The Queen Who Fights Back (by Lily Hastings) novel Chapter 88

Chapter 88

Dorken was a seasoned member of the Bloodblade Mercenary Corps, having clawed his way up from a mere foot soldier to become one of the sharpest blades in their ranks on the international stage. His reputation was hard-earned, forged through countless battles and missions that tested his skill and resolve.

When Dorken first enlisted with Bloodblade, he had already heard countless rumors swirling about their enigmatic leader. Whispers painted her as a fearless and ruthless warrior, scarred by battles and hardened by experience—a true queen of war. Among the mercenaries, gossip was a constant pastime, and whenever they gathered, the question on everyone’s lips was always the same: what kind of woman could command such a formidable crew?

Some speculated she was a dangerously seductive femme fatale, weaving webs of influence with her charm. Others imagined her as a hulking figure, built like an unstoppable tank. Yet none of these wild guesses prepared Dorken for the reality he faced now—a reality that nearly made him doubt his own eyes.

Nova, their boss, looked scarcely older than a girl fresh out of middle school. She appeared utterly ordinary, the kind of face you might see in any classroom, blending into the background with no hint of the power she wielded. Dorken blinked in disbelief, his mind struggling to reconcile the fierce legend he’d heard about with the unassuming young woman standing before him.

Recognizing Nova immediately, Dorken instinctively lowered his head in respect, his piercing blue eyes flickering nervously as he struggled to find words. “Boss,” he began, his tone heavy with reverence, “I can’t believe you’re really still alive out here.”

He hesitated, then added, “You know, there’ve been all kinds of rumors floating around the corps lately… You disappeared completely for six months—no one, not even the top brass, could reach you. Some people were saying… maybe something terrible happened.”

In the dangerous world of mercenaries and assassins, death was never far away. It wasn’t a distant threat but a constant shadow, always knocking at the door. Even the strongest warriors eventually met their end. So when Nova vanished from the underworld’s radar for half a year, it was only natural that most assumed she was done for.

That was the only conclusion that made sense.

Nova lowered her gaze, pausing thoughtfully, her expression unreadable. The heavy silence between them stretched on, thick and suffocating. Then, from the edge of the group, Harvey snapped out of his stunned silence after nearly two minutes of frozen shock.

“What?!” he bellowed, his voice rough and trembling with disbelief.

The raw, hoarse scream was the most desperate sound Harvey had ever made. His tongue felt tied in knots. He didn’t know who Bloodforge was, and truthfully, he had never paid much attention to the international underworld. But even he knew exactly who commanded the Bloodblade Mercenary Corps.

“So I tried to hire mercenaries to take out Nova… only to end up hiring her own damn team?” Harvey’s mind spun, short-circuiting at the realization.

“No! No! No! I don’t believe this!” he shouted, panic lacing every word.

He shook his head violently, stumbling backward as he repeated the same frantic accusations, barely coherent.

“You must’ve bribed Dorken! That’s it—you paid him off! There’s no other explanation! You’re just that loser Charles’s worthless daughter! How could you possibly be the boss of the Bloodblade Mercenary Corps? That’s insane! No way! Impossible!”

“Charles lost track of you for over ten years! You never trained with the family, got thrown into the underworld alone—how on earth did you end up leading the Bloodblade Mercenary Corps?”

His words suddenly faltered, caught in his throat.

That was when the truth hit Harvey like a freight train. Only because Charles had lost track of her all those years ago, Nova had been forced to fight her own battles, clawing her way up from nothing. That was how she became the legendary leader of the Bloodblade Mercenary Corps.

“You sure do love to run your mouth,” Nova interrupted coldly.

She tilted her head slightly toward Harvey, locking him with a steely, icy gaze. With slow, deliberate steps, she closed the distance between them, each movement relentless.

“What do you want?” Harvey stammered, panic cracking his voice.

His body shook so violently he could barely stay upright. He stumbled back into his tent, pressing himself against the wall, trapped with nowhere left to run. Yet even as he retreated, he babbled on, desperately clutching at any excuse he could find.

“N-Nova, your dad has no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into, right? If he knew what you’d become… do you think he’d ever let you come home? I’m your uncle! I grew up alongside your father—no one knows him better than me! If he found out the truth, there’s no way he could handle it… not in a million years.”

