Chapter 11: Operation: A Peaceful Night.

That night.

I set the alarm and placed my smartphone next to my pillow.

After shoving the prepared earplugs into my ears, I had created the optimal conditions for a peaceful sleep.

The breakfast I would eat before going to school was already in the fridge.

Going to bed at 9 might seem early, but this small body of mine demands more sleep than that.

As the appropriate time came, a wave of drowsiness hit me, leaving no other explanation but that.

This small child’s body is so uncomfortable, it’s frightening.

I dreamed.

It was a space filled with monsters, somewhere unknown.

Engulfed in a sense of euphoria, It was burning everything around me, smiling brightly, surrounded by blood-red splatters.

I lay atop a mountain of corpses, enjoying a peaceful sleep in my dream.

Ah, this is it.

This is truly the peace I had been longing for…

“Mari!”

“Ugh…?”

And just like that, I was pulled back into reality.

The pitch-black surroundings slowly brought my wandering mind back to the real world.

The hand shaking my arm, that of Siyeon, reminded me that what I had just experienced was a dream.

I wanted to keep dreaming.

Even though I knew it was impossible, I accepted everything in dreams as if it were normal.

Still, once—just once—I wish I could slash through those monsters like that in real life.

No blood would come out, of course, but at least it would help relieve some stress.

“Yawn…”

Pushing aside the wishful thoughts from the dream, I let out a short yawn, turned halfway over, and opened one eye slightly.

Looking at the stairs leading to the second floor of the bunk bed, I saw Siyeon poking her head out, her expression tinged with unease.

Ignoring the earplug that had fallen out while I was tossing and turning, I asked Siyeon, “What’s wrong, what happened…?”

“I heard a baby crying.”

“A baby crying…?”

The response was a creepy answer that a baby’s cries could be heard.

Just as I was about to ask again, thinking maybe she was hearing things or possessed by a ghost—

“Waaaaah—”

From beyond the curtain, a faint sound resembling a baby’s cry could be heard.

Listening closely to the short, rhythmic wails, I realized it was definitely a cat’s cry.

That unpleasant, low-pitched meowing had sounded like a baby’s cry to her, it seemed.

If you haven’t heard it often, it’s understandable that it could be mistaken for that.

“It’s a cat’s cry, just a cat.”

“…Really?”

Siyeon, still uncertain, asked again after I waved it off as nothing.

“Yeah, really.”

Even though I gave her full reassurance, Siyeon, whom I expected to head back down right away, hesitated.

And then, what did she say?

“Can I have earplugs too?”

When Siyeon asked for earplugs, the body that was just about to lay down froze.

“I thought you wouldn’t need them, so I only bought one pair of earplugs. Asking me for these earplugs is the same as saying, ‘Hand over what’s left of your night’s sleep.’

‘You press here, squish them, and then insert them into your ears.’

After finding the earplug that had fallen out while tossing and turning, I sleepily blinked and inserted the earplugs into both of Siyeon’s ears.

And just like that, Siyeon retreated to the first floor of the bed.

With the last remaining earplug gone, the once quiet surroundings mercilessly assaulted my eardrums with every little sound.

‘Meooowwww!!’

‘Damn it…’

The cat’s sharp cry pierced through the barriers of curtains and the balcony window, scratching at my ears.

Sleep was out of the question now.

In search of some useful information, I turned on my smartphone.

The moment my half-asleep eyes were exposed to the screen’s maximum brightness, I instinctively closed one eye.

I searched again for the keyword ‘How to get rid of cat moms.’

Filtering out the illegal methods and crimes listed in a fit of rage, I finally found a decent solution.

‘Capture cage?’

It was a detailed guide with a link to buy a metal cage trap included.

The gist of it was that trapping stray cats for relocation is not illegal.

My sleepy eyes suddenly widened at the promising solution, and my mind cleared up instantly.

‘Oh-ho.’

‘This is it.’

Lying down, I snapped my fingers with a short, sharp sound as I pressed my thumb against my middle finger.

This is it. There’s no other way.

I glanced at the top right corner of my smartphone to check the time.

It was 2:47 AM.

