Chapter 45: Marshmallow?

After the sessions with Lee Seo-ryeong and Seol Yu-wol concluded, I contacted the Association right away. I told them I was ready to resume the guild house call schedule that had been put on hold.

With Seol Yu-wol’s case settled for the time being, the Association acknowledged my message and promised to send over the list for the next guild immediately.

My private counseling office had no appointments booked for the afternoon. I had opened up the afternoon slots, but no one had applied. Not that I expected a flood of clients even if I did.

“…”

Right. I’ll take the day off.

That’s what I decided. Of course, taking the day off didn’t mean lying in bed and lazing around. I still had to prepare for tomorrow’s sessions and review the list of guilds to choose from.

Though I had a feeling it would be Haetae…

I headed straight home. It was the best form of rest I could manage.

*

The next day, early in the morning, while the city was still submerged in the blue light of dawn, the oven in my counseling office was already radiating a gentle warmth.

Whirrr. Tap, tap.

Savory butter and sweet sugar were creamed together before fresh eggs were added to the mix. Today, I was making s’mores cookies—a dessert made by hiding a whole marshmallow inside a rich chocolate chip cookie dough before baking.

The cookie dough in the oven began to puff up slowly with a pleasant sound. Before long, the entire office was filled with the aroma of chocolate.

I took the cookies out, placed them on a cooling rack, and aired out the room. An overpowering smell wasn’t good, after all. This wasn’t a bakery.

As the air cleared, I brewed a cup of coffee from the machine. I hoped these cookies would offer a small sanctuary to the clients visiting today.

It was time to begin the counseling sessions.

And… those were my last peaceful thoughts on the matter.

“Next client…”

I finished up the diagnostic notes for the client who had just left and mechanically pressed the intercom button.

A C-class tanker hunter worried about transferring guilds.

An Outsider hunter who couldn’t adapt to the culture here and missed their homeland.

And even an A-class Outsider hunter stressed out over a love affair within their guild.

‘In the world I came from, and the one she came from… polygamy was the norm.’

‘I see.’

‘So, she says she doesn’t care that I already have a wife and is formally demanding to become my second…’

‘Excuse me…?’

This world’s laws generally acknowledged differences in culture and customs. Therefore, the government had decided to legally recognize the customs of other nations if the individuals so desired. Levirate marriage, same-sex marriage, even polyandry and polygamy. In other words, an Outsider could legally marry multiple partners if they wished.

‘But I don’t want to…! Even if that’s how my world was, I’m incredibly happy with my current wife. My relationship with the other woman was just… a fleeting moment of passion…’

That last case had been quite bewildering, but regardless, a stream of clients had passed through my office doors. I downed my cold coffee as I delved into their minds, analyzing their problems and prescribing solutions.

Finally, the last session of the morning was over.

The problem was… it was already lunchtime.

‘I need to eat.’

I stretched, patting my stiff back as I stood up. But my gaze fell on the pile of documents on one side of my desk—the records of all the clients I had seen this morning. I had to organize them all before my memory faded.

“…Right.”

I let out a long sigh and sank deep into the chair I had just vacated.

It looked like I would have to skip lunch today.

I was wrestling with a mountain of paperwork, having forgone my meal. Just as the hunger pangs were beginning to fade, someone tapped gently on the office door.

Knock, knock.

I lifted my head and looked toward the sound. It was currently the office’s lunch and break time. I got up and walked to the door, planning to politely ask whoever it was to come back in the afternoon.

Creak.

“I’m sorry, but it’s currently lunch…”

When I opened the door, a person I never expected to see was standing there. Along with an object I never expected to see.

“Luna-ssi?”

Her head was bowed low, her gaze fixed on the tips of her shoes. At the sound of my voice, she flinched and timidly raised her head.

“Ah…! Seonsaengnim…”

“What brings you here at this hour?” I asked with a smile.

Just then, I noticed the white doctor’s gown she was awkwardly hiding behind her back.

‘…Huh?’

Isn’t that mine? It looks familiar.

“Ah… well… it’s nothing….”

Realizing she could no longer hide it, Luna squeezed her eyes shut and thrust the gown toward me.

“I’m so sowwy!” she said, her words coming out in a jumble as if she’d bitten her tongue.

Stunned, I took the gown, which smelled wonderful. My name, Yoo Seon-woo, was properly embroidered on it.

“Uh…”

Why did Luna have this…? It seemed the gown I thought I’d lost had been with her all along.

I managed a weary smile and looked at her. “Please, come inside.”

I ushered her into the counseling room and closed the door. Then, just as I turned back to look at her…

‘Whoa.’

Pop!

With a clear, crisp sound, a pair of long, white rabbit ears perked up on her head. It seemed she had dispelled her transformation magic the moment the door closed and she felt we were alone.

Without showing any surprise, I walked into the kitchen. “I thought I’d lost it. What a relief.”

I really had thought it was gone for good. I couldn’t for the life of me remember where I might have dropped it, so I’d given up.

I poured a cup of tea, speaking to her casually. “What happened?”

Luna, now seated, slowly began to speak. I placed a glass of water in front of her and waited patiently.

“When I… returned your key the other day, I also brought you that plant…”

“Yes, you did. I love it. It’s really brightened up the office.”

The small lavender pot she’d brought was still giving off a pleasant scent by the window. I had been meaning to thank her for it.

“Back then… I was trying to water the plant and accidentally spilled water on your clothes…”

Ah, so that’s what happened. I finally understood.

“I felt so bad, so I took it… to wash it…”

I nodded and smiled. “I see.”

