"Woof.

Woof woof.

Woof woof woof woof."

The "dog" in the room barked.

It sounded so cheerful.

But at this moment, Moen’s heart felt ice-cold.

Why... why did this dog barely have any fur?

Why were its hind legs so long, with its knees bent backward, dragging on the ground?

Why didn’t this dog have sharp, pointed ears or razor-sharp canine teeth?

Why...

Why did this dog... look so much like a person?

No.

No, wait.

What the heck—this wasn’t a dog!

This... was a person!

A stark-naked man lying on the floor, wearing nothing but a collar with a leash attached!

The room was dimly lit, and due to the angle, Moen couldn’t make out the man’s face.

But the man was imitating a dog’s bark—and it was clear that he was enjoying himself.

Watching this scene, Moen’s heart sank to rock bottom, frozen solid.

Oh dear god... Could it be? Was this... this man acting like a dog the so-called "husband" Aluka had mentioned?

He wasn’t out there dealing with his business as she'd said—he had been here all along, being raised in this room like a pet dog by his wife?

No wonder she hadn’t allowed him to see the dog earlier.

Wait a second... if that’s the case...

Doesn’t that mean—Aluka’s also a yandere?!

Moen shivered violently.

Damn it, what kind of aura it is to attract yanderes? Isn’t having one enough? Now there’s another one?

"What do I do... what do I do... Should I save him?"

"But then, what if he’s doing this voluntarily? I mean, as freaky as this addiction is, do I really have the right to interfere if it’s consensual?"

"If he *likes* this sort of thing and I go barging in and ruin the moment, wouldn’t that just be... awkward?"

After all, that impersonation was so lifelike that even Moen, a self-proclaimed dog lover, had trouble distinguishing it from a real bark.

This wasn’t a skill just anyone could master—it must’ve taken serious practice and grueling effort!

"Darling, you’re not being very obedient, are you?"

Aluka’s voice emerged from the room. She was squatting in front of the man, gently stroking his jaw with her fingers, as though truly caressing her beloved pet.

"It seems our time has been too short. There are still so many things you haven’t adjusted to yet."

"I have to make you sure remember, most thoroughly... my love for you."

Suddenly, Aluka picked up a bag that Moen instantly recognized—it was the same one she had been carrying when they first met.

From the bag, she began pulling out items that seemed to be her newly-purchased... "toys."

The Mistress’s Happy Whip.

The Mistress’s Happy Ball.

The Mistress’s Happy Candle.

The Mistress’s Happy...

Watching the array of items—the kind you’d only ever see in certain hardcore adult books—Moen couldn’t stop his eyelids from twitching violently.

"Hissss—this is way too extreme."

Do people really play this hard without something going horribly wrong?

With a silent gasp, Moen quietly shut the door while Aluka did notice him.

He pretended he had seen nothing.

Sorry, bro. I can’t save you.

Your tastes are way too spicy for me. I’m out.

"Just thanks God, Ann wasn’t into stuff like this. She was relatively innocent—otherwise, I’d have been doomed," Moen muttered under his breath.

Tiptoeing, he prepared to head back to his own room as though nothing had happened.

"Grumble—"

But just then, his uncooperative stomach let out a loud growl.

Not from hunger this time, but from being overly full and bloated.

"Could you not? Do you always have to choose *the* worst timing to speak up? I think you’re doing this on purpose!" Moen mentally berated his own stomach as he quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, holding his breath.

"Who’s there?!"

Aluka’s sharp voice shouted from inside the room.

"Is someone out there?"

She stopped what she was doing, signaling to the man on the floor to remain silent, and gripped her wand tightly. She moved toward the door, step by cautious step.

One step.

Another step.

Yet another.

"Mr. Moen? Is that you?" Aluka called out carefully.

No response.

Her expression sank, and with a sudden motion, she grasped the doorknob and yanked it down.

With an audible creak of over-exerted metal, the door swung open to reveal...

Nothing.

The dim hallway was eerily silent, the only sound coming from the wind chime swaying gently in the breeze near the entrance.

"Did I mishear it?"

Aluka scanned left and right, frowning slightly. When she confirmed no one was outside, she turned to head back into the room.

Then, as though realizing something, she suddenly darted to the opposite side of the hallway.

To the guestroom door.

She didn’t hesitate. She flung the door open.

*Creak!*

As the door swung wide, cool lake air blew in through the open window, rustling the curtains like spectral figures.

But the bed? Empty.

"Oh, my, Mr. Moen is so inconsiderate—leaving without even informing *me* as his host?"

Aluka casually tucked her slightly disheveled hair behind her ear and stepped into the guestroom.

Her gaze swept across the room. Eventually, she slowly approached the only place left that someone could’ve hidden: the wardrobe.

Through the slight gap in the wardrobe doors, something faintly swayed.

"Could it be... you didn’t like my hospitality, Mr. Moen? Did you grow tired of me?"

With a decisive motion, Aluka flung the wardrobe doors wide open.

Inside the wardrobe...

Nothing but air.

"Leaving without saying goodbye... That makes me feel so sad."

With a casual smack, she crushed a cockroach that had been scuttling around inside the wardrobe.

Taking one last look around to confirm she hadn’t missed anything, her eyes narrowed subtly.

She glanced over at the bed—it had no more than a hand’s-width of clearance underneath. Kneeling, she peered into the minimal space beneath.

—Naturally, there was nothing there. At such a height, forget an adult, even a baby couldn’t fit.

"So, he really left..."

Aluka walked to the open window, her eyes gazing out at the eerily quiet village and the distant lake. When she saw no signs of movement, she reached out, closed the window, and pulled the curtains shut.

"Leaving in such a hurry... He did see my *puppy*, didn't he?"

Stepping back into the hallway, Aluka gently closed the guestroom door and let out a soft sigh.

"What a pity, really. I’d planned to share a little bit of... my love with him. After all, he could almost be considered as a friend. Sharing my love with friends—just like I do with the others in this village—is spontaneous, isn’t it?"

"Still, if he wanted to leave, there was nothing more I could do. I certainly wouldn’t force him."

"At least..."

Her gaze shifted toward a door at the far end of the corridor—a door Moen had incidentally overlooked.

"...he didn’t find what’s inside this room."

"Otherwise, I wouldn’t have had any choice but to keep him here forever~"

"Hehe."

...

I love you.

...

"*Shit. That scared the hell out of me.*"

Outside the guestroom, clinging to the lower edge of the external wall beneath the window, Moen had curled his body tight, pressing himself as close to the wall as possible.

This way, when Aluka had stood at the window looking out, she hadn’t thought to glance directly below her.

"The yanderes in this world are way too terrifying..."

One after another, they all seem to have maxed out their desires! If it weren’t for the simple fact that I’m not the *target* of Aluka’s affection, there’s no way I could’ve evaded her this time.

"Sorry, dude. You’re on your own. Your wife’s way too savage. I can’t do anything to help you."

Clasping his hands together as if in prayer for the man he didn’t even know the name of, Moen efficiently made his escape, fading into the night in no time.

What he didn’t know, however, was that not long after he left, a new guest would arrive at this village.