24. Cold

24. Cold

“Sister….”

“Yes?”

Sister’s face turned towards me. It was the same gentle expression as always. Without hesitation, I opened my mouth.

“Where are Mom and Dad?”

“Uh, huh?”

I am the precious youngest daughter of Mom and Dad, whom I wouldn’t mind having keep an eye on me. If it were Dad, I’m not sure, but at least Mom would have come to see me as soon as she heard I was sick. Yet, even after I lay down in bed for a long time, there was no sign of anyone coming to the room.

“Ah, maybe they’re in their room?”

“Mmm.”

Sister’s voice trembled strangely, and her tail shot up towards the sky. I know what this means. This is what happens when Sister is flustered. Her expression seems to be trying to hide it, but Sister’s tail doesn’t lie.

“Sister….”

“Uh, yes. Seol-ah.”

I frowned and looked at Sister. Sister’s eyes avoided meeting mine.

Mom and Dad not coming even though I’m sick, and Sister getting flustered when asked about our parents’ whereabouts. Combining all this evidence, the answer was too simple.

Sister is trying to monopolize my tail!

“Hoo hoo….”

“Huh…?”

I can confidently say that my tail is the softest, most pleasant-to-touch, and best tail in both my past and present lives. Naturally, Sister likes my tail too.

But when there is such a wonderful item, demand naturally increases. However, Sister must have wanted to keep my fluffy tail all to herself.

That’s why Sister must have hidden my return home from Mom and Dad, intending to take care of me while I was sick and indulge in my tail.

What other wicked scheme could there be in the world? But no scheme can escape the insight of this brilliant wolf detective, Rang Seol-ah. Sister’s plot has been seen through by me!

I slightly pushed my chest out from under the covers and said proudly.

“If you wanted to touch my tail, you should have said so earlier! Kkaheung, here!”

After a small sneeze, I moved my large tail and offered it to Sister. Sister hesitated for a moment and then slowly began to stroke my tail.

Sister, really. Even though she touches my tail every day, she wants to touch it even more. I understand that this sensation is addictive, but I can feel that Sister also has a childlike side.

Sister stroked my tail meticulously. From the root towards the tip, following the direction of the fur, she adjusted the pressure of her touch so it wouldn’t be too rough. It was a truly exquisite stroke.

Sister, who was mesmerized, fiddling with my tail, withdrew her hand only after I coughed a couple more times. It seemed she just remembered that I had a cold.

I pulled my tail back under the covers and then wrapped it around myself, letting it cover me. As the thick blanket and my tail covered me completely, the chill that had been enveloping my body subsided a bit.

“The blanket smells like Sister.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

The blanket covered me up to the top of my head. Sniffing with my nose, I could smell Sister’s familiar scent. It was natural since it was Sister’s room.

“Kkang….”

The firewood crackled and burned in the stove. In the quiet room, filled with the breathing sounds of two people, I let out a cry towards Sister for no reason. Sister stroked my ears that stuck out from under the blanket.

“Sister….”

“Yes, Seol-ah.”

“Why is my cry a ‘kkang’?”

“Uh, huh?”

I said this with my head buried in the blanket. A question that had occupied a corner of my heart for a very, very long time, a question for which I could find no answer.

“Sister’s is a growl. Yura and Yuri’s is a growl. But no matter how hard I try to cry, only a ‘kkang’ sound comes out.”

Even when I try to imitate it with difficulty, only a “kyareung” sound comes out. Even then, usually, only the cry of “kkang” comes out. What could be the reason?

The foolish fox suddenly came to mind. The fox that cried “kkang” and licked me, its foolish face, small body, and fluffy tail vividly came to mind. The cry sounds somewhat similar.

“Ah, no, well, Seol-ah….”

“This is also because I’m special, right?”

“Huh?”

I had asked Sister a similar question before. Sister, why is my tail so different? Why is it so fluffy and big? The answer Sister gave me at that time became a major turning point in my wolf life.

‘I-Isn’t it because Seol-ah is such a special wolf?’

‘Huk!!’

I am special. I am a special wolf. Since then, I have felt immense pride in my tail. The owner of a magnificent tail that no one else possesses, that is me, Rang Seol-ah.

“Y-yes. Yes. It’s because you’re special. Sister likes it when Seol-ah cries ‘kkang’ because it’s cute.”

“Hehe….”

Although I prefer to be called cool rather than cute, it’s not the time to be picky about that right now. I laughed under the covers, my pride swelling.

I am a strong, powerful, cool, and special wolf….

“Kkaheung!”

