Ch.3434. Puppy.

# 34. Puppy.

Is it because I can walk straight ahead without worrying about what might be hiding in this snow?

Or is it because I’ve unloaded many of the burdens that were weighing me down in a safe place?

The distance to the pharmacy was quite far, but it didn’t take as long as I thought, nor was it difficult.

“Excuse me…?”

The pharmacy, like other buildings, was brightly lit.

Plus, maybe because there was electricity left, the glass doors and windows remained intact without breaking.

The clean exterior, doors that opened naturally as I approached, bright lighting, and so on.

It looked so normal that I wouldn’t have been surprised to find people inside, which made me call out without thinking.

“Hmm… it’s quiet.”

But the “welcome” greeting I was expecting didn’t come at all.

I had hoped there would be at least one being who would speak to me, whether a real person or a robot that dispensed medicine in place of humans.

Feeling disappointed, I place my bag on an empty chair.

Maybe it was just my mood, but the bag sitting alone looked lonely.

“Saline solution and ointment. Bandages and adhesive bandages… I guess these are the things I can safely use.”

For some reason, the pharmacy had more items left than I expected.

Until now, people in the cities I’d passed through had swept everything visible into their bags to survive a little longer in the face of the approaching end, even killing each other.

But here, strangely, there was no trace of such apocalyptic behavior.

“Hmm, I’d like to stock up on cold medicine and other medications too… but I’m not sure about the expiration dates, so that’s concerning.”

For painkillers, I could make an exception—if I’m in enough pain to need them, I wouldn’t be in a position to worry about side effects. But I’m still hesitant about the smaller medications.

Technology may have advanced to reduce side effects and extend shelf life, but expiration dates exist for a reason.

“Still, I should take some antibiotics. I’m healthy now, but you never know when or how you might get injured.”

Fortunately, I haven’t been seriously injured so far, but what if I step on a rusty nail or get cut by something sharp? The wound itself is a problem, but the infection that follows is even worse.

A mild fever or inflammation might be manageable, but if I get infected with something terrifying like tetanus, it’s really the end.

The bacteria paralyzes your muscles and your body stiffens, but your nerves remain alive, so you just wait for death in excruciating pain.

I think I came across this while researching different ways to die, not knowing when my own time would come. It was quite shocking.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if pharmacy medications alone can completely cure serious illnesses, but they’re better than nothing, right?”

I gather an armful of items found around the pharmacy and put them one by one into my bag.

Maybe it’s because the building is so clean, but somehow, I feel like I’m doing something wrong.

When buildings had shattered glass, no lights, and were filthy, I felt nothing about picking up items from the floor and putting them in my bag.

“By the way, why would a pharmacy have bolts, nuts, and lubricants?”

A pharmacy is generally a place stocked with items for sick people, like bandages and medicine.

But this pharmacy has various tools alongside medical supplies.

When I found WD-40 with its hundreds of years of history while rummaging through the shelves, I couldn’t help but tilt my head in confusion.

“Maybe the robot that sold medicine here used it? Or perhaps robots, like humans, came to the pharmacy when their bodies started creaking to get their… medicine?”

Whatever the case, it’s very strange and funny, making me giggle.

“Anyway, lubricant could be useful in various situations, and now that I don’t have to worry much about weight, should I take a few?”

I put a few more useful items from the shelves into my bag, like lubricant and electrical tape.

Finally, I quickly look around the entire building one more time, preparing to leave.

“Today, let’s go to that building with the soft bed I saw from the rooftop earlier. It’ll take about 10 minutes to walk there?”

I unfold the map I drew earlier to check the approximate route to my target house.

“If the plumbing works as well as the electricity… I might be able to take a comfortable bath in warm water.”

Staying in a brightly lit house, washing with warm water, sleeping in a soft bed.

That’s the ultimate luxury.

Smiling at the pleasant thought, I take another step outside the building.

—Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump.

But just as I was about to exit the building, I heard a strange sound nearby.

Something very small running toward me through the snow… a very faint sound.

If the world weren’t this quiet, I wouldn’t have even noticed something approaching.

It doesn’t seem human in many ways, but what could it be?

