In This Life, I Will Be Your Dog - Chapter 77

Ether’s sword severed two of Impes’s fingers, sending them tumbling to the ground.

Shocked by the unexpected turn of events, Ether froze momentarily, and Bellona took the opportunity to swing her sword mercilessly, cutting off his left arm.

“Aaaaargh!”

Another bloodcurdling scream echoed through the forest. Bellona quickly supported Impes, who was dazed and staring at his severed fingers in shock. Holding him close, she urgently retrieved a small vial hidden within her dress and poured its contents into his mouth just as he was on the verge of losing consciousness.

“Your Highness, it’s medicine. Drink it quickly!”

With a face twisted in pain, Impes reluctantly swallowed the mysterious liquid, growling as his lips trembled.

“What… what is this…? Ugh!”

His venomous glare began to blur. As Bellona tore a strip from her blood-soaked dress to tightly bind his injured hand, she whispered softly, “Sir Ether attacked you, Your Highness. But do not worry. I will risk my life to protect you.”

“Haah… Bellona… You… you saved me…”

Having ingested the extract of Atropa Belladonna, a deadly poison, Impes quickly fell under Bellona’s words. Though she hadn’t prepared the substance for this specific situation, Bellona couldn’t help but inwardly smile at how fortuitous the circumstances were.

Hiding the vial back in her pocket, she looked down at the barely conscious Impes with a worried expression.

“Trust me, Your Highness. I will save you. But there is a sorcerer in this forest brought here by Ether. If we don’t capture him, your knights will all perish. Do you know where he might be?”

Impulsively, Impes began to speak, but just then, the chaotic battlefield grew eerily silent.

Turning her gaze, Bellona saw the once-relentless waves of the living and the dead collapsing one by one, as if by some unspoken agreement.

They fell like marionettes with their strings cut.

Not only the knights of Valensis but also those brought by Impes stared blankly, their faces filled with confusion at the abrupt end of the situation.

At that moment, Ether, his eyes rolling wildly, summoned the last of his strength to rise, but suddenly, with a dull thud, his body crumpled to the ground.

Behind him, a burly man let out a derisive snort, muttering curses under his breath.

“You sly bastard, I’ll kill you today!”

“Sir Uta,” Bellona said softly, shaking her head.

Then, in a loud voice, she shouted urgently, “What are the Imperial Knights doing? Traitor Ether has attempted to assassinate His Highness the Crown Prince. Escort His Highness immediately!”

Her piercing cry jolted the knights back to their senses. When they saw the unconscious Impes in Bellona’s arms, their eyes widened in alarm.

The Imperial Knights hurried over, lifting Impes onto a horse. Bellona handed him over with a concerned expression, issuing commands in a hurried tone.

“Take him to the court physician immediately and report Ether’s treachery to His Majesty the Emperor. Explain everything that has happened here.”

“Yes!”

Four knights escorted Impes away quickly. As she watched his limp form being carried off, Bellona’s sharp gaze glinted with cold intensity.

Turning to the remaining knights, her face hardened as she commanded, “Seal off this area! Allow no one to enter!”

The knights, accustomed to responding to commands, hesitated for a moment. Something about the situation felt off. Recognizing Bellona as the former common knight, they exchanged surprised glances.

At that moment, Uta roared fiercely, “What’s wrong with your ears? Didn’t you hear Her Grace’s orders?”

Startled by Uta’s mention of “Her Grace,” the knights quickly straightened their postures and responded crisply.

“Yes!”

The knights, now fully aware of the carnage surrounding them, grimaced as they spread out to secure the perimeter. Some even gagged at the gruesome sight.

Uta, who had sorted out the situation, approached and asked in a low voice, “Why not kill him now? It would solve everything.”

“If Impes dies now, there’s no way out of this situation. We’ve walked into the Empress’s trap.”

Bellona’s gaze shifted to the corpses of the nobles and knights who had fallen victim to the Empress’s terrifying scheme.

“Are you saying the Empress orchestrated this?”

“Keep your voice down.”

Uta glanced around nervously before stepping closer.

“We need to use Ether to prove our innocence first. Get him out of here without anyone knowing.”

“What?”

“If Ether falls into the Empress’s hands, he’ll be killed without a trace. He must become a fugitive who assassinated the Crown Prince and fled. That will buy us time and keep the Empress from making rash moves.”

Uta seemed to understand now, standing at attention as he nodded. Bellona raised her voice to issue further orders.

“Valensis knights, take the traitor Ether to His Majesty the Emperor. Report everything that occurred here and await further instructions.”

