episode_0008

“Oh, I don’t have any change. Mr. Narin, do you have any change?”

“Sorry, I didn’t get it. Could you say that again?”

“Ah, you don’t know. This is a generation gap… … . Okay, even if it’s vending machine coffee, it’s not like the higher-ups can get it.”

The manager, who looked younger than Narin, was saying strange things. If he was going to use his card to get coffee from the vending machine, why would he be looking for something like a short story?

When I see him, I keep thinking that he looks like a child. It’s not just because he’s short. The things he does are childish.

The manager poured a cup of cocoa for Narin and another cup of an unknown beverage, and took a sip of the steaming beverage as he spoke.

“Ms. Narin. Did you make your little sister’s ID card?”

“Yes, thank you. I know it was a bit sudden, but thank you for understanding.”

“No, it’s urgent, so there’s nothing I can do. It’s ridiculous for a Korean citizen to be walking around without an ID. But what I don’t understand is that the resident registration number is originally issued when you report your birth. That’s why I called you… … . Could it be that, that child in your arms?”

“Ah, yes. That’s right. Well, it seems like a research… … , no. … … It looks like a child abandoned in a place like this. It was abandoned next to a telephone pole and was shivering, so I brought it here because I thought it would freeze to death if I left it there.”

Republic of Korea. The moment those four letters entered my ears, I couldn’t hear any other stories.

I just thought it was a place where there were creatures that looked exactly like humans, or a parallel world with a similar setting.

Especially since they used the word guild instead of company, I really thought it was a different world.

In such a world, how can the names of countries be exactly the same? Oh, of course, it could be a coincidence. Or it could be one of the many branches that branched off from the multiverse or something.

I don’t know much about that, but the moment I heard the name of the country, something came to mind. My mother and father.

I hope that the two of you won’t be too sad at the moment of your death, I thought that way, and I died. Until now, I just hope that the two of you will live happily, and I was enjoying my new life thinking that way.

If we live in the same world, we might meet. That’s why my heart pounded.

If I buy you a cell phone, should I call you right away? I remember both of your cell phone numbers.

“Okay, I get it. I can understand that. Well, I know it might seem like a nosy thing to ask, but please understand. You brought your little brother with you because you were leaving him at home and the timing was ambiguous. It’s okay this time, but it won’t be good next time.”

“Of course. Thank you for taking care of me like this.”

While I was absentmindedly thinking about something else, the manager’s tone, which had seemed a bit harsh, had softened.

Fortunately, it seemed like Narin understood that we were taking her to work. But the manager hesitated while sipping his drink from a paper cup and then started talking again.

“But I heard that you live alone at home, Ms. Narin. It might be a bit awkward to leave your little brother home alone… … . I’ll set up a playroom in the guild, so do you want to bring him with you when you go to work from now on?”

“Oh, is that okay? I was worried about leaving you home alone.”

I thought Narin would be in trouble if we got caught by people. Fortunately, the manager seemed to understand our situation.

I guess it’s a world where creatures like me are common. Otherwise, I might have said something like, “It’s so strange,” or “I should report it to the police.”

Even so, seeing him act like that, it seemed like the manager was a more thoughtful person than I thought.

“Don’t worry too much about it, it’s just a guild-level welfare. I’ll pack some snacks and such… … Oh, by any chance, do you have two younger siblings? They seem to be slacking off more inside?”

I thought everything would be resolved like that, but as soon as he heard the word snack, Hamshik reacted and squirmed.

Doesn’t this guy really understand what people say? Oh, he doesn’t understand everything, but when he hears the word “snack,” he remembers that something delicious will come out.

Just as we think that when animals howl sharply, it means danger, and when they purr softly, it means happiness, I think hamsters are similar.

The problem was that the manager was wondering. But if he said it was okay when he saw me, wouldn’t Hamshik be okay too?

Narin hesitated for a moment and then answered as if trying to brush it off. I guess it wasn’t okay.

“Ah, that’s… … . There was a child who was abandoned with Namin. The child ate too much, so I brought it home with me because I was worried it would starve if left home alone.”

Hamshik seemed to understand what I was saying, and he kept trying to stick his head out of Narin’s clothes, so I pressed his head down.

Hamshik eventually peeked his head out, his nose pricked up. Then, he sniffed a sweet and savory scent and looked around, his nose pricked up, trying to find that direction.

