The Days Pass

__________ POV Ashton__________

A few days have passed since the forming of the alliance against the King.

Momoze and Oito, the woman with the child who I eventually learned the name of through Kurapika, have been thinking of ways to take out the King.

Neither of them is experienced plotters or assassins, so they are having some difficulty. Camilla is off doing her own thing, she's not really been attending the meetings, but that's fine. (at least she's not opposing Momoze and Oito)

The two of them seemed quite hesitant about this whole ordeal, it took me reminding them what was at stake here to make them concentrate.

After all, one is fighting for the life of her siblings whilst the other is fighting for the life of her child. This isn't a cold bloodied plot to kill a benevolent king.

It's a necessary evil, a ploy to get rid of a heinous and narrow-minded tyrant. That realization eventually set in for them, as they started getting more serious about things.

They have a few methods in mind, but they don't know how to keep the blame away from themselves. Especially since the king is guarded and under surveillance during most of the day.

I reassured them that I will properly take care of covering up their tracks regardless of what method they used.

Even if Momoze walked up to him and stabbed him in front of a crowd I'd still be able to salvage things. Although I'd be disappointed if that was her actual plan.

I can come up with a few ways to kill him right now. And that's without acting myself.

After all, with the amount of dirt I have on him, turning his servants against him would be extremely easy.

Unwavering loyalty always breaks when the people are faced with the true face of the one they idolize.

"How do I look?" Asked Momoze, showing off a ball dress she put on for tonight.

"Amazing as always..." I said with a genuine smile. She blushed and returned to combing her hair.

I dressed the same as always. I do make a point to always be presentable, every occasion is a 'special occasion' I guess.

Yep, a ball is being held tonight. This is also a night before our last stop in Lake Mobius.

Suffice to say that things around the ship haven't improved all that much. It seems some of Cheadle's efforts paid off in the end, as she managed to convince a few doctors to help in the lower tiers.

I've been kept up to snuff on all of this by Kurapika. Who's hasn't shown even a shred of distrust towards me or the alliance.

Chrollo hasn't contacted me again ever since. I think he already got what he wanted from our meeting. And, honestly, with my latest project, he will also be quite helpful.

I don't hold any grudges on my former student, but he knows what game he was getting into before he even started playing.

He should be prepared to pay the price. As amusing as guessing his thoughts and plots is, being considered a pawn on someone else's chessboard is annoying.

Oh well, I have quite a few things prepared for tonight. And, from what I understand, so does Momoze. Tomorrow is the day, the plan she devised with Oito will be carried out.

Today, the banquet is preparation for that. During this entire time, we've only been able to attract two other candidates to join our small alliance.

They are twins actually. Their names are Fugetsu and Kacho, the former is a timid sort that doesn't really want anything to do with the Succession War, and the latter is the opposite in personality.

Kacho is always putting up an arrogant and haughty facade. Someone like me can easily see through it.

She claims to want to become king, but all she actually cares about is the safety of her twin sister. This is why she joined this alliance with the hope of bringing this to an end.

There are a few problems, however. The twins can't really help all that much with planning. One is too timid to take the life of her own father and the other won't do anything without her sister.

At least on the surface... I still remember my little talk with her...

It was right after they joined the alliance, they said they were in for the idea of stopping the war. But Fugetsu was terrified of the way we presented them.

In the end, they decided to become part of our group. But only for protection, as they weren't comfortable going against the King.

However, after the talk was done, Kacho remained around for a second and spoke to us.

"I-I want to protect my sister... If you need me... Tell me. In secret." After saying her piece, she left after her beloved sister.

Her haughty facade was nowhere to be seen. Only determination and readiness remained. After all, this is the best chance she has at securing her twin sister's life.

She's definitely more than she lets on. She realises that the only way to end the war is to kill the King. She also knows how to be discrete. Something people seem to have trouble with these days.

She approached me in private so that she wouldn't concern her twin sister. So, in Kacho, we have a useful ally, and in Fugets we have another supporter.

They will both prove valuable in time. Momoze is actually implicating Kacho in this plan. Oita is also a cornerpiece from what I've understood.

As for her actual plan? Creating a distraction to lure in some of their father's bodyguards and attaching a parasitic nen beast on them, commanding them to kill the King.

It's a decent plan. But too many things can influence it. It's not really what I would've chosen. First off, controlling a normal bodyguard might not be enough to take out the king.

But they can't really do that to the King's main bodyguard, as that man is quite a bit more powerful than the first prince.

He would be impossible to control into doing that. He would also notice whether or not he was being attacked by a Nen beast.

That main bodyguard is also the reason why this plan might fail. He always seems to be vigilant of his surroundings. I've been tailing him for a bit and the king by extension.

They are always together. The man also has a strange sleeping schedule. He only sleeps for around 3-4 hours a night. During which three men are randomly chosen to take over his duty.

I relayed this information to Momoze. She was really pleased with it, but it also brought in another variable that I dislike in plots... Luck.

We need to control the right bodyguard, one of the people that the chief exchanges with every night.

And... Since they are randomly chosen, doing so is extremely hard. I can't help but think that the King has already thought that his kin would try to take him out.

Otherwise, all of this specific security would be hard to explain. Is he just a paranoid individual?

Oh well. time to head out. There's another meeting happening right before the ball.

Only the ones taking part in the plan are gathering. Including Camilla, who is also going to help in this plan. She will take control of at least two of the bodyguards.

Now, I wouldn't want to be late would I?

__________ POV Narration__________

Unbeknownst to Ashton, but very much within his expectations. There was another group planning something big for this very night.

The curtains were opening as the final act of this intricate and convoluted war of conspiracy and manipulation was coming to its climax.

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Hope you liked the chapter.

Eyy, the interesting bit is starting.

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