Ch.2727. What’s a Munchkin?

Looking at me with serious eyes, it seemed like this wasn’t just a casual question. If that was the case, I needed to give a serious answer.

So I thought about it briefly, and quickly came to a conclusion.

“To be honest, I’d like to, but…”

“But what?”

“We probably can’t keep one at my house.”

The reason was simple. Han Siwoo’s mother had an allergy to animal fur.

That’s why she extremely disliked furry creatures like cats, or rather, it wasn’t about disliking them—she physically couldn’t be around them.

After my explanation, Hwa Nabi nodded in understanding.

“Then keeping one at your house is absolutely impossible. Forcing a pet on someone with fur allergies is practically telling them to die.”

“That’s right.”

Unless it was a small pet that could be kept in a glass case, we couldn’t just keep a cat confined to a room.

It would inevitably encounter someone in the house. I didn’t know what kind of disaster would happen then.

“Sigh.”

This brought us back to square one. It seemed like a problem without a clear answer, and I sighed without realizing it.

But at that moment, I heard something.

“Then, could we keep this one at my place?”

Hwa Nabi said this while stroking the kitten’s neck, and I was surprised by her unexpected suggestion. Living alone and wanting to keep a pet—was that really okay?

“Nabi, you live by yourself. Would that be alright?”

“Isn’t it better because I live alone? This works out perfectly. I’ve been feeling lonely living by myself, so having this little one around would help.”

-Meow.

As if responding to Hwa Nabi’s words, the kitten let out a small cry and even licked her index finger. It seemed to already recognize its owner.

“Little kitty, want to come home with me?”

“You think it’s going to answer when you ask like that?”

-Meooow.

“…It did?”

Have you ever seen such a clever cat?

Hwa Nabi smiled at my bewildered expression. She paused from petting the cat and tapped the cardboard box.

“Then it’s decided. Siwoo, could you hold this for a moment?”

“I don’t mind, but what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to look for a veterinary clinic nearby.”

“A vet? Why? It looks fine to me.”

“Ah, about that…”

To summarize Hwa Nabi’s explanation:

1. Given that someone abandoned a newborn kitten, it likely hadn’t received any health checks.

2. Therefore, it could be infected with contagious diseases, parasites, or ticks, or have other health issues.

3. So they needed to take it to a vet for a thorough examination to understand its condition.

“…Do you understand now?”

It made sense. If there was any illness, it would be better to detect and treat it early.

I picked up the box with the cat as Hwa Nabi instructed.

Beside me, Hwa Nabi started searching on her phone. I caught a glimpse of her search keywords: “veterinary clinics open late.”

“It’s getting quite late. Would any vet clinics still be open at this hour?”

“Found one.”

“Huh? Already?”

“Yes. And it’s close by. We just need to walk a bit. About… ten minutes?”

“Okay. Let’s go.”

***

At the nearby veterinary clinic.

I’ve never owned a pet, nor have I ever had one.

So knowing nothing, the entire process from reception to examination was entirely Hwa Nabi’s responsibility.

“Hmm.”

So, unintentionally, I ended up sitting in the lobby for almost thirty minutes. By now, I was starting to feel a bit guilty.

I wasn’t here as some kind of supervisor, so should I just be sitting back like this? Maybe I should have gone into the examination room with them.

Just as I was thinking this and about to stand up…

Creeak, the door to the clinic’s examination room opened with a hinge sound.

“Siwoo, we’re done.”

Hwa Nabi, coming out of the examination room, was holding what looked like a plastic case. I jumped up and approached her.

“What’s this?”

It looked like some kind of container for a lunchbox. Being naturally curious, I asked without hesitation.

Hwa Nabi gently shook the case she was holding.

“This? It’s a carrier for the cat.”

“Oh, is it?”

When I turned the carrier sideways, I could see the kitten through a small window.

-Meow.

With eyes full of curiosity, it raised its front paw and tapped the glass, seemingly fascinated by the carrier it was in.

“What did the doctor say? Is it okay?”

“Yes. There’s nothing seriously wrong. We just got its ears cleaned.”

Since I was outside during the examination, I didn’t know the detailed condition, but it was a relief that the doctor said there was nothing wrong. I finally let out a sigh of relief.

