NAPE - 55

“Doyoon, are you okay?”

“Huh? Ah. Just a bit cold.”

Doyoon bit his lip and fastened his coat buttons all the way up. It wasn’t that cold, so what was going on? Besides, if he was cold, why was he breaking out in a cold sweat at his temples? Wait, come to think of it, these symptoms were….

“Is it your thirst cycle?”

At Bibi’s words, Doyoon subtly let go of her hand and busily cleared the bushes ahead.

“I took iron supplements and a blood pack, so I’m fine.”

“But you take them every day. Isn’t your thirst not being quenched?”

“...I can smoke one later.”

Bibi grabbed the hem of Doyoon’s clothes and stopped him.

“Don’t do that. Drink me, Doyoon.”

When she took the initiative, Doyoon looked down at Bibi with a stiff expression. His face showed no change, but his jaw muscles were tense. Lowering her gaze, she saw his tightly clenched fists, as if he were enduring something. Just as Bibi’s eyes widened, he abruptly turned his body.

“Let’s move forward for now.”

Doyoon quickened his pace again.

Before they knew it, night had completely fallen. The green trees had taken on a deep navy hue, and the dirt path looked like a black swamp. It was the time when the weak, who lived by the sun, went into their homes to avoid the darkness, and the predators filled their bellies. It was truly the vampire’s hour. The hazy vision caused by the fog became clearer as it grew darker.

They could have continued to move forward, but Doyoon chose to camp. Either way, they had to sleep, and he needed to warm his cold body. He took out a small tent and sleeping bag from his large bag and set up camp.

While Doyoon sat on a folding chair, starting a fire and preparing food, Bibi slowly climbed up a nearby tree. She surveyed the surroundings, confirmed that everything was normal, and remained vigilant. She planned to keep watch like this when they slept later as well.

Looking around, something whitish buried in the ground suddenly caught her eye. Curious, Bibi slowly climbed down the tree and vigorously dug at the ground with a branch until she unearthed it.

“……!”

What Bibi excavated from the soil was a skull. Could this skull belong to one of the missing people who hadn’t been found? Looking closely, she saw that the top of the skull was blown open. Judging by the shape of the hole and the cross-section, it seemed artificial, as if something sharp and pointed had struck it.

A wound directly connected to life. Bibi could guess the cause of death of this skull.

Why would someone do this? Bibi examined the skull from various angles before burying it back in the ground. Since her hands had gotten dirty, she didn’t forget to take disinfectant from Doyoon’s bag and wipe them. She didn’t bother telling Doyoon about it.

The dinner menu was grilled chicken skewers and bread. They finished their simple meal and drank chocolate mixed with warmed milk. Doyoon didn’t like sweet things, so he only drank water. He swallowed quite a few iron supplements, just like yesterday. Since the drinking water they had brought was reasonably plentiful, they briefly washed their faces and even brushed their teeth.

“Good night, Doyoon.”

Bibi said, watching Doyoon enter the tent. Doyoon raised his eyebrows.

“You’re coming in too. There’s no need to keep watch from the tree.”

Doyoon gestured, getting into his sleeping bag. Bibi hesitated. She had no intention of sleeping comfortably in an unfamiliar place.

“I’ll keep an eye on the surroundings.”

“No. You have to sleep with me. I’m cold.”

Their opinions clashed. Bibi continued to stand there with a worried expression.

“It’s okay. The most excellent and dangerous predators in this forest are you and me.”

“…….”

“The animals aren’t even coming near. Maybe it’s because they live in the forest, but they’re definitely very wary.”

Ah, so that’s why she hadn’t seen any wild animals since earlier. Bibi realized that she was also contributing to the forest’s eerie atmosphere.

Hesitating, she finally took off her shoes and entered the cramped tent. There was only one sleeping bag, and Doyoon was using it. She had no complaints. He had brought it, and he was more susceptible to the cold. Bibi crouched down on one side of the floor.

“Why are you lying down there?”

However, Doyoon seemed to have a different idea. A slight wrinkle formed between his eyebrows.

“Did you think I was such a shameless bastard that I’d use the sleeping bag alone? Come over here. It’s for two people.”

She was displeased that she couldn’t keep watch, but she didn’t dislike being close to him. Bibi pressed down on her pounding heart and slowly crawled into Doyoon’s sleeping bag. The sleeping bag that was supposed to be for two people was smaller than she thought. It was because Doyoon’s body was so large.

