Chapter 41: A Playful Predator in Pajamas

Why is Kim Eunhyuk here?

Before I could figure out the reason, he reached into the van and pulled me out.

“Huh?”

Today, I’d been guided around by various hands more than usual. While I was lost in that thought, Kim Eunhyuk began forcefully crushing the van with his hands.

Crack!

Wow.

He crumpled the doors, the front, and the rear—all the exit points someone could use—trapping the men inside the van.

…They didn’t die in there, did they?

Hoping that no one was crushed to death inside, I gently tapped on the mangled door.

“Uh, is anyone… in there?”

“Urgh, my… my leg…!”

Hearing the voice, I figured no one had actually died. They seemed a bit injured, though.

“…Should I call an ambulance?”

Just as I pulled out my smartphone and started dialing 119, Kim Eunhyuk stopped me, placing his hand over mine.

“No need to call an ambulance.”

“But it looks like they’re pretty hurt…”

“No, no one’s seriously injured.”

The car looked like a pile of scrap metal, but… no one was hurt? I looked at the twisted metal mess, a bit confused.

…Well, he didn’t attack them directly, just crushed the car.

Fine, then.

After all, he had just saved me, so I shouldn’t be doubting him. I owed him thanks instead.

“Thank you so much for your help. That was a really scary situation.”

“Indeed.”

Kim Eunhyuk gave a brief smile but then looked past me at the crushed vehicle. In that brief moment, I didn’t miss the look in his eyes—a glance that seemed capable of sparing no one inside. Of course, I knew he wouldn’t actually kill them, but still…

…Those guys were definitely up to no good.

If Kim Eunhyuk hadn’t shown up, who knows what could have happened. I might have been forced into something awful, like being denied treats for days or forced to swim endlessly.

Sigh.

Why do they even do such terrible things? Hopefully, they’d change their ways after being scolded by Kim Eunhyuk.

I decided to ignore the men entirely and looked up at Kim Eunhyuk.

“Um, I was running an errand for the boss, though. What should I do?”

“Oh, don’t worry. Go ahead. I’ll handle this.”

“Thank you very much.”

With a quick bow, I thanked Kim Eunhyuk and dashed off without looking back. Every instinct in me screamed that it was best not to linger.

If I were a tiger, then Kim Eunhyuk was a dinosaur—a terrifying Tyrannosaurus Rex at that.

“I’m back!”

I bought the ink from the stationery store and returned home. I opened the front door and entered the living room, but it was empty.

“Hm.”

I set the bag with the ink on the table and looked around. Normally, there was always someone in the living room, but today, with no one around, I felt like the master of the house.

“Woohoo!”

I started running around the room, just because. It felt like I had become the ruler of this vast space.

After running around for a while, I stopped in front of a large flower pot in the corner of the living room. The vibrant flowers added a cheerful touch to the house. But something felt off—they didn’t have any scent.

What’s this?

Were the flowers dead? I gently touched a petal and realized it was brittle and dry. The soil, too, was dry and crumbly.

Does no one take care of these plants?

I looked around near the flower pot but didn’t see any watering can or plant food. It seemed no one was tending to it.

I’d heard that housekeepers came by in the mornings and left in the evenings, though I’d never seen them since they only worked on weekdays.

Guess I’ll have to water it myself.

I couldn’t stand to see the houseplants drying up and withering away.

I went straight to the bathroom, filling a bucket with water. The weight was heavier than I expected, and my arms trembled as water sloshed out, splashing onto the floor here and there.

I’ll clean that up later.

First things first—water the plants.

Arriving back at the flower pots, I wasn’t sure how much to pour, so I started adding water slowly.

Drip, drip…

Hearing the water trickle, I imagined the plants coming back to life. No, not just imagined—they were surely rejuvenating, since it must’ve been a while since they were last watered.

“Hehe.”

I should finish up the rest, too.

So, back and forth between the bathroom and the living room, I diligently watered each pot. At some point, Yoon Bora’s voice called out from behind me.

“Harang, why is the floor so wet?”

“Oh, sorry. I’ll clean it up. I was just watering the plants.”

“The… plants?”

“Yeah. The flowers looked all dried up.”

I said this as I poured the last of the water over the final pot.

“Harang, did you… water all the pots here?”

Yoon Bora looked at me with wide eyes, as if surprised. There were quite a few flower pots around the living room, after all, so she was probably taken aback that I’d watered them all.

“Yup, this is the last one. I did a good job, right?”

Since I’d helped with the housework, I thought Yoon Bora would be grateful. My tail wagged a little in excitement, feeling proud to have been of help.

“Oh… I see. Um…”

But instead of looking happy, Yoon Bora’s expression showed a hint of unease—more like she was startled.

“Bora, what’s wrong?”

“Well, um… Harang…”

“Yeah?”

She hesitated, her lips twitching as if unsure of what to say.

“The thing is… these are fake plants, so they don’t need watering.”

“Huh?”

Drip, drip…

I stared at her, still holding the bucket as water trickled from it.

“Oh, but it’s okay! You have such a kind heart, Harang!”

Yoon Bora tried to comfort me, but her words didn’t quite sink in.

“So… they’re all fake?”

“Y-Yeah.”

Clang!

The now-empty bucket dropped to the floor. But I didn’t bother picking it up.

…Even rich people use fake plants, huh.

No wonder they didn’t have any smell. All I could do was console myself with the fact that I’d learned something new.

Yoon Bora watched as I drooped my shoulders, bending down to wipe up the water on the floor.

“H-Harang?”

My tail, having lost all energy, dragged along the floor, absorbing more water than any towel could.

“Harang, your tail’s getting wet.”

“Yeah…”

I lifted my tail, and it dripped water onto the floor.

Seeing this, Yoon Bora felt an inexplicable sense of sympathy.

What should I do?

She knew I’d only been trying to help, and watching me look so downcast wasn’t easy for her.

Isn’t there something I can do to lift his spirits?

Thinking deeply, Yoon Bora suddenly remembered she had a gift prepared for me—a tiger pajama set. She had picked it out because I seemed to like my flying squirrel pajamas, so she thought I might like something similar.

“Harang, want to see this?”

She unfolded the pajamas and held them out to me.

“It’s a tiger?”

My ears perked up as I stepped closer, intrigued.

“How does it look?”

“…The pattern really does look like a real tiger, doesn’t it?”