Bark Like a Dog

Chapter - 2 [Begins ]

I had a dream.

In that evanescent world, I had become a complete stranger.

"To the Seventh Prince Andrew, I grant the vast northern lands of Hyman!"

A grant of territory.

Certainly, an event worth celebration.

But each and every gaze directed towards me was filled with pity and compassion.

Seventh Prince Andrew.

That was my identity in this fleeting dream.

How could it be anything other than a blessing?

Heaven had taken pity on my plight and made me a prince, even if only in a dream.

However, this country was a little different from the empire I was used to.

For one, it was not the emperor who held absolute power.

In place of the foolish emperor, the queen, the actual ruler, governed the country.

Through her behind-the-scenes manipulation, tens of thousands of pyeong* of northern territory was granted to the seventh prince, a mere child of a concubine.

_____

*A pyeong is a Korean unit of area and floorspace, equal to a square kan or 36 square Korean feet.

______

I soon realized.

The reason behind the incomprehensible looks of sympathy and compassion from the nobles.

The Hyman territory was void of inhabitants.

And there was another reason.

An abandoned land with various dangers on three sides.

Commonly known as Death Valley.

No one who has gone through this valley's entrance has ever made it out alive.

In the north, monsters frequently emerged and killed people.

The mountains to the east were the land of the dwarves, and they did not tolerate any

human that dared to trespass on their territory.

The same was true for the vast elven forest to the west.

A land of complete isolation.

Right.

This was not a grant of territory, but effectively an exile.

In fact, Seventh Prince Andrew was not the first prince to receive land from the queen.

With the exception of the 1st and 2nd princes, who were her biological children, the rest of them, from the 3rd to the 6th princes, recieved land.

All of them had been granted the land of Hyman before him, and all of them had lost their lives in unfortunate accidents.

It was just that this time, it was Prince Andrew's turn.

What a strange fate, even in my dreams!

"Your duties as lord begin immediately. As soon as he is ready, the prince will leave the palace on his own."

Just like that, the 7th Prince Andrew left for the lonely estate he had been given.

Under the watchful eye of countless guards, supposedly there to 'escort' him.

"Mm."

And at that moment, the dream changed.

This time, I was the main character of the dream.

And it was a terrible, terrible nightmare.

"Dad... hurts, it hurts..."

"A-Andy."

The child who lost his head reached out for me.

Even though I couldn't see his face. I knew it.

That it was none other than my son.

My child, more precious than anything else.

"Ahh, ahhhhh..."

My throat closed up against my will. Not a single sound could come out.

God of war, my foot.

A foolish father who couldn't even protect his own family.

A moron who rolled around on the battlefield as he was told and paid the price. A slave to the core.

That was who I was.

I hate this me.

I despise this me.

I loathe this me.

"Why did you leave me to die?"

At some point, the body of my child had been standing right in front of me.

And then, just as my guilt towards my child was about to overflow.

Just as I was about to let the worst of my self-loathing take over.

Thud-Thunk!

Gasp!

I opened my eyes.

"You're awake?"

"Where....?"

"What a strange one. How can you sleep so soundly in this situation?"

I pushed myself up on the wooden planks.

Looking up, I saw a considerably pretty child staring at me.

"Where am I?"

"What do you mean, 'where?' We're obviously in a carriage."

"..."

He was also considerably rude.

The kid couldn't have been more than fifteen years old.

"...I could tell. I'm asking about our exact location."

"How should I know? We've been trapped here for quite some time. But when I left, we were in the Barony of Amant in the northern part of the Hart Kingdom, so I'm guessing somewhere around there?"

"Hart.... Kingdom?"

A distant land.

The Hart Kingdom was a place I'd never been to. It was located on the outskirts of the continent.

"I've heard that high-class goods like us are shipped to at least a high-ranking noble family. So if I had to guess, I'd say the destination is somewhere in the county."

The more I listened to this guy, the more he chose to say things I couldn't understand.

As I looked at the kid, a question suddenly popped into my mind.

