First, my thanks to Kyle Dos.

    Without the vast supply of medical supplies I’d scavenged from his bunker, I wouldn’t have dared to attempt treating this creature.

    It wasn’t anything elaborate.

    I applied powdered antiseptic to the exposed rib area, covered it with gauze, and called it done.

    Perhaps because it was no ordinary beast, Gold growled in pain only briefly during the treatment but didn’t display any hostility toward me.

    After treating his wounds, I provided food.

    I made it myself: meat from my freezer that had partially thawed during the Yun Colonel Incident and started to stink. I boiled it, mixed in supplements and edible antibiotics, and set it before him.

    Gold sniffed the food and wrinkled his nose.

    “Grrr!”

    “Hey, cut it out.”

    Apparently, even dogs can be picky eaters.

    Considering Gold had likely grown used to feasting on deer and wild boar, a half-rotten, freezer-burned meal probably didn’t suit his tastes.

    Still, as if understanding it was necessary for his recovery, he begrudgingly stuffed the food into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed it down.

    Watching him slowly eat the meal I’d prepared, I began to understand why people keep animals as pets.

    It was... hard to explain.

    As the bowl emptied, I felt like something inside me was being filled.

    I couldn’t help but empathize with the feelings of "cat moms" and kept a close eye on Gold’s recovery.

    As expected of a wild animal, Gold healed remarkably fast.

    In less than three days, he was able to walk—albeit slowly—on his own.

    I took him to a secluded area in the mountains above the main bunker.

    Clever as he was, Gold followed my directions while remaining constantly on alert, particularly wary of the presence of other people.

    “There’s no one here. It’s just me.”

    “Grrrrr.”

    “What, you’ve been betrayed a lot or something?”

    To my surprise, Gold nodded.

    “...”

    Just how much of my words does this dog understand?

    Feeling a chill run down my spine, I set about building a shelter for him.

    Using slate roofing materials scavenged from the village below, I patched together a roof. Inside, I spread out blankets and mats I’d taken from an abandoned house, along with industrial packing materials to insulate the space.

    “There. It’s your house.”

    As soon as the shelter was complete, Gold crawled right in, curled up, and looked at me with a purring sound that almost resembled contentment.

    From his gaze, I sensed a degree of trust.

    I felt a small sense of accomplishment—and the thrill of achieving something no one else had done.

    The idea of taming a mutation, something unheard of, rekindled a faint fire in my otherwise cold and indifferent veins.

    But as Gold’s wounds healed and his strength returned, my pride gradually turned into unease.

    I knew all too well how dangerous a mutated dog could be.

    In close combat, they were deadlier than most monsters.

    Sometimes, as Gold rested with his head lowered, looking up at me, I would feel the urge to aim my gun and pull the trigger.

    Visions of him suddenly lunging at me, ripping through my flesh and bones, flashed through my mind.

    Each time, I calmed myself by remembering how he followed me and mimicked human songs.

    Most of all, I thought about the woman Baek Seung-hyun had once destroyed.

    Her unwavering belief, even in the face of a cat several times her size, made me wonder if trust was the key to taming a mutation.

    Still, no matter how much I tried to suppress my instincts and give him faith, I remained a cautious man by nature.

    The thought that Gold might attack me one day grew stronger with each passing moment.

    Then one day, a new visitor entered my territory.

    It was a bus.

    The K-Walkie crackled as it picked up a public broadcast frequency.

    “Is there a survivor in this area? We are not raiders or military. We’re ordinary civilians with a specific purpose for being here.”

    That voice...

    It was familiar.

    “If anyone’s here, please respond. We’re not enemies. We only need some information. You can reply via radio if you prefer. We’ve also brought a small gift—fuel. Yes, fuel.”

    Suddenly, it clicked.

    It was Ji Chang-soo.

    A little older, a little thinner, but undoubtedly the same loyal man who once followed Je Pung-ho to the brink of death.

    But Ji Chang-soo wasn’t alone.

    Through my binoculars, I spotted a woman standing beside him—calm and poised, but with a look of discontent on her face.

    It was Ji Young-hee, the woman who once tried to dissuade her father from taking his own life.

    “...”

    What should I do?

    Revealing myself for a mere barrel of fuel didn’t seem appealing, but I did have a past connection with these people.

    They’d brought five armed men with them, but it didn’t appear they were here for me.@@@@

    After all, I wasn’t exactly someone worth going out of their way for. Judging by their trajectory, they seemed to be heading southeast.

    “Stay hidden.”

