In This Life, I Will Be Your Dog - Chapter 64

When Caelus showed an expression as if it was the first time he’d ever heard such words, clearly dissatisfied, Bellona shrugged as if asking why he was getting upset.

Soon, Caelus pretended to be quite nonchalant, brushing off her attack. However, it was evident on his face that he was sulking.

“Wouldn’t it be better to avoid a pointless argument rather than continuing a debate with no resolution?”

“The more hopeless it seems, the more we need to talk to find a solution. I don’t think blindly avoiding it is always the best strategy. If time drags on, the rift will only deepen.”

“Do you not know that a pointless argument could make things worse?”

“We just need to be honest about our feelings to prevent things from getting worse. If you keep hiding everything, how can the other person ever understand?”

“It seems you’ve had quite a few complaints about me.”

Their circular conversation, which had seemed to represent someone else’s position, finally returned to their own issues.

Bellona, staring straight at Caelus’s direct question, decided it was time to end this drawn-out fight.

Before the gap between them grew any wider.

“Would you like to go for a walk with me after breakfast?”

“Now you’re trying to take advantage of my weakness and win.”

“Yes, so just give in for now. Otherwise…”

“Otherwise?”

“I’ll formally request a duel. And this time, I’ll give it my all.”

As soon as the word “duel” was mentioned, her eyes flashed, and he let out a hollow laugh, shaking his head.

Suddenly, Caelus ordered the kitchen to bring some simple food, then looked at Bellona with a sly smile.

“It’s tough to go on a walk with a full stomach.”

In the end, behind the man’s smile as he gave in, there was also a tinge of bitterness.

***

With the Valensis Knights’ departure ceremony approaching, the Grand Duke’s household was having busy days.

Caelus and the senior knights devoted themselves to training from dawn to dusk, striving to complete their first expedition without mistakes.

Meanwhile, Bellona was focused on basic training with the Imperial knights and special trainees.

“Your arm is bending! Straighten your elbow and look ahead!”

“Ugh, it feels like my arm’s going to fall off…”

“Arina, focus!”

Bellona’s sharp reprimand made Arina’s eyes well up with tears.

She wanted to slap her cheerful self from the previous night for deciding to learn swordsmanship and causing herself this trouble.

In truth, Arina had been closely observing Bellona’s changed demeanor.

Her once bright and warm sister had lost her smile over the past few days and seemed tense about everything.

Leaving the imperial palace so abruptly and even worrying excessively about them didn’t seem ordinary to Arina.

She didn’t know the details, but judging from the situation, she could tell they were not safe.

A few days later, Caelus would leave for an expedition, and even Bellona would head back to the imperial palace. Because of that, Bellona seemed even more on edge than usual.

Although Caelus had deliberately left many senior knights behind, Bellona couldn’t hide her unease.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust the Valensis knights, but Arina decided she needed to learn swordsmanship just in case.

She didn’t want to leave her life and Marca’s solely in the hands of others.

However, her strong resolve soon turned into regret. She faced difficulties from the very beginning—struggling with even the basic stance of extending her sword.

She had been thrusting her sword in the same position for hours, and her whole body was sore and trembling.

If she had known it would be this boring and exhausting, she wouldn’t have opened her mouth in the first place.

She glanced sideways, and sweat was pouring down the faces of Net and Eshil, who were training alongside her.

She hadn’t known how fierce her warm and always kind sister could be once she returned to her original work and picked up her sword. That had been a misjudgment.

Pleased by Arina’s determination, Bellona taught the basics more harshly than ever before.

If they wanted significant results in a short time, there was no other way.

Bellona, who believed that the fundamentals were the most important, showed her rigid nature by making them practice the same posture for two consecutive days.

Eshil and Net managed to follow along, but Arina was still stuck.

“Again. Look straight ahead, hold your breath, and thrust!”

“Huff, yah!”

“Again!”

“Ha…”

Even while whining continuously, Arina stubbornly extended her sword. Though her skill was miles behind, her determination was strikingly similar to that of her sister.

“Your Grace, she’ll collapse at this rate.”

Despite Rondo’s concerned face and his attempt to stop her, Bellona ordered coldly without any change in her expression.

“Starting now, strike the target’s vital point one hundred times without rest. Begin!”

