Squirming

Squirming

 

Flustered by Chae-a’s words about being kicked out, Han A-rin quickly shook her head and said.

“No, no, not kicked out. It literally means you can stay somewhere else now. So it means you can move to a better place!”

Despite those words, Chae-a still looked gloomy and continued.

“When Beaver oppa’s house was being destroyed, they said it was to build a better house…”

“That, that’s!”

Han A-rin seemed at a loss for words, opening and closing her mouth.

Thinking this wouldn’t do, she carefully took Chae-a’s hand and said.

“… Anyway! Let’s go see the accommodation first. I’ve picked out a pretty place, so I’m sure you’ll like it.”

With those final words, Han A-rin picked up Chae-a like a cat and said.

“Shall we go?”

To that question, the three of us nodded simultaneously.

*

Before going to see the accommodation, we were led by Han A-rin’s hand to get washed, then we shared a meal together.

I was giggling at the sight of Chae-a and Yuna who had suddenly become fluffy and clean.

Yuna hugged my tail and tilted her head.

“Ha-euni, why are you laughing?”

It seemed she couldn’t quite understand why I was suddenly laughing.

I shook my head at Yuna, indicating it was nothing, then looked at Han A-rin.

She had a worried expression, probably due to the mana circulation method she had discovered earlier.

I sat quietly on the bed so as not to disturb her.

Han A-rin let out a long sigh and then spoke to us.

“Shall we go then?”

It seems something isn’t working out well.

I asked if it was okay to help if there was anything I could do.

“Huh? Oh, it’s fine. I was just pondering over a part of the mana circulation flow that I don’t understand… Don’t worry. By the way, were you worried about me, our Ha-eun?”

Flustered by the sudden affection, I blinked my eyes in confusion.

Han A-rin looked at me like that and chuckled before saying.

“Anyway, there’s no need to worry. It’s a problem that will be solved if I think about it a bit more.”

Thinking that was fortunate, I slowly started preparing to leave.

*

Since the Hunter Association is basically a space ‘for adults’.

Everything was designed with adults in mind.

Because of that, most of the accommodations in the association were pretty, but most of them were difficult for us to use.

Han A-rin said she chose a space that was the most suitable and could be modified for us to live comfortably.

“Look at this? The power switch is down here, and there’s an extra sink placed lower, and also…”

I wondered if they had newly made these things for us.

Everything is sparkling and pure white.

I’m so grateful for all of this that I don’t know what to do, and Han A-rin laughs softly and tells us.

“And on top of that, Seo-rin and I will take turns living here. So you don’t have to worry too much about not having adults around. Okay?”

“Yes…!”

“And if you look here, there’s a space stacked with lots of snacks…”

Seeing this reminds me of the maze playroom Han A-rin made for us.

Just as I’m thinking that back then, she probably prepared various things for us similar to this dormitory.

Chae-a, who had been blankly watching this, tilts her head and asks Han A-rin a question.

“Teacher is gone…! Where did she go?”

Then she starts looking around here and there, tilting her head.

In response to Chae-a’s question, Han A-rin thinks for a moment and then smiles awkwardly as she speaks to Chae-a.

“That counselor teacher… um.”

Unable to bring herself to say that they now have to be apart, Han A-rin keeps hesitating.

Eventually, feeling that she can’t avoid it, she smiles awkwardly and tells Chae-a.

“I’ll ask the teacher for you, okay?”

“Wow, really?”

“Yes, really.”

Chae-a, grateful for Han A-rin’s words, quickly runs and throws herself into Han A-rin’s arms.

As I watch Chae-a, who has become much more affectionate lately, thinking how fortunate this is.

Yuna, who has been watching from behind, speaks to me in a small voice.

“Here is nice. It’s pretty. And there’s also a Kwaaang.”

Blinking my eyes, wondering what a Kwaaang is,

 

Yu-na pointed to a dinosaur character stuck on one of the walls and said,

“It’s Kwaaang. It’s cute.”

 

She seems to really like that character, as her affection is palpable every time she mentions it.

As I’m vigorously patting Yu-na’s head to thank her for explaining what Kwaaang is,

 

Han A-rin, holding Chae-a in her arms, looks at us and asks,

“So, do you like it?”

 

There’s no way not to like it.

However, I was worried about the financial aspects like monthly rent and deposit, so I crossed my arms and pondered before

 

asking about the practical matters.

“How much do we need to live here?”

 

“Huh?”

