Aeoong! Aeoooonghong!
"Aeoong! Aeoooonghong!"
"Nyaoong! Nyaooho!"
"Meong-meo-meo-meong!"
The dogs roared their reply to the booming rallying cries of Hoesaegi, Gkamnyangi, and Sapsaree.
"Meoong meong meong meong!"
"Keong~ keok-keong-keong!"
"Wol-wol-wol-wol~~!"
The barking thundered until it seemed the mountain itself might shake. Then they all took off at once.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Sapsaree, Benji, and Bangwool-i launched forward like galloping horses, and Nureongi and Taepoong-i picked up the pace to settle into the vanguard. The lead pack also included five retired police dogs like Benji, Bangwool-i's friends, and four Sapsali dogs besides. Behind them, dogs like Chaltteoki and Injeolmi came pounding along, and after that Sundae charged forward with a rumbling gait.
Despite his short legs, Sundae held a speed comparable to the dogs stretching out in long strides. This was the moment his claim that he could run fast at Uriteul Shelter proved true.
Not everyone was running, though.
Pad, pad, pad.
Some dogs ambled along at a leisurely pace, sniffing the scent of earth and grass, taking their time. The once-lush forest had become a bald mountain after the wildfire, but patches of grass and trees still remained here and there.
The dogs racing along were brighter and more energetic than they had ever been. They were several times more lively than even snack time — which they loved so much they would bolt upright from a dead sleep — or playtime at the rest area, one of their favorite hours at Uriteul Shelter.
But they never broke formation. Everyone was running or walking toward one place, and that one place was none other than the vanguard.
They did not hold that formation forever, though. At a certain moment, Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi let out a lion's roar.
"Aeoohong! Nyaoong!"
In an instant the lead pack split. The group headed by Sapsaree charged straight ahead. Bangwool-i veered left; Benji cut right. The dogs running in packs behind them soon changed direction as well. At first they tore into three branches, then kept scattering. Before long, all sixty-two animals — Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi included — had dispersed across the mountain.
For a while the dogs raced around the mountain without slowing. Then, after some time had passed, dogs began easing off one by one. From a certain point they started enjoying the hike, wandering toward whatever caught their curiosity. Some still had energy to spare and kept running full tilt, but one thing was the same for every last one of them: seeds were falling from the hiking clothes they wore.
The hiking clothes had been custom-made at Lee Jun's suggestion. A palm-sized pouch riddled with tiny holes so the seeds would sprinkle out — hang that from a neck or a flank and run, and it would bounce and flop. That bothered Lee Jun. Hung from the neck it flopped; clipped to a harness it flopped against the back or the side. Either way, it would be a distraction. On top of that, Lee Jun did not like adding weight to an animal's neck. So he had clothes made instead — clothes that would protect their bodies from scrapes on the mountain, with pouches for the seeds. Taking a cue from the bright fluorescent gear hikers wear, he had them made in vivid, easy-to-spot fluorescent colors.
The dogs were wearing the clothes Lee Jun had designed and Jang Sora had run herself ragged to produce, and each vest was stamped large with the dog's name and phone numbers. The numbers were for Uriteul Shelter and Mongmong Animal Hospital.
Sapsaree, who had been running with abandon, eventually found himself walking alongside Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi.
"Hehe, Hyungnims-ayo, this is so much fun-ayo."
Sapsaree, who had been walking with proud, confident strides, glanced back at Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi sniffing around behind him. The two cats lifted their heads, looked at Sapsaree, and beamed. Then they answered.
"I like it too-ong, Sapsaree-ong."
"Sapsaree, I like it too."
"Hehehe, really-ayo?"
Sapsaree said that and turned forward again, walking on with steady steps. Watching him, Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew~!"
They had been worried Sapsaree might be afraid of the mountain after the hard time he had spent here. But look how much he was enjoying it. The two exchanged a look as they exhaled in relief.
Gkamnyangi-ong, thank goodness-ong. Sapsaree's smiling-ong.
Thank goodness.
In high spirits, Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi strode forward with the same proud bearing as Sapsaree. And every so often they gave themselves a good shake.
"If you do it like this, they fall-ong."
"That's right. Just now they went pong-pong right off you, Hoesaegi."
"Then I'll press them in real good-ayo."
Sapsaree, who had been walking ahead, had somehow come over and was firmly tamping down the fallen seeds with his paws.
"Well done-ong, Sapsaree-ong."
"Sapsaree's a smart one."
"Gkamnyangi-ong, you're right-ong. Sapsaree's smart-ong."
