CH 3

Every time he moved a foot or an arm, his shoulders rose and fell. Following that movement, the bones and muscles of his entire body moved smoothly like flowing water. It was reminiscent of an elegant wolf. His cool gaze was full of vigilance, as if he would rush at it at any moment, and he looked natural, as if he had walked on all fours his whole life.

“Damn it, knight.”

A clear voice came out of his mouth, enough to make you feel uncomfortable with his animal-like appearance.

His low-pitched voice would normally have been sweet, but now it was so heavy and menacing that it gave her goosebumps.

“Who are you? No, I… I mean…”

She didn’t know what to say and her voice trembled. 

‘No, is my body shaking?’

His transparent eyes stared at her. Only her was reflected in them and what that gaze told her was that his narrowed pupils were scanning every part of her body.

If she got caught, her neck would be broken, and she wasn’t able to use any strength.

Although he had a human form, that… That was a beast.

It looked like an animal that lives by hunting. A ferocious and predator beast.

Unknowingly, she took a step back and as soon as she did that the sofa touched the back of her back. There was no room to go back, and her heart was beating as fast as it would explode.

“Ah, so… ”

Was she going to die like that?

She suddenly died in vain in her previous life, but after she got a new one, was she going to die after going through so many hardships? Really? If she was going to go through hardships there, wouldn’t it be fine if she just lived with Deoksoon in her previous life and just died? She had no parents and no relatives, so it was a lonely life, but she could have endured it thanks to Deoksoon.

“Reveal your identity.”

“Me, me. This is a new worker here. I’m called Trixie. I’m not a strange person…”

“Kreureung…”

“Ouch! I’m sorry! I’ve been cocky!”

The man stretched out his arms forward as if he was going to rush at her at any moment. His muscles swelled as if his body had been strengthened, and his boundaries became clearer.

The tension was high between them. Even the slightest loss of balance would make him attack her.

She reached for the wall with her hand and stretched it out to the side. There was a door right next to her, so if she run fast…

She remembered the eight locks. Her plan was ruined.

‘You will be okay, Trixie. You’ve been to gambling houses, and there’s nothing you haven’t done before. You did everything you could.’

There should be another way. Her eyes scanned the lobby and there was a room nearby. Her nerves were focused on it. Was that door open? Could she move faster than that man? She thought…

“Ugh, uh…”

As he was poised to attack, his arms bent as if he couldn’t stand himself and his posture fell. Looking at it, it seemed that his eyelids were about to close.

It was the moment.

She didn’t know what was happening but she hurriedly stepped out to escape.

“Ha. Eww…”

But she couldn’t step. It was because of an unusual sound. It was really strange. It was ferocious as if it would run at any moment.

‘No way…’

“Do you have any pain?”

Cold yet hot, sharp yet heavy, the eyes still had a murderous intent that seemed to choke a person. But she didn’t try to run like before. It seemed all he could do was keep himself standing on all fours.

The pupils of his large, deep eyes narrowed and glared at her, but as if his eyelids kept closing, the light repeatedly disappeared and appeared.

“Ugh…”

As if answering her words, he suddenly sat down. Her heart sank after him but not of fear. It was a familiar feeling that she had felt before.

“Eureung, sniff…”

‘Oh my gosh…!’

She couldn’t help but be startled by the sound of crying that came out after moaning.

‘This… !’

It was the same sound that her Deoksoon made when he was beating himself up!

“Are you alright?”

Unknowingly, she approached him closely and asked him, and he frowned and expressed his caution. She was scared before, but not now. She knew those eyes.

The first time she met Deoksoon, a naughty child from a shelter that was disbanded three times, and the time she brought the child home with difficulty.

His eyes were like the eyes of fear and caution that Deoksoon showed at that time.

“Huh… ”

As soon as she heard the pain that followed at the end of the moan, she crouched down to examine him.

No matter how much she listened to it, she almost cried because it sounded exactly like Deoksoon’s cry. Because she missed him so much…

“OMG. Is it okay? Are you okay?”

“… ”

“What should I do.”

Surprised by her question, he tried to put on guard, but eventually collapsed.

He fell helplessly and his large body hit the floor with a dull sound.

Surprised, she walked closer to him on her knees.

“Gosh! Then you were hurt! Where are you going, where are you hurting!”

Even as he exposed his teeth to be vigilant, her heart ached as the sounds of weeping and whimpering overlapped.

He was so hurt but needed to be vigilant… What was so frightening and upsetting for him to react like that?