Ugh, my body is hot. Even though I’m under a thick blanket, with my tail covered, and the stove burning at maximum heat, I feel cold. Seeing me suffering from my illness, Sister, who was sitting by the bed with a chair, gently took my hand.

It’s cold.

It must be me who’s hot.

“Sister….”

“Yes.”

“I’m hungry.”

I had played excitedly since morning, so despite my lack of appetite due to the cold, my stomach growled, signaling hunger.

“Just a moment… Let me see what’s edible…. I think there was some soup left from last time. Wait a moment, I’ll heat it up….”

Sister muttered to herself and went outside. I stopped Sister.

“Sister.”

“Yes, why?”

“I think if I eat Ice fruit, I won’t be hungry anymore.”

I didn’t say I was hungry just because I wanted Ice fruit. It’s true that I’m hungry right now, and it’s also true that I won’t be hungry if I eat Ice fruit.

However, I judged that eating Ice fruit, which can be eaten without much preparation, would be much more efficient and better than bothering Sister to cook.

“Kkang!”

Sister hit me on the head without a word and left the room. My forehead stung. Hitting someone who is sick. This is cruel tyranny.

Wooooo~

I yelled at the door Sister had closed. But that was short-lived, and soon silence fell upon the room, which was now empty except for me.

“Hing.”

It’s quiet. Only the sound of wood burning in the stove can be heard.

When the noisy commotion stops and no other sound can be heard, I finally realize that I am completely alone.

Of course, if I walk a few steps outside, Sister will be there, but for now, I feel isolated.

That’s… not a good feeling.

I hate being alone. I hate it now. On top of that, the cold weighs down my body, making me feel like I’m sinking into an abyss.

“Kkang.”

I want something sweet. I want to eat a lot.

I pulled the blanket down and exposed my body. Then, with my arms spread wide, I described the size of the Ice fruit I wanted to eat.

If I eat Ice fruit this big, I’ll be so happy.

I’ll be so happy that I’ll naturally cry out “kkang” every time I eat it. It will surely be a very pleasant….

“Ugh!”

At that moment, something fluffy fell from the sky and blocked my vision. Startled, I lifted the ball of fur covering my face, and there, to my surprise, was the big, foolish fox.

“Fox?!”

“Kkang!”

The fox, as always, was white and fluffy. The fox licked my cheeks with a silly grin. It was wet.

“Did you sneak in?”

“Kkang!”

“Huk… You’re an amazing fox!”

This fox seems to be a ninja. It managed to get into my room, bypassing all the surveillance of Mom and Dad, who must have been watching with wide eyes. Anyway, grateful that it broke the silence, I smiled broadly and hugged the fox.

“H-hey, don’t lick!”

“Kkang!”

I’m lying about being grateful. Seeing how it licks other people’s cheeks so indiscriminately, this fox is not an animal that deserves gratitude.

The fox soon pulled its tongue away from me and, raising its tail high, cried out “kkang.”

“Tail?”

“Kkang.”

“You want me to do that too?”

“Kkang!”

I took my tail, which was wrapped around me, out from under the blanket. Due to the significant loss of heat source, my body immediately started to shiver.

Whatever it is, finish it quickly, I’m cold….

“Huh? Stone?”

“Kkang!”

The fox pulled out the sparkling transparent stone from my tail and placed it on my body. Strangely, although the transparent sparkling stone had been in my embrace all along, it had lost its luster and become slightly cloudy.

At this rate, it should be called a transparent stone, not a sparkling transparent stone. Or rather, a translucent stone.

“Why is this?”

“Kkang!”

“Huh…?”

The fox cried out once more. Then, surprisingly, the stone began to sparkle brightly.

It’s different from the previous sparkle. While the previous sparkle was a reflection of light from the outside, this sparkle was the stone emitting a faint light.

“Huk!”

A moment later, the stone, which had stopped sparkling, became clear and transparent again, just like before. At the same time, the cold that had been weighing down my body vanished as if washed away!

My body completely recovered. I jumped up from the bed and wagged my fluffy butt. Yet, my body didn’t hurt at all.

“Did you do this?!”

“Kkang!”

“So cool….”

As I was about to hug the fox with overwhelming emotion, I heard Sister’s footsteps approaching from outside the room. She seemed to be bringing food.

“Fox, run…! Huh?”

When I turned around to warn the fox, it had disappeared, leaving only a single tail hair behind. It really seems to be a mysterious fox.

Soon, Sister opened the door and entered.

“Seol-ah, time to eat… Huh? Why are you up?”

“Sister, I’m all better!”

“What?”

Sister’s expression was one of shock.

I smiled brightly, wagging my healthy body.