    I whispered to Gold.

    “I’m just going to handle something real quick.”

    Gold stared at me for a moment before retreating deep into the slate-roofed shelter.

    “There is a survivor here.”

    I picked up the K-Walkie and responded.

    At first, they didn’t recognize my voice.

    “It’s Park Gyu.”

    As expected, they weren’t here for me specifically.

    After a brief exchange of greetings, I invited them over.

    While Gold growled in the background, I had an idea.

    It was time to put something to the test.

    *

    “...You’ve been living here?”

    Even before turning my head, I knew why.

    Heavy breathing filled the air, and a massive shadow loomed between us.

    Standing near the main bunker, a giant dog the size of a lion glared at us.

    It was Gold.

    “Gold.”

    Click.

    I aimed my gun at him.

    “Stand down.”

    Gold bared his teeth at Ji Young-hee, who froze in place, her face drained of color.

    “Is he... yours?” she stammered.

    “Not exactly.”

    “Then?!”

    “It’s complicated.”

    I turned to Gold again and warned him.

    “She’s not an enemy. She’ll leave soon. She won’t hurt you.”

    At least toward me, Gold showed no hostility.

    His aggression was directed solely at Ji Young-hee.

    “Gold.”

    I spoke his name again, this time with more weight.

    Voices rose from the bus.

    “What’s going on? Young-hee!”

    Ji Chang-soo’s voice reached us.

    Gold glared at Ji Young-hee for a moment longer before abruptly turning and sprinting out of my territory.

    “Gold...”

    He was leaving.

    I watched as he crossed the hills where I’d built him a home, leaping down steep slopes and disappearing into the fields beyond.

    He was heading southwest—back to the plains he once ruled.

    “Gold.”

    Ji Young-hee raised her gun, aiming at his retreating figure.

    I grabbed her weapon and forced it down.

    She shot me an indignant look.

    Shaking my head, I kept my gaze fixed on the distant figure of Gold.

    “...Let him go. It’d be a waste of bullets.”

    “Did you seriously try to raise that thing? A hunter, of all people?”

    “Not raise. Just... care for him. He was badly injured. And don’t they say even beasts understand gratitude?”

    “I doubt he’s bringing you a thank-you gift anytime soon.”

    Ji Young-hee switched her weapon’s safety on and slung it over her shoulder.

    “I wasn’t expecting anything in return.”

    Far off in the fields, black shapes began to appear one by one.

    I didn’t need binoculars to recognize them.

    Mutated dogs.

    They were responding to Gold’s howls.

    Among them was one I hadn’t seen before.

    Through my binoculars, I confirmed it—a massive dog with short black fur and a face twisted like a demon. Its size rivaled that of a bull.

    So that’s the one.

    The beast that injured Gold, drove him from his pack, and claimed his throne.

    Its size and appearance set it apart from any other mutated dog I’d seen before.

    Ji Young-hee muttered beside me, “...I really don’t want to go now.”

    Why had Gold returned to the black dog?

    Was he planning to challenge it again?

    To reclaim his pack and territory?

    It seemed impossible.

    While Gold had recovered enough to move, he wasn’t in any condition to fight a beast of that size.

    Even at his peak, I doubted he could win against that monster.

    Gold stood before the black dog, surrounded by his former pack, now standing with the newcomers.

    They no longer considered him one of their own.

    The black dog bared its teeth at Gold.

    “Grrrr!”

    Its growl was so powerful that it reverberated across the plains, almost like a shockwave.

    But even in the face of such raw force, Gold calmly stepped forward, toward the creature that had taken everything from him.

    “...Gold.”

    I felt a pang of regret.

    If he came back to me, I’d take care of him.

    I’d even give him fresh meat.

    But instead of fighting, Gold did something unexpected.

    He lowered his tail, crouched slightly, and rolled onto his back, exposing his belly.

    Even I, with my limited knowledge of dogs, recognized the gesture—it was a sign of submission.

    Once the leader of the pack, Gold was acknowledging the stronger dog’s dominance, asking to be accepted back into the group.

    “...Hah.”

    A deep sigh escaped me.

    Disappointment in Gold mingled with the realization that my feverish curiosity had been extinguished.

    Perhaps taming a mutation had always been a fool’s errand.

    Some wolves became dogs. Others remained wolves until the end.

    Gold had chosen the path of the wolf.

    “Even dogs know how to change their stance when the situation calls for it,” Ji Young-hee quipped bitterly.

    “My father’s worse than that dog.”