Before Kim Wooju woke, I’d gone out searching for food.
He clearly hadn’t eaten properly and had only been tortured—obvious enough.
The hickey stamped on my wrist wouldn’t leave my mind, so even though no one was around, I turned back into a small dragon.
Fortunately, in this form I had no veins, no wrists—just stubby forepaws. The mark was gone from sight.
Relieved, I flapped along and managed to gather a few edible snacks.
Not much, but better than nothing.
Since it was nighttime, the place was deserted, making it easy to roam.
Aside from the guards posted at the front and the prisoners in the underground cells, the building seemed empty. Or maybe everyone had gone home for the night.
Pleased with myself, I piled the snacks onto an abandoned plate I found shoved in a corner, then returned to Wooju’s room.
Luckily, he’d regained consciousness and sat there dazed.
If I just Kuoo-Kuoo at him, he wouldn’t understand a thing. Was there any way to actually talk?
But changing back into a human… that mark on my wrist made me uneasy.
I thought hard, searching for a way—and on a whim, tried a translation spell.
Inside the Dungeon, all I could do was control my size, and translation magic had failed. But here, outside, Polymorph had worked… so maybe this would too.
I gathered Mana at once.
“Kuoo, you’re awake? Kuoo!”
Oh! It worked…!
My amazement was cut short by Wooju’s stunned stare.
His eyes were filled with disbelief, sheer shock.
I checked his expression quickly.
No shame or embarrassment mixed in—just surprise.
Good. It looked like he didn’t remember the licking and sucking. That was a relief.
So long as I acted normal, everything would be fine.
Even if the memory of his mouth on my wrist still made it burn.
I flew over and set the plate of snacks down in front of him.
Honestly, I wanted to make him soup, something warm after so long without food. But I hadn’t found any place to cook.
At least these would help him regain a little strength.
“Kuoo. Eat up. Kuoo. You must be hungry. Kuoo.”
I frowned.
Why did I keep ending every sentence with Kuoo?
Had the magic not worked properly? I reapplied it and tried again, but still every phrase stuck with Kuoo at the end.
It sounded ridiculous.
I was stewing over it when Wooju spoke in a trembling voice.
“Aru… is that you?”
“…Yeah. Kuoo.”
“How are you here… No, wait—you can talk?”
“…Just barely. Kuoo. Still not fluent. Kuoo.”
“Did you… follow me here?”
Ignoring the snacks, he stared only at me. I clumsily pinched one up in my forepaw and dropped it onto his lap.
“I followed because I was worried. Kuoo. Who was that bastard? Kuoo. What was that Dungeon? Kuoo. Why are they treating you like this? Kuoo. Want me to smash everything to pieces? Kuoo.”
Goddammit. What am I, some cartoon Pokémon…?
No matter how many times I recast the spell, the Kuoo wouldn’t vanish.
I guess I should be thankful it doesn’t happen when I’m in human form.
Damn it…
As I grumbled, drops splashed onto my paw.
Huh? Rain leaking from the ceiling? I tilted my head up—and froze.
Tears were streaming from Kim Wooju’s eyes.
“Uh, uh—what’s wrong, Kuoo! Are you okay? Kuoo! Are you still hurt? Kuoo? I’ll fix everything! Kuoo-Kuoo! Heal Kuoo, Heal Kuoo, Heal Kuoo!”
I poured Heal over him again and again, but his tears wouldn’t stop.
Panicking, I saw him slowly reach a hand toward me.
As if asking me to hold him.
I stamped my feet, then finally gave in and flew into his arms.
Immediately, Wooju wrapped me up tight, crushing me against his chest.
'…Can’t breathe.'
It was suffocating, but as his tears subsided, I stayed still, letting him calm down.
I’d known he’d be glad to see me, but not that he’d cry.
He must have suffered that much.
My chest ached.
If I’d known, I would have come sooner.
“You’re the first person who’s ever worried about me. I’m so happy… I can’t stop crying, Aru.”
“…Is that so. Kuoo.”
“Yeah. I was in so much pain. Beaten bloody, stabbed over and over, no Guiding—felt like I was losing my mind. I really thought I’d die. And then, then…”
“Kuoo…”
“They brought some so-called new drug, but the side effects were insane. My whole body ripped apart, stitched itself, ripped again, over and over. Kang Cheon’s a bastard. The government too, those fuckers!”
“Kuoo, Kuoo… You’re right. Truly rotten bastards. Kuoo!”
The more he spoke, the angrier I got.
Nodding furiously, I echoed him.
Those bastards deserve to be torn apart.
“And even then… all I thought of was you, Aru. I missed you so much. I regretted leaving you behind every moment. Aru, from now on you’ll stay by my side forever, right?”
“…Kuoo.”
I’d echoed everything else, but that I couldn’t answer.
How could I tell him—he’s the villain, and I’m the protagonist’s panacea. We can’t stay together.
I could fill in as an ally, give help from the sidelines. But Wooju was different.
He was practically the hero’s rival.
Without him, the protagonist wouldn’t grow strong enough.
If the hero lost his greatest adversary, he’d stagnate—and when the apocalypse came, he’d die.
Only the protagonist could prevent Earth’s destruction.
In short, Kim Wooju had to grow as the original story intended.
'…Though maybe a little detour won’t hurt. Like me.'
His future was too bleak. I wanted to give him some help.
And the time for that was drawing near.
“Kuoo. Come to think of it… Kuoo, what did you mean by ‘Dungeon in three days,’ Kuoo?”
Wooju didn’t answer.
Puzzled, I looked up—and his eyes had gone cold, all trace of tears gone.
What smoldered there was unmistakable madness.
My throat tightened as I swallowed.
Why the sudden change?
It felt like I was staring at the villain Kim Wooju from the webtoon itself.
But after a few blinks, his gaze softened, returning to the meek, dazed look I knew.
“…Kuoo?”
“Aru.”
His voice melted with tenderness as he called me.
I eyed him warily and answered.
“…Why are you calling me. Kuoo?”
“Why didn’t you answer me?”
“Kuoo?”
“I asked first. If you’d stay by my side forever. Why didn’t you answer?”
Ah. That question…
I’d tried to dodge it, but Wooju wasn’t letting it go.
His stare drilled into me, demanding an answer.
Finally, I let out a long sigh.
“Kuoo, I can’t promise that. Kuoo. The future’s unknown. Kuoo. And my home is the Dungeon. Kuoo. I can’t stay long in the human world. Kuoo.”
“…I see.”
Wooju’s shoulders slumped.
In an instant, his eyes welled with tears again.