“Yes, Your Grace!”

Uta effortlessly lifted Ether’s armored body and placed him on a horse, signaling for the Valensis knights to move quickly.

“Your Grace, won’t you come with us?”

“I have a loose dog left by the Empress to catch.”

“A loose dog?”

“Move quickly!”

Her cold command prompted Uta to mount his horse, looking back at her with concern.

“Be careful, Your Grace.”

Bellona gave a small nod, her gaze fixated on the unconscious Ether.

As the Valensis knights departed, something glinted in the corner of her eye. A lavish gemstone ring, still sparkling amidst the pool of blood, encircled the severed finger of its owner. Tilting her head slightly, Bellona used the tip of her sword to remove the ring.

As she picked it up and studied it closely, a faint smile curved her lips.

‘This is just the beginning, Your Highness. Don’t think it will end with such a trivial pain. You still have a long way to go before you reach the depths of hell where I fell.’

In truth, Bellona had aimed for Impes’s wrist as retribution for what he had done to Caelus. Startled, he had pulled his hand back, and only his fingers were severed.

Though regretful, Bellona felt an unusual sense of relief. For the first time, a small smile of satisfaction graced her face.

Bellona planned to tighten her grip on him gradually, taking everything from him so meticulously that he would come to believe death would be a kinder fate. Losing his fingers today was merely the first circle of hell for him.

***

She nonchalantly wiped the blood from her sword and glanced at a young noble trembling on the ground. Crawling backward on his hands and knees, the man’s pale face reflected sheer terror, as if he had encountered a madwoman.

Knights and nobles unaware of the horrors inside the forest reacted the same way whenever they encountered her. It was shocking enough to see a woman in a place she wasn’t supposed to be, but her appearance made it even more shocking.

Her dress, shredded beyond recognition, was drenched in blood as if she had bathed in it. Her sharp sword bore remnants of flesh and blood from enemies. No one could have imagined that this terrifying figure was the Grand Duchess.

Ignoring the wary and disdainful stares, Bellona asked everyone she encountered if they had seen anything suspicious. However, no one seemed to know anything about the sorcerer.

As she steadied her breathing and prepared to move on, a trembling young noble offered her a canteen.

“You look unwell. Please, have some water…”

“You look worse than I do. Keep it for yourself and leave.”

Bellona, her expression unreadable, looked down at the young noble who still had a boyish appearance. Then, without a word, she turned her head and mounted her horse.

The young noble, pale as a ghost, darted his trembling gaze between the lifeless beast and Bellona, who had unexpectedly come to his aid.

He had been on the verge of death—whether it was fortunate or unfortunate, she had appeared in an even more terrifying manner to save him.

Yet, he was more shaken the moment he faced her than when confronted by the massive boar, a beast nearly the size of his own body.

Still struggling to steady his pounding heart, the young noble finally managed to get to his feet.

“Still, you saved my life. I have nothing else to offer…”

“I appreciate it, but I decline.”

As Bellona moved to turn her horse, the young noble hurriedly stopped her again.

“This—this is water infused with some very fine herbs! It’s a special gift exclusively for those participating in the hunting festival! I’ve been saving it because it’s too precious to drink, but, uh…”

The young man trailed off as Bellona snatched the canteen from him. Bringing it to her nose, she sniffed it before pouring a little onto her palm and tasting it.

Her face immediately hardened. The young noble recoiled as her piercing gaze fell on him.

“Who gave you this?”

“W-what?”

“Did all participants in the hunting festival receive this?”

“Y-Yes. Everyone drank water infused with herbs they brought themselves. But! O-Of course, I didn’t drink any…”

At that moment, the sound of a large horn echoed from the direction of the Imperial Palace. It was the signal that the day’s events had ended.

The young noble turned toward the palace, puzzled. It was too early for the festival to end.

Letting out a short sigh, Bellona took the canteen.

“I’ll take this.”

“What? Oh… yes, of course.”

Momentarily flustered by her sudden change in demeanor, the young noble quickly nodded. Even after having his canteen taken, he stood dazed, staring at Bellona as if entranced.

Just as she was about to turn her horse without hesitation, he stopped her again.

“Um! P-Please, at least your name! You’re my savior after all—I should at least know which noble house you hail from—”

“Even with that pitiful appearance, flies never seem to care about time or place, do they?”

The sudden voice made both Bellona and the young nobleman turn their heads simultaneously.

The nobleman, startled yet again, suddenly prostrated himself with his head to the ground.

“Your Highness, the Prince!”

Golden eyes, sharp and gleaming, were fixed solely on Bellona.