Chapter 30: Unexpected Comfort

I turned on the broadcast and went down to the pet shop to run Jinhyang’s errand.

As I looked around, unsure of what to buy first, a staff member approached me.

“Manager, you’ve come alone this time?”

“Ah, yes.”

I still couldn’t get used to being called “manager” after hearing it several times. In reality, I was just a person trying to navigate the awkwardness of being addressed as such by Jinhyang.

Sigh.

I let out an inward sigh, and the staff member spoke again.

“Um, Manager, can I ask you something?”

“Something curious?”

“Yes, I’m curious if you can really talk to cats…”

“…?”

It seemed she had overheard part of the conversation Jinhyang and I were having. From what I could tell, she had only caught part of it.

“The fact that you can talk to cats is a skill that we in this industry envy so much…”

“I don’t have that ability…”

How could a person talk to a cat?

Feeling embarrassed by her question, I instinctively turned my gaze elsewhere. At that moment, a can of catnip caught my eye.

Found it right away.

As I approached and picked up the bottle, I felt good with the refreshing scent wafting up.

“Q…?”

Is catnip supposed to smell this good?

I wanted to take a closer sniff by opening the cap, but it was still sealed, so I couldn’t. I clicked my tongue, feeling regret, and said to the staff member, “This smells really nice.”

“Right? The peppermint scent is really nice.”

“Yes. It makes me feel good and happy.”

Ol…?

Upon hearing my words, the staff member scanned me from head to toe, focusing specifically on my ears and tail.

“Why, why…?”

“N-no, just don’t use too much of it.”

…

Taking care of the cats was Jinhyang’s responsibility, so the amount was something she should manage.

What’s up with her?

Her behavior felt strange, but I decided to move on and look for the next item.

“Do you have churu?”

“Ch-churu?”

“Yes.”

At my question, her pupils seemed to tremble violently.

It was clear that she was quite flustered.

What’s going on? No churu?

Since churu is a delicacy for cats, I thought it would probably be nearby, and indeed, I spotted it close by.

It’s right there?

Though I found it strange that she had reacted that way, I decided to brush it off as no big deal.

“Which one here is the tastiest?”

“W-well, I don’t know the flavors of churu yet…”

That made sense.

Ordinary people wouldn’t eat animal treats.

“…Among the things cats love the most.”

“Oh. If that’s the case, this product here is very popular with the little ones.”

I accepted the churu she handed me.

Even as I placed the churu in my basket, she kept alternating her gaze between my face and the basket, which felt strange.

“…Is there something wrong?”

“N-no, I’m sorry…”

She quickly averted her eyes from mine and spoke.

What’s going on?

It didn’t seem like she was nervous because of my status; our first meeting had been too lively for that. And it wasn’t that she disliked my presence since she had even shown some envy at first.

There was no reason for her to act like this now.

Is she in urgent need of a restroom?

Maybe that was why she felt embarrassed and couldn’t speak up.

If so, I should let her go.

In a considerate manner, I asked, “Um, do you have any leftover boxes?”

“Boxes?”

“Yes. A big one.”

With that, she could pretend to go get a box and make a quick trip to the restroom.

I smiled at her.

“Oh…”

However, instead of looking relieved, she continued to scan me from head to toe.

It seemed like she was trying to confirm something about me.

What is it?

Was it really about the restroom?

As I stared at her in confusion, she spoke again.

“I’m sorry, but could you please sit down?”

“S-sit down, here…?”

“Yes, crouch down!”

What on earth was going on? But I complied and crouched as she asked, lifting my tail so it wouldn’t touch the ground.

The store employee watched me for a long time as I sat like that.

“Um, excuse me?”

Just when my legs were starting to go numb, the employee nodded toward me.

“Ah! I found a suitable size!”

“A suitable size?”

“Yes. Size is important for these!”

Saying that, the employee dashed off to the far end of the store.

Not to the restroom, but to the store’s storage area.

I stared at her disappearing figure for a while.

Is she bipolar?

I thought it might be possible.

If her mood swings were erratic, she would be the one struggling the most.

What was needed here was some human consideration.

Let’s not think too strangely about this.

While waiting for her, I looked down at my tablet.

“The staff here are really friendly.”