“By the way, Siwoo. Do you know something?”

“Huh? What?”

“About this cat’s breed. Do you have any idea what it might be?”

Hwa Nabi asked me as if challenging me to guess, but there was no way I could know.

As someone completely ignorant about cat breeds, the only thing I could distinguish was the color of a cat’s fur.

Black cats, yellow cats, white cats… just simple things like that.

“I have no idea…”

“Hehe, you’ll be surprised when you hear it.”

“What is it? Tell me.”

“Don’t be shocked, but this cat’s identity is… drum roll please.”

She’s even making sound effects with her mouth. What kind of cat breed is it that she’s building up so much suspense?

Just as I was starting to wonder, Hwa Nabi took a short breath and said with an excited voice:

“The doctor said it’s a Munchkin Napoleon. Isn’t that amazing?”

“…?”

Hwa Nabi was unusually excited, but I was momentarily dumbfounded. Munchkin Napoleon? I’d never heard of such a breed in my life.

Munchkin probably doesn’t refer to edible chicken, and Napoleon is the name of a French emperor, right? Seeing my lukewarm reaction, Hwa Nabi tilted her head.

“You’re not very surprised. Did you already know?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Then why is your reaction… Ah, I see. I guess it’s not that surprising for you. You’ve probably seen much more expensive cats.”

I couldn’t react because I didn’t know, but Hwa Nabi was already letting her imagination run wild. It seemed pointless to correct her, so I just scratched the back of my neck.

“Is it an expensive breed?”

“No, not that expensive.”

If it were an expensive breed, no one would have thought of abandoning it on the street. They would have sold it or given it away for adoption. I was trying to convince myself of this when…

“The doctor said a cat of this quality would be worth about 2 million won.”

“Right, 2 million… Wait, how much did you say?”

I doubted my hearing for a moment. What? 2 million won? Did I mishear 200,000 won? I unconsciously asked again in a loud voice.

“2 million won.”

Hwa Nabi answered as if this price was nothing special, but I was genuinely surprised.

What kind of cat costs as much as a month’s salary for an entry-level employee?

I was shocked both by the price that exceeded my imagination and by the audacity of the owner who abandoned such an expensive cat on the street.

“What kind of person would abandon this cat on the street? Is he some chaebol’s son?”

A cat worth not 200,000 but 2 million won. I would never have been able to abandon it out of fear.

That’s not to say cheaper breeds can be abandoned, but… it’s impressive in many ways.

“I don’t know about that either. The doctor was also surprised when I told him we found it on the street.”

“Of course he would be…”

It’s inappropriate to compare a life to an object, but if I had to make an analogy, it’s like finding a designer bag worth 2 million won on the street. It’s naturally surprising, and I would have been shocked too if I were the doctor.

It’s like finding a lottery ticket on the street that turns out to be a third-place winner. As if in a trance, I muttered:

“That’s lucky…”

“Huh? What’s lucky?”

“Nothing, nothing.”

As I was staring blankly at the carrier, lost in this unexpected situation, a call that seemed to be for Hwa Nabi came from the hospital counter.

—Munchkin’s guardian?

“Ah, Siwoo, I’ll go pay quickly. Could you watch over this little one?”

“Oh, sure.”

The carrier I was temporarily entrusted with was surprisingly light. It almost made me wonder if there was actually anything inside. I turned the carrier to the left and made eye contact with the kitten inside.

“…You’re worth 2 million won?”

This little guy was much more expensive than I thought. Curious, I extended my index finger and tapped the glass window where the kitten was rubbing its cheek.

In response, the kitten raised its front paw and tapped the glass back, mimicking me.

“You’re quite fearless, aren’t you?”

-Meow.

“…You’re already following your owner?”

Your personality is completely different from the ordinary cats I know. Even when I bring my face close, you don’t cower but proudly stretch your body.

Finding it amusing, I smiled slightly.

Just then, someone tapped my shoulder.

Wondering who it was, I turned around to see Hwa Nabi.

She opened her mouth with a slightly troubled expression.

“Um, Siwoo. I’m really sorry, but…”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Well… I’m not sure if I should ask this.”

