Gulu~
Faced with the black barrel of a pistol, the seven guards collectively swallowed hard.
They looked at each other, silent, before finally raising their hands in unison, understanding the situation perfectly.
One of them, still unwilling to give in, asked with a defiant tone:
"What proof do you have that your chains are legit?!"
"You can always try them out~"
Kurapika's calm, steady gaze shut the man right up. He broke into a cold sweat and stopped talking immediately.
Within less than an hour of boarding the ship, the seven guards sent by the Kakin royal family were restrained and tied to chairs by Kurapika and the others.
"You were already aware of the Succession War, weren't you?"
The question had barely left his mouth before the seven men started to answer at once.
"Shut it! No one answers!"
Click— The sound of a pistol being cocked silenced them instantly.
Succession War?
The three Hunters who had joined the operation looked at each other, confused.
They genuinely had no idea. From what they knew through the Hunter Association, this was supposed to be an internal dispute within the Kakin Empire—nothing that should've involved outsiders like them.
As Hunters, they only needed to do their jobs.
Even Pariston and Beyond might not have known that the Kakin Empire was planning to carry out the pot ceremony succession battle on this voyage.
Originally, they'd thought nothing of it. But now, after hearing the term "Succession War," a deep, unsettling feeling gnawed at their insides.
They were definitely caught up in something bigger than they'd signed up for...
Kurapika aimed his pistol at the royal guard on the far left. The man was drenched in sweat as he spoke up with difficulty:
"I... I did know about the Succession War beforehand..."
The remaining six echoed the same confession.
...
Kurapika's gaze shifted, suddenly sharp, locking onto the three guards standing nearby. His tone was grim.
"What about you three? Do you know anything about the Succession War?"
"No!"
"Not at all!"
"Never heard of it!"
Their denials came rapid-fire, almost overlapping each other. Then, a slow explanation followed—
It was Ronnel who stepped in to clarify things.
As his explanation unfolded, the three Hunters' expressions shifted—first to realization, then to something pale and bitter.
That ominous feeling they'd had? It wasn't paranoia. They were in deep. And getting out in one piece was going to be a miracle.
Even one misstep could cost them their lives.
As Kurapika turned his eyes toward Ronnel, something clicked. Aside from the seven royal guards, only he and Ronnel had known about the war.
That meant...
Had he also been summoned by one of the Queens? Entrusted with sensitive information? Deemed valuable?
Kurapika quickly pushed those thoughts aside. Now wasn't the time for speculation.
"Then... are you with Prince Woble?"
The question hit its mark. The seven guards looked visibly worse.
With weapons still aimed at them, they could only grit their teeth and respond:
"No."
"Same here. I'm not with him."
Hearing that, Queen Oito—who was under the protection of the guards—snapped.
Aside from her caretakers, there were twelve people under her command who could fight. And now, she'd learned that seven of them weren't truly on her side?
If they weren't here to protect her, then they had to be here to harm her.
Her paranoia flared, nerves fraying as she screamed:
"Shoot them!! Shoot them now!!"
Click—
Reacting on instinct, the guards cocked their pistols.
"Wait—wait, please!!"
The seven tied-up guards panicked. Drenched in sweat, they struggled and pleaded:
"Please calm down, Your Highness!"
"Give us a chance to explain!!"
They writhed desperately in their chairs until a calm voice cut through the chaos:
"Killing them now isn't the priority. Getting information is. If they refuse to talk, then we shoot."
"Yes! Absolutely! We'll cooperate fully!"
The seven guards nodded frantically, like they'd just been pardoned from death row.
"We're only following orders. We never intended to harm the Queen or Prince Woble!"
Even before Kurapika could continue questioning, one of them began blurting out explanations like a dam breaking.
"Orders?"
Kurapika narrowed his eyes, catching that key word. He remembered what Ronnel had mentioned earlier and pieced it together.
"You mean... you were sent by the other seven Queens?"
"That's right," one admitted. "Every Queen dispatched guards to monitor the concubines and Queen below them... to prevent rebellion. But we're forbidden from monitoring those above."
"So the system goes," Ronnel added, "that only once a new Queen enters the picture, does she get guards of her own—to keep an eye on the ones below her."
He turned to Queen Oito, who still looked stunned.
"And since you're the last Queen to board... you never got an explanation. You didn't even know about this system in the first place. That's... pretty damn cold."
He left it there. No need to spell out what they were all thinking.
Queen Oito's face had gone completely pale.
Their already precarious position had just gotten even worse.
...
"To be honest... part of our assignment was to ensure the safety of Prince Woble," one of the guards admitted weakly.
"But only if it didn't conflict with your own orders, right?" Ronnel cut in, eyes narrowed. "If his existence is seen as a threat to your Queen, then eliminating him becomes 'doing your job'?"
He chuckled coldly, but didn't wait for an answer.
Kurapika stepped forward again, his tone serious:
"Have you received any direct orders to assassinate Prince Woble?"
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)