Feeling Momoze suddenly stop resisting, a flicker of relief flashed across the attacker's eyes—and he instinctively tightened his grip.
"Mom… Brother… I'll go on ahead. I'll wait for you in heaven…"
Momoze's vision blurred, the world fading around her as the pressure on her neck suffocated her.
She'd given up. In her heart, she'd already accepted that her whole family would follow her into death. And in front of her, the criminal's twisted gaze shimmered with both lust and madness—
"How dare you commit violence while His Highness the Prince is resting? You've got a lot of nerve~"
The low, calm voice cut through the stifling air like a blade. It echoed in the small room, unmistakable.
To the attacker, it was like thunder crashing right next to his ears. Every hair on his body stood on end.
And to Momoze—her dimming eyes suddenly sharpened with hope.
Who wants to die… if they can live?
"Who's there?!"
The criminal snarled, lowering his voice. But he didn't loosen his grip on Momoze.
He was so close. Fame, glory, everything was almost within reach—he couldn't give up now.
Still, he maintained basic caution. He released the pressure from his legs pinning Momoze, turning to face the door in a semi-defensive stance, ready to strike at whoever had arrived.
Momoze, her lower body free again, still couldn't speak. But her legs kicked weakly, desperately—proof she hadn't given up yet.
"If you come any closer, I'll snap her neck!!"
The attacker swept the room with his eyes, trying to locate the intruder. His hands trembled, fingers twitching.
Momoze's face turned from red to an ashen gray. Her breath was moments away from vanishing. She was on the edge.
And just as her vision started to go black...
Boom.
With a muffled thud, the crushing grip on her neck vanished.
"Hah… hah…"
Momoze gasped for air, lungs burning. She had never felt air so sweet.
She had already accepted death, but after feeling it crawl right up to her skin—life was beautiful. Anything was better than dying.
She coughed and gasped, while the criminal who'd been knocked away struggled to his feet.
His bloodshot eyes locked onto the figure now standing beside the bed.
"You?!"
His expression shifted from shock to fury. The person who'd struck him—one of only three guards stationed with her—had always been quiet, invisible.
"So the First Queen's guards are a cut above the others. Much more gutsy~" Clone No. 4 said, casually.
The man who should've carried out Momoze's murder was originally a guard under the Eighth Prince's mother—and loyal to the Fifth Queen.
Whether it was the butterfly effect or something else, that man was now aligned with the First Queen.
"You nosy bastard!!"
The attacker, a royal guard under the First Queen, was incensed. His plan had just been crushed by this unknown nobody, and fury surged through him.
"Boy…" he growled, his tone sharp as ice. "Do you even know what you've done?"
"Of course I do~" Clone No. 4 said, unfazed. His voice was almost bored. "Just carrying out my duties. As for you…"
His gaze sharpened, like he was already looking at a corpse.
"You're just some outsider. Don't go getting cocky!!"
The insult hit like a slap. The royal guard snapped. His pride—already crumbling from his failure—exploded under the weight of that look.
He didn't stop to wonder how this person had entered silently, or how he'd struck with such precision, or why his presence felt off.
He didn't care. All that mattered was tearing apart the person who'd shattered his delusions and ruined his perfect moment.
He charged at Clone No. 4 with all the speed and strength he had. Bloodshot eyes gleamed. Rage twisted his features.
He raised his arm, claws bared, aiming straight for Clone No. 4's throat.
You'll suffer the same death the prince did…
That was his last coherent thought. He didn't notice that Clone No. 4's face hadn't moved an inch. No panic, no fear—just a flicker of mockery in his eyes.
"SEAB!!"
His hand, now clawed, slashed forward with a burst of wind aimed at the foreign interloper's throat.
But—
There are obviously more concise and clear ways to kill people... but they always go for the dramatic ones.
The attacker blinked. The figure in front of him vanished.
A voice rang faintly in his ears as his body froze.
He trembled. His mind snapped out of its frenzy. Sanity rushed back—and brought terror with it.
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
His body screamed at him to retreat. To grab Momoze, use her as a hostage, and run.
Too late.
Boom.
A sharp pain pierced his throat. Everything went dark.
His limbs lost strength, breath fading. He now felt the same suffocation Momoze had moments before.
But unlike her—he would never get the chance to breathe again.
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)