“Unnie, oh no. Call me miss, ok? Let me know where it hurts.” *

Because of her old habits, the word unnie came out of her mouth.

She reached out her hand to him since she wanted to give him time to smell her and realize that she wouldn’t hurt him.

“Kreureung!”

At that moment, he squeezed his strength and raised his head to threaten her. But there was no strength at all, so she wasn’t afraid of him.

“What happens? Who are you barking to! Silence!”

She just thought she should scold him.

“Stop… Are you barking at this miss? Wanna be scolded?”

She frowned as if threatening, straightened her body, and raised her fingers.

“… ?”

Maybe it was because she suddenly got up, grew in size, and made a determined sound, the man’s eyes widened.

To alleviate Deoksoon’s vigilance and fear, a lot of things she had done at first passed by her mind. She had to deal with it as hard as possible, soothe him calmly, and wait for him.

“Keep your head down.”

“… Uhh.”

“Barking again! Huh? Bad puppy!”

“… ”

“Keep your head down. Silence!”

With a stern voice, she deliberately pressed his head hard.

It might have been dangerous if he had been fine, but he didn’t seem to be fine at that moment so he seemed powerless.

The man rolled his eyes here and there, as if confused, and curled up with his face on his feet, no, his hands.

His expression of not knowing what to do made her heart feel sorry for scolding him.

“Baby. Are you okay? Does it hurt a lot?”

She stuck out her chin as much as she could and made a gurgling sound, then lay down on the floor almost as if she was crawling.

It seemed that the child would not be able to relax his guard if they did not meet at eye level.

Again, she stretched out her palm and held it toward his nose.

“Don’t worry. I’m not weird. Would you like to smell it first?”

She stretched out her hand further.

He frowned and looked up at her, then slightly poked his nose out. A laugh came out of her.

His straight, tall, handsome nose sniffed and sniffed like a puppy. Well, like a person.

“… Sniff.”

She almost came back to her senses when she realized that he was not a dog, but a person, but she was distracted by his weak groan.

“Ara, ara. It hurts, right? Where does it hurt so much?”

How could he make the same sound as Deoksoon?

“Ara. It was hard, right? Are you hungry? Sleepy? Shall we sleep soon?”

She waited for the man to explore and sniff her long enough. If he was surprised, she had to get further away, and when he watched, she could get closer.

The wooden floor was cold from lying on her stomach all the time, and her hands and knees, which supported her body, ached. But she didn’t give up.

‘Something, think of something!’

She wrestled with him for a long time.

“ …yes.”

The man’s eyes, which had been languidly shaking, were closing more and more deeply.

“It’s okay, my puppy. Everything is fine.”

As if those words were a magic spell, the man finally closed his eyes.

As his eyes, which he had struggled to open, closed, she felt relieved. Before long, her fingertips touched his hair. His thin, soft golden hair, as if plucked from the sun, tickled her hand and her heart leaped.

‘I did it! I did it!’

“… Ugh!”

The joy of calming down a sharp-tongued child came. She wanted to scream, but she held it in.

He was barely asleep, so she didn’t want to make noise.

She calmed down the sharp child who seemed to kill her!

‘Deoksoon, are you watching your unnie?’ *

‘Trainers in countless programs, authors of dog behavior studies, and dog owners on the Internet, are you watching? This is thanks to you all!’

“It’s okay, baby.”

She gently stroked the man’s hair.

It wasn’t clean, but it was soft and warm, like touching Deoksoon’s fur.

She could feel him breathing. When she touched his back, she could feel his pulse beating fast.

“You… Are you anxious?”

” … yes.”

“Scared?”

“yes.”

Was that an answer, or was it a small groan? There was no way to know how to interpret the sound of a dog that could speak.

“Good night. Oh, I didn’t ask for your name.”

“… ”

“Tell me your name next time. My Deoksoon really liked being called by its name.”

Click. Just then, there was the sound of the door lock turning.

While the eight locks opened one by one, she jumped up and went to the sofa and sat down. As an employee, she didn’t think she should show her employer lying on the floor.

“Where did he go?”

“This is my first time… ”

“We should request troops… uh?”

A man in armor entered with Gourden, taking off his helmet.

“This…”

“Were you here?”

“What have you done?”

She didn’t know why, but he looking angry wasn’t her imagination, was it?

A man approached her in an instant and grabbed her wrist.

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Translator Note:

* In the original, the FL said “sister” but because of the place and time she is living in now I translated it as “miss” when talking to other characters and “unnie” when thinking to herself.