Content warning: This arc contains crass humor, mocking of political figures, strong language, violence, implied sexual acts, implied drugs (love potions), Duman, and using cake for negative purposes. Things get weird. Viewer discretion is advised.

As duman flew round the castle, he surveyed as much of the exterior as he could.

He observed the court yard, how the cobblestone had a few rusty red hues, as if blood had spilled and never fully went away. He saw the garden had a few recent additions but nothing major. Nothing was out of place to him, everything was as it had always been.

He looked into every open window, taking in the layout. Finally he perched on a sill, the light in the room still shining.

Though spacious, the room felt more like a cage. Two dog dishes sat on the floor, one filled with water, the other with scraps of meat. Nearby lay a scattering of pet toys, as though meant for a creature incapable of higher thought.

Yet there was Gantlos, curled on the dog bed, his knees drawn to his chest, arms wrapped around them like a shield. He stared at the wall, his body stiff, listening to the familiar echo of silence.

I am not a dog. The thought flared, then flickered, as though afraid to burn too brightly. I am not—

With a swirl of smoke be appeared in the room.

"Well hello there Fido, aren't you a depressing sight," Duman joked

Gantlos made a muffled dog sound, his jaw clenched. He didn't look up. Duman watched as Gantlos's hand twitched, a faint acknowledgment of his presence, but there was no other response. Duman crouched down, bringing himself to Gantlos's level.

"Did he strip you of your voice, too?" he asked, his tone light, but his eyes sharp.

Gantlos let out a low growl in response, eyes narrowing, a flash of defiance buried in the depths.

I am still here, his eyes said.

Duman smirked. "There it is. Thought you'd been broken beyond repair." He glanced at the dog bowls by the bed, his smirk fading. "Though I guess he's trying his best to make that so."

Gantlos's gaze softened, a mix of shame and weariness in his eyes, but he didn't look away this time.

Duman leaned closer, his voice dropping low, "let's go for a walk big guy."

A walk. Gantlos's muscles ached from crawling, from bending to someone else's will. He longed to stretch, to stand. But the fear was stronger. His body remained frozen.

Duman opened the door casually, he turned to the man who crawled out of the dog bed and approached him on all fours. Gantlos crawled forward. His palms pressed against the cold floor, the familiar position making his skin crawl. Duman peered down, his face blank, but eyes thoughtful before he shook his head.

"No no, a real walk, between two men." Duman said, his tone even, yet gentle.

He took note of the fear that seemed to flash in Gantlos's eyes.

Gantlos froze. The command was clear in his mind—never stand unless ordered. His hands shook. His breathing quickened.

Gantlos let out a low whine, nervously looking around. The king had prohibited him to stand upright without a command, he'd made very clear that such an action was a punishable offense.

"Has his royal pain in my arse made you afraid to walk," Duman laughed, "god that guy's kinda soft in the head ain't he? He's talking about plans to conquer beyond the magic dimension, but look at his "coven". That one in his room is so stupid love sick that he can't think properly, and you're unable to stand up on your own two feet. It's laughable really," Duman leaned against the door frame, "Or maybe…you just don't want to stand, after all blind obedience certainly is easier, isn't it?"

Gantlos's nails scraped against the floor. The words stung, but they rang true.

Duman then crouched one more time, he became very serious, "Gantlos, was it? People can only own you if you allow it."

With that, Duman walked out of the room.

His footsteps echoed through the quiet marble hall for a moment.

Duman's words lingered, a spark igniting something long buried. Gantlos's muscles tightened. His knees pressed into the floor. His hands flattened against the cold stone.

Get. Up.

His breath hitched as he shifted his weight, knees trembling as he forced himself upright. The motion felt foreign, his body protesting after so long.

But he stood.

A smile crossed his lips when he heard unsteady footsteps trying to catch up.

"There he is, and what a sight to see up right, if I do say so myself~."

Gantlos blushed at the words. Prompting Duman to tease further.

"I get you're playing your role , but it's good to know it's just that—a role. You haven't lost yourself yet, and that's beautiful. Now let's waltz around and see what we can find, shall we?"

——

The pair meandered through the halls, out to the courtyard and to the gates. Gantlos froze, his stance sturdy but his face clearly uncomfortable at the idea of venturing any further. He was already playing with fire by leaving his room abd behaving like a human , leaving the castle premises may as well have been a death sentence.

"Oh come on big guy, don't you wanna explore a little?"

Gantlos shot a nervous glance to the castle, if Ogron found out he'd left, he'd be infuriated…

Duman casually shrugged, "Okay then rover, crawl back to papa. Maybe he'll even give you a treat if you tell on me,"

Gantlos scrunched his face, he was not a dog.

The realization seemed to strike — he wasn't a dog. He didn't agree to be one. Duman pushed open the large gate doors, casually walking into the night. Gantlos pushed himself to follow.

As they walked duman took a sharp turn into the forest.

Gantlos let out a surprised yip, he quickly stumbled along, picking up the pace as duman had.

"You're pretty big, but let's see if you're fast," Duman quickly took off on foot, "try and catch me big guy!"

Heavy footsteps thudded behind him. Gantlos wasn't built for speed, but he kept up.

A playful chase made its way through the woods, laughter and dog like noises of glee flooding the air. Duman turned to see if Gantlos was still behind him. He turned his head left and right, but he didn't see Gantlos anywhere.

"Gantlo—AH!" Duman was quickly swept off his feet. Twirled about as if he weighed nothing. "Wooo!"

Gantlos spun around until he got too dizzy, stumbling back into the forest floor with Duman in hand, producing a sound similar to laughter.

Duman smirked, "What a dashing smile."

Gantlos felt heat rising to cheeks. He couldn't help the goofy way his face turned, clearly happy with the comment.

"A big tough guy like you is actually a goofy sweetheart," Duman who'd still been on top of him leaned into his ear, "That's tempting ~."

Gantlos tensed, he'd never been this close to someone, let alone someone so bold. Duman chuckled, rolling over to lay next to him.

"I know you can't talk, but I'd understand if you tried….are you having fun?"

Gantlos responded with a happy yap. The night was spent with Duman giving playful banter, being mindful of the current language barrier so that Gantlos felt human.

———-

As sunlight rose so did the pair. Realizing they'd been out all night, Gantlos whimpered. The king would not like this.

Duman rose, seemingly unaware of the tension.

"Don't look so scared, leave the guady royal to me."