She was hesitating and not getting to the point, which clearly indicated she was about to say something uncomfortable. So I lowered my voice to respond.

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

“…Could you lend me some money?”

The unexpected loan request momentarily left me dazed, but I quickly composed myself. She’s not the type to ask this out of the blue without reason. There must be some circumstance.

I asked with my eyes, and Hwa Nabi glanced at the staff at the counter before whispering in my ear.

“The medical bill is higher than I expected because it’s a night consultation. They say I don’t have enough balance.”

“Ah…”

So it’s the night surcharge. Well, if that’s the reason, I can certainly lend her the money.

“How much do you need? Actually, never mind, I’ll just pay for it.”

“That would be very helpful. I’ll pay you back separately later.”

“Don’t worry about it. How much could the medical bill be?”

This was one of the few opportunities to show my masculinity. I handed the carrier back to Hwa Nabi and walked confidently to the counter, saying:

“I’d like to pay.”

“Yes, I’ll help you with that. It’s 322,000 won. Would you like a receipt?”

“……”

I barely avoided the mishap of asking “How much?” but I felt a sudden tension in the back of my neck. What did they do to charge this much for a medical examination?

Keeping such questions to myself, I proceeded to pay with my card.

“Your payment has been processed.”

“Yes, please give me a receipt.”

I had vaguely heard that veterinary clinics were expensive, but I didn’t expect it to be this much. I needed to check the details.

The itemized list showed the following:

X-ray: 70,000 won, additional X-ray shots: 30,000 won each, some kind of vitamin injection: 50,000 won, treatment fee: 30,000 won…

Adding up all the small items and the night surcharge, it indeed came to exactly 322,000 won.

“This is no joke…”

Having to spend this much money just for one visit to the hospital. At this point, I started to worry about Hwa Nabi.

After finishing the payment, I immediately approached Hwa Nabi who was waiting behind me.

“Nabi, will you be okay?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“The hospital bills. They won’t always be this expensive, will they?”

While waiting earlier, I looked up on my phone and found that kittens are recommended to visit the hospital at least once every two weeks to check their condition.

That means tens of thousands of won would be going out as fixed expenses every month. That’s what I was concerned about.

“Hmm, this time it was more expensive because we had a lot of tests done. It probably won’t be this much next time.”

“But it’ll still be at least 100,000 won, right?”

“Well… I guess so? Veterinary clinics aren’t covered by insurance.”

“Then from now on, use my card for payment.”

I could say this because it wasn’t my money anyway. I took out a card from my wallet and handed it to her. However, Hwa Nabi didn’t take it right away and just stared at me.

“What are you doing? My arm is getting tired.”

“…Why are you giving this to me? I mean, I understand your intention, but what if I use it for something else?”

She was saying this, but the Hwa Nabi I had observed so far wasn’t that kind of person.

Although we’ve only known each other for about three days… there’s something called intuition, right? It might be awkward to say it myself, but my intuition tends to be quite accurate.

Therefore, I trust my intuition, and at the same time, I trust Hwa Nabi. That’s why I can act like this.

“I have some dignity, I can’t accept this.”

“I think you’re misunderstanding something. I’m not giving this to you to use. I’m giving it for you to use on my cat.”

“…Wait a minute. ‘My cat’? Why is this your cat?”

“Because I found it first. It’s mine. I’m just entrusting it to you temporarily. So it’s right that I cover the costs.”

It was close to a flimsy excuse, but if I didn’t insist like this, she wouldn’t accept it.

Hwa Nabi looked quite disgruntled, seemingly contemplating whether to accept the card as I said or not.

I spoke up to ease her dilemma.

“Why, earlier you were talking about shared property, but now that I’m offering my card, you’re feeling uncomfortable?”

“That, that… was obviously just something I said casually. You weren’t serious either, right?”

“No, I was completely serious.”

“O-okay, let’s say you were serious. But I added the condition ‘after we get married,’ didn’t I?”

“Then what, should we do it now?”

“…Just because you want to doesn’t mean you can. I mean, even if it were possible, I wouldn’t do it now. I think such things should be decided after getting to know each other better…!”