At night, while the stars shine down on the world.
While there were some people scattered around the Royal Castle, there was another group sneaking around. They were a group consisting of a thoroughly trained elite Goblin and some Ninja Kobolds who specialized in covert operations.
In their hands were either matted daggers made of mithril or Ninja Swords, which are living body weapons.
On their bodies they wore black armor that increases their hiding effectiveness, which was made of black bones. Only the exterior of the armor was able to move.
Like this, they didn't speak as they moved in search of prey, but instead used hand signals and eye contact to communicate in secrecy.
With their ability as spies having been greatly enhanced, their goal was the Nobles Faction's private army.
They edged up behind the enemy, who was on the lookout for suspicious characters as they walked the corridors of the Royal Castle, and silenced them by cutting their throat. Because their experienced movements were carried out silently, not even someone standing in the hallway several meters ahead of them would have taken notice.
The corpse of the target they hunted was put in a body bag and brought back with them, without leaving a single drop of blood behind.
Although they're like skilled assassins, they aren't related to the Nobles Faction. When a common soldier passes by as they're doing their work, they hide themselves without doing anything.
They're able to naturally get into a soldier's blind spot by using the cover of a pillar to hide themselves. Those among them that are particularly skilled can change the shape of the exterior armor's black bones so they can cling to the ceiling. These occurrences are unusual, though.
Like this, the hunting continued until daybreak. In total, more than fifty of their private soldiers went missing.
The soldiers were never found, but the bodies of ten nobles were discovered instead.
They were not nobles that had a strong influence like the Old Sly Fox and the Strong Grandson, but they were able to affect the lower seats. The corpses of the nobles were discovered by their maids when they went to wake them, and their strange appearance made it likely that they were killed using the same poison that killed the Minister.
Although they let their greatest enemy escape, since they had taken control of the majority of the Kingdom, the people that belonged to the Nobles Faction were somewhat careless. These assassinations that occurred will cause them to remember the casual murder of the Minister, reawakening the terror that they had started to forget.
In response, some people quietly returned to their territory, while others tried to escape from the heavy pressure with alcohol and women. There were also some who were furious at the killings and sneered excitedly that the killer should kill them if they can.
Their reactions varied, yet the commonly held fear was hard to express.
For the time being, the nobles were not foolish. They had a rough idea who the criminal was. They thought it was the black Apostle Lord that was employed by the Tomboy Princess. He had displayed his combat ability in the arena, so they thought that he had the potential to penetrate the guard network around the Minister's residence.
However, they had no evidence. It was not possible for them to conclude that he is a limitless criminal.
For that reason, they thought they had to take into consideration the fact that it might be a different criminal.
This confused and disturbed them, since the nobles did not have the means to deduce the correct answer.
A report was delivered at this point saying that the Tomboy Princess had rose up in order to command an army.
Although she was able to escape from the Strong Grandson, they didn't think that kind of information would show up within one day.
Since they were certain the Tomboy Princess was within the Amber Palace until just before the coup d'état, she must have gotten hold of the information beforehand.
It should have been a three day ride on a horse in order to arrive at the home of the Duke that was on friendly terms with the Tomboy Princess. It was simply unimaginable to do it in one day.