"Did we fail?"

The prince muttered as he gazed at the pillar of light shooting into the sky. None of the knights he had brought along could use such immense holy power. Reason dictated that it must be one of his sister's allies—likely the Inquisitor’s attack.

"What about communications?"

"Still cut off, Your Highness. We suspect it's been severed and destroyed by the holy power."

"Hmm..."

The prince stroked his chin thoughtfully. Somehow, they had anticipated his tactics and prepared in advance. If his sister had remained at the same level as before, this would have been enough to overwhelm her. Yet, it seemed that in the half-year since she had been sent to the academy, she had changed far more than he had expected.

"Too many variables... this is not ideal."

"What should we do next?"

"…We'll split into two groups. We've only lost four men so far. Six will be enough to handle any situation."

The prince had given his sister three days, under the pretense of mercy. But it was a grave mistake to think that he had done nothing during that time. To secure the throne, one must be willing to do anything, no matter how dirty. He had spent those three days thoroughly investigating everyone around his sister.

"Half of you will stay here and wait. The other half will move to where the signal first stopped."

"…The place where the signal stopped? Why there?"

"Though the signal is now destroyed, it was active until recently. Then they were attacked. Someone acted as bait."

While it was impossible to pinpoint exactly when the signal had been discovered or who had attached the tracker, there was enough information to make educated guesses.

"The Inquisitor attaching the tracker personally is out of the question. They’re too powerful to be taken by surprise while channeling that much holy power."

"Understood."

"And my sister would never make herself the bait, so she's excluded. As for the academy teacher… exclude them as well."

"…Why exclude the teacher?"

"Because they’re practically a civilian. No combat ability whatsoever, so they’re here just to assist."

The teacher his sister had brought along, despite their title, had almost no combat skills. It was a well-known fact that they struggled to catch their breath after just a little running and couldn’t even use magic. There was no way they’d be used as bait.

The bait was either the demon-possessed, the former genius, or the unknown commoner. It was still unclear which one had taken that role, but one thing was certain:

They had split their forces.

"There’s no way they covered that much distance with a civilian in such a short time. Even if we exclude the Inquisitor and one unknown bait, that leaves four of them."

The prince knew his sister wouldn’t leave her allies unguarded in a dangerous situation. At least one, possibly three, were guarding her.

Even if the teacher was excluded, they had at most three fighters. And with the Inquisitor staying behind, only three were left to fight. If his forces doubled their numbers, the enemy wouldn’t stand a chance.

It didn’t matter if their guard detail was small—fewer defenders only made them easier to overwhelm.

"They’re throwing bait to throw us off balance because they lack numbers. In response, we’ll use bait ourselves."

Trying to create chaos and reduce numbers was the best option for those at a disadvantage. But the best strategies were often predictable. No matter how much his sister had changed, sticking to these straightforward strategies showed she was still fundamentally the same.

She always lost because she was too easy to read.

"When our six remaining soldiers encounter the bait, they are to engage and not let go, no matter what. Meanwhile, the other six will subdue the forces near the starting point and regroup."

"Understood."

"One more thing—target the teacher. Kill them if necessary. Make sure you aim to kill."

"…"

"Acknowledgment."

"…Yes, Your Highness."

The prince wasn’t sure exactly what the relationship was between his sister and the teacher, but it was clear that it was not an ordinary one. Despite the warnings and threats, the teacher had insisted on joining the fight. If they targeted the defenseless teacher, his sister would undoubtedly try to protect them, exposing a critical vulnerability.

Once that weakness was exploited, victory would be inevitable.

If there was dead weight in a battle, the overall combat strength would plummet.

"…And if the teacher survives?"

"Even better. If we subdue everyone but the teacher, they’ll make a perfect hostage."

"Understood."

"Move out. We don’t have much time."

"Yes, Your Highness."

With the prince’s orders, half the knights formed teams and began advancing into the forest. Losing just four men was hardly a blow, especially since they had learned valuable information about the enemy's tactics.

Now all that remained was to wait for the bait to surface.

The prince could feel it—his ascension to the throne was close.

"Look out!"

"…?!"

Just as the prince relaxed, about to take a seat, a small rock flew through the air. One of the knights, ever vigilant, knocked it aside.

"Interesting conversation you’re having, you bastard."

"…You’ve been listening to everything?"

"Yep, heard every word. Gotta say, your accuracy is creepy."

Before anyone could wonder who had thrown the rock, a familiar voice echoed in the prince’s ears.

"…Surprising. You became the bait?"

"Why? Think I can’t be the bait?"

The prince was momentarily thrown off by the revelation that his sister had chosen to act as bait herself. But then, unable to contain his laughter, he chuckled.

While his sister’s unexpected move had strayed from his predictions, her forces were still divided as he had anticipated. It would be even easier than expected.

"…Wow, that laugh is disgusting. Do all the imperial family laugh like that?"

"It’s insulting to compare me to our dear brother, Orca."

"Oh, sorry."

"Hahaha! Three pieces of bait, huh? All within expectations!"

The demon-possessed, his sister, and somewhere nearby, the Inquisitor. Splitting their forces had been a bolder move than he had expected but also a foolish one.

He hadn’t imagined his sister would personally play the role of bait, but it didn’t matter. He still had enough forces to subdue her here and now.

"So, you mean to say all of this was within your predictions?"

"Sister, your problem is that you’re too easy to read. You always use simple strategies that anyone with half a brain could anticipate."

"I see. I suppose I should be more careful in the future."

"There won’t be a ‘next time,’ sister. You’re going to die today."

"Really? No next time, huh? Well then, I guess I’ll just have to deviate from your predictions today."

At that moment, the prince noticed a faint smile creep across his sister’s face, and a sense of dread washed over him.

"You think this is the first time I’ve had to deal with you outwitting me? You think I didn’t expect you to see through a hastily prepared strategy?"

"What?"

"I knew my conniving brother would have some tricks up his sleeve. Thanks for staying so predictable."

His sister was smiling a smile he had never seen before. She declared that she had anticipated everything he was planning.

"You thought you could exploit my teacher, thinking we’d protect them, didn’t you?"

"…Ho. So, what? You’re mistaken if you think this fight is about anyone else. This duel is about killing you. The others are just distractions. You’re the king in this chess match. The moment you became bait, the game was over."

It was true that her unexpected decision had thrown him off, but that was only because it had been an unconventional move. The moment she put herself in the line of fire, the game had already been decided.

"No, I’m the queen, not the king."

…Was she mad?

The prince raised an eyebrow, bewildered by her bold declaration.

"Is that so? Then tell me—who is the king?"

"Who do you think it is? Here’s a hint: The king has one way to escape when in danger, brother."

"What the hell…?"

"Still don’t get it? Let me spell it out for you. My magic is based on chess… Who do you think the king is?"

"…Ho."

"Looks like you finally figured it out."

Though the prince had known about his sister’s magic for a long time, she had never assigned anyone the role of the king before. It hadn’t occurred to him that chess had one more trick up its sleeve.

"The bait isn’t us. It’s on the other side."

"…Don’t move. Take one step, and this woman dies."

"Wow, that’s such a cliché line. I feel like yawning."

"Seriously."

The attackers had appeared out of nowhere, seemingly materializing with blades to our necks. And yet, we didn’t react.

Because we had expected it.

The thugs, clearly unsettled by our calmness, hesitated. Meanwhile, I muttered softly under my breath.

"Castling."

"?!"

"Hello there, nice to meet you."

Slash.

With that cheerful greeting, the knight holding the blade to my throat had his hand swiftly cut off.

"And goodbye."

…Hmm, she seems a bit angry. Or is that just my imagination?