[ Hmm... where does he even begin? The situation is so interconnected with a lot of other things going on that it takes Kurapika a moment to detangle it. ]

The king has a lot of children. Only one can succeed the throne, and tradition dictates that this be done through death—the last prince surviving will take the throne. They aren't fighting traditionally, either. They're using magical beasts invisible to their own eyes to slowly pick off one another.