Chapter 856
"Who are you?"
"Mr. Ron, I serve under the Second Prince and was sent to invite you on her behalf."
The man gave a slight bow. His posture was respectful, but his tone left no room for refusal—as if Ron had no choice but to accept the prince's invitation.
The Second Prince—Camilla.
Ron recalled the disgust Morena had once expressed when speaking of Camilla. It was likely this invitation had come because of Morena. Camilla intended to use Ron to get at her.
"Not interested."
But Camilla knew far too little about Ron. On the Black Whale, few had the qualifications to reject a prince's invitation—especially from one of the higher-ranking royals.
Ron, however, happened to be one of those few.
Back on the Human Continent, perhaps Camilla's influence would have mattered more. After all, she had the backing of the Kakin Empire. But here, aboard the Black Whale, it was a different story.
Even on the Human Continent, Ron would've refused if he wanted to. Kakin wasn't about to risk clashing with an S-rank Nen user like him just to protect Camilla's pride.
The man froze, his expression stiffening. He clearly hadn't expected that kind of response. In his view, this was an invitation from the Second Prince. Who would dare reject a prince aboard a Kakin vessel?
The man's face darkened. "Ron, do you realize what you're saying? Do you know who's inviting you? Do you know who the Second Prince is? Do you know whose ship this is?"
Ron looked at him and raised an eyebrow slightly.
It had been a long time since someone had dared speak to him like this. The scene felt almost nostalgic.
But nostalgia aside, Ron had no intention of acknowledging the man. He turned and walked off in the direction of the dining hall, ignoring him completely.
The man's face grew even darker. He chased after Ron and reached out, trying to grab him.
Swoosh!
A sharp whistle of air cut through the silence. Suddenly, the man found himself unable to move. Looking down and focusing his aura with Gyo, he saw that a Nen thread had wrapped tightly around his body.
He turned—and saw Machi raising a single finger.
Misty and Ponzu stood beside her.
"You dare—?"
But before the man could finish, Machi yanked on the thread. The force sent the man stumbling backward, and the sharp thread tore through his clothes.
Puchi!
Pain exploded across his body.
The man collapsed to the ground. More than a dozen wounds opened on his body, blood seeping through his shredded clothing.
Machi hadn't taken his life—just left him heavily wounded.
Ron never even looked back.
The three followed, and the four of them continued toward the dining hall.
The Black Whale was massive. Even the second level—considered smaller by comparison—was still immense. Otherwise, it wouldn't be able to hold tens of thousands of passengers.
The total capacity of the Black Whale exceeded two hundred thousand. Possibly more. Certainly not less.
Each level was essentially the size of a small district. To conserve resources, many facilities had been consolidated—like the dining halls.
Entertainment areas were structured similarly.
By the time Ron's group arrived, the dining hall was already filled with people. The setup resembled a university cafeteria, with various food stations arranged in a ring around a central open area. Meals could be packed to go or eaten at nearby tables.
Meanwhile, the man had returned to Camilla.
Camilla narrowed her eyes as she saw him limping in alone.
"Where is Ron?"
The man lowered his head. "Your Highness, I'm sorry. I failed to bring Ron. I extended the invitation politely, but he rejected it outright. Said he wasn't interested. When I tried to press him, he ignored me completely. I chased after him, and his people attacked me. I was seriously injured. I'm sorry, Your Highness… I was not strong enough."
Camilla's eyes narrowed further.
"A mere member of the Zoldyck family… dares act like this aboard the Black Whale, on Kakin's territory?"
"Do they really think the so-called world's top assassin clan means anything here?"
"No matter how powerful they are, they're still just assassins. Can they compare to a great nation?"
Even so, Camilla didn't fully trust the man's account. She planned to verify the situation through other channels.
The investigation was completed quickly.
The actual events were largely the same as what the man had described. He had embellished slightly—just enough to make Ron seem more offensive in Camilla's eyes—but to her, that detail was irrelevant.
What mattered was that Ron had truly refused her invitation—and had injured her envoy.
"So, this is the kind of friend Morena keeps?"
"Fine. Perfect."
"You've chosen the path to death."
"Well then—before I deal with the other princes, I might as well kill you first. A good warm-up."
"Once you're dead, Morena will be affected too."
"And if I can find an opportunity to eliminate Morena as well, it'll weaken Tserriednich."
"In the Succession War, that would increase my chances of winning."
A glint of ambition flashed in Camilla's eyes.
"If I win the Succession War, I will become the first Queen in Kakin's history."
"A feat worthy of the history books."
"Centuries from now, people may have forgotten my father—but they will not forget me."
"My name will live on in Kakin forever."
"Just like the founder of the kingdom."
Camilla withdrew her gaze and began calculating.
"The lower-ranking princes can be ignored entirely."
"As for the mid-tier ones… the only real threat is the Ninth Prince."
"The true competitors are Benjamin, me, Zhang Lei, and Tserriednich."
But what Camilla didn't know was that one of her subordinates had already reported the incident to Nasubi.
Nasubi shook his head. "So the scapegoat I set up earlier landed on Camilla, huh?"
"How amusing."
"But Camilla can't die just yet."
"She still has a role to play in the Succession War."
"Only by dying in that war will her death hold value."