Final answer:
(A) Macbeth killed the guards when the king's body was discovered, pretending it was an act of passionate loyalty, and also to ensure there were no witnesses to the murder.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student asked which character killed the guards when the king's body was discovered. The answer is A) Macbeth. In the play 'Macbeth' by William Shakespeare, Macbeth kills the guards shortly after the murder of King Duncan.
He does this in a feigned rage, claiming it was an act of passionate loyalty to the king, suggesting that he was so overcome with anger upon seeing Duncan's murdered body and the presumably guilty guards, that he could not restrain himself. This act also serves to eliminate them as witnesses, preventing them from potentially contradicting Macbeth's narrative of the events.