The two praised him, and Sapsaree got so excited he shook himself all over. Yellow earth packed in with the seeds came showering down from his clothes.
"Hehehe, let's stomp some more-ayo."
Thrilled, Sapsaree went along stomping the ground as he walked. He was far from the only one tamping down the seeded earth. They all knew from Lee Jun why they were spreading seeds, so the dogs would pass by, then come back to press the ground down firmly.
"Earth-friend-ong, be warm-ong."
"That's right. Grow a nice thick coat like Hoesaegi, like Sapsaree."
"Hehe, that would be so nice-ayo. Earth-friend-ayo. You mustn't be cold-ayo."
Press, press. The three of them wandered every nook and cranny, sowing seeds. Being smaller, Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi could scatter seeds into much tighter corners, so the two of them explored spots Sapsaree could not reach.
Hoesaegi, who had been diligently sowing seeds, turned and started walking somewhere else — then suddenly stopped. He looked back the way he had come, rolling only his eyeballs. His ears did not twitch. His whiskers did not stir. Only his eyes moved.
Gkamnyangi was the same. The two of them stood as still as the stones around them. Not even the sound of breathing could be heard.
Sapsaree, who had been walking a little ahead, turned around. He had not heard his hyungnims moving.
"Hyungnims-ayo…… oom!"
He had been about to ask if something had happened to Hoesaegi and Gkamnyangi, but he shut his mouth at once, cowed by the two hyungnims' formidable aura.
There's something-ayo. What is it?
Sapsaree scanned the surroundings just as the two cats had. Of course he did it without moving his body, sweeping the area with only his nose, ears, and whiskers.
A very short time passed, and Hoesaegi's eyes flashed gold. At the same time the corners of his mouth curled up.
"Friend-ong, what are you doing there-ong?"
Jjok, jjok-jjok, jjok?
A bird-like sound, then a rustling. A tiny sound, really. But there was no way Hoesaegi would miss a sound like that. Hoesaegi vanished in an instant. And then—
"Eek, eek…… th-this cat's going to e-eat meeee~~~! Somebody save me~~!"
A squirrel clad in tawny fur, dark chocolate stripes running down its back, with a tail as long as its own body, trembled violently and shrieked. Then—
"Eek, eek…… gaa~ gaa~ gaaaa~~~~."
It shrieked ga-ga sounds in a frenzy, then even let out a whistle — all without letting go of the acorn clutched in its front paws.
Hearing that, Sapsaree came running at once. As he ran he called out.
"Hoesaegi Hyungnim-ayo! You mustn't eat friends-ayo. Benefactor Hyungnim said so-ayo!"
That was how desperate he was — he even brought out "Benefactor Hyungnim," a title he hardly used these days.
"Sapsaree-ong. I'm just standing here-ong."
Hoesaegi answered in a calm voice, and Gkamnyangi chimed in right after.
"He just got spooked by Hoesaegi's eyes."
"What do you mean…… whoa, it's true-ayo!"
Sapsaree had been about to ask what that meant when he spotted a strange little creature trembling five cat-steps in front of Hoesaegi. The strange creature was a squirrel about the size of a human palm. When Sapsaree approached, the squirrel shrieked even louder.
"Somebody save meeeee! You guys, I don't taste good! I-I haven't even eaten! Look at this!"
In its panic, the squirrel threw the acorn it had been clutching so precious-like and opened its mouth wide with its front paws. Then it jammed those tiny front paws into its own mouth and rummaged this way and that. It pulled its paws out again and shouted.
"L-look at this! Th-there's nothing to eat in here. I-I don't taste good!"
Hoesaegi, Gkamnyangi, and Sapsaree tilted their heads. They had no idea what the creature in front of them was talking about. But the squirrel, who could not possibly know that, trembled on all four legs and finally flopped over on its back. Then it slapped its own belly with those truly tiny front paws.
"I-I haven't e-eaten a th-thing!"
The squirrel got its words out to the end in a shaking voice. Then it went limp, as if it might faint. Of course it did not actually faint. If it had been that timid, it would have fainted the moment its eyes met Hoesaegi's.
Looking at the sprawled squirrel, Hoesaegi spoke.
"Friend-ong, I don't know what you're saying-ong. I don't eat friends-ong."
"Yeah, we're not going to eat you."
"That's right-ayo! We don't eat you-ayo! We eat super-super delicious stuff-ayo."
Just then the squirrel sprang up, glanced once behind itself, then turned back to the three and shouted.
