The palace was deathly silent.
Blue blood splattered across the Gungi board and floor like spilled ink.
The King expressionlessly held his freshly torn-off left arm, blood dripping continuously from the shoulder's severed end.
Yet he paid it no mind, his gaze fixed solely on Komugi across the board.
Komugi sat frozen in place, her face blank with confusion.
Her right hand trembled slightly as she hesitantly touched the still-warm blood splattered on her cheek.
Though blind, her hearing was sharp.
The muffled sound of tearing flesh moments earlier had been unmistakable.
The sticky sensation on her fingertips confirmed what had happened, her bewildered expression gradually giving way to terror.
Nearby, Shaiapouf, his face bearing injuries, knelt deeply bowed to the ground, adopting an unyielding stance of risking death to remonstrate.
Seconds earlier, he could scarcely believe his eyes.
The King had actually harmed himself!
Now, with his head lowered deeply, he was determined to plead with the King to accept treatment immediately, even at the cost of his life.
Simultaneously, heavy shadows lurked beneath his lowered eyelids.
The unease in his heart, and the nearly boiling resentment... all originated from Komugi on the other side of the board.
This woman... was influencing the King!
If not for his overwhelming concern for the King's injury, Shaiapouf might have already failed to suppress his bloodlust toward Komugi.
If the Supreme Commander doesn't accept treatment, I won't play.
Faced with the King's demand to continue the game, Komugi's emotions gradually stabilized, replaced by a resolute expression.
Since his birth, the King had possessed an innate royal will, never permitting anyone to defy his commands.
The injuries on Shaiapouf's face were proof of this.
Seeing Komugi dare to resist him now, the King abruptly controlled the sharp needle at his tail's tip, pressing it directly against Komugi's neck.
"Don't make me repeat myself. Play."
The cold needle tip pierced Komugi's skin, a trickle of blood slowly flowing down.
Komugi could clearly feel the chill at her neck. Though her body trembled slightly, her tone remained firm: "I refuse. If you want to kill me, take my life through Gungi..."
"You...!"
The King seemed struck in a vulnerable spot by these words, momentarily at a loss.
Just then, Neferpitou rushed into the hall, her expression tense as she looked at the King's severed arm.
Unlike the original storyline, Neferpitou's En hadn't created a vacuum around the King.
Thus, she had clearly sensed the King's self-mutilation.
Driven by concern for the King and possessing abilities for healing and body modification, she immediately leaped from the building's dome and rushed to the hall at top speed.
The King looked up, his gaze falling upon Neferpitou, who appeared somewhat flustered from excessive worry, and calmly ordered: "Heal me."
"Yes!"
Hearing this, Neferpitou immediately retracted her En and quickly approached the King while manifesting Doctor Blythe with her Nen.
Nearby, Shaiapouf remained kneeling with bowed head.
He should have felt joy hearing the King finally willing to accept treatment, and been able to completely set aside his worries. Yet beneath this joy, an uncontrollably complex surge of emotions welled up within him.
Jealousy, resentment, loss, unwillingness...
He had risked death to remonstrate yet failed to sway the King's will, while the woman before the game board had succeeded.
What troubled him even more was how she had openly defied the King's command before uttering the words, "I'll stake my life on Gungi."
By all reasoning, anyone daring to disobey the King should have been attacked in the next instant.
Yet the King's stinger merely pressed against her neck, advancing no further.
Shaiapouf slowly rose from the ground, a shadow passing through his eyes.
Though filled with immense reluctance, he had to admit that Komugi had secured an important place in the King's heart within just a few short days.
Should I find an opportunity... to eliminate her?
No, the King has yet to defeat her in Gungi. If she dies, the King will 'never' be able to overcome her.
But allowing her to influence the King like this...
Should I do nothing at all?
No... now isn't the time for such thoughts. The urgent priority is to take over Neferpitou's duty of guarding the palace perimeter—that is the most crucial responsibility.
In merely the time it took to stand up, the meticulous and emotionally volatile Shaiapouf had already rapidly cycled through countless struggles and deliberations in his mind.
He wavered repeatedly between killing and not killing.
