Chapter 120
Chapter 120
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 120
Chapter Title: Treasures from the Park Cats
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Lee Jun's steps were incredibly light as he left the park and headed to the animal hospital.
Of course, Lee Jun's day wasn't much different from the day before.
But today, something special had happened to him.
"Cute little ones!"
Lee Jun looked down at the bag in his hand and grinned as he entered the animal hospital.
"Good morning."
Perhaps because he'd received a precious gift first thing in the morning, his greeting to the staff was exceptionally bright and energetic.
"Director, what's got you in such a good mood?"
Jang So-ra, picking up on Lee Jun's positive energy, greeted him with a beaming smile.
"There's something."
Lee Jun shook the bag in his hand and continued.
"I got a really precious gift."
"A gift?"
Jang So-ra tilted her head.
Gifts usually came in shopping bags or gift boxes, right?
But Lee Jun was happily shaking an eco-bag.
"You're not saying the bag itself is the gift, are you?"
"Why not? Heh."
Lee Jun confidently held the bag out to Jang So-ra.
"What could it be that you're so..."
Jang So-ra peered inside, and her eyes widened.
A worn-out ball, a shiny stone, a marble, a long stick, a pinecone, shiny paper...
It was just like peeking into her own cat Mei's treasure box at home.
Of course, the contents were different.
Mei's box held the toys she'd bought her, socks, pens, and such, but the feeling upon seeing it was the same.
Jang So-ra's eyes sparkled as she asked Lee Jun.
"Oh my, no way... Director, did the kids—the Park Cats—give you this?"
"Yes, they said it was a gift."
"Oh my gosh..."
Jang So-ra trailed off, gently caressing the items in the bag.
Just looking at them, you could tell they were treasures held dear.
And the cats had given them to the person right in front of them: Lee Jun.
"Director..."
Jang So-ra's sparkling eyes grew misty.
"Aren't they just so kind and wonderful?"
"...Yes."
Jang So-ra nodded, picturing each and every one of the Park Cats' faces.
"They're really such good kids."
With teary eyes, Jang So-ra took in the treasures.
"So I'm planning to give them gifts in return."
Lee Jun's smile deepened as he imagined the cats' joy.
***
The following week, just as Lee Jun had promised the cats, Cat Town began its winter preparations.
The hiding houses were upgraded with easy-to-use doors.
And the new hiding houses weren't just fitted with doors.
They were reinforced with insulation material, making them much warmer.
They blocked the wind and provided excellent thermal insulation, turning them into hiding houses tough against the cold.
On top of that, warm, fluffy new cushions were placed inside.
And atop those, the sleeping bag blankets Lee Jun had gifted the cats were neatly laid out.
Meow-ho!
The cats raised their voices in thanks to Lee Jun.
"Go on, lie down inside!"
Lee Jun responded to their greetings with a mischievous grin.
'The kids are gonna be surprised, huh?'
Hidden inside the sleeping bag blankets were Lee Jun's secret presents: Christmas gifts.
With Gray's help, he'd hidden each cat's favorite toy inside the blankets for the fifty-plus cats.
Moments later, cheers erupted from the cats.
Kyao-ho!
Nya-ho!
Nyanyanyanyaooong!
The cats came rushing down to the platform in the center of Cat Town, where Lee Jun stood.
Each had a gift from him clenched in their mouths.
Tok tok tok.
The cats set down their gifts and called out.
[Woof Teacher! Thank you!]
Lee Jun smiled warmly at the beaming cats and said.
"Alright, today's a special feast!"
For the first time in their lives, the cats ate breakfast from two bowls each.
One bowl held deliciously grilled chicken, cut to kibble size and mixed in with the food.
The other bowl brimmed with cat milk.
The milk, warmed to the perfect temperature, gave off a rich, nutty aroma.
Seeing milk for the first time, the cats' eyes went wide as they looked at Lee Jun.
Their pupils sparkling brightly.
"Just drink it like water."
As Lee Jun said, the cats lowered their heads and lapped at the milk. The creamy, nutty flavor filled their mouths.
Diiing!
Their eyes widened even bigger than before, then curved into happy crescents as they lapped it up relentlessly with their pink, slender tongues: lap lap lap.
For a while after, the sound of cats lapping milk echoed softly around Cat Town.
***
At the same time, the same sound came from the Meongmeong Animal Hospital playground.
Lap lap lap.
Over a dozen animals gathered together, lapping up their milk.
The first to finish was Sapsari.
Sapsari lifted his head and glanced around.
Next to him was Shadow, and beside Shadow, Gray was lapping away at his milk with a delicious lap lap.
Next to Gray was Jamongi, then...
'Kkakongi, Mongsil, Mongi, Choco, Jamongi, Haenguni, Strawberry, Elder Ttangkongi Big Brother, Aji, Sugar...'
Sapsari murmured the names of the friends he'd made at his second-favorite place, Meongmeong Animal Hospital, taking them all in one by one.
His absolute favorite place was, of course, Alley House.
Precious friends.
Just a few months ago, Sapsari couldn't have imagined making friends like these.
Yet here they were, gathered together, drinking rich milk.
Sapsari's mouth corners naturally curled up.
[Drinking tasty milk with my friends feels so great.]
Ttangkongi said with a smile on his face, just like Sapsari.
[Hehe, I love it so much too.]
