Shiro watched Luis, feeling conflicted. His heart urged him to stay and live a peaceful life with this kind man, but his mind refused to agree. "I don't belong here," he thought.
And then, there was Yitchi's warning echoing in his head: "You must kill him."
Shiro's thoughts raced. "I don't want to kill this man… but if I don't, Yitchi will do it ruthlessly. I can't let him suffer like that."
A heavy sadness settled in his heart as he made his decision. "I will cast a curse on him so that he dies eventually. It's the better way… a painless end."
He lowered his head, his eyes filled with sorrow. "I'm sorry, Luis."
Shiro thought to himself, "From now on, I must begin cursing him… He already bears my mark on his wrist."
As these dark thoughts swirled in his mind, he slowly approached Luis and gently licked his hand, showing concern.
A strange warmth filled his chest, and to his surprise, tears welled up in his eyes. "Why… why am I crying? I shouldn't feel this way. But there's no other way."
Seeing Shiro, Luis smiled and gently petted him. The warmth of his companion brought him comfort.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his wrist—right where
He muttered to himself, "I think I need to see a doctor."
Shiro watched as Luis winced in pain, rubbing his wrist. A heavy feeling settled in his chest.
"I think my curse is working," Shiro thought, his heart aching.
He lowered his head, torn between the duty forced upon him and the bond he had unknowingly formed with Luis. "Is this the right thing to do?"
That night passed quickly. As the sun appeared, Shiro woke up and stared at Luis, who lay completely still. His chest tightened with worry.
Shiro continued to watch him, his unease growing with each passing second. "Did the curse… already work?"
Suddenly, Luis opened his eyes and took a deep breath as he woke up.
Shiro let out a long sigh of relief. "Not yet…" he thought. But deep inside, he wasn't sure if he felt relieved because the curse was slow—or because Luis was still alive.
While Luis was still lost in thought, trying to make sense of his vanished wound, a sudden bang! bang! bang! echoed through the house.
Someone was pounding on the door.
Luis frowned, unsettled. "Who could that be this early?"
The banging continued, growing more urgent.
"I'm coming!" he muttered as he walked toward the door. "Who could it be?"
As he swung the door open, he was met with a familiar face—Elsa.
As Luis saw Elsa, he blinked in surprise.
"Hey, Elsa? Why are you here all of a sudden?"
Elsa crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.
"All of a sudden? I told you I was coming to see the dog you bought. And you nodded, remember?"
Luis paused, trying to remember. "I think she asked that… yeah, at the restaurant," he muttered, "right after she told me about the investigation."
Looking back at Elsa, he said, "Yeah, I remember now. Come on in."
Elsa stepped inside, her eyes quickly scanning the room. When she spotted Shiro sitting quietly near the corner, her face lit up with recognition.
"Oho! He looks like a Golden Retriever with white fur—a breed dog," she said, walking over with interest.
Luis blinked. "Oho, I see… so it is a breed dog," he muttered, a little surprised.
Elsa gave him a look. "You seriously didn't know? Golden Retrievers with white fur are rare. Expensive, too. Where did you get him?"
Luis scratched the back of his head, trying to play it cool. "Uh… long story."
Shiro watched Elsa closely as she examined him.
He could sense no fear in her—just curiosity. Familiarity. Comfort.
Under his breath, he muttered, "So… she's the only one. His friend… or colleague."
His eyes briefly shifted to Luis, then back to Elsa.
Interesting, he thought. She might matter more than she knows.
Luis, oblivious to Shiro's quiet remark, tried to steer the conversation.
"So, uh… how's the investigation going? Any updates?"
Elsa straightened up, brushing some hair from her face. "It's complicated. That's part of why I came by early."
Luis searched through a nearby drawer and pulled out a fresh shirt.
"I'll be right back," he said, already tugging off his old one.
Before Elsa could look away, he casually pulled the clean one over his head.
"Luis!" she blurted, cheeks turning bright red as she quickly focused her attention on Shiro.
She gently ran her fingers through Shiro's fur, trying to hide her flustered expression.
"You don't get it, do you?" She whispered, more to herself than to anyone else.
Shiro tilted his head, watching her closely. Elsa continued softly, still petting him.
"Why can't you understand my feelings? I've loved you since we were in college. Back then… You were happy, full of life. But when your parents died…" Her voice trembled. "You changed. You looked so lost. So broken. I've been worried about you ever since."
Shiro blinked slowly, processing her words. So… she loves this idiot, he thought.
He lowered his gaze. Then maybe… I should give him something before he dies.
A quiet breath escaped him as he looked between them. I should bring them together.
Over the next six months, Luis's once-cold walls of loneliness crumbled. He made new friends at the restaurant, and Elsa began visiting more frequently under the pretence of checking on Shiro—but in truth, it was to grow closer to Luis.
Shiro, meanwhile, often sneaked off to Elsa's house so Luis could visit her as well. With each passing day, their friendship slowly evolved into something deeper. A quiet warmth bloomed in Luis's heart as well, mirrored in Elsa's eyes, but neither dared to confess their feelings.
During this time, Shiro's mission weighed heavily on him. He had been ordered to curse and ultimately kill Luis within six months without hurting him much, but my curse had no effect. In fact, it had the opposite effect: instead of growing weaker, Luis seemed to thrive. This baffled Shiro. The growing bond between them made him hesitate more with each passing day.
Then, one afternoon, a group of thugs picked a fight with Luis outside the restaurant. Though he fought back, he was ultimately beaten to the ground. Just when he thought he'd lose consciousness, a blur of white fur tore through the attackers. Shiro had dug in—without hesitation, without thought—launching himself at the men, defending Luis with feral intensity. Bloodied but standing, Shiro stood protectively over him.
Later, Shiro regretted his action; he thought to leave Luis to his misery, but his body couldn't stay away from seeing Luis being beaten up.