In This Life, I'll Assist You (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 6
But how could I stop it?
Even if I monitored the entire outer fortress, it would be nearly impossible to find out who had been bribed or how the poison would be administered.
The Grand Duke of the South’s main castle alone housed over a thousand servants, more than half of whom knew how to wield a sword or use their bodies in combat.
This place was a massive trap, ready to swallow the North whole.
Grand Duke Lahert of the South must have concocted an excuse too difficult to refuse, compelling the North to accept his invitation. He likely stirred the Emperor’s influence, leaving the Grand Duke of the North no choice but to come here.
Requesting a celebration for victory—this differed from my previous life—but it must have been the North’s minimal, non-negotiable point of pride.
I cannot blame the Grand Duke of the North for coming here. Though it was a perilous decision for him, it gave me my only hope of reaching him.
There is only one way to save Arcadia.
I loosened my clenched fist and relaxed my body.
Since I cannot grasp every detail of the situation, I must let them defend themselves.
‘I must meet the Grand Duke of the North and tell him everything I know.’
It might be a gamble—but no, it is a gamble, and I will take it.
But how do I meet him?
Will he even believe my words?
My feelings were tangled, yet I wished he would trust me.
Even to myself, this hope seemed baseless.
In this life, our only connection was five years ago—when our swords briefly crossed. I was fourteen; he was seventeen.
After the death of the Late Grand Duke of the North, he lived in the capital like a hostage under the Emperor’s command until he returned to the North at fifteen.
He was repeatedly thrust into battlefields, and only at seventeen—once more summoned by imperial decree—did he briefly return to the capital.
Would he remember the masked youth forced to cross blades with him merely for the Grand Duke of the South’s amusement?
[“Why cover your beautiful face with a mask?”]He had asked me that, gazing into my eyes as I lay defeated on the ground. His gentle voice remains vivid in my memory even now.
I pray he remembers me.
[This is the timeline separator]The Northern Knights were lodged in the southernmost section of the main fortress—a guest wing known as the Azure Pavilion.
Aside from the stronghold where the Grand Duke of the South’s direct lineage resided, it was the tallest and most exquisite structure within the fortress—a pavilion overlooking Lake Asseo of the South, famed for its blue salt.
Though entirely open around it, this very openness made it difficult for outsiders to approach unnoticed.
‘I cannot visit openly.’
Someone like me now could never hope to reach him legitimately.
Yet this place, too, was built by Lahert—and even within this pavilion lay secret passages.
In my previous life, I had used one such passage to reach Arcadia Nugent’s room.
For generations, the assassins of House Lahert had used a concealed route through underground water channels beneath a well.
Crawling through the tunnel beginning at the bottom of the eastern well in Rahel Forest would eventually lead to the Azure Pavilion. From the subterranean channel beneath the pavilion, one could transfer into flues connected to the stoves of every room.
These flues, like an ant’s labyrinth, were barely wide enough for a single person. Tiny handholds, installed so assassins wouldn’t slip, lined the interior.
But even those small grips were insufficient to prevent a fall.
I remembered encountering the skeleton of someone who had died lost inside those flues.
Yet there was no time to hesitate. Once the poison reached Medea’s hands, its use was only a matter of time.
I slipped secretly into the well in Rahel Forest. The long-unused channel was sticky with rotting leaves and insects.
Crouched tightly in the narrow tunnel, I pressed forward, eyes fixed ahead into unseen darkness.
The stagnant air reeked of decay. The farther I moved from the well, the harder it became to breathe.
At last, I reached a point where I could feel relatively fresh air—the junction beneath the Azure Pavilion where the channel met the flue system.
Recalling the ‘map of secret passages’ once given to me by the Black Worm in my past life, I shifted into the flue.
‘Lord Arcadia Nugent’s room is the third from the left on the fifth floor. So where would Grand Duke Zion Belfast of the North be staying…?’
Most likely in the room adjacent to Nugent’s.
But would it be to Nugent’s left, his right, or directly opposite?
My mind grew tangled. Within the Azure Pavilion, only three rooms were suitable for an imperial grand duke.
Of those three, the simplest yet offering a direct view of Lake Asseo lay immediately to Nugent’s right—the only one on his floor.
A bitter sorrow welled within me.
In my last life, I had memorized his room’s location—to kill Arcadia Nugent.
‘Do I still remember the exact place of his room, even now?’
Gathering my strength, I began climbing straight upward.
[This is the timeline separator]All guest chambers in the Azure Pavilion featured exceptionally high ceilings. Consequently, the flues connected to each chamber’s stove extended vertically with the same height difference. Failing to overcome that height with one’s own strength meant only one outcome.
Death.
Climbing the flue, equipped with only minimal handholds, was no different from scaling a slick cliff face.
To focus solely on ascending, I banished all stray thoughts—and finally reached what I presumed was Arcadia Nugent’s chamber.
From there, I crawled past two vertically aligned openings in the flat flue to reach a section noticeably wider than the others.
Wider meant a greater risk of falling—but this flue likely connected to the stove inside the Grand Duke of the North’s room.
I stretched my arm upward and gripped the slippery handhold high in the flue.
May the Grand Duke be exactly where I intend to go.
Crawling into the chamber, I cautiously pressed my ear against the flue wall, hoping to catch that familiar voice.
A low, resonant tone—the voice of Zion Belfast, Grand Duke of the North.
Remembering his voice brought back our final words from my previous life.
Him, bound in chains. Me, offering him a damp cotton pad. Him, asking my name. Me, asking if it was pity. Him, replying it was interest.
My thoughts wandered.
Instinctively, I tightened my grip on the handhold. Without footholds, I hung by sheer arm and core strength—daydreaming now would be fatal.
