"After investigation, you've been identified as the one who plotted to assassinate the Fourteenth Prince. By order of the First Prince, and under the authority of the Royal Guard, I am authorized to execute you on the spot!"
Before the man could even speak to defend himself, he fired three shots in rapid succession.
The guards under the First Prince—once official members of the King's army—were well-versed in turning baseless suspicion into damning evidence. They didn't need facts; only an excuse.
While other princes may have been under surveillance, starting from the Tenth Prince, these guards had also taken on the role of assassins.
When the time came, they would kill without hesitation.
Even if it meant blatantly taking a life, they could always find a justification and claim plausible deniability.
And if they couldn't... then so be it. For the glory of their prince—the great heir—they would die without regret.
Bang!Bang!Bang!
Vincent, the horse-faced man, had channeled aura into his gun. The bullets fired were imbued with Nen—more potent than ordinary ammunition and on par with real Nen bullets.
At such close range, dodging or catching them unscathed should have been impossible for anyone.
Vincent's face twisted into a triumphant grin. But in the next moment, that expression froze.
"Is that supposed to be a Nen bullet? It packs a punch, but honestly, it's kind of pathetic~"
In his stunned gaze, he saw all three bullets—surging with aura—neatly caught between Ronnel's fingers. A calm, casual voice followed.
"This guard... there's no way he's some ordinary lackey!"
Vincent's face contorted, and a sharp instinct surged through him. He stepped back instinctively.
Everything about this guy was wrong. The sudden appearance at the door, the effortless catch—this was far beyond the capabilities of average Nen users.
His combat intuition screamed danger.
"There's someone this strong protecting the Fourteenth Prince? I need to get out of here and report this to Prince Benjamin—immediately!"
"It's not the Second, Third, or even the Forty-Ninth Prince who poses the biggest threat to His Highness… it's the Fourteenth. The one who looks the least threatening. That's the real danger!"
"I have to send this message out! I must!"
His thoughts were in turmoil. He opened his mouth, trying to shout—
But then, his pupils shrank. The world spun. Everything went black.
Thud!
Vincent collapsed, eyes rolled back, body limp.
Though many thoughts had passed through his mind, only a few seconds had actually gone by.
Queen Oito had just begun to regain her senses from the earlier panic—and by then, Vincent was already on the ground.
...
"Queen Oito, are you and His Highness the Fourteenth Prince unharmed?"
Ronnel's voice reached her ears. Still trembling from the shock, the Queen looked between the unconscious assassin and the trembling servant, and for the first time in a long while, she felt safe.
"Y-Yes… we're fine."
"That's good. Please, Your Highness, could you come here and recount what happened earlier?"
As he spoke, everyone suddenly noticed something in Ronnel's hand—a video recorder. He had been documenting the entire encounter without them realizing.
"Just in case. And as it turns out, I was right~"
Ronnel smiled faintly and gestured to one of the royal guards. The guard knelt beside Vincent and pulled out a small device from his ear.
"An earpiece?" Bill muttered after inspecting it, face darkening.
"That means everything we said… someone else heard it. Most likely Prince Benjamin. If that audio gets out, it could be twisted and used as evidence to frame us guards!"
Kurapika's expression turned grim. Clearly, he'd reached the same conclusion.
His eyes flicked toward the video recorder in Ronnel's hand, uncertainty mixing with curiosity.
"Even that was part of his plan? Who is this guy, with his sharp judgment and ridiculous strength…?"
Bill's mind raced as he stared at the recording device.
Ronnel had brought undeniable evidence to the table. And with Kakin still pretending to uphold justice, the opposing side wouldn't be able to twist the narrative as easily.
"This man..."
Bill watched silently as Ronnel crushed the earpiece, then handed the recorder to another guard to safely store the footage of Queen Oito's statement.
He then gave a quiet order.
"Remove the tooth from his mouth. The one hiding the poison sac."
Following the command, the guards extracted a false tooth from Vincent. A moment later, a small orb of aura formed in Ronnel's hand.
He flicked it onto Vincent's unconscious body.
The body trembled violently—then went still again.
...
"That's… Sayird's ability?!" Bill exclaimed, eyes wide with recognition.
He couldn't believe it.
"How does he know Sayird's Nen? Can he… copy other people's abilities?"
A flurry of possibilities crossed his mind. Maybe Ronnel had copied it. Or maybe he had some other way of using others' techniques.
Either way, as long as it didn't harm their side, Bill decided not to dwell on it.
Still, once things settled down, he planned to check on Sayird in the prison area—just in case.
After all, knowing whether the original ability was still intact could answer more questions.
For now, though, he kept his thoughts to himself.
Ronnel had already begun issuing orders again, composed and efficient as ever.
And Bill, watching him, made up his mind.
If this is the kind of man protecting our charge... then maybe it's not such a bad thing to follow his lead.
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)