Jamongi wagged his long tail.
[Kehum, I love it too.]
Sugar rumbled deeply, and Kkakongi beside him flapped his long ears as he chimed in.
[Of course! Drinkin' the best nutty milk with Big Brothers and little sibs. Feels real good!]
[M-Me too. I love our Director so much!]
[I like it too, but...]
Mongsil grinned widely as he spoke, and quiet Haenguni beside him smiled softly too.
[M-Me too. I love our Teacher so much.]
Thanks to Teacher, he got to live in a good home, and he made lots of friends.
[And... I love my big brothers and little brothers too.]
Back at Our Yard Shelter, friends had been scary to Haenguni.
Big dogs, small dogs—he'd tremble at the thought of them touching his hurt leg.
But no. Friends were wonderful.
Haenguni took in his friends around him and chuckled.
[Hmm, I really like that vet guy too. And the little ones.]
As the eldest here, Ttangkongi smiled fondly at his juniors.
[I like our Big Brother too, and my friends!]
[I like it too. Like Big Brother, like friends. Like everything.]
Shadow grinned as he took in all the animals here.
His eyes, which had nearly gone blind, now sparkled with smiling friends, blurring his vision slightly.
[Kehum, our Big Brother really is a good guy.]
Shadow sniffled and continued.
[Yeah. If not for Big Brother, I...]
Would've gone to the Cat Star. Then he wouldn't be here drinking tasty milk with these friends.
Gray sniffled just like Shadow.
Sniff!
[I like it too! Love Director!]
Mongi, who had nearly choked and gone to the Dog Star, shouted.
His friends, who knew the whole story, chimed in.
[That's right. Brother Mongi lived thanks to our Teacher!]
[Yes. Little brother Mongi nearly had a big problem.]
[Exactly! Director's my savior! Savior!]
At the word "savior," Sapsari's ears perked up.
He too could laugh here with friends because of Benevolent Brother.
[But I like big brothers and little brothers too! Hehehe.]
[I like everyone!]
[I like it too!]
The animals shouted how much they liked each other, beaming brightly.
Even back home, Gray, Shadow, and Sapsari's smiles lingered.
The three huddled beneath the Christmas tree in the living room.
Twinkle twinkle.
The star-like decorative lights on the tree sparkled.
Gray waved his paw at the twinkling lights.
Swish swish.
Then Shadow extended his front paw toward the brighter lights, shaking it side to side.
But neither Gray nor Shadow tried to grab the sparkling lights.
They knew grabbing them would make their precious new treasures fall.
The treasures were...
[Big Brother's sparkling!]
[Gray's sparkling too. Sapsari too.]
[Strong Brother sparkles. Shadow sparkles too.]
The three smiled at the sparkling figurines resembling them.
The tree didn't have just lights.
As the three had said, crystal ornaments modeled after Lee Jun, Go Gi-jin, and themselves decorated the tree.
They were special ordered and gifted by Haenguni Pockets, the fans of Gray and Shadow.
And Haenguni Pockets hadn't stopped there.
A large group figurine of them all together stood hugely beside the tree.
The three liked the sparkling figurines on the tree, but they loved this group one even more.
They knew all too well that "together" was better than alone.
Gray turned to look at the figurine beside him.
Big Brother was holding him.
Shadow, sitting next to him, followed Gray's gaze.
Beside Big Brother holding Gray stood Strong Brother, with Shadow on his shoulder.
Now Sapsari turned to the figurine.
He sat proudly between Benevolent Brother and Strong Brother.
Sapsari's mouth corners curved up.
[Love it!]
Gray meowed with a grin.
[Meeting Big Brother was great.]
[Living together is even better!]
[I feel the same. Love that Big Brothers saved me. Love that Benevolent Brother saved my life. Love Strong Brother hugging me. Love it all. And the best is living with Big Brothers!]
As Sapsari poured out his heart like a machine gun, Gray and Shadow nodded.
[Right! Living together is great. And...]
Gray looked out the window.
Whoosh—the wind shook the branches in the yard.
[The family will sleep warm.]
Gray thought of the new hiding houses and smiled gently.
[They'll sleep soundly.]
Without shivering from the cold, peacefully.
Shadow peered out the window with the same expression as Gray.
Gray let out a sigh of relief and continued.
[I'm so glad the family can spend winter comfortably.]
[I feel the same. Love living together, and that our Bluebird family can spend nights peacefully...]
Memories flashed: nearly going to the Cat Star, last winter's bitter cold agony. Shadow's eyes misted over.
Shadow paused, blinking away the tears.
Then, with clear eyes, he continued.
[Really glad. Big Brother's truly wonderful.]
[Yes, Big Brother and Strong Brother are all great!]
[Right. Big Brothers are the best.]
The three turned back to the tree.
[I want to keep living with Big Brother and all of us together.]
Gray shared his wish for the future.
[I want to live with Big Brother too. All of us together.]
[I-I want to live together too. So let's all live together!]
At Sapsari's tentative words, the cats replied without a moment's delay.
[Of course!]
[Naturally!]
The three beamed identically, fixing their eyes on the tree.
Atop the tree, Lee Jun, Go Gi-jin, Gray, Shadow, and Sapsari all sparkled.
Gray, Shadow, and Sapsari's eyes twinkled like the starry night sky as they gazed at the sparkling tree.