I hung the gown Luna returned on a hanger. “I have another one, so it was fine. Thanks to you, it’s been nicely cleaned.”

As I hung up the gown, a very sweet fragrance brushed past my nose. I brought the gown closer and took a small sniff.

“Eek?!”

A sharp, almost scream-like cry came from behind me.

‘A strawberry scent?’

I turned to her and asked with genuine admiration, “…This smells amazing. Is it a strawberry-scented fabric softener?”

To be honest, I was surprised. I wasn’t particularly fond of strawberry scents, and I actually disliked the artificial fragrance typical of softeners. But the gown had a very natural and fresh, real strawberry scent. It was almost enough to make me want to take a bite.

Maybe I should ask where she bought it.

“Straw… strawberry… strawberry scent… you say?” Luna’s entire face flushed crimson as she stammered, looking on the verge of tears. “You can… you can smell it…?”

I tilted my head at her intense reaction and replied, “Yes, it’s quite strong. But it’s also natural, a very pleasant scent.”

I meant it as a genuine compliment, but Luna’s red eyes began to tremble.

“Str-strong…? Oh no…”

I leaned in and sniffed it one more time. It still smelled great. There was also a faint, subtle hint of vanilla mixed in, though I couldn’t be sure.

“Would it be alright if I asked where you bought…”

“It’s… it’s not for sale! I don’t think… they sell it…”

“Ah, is that so.”

What a shame. If there were other scents, I was thinking of buying some.

Just then, Luna spoke up cautiously. “Yes… b-but… I could wash it for you… sometimes…”

“No, that’s quite alright.” I smiled and shook my head at her offer. The scent was nice, but how could I ask a client to do my laundry? It would be an imposition on Luna, and it went against my professional ethics.

My refusal was followed by another awkward silence. I naturally brought up the topic of the plant she had given me, telling her how grateful I was and that it was too much as a reward for some macarons.

Luna waved her hands dismissively in response.

As we continued our light small talk, she suddenly lifted her head, as if she’d made a decision.

“Seonsaengnim… about that… would it be alright if I treated you to lunch today?”

“Ah… lunch…” I hesitated slightly. This was a difficult problem. First of all, my schedule was packed today, but beyond that… as a rule, I had to refrain from private meetings between a counselor and a client. Of course, some papers argued that a meal for purely therapeutic purposes was an acceptable exception, but I didn’t favor that method.

If Luna had completely shed her emotional burdens and was no longer my client, it would be a different story… but for that to be the case, she would have to be able to reveal her true self not just in this room, but outside as well. She was still a wounded rabbit, only slightly healed.

After a moment of thought, I made my decision. I gestured to the papers on my desk and spoke quietly. “I’m truly sorry, but having a private meal with a client is a bit difficult due to my professional ethics. If you no longer required my counseling, Ms. Luna, then perhaps the story would be diff—”

“Oh, no! Absolutely not!” Luna answered urgently. She was quick on the uptake and accepted my refusal at once.

“I’m so sorry… you came all this way.”

At that, Luna shook her head vigorously. “No, Seonsaengnim. I was too thoughtless.”

Despite her words, the ears that had been perked up moments ago drooped dejectedly. I watched her disappointed expression with a pang of sympathy.

Ah.

I couldn’t buy her lunch, but I decided to offer a small comfort I could provide right now. I picked up one of the s’mores cookies from the cooling rack and quickly heated it in the preheated oven.

Placing the slightly warmed cookie in a small bag, I handed it to the dejected rabbit.

“It’s a s’mores cookie,” I said with a gentle smile. “I’d be grateful if you could forgive me with this for today.”

Luna’s eyes widened as she looked at the cookie.

*

Luna left the counseling office and headed back toward the Union building. Unfortunately, she hadn’t achieved her goal. But she realized her thinking had been too shallow. She hadn’t even considered that a counselor, due to the nature of their profession, couldn’t easily have a meal with a client.

‘Ah…’

Remembering what had happened in the office, Luna’s face turned bright red. She never would have imagined it. She had thought the super-strength fabric softener she found online would erase any trace of her left on his gown. She had assumed her scent would be gone…

But the Counselor had smelled the gown. And he’d said it had a delicious strawberry scent.

The fabric softener she used was citrus-scented. So it wasn’t the softener.

“…”

In other words… it was Luna’s scent.

In the world of beast-humans, for someone to find a female beast-human’s pheromones pleasant… it meant their compatibility was… extremely…

“…Aah!”

As her thoughts reached that point, Luna involuntarily leaped into the air in the middle of the street. A rabbit jump. She shook her head vigorously, trying to cool her flushed cheeks.

Such improper thoughts. The Counselor is just the Counselor.

“Hoo…”

Thinking with a much cooler head, she recalled the mountain of documents on his desk. Forget a meal, it looked like he wouldn’t even have time for lunch.

“Hmm…”

Luna turned her head and spotted a sandwich shop across the street.

“Should I get him one…?”

She hesitated for a brief moment.

‘I should.’

She soon nodded and headed toward it. On the way, she tore open the bag with the s’mores cookie the Counselor had given her.

“Ooh, hot…”

She very carefully broke it in half.

Streeeetch…

Just then, the white marshmallow hidden inside the cookie, melted by the heat, stretched out like a sticky, translucent string.

“…”

Luna’s red eyes glazed over. A white… long, stretched, almost liquid marshmallow.

As if mesmerized, she touched the tip of her tongue to the end of the dangling marshmallow.

“…Sweet.”

It was so, so sweet. The dizzying sweetness made her feel faint for a moment.

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Translated By: Meher (RaidenTL)

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