“You’ve made it all the way to the top, and now you’re talking about going home? Feeling homesick all of a sudden?”

Though trembling, Harvey forced himself to sound tough, hoping to bluff his way out of the situation.

“Huh?” Nova replied with a lazy, mocking tone, clearly amused.

She stopped right in front of him, relaxed but radiating a dangerous confidence, a hint of playful disdain in her voice.

Seeing her like this, Harvey felt a flicker of hope—maybe he had finally figured out what was going on inside her mind. He offered a slick, flattering chuckle.

“You know, if Charles ever found out his own daughter was tangled up in the underworld, he’d probably lose his mind. If things got bad enough, he might not even recognize you as his daughter anymore…”

Noticing Nova’s attention, Harvey pushed his luck, desperation seeping into every word.

“Nova, family means everything to you! Come on, I’m your uncle! This is all just a big misunderstanding! You don’t want your dad knowing any of this, do you? Seriously, if you just let me go, I swear your dad will never hear a thing… So, what do you say? Come on, Nova…”

Harvey thought he had delivered the perfect pitch, full of confident bluster—until he was cut off mid-sentence.

Shnk!

Nova’s dagger flashed out with deadly precision, piercing straight into Harvey’s heart without hesitation.

His eyes flew wide with terror and disbelief, the last flicker of life draining from them.

Just before darkness claimed him, he heard Nova’s voice, soft and almost polite, a faint smile playing on her lips as she delivered the cruelest words imaginable.

“Sorry, but compared to your excuses, I’d rather trust the silence of a corpse. So just die.”

Harvey collapsed to the ground.

Nova turned away, her presence commanding and regal, the aura of a born ruler radiating from her as she swept her gaze across Dorken and the other two mercenaries.

“Anyone else got something to say?” she asked coldly, her voice sharp and authoritative.

Dorken and his two companions drew in a sharp breath, chills running down their spines. Inwardly, they all thought, ‘Thank goodness Nova’s our boss.’

Dorken’s voice trembled as he tried to explain himself.

“Boss, this whole thing was a total accident—none of us ever expected to end up face-to-face with you!”

Nova, soaked from head to toe, removed her blood-stained white gloves and casually tossed them onto the corpses.

She lingered for a moment, her gaze shifting—was she looking at the bodies, or at the crimson stains now marking her gloves?

After a pause, she muttered, “Tsk, just filthy.”

Killing, betrayal, climbing the ranks—anyone who failed to reach the top and call the shots was simply fodder for the grinder. That was the brutal law of the underworld.

This place was rotten beyond redemption.

Nova had realized Dorken’s treachery the moment she recognized the blade technique he used—one she had never taught Yellowcat. Instead, he had learned it from Snowfang.

There was nothing she despised more than a traitor.

In the early days of the Bloodblade Mercenary Corps, Nova had been betrayed by over a thousand of her own men—those who had followed her unquestioningly for five years.

They had allied with the local military and hunted her relentlessly for ten days and nights.

But in the end, Nova trapped those traitors on the battlefield at Millinger in Arion and executed every last one with her own hands—none were left alive.

That brutal battle had cost her two of her most loyal followers. Since becoming a mercenary, only Ghost-Hammer had remained steadfast; the other two were lost—Marlie and Falcony.

Ghost-Hammer, Marlie, Falcony, and Snowfang had been the original core of Nova’s crew.

In the end, Marlie and Falcony were slaughtered, lost forever.

Snowfang betrayed her, stabbing her in the back.

This was the harsh reality Nova had survived.

Why had they betrayed her?

Nova understood better than anyone: in the mercenary world, hardened men would never truly accept a woman among their ranks—let alone one powerful enough to crush them all beneath her heel.

Lost in thought, Nova looked up through the pouring rain, her eyes locking onto the full moon glowing above.

A signature bloody grin tugged at the corners of her mouth.

Bloodblade had far more traitors than she had ever anticipated.

But Devil’s Isle and Ray Hale might be hunting her, and those traitors might think they’re safe.

Yet Nova was about to storm back onto the global stage, hunting them all down, purging every last one until no enemy remained.