"By the way, you...Are you a man, or a woman?"

"A man, you bastard."

"Your looks are definitely that of a girl's though...."

"Says you? That should be my line. I thought you were a girl until I heard your voice."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. I didn't really want to say this, but I've never seen someone as pretty as you in my life."

Once again, nothing that came out of his mouth made sense.

A man well over forty was pretty?

Objectively, my face was far from being described as 'pretty.

'

But 'manly,' perhaps

'Come to think of it...?'

It was then that I noticed an awkward sight in my vision.

Small, fair hands without a single callus.

It was none other than the hand at the end of my arm.

If there was a body of water nearby, I would have checked my reflection, but unfortunately, there wasn't anything like that here.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through my mind like a bolt of lightning.

"By any chance, what year is it?"

"Do you really have amnesia or something?"

"Don't be silly."

"It's the year 20 of the imperial calendar."

"Imperial...?

I muttered, my eyes widening.

"You don't mean the Swallow Empire, do you?"

"Of course I do. Are there any other empires on the continent besides Swallow?"

Naturally, my eyelids fluttered with confusion.

The continent's year follows the founding of the most powerful country in that year.

"Then year 421 by the continental calendar?"

"It's been a while since I heard of the continental calendar. Year 421. Yeah, that sounds about right."

Thud!

As soon as I heard those words, I collapsed helplessly on the floor.

Year 421 of the continental calendar.

The day I returned home from the battlefield was year 401 of the continental calendar.

In other words, exactly 20 years had passed since I died.

* * *

"..."

I have been lost in thought in silence for three hours now.

I closed my ears and was lost in my own thoughts.

Let's summarize.

This is somewhere in the Hart Kingdom.

In other words, the exact opposite of where I was from.

The emperor succeeded in subjugating all surrounding countries.

But the Hart Kingdom wasn't one of his goals, even for a conqueror like him.

It was too barren, too remote, and too far away.

Regardless, the Swallow Kingdom became a continental superpower.

Of course, I had a big role in making that happen.

And now, 20 years have passed.

Naturally, Swallow would be much stronger than it was then, and the people I needed to take revenge on would be much stronger.

Because 20 years is that long of a time.

'A child's body, against such an enemy.'

Fortunately, some memories of this body remained in my mind.

Name, Andrew.

Fourteen years old.

He holds the status of 'prince.'

Of course, he's the seventh prince of a duchy in the weakest of weak nations, but a prince nevertheless.

His father, the king, was indecisive, and it seems that the real ruler of the country is the queen.

'More than anything, that dream.'

It was clearly a memory of this body as it left for exile, alone, under the watchful eye of a few guards.

Clink.

As proof, I even have a pendant around my neck that proves I'm a lord.

However, no matter how much I think about it, I can't remember an exact explanation for my current situation.

'Based on the information available to me, the queen, who holds all the real power, kicked out the child of the concubine, who was a thorn in her eyes, and sent him to die alone... That seems like the most plausible theory.'

People are the same, no matter where you go.

A world where even family members become more malicious than strangers just for the sake of power.

'To sum it up, I'm just a slave that's dressed up on the outside.'

A self-deprecating smile tugged at the corners of my mouth.

But I won't despair.

I've walked this road before.

In fact, compared to my childhood, this might as well be paradise.

Back then, I was the lowest of the low, even among slaves.

I was a war slave, otherwise known as a meat shield.

'I'll put the memories of this body to a later priority for now.'

I organized my priorities inside my head.

I feel sorry for this guy named Andrew. He gave me a new chance, but revenge on the empire takes priority.

In fact, when I have the strength and power to kill even the emperor of the continent, I'm sure that the queen of a duchy will naturally bow before me.

"Hah..."

As I pondered, my thoughts naturally drifted back to my previous life.

If the greedy queen is the cause of my ruin in this life, then who is the traitor who was the reason for my downfall in my past life?

My five closest friends, who were like brothers, were the first to come to mind.

'It must be one of them.'

