Mingu walked onward, his gaze fixed straight ahead with empty eyes, as if his soul had departed.His vision was unfocused and hazy, and the surrounding objects and scenery indifferently brushed past him. His shoulders were slumped, and his steps were heavy and slow. Consumed by immense sorrow, he remained unresponsive to any sound or movement around him. No emotion was discernible on his face, and he appeared like a being existing in another dimension entirely.Behind him, a small, scruffy puppy trotted along.Mingu was completely unaware of his surroundings. The puppy persistently tried to get his attention, following him until Mingu finally noticed him.Mingu suddenly turned around, hearing tiny footsteps behind him. There was a small puppy wagging its tail and following him. Upon closer inspection, it was a cute mixed-breed dog, its fur color and features seemingly a peculiar blend of various breeds rather than belonging to any specific one. The puppy, with its short legs, trotted along, stopping when Mingu stopped and hurrying to catch up when Mingu moved. It followed Mingu like a shadow.Mingu took out a snack from his bag and offered it to the puppy. Wary of the unfamiliar hand, the puppy backed away. To reassure it, Mingu pretended to put the snack in his mouth and chew. Then, the puppy cautiously approached and began to lick the snack in Mingu's hand. When Mingu pced the snack on the ground, it devoured it ravenously, as if it had been waiting for it. The puppy soon wagged its tail at Mingu, showing affection.Mingu and the puppy walked side by side along the road. Just then, a sharp sound that shattered the peaceful atmosphere grazed Mingu's ear."Whew! Whew!"The eerie sound of bullets cutting through the air began to be heard. The sound grew closer and closer. Instinctively sensing danger, Mingu sprinted in the opposite direction of the gunfire. The puppy, also sensing the unease, began to run at full speed, keeping pace with Mingu's steps.While running, Mingu saw bck smoke rising from the area where the gunshots had erupted. Watching the scene that resembled a battlefield, Mingu's heart pounded even faster.Soon, the pce they had fled to revealed ruined buildings with skeletal frames, stretching out before Mingu and the puppy. Countless bullet holes were visible on the exterior walls, and bck dust swirled in the roads deeply scarred by artillery fire."This was... a battlefield..."Mingu was overwhelmed by the desote scenery and held his breath.As he carefully navigated through the colpsed buildings with the puppy, a faint groan reached Mingu's ears. Slowly approaching the source of the sound, Mingu witnessed a desperate sight. A man in military uniform was leaning against a crumbled wall, clutching his stomach, forcing his closing eyes open, and letting out painful groans. As Mingu cautiously approached, the man looked up at Mingu with blurry eyes and boriously raised his gun, aiming it at Mingu.Mingu calmly raised both hands to show he was unarmed. Then, to ease the man's suspicion, he carefully offered the food he had. The man accepted the food but couldn't bring himself to eat it, perhaps due to the pain. Mingu then took out his water bottle and held it to the man's lips. The man drank greedily, as if he had been suffering from thirst. However, his complexion was still poor. Mingu carefully examined the man's stomach, which he was clutching. When he gently moved the man's hand, the dark red, clotted traces of a rge amount of blood were clearly visible. The man's face was pale, and his lips were blue. Mingu quickly put down his backpack and began to heal the man.After healing for a while, the man let out a deep sigh. A faint flush returned to his stiff face, and the frown that had creased his brow gradually softened. Mingu, thinking the man looked hungry, again offered him the food he had given earlier. The man then eagerly began to bring the food to his mouth, as if he had been waiting for it. Like a puppy that had been starved for a long time, the man chewed and swallowed the food voraciously.Mingu suddenly looked around. The puppy that had been by his side was nowhere to be seen. He couldn't hide his bewilderment at where it had disappeared. He rummaged through his backpack to get more food for the man, but no matter how much he searched, the food was gone. The disappearance of the food and the puppy's whereabouts felt like magic.A moment ter, these two strange occurrences began to fit together like pieces of a puzzle in his mind. With a dawning realization and a bitter smile, Mingu muttered to himself."Ha... that little bastard..."Mingu stood there bnkly for a while, his gaze fixed in the direction where the puppy had trotted off with the snack bag and completely disappeared from sight. His empty eyes still seemed unfocused, wandering aimlessly. The warmth of the small, white creature that had been frolicking at his feet just moments ago now felt like a faint afterimage. A faint, bitter smile spread across his lips, but it seemed to hold a mixture of emptiness, regret, and perhaps a vague sense of remorse. Like a brief dream, the warm moment had vanished, and only the cold reality surrounded him once more.His gaze seemed to follow the traces of the vanished puppy, but in the end, it only reached empty space. He stood rooted to the spot, unable to shake off the lingering warmth and the bitter feeling in his heart.