bodyguard; personal guard
Refers to a soldier or guard assigned to protect a specific person, often a VIP or member of royalty. Can also be used in historical or military contexts.
The king's bodyguards are always at his side.
He was chosen as a personal guard for the president.
Compound of 親衛 (しんえい, 'close guard') and 兵 (へい, 'soldier'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the spelling is conventionally associated with the meaning of a personal guard.