I guess Narin’s cocoa and Gwajang’s drinks smell good.

“You have two younger siblings? If that’s the case… … . Now, wait a minute. Isn’t that a rat? Gyaaah! ”

“Keeek!”

“Eww, Hamshik-ah!”

And as soon as Hamshik’s eyes met, the manager screamed, and Hamshik was surprised and screamed too.

It would be nice if it ended there. Hamshik suddenly jumped out of Narin’s arms and flew into the sky.

Of course, hamsters don’t have wings. If they did, they would be bats or flying squirrels.

Hamshik fell to the ground. I was worried that he might get hurt, but he seemed to be fine as he crawled away somewhere.

No, it’s not important that it’s in good condition. If you lose Hamshik in an office that’s bigger than Narin’s room, you might never find it.

And just as the manager was surprised and screamed, other people might be surprised and hit Hamshik, thinking he was just a rat.

So I kicked away from Pot and Narin’s arms and jumped to the ground. Since Hamshik was fine, I should be fine too.

As I expected, the impact when I landed on the ground wasn’t that great. Not only did my height shrink to the size of a person’s palm, but my mass also decreased, so my weight was much lighter.

They say that ants don’t die even if they fall from the 63 Building. Just like that, it doesn’t even hurt if I fall out of Na-rin’s arms.

Whatever the principle, it’s not as important as the fact that Hamshik is running away somewhere. Since there’s no one here to mark it on the map, I ran as fast as I could so as not to lose Hamshik.

“Hamshik-ah, stand over there!”

But Hamshik wouldn’t stop even though I told him to. When did Hamshik, who always steals half of my food, ever listen to me?

“Manager, it’s not a rat, it’s a hamster… … .”

“A rat and a hamster, is the company a joke? I can’t help it, but do you think it’s okay to bring a pet here? No, I’ll scold you later. First, catch it! Before the hamster or Na-rin’s sibling gets hurt!”

Behind him, Na-rin was struggling and the manager was yelling at him. Ham-sik really needs to get in a fight. You’re making Na-rin uncomfortable.

No, scolding is scolding. Where are you going like that? If you’re going to hide, go somewhere dark. Why are you going so far away?

People who had been working with their heads buried in their desks separated by partitions began to peek out one or two at a time as the outside became noisy.

Then, he looked at the hamster running towards him and was surprised once, then looked at me and was surprised again and laughed.

It looks funny because there are so many little things running around. But this is really serious. If this continues, someone who hasn’t seen Hamshik might step on Hamshik.

“Hamshikaaaah! Stop right there!”

As Hamshik ran, a huge wall appeared in front of him. Someone had placed a file folder there.

But Hamshik didn’t give in to that. As if all the food he had eaten so far had turned into muscle instead of fat, Hamshik jumped up and jumped over the file.

“Aah!”

The person who blocked Hamshik’s path with a file also shouted in surprise, as if he hadn’t expected that.

But Hamshik runs. He runs without thinking because he wants to escape from the screams of the manager. That’s because he’s not stepping on the floor but on the arms of the person who’s writing the files.

Fortunately, he didn’t seem to be scared of the fact that Hamshik was running around with his arm, so he didn’t just shake his arm off.

If that had been the case, the Hamshik that fell from her arm would have been thrown far away. Even though Hamshik was fine even if he fell from Narin’s arms, if he had been thrown with a stronger force and hit something, he might have gotten hurt.

Of course, it’s unimaginable that Hamshik would get hurt. Anyway, that’s one thing, and it’s getting further from here.

“Mister, it’s okay because Hamshik doesn’t bite! Don’t be too scared!”

“Huh? Yeah, I got it.”

While Hamshik climbed up the man’s arm, I opened the lockers one by one and made my way up the stairs.

I pulled out the bottom one to make a stepping stone, pulled out a little less and climbed up on it. I opened the third space a little and stepped on it, and now I could quickly get to the top of the desk.

And then Hamshik climbed up the arm of the owner of this seat, jumped from his shoulder, and landed on the desk where I was.

I was planning to go there, but when he came, I was bewildered and immediately understood why Hamshik had done that.

Ham-shik ended up in a potato chip container with a round bald head with a mustache drawn on it.

“Eww, Hamshik! You shouldn’t eat other people’s snacks like that!”

Crunch crunch, the sound of crunchy cookies being slaughtered could be heard inside.