But ultimately, rationality prevailed over his turbulent personal desires.
Doctor Blythe hovered mid-air, multiple surgical instruments extending from its abdomen as they swiftly and precisely began suturing the King's severed arm.
While using this ability, Neferpitou had to remain nearby, providing a continuous stream of Nen support to Doctor Blythe.
The energy portal between them was her tail.
This also served as one of the ability's Limitations.
However, thanks to the tail's capability to extend up to 20 meters, Neferpitou could maintain stable operation of the ability even at considerable distances from Doctor Blythe, without compromising treatment efficiency.
To avoid disturbing the King's continued enjoyment of the game, she voluntarily retreated to the maximum distance of twenty meters, quietly standing guard.
This action also created space for Shaiapouf to approach and converse in low tones.
"In this state, you can neither use En nor control puppets, correct?"
He lowered his eyelids, quietly confirming this with Neferpitou.
Neferpitou similarly lowered her voice to reply: "Yes, the repair ability requires continuous output of substantial Nen. I have no capacity for other tasks."
"How long will the treatment take?"
Shaiapouf then asked the most critical question.
The range of his En was far inferior to Neferpitou's. Though he could use Beelzebub's clone ability to expand the coverage as much as possible, the vigilance precision still couldn't match the seamless detection of En.
Thus he needed to know the treatment duration.
"To complete the treatment, it will take at least two or three hours, meow."
As she spoke, Neferpitou slightly turned to glance at the King, who remained fully absorbed in the game.
Hearing this, Shaiapouf nodded toward Neferpitou.
"I'll take responsibility for guarding the palace perimeter until the treatment concludes."
After leaving these words, Shaiapouf walked toward the palace exit.
Neferpitou watched him depart, naturally having no objections to this arrangement.
Yet thinking of Shaiapouf's inferior En range inevitably made her think of Youpi. If Youpi were still alive, at least he could assist Shaiapouf with the surveillance mission...
—--
Peijin City.
The Nen applied to the Chimera Ant soldiers had been withdrawn.
This resulted in the soldiers, who had been fearlessly fighting just moments before, standing motionless in place like puppets with their strings cut.
The sudden change left Morel and the others momentarily bewildered, completely unable to comprehend what had happened.
Only Morrow understood the reason.
I've done everything I could to prepare. From now on...
Morrow strode resolutely toward the numerous suddenly still Chimera Ant soldiers, thinking to himself: I can only do my best and leave the rest to fate.
Everyone watched as Morrow walked directly toward the halted puppet army.
Though somewhat puzzled by Morrow's initiative to personally handle these disconnected puppets, they didn't probe further.
Instead, following Morrow's timely suggestion, they all closed their aura nodes and entered Zetsu state, seizing the opportunity to recover their potential aura.
The En from the palace has disappeared too...
Morel's gaze shifted from Morrow's back to the distant outline of the palace.
The Nen leaving the puppet soldiers flew toward the palace, simultaneously drawing his attention to the sudden disappearance of the En.
A glint flashed in Knuckle's eyes as he said, "Though unclear about what's happening, this might be an opportunity."
"But..." Shoot hesitated: "Could it be a trap?"
"Possible, but unlikely."
Gel crossed her arms, speaking coolly: "Based on my understanding of Chimera Ant behavior, the Royal Guards prioritize the King's safety above all else. They're unlikely to employ tactics that could potentially endanger the King."
"I agree."
Knov, who had originally planned to evacuate with his teammates, remained half-kneeling on the rooftop while directly opening a portal to Hide and Seek, quietly adding: "However, we should soon be able to figure out exactly what happened."
"Hmm?"
Everyone simultaneously looked toward Knov.
Kite's eyes shifted as he asked: "Did Ponzu and Palm succeed?"
"Yes."
Knov did his best to calm the excitement in his heart to maintain a relatively normal tone of voice.
Hearing this news, a trace of joy couldn't help but cross everyone's faces.
Once Palm's ability conditions are met, she can monitor the target's actions at any time.
This was an extremely important intelligence source.
However, the difficulty and risk of meeting the conditions to affect the Royal Guards and the King were extraordinary.
