued.

Seraphine gently shook her head, amused.

"Don’t worry."

With an elegant motion, she slipped her hand beneath her cloak. And pulled out a grimoire.

The book floated on its own in front of her, opening without being touched. Its pages began flipping rapidly, as if searching on their own.

Seraphine raised a small wand. She moved it through the air. A line of multicolored light ran over Neros’ body from head to toe.

Several times.

FWOOM.

The armor began to disappear. No sound. No resistance. As if it had never been there.

In its place appeared a black shirt, dark pants, and leather boots.

Simple. Light. Perfect for moving without drawing attention.

Neros shut his eyes tightly.

"I... did not give you permission for that..."

"It’s what the mission requires," Seraphine replied casually, a smile still on her face.

Max blinked.

’...That magic...’

His gaze dropped for a moment, unconsciously.

’It’s like the mark Sophie gave me...’

The way objects simply... vanished.

Stored. Hidden. Without weight or volume.

"Always so effective... the great Wand of Eldoria," Dorian commented with a crooked smile.

Seraphine inclined her head slightly.

"Thank you very much."

Max looked at one... then the other... and finally at Dorian.

"So..." he said. "Who would be the fifth member for the mission?"

Dorian didn’t hesitate.

"The fifth member..." he began, turning toward the hall’s exit, "...is already waiting for us."

A pause.

A faint smile.

"In the black market."