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Dog King Vol.1
by LoyalDog
Language: English
Categories: Fiction » Fantasy » Contemporary
Content Rating: All Ages
Dino James began his apprenticeship with fifty-year-old vet Kelo Murphy, paying a $450 tuition and agreeing to three years of unpaid labor and chores. Kelo lived with his twenty-five-year-old wife, Maya, their four-year-old daughter, Lele, and a dog, Black Panther. Dino felt at ease in the home, especially due to Maya's kindness. Maya, who preferred to be called "Sister," often gave him tea and encouragement.
Kelo, a highly respected vet and folk healer in Maple Leaf Town, traveled extensively for house calls. While assisting Kelo, Dino learned the trade quickly. However, Dino soon discovered Kelo was secretly having numerous affairs in the surrounding villages, sometimes sleeping with eight women in seven days. Kelo rationalized his actions, claiming he was providing a "good deed" for lonely women whose husbands were away working.
Disturbed that Kelo neglected Maya, Dino confronted him. Kelo dismissed him, stating, "Homegrown flowers are never as fragrant as wild ones." During a house call in Zoohi Hills, Kelo's affair was exposed, and an angry husband chased him with a pole. Kelo fled, and Dino, worried for Maya's sake, offered to act as a decoy. The man's dog bit Dino's foot, causing him to Kelo's special Dog King Wine gourd, spilling the contents. This wine, containing a 108-year-old dog testicle, was Kelo's cure for dog bites and also enhanced male virility, which Kelo used in his affairs. Desperate to treat his wound, Dino sucked the remaining liquid and accidentally swallowed the Dog King Egg.
Later, Kelo noticed the missing testicle, and Dino realized he had consumed the "Dog King Egg." Kelo reacted strangely, laughing and hinting at Dino's "fate." That night, sheltering from the rain, Dino dreamed of becoming a Dog King. Waking up, he discovered a mysterious third testicle had appeared in his scrotum, and he could now understand dog language. Kelo, holding a castration knife, seemed dejected, further confusing Dino.
While crossing a flooded Red River bridge, Kelo fell and clung desperately to Dino's foot. As Dino struggled, Kelo made a life-or-death proposition: he would let go if Dino promised to marry Maya and ensure their first son was named Murphy. Dino agreed under duress, and Kelo, after a strange final laugh, was swept away and later found dead.
After the funeral, Dino, still dealing with his three testicles and his new ability to understand dogs (who now called him "Dog King"), learned from Black Panther that Maya's mother, Old Lady Martha, intended to kick him out and keep his $450 apprenticeship fee. Desperate to stay, Dino took advice from "Old Four-Eyes," a wise local dog.
Dino faked a seizure and then pretended to be Kelo's spirit possessing his body. In Kelo's voice, he told Maya and Old Lady Martha he had buried a jar of silver ingots under the osmanthus tree for Lele's dowry. When the silver was discovered, Old Lady Martha was convinced and allowed Dino to stay for a year and three months to bring Maya good fortune.
Dino resumed Kelo's work, diligently earning money. When a local butcher, Tony, harassed Maya, Dino confronted and physically overwhelmed the much larger man with a burst of superhuman strength, which seemed to be linked to the spontaneous disappearance of his third testicle (only for it to reappear later). Worried about Tony's police cousin, Officer Tim, Dino once again sought advice from Old Four-Eyes. The dog suggested Dino cure Deputy Police Chief Robert Park's mother's "crooked mouth disease" using a cicada-boiled water remedy known only to the dogs of the Wellford medicine family. Dino successfully cured the mother, winning Deputy Park's gratitude. When Officer Tim tried to arrest Dino, Deputy Park intervened, ensuring Dino was released quickly, thus beginning Dino's use of "power" to settle human conflicts.