Sighs and groans erupted from all directions.

Nevertheless, Arina, Net, Eshil, and the knights followed Bellona’s brutal training method without complaint.

When the sun had almost set and the last streaks of twilight were disappearing, Bellona finally stood up.

“That’s enough. Today’s training ends here. Rest well and gather here again before sunrise tomorrow.”

Only then did the trainees drop their practice swords and collapse onto the ground, exhausted.

“Your Grace, I’ll take care of the rest, so please go ahead and have dinner with His Grace.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you, Sir Rondo.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Bellona glanced at the panting Arina and Eshil, then left without a hint of emotion.

Though they were the children she cherished and loved more than anyone else, she knew that without distinguishing between work and personal feelings, they wouldn’t improve despite their efforts. So she had no choice but to be strict.

Watching Bellona walk away, Rondo let out a bitter smile and shook his head.

He had always wondered how she could have such monstrous skills, but after witnessing her training methods, he finally understood.

“It takes a monster to truly match another monster.”

Rondo clicked his tongue at the similarity between both of their tenacious natures, but he respected Bellona as much as he respected Caelus.

Regardless of gender, Bellona’s swordsmanship was so extraordinary and impressive that any knight couldn’t help but admire it.

More than anything, he appreciated her steadfast character.

She wasn’t arrogant, never showed off, and her charisma and caring yet aloof demeanor towards her subordinates made his heart swell with admiration.

It was pathetic, thinking back on how he had once looked down on her just because she was a female knight.

Maybe because of that.

He couldn’t help but be concerned about Arina, who had a completely different disposition from Bellona.

He worried that she might break herself trying to match something beyond her capabilities.

If she lacked the determination, it wouldn’t matter, but her eagerness and stubbornness, despite not being suited for swordsmanship, made him worry that she might physically exhaust herself.

Turning his gaze, Rondo looked at Arina, who was gasping for breath with a pale face.

With her frail body, she looked as though she might actually blow away if he exhaled too hard.

But it was fascinating to see her not letting go of her sword.

‘Blood truly doesn’t lie.’

Her skills were so lacking that even if she were reborn, she’d never be able to match Bellona, but her unyielding spirit deserved praise.

In any case, the two sisters were certainly remarkable.

Rondo approached Arina and extended his hand. “Get up. It’s getting chilly now that the sun’s set. You’ll catch a cold.”

“My hands feel numb… I’m sorry, but could you carry me—”

“You have to get up by yourself, Arina.”

Eshil, who had already gotten up, grabbed Arina’s limp hand and pulled her up.

Rondo, now feeling awkward, pulled back his hand and approached the Imperial knights.

Eshil glanced at Rondo and gave Arina, who was still crawling on the ground, a light smack.

“Are you out of your mind? Asking someone to carry you.”

“Oh, come on. I’m really tired.”

“Even so, how can a lady ask just any knight to carry her?”

“Who cares about being a lady? I’m going to be a knight now!”

Finding Arina’s boasting after merely a few hundred thrusts ridiculous, Eshil burst into laughter.

“What? Why are you laughing!”

“Ah… I swear, I’ve never heard anything as funny as that in my entire life.”

Arina glared at the still chuckling Eshil, finally managing to stand up.

By now, the knights had also gotten up and were loosening their stiff bodies, trying to calm their startled muscles under Rondo’s orders.

“It’d be much better to learn from Sir Rondo. Can’t you be kinder like him?”

Hearing Arina’s mumbling, Eshil glanced sideways and noticed that Rondo’s cheek was slightly flushed.

With narrowed eyes, she stared at the back of the gentle knight’s head, and as if making up her mind, she nodded firmly before pulling Arina along.

“Let’s go. You need to eat well after all this effort if you want to train again tomorrow.”

Eshil dragged Arina, who was whining that she couldn’t do any more, gesturing to Net that they were leaving first.

As the two women walked away, Akon appeared from somewhere and patted Rondo’s shoulder.

“How’s it going? Do you think they’ve improved?”

“Yes. There’s no way they wouldn’t.”

“They really are tough. She doesn’t even spare her own sister.”

“Did you watch?”

“Huh? Oh… just for a moment.”

Akon’s gaze was fixed persistently on the purple-haired figure that was now far in the distance.