"No! I-I'd rather you eat me. Not my friends!"
Gone was the trembling from a moment ago. The squirrel pounded its chest and declared this with pride. Hoesaegi spoke to it once more.
"Friend-ong. We're not eating you-ong."
"That's right, we said we're not eating you. So don't worry."
"That's right-ayo! You're so cute-ayo."
Sapsaree, who had somehow crouched down, was lying flat as he spoke to the squirrel. Then Hoesaegi's golden eyes flashed.
"I see-ong. Friend-ong, are you hungry-ong?"
"Ah, I get it. It's the hungry friend Hyungnim talked about!"
"Is that so-ayo? What a super-super pitiful friend-ayo. Super-super little friend-ayo, are you hungry-ayo?"
The squirrel's black eyes wavered.
Huh. They weren't going to eat me and my friends?
Then who are these guys?
The squirrel was confused, but it had come to its senses more than a moment ago. The reason was simple. It could not feel any killing intent. Which meant they truly had no intention of harming it. The instincts it had honed surviving on the mountain as a weakling told it so.
Realizing it was not in danger, the squirrel slowly nodded.
"Y-yes."
It was so hungry it could die. It did not say that, but the three understood perfectly.
"Being hungry is so hard-ong."
Hoesaegi said that and reached a front paw toward Gkamnyangi.
"Gkamnyangi-ong, let's give this-ong."
"Yeah, let's."
The clothes the two — no, all three — were wearing had another pocket besides the seed-sowing pouch. A snack pocket. Hoesaegi pulled a biscuit from Gkamnyangi's pocket and tossed it in front of the squirrel.
"Friend-ong, eat that-ong."
The squirrel sniffed at it — sniff, sniff, sniff — then shuddered. Then it opened its mouth.
"I-I'm going to eat this!"
The squirrel pointed at the acorn it had just acquired. It had fallen from Sapsaree's seed pouch.
"You're going to eat that-ayo?"
"Y-yes."
"Ah, that's right-ayo. Hyungnim said so-ayo. He said there are little friends who eat those-ayo. Friend, are you a little friend-ayo?"
What did that mean? The squirrel did not understand, but it nodded for now. Sapsaree grinned wide and stood up.
In that instant a shrill sound burst from the squirrel's mouth.
"Jjo-jjok…… hic!"
It had been startled by the enormous creature rising up with a groaning heave. Unaware of the squirrel's situation, Sapsaree spoke with a sunny expression.
"Little friend-ayo. There's lots of those here-ayo. Eat plenty-ayo."
Sapsaree said that and gave himself a shake. When the already huge Sapsaree shook, his long fur shook with him. The squirrel was so terrified it was on the verge of fainting. Just as it thought it might lose consciousness, there was a pattering sound, and food it often ate came showering down.
Pine nuts, acorns, grains, and more.
A gleam lit the squirrel's black eyes. Then it scurried over and frantically stuffed them into its mouth.
"Friend-ong. Eat slowly-ong. There's plenty-ong."
Hoesaegi said to the squirrel the exact words Hyungnim always said at mealtime. Gkamnyangi and Sapsaree nodded along in agreement.
"Yeah, if you eat too fast your stomach will hurt."
"That's right-ayo. It'll go owie-ayo."
But the squirrel did not listen and kept stuffing itself. When it could not fit any more in, it mumbled around a full mouth.
"Mmph gnn eat. Togehhr eah."
Gkamnyangi understood even that unintelligible speech.
"You're going to eat together? You have friends?"
Ohh! Gkamnyangi, you're amazing. Just as Hoesaegi and Sapsaree were looking at Gkamnyangi with something like awe, the squirrel nodded. Gkamnyangi said to the squirrel,
"Tell your friends to come eat. There's plenty."
Then Gkamnyangi said to Sapsaree,
"Sapsaree. Give them food."
"Got it-ayo!"
Sapsaree got up from his spot to shake himself, and the squirrel startled. Then it spat out everything it had stuffed in its mouth. Pteh, pteh. The three of them jumped in alarm at the sight.
"Friend-ong! Are you throwing up-ong? Does something hurt-ong?"
"Where does it hurt? W-wait, I'll go get Hyungnim."
"Hop on-ayo. Let's take you to Hyungnim-ayo."
While they poured out worried words, the squirrel, having spat everything out, said,
"C-could you maybe do that over there…… please?"
"Over there?"
"Y-yes…… please."
The squirrel's eyes were so earnest that honorifics had suddenly tumbled out.