The Bloodhound

Questions, questions, questions

I was so focused on the gun that I did not notice I had an audience. I turned around, aiming to get a few more bullets to test the durability of this gun, when I saw several of the trainees gawking at me.

I raised an eyebrow and asked, "Yes? Do you need something?"

None of them answered me and just continued to stare at me. I took that as a no and shrugged before leaving. I went to place more bullets in the gun, aimed it at the farthest target, and started shooting until there is no more bullets to shoot.

"This gun really needs a silencer. It's so damn loud," I muttered to myself.

I started walking to the target, to inspect my handiwork, when one of the recruits asked a question.

"How did you do that? I mean, how can you simply aim and shoot the target? Why did you decide to shoot the farthest target and not the one closest to you?"

I stopped in my tracks and went to answer the questions. Might as well give them what they want to know.

"I chose to aim at the farthest target to determine if the gun could reach such a target. I need to know its reach for me to decide if it is useful or not for assassination missions. I also need to know the way the bullets hit the target. Will it just go through the target or will it explode on contact? I need to know these things to know how to properly use it and also to use it to my advantage. You will learn to know the different kinds of weapons here, their pros and cons, as well as, knowing when and what to use in specific situations. You guys will probably have standard weapons as you are royal guards, but it does not hurt to know other weapons. You'll never know when you are going to face such weapons."

I left them after explaining. I went to pick up the target and examined the way the bullets hit it. One bullet is not enough to go through the target. But I observed that there were some holes. I counted the marks and determined that it takes two bullets to make a hole on the target. If this was a human skull, the bullet would only be able to pierce halfway through the brain before piercing the skull on the other side of the head. Good to know. I only need one bullet that is completely soaked in paralytic poison to kill someone that was grazed by it. Still, it does not hurt to know how many bullets I need to make a hole in someone's head.

At least the bullet does not explode on impact. The edges inside the holes are clean. After checking that target, I went to the first target I used and also examined it. When I counted the holes, every single bullet created one.

"Huh. So I can create holes in a human from this distance. Fascinating."

I was talking to myself when, all of a sudden, I sensed a presence behind me. I immediately brought to gun to that person's stomach to somehow immobilize them, but they caught on to it. I started yanking at the gun to release it from their grip when they spoke,

"Hey! It's me. Marco, you know. The prince of Monaco? Remember?"

"Do not sneak up on me, damn it! With what you have been doing here, I could have killed you multiple times already. Did Henry even train you? Because, quite frankly, you are a f*****g idiot."

I yanked the gun from his grip while he was still surprised by what I had just told him. I then left the training area to cool my head off. Plus, I am hungry as hell. I hope there is still fried chicken left from last night. I am still craving it. I immediately went straight to the kitchen and looked for Mrs. Gregory.

"Oh, Mrs. Gregory! Do we still have some of the fried chicken left from last night?" I gleefully asked.

I then saw her head peek out of the fridge door that was open.

"There are still some left in the fridge. But they're not cooked yet. I can cook some for you if you want."

I giggled at the thought of getting to smell and taste the chicken that I grew up loving. I could not wait anymore, so I asked where the chicken was and took it to the stove to start cooking.

I was humming a merry tune when I heard footsteps. I listened to it and found out that it was the prince. I grunted in annoyance but continued to cook the chicken. When I had finished cooking just enough chicken for me, I left the kitchen and went straight to my office. I want some peace and quiet while eating my food. I also need to continue monitoring where the bastards are. I still have no idea who killed Henry. I have a vague one, but I will not act on a vague idea. That could get me killed. Maybe there is a connection between all the bastards that ruined my life. It's worth a shot to investigate further.

As I was finishing up the last of the chicken, someone knocked on my door. It is not the usual knock that I hear when Gus needs something or when the Gregory couple need to talk to me. Strange way of knocking as well. It is probably Marco. I left my table and checked by looking through the peephole that I had installed on the door. Lo and behold, it is Marco. With Claude standing behind him. I do wonder how Claude can tolerate his master's nosiness. I ignored them and finished my food.

I was not even done when the knocking came again. I continued to ignore them until I could no longer tolerate the incessant knocking that was coming from the door. It is honestly giving me a headache. I stood up and opened the door. I went to face Marco.

"What do you want, Marco? That you had to keep on knocking on my office door after me ignoring you for a few minutes?" I asked in exasperation.

"Then maybe you should've opened the door the first time I knocked."

"Who died and made you king? Why should I do that for you when all you've been doing around here is breaking my stuff, keep on ignoring my instructions, and keep on being a stupid, pig-headed jackass?"

"I am a prince and I demand the respect that I deserve."

I raised my eyebrow at him and said, "I refuse. I refuse to bow down to anyone that demands respect but does not give the same respect to people who they deem beneath them. You can demand my respect all you want, but you will never get it from me without a fight."