[Opportunities like this are rare, haha.]

“What opportunity?”

[It’s a chance for your customer to personally pick out their items, haha.]

“…?”

So, does that mean customers come to pick out their items themselves? What was she talking about?

Lately, it felt like I wasn’t able to communicate well with people.

At this point, was it me who had the problem?

While I was seriously pondering this, she came running toward me from a distance, holding a box in one hand.

“Phew, phew… I brought a size that fits you perfectly, Manager!”

“My size?”

“Yes. It’ll feel good if you fit into it.”

“Why would I fit into this…?”

“012…?”

Our gazes met in mid-air.

It seemed she had some sort of big misunderstanding.

Looking down at my tablet in front of Jinhyang’s office, I said, “You all know I’m not actually going to use this, right?”

[Really? Haha.]

[Are you really not going to have even a bite of churu?]

“I really won’t eat it!”

I shouted at the tablet and switched off the broadcast.

Since the broadcast was primarily for Jinhyang’s surveillance, it didn’t matter if I turned it off now that she was back.

They don’t even treat me like a person.

Tsk.

I was angry, but I had received a brush from her as an apology, so maybe she wasn’t such a bad person after all.

It was another issue that the brush she handed me was specifically for cats.

…Well, I do have fur.

Just on my tail and ears…

…Why am I even using this?

It was meant for Jinhyang’s cat anyway.

Tsk.

I huffed and entered Jinhyang’s office.

“I’m back.”

Since the box and cat supplies were heavy, I quickly placed them on the office table.

Yoon Bora approached me and began to inspect the contents of the bag.

“What did you bring, Harang?”

“Just some stuff.”

With a grin, Yoon Bora rummaged through the bag and pulled out the brush I had received as a gift.

“Harang, come here.”

“Uh?”

She sat on the sofa and patted her thigh, signaling for me to sit there.

Without thinking, I walked over and sat on her lap.

“What are you going to do?”

“Hmm?”

What was she planning to do?

As I lifted my head to look at her face, she smoothly began to stroke my ears with the brush.

“…!”

As the tiny bristles of the brush massaged my ears, it sent shivers down my spine, heightening every nerve in my body.

What, what is this?

I tried to recall similar sensations from all my experiences, but there was nothing like it.

The stimulation I felt was something that an ordinary person could never experience, to the point where it felt almost euphoric.

“How does it feel? Are you enjoying it?”

“Th-that, th-that’s…”

I was trembling all over, as if my body were malfunctioning, unable to comprehend this new sensation.

This is strange.

As I looked down at my trembling hands, Yoon Bora began to brush again.

“Ha, haah.”

Though I didn’t believe in any religion, I clasped my hands together as if in prayer.

I felt like if I didn’t do something like that, the ecstasy would take over my entire body.

My ears… My ears feel strange…

“…Should I stop, Harang?”

“N-no, no! P-please, keep going!”

I wanted to hide my tail somewhere, but I also felt like I wanted someone to keep touching me forever.

“…Harang?”

She stopped brushing, her voice filled with concern.

I quickly looked up at her, unable to understand why she had stopped.

“P-please, do it more.”

The interruption was so frustrating that I rubbed my ears with my hands.

But a brush was different from my hands.

I didn’t feel that ecstasy anymore.

“Harang, are you okay…?”

Yoon Bora asked worriedly, and I nodded my head repeatedly.

“Bora.”

Please, do it more.

As I sent her a pitiful look, I heard Jinhyang’s voice from the side.

“Stop it.”

“H…!”

Why was she telling me to stop?

I looked toward the source of the annoyed voice, only to find Jinhyang’s gaze was fiercer than I had ever seen.

Ah.

Reality settled in, stabilizing my trembling body.

My body stopped shaking completely.

“W-well, I just felt something weird, so…”

I unintentionally found myself making excuses to Jinhyang.

But she wasn’t looking at me.

“Bora, bring that here.”

“Yes!”

Yoon Bora set me down and slowly approached Jinhyang.

Watching her hand over the brush, I couldn’t help but feel disappointment.

But that was mine!

“Shut up.”

Thud!

Jinhyang threw the brush into her drawer.

I could only gaze longingly at the closed drawer.