Eldritch announced his abdication, signifying the start of a throne war that would ensue once the youngest prince reached the age of twenty-five. Before his departure, Eldritch confided in Francis with words of encouragement, stating his belief that Francis had the potential to become a good king. The enormity of Eldritch's words filled Francis with excitement, and he immediately vowed to become king. Though he was unsure he could win against his other siblings, Francis knew he had a few years left before he turned 25. With newfound determination, he vowed to improve himself physically, intellectually, and emotionally, striving to become his strongest, smartest, and best version.

"I didn't expect that you really thought so; I hate and envy your face that doesn't worry about anything," in the middle of his training, Margareth greeted Francis with her personal female knight standing behind her.

"Sister... what is your business with me?"

As soon as Margareth came, Francis' knight quickly approached Francis. Margareth looked at Francis's kight with a smile and then said

"Fufu, it seems your knight is no better than you. Equally stupid and unable to think properly,"

Her smile disappeared, then she continued

"Don't worry; I won't kill him. I'm not stupid enough to do that," Margareth said.

Francis turned to his knight because he seemed to understand something, so he asked.

"Kill? Rudy, what is she talking about?"

Francis' innocent look made it hard for Rudy, his knight, to explain it.

"Umm... about that..."

"If you want to be king, try to think for yourself with that little brain of yours. But... since I'm a veeery nice sister, let me tell you,"

Margareth looked up directly into Francis' face, looking at him with a sharp gaze, making Francis jerk back slightly; Margareth's aura at that moment was so threatening that he felt a little afraid of her.

"You may think the way to win the election is to be strong and win the people's hearts, but actually the most effective way is to reduce your rivals."

"Reduce... rivals...?"

"That's right, we just need to kill our rival; that way the commoners will have few choices."

Margareth intended to pressure Francis to make him worry, but Francis' reaction was,

"Hahaha! What are you talking about? We're siblings, aren't we? How could siblings kill each other?"

That answer made Rudy sigh; he felt happy that Francis didn't know such things yet and worried about his innocence.

Margareth's face, which received Francis' answer, did not look good. She was upset because she felt like a fool for teasing Francis. Deciding that Francis could not relieve her stress, Margareth left.

"Well... you better be careful from now on, good luck." She said this before leaving.

Rudy had always been the silent observer, always quick to pick up on the intentions of those around him. And he understood what Margaret intended to said. And because of that, doubt crept in and began to gnaw at him.

The task at hand was no easy feat. Francis was a prince with aspirations of becoming king, and Rudy was but a mere knight tasked with protecting him. He had previously agreed to protect him because he had no idea that things would turn out like this. As the reality of the situation began to sink in, Rudy couldn't help but question his own abilities.

In the heir war, it wasn't just about protecting Francis from outside threats; Rudy now had to also worry about other princes who had the same goal as Francis. The competition was steep, and Rudy felt he was over his head. As he mulled over his doubts, Rudy couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt. He had promised to protect Francis with all his might, and now he was questioning whether he could fulfill that promise. The weight of responsibility was heavy, and Rudy was scared that he didn't have enough ability to protect Francis as his personal knight.

"Your highness... It seems that I am not suitable to be your personal knight."

Francis confusedly asked, "Why is that?"

"Compared to other knights, who may be as strong as mithril, I am only palladium. The reason I became a soldier was also because I was no longer able to challenge the dungeon. A coward like me is not worthy of protecting you."

Francis probably understood his knight's feelings. They were both weak and wanted to become stronger; at that moment, Francis realized that was probably why he agreed to choose him because they were similar.

"You can't quit, do you think how long it took me when I decided to choose you."

"I-I am really sorry! But I-" Not yet finished speaking, Francis cut him off by saying:

"Sabine... she was already leaving me," Francis' face suddenly turned gloomy.

'Sabine, if I'm not mistaken, she's the mentor of the princes.'

"When she left, I yearned for her to carry me away with her. I pledged to cast aside my royalty and settle for a simple life with her, as her son, but she refused. She insisted that it was my duty to uphold my obligations to the kingdom. I'm currently the prince, and that status will never change. I am chosen to serve people, and there is no escaping this duty.

Admittedly, the burden seems daunting, but brother Eldritch has faith in me. My brother even claimed I would be a worthy king. Thus, I will do my best to fulfill his expectations."

"Your Highness..."

" And to you, my knight, I picked you not only because I fancied you, but because there was no other person I trusted more to stand by me, but now that you've become my knight, I think all you need to do is try your best to carry out the duties you've been charged with. I trust you, and I hope you trust me too."

Rudy's face became teary; it was the first time he had ever heard someone else say such a thing to him.

"Your Highness... Thank you very much! I will try my best to protect you!" he said while kneeling in front of Francis.

"Good..."

In his heart, Francis was a little surprised.

'Wow... just like sis Heit taught me, it turns out that these words have an effect; thank goodness I memorized them. Since Sabine left, I've had no one to talk to. This person seems easy to talk to, which is why I chose him; Sabine also said this kind of person is good for me. From the beginning, if I become strong, the knight is not too important, right? Brother Eldritch and brother Leofric don't have one, so that must be true.'

He became curious about something because of the mention of Leofric and Heit's names.

'Oh.. If I am not mistaken, Heit is an adfeqtus reliqua, a weapon taken from the dungeon. But where did she go? Is it because brother Leofric died, and she suddenly died with him?'

...

...

historical

...

After successfully escaping from Eldritch, Noctem Dolls returned to the basement of one of the ruined churches in the slums. As of now, they were still there, to see the situation further. And as surprised as everyone was, Ivaylo did not expect Eldritch to resign and start an heir war. But not all the members of the Noctem Dolls were surprised by that; one of them seemed to have known everything from the beginning.

"Eldritch Odelina Wildenhall, we really can't touch him at all, and I can't guess his way of thinking either. I also didn't expect that you were also using us here," said Ivaylo.

Almost all the members of Noctem Dolls were gathered in the dim room. Busy with their own businesses. Some were playing chess and cleaning their armacar, and some were doing nothing like Arthur and Clarissa.

The Noctem Dolls numbered ten people, but one person hadn't shown up for a long time. And the reason for that was because he was busy in his life. One person among them had not become a fugitive from the state.

"Oya? Didn't I tell you our relationship is of mutual use, don't think you can control me easily."

The tenth person, or perhaps the ninth, had entered before Arthur. He was reading a book, sitting on the rocks on a thick carpet, keeping himself from getting dirty. Then beside him was a girl with shining white hair, asleep and leaning on his left hand.

Ivaylo chuckled, put his doll into his pocket, and said,

"Fufu, you said that Alicia is the smartest, but I'm sure she's completely unaware of this, isn't that right? Prince Leofric."

Leofric Regina Wildenhall, the 4th prince of the Wildenhall kingdom and the number nine member of the number one criminal organization in the kingdom. Beside him, Heit, was sleeping peacefully with drool coming out of his mouth.

"It would be better if you didn't underestimate her; even a slight mistake would make her suspect us. Her appraisal was very dangerous; she could have realized that my corpse at that time was just your doll."