Because they were the only ones who knew where Andy lived.

'... I can at least deduct some things, even right now.'

After organizing my thoughts, I opened my mouth.

"You, what's your name?"

"Ha, you're kidding. You're only asking about my name after all this time?"

After tiring himself out while talking to himself, he finally looked up.

"Well, if you don't want to…"

"...It's Harun."

"Alright, Harun. Let me ask you a riddle."

Harun made a bewildered expression at my words.

"You've been acting like I don't exist, and now you suddenly have a riddle for me?"

"I know you're bored, anyway."

"You really are crazy."

Harun shook his head and then jutted his chin out at me.

"Have you heard of the genius of the Hart Kingdom? I'm that genius, Harun."

"There are five knights following a lord."

"You said it was a riddle, what's this all about?"

"But one of those five knights betrayed and murdered his lord. In other words, there was a traitor among his trusted servants."

"Ooh."

Apparently, he found my story interesting, and Harun began to focus.

"So?"

"Now, twenty years have passed. The lord's child has learned that one of the five knights betrayed his father, and he wishes to seek revenge. Now, how should he find the traitor?"

"Hmm, so it was a reasoning question."

Harun ponders for a moment, then frowns.

"You're giving me too few clues. Give me a bit more."

"You idiot. Genius, my foot. Even if you ever get out of here, don't ever do something where you have to use your head."

"What?"

Right away, Harun got angry.

"Then are you saying that you can find the traitor with just that?"

"Are you dumb? If a rival has succeeded in eliminating a lord, they'll want to deal with his allies next."

"Huh?"

"Unless he was foolishly taken advantage of, the traitor should be living in comfort by now, and his true and loyal knights would have been taken care of. In other words, the guy who has been living his life in comfort is the culprit."

Such is the way of the world.

Loyal subjects and rebels who sacrificed their lives to save the country are not honored.

Rather, it's a world where the traitors who sell out their country that live in luxury after the war.

In that sense, what in the world did that bastard get in return for his betrayal?

"Oh...."

Only then did Harun let out a deep exclamation at my words.

"You're kind of smart, aren't you?"

"You're just stupid."

For a moment, I clutch my face.

As my thoughts reached that point, I remembered Andy's last moments again.

"...Hehehe."

But now, for some reason, I'm laughing.

Laughing at the thought of my child's death.

If this isn't madness, what is?

"Wh-What the. Why are you laughing so eerily all of a sudden?"

"...It's nothing. Rather, you said earlier that we are superior products. What did you mean by that?"

"This guy still hasn't come to his senses."

Harun clicked his tongue, and then brought his face closer to mine with a straight face.

"Don't freak out and listen."

"Alright."

"You've been kidnapped."

"Kidnapped...?"

Harun nodded.

A brief explanation followed.

The Hart Kingdom has had a long history of such trafficking.

Children, especially those with fair faces, are often snatched off the streets in broad daylight, regardless of gender.

I had expected it to some extent, but it was still unbelievable.

"Huh... so right now, I'm about to be sold off into slavery?"

If his subordinates had ever heard of this, they would have laughed their heads off.

I, who was once called the grim reaper of the battlefield, had become a slave again.

Thud-Thunk!

Just then, the carriage screeched to a halt with a loud noise.

"Get out."

The door suddenly swung open, and a guy who looked like a bandit suddenly stuck out his face.

The sight of him sent a shiver down Harun's spine.

I clearly understood the situation.

A part of me wanted to punch him in the face and run, but that would be foolish.

One death had taught me the hard way.

The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.

I became a commander before I turned twenty.

Before I was thirty, I was called the best in the country, and before I was forty, I was called the grim reaper of the continent.

In other words, I was kept on a leash because my wings were spread too wide.

Being great only led to betrayal.

"Hey, you pretty thing. You come this way."

So I obediently let myself be taken away by the hands of the bandit.

"Mm."

Seeing the sun again after a while makes my eyes squint.

Where is this place?

At the very least, I know that it's a trail in some ordinary forest.

