He’d been holding his breath for what felt like forever.
The monster slithered past the two of them, neither of whom dared to move an inch. As its massive eyes loomed right up to their faces, Lee Sang-heon shoved Eun-jo further behind him.
“……”
The creature blinked slowly, like it was searching for something. After lazily swaying side to side, it finally turned and headed in the opposite direction. Thankfully, it seemed to have decided there was nothing here. Each shift of its huge body stirred the air into gusts.
Only after the monster had completely disappeared did Eun-jo finally exhale.
“It’s gone.”
He cautiously peeked out and scanned the area. With the creature gone, an eerie silence settled over everything.
“…I think they’re all gone.”
“……”
Still on high alert, Lee Sang-heon poked his head out through the grass. He took a quick look around, then circled back to Eun-jo.
“Woof.”
A clear signal—we’re good.
“…Hey, Lee Sang-heon.”
As soon as Eun-jo called out, a large dog came trotting over, tail wagging happily behind him.
He was so adorably shaped, Eun-jo almost wanted to scoop him up and squeeze him. Almost. But his expression quickly hardened.
“Who said you could follow me?”
Eun-jo planted the dog’s front legs in front of himself with a firm grip.
“There were people back there. You just ditched them all? Seriously?”
“……”
“You didn’t even know what kind of Gate this was, and you just ran in here like it’s nothing?”
“…Heh.”
“What?”
Wait. Did that dog just scoff?
Stunned, Eun-jo tightened his grip on the dog’s legs.
“Did you just laugh at me?”
“Heh!”
“Hey! You don’t bark like that!”
Lee Sang-heon snapped his head to the side and casually pressed a paw against Eun-jo’s lips.
With the squishy jelly of his toe beans, he firmly smushed his mouth shut.
“Nnnngh….”
There was no mistaking the message—shut up.
What the hell?!
Mocked and silenced by a dog in one go—Eun-jo’s eyes flew open in disbelief.
“Are you kidding me right n—”
Smack!
“Ah!”
Smack!
“Lee Sang-he—!”
Smack!
Only after being smacked three times with that squishy paw did Eun-jo finally shut his mouth.
Instead, he narrowed his eyes and glared.
“Heh!”
Lee Sang-heon let out another smug bark, dropped his paw, and started sniffing the ground like he was tracking something.
With his tail hanging low and his butt wiggling as he waddled forward, he looked every bit the goofy dog—and Eun-jo could only stare blankly at him.
Sure, there was a person inside that body, but somehow, getting brushed off by a dog still felt like getting brushed off by a dog.
“You’re seriously not gonna take me with you?”
Lee Sang-heon turned to glance back once—then continued walking without slowing down.
Message received: no ride.
“Unbelievable.”
Eun-jo couldn’t even yell—too risky. And he definitely wasn’t in shape to run.
Groaning, he pushed himself up and started walking after him.
Everything—their situation, his condition—was different now, but somehow, watching that ridiculous wagging butt, Eun-jo’s thoughts started to drift to strange places.
“Feels like I’m taking him out for a walk…”
The moment the word walk slipped out, Lee Sang-heon’s ears twitched. Not that Eun-jo noticed.
What Lee Sang-heon had found was a cave—deep and hidden near the river. Judging by how he sniffed his way there, he must’ve caught the scent of water.
The constant rush of the river masked other sounds, making it the perfect hiding spot from the monsters.
No telling when the rescue team’s coming.
The monsters weren’t just huge—they were everywhere. It wasn’t something one person could handle, even someone like Lee Sang-heon.
Should’ve practiced shooting more.
If he’d been any better, maybe he could’ve helped.
As he stepped inside the cave, Eun-jo found himself absentmindedly fiddling with the gun in his pocket. The memory of Park Se-yul, who’d taught him how to shoot, surfaced without warning.
Don’t try to save anyone else. Just focus on staying alive. If you see a gap, run. That’s all that matters.
Yeah, sure. Run. He hadn’t even had the chance to pull the trigger before the monster tore into him. And now he’d dragged Lee Sang-heon into it too…
“Don’t even think about it.”
The unfamiliar voice made him look up—and there was Lee Sang-heon in dog form, staring right at him.
***
Something wet nudged the bridge of his nose.
“Ugh… mm…”
Eun-jo grimaced as he opened his eyes—only to be met with a pair of glowing yellow pupils, right in front of him.
When true fear hits, you don’t scream. You don’t even groan.
Paralyzed and breathless, Eun-jo’s eyes darted in panic.
A massive bird loomed just inches away. It was the same one that had snatched him up at the Center.
Its body was grotesque, a nightmarish fusion of beak and eyes, all mashed together. Jagged wings shimmered with sharp edges beside it.
Sniff, sniff.
The bird lowered its beak, almost touching Eun-jo’s face, like it was checking if he was edible.
When the hell did I get out of the cave?
He’d definitely been asleep.
Shifting his eyes, he spotted thick forest all around—tall trees, dense underbrush. The cave was nowhere in sight.
Wait—wasn’t this supposed to be an R-rated novel?!
While silently calculating how to survive, a gust of wind rustled through the trees.
The bird noticed it too, turning its head toward the sound—
Bang!
A dog launched into view, planting itself squarely in front of Eun-jo.
“L-Lee Sang-heon…?”
It was him. The same Lee Sang-heon who’d vanished into the cave.
They locked into a standoff.
Without taking his eyes off the bird, Lee Sang-heon growled low and deep, teeth bared. The bird flicked a glance at Eun-jo, as if weighing whether the prey was worth the trouble.
Then it shrieked and took off.
Lee Sang-heon didn’t look away until the bird had completely vanished. Then his eyes dropped down to Eun-jo.
“My bride.”
“…Bride?”
Was he talking about… me?
Eun-jo blinked, stunned.
“Me…?”
Instead of answering, Lee Sang-heon snarled, his growl deep and guttural.
Since when could a dog’s face show this much emotion?
His raised brows and bared teeth practically radiated fury.
“I told you not to leave the cave.”
“……”
“I said it was dangerous.”
Before Eun-jo could react, Lee Sang-heon lunged—and clamped his teeth around the back of his neck.
Like a mother carrying her pup, he bolted into the woods, Eun-jo dangling from his jaws.
Lee Sang-heon was tall, so Eun-jo’s legs kept bumping against the ground, dragging a trail behind them.
I remember now.
A flash of memory surged through his head.
There was a Gate in the novel—one where venomous monsters appeared.
He couldn’t quite recall if they took the form of birds, but he did remember this part: they infected prey through claw wounds.
This isn’t real.
