"Sixteenth sister? It's her men who are doing all this? But how, I thought the majority of her men had already been eliminated!" Nufes shouted as he stomped around in his room.
"She seems to have acquired the men from that man called Minos, who had previously been eliminated. The main problem here is that it's like she has eyes everywhere, able to see our moves before we even make them!"
"Dammit, she's already eliminated a dozen of my soldiers, not to mention we won't be able to breathe normally with her still in operation." Nufes said.
"What should we do, your Highness?"
"... Send a message to my brothers and that first sister of mine, we have to destroy her in one go, otherwise she'll keep nibbling away at us like the little rat she is!"
…
"Sir, your first brother has sent a message."
"Oh? It must be about sixteenth sister." Orino said with a laugh, though he still opened the letter and read it with haste.
"He's got a point… Send him a message back and tell him I agree, but we have to discuss more about how exactly we are going to do this."
"As commanded!"
…
"Hahaha, to think my sister had such a trick up her sleeve, but does she not know the first rule of warfare? Strength beats all!" The Sixth Prince said with a loud laugh as he received the news.
However before he could have the chance to head out and crush that sister of his, he received more news.
"First brother also wants in on the action? And he wants to involve the others as well? Great! This way once we're done destroying my sister, I can turn and face off against those other siblings of mine and end this game in one go!"
…
"... What is that sister of mine thinking… At one point she was pretty much out of the game, and yet in a single instance, she's come back with tremendous power…"
"Odd, very very odd… Tell me again Hetch, what was the name of the man who those soldiers originally belonged to?" The Seventh Prince suddenly asked the soldier ahead of him.
"Minos, Sir."
"Minos… For his men to be so capable can't be a coincidence, he must have chosen them well, which begs the question, how could a man of such competence be eliminated so easily?"
"Hetch, call in the soldier who saw his elimination, I want to ask him some questions."
"Right away, Sir." Hetch said, running off for a moment before coming back with another man by his side.
"You called, Sir?"
"Tell me again, how certain are you of that man called Minos's elimination?"
"100% Sir! I've compared the picture over and over again, and I'm certain that it's the same man without any doubts."
"... Is that so…? Go ahead, you're dismissed." The Seventh Prince said, sending the man off before going back to his thoughts.
Despite not asking anymore questions, it was clear he didn't quite believe this story completely, his instinct suddenly warning him against this man he had never even seen face to face before.
'Minos, huh? What an interesting man. I have a feeling he'll be much more of a problem in the future…'
…
"Elezra, your first brother has sent you a letter."
"Oh, is that so?" The beautiful looking first princess, Elezra, said with a smile.
"Ahum- Yes, that's right." The soldier said, nearly fumbling his words due to the princess's beauty.
Giggling, Elezra took the letter from the soldier, flicking her pinky-finger and using her razor sharp nail to cut an opening along the side.
Pulling the letter out, she read it with interest before finally setting it aside, rubbing her chin as if pondering the contents within.
"Send a message back, tell my brother I'm willing to participate in his plan, however I'll only do so if we can spare my sister until the end of the game, such to give her a better placement. I'd hate a poor result in the first game to ruin her chances completely." Elezra said after some thinking.
"Your generosity is truly unparalleled, Princess!" The soldier said with reverence.
"What is generosity between siblings? And like I've already said, call me by my first name, there are no inferiors and superiors here!" Elezra replied with puffed cheeks, as if angry at him.
"Of course, my mistake, Elezra! I'll go send that message immediately then!" The soldier said with a wide smile before running off.
As soon as he disappeared, the warm smile on Elezra's face disappeared, instead replaced by a deep indifference.
Standing up, she began pacing through the room, her thoughts in a completely different place now that she was alone.
'This could be a good opportunity for me to build a deeper connection with that sister of mine… With a Sky-Grade Physique by my side, even if I can't win this battle, my future pursuits will still be much easier.'
'In her deepest moment of despair, I will stretch an arm out to her, become her hope so that she may become my wings!'
…
"How is it? Has everyone agreed?" Nufes asked as his man finally came back with the news.
"Everyone except your fourth brother, your Majesty." The soldier responded.
"Fourth brother? I should have known he would cause problems… We can't let him just sit back and watch while we take all the risk, how fair would that be? Send a message to that brother of mine, tell him if he isn't willing to join us, then we'll have to eliminate him as well." Nufes said after some thought.
"Right away."
After a bit of waiting, the soldier came back with an update, though the look on his face made it clear it wasn't good news, his mouth slightly agape as if trying to find the right words to say.
"Go ahead, spit it out." Nufes finally said impatiently.
"Your majesty, your brother has replied, and I quote 'Eliminate me if you can, foolish bastard.'"
"What! How dare that little rat talk to me like that! Dammit!" Nufes shouted in a growl, slamming his fist against his throne's armrest.
"What shall we do?" The soldier asked.
"Since he wants a fight, we'll give him one. Send a message out to the others and make it clear what he's said."
Nodding, the soldier once again ran out to get that done, and after Nufes waited patiently for close to an hour, he finally came back.
"Your Majesty, the others don't agree with your plan. They say your fourth brother isn't the main threat right now, and it's better to eliminate your sixteenth sister first before moving on to him."
"... Fine, I suppose we can let him live for a little longer, but that brat will soon pay the price for his arrogance. Anyways, prepare the men, we'll set out soon."
"Right away, your Majesty!"
…
"So, how are things going?" Asumi couldn't help but ask Nissor, having been held in the dark for most of the scheme.
"Exactly as planned, in fact it looks like the others are about ready to set off and destroy us once and for all." Nissor said with a smile, his words not matching his appearance at all.
"Already? Great! You heard that everyone, get your men ready as well, we'll have to 'run' soon."
"Not soon, now. Based on my reports, they'll arrive within the next hour, we don't have any time to waste." Nissor said, shocking everyone.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier!?" Asumi shouted.
"I just got the news, and they act fast, so please forgive me for the gap in judgment." Nissor replied apologetically.
"It's alright, we've still got time. Everyone enter overdrive, we've got to leave as soon as possible!"
With Asumi's commanding voice, everyone prepared as fast as possible, which fortunately was easy given they didn't have much to do.
With everything ready, they immediately set off under Nissor's guidance, his movements quick and precise as he made his way towards the Zafronium Industrial Plant.
With days of preparation plus the abilities of all his colleagues, the trip was unimpeded, and without much trouble the group arrived at the large plant.
The area of the plant they went towards was more of a storage area, so the place was pretty much empty, making things a bit easier for them.
However, it wouldn't be empty for long, and despite their 'efforts' to escape, it was clear the other factions were hot on their tails.