In This Life, I Will Be Your Dog - Chapter 7

Bellona’s eyes widened in shock. Though she tried to dismiss it, her heart began to race uncontrollably. She felt an urgent need to confirm her suspicions. Why had Mona come here without her permission, and why was she dressed like that? And most importantly, had she touched Bellona’s sword?

All her ominous premonitions pointed toward Mona, but since she was a cherished subordinate, Bellona needed to verify everything herself.

Bellona avoided the gaze of the knights guarding the imperial palace and moved to the back of the palace. However, she noticed something alarming—there were no knights guarding the emperor’s chambers. Something was definitely wrong.

She hid her body beside a window and waited for Mona to arrive. Soon, she saw Mona approaching alone, carrying a tray with a medicine bowl. The chamberlain, who had been with her earlier, was nowhere to be seen. Was he also one of the empress’s people?

Bellona realized how much she didn’t know despite being close to the empress and crown prince for so long. It was clear now that she was nothing more than their hound, nothing more and nothing less. A bitter smile spread across her face at the thought.

Grinding her teeth, Bellona erased her presence and watched Mona closely. Just then, Mona’s hurried footsteps suddenly halted. With a tense expression, Mona looked around cautiously before pulling something out of her pocket and pouring it into the bowl.

Even at a glance, it was clear the substance wasn’t good. Bellona didn’t need to question what Mona intended to do with it.

Mona, how dare you!

Overcome with betrayal and rage, Bellona quickly leaped through the window, landing silently inside. She positioned herself in front of the emperor’s chamber door, drawing her sword and pointing it at Mona.

Mona’s face turned deathly pale, as if she had seen a ghost. Trembling violently, she stammered out a response as Bellona’s icy voice pierced the silence.

“What are you doing here?”

“C-Commander…”

“I asked, what are you doing here, dressed like that?”

Mona’s eyes darted around in panic, unable to answer as Bellona’s voice dripped with killing intent.

“I-I…”

Bellona took a step closer, glaring at Mona, who recoiled in fear. “Mona. On whose orders did you come here? And what did you put in that bowl?”

“I-I…”

Mona’s mouth opened and closed, unable to find the words to respond.

“Follow me outside.”

Bellona decided to move away from the emperor’s chambers to avoid creating a bigger commotion. But just as she passed Mona to lead the way, a scream pierced the air.

“Ah!”

When Bellona turned around, she saw Mona collapsed on the floor, blood spreading from her abdomen.

“What is this!”

“What’s going on here?”

The sound of approaching footsteps and concerned voices reached Bellona’s ears as the knights who had been guarding the imperial palace rushed toward them.

Bellona stared in disbelief at Mona, who was clutching her bleeding stomach. Suddenly, Mona crawled toward her, grabbing the blade of Bellona’s sword with trembling hands and begging pitifully.

“C-Commander… please, save me…”

Mona’s blood-stained hand slipped from the blade and fell limply to the floor, leaving a thick smear of blood on Bellona’s once-pristine sword.

“What’s going on here, Sir Bellona?”

The knights who had rushed over looked at Mona and Bellona in confusion, their eyes darting back and forth between the two.

Ignoring their questions, Bellona could only stare down at Mona, who was now gasping for breath, her face pale with shock.

Bellona assumed that Mona had attempted to harm herself once she realized her plan had failed. It was utterly pathetic.

What on earth did you sacrifice your life for?

Anger flared within her as she realized how foolish and loyal Mona had been, even when faced with death. Mona had been a promising knight, one Bellona had personally looked after, though not to the same extent as Eshil. And now, Mona had been used like a pawn.

The rage she felt toward the imperial family, who treated even her subordinates like disposable dogs, was unbearable. But that wasn’t the issue at hand.

If Mona’s crime were revealed here, Bellona herself would not escape unscathed.

Grinding her teeth, Bellona decided to save Mona first.

“Summon the court doctor—”

“What’s all this commotion?”

A cold voice interrupted her command, and Bellona turned to see Empress Violentia walking gracefully down the hallway. A feeling of dread washed over her as she noticed not only the empress’s maidservants but also armed knights following behind.

As the emperor’s knights stepped aside, the empress stopped in front of Bellona, her gaze icy as she looked down at the scene before her.

