In the heart of the city, Sato Hiroki stepped through the glass doors of his office building, adjusting his suit jacket. Outside, the sky was a bruised purple, veins of lightning crackling through the clouds.
"Ugh, this summer humidity—it never stops being miserable," Hiroki muttered, eyeing the sudden downpour with a heavy sigh. "Might as well wait it out at the entrance for a bit."
He wandered over to the security desk, found it unattended, and dragged the guard's rolling chair over. To pass the time, he pulled out his phone and opened the manga he'd been bingeing—Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid. He'd barely swiped past the first page when a blinding bolt of lightning struck the pavement directly in front of him. Everything vanished into a roar of white noise.
"Hey—Hiro! Shift's over, stop daydreaming."
A man's voice barked from beside him—thick with a Kansai accent. Stranger still, Hiroki understood it perfectly. He blinked, rubbing a dull ache in his palm, and stared at the man walking in step with him.
"Wait—Ryuga?" he blurted out. The name felt natural on his tongue, spoken in an equally fluent Kansai lilt.
"Hiro, seriously, are you even awake? You didn't even recognize me," Ryuga said, giving him a skeptical side-eye.
"Sorry, just zoned out for a second." Hiroki waved it off, his heart hammering. I'm in the Dragon Maid world, he realized. And if Ryuga works here… this is the same company where Kobayashi is supposed to be.
Ryuga glanced at him. "If you've got nothing going on, drinks tonight?"
"Sure—should we invite Kobayashi?" Hiroki figured he should meet the legendary "Dragon Tamer" sooner rather than later.
Ryuga blinked, stopping in his tracks. "Who? Hiro, you're really out of it today—there's nobody by that name in our department."
"No Kobayashi?"
"Nobody. Come on, stop overthinking—it's getting late and we'll lose our seats at the izakaya." Ryuga grabbed his arm and hauled him along.
A short while later, they settled into a corner booth at a cramped, smoky local restaurant.
"The usual, boss—some yakitori and a round of drafts," Ryuga ordered without looking at the menu, then leaned back with a grin. "So, what's the deal with you lately?"
"Nothing big—just thinking about that game you mentioned, the one launching tomorrow." Hiroki steered the conversation toward safer ground. Sure enough, Ryuga lit up immediately. They talked specs and RPG mechanics for the next two hours, the beer flowing faster than was probably wise.
By the time the plates were cleared, Hiroki was feeling a heavy buzz. They swapped goodnights, Ryuga flagged down a cab, and Hiroki stood alone on the damp sidewalk feeling… lost.
"Wait. I have no idea where I actually live in this world."
He stood there for a moment, letting fragments of his "new" memory surface like bubbles in a glass. Eventually, his feet started moving on instinct. He was wandering with his head down, watching the reflections of neon lights in the puddles, when he walked straight into something massive and scaly.
He stumbled back, looking up. A colossal Western dragon loomed in the alleyway, its emerald scales shimmering. A massive, ornate broadsword was buried deep in its back.
Without thinking, he breathed: "Tohru?"
"Human—step back. And how do you know my name?" Tohru's voice was a low, vibrating growl, thick with a threat.
"I couldn't help but notice—you've got a giant sword in your back," Hiroki said, his alcohol-induced bravery overriding his survival instinct. "Want me to pull it out?"
"That is none of your concern."
Drunk and unafraid, Hiroki marveled at the sight. He'd seen the anime, but the sheer scale of her was breathtaking. Without another word, he began scrambling up her side, his fingers catching on the ridges of her scales.
"Stop—that sword belongs to a God-tier hero of my world," Tohru said firmly, her tone shifting from anger to a strange sort of concern. "An ordinary human cannot even budge it."
But Hiroki had already reached the hilt. He planted his feet, gripped the leather-wrapped handle, and gave one clean, desperate heave.
With a sound like grinding stone, the sword slid free. The sudden lack of resistance sent Hiroki flying backward off Tohru's spine. Before he could hit the pavement, a massive clawed hand shot out, catching him mid-air and lowering him gently to the ground.
"Human… thank you." Her voice was much quieter now, the golden glow of her eyes softening.
"Don't mention it. Though—how did you end up like this?" Hiroki asked, playing the part of the confused bystander.
"I was cornered by the hero of my world. Ambushed, stabbed—I fled here on instinct." There was a tremor of genuine pain in her voice.
"Then stay here for a while to recover. Why go back to a mountain and hide?"
"I was planning to find a mountain, actually. It's the only place I fit."
"On a mountain? In the rain? That sounds miserable," Hiroki said, looking her in the eye. "Come stay with me instead."
Tohru narrowed her eyes, her long tail twitching. "You wouldn't offer something like that for free. What do you want? My blood? My power?"
Hiroki paused, then spoke plainly, the honesty of the booze taking over: "I genuinely want to help. And my name is Sato Hiroki, not 'human.' But if you feel like you have to repay me—don't be my maid. Be my wife. Be my family. I'll take care of you."
"W—WIFE?!"
Tohru's entire face went crimson, the heat radiating off her scales. But somewhere beneath the shock, the loneliness in her eyes vanished. "…Fine. If that is the contract you wish for, I shall honor it. Though I should mention—I am a Chaos Dragon. I don't exactly need 'protection.'"
"You actually said yes!" Hiroki beamed, the world spinning slightly.
"I said yes." Tohru crouched low, allowing him to climb onto her back once more.
"Let's go home."
"Yeah—home!"
Guided by the hazy memories of his new life, Hiroki directed Tohru through the clouds toward a small apartment complex. The moment they stepped inside his tiny studio, the adrenaline and alcohol finally collided. Hiroki collapsed onto the bed and passed out cold, leaving a very confused, very red-faced dragon-girl standing in his kitchenette.