Lucille blinked at the sight before her. She was utterly dumbfounded upon seeing the two big Pekingese dogs standing by her bed.
With one glance, she knew they were fourth-tiered mutated animals.
Mutated animals were similar to humans whose abilities were awakened. They attained heightened senses, whether in intelligence or strength.
She had seen such animals before, but had never owned one herself.
Back in the Blackstone Fortress, Lucille knew a few esper teams that possessed mutated animals. They ranged from dogs, wolves, falcons and others, mostly predators.
Because of these mutated animals' high intelligence, they easily learned to distinguish friends and enemies.
Unlike humans, the undead's virus wouldn't zombify the mutated animals. They became combative, living weapons in fighting zombies.
But where did these dogs come from?
Were they one of the animals that lived in this space?
Lucille remembered hearing the sound of hens clucking, ducks quacking, cows mooing and others before. Certainly, Ashrik and his teammates reared those animals as food supplies.
Then, were these mutated dogs the guards?
One was snowy white, its fur soft and glossy. Its big, round eyes gazed up at Lucille with a silly yet innocent smile. The other was gray, looking grumpy yet with evident mischief in its eyes.
"You've got to be kidding me..." she muttered, clutching the blanket as her eyes darted from the white to the gray dog. "Hey, where did you two come from?"
The white dog tilted its head, giving Lucille a goofy grin. Its tongue flopped out as it stared adoringly at her.
Meanwhile, the gray one crouched low. Its sharp eyes glinted mischievously before it suddenly darted forward and licked her bare right foot.
"Ah! Hey!" Lucille squealed, jerking her leg back while laughing. "That tickles, big guy!"
As though pleased with itself, the gray dog gave Lucille a smug little snort. It wagged its fluffy tail furiously.
The white one, not wanting to be left out, pressed closer to the bed. It let out a happy little bark, almost like laughter.
Lucille couldn't help but laugh along. "Obedient fool and naughty rascal. Hey, are you trying to welcome me or something?"
"Arf!"
"Woof~"
Lucille beamed, happy to see the two dogs barking happily at her. She slowly reached out a hand, cautiously wanting to stroke the white dog.
Before her palm landed on its soft head, the gray one lunged forward, pushing its friend aside. Its meaning was clear. Despite looking grumpy, it wanted the honor of being petted first.
"Hey! Hahaha! Okay, okay, I'll pet you first."
The gray dog snorted again while the white one seemed deflated. Having no other choice, Lucille petted them both, her palms stroking their fluffy heads.
Then, the white Pekingese flopped down dramatically onto the floor, rolling onto its back with all four legs sticking up in the air. Its round eyes blinked at Lucille, tongue lolling out in another goofy grin.
The invitation to rub its belly was crystal clear.
"You..." Lucille laughed again, amused by the dog's antics, "Quite shameless, aren't you?"
"Arf!"
Lucille moved from the bed to the floor, reaching to stroke the white dog's fluffy belly. Because of its huge size, it occupied a considerable amount of space.
"Arf! Arf!"
The white dog barked again, tail thumping against the floor in pure bliss.
Meanwhile, the gray Pekingese was upset to be ignored. It pressed its flat face persistently against Lucille's left arm, nudging her hand with a surprising force, befitting its oversized body.
"Alright, alright! You too!"
Lucille waved the white flag. She switched her hand to scratch under the gray dog's chin. It narrowed its eyes, looking smug and satisfied, as if it had won some great victory.
But... she was stuck.
The moment she gave more attention to the gray one, the white let out a pitiful whine while pawing the air dramatically.
Sighing, Lucille chuckled helplessly. "I can't believe it. You two are giant babies, you know? Don't fight over my hands."
"Woof! Woof!"
While Lucille was playing with the clingy Pekingeses, Ashrik came from the kitchen. He heard them when he was busy making dinner. Knowing those two rascals were troubling her, he had to show up.
"Dobby, Ponyo, behave."
At the sound of his deep voice, the two dogs suddenly sat up straight. Their upright postures were nothing like how playful they were just now.
Lucille lifted her chin, looking at the door. She saw Ashrik standing there with an apron over his abdomen. She laughed in helplessness.
"Brother Ash, are you their drill instructor? They behave as soon as they hear you."
Her joke cast a faint smile on his lips. He stepped inside, both hands resting on his hips as he glanced at her before looking at the Pekingeses.
"They were playing outside before. I didn't notice them coming in." Ashrik sighed. He gestured at the white dog and then the gray one, introducing them. "This is Ponyo, the other is Dobby."
"Arf!"
"Woof!"
The dogs, named Ponyo and Dobby, barked in unison. Their tongues and tails began wagging excitedly again. But as if afraid of Ashrik, they held back from pouncing on the lady.
Lucille smiled. She waved her right hand. "Hello, Ponyo and Dobby. Nice to meet you. I'm Lucy."
Ashrik stifled his laughter upon hearing the lady introducing herself to the two silly dogs. As he let out a sigh, he crouched between them.
"I met them by chance four years ago. Since then, they're our teammates."
Blinking, Lucille was suddenly reminded of another piece of information regarding Ashrik's esper team. It only resurfaced after hearing his last sentence.
'I forgot... The news did mention they have two mutated dogs.'
Aside from leading espers with powerful abilities, the infamous man dubbed Frozen Hell Yama also had mutated animals, two dogs, within their ranks.
Even though the dogs were rarely seen during battles, both were fierce fighters.
Lucille inwardly laughed. She wondered how ferocious these two fools would look when facing the enemies.