In the original storyline, to accomplish this, Palm had no choice but to risk infiltrating the palace...
Now with Ponzu's "Infinite Hive Window" assistance, this task could be completed without any risk.
"Let's leave this place to Morrow."
Knov glanced at Morrow who was clearing the Chimera Ant soldiers, then turned to his teammates beside him, signaling them to enter the apartment.
Though they could call Palm out to explain the situation, it was clearly more prudent to do so inside Hide and Seek rather than using precious ability here.
Better safe than sorry.
A decision habit stemming from Knov's personality.
To quickly understand the situation at the palace, Morel and the others filed into the portal leading to Hide and Seek.
Only Kalluto and Hisoka remained behind. Kalluto had little interest in observing the situation and preferred to stay on-site watching Morrow clear out the Chimera Ant soldiers.
Hisoka, on the other hand, was genuinely uninterested and naturally had no reason to enter the apartment.
Meanwhile, Menchi had already begun preparing medicinal cuisine in another dimensional room to help her teammates recover their energy more quickly.
As Morel and the others entered the dimensional room, they saw Palm had already conjured her mermaid crystal ball, placed horizontally on the table.
At that moment, a bird's-eye view appeared in the crystal ball.
Within the scene, Neferpitou's figure could be clearly seen.
Seeing this, everyone quickly gathered around, their gazes fixed on the images inside the crystal ball, while also noticing the grave expression on Palm's face.
However, judging solely from the scene in the crystal ball, Neferpitou was merely standing quietly in what appeared to be a corner of a grand hall, with no unusual expression on her face.
If that was all, it shouldn't have been enough to make Palm look so serious.
Thinking this, Morel couldn't help but ask, "Palm, what happened earlier?"
"See for yourselves."
Palm hovered her hands on either side of the crystal ball.
As she spoke, the scene in the crystal ball changed.
More precisely, the camera slowly panned along Neferpitou's extended tail, eventually stopping at an angle above Doctor Blythe.
It's quite interesting, actually.
Neferpitou's Doctor Blythe is a conjured entity manifested from the tip of her tail.
This design is fundamentally intended to ensure stable energy transmission during treatment, which naturally formed the Limitation that "she must remain in close proximity throughout the healing process."
If we consider only the innate talents of Chimera Ants...
No, taking Neferpitou as a reference, with her monstrous talent, she could likely bypass such restrictions.
However, the origins of these abilities actually stem from the medical books she read.
It was the knowledge from the human world that provided her with the inspiration and framework to conceive and create these abilities.
Yet, at the same time, while absorbing medical knowledge, the inherent limitations in human cognition subtly constrained her thinking.
For example, during surgery, a doctor must be present throughout and fully focused to ensure success.
Such common professional consensus precisely shaped the form and limitations of Neferpitou's healing abilities today.
Conversely, for modification surgeries that don't require medical ethics or compassion, she doesn't need to be nearby exerting full effort.
She only needs to calmly, even coldly, issue modification commands to her Puppeteering ability.
Regardless, the existence of this Limitation also means she and Doctor Blythe are an inseparable whole.
As for Palm, an Enhancement-type Nen user, why she could develop a rare Conjuration ability like Wink Blue across Nen types...
The root cause lies in her deeply ingrained, almost obsessive desire to spy on her secret crush.
Such twisted, intense desires often become the most powerful fuel for Nen abilities.
Thus, the ability Wink Blue was born.
And because this voyeurism harbored an obsession "to see every inch of the other person's body clearly," thus, when Neferpitou's tail and even Doctor Blythe were determined to be part of her body, Palm's ability, originally limited to a fixed overhead perspective... unexpectedly gained the function of a "moving camera."
This was a resonance between Nen abilities, intertwined with their respective Vows and Limitations; truly marvelous.
As the camera panned, looking downward from this angle... one could clearly see Doctor Blythe suturing the King's severed arm, as well as the King playing a game with Komugi.
"..."
An incomprehensible situation unfolded before everyone's eyes.
Within the dimensional room, silence abruptly fell.
Could this... be a critical opportunity requiring an immediate change of plans?
----------------
Bonus chapter @1800powerstones