Still hanging by one arm, I freed the other hand and pulled from my mouth the note I’d been holding. Fortunately, despite my regression, the skills I’d acquired as a Sword Master in my past life remained intact.
Thanks to that ability, these thin arms could support my entire weight.
With the note in hand, I gently pushed the side of the stove connected to the flue. A faint current of air from inside the room brushed past me.
Yet no human voice could be heard.
Was the room empty?
Only the quiet flow of still air came from behind the closed door.
Perhaps it was unoccupied.
But I couldn’t give up so easily. This note warning of assassination had to reach the Grand Duke himself.
Gathering courage, I pushed the stove’s side panel open just a little more. Through the narrow gap, I glimpsed the room’s white ceiling. Golden sunlight now stretched long across it—the day was drawing to a close.
That was when something blocked the light and looked directly at me. My breath caught sharply in shock.
“Wh—wha—”
I jerked my head back into the flue like a startled turtle, clinging desperately to the handhold for dear life.
In my panic, I dropped the note I’d been holding.
My heart pounded wildly.
I’d gone mad. No—I was going mad.
Unless my memory failed me, the one who’d just met my eyes was…
“Who’s there?”
A low, calm voice filled the flue completely.
The Grand Duke of the North—Zion Belfast.
How could I possibly answer “who” when asked “who are you?” in a situation like this?
Internally screaming, I clung to the handhold like a cicada gripping a branch.
What do I do? What do I do?
This was a scenario I’d never imagined.
Then his voice came again.
“I asked who you are.”
His tone was unnervingly composed—so calm it made my own panic seem laughable.
What should I say? How should I name myself?
A dog of the Grand Duke of the South who no longer wishes to be a dog? A nameless wanderer? I couldn’t yet call myself the white butterfly—I hadn’t transformed. Then what…?
Bella?
I swallowed the name before it escaped my lips.
No. That was a false name given by Medea.
My true name…
The name my mother called me in the past revealed by the dagger.
Estelle.
Just recalling it brought a pain as though my heart were being torn apart. A name I shouldn’t speak aloud.
I mustn’t say it. I’m not yet worthy of bearing that name.
“I am called Worm. I have no name.”
The words barely escaped my lips—and instantly, I regretted them. What the Grand Duke wanted to know wasn’t my name, but my purpose.
Predictably, his tone grew slightly sharper.
“What do you do?”
Almost as soon as the words left his mouth, a soft *shhk* echoed—the sound of a blade being drawn from its scabbard.
But I couldn’t retreat.
He spoke again.
“Show yourself.”
Summoning courage, I opened my mouth.
“I’ve taken this risk because there is something you must know. Please, sheathe your sword.”
I enunciated each word clearly, ensuring my voice reached him.
Yet no reply came.
What? He must have heard me.
A short silence stretched into an eternity. I was the one who broke first.
“Your Grace, Grand Duke Lahert is plotting a scheme. Medea—”
Just then, the chamber door opened.
“Your Grace, it’s Arcadia.”
At the same instant, the slightly open stove panel slammed shut—closed by the Grand Duke himself.
Moments later, sharp smoke began seeping into the flue, followed by rising heat.
‘He set fire?’
Why?
He didn’t recognize me. He intends to eliminate me.
Our meeting five years ago had been brief—of course he wouldn’t remember.
But how could he light the fire so quickly?
Suddenly, I realized the timing: I’d opened the stove panel just as he was about to light his fireplace.
Had he heard me climbing? Did he think I was an assassin?
My strength began to fade. Thick, acrid smoke blinded me. Breathing grew impossible—my lungs burned as if tearing apart.
How much time passed?
As my consciousness blurred, the heat lessened—then a loud *clang* echoed as something forcefully opened.
At that instant, one of my hands slipped, and my body began to fall. Simultaneously, something caught my hand.
A long, firm, large hand.
I looked up—there stood the Grand Duke of the North. His blue eyes fixed firmly on me.
“Hold tight—don’t fall.”
When yandere male lead believes she loves him — but she never did
“How dare you!”
“How dare you make me love you, only to cast me aside as nothing more than a friend?!?
“I will never accept that.”
“I will never let you return to him.”
“Even if I have to burn myself to ashes.”
“Even if I must shatter my purity, my dignity, my very soul.”
“I will never let you escape me!”
This was the first novel that introduced me to the matriarchal genre. I’ve read it three times already!
At first, the male lead despised the female lead. Later, he misunderstood that she liked him, so he condescendingly and reluctantly reciprocated her feelings.
Then, he suddenly discovered that she was kind to everyone in the same way, and there was already someone she cherished in her heart, and that person was not him.
The male lead couldn’t believe it, he became angry and crazy. He was determined to capture her body and heart by any means necessary.
Synopsis:
Want to see how a green tea bitch male lead falls in love with the female lead?
Want to see how he flirtatiously pursues the female lead?
Want to see how he gets slapped in the face repeatedly?
The male lead is a green tea bitch, a poisonous lotus, jealous, ruthless, unscrupulous, with a venomous heart, and he’s also a delusional maniac.
The female lead is righteous, positive energy-filled, kind, a holy mother.
Let’s see how two people with extreme personalities come together~
_____
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If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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They are deeply concerned and confused and hurt from the past….they just can’t overcome their fear from the past…it is deeply rooted…it will take time…in the mean time they are hurting each other…and Arcadia is also feeling twisted inside…what are all they can do…
This chapters sentences were really weird to read so maybe someone should proofread to verify. It was a lot of broken up words to complete a sentence. like they were talking on a radio.
why did we switch into caller her a he again. Does anyone Proofread. I love the novel but I really wish that you guys would pay better attention. I paid for this novel, I expect it to atleast be done correctly