Then she spoke, her tone cold and commanding, “Sir Bellona.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“What is going on here? Explain yourself.”

Bellona’s lips pressed into a thin line as she furrowed her brow, struggling to find the right words. The empress, who seemed to understand the situation better than anyone, was now demanding an explanation. Bellona’s mind raced, wanting to turn the question back on the empress herself.

What’s going on here?

Why is Mona here?

Are you really planning to kill the emperor?

But it wasn’t the empress who needed to answer—it was Bellona. Her master had ordered her to explain, and she couldn’t betray her loyal subordinate by admitting to Mona’s guilt. If she did, the empress would have Mona executed without hesitation.

As Bellona hesitated, a voice she hadn’t expected suddenly broke the silence.

“Y-Your Majesty… T-the commander… the commander…”

“……!”

“What is it?”

Mona’s voice made Bellona’s eyes flash dangerously.

“She… she’s going to… kill… His Majesty…”

“Mona, how could you!”

Shaking with anger, Bellona’s grip on her sword tightened. She hadn’t expected Mona to betray her like this. The empress, as if she had been waiting for this moment, took in the situation with a cold, calculating gaze and spoke clearly.

“So, you intended to assassinate His Majesty. With that sword.”

“Your Majesty, that’s not—”

“And you stabbed your subordinate with that very sword in an attempt to silence her.”

It was only then that Bellona realized she had walked right into the empress’s trap.

But who had the empress truly intended to ensnare in this trap? The emperor? Or herself?

Perhaps it was both.

Even though she now understood everything, there was no way out. The blood on her sword and the sight of Mona’s stabbed body would be damning in the eyes of anyone who saw it.

The betrayal of a cherished subordinate and the ruthless abandonment by a master she had trusted—Bellona’s nerves, stretched taut for so long, felt as if they might finally snap.

“Drop your sword.”

“Why… why are you doing this to me…”

“Follow the command, Bellona.”

As a bitter smile twisted Bellona’s lips, the empress’s expression remained cold and distant. It seemed they had decided to dispose of a hound that had outlived its usefulness.

And they had chosen Mona as their new lapdog.

In a way, it wasn’t surprising. The name ‘Bellona Riknis’ had become too well-known, perhaps even troublesome for the imperial family. If she had wanted to take a seat beside Impes, the empress might have had no choice but to grant her that place.

The Goddess of the Sword, the Beautiful Slayer, had achieved great feats once again. And the rumors of Bellona’s impending marriage to the crown prince, Impes, were already widespread.

Even Caelus, who was far away in the Grand Duchy, had heard of it.

But still.

This was too much.

As the tension left her hand, she suddenly found herself gripping her sword tightly once more. Bellona adjusted her stance, raising her sword, her gaze locked on the empress with defiance in her eyes.

Sensing the change in Bellona’s demeanor, the empress’s voice grew sharp. “Are you defying my command?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I follow only the orders of my true master.”

“Hmm. So, you’re saying that I’m no longer your master.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The empress’s expression twisted into a dark smile at Bellona’s bold reply. Then, a venomous sneer slipped from her lips.

“When a hound starts thinking for itself, it stops following its master’s commands, just like you. The only thing left to do is to cut off its head and boil it.”

“It won’t be as easy as you think.”

Bellona’s faint smile and her unwavering gaze caused the empress to take a step back, her eyes filled with malice.

“Kill the traitor, Bellona Riknis!”

“Your Majesty, no—!”

As Mona reached out, her voice filled with desperation, Bellona swiftly ended her life with a single, precise strike. She gazed down at Mona’s lifeless body, her face impassive.

Bellona was not the type to show mercy to traitors. Nor was she weak enough to be betrayed and then simply accept her fate.

If she was going to die, she would rather die fighting honorably as a swordsman than be falsely accused and executed on the scaffold.

‘I will make you pay for dragging my honor through the mud.’

Her eyes burned with determination, and someone shouted in response.

“Protect the Empress!”

The armed knights stepped forward, their swords drawn as they surrounded the Empress, shielding her from Bellona. But in the face of the Goddess of the Sword, who was now ready to fight for her life, these knights were no different from commoners trembling in fear.

None of them were her subordinates, so she felt no burden or hesitation in her heart. There was no need for her to show mercy to them, nor any reason to stay her hand.

“None of you will leave here alive if you stand in my way.”