"I will stand by him at all times, and protect him until my last breath has left my lips and the last drop of my blood has been shed."

Ludwig Beilschmidt is a highly trained bodyguard, a member of the famed Beilschmidt family, but will he be able to face the constant peril that surrounds one Feliciano Roma-Vargas?

Chapter 00: Rome and Germania

No one knew exactly when or how the Roma family had obtained its fortune, but everyone who was anyone was fully aware of its vast wealth and political power. Mr. Roma was an eccentric man who held shares in companies all over the world and owned half a dozen estates in various nations. His daughter and son-in-law had died tragically in a plane crash only a few years before, leaving their two sons in his custody: Lovino and Feliciano Roma-Vargas.

The brothers led a sheltered life, safe from potential kidnappers and scammers. Mr. Roma knew as soon as he laid eyes on them that if something happened to either of them, he would sell his soul to the devil himself to make things right. Of course, this was a very bad position to be in when one has a great deal to lose, and not nearly so much to gain. It was decided then that Lovino and Feliciano would be set under constant protection once they reached their thirteen birthdays. Until then, they were kept close to Mr. Roma and watched carefully by the man known only as Codename: Germania.

A much more mysterious figure than his wealthy counterpart, Germania was the head of the Beilschmidt house, an all-male family of bodyguards who were trained from infancy to become merciless killers in order to defend the lives of the Roma family. It was unknown as to when this arrangement had come about, but it was a generations-old tradition honored by both families. Once a Roma reached the age of separation (when he/she was no longer considered a child and was able to venture from his/her parent's side), he/she was assigned a Beilschmidt guard chosen specifically for that individual. The two then exchanged a binding oath – one that could only end in death – and remained side-by-side until one or both perished.

And so it happened that, as the Roma-Vargas brothers grew in their lavish apartments and luxurious estates, two other young boys endured harsh training to be given the privilege to protect them.

I know that Gilbert's surname has been written as "Weillschmidt" and "Beilschmidt," but I chose to use the latter seeing as it's apparently an actual German name meaning "Axe Smith."

I've been excited about writing this story ever since the initial idea came to me half-way through writing "The Chemistry of Physics." I hope you will enjoy this fic as much as I've enjoyed putting it together!