The perfect time—no one would be wandering around in this shabby apartment at this hour.

As I climbed down the bed’s ladder, I opened the wardrobe.

With a clattering sound, the magnet holding the wardrobe door shut fell off as the door opened.

There was no need for such a loud noise in the middle of the night, accompanied by the presence I felt behind me.

‘What are you doing at this hour?’

Without even needing to look back, I knew the voice belonged to the stuffed bear.

I ignored the flustered tone in its voice and nonchalantly grabbed a mask.

‘A sudden plan came up. This can’t be done at any other time.’

‘What exactly are you going to do…?’

‘Operation: A Peaceful Night.’

‘??’

Even after hearing my response, the stuffed bear tilted its head, looking puzzled.

How pitiful that it couldn’t grasp the grand scale of my plan after hearing such a glorious operation name.

In the end, the bear ended up getting dragged outside with me, perched on my shoulder.

The cats that had been noisily meowing just moments ago fell silent the second they sensed a human presence near the door.

Quick-witted, aren’t they?

Stupid wild creatures.

‘Sson.’

With a short word of transformation, I began cracking my knuckles, loosening up my hands.”

A flustered teddy bear clung to my shoulder, tugging at my clothes with all its might, expressing its bewilderment.

“No, you can’t just transform here…!”

“It’s fine. I’m masked, and no one’s watching.”

That’s exactly why I said it’s something that can only be done at this hour. I don’t need a capture cage when I’ve transformed. Today, I’ll show those beasts that the power of a magical girl can be abused for personal gain.

“Where are you hiding?”

Once a cat starts running full speed, it’s no easy task to catch it. Of course, that’s the standard for ordinary people. After transforming into a magical girl, it’s as easy as a child chasing after an ant.

“Haa… haa…”

I can carry a maximum of two at a time. The first successful capture was a black cat from the flowerbed. The second was an orange cat that was naively munching on food by the front door, completely unaware of my approach. With two cats tucked under my arms, I did a quick stretch and leaped high into the sky.

Before taking off, they had been scratching at my arms with their claws, hissing furiously. But once we were airborne, they seemed to realize the gravity of the situation. Frozen, as if time had stopped. Impressive. Is this some kind of wild instinct? I didn’t expect them to realize their place so quickly.

“Phew.”

‘This should be far enough, right?’

I landed on a mountain path, far from the apartment, and set the two cats down. As we got closer to the ground, they flailed around, and the moment I released them, they dashed off in a hurry.

I repeated this process two more times. After a few back-and-forth trips…

‘They’re not gathering here anymore.’

The once bustling front entrance of the apartment was now empty. The cries of cats had noticeably decreased. They seemed to have learned to treat the food bowl and water dish as a trap, and no longer showed up near the front door.

But do you think I can’t find you? There are only so many places for these creatures to hide. “Got you.”

I didn’t care if I got covered in dirt. I squeezed into spaces too small for an adult, thoroughly searching under balconies and in hidden nooks beyond the flowerbed. Three more round trips, catching every stubborn cat in the apartment, one by one.

“Phew, it’s done!”

With a refreshing laugh that could be felt even through the mask, I wrapped up the task of dealing with the stray cats and got ready to head inside. I had no idea how much time was left before school started, but surely I could grab a quick nap before the alarm went off.

“Ugh!”

Letting out a groan like an old man, I stretched with satisfaction. As I looked up at the bright, beautiful sky, the sun’s light was beginning to fill it from below the horizon.

Upon realizing the time, I saw that it was an awkward 4:41 AM, too late to call it night, yet too early to call it morning.

As I began to feel the futility of having spent over an hour just helping with a cat moving service,

a wave of relief washed over me with the thought, “At least I’ll be able to sleep comfortably from tomorrow.”

But that, of course, was only the comfort that awaited me in the coming days.

The undeniable truth was that tonight’s sleep had been utterly ruined.

“Mari, the sun’s already up,” said the stuffed bear, unnecessarily stating the obvious fact that my night was over.

Only after that final confirmation did my previously fresh mood plummet to the depths of some dark underground.

In this situation, the only thing I could do was…

“F***.”

There was nothing left but to curse.