And at the clearing at the end of the road, a small test was set up.

As I stepped inside, a pig with its neck completely buried in its fat was sitting there.

"Who are you?"

"Who do you think? A good man who will not only introduce you to a good family, but also give you a chance at a new life."

In other words, a trashy slave trader.

The smaller the country, the more this sort of thing happens.

This is because public security is lacking that much more.

For reference, the seeds of slave traders had dried up around my territory.

Since I killed every one I came across.

"Think of it as a type of education. You'll be serving the mighty Count Arsene in a week's time."

"'Education'..."

"That's right, just look at you. You brat, you don't even know what respect is, do you?"

"Well, if I got in trouble there, I guess you'd bein trouble, too."

Only then did the pig smile, putting his yellow teeth on full display.

"Still, I see that we can make some conversation. That's fine. Since after just one day of training from us here, you'll be trembling in fear and become obedient. Just like everyone else."

A high-ranking noble family.

If I got into trouble there, the slave traders would get in trouble as well.

To become a trusted seller, you must also provide reliable after-sales service.

But, is that pig unaware of my identity?

"By the way, you're a pretty thing, aren't you."

Woof! Woof!

The barking of dogs harmonized with the pig's words.

Two hounds guarded the entrance to the tent.

When released freely, they wandered back and forth, in and out of the tent.

For a long moment, the pig stared at my face, as if appraising it, and then spoke.

"You… might be possible."

"What?"

"Okay. I've decided. You'll get a full week of training. For just one week, you'll become the third member of my family."

Third?

Woof!

As soon as I heard the dogs' bark, I understood what he meant.

To think he would treat a person as the same as a dog.

"Alright, your first task is to say hello to your new owner. 'Arf, arf.' Try it. 'Arf, arf!'"

"..."

Regardless of what the pig was saying, my thoughts continued.

Since I've been reborn, let's hide our cards this time.

Who was it that killed me?

It was none other than myself.

Brilliance and excellence led me to my destruction.

In my previous life, I was a knight that was both a scholar and a soldier.

As a result, I had been subjected to countless scrutiny throughout my life.

So now I have to at least 'pretend' to be as normal as possible.

"Or would you rather say, 'woof, woof'? 'Woof, woof!'"

As I made my resolve, I continued to hear the sound of a dog barking in the background.

And so, I fulfilled his expectations.

"Woof! Woof!"

"Hahahaha! You're more qualified than I thought. Good. I'm definitive with my rewards and punishments. So it's only right that I reward you for a job well done."

The pig motions me to come closer with his fingers.

I approached him without hesitation.

At that moment, I saw it.

The dirty desire deep inside the pig's pupils.

As I approached, it brought its filthy mouth to mine.

And I reciprocated, blowing a breath of hot air on his ear.

Haaa.

"Hehehe. Look at this guy? You have a better grasp of reality than I thought, huh? Looks like educating you will be worth my time!"

"Satisfied?"

"I couldn't be happier. As long as you keep this up...!"

His words went through one ear and out the other as I quietly investigated the insides of my body.

Although it was a small and weak nation, perhaps because he was a prince, 'mana' existed in this body.

In the first place, this was what I had hoped to find.

Usually, royal families learn basic practice techniques for their own health and knowledge.

Although it was smaller than rat droppings, that alone made the average person a frog before a snake.

Flinch.

My spirit harbored killing intent, and it immediately made the pig's body stiffen.

"The training is fine, and the role-playing is alright, but I don't like my role."

"Wh- What?"

"You play the dog. I'll be the owner."

"...!"

Seeing the other person shiver in fear only thickened my killing intent.

"Bark like a dog, right now. Try it. 'Woof, woof.'"

I'll avoid doing anything that will attract the attention of my enemies as much as possible.

However, I have no intention of tolerating this kind of nonsense for that purpose.

It seems contradictory even to me, but I'm not doing this without a plan.

After all, dead men tell no tales.

Chapter - 2 [End ]

***

Author - V_Monarch