Han A-rin blinked, seemingly taken aback by my question, then quickly shook her head and hurriedly said,

 

“No, you don’t need money. The accommodations within the association are provided free of charge to hunters.”

I tilted my head at the mention of it being provided for free.

 

I knew the association’s welfare was good, but

it seemed a bit strange that it would be completely free.

 

‘Don’t they usually charge at least a little?’

As I was tilting my head, wondering if I had misunderstood something, Han A-rin picked me up, made me look around, and then spoke in a calm voice.

 

“If you need anything or want anything, just tell your big sister anytime. Okay?”

I was shaking my head quickly, feeling that I couldn’t accept any more since I had already received too much.

Han A-rin spoke as if she was a bit disappointed by my behavior.

“I’d like to do something for you… Is that not okay?”

At those words, I couldn’t bring myself to refuse coldly, so I slowly nodded.

After all, Han A-rin was my benefactor and an extremely precious person to me.

So, unable to refuse, I just nodded my head.

Then, from far away, an out-of-place sound was heard.

[Teeny-tiny Catchy-catchy~]

From the sound of it, it seems Chae-a and Yuna had turned on the TV.

Hearing that sound, I went to the living room with Han A-rin.

I saw Chae-a and Yuna watching TV with blank expressions.

Their appearance was so cute that I was watching them with a grin.

Chae-a came to her senses and ran over to me, starting to express something.

“Look… There are bugs as cute as ants…!”

“… ?”

“They’re totally like bugs…!”

If someone who didn’t know Chae-a heard her words, they might mistake it for an insult.

But in reality, for Chae-a, being “like a bug” was the highest compliment, so such words could be considered high praise in Chae-a’s way of expression.

Anyway, to see what she was calling “like a bug,” I looked up at the TV.

[Sparkle sparkle~]

Some cute characters appeared, twerking in front of my eyes.

“…?”

What could that be?

As I blinked in confusion,

This time, Yuna ran up to me and shared her thoughts.

“Ha-eun looks so cute. Small and wriggly.”

“Huh?”

“You know?”

Hearing those words, I stood there blankly, feeling confused.

Han A-rin, who was behind me, smiled brightly and said,

“You like it? I knew you would, so I bought a related gift for you.”

With those final words, Han A-rin picked up a gift box from the desk, beaming with a wide smile.

As I stared at Han A-rin,

I noticed that the bottom of the gift box had a hole in it, as if a mouse had eaten through it.

I was wondering why it was like that,

When Han A-rin opened the gift box and exclaimed to the three of us with an expectant voice,

“Ta-da! The rare doll I worked hard to get… huh?”

Along with that voice, what jumped out of the box were three black creatures.

They were bouncing around with cotton fluff all over their mouths, as if they had eaten the dolls inside (?).

“Meong!”

 

Then, just like Chae-a always did, they made a confident expression and got excited.

The black cats quickly scurried outside and disappeared somewhere.

“The black kitties are gone.”

Chae-a, who was watching this, calmly stated the reality while blinking her eyes.

Then she politely put her hands together and said.

“Thank you very much!”

I’m not sure what she’s thankful for, but I guess she’s probably thanking us for bringing the black cats.

Han A-rin, trying to gather her thoughts at Chae-a’s expression of gratitude, smiled awkwardly.

“Uh, yeah, sure.”

For Han A-rin to look so dejected, it seems the doll she was trying to get must have been quite difficult to obtain.

I’m feeling guilty for not properly managing the black cats, so I’m hugging my tail and watching cautiously.

Suddenly, Han A-rin claps her hands and makes a suggestion to us.

“Oh right. Since we’ve moved, want to eat jajangmyeon? It’s tradition to eat jajangmyeon after moving.”

At the mention of jajangmyeon, I unconsciously felt my tail wagging.

Well, jajangmyeon was one of my favorite foods after all.

So, as I’m swallowing my saliva and staring up at Han A-rin, Chae-a, who was next to me, tilts her head and asks us a question.

“What’s jajangmyeon?”

Hearing this question, Han A-rin thinks for a moment and then describes the physical characteristics of jajangmyeon.

“Umm, it’s a black food that’s shiny because of the oil and looks all wiggly and squiggly.”

“… Wiggly and black?”

After hearing Han A-rin’s explanation, Chae-a blinks while staring intently at the black cats that have somehow made their way onto the sofa.

Then, with a somewhat serious expression, he looked at Han A-rin and shook his head, beginning to persuade her.

“Chae-a is not hungry.”