“—Could it be a security robot?”

That’s a possibility.

Electricity flowing means machines can operate just like the lights.

Plus, what I just did was undeniably… theft.

I entered a store that clearly has an owner and put well-organized items into my bag without paying.

If there was a way to monitor my actions, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for a security robot to come running to punish me.

“Oh, wait, what should I do?”

Robots are fine.

I’ve been longing for any being, human or robot, that I could interact and communicate with.

But the problem was that what was running toward me might be a security robot.

Like the large, intimidating security robots I saw at the train station.

These types usually resolved matters without question, following strict protocols.

“If I get caught by a robot and thrown in jail, that would be really bad…!”

The real problem isn’t getting caught—it’s that I could literally starve to death.

In a world like this, would a prison still provide regular meals to criminals?

Imagining myself starving to death, trapped behind iron bars with no one around, sent chills down my spine.

“Or it might just kill me on sight with a gun or club.”

Whatever the method, this was a serious crisis.

Should I run away now? Could I escape by running? Or should I hide inside?

While I was deliberating, the sound kept getting closer.

“Ugh… I need to buy some time to escape.”

I grip the pistol tightly. It would be impossible to defeat a sturdy metal security robot, but I might be able to create a brief opening to escape.

I put my finger on the trigger and aimed at the entrance. I’ve never fired a gun before, but… standing directly like this, I should be able to hit the first shot.

The thumping sound grew closer, and I held my breath.

However, until the very last moment, I couldn’t see the form of any security robot.

“Woof!”

And instead, what emerged suddenly from the piled snow was none other than a puppy.

—To be precise, a robot shaped like a puppy.

“Huh?”

Expecting a burly security robot like the one I saw at the train station to come and arrest me, I blinked at the tiny robot.

It’s harmless. And… cute.

Feeling foolish and pathetic for having seriously gripped my gun, I sheepishly scratched the back of my head and put the pistol back.

“So there’s still a functioning puppy machine around. Where did you come from?”

A wagging tail and eyes that look cute despite knowing it’s a machine.

Captivated by its cuteness, I slowly approach. I don’t know if it has an owner, but petting it a few times should be fine.

Also… since we’ve met by chance, it would be nice if I could take it with me.

“Come… come here?”

The robot just stares at me as I get closer. It doesn’t seem to dislike me.

But that was my misunderstanding.

The moment I knelt on one knee and slowly extended my hand toward its head.

“Grrrrr!”

The puppy’s eyes, which had only looked cute until then, turned red, and it bit my hand hard with its sharp teeth!

“Owwww!”

Despite its small size, those teeth hurt so much that I had no choice but to back away.

* * *

“Grrrrrrrr…”

“Can’t you let me off just this once…?”

Whether this puppy itself is a security robot… or it activated hunting mode after seeing a thief.

Or maybe, like real dogs, it’s just wary of strange and suspicious people.

Either way, my standoff with the robot puppy lasted longer than expected.

Whenever I try to go out the door, this machine, despite its small size, nimbly jumps to trip me or bites my calf with those sharp teeth and won’t let go.

Even if I managed to escape outside, I don’t think I could outrun this robot in the snow.

In the end, I was trapped in the pharmacy. Me cornered, and the puppy threatening me.

It looks very experienced at preventing escape.

It may look cute, but it acts like a hunting dog.

So I guess that makes me… a stupid sheep who got caught by a hunting dog.

“Ugh… when will it leave?”

If there’s any consolation… the robot can’t jump up to the high shelves.

So I climbed up to a corner shelf and am waiting for the robot to leave, but…

The little thing has no intention of leaving.

“Don’t be more persistent than humans, you’re just a robot…!”

“Woof!”

“Eek! Okay! Sorry! Sorry!”

Being cornered by such a tiny machine is humiliating as an adult… no, as a human, but I have no choice.

I can’t overpower it, and I am the one who did wrong.

Of course, like before, if I took out my gun, aimed properly, and shot, I could probably destroy a puppy robot unlike a security robot.

But one way or another, this was the first being I’d seen moving freely of its own will in this world.

I couldn’t kill such a being with my own hands.

Also… it is cute.