It made perfect sense to place royal guards around the princes—at least on the surface.
But the other princes weren't too receptive to Benjamin's "kindness."
"It is absolutely forbidden to loiter anywhere near Camilla's quarters!!"
Camilla, the volatile second prince, was furious at Benjamin's imposed arrangements.
"Anyone who sets foot in my living room gets shot!"
...
While Camilla fumed, the eccentric fourth prince, Tserriednich, also received Benjamin's notice. The message made him pause in his interrogation of Theta about Nen.
"What do you think?" he mused lazily. "As a prince born of the First Queen, I'm under no obligation to follow Benjamin's commands~"
Like Benjamin, Tserriednich was a son of the First Queen. He lazily flicked his fingernail and spoke to his attendant with a smirk.
"Tell Benjamin he's an idiot. I'm studying Nen, and I don't have time to chat~"
...
Meanwhile, the fifth prince, Tubeppa—an ally of the fourth prince—was adjusting his formal attire for an upcoming party when he received the news.
"So that's what this is about. The guard who triggered the Nen Beast alert was trying to stall the situation… I want that guard's full report, now! I'll investigate it myself."
...
Back in the domain of the fourth prince...
Kurapika stood silently, facing Ronnel and the seven royal guards behind Queen Oito—clearly under his control. A wave of powerlessness crept into her chest.
After Kurton, one of the Association's three assigned guards, was gravely injured and taken for treatment, Sayird had also been taken away by Kakin's royal security for alleged attempted murder.
As stated before: indiscriminate killing might be tolerated in the Succession War, but that doesn't mean you won't face consequences.
That left Bill as the only remaining Association guard at Kurapika's side, forcing her to rethink their strategy.
But every effective plan required manpower—and that was the one thing they were rapidly losing.
The seven royal guards, now clearly under Ronnel's command, ignored all of Kurapika and Bill's orders. They only responded to him.
Yet Ronnel himself wasn't exactly cooperative.
"My job is to protect the Fourteenth Prince and Queen. The rest? Do what you want. Doesn't concern me~"
With that, he shut his eyes and leaned back, leaving Kurapika and Bill at a loss.
In a situation like this, they needed a new monitor—urgently.
Just as the two were frowning in silence...
Ding dong.
The doorbell rang.
"I'm Vincent," said a calm, emotionless voice from outside. "Royal guard under the First Prince's command."
As the words reached them, the Fourteenth Prince suddenly began crying in Queen Oito's arms.
"What happened? I just fed him—maybe he's sleepy?"
She spoke hurriedly, trying to soothe the infant, though her gaze flicked toward the door again and again. The tension was unmistakable.
"Looks like we've got another unwelcome guest," Ronnel muttered, cracking one eye open.
Unbeknownst to the others, he'd long since sent out his particle clones to observe the movements in the other princes' quarters.
"Your Highness, head to the bedroom. Leave this to us~"
"Thank you."
With Ronnel rising from the sofa, Queen Oito immediately seemed to regain her composure.
With the help of a nanny, she began retreating toward the inner chamber.
"Is this another head sent to be chopped off?"
Kurapika and Bill exchanged glances. Then their eyes settled on the seven guards trailing behind the Queen. A wordless understanding passed between them.
Still, they weren't too concerned. Another surveillance officer from another prince? Nothing too worrying—
...
Bang!
Even through a silencer, the gunshot rang loud enough to snap everyone's attention to the door.
Queen Oito froze mid-step, horrified.
Kurapika and Bill spun around toward the source—the entrance.
There stood the nanny who had gone to answer the door, her face frozen in disbelief.
And next to her, Vincent stood holding a silenced pistol, muzzle still smoking. His expression twisted—he hadn't expected this.
"What the hell... Shooting on arrival?" Ronnel's voice cut through the silence.
Appearing between Vincent and the servant, he spoke slowly, a bullet still glowing faintly with gunpowder smoke slipping from his hand.
"You really are the First Prince's guard. Arrogant and reckless, just like your master."
Kurapika and Bill both blinked. When did he move? Neither had seen Ronnel leave his position.
But sure enough, there he was—standing in front of a pale Queen Oito, shielding her with ease.
"Wh-What's going on?!" Vincent stammered.
He'd only seen a nanny open the door. His plan had been simple: execute her under the pretense of "suspicious behavior" and pin it on her to send a message.
But now, his ambush had been ruined.
"Ah!!"
The nanny finally snapped out of her stupor. Her eyes locked onto the barrel aimed her way. Her knees buckled as she screamed in terror.
The sound shattered the momentary silence like glass.
And in that instant, Vincent's face twisted further, clouded by panic and rage. He turned the gun on Ronnel without hesitation...
------------
Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)