Doyoon turned his body to the side so that Bibi could lie down comfortably. It was too narrow to lie side by side, but lying on their sides made the space inside the taut sleeping bag reasonably spacious. When his handsome face turned towards her, Bibi’s mouth went dry for no reason. Inevitably, she also pretended to toss and turn and lay down with her back to him.

Surprisingly, as soon as the two of them entered the tent, an owl hooted outside. Small footsteps could also be heard around them, stepping on twigs and dirt. It seemed like animals were wandering around.

“You seem familiar with the forest. You.”

Doyoon, who had been silent, spoke. Today, he had been slightly impressed by Bibi’s agility as she climbed up and down trees like a squirrel, broke branches to avoid getting lost, and occasionally erased her footprints.

“I often trained in the forest.”

“Training?”

“Yeah. How to ambush when humans are in the forest, how to pounce and grab them. And my former master lived in the mountains.”

Silence flowed from Doyoon. Even without seeing his face, Bibi could guess his mood. He always made a disgusted expression whenever the topic of the trainer or master came up. That’s why Bibi tried to convey only the minimum amount of information when talking about her hunting dog days.

“I only remember useless things.”

Bibi suddenly felt gloomy.

“If I had known this would happen… I should have learned more useful information. I didn’t know anything… I didn’t notice anything strange, and I thought everyone else lived like that too. I thought it was natural for me to be a hunting dog.”

Deep regret washed over her. Bibi now felt more self-reproach for not having doubted anything about the trainer than for having betrayed him. Especially since Doyoon was sleeping in the forest because of her.

“I’ve told you repeatedly, it’s not your fault.”

“Doyoon. You said you wanted to use me before, right?”

A good idea came to mind, and Bibi raised her voice while still facing away from him.

“Use me.”

“What?”

“Use me all you want. I’ll gladly dedicate myself to you.”

Silence filled the tent for a moment. Bibi wanted to turn her head and check Doyoon’s face, but she held back.

“I have no intention of using you anymore.”

A subdued voice came from behind her.

“Bibi. Don’t say ‘use me’ anymore. You’re not an object. Not someone’s dog either.”

“Ah….”

Bibi instantly became dejected. She realized she didn’t want to go back to being a hunting dog and resolved to break free from the trainer’s brainwashing, but it wasn’t something that could be easily done overnight.

Having already learned fear, helplessness, and obedience, she thought according to the ingrained habits of her body, even when she didn’t want to. Despite her efforts, the 말투 and thoughts from her hunting dog days still controlled her.

Noticing her deflated mood, Doyoon reached out from behind and hugged her comfortingly.

“You can learn little by little. There’s plenty of time.”

“...Yeah.”

“If there’s ever a situation where I need your help, I’ll ask you. Help me then. Within the limits of not getting hurt.”

Bibi nodded, feeling a sense of stability from the warm body temperature she felt behind her.

“Ah, it’s warm. Your body is really hot.”

Doyoon pulled Bibi’s waist closer to his chest with his arm. Bibi became nestled in his embrace like a doll. She felt Doyoon’s firm chest against her back and the strong muscles of his arm around her waist. She could even feel his rapidly beating heart at her neck. Not wanting to be noticed, she cleared her throat.

Chuckling softly, Doyoon put his nose to Bibi’s neck and sniffed. When his breath touched her neck, it tickled, and her senses heightened. The unfamiliar sensation gave her goosebumps, and the fine hairs on her body stood on end.

“It feels warmer here.”

A hand that had slyly slipped inside her clothes caressed Bibi’s flat stomach. Bibi shivered at the cold temperature. A low chuckle came from behind her. The palm that had been rubbing her stomach slowly moved upwards and cupped her breast, bra and all.

“Hiss…!”

Surprised, she let out a breath, and Doyoon comforted her from behind. He lightly pressed his lips to Bibi’s neck, rubbing his erect tongue from top to bottom. The hand that had been gently kneading her breast now slipped inside her bra and teasingly circled her grape-like nipple.

Not wanting to moan in the forest where it felt like someone was watching, she tightly closed her mouth. But she couldn’t stop her breath from becoming ragged and a slight nasal sound from escaping.

When her soft nipple hardened to the point of pain, Doyoon slightly twisted it and forcefully sucked her neck with his lips. Bibi involuntarily tilted her head back and pressed her body against Doyoon’s back. Something hard touched her buttock.