Cute Comments and Cat Training
The emoticon post began with someone claiming they’d spotted me at a big-box store.
Winter was wandering the store all by herself today. She was buying cat food and the staff thought it was for her to eat directly lol
Some comments were ordinary, others strange. The most baffling ones were the ones calling me cute.
“There’s a weird comment here.”
“Huh? Is it hate?”
“No, not quite hate. Just someone being odd.”
I showed Yoo Sang-ah my phone screen. Letting her see the “cute” comments felt embarrassingly awkward.
“You mean this one saying you’re cute?”
“Yes. They probably wrote it to tease me.”
The internet really is full of people with bad intentions. I looked up at Yoo Sang-ah as if to say “don’t you agree?” but her reaction was completely different from mine.
“Why? Isn’t Winter-nim cute…?”
“M-me?”
“Yes. Don’t tell me you didn’t know?”
Didn’t know? That meant Yoo Sang-ah also thought I was cute.
“What part of me…?”
“Everything. You’re small, and your voice is so gentle.”
“Th-that’s…”
Being called cute because I’m small probably referred to my appearance. I already knew my current looks weren’t bad. A youthful face was definitely the kind of thing that invited affection. The problem was that I wasn’t actually a child. I was an adult, and there were genuinely small, adorable kids around me. I couldn’t possibly compete with the real cuteness of Levinas and Saebyeok. Unless it was meant as bullying, there was no reason for anyone to single me out among truly cute children.
“This is… a little embarrassing.”
“Why? Don’t you hear that you’re cute all the time?”
“No… This is the first time I’ve ever heard it in my life…”
“Oh dear.”
Embarrassed, I grabbed my tail with both hands. The tip that peeked out over my fingers drooped limply. Yoo Sang-ah gave me a sympathetic look and gently stroked my cheek with the back of her hand.
“People must have been fooled by your appearance. Beastkin aren’t common, after all.”
“No, I don’t think that’s it. Winter-nim has the personality of an angel, too.”
“Th-that’s…”
Every time she opened her mouth, another embarrassing compliment came out. She was clearly misunderstanding something. I decided to drop the topic right there and quickly changed the subject.
“Um, by the way, what are these pictures in the comments?”
A drawing of a beastkin child who looked like me throwing a punch. Similar images filled the comment section.
“Those are Winter-nim emoticons.”
“M-me?”
“Yes. Someone must have made them.”
The quality was surprisingly high. Knowing every single one of them was supposed to be me, I couldn’t help staring.
“This one tied up with rope and hanging…?”
“They probably drew it just for fun. No need to read too much into it.”
“Ah…”
Famous adventurers naturally drew public attention. Han Yeoreum’s social media alone got hundreds of comments a day. As an adventurer myself, I was simply grateful to receive any attention at all. Of course, I knew it wasn’t because of my skills as an adventurer. It was because I was a rare beastkin. Still, it wasn’t unpleasant. Fame was something people craved but couldn’t always obtain. Having been excluded from all attention before, I knew exactly how precious positive interest could be.
The moment I turned off the screen without any lingering anxiety, Levinas, who had been playing near the pond, waved a skewer at me.
“Winter! Play with Levinas!”
“Okay. Just a second.”
I turned to Yoo Sang-ah beside me. She stood up from the bench with a soft laugh.
“I should be going now.”
“Yes. I enjoyed talking with you.”
“I enjoyed it too.”
After saying goodbye to Yoo Sang-ah, I ran toward the children. I was planning to finally try “that” thing I’d been putting off.
**
Seol-i was a beast. She was a good kid, but being a beast alone could cause problems. To live peacefully with everyone, I had to train her. There was a huge difference between a beast that understood “wait” and one that didn’t.
“Come here, Seol-i.”
“Meow?”
“Paw.”
Sitting on the grass, I held out my hand to her. It was the most basic command: “paw.” Dogs could do it, but would a cat manage? I looked down at Seol-i with a mix of hope and worry. The one who placed her hand on mine wasn’t Seol-i, but Levinas.
“Levinas was the fastest!”
“Uh, yeah. Good job.”
She must have thought this was just a game. I patted Levinas’s head, praising her. The simple touch seemed to delight her, and she wiggled happily.
“Meow?”
Seol-i, watching us, seemed to realize something and placed her paw on my hand. Had she learned by watching Levinas? She was still a young kitten, yet her intelligence was remarkable.
“She got it in one try?”
My tail wagged with joy. Seol-i saw it and wagged her own tail in imitation. I could sense she wanted to be petted right away.
‘So she can communicate her intentions to some extent.’
I reached out and stroked Seol-i’s head. Her happiness came through clearly.
“Hmm… Should we try something else?”
“Yeah! Let’s do something else!”
Levinas answered first again. For some reason, Saebyeok’s eyes were sparkling too.
“What should we do next? How about ‘lie down’?”
“Okay!”
Levinas flopped down on the grass. I gave her belly a few gentle taps in her relaxed pose.
“Meow?!”
Seeing Levinas, Seol-i hurriedly lay down on the grass as well. She stretched out flat on her back in an oddly human-like posture.
“Whoa…”
Seol-i was really watching and learning. She was the smartest cat I’d ever met. Tap tap— I gave Seol-i’s belly a few pats of praise, and at that moment Saebyeok suddenly flopped down too.
“Pet my belly too.”
“Okay.”
I patted Saebyeok’s belly. Her usually expressionless tail swayed gently. I’d felt bad about not being able to buy them better toys, but these kids could make any game fun. I was simply grateful they were always so well-behaved.
“What should we do next?”
“Next…!”
And so I played with the children while training Seol-i. It turned out to be a surprisingly rewarding day.
**
That evening, the children returned home and washed their hands and feet in turn. Seol-i went first, and Winter went last. While Winter was washing up, the kids played with Seol-i in the living room. Just then, Han Yeoreum, finished with work, opened the front door and came inside.
“Yeoreum’s home!”
“Yeah. I’m back. What did you play today?”
“Today we played ‘paw’!”
“Paw?”
“Yeah! When we say ‘paw,’ Seol-i gives us her paw!”
A cat doing that? Cats were famous for not listening to people. Han Yeoreum approached Levinas, who was holding Seol-i. She was about to call out the command when—
“Pa—”
Buzz—! Her phone vibrated in her pocket. It might be important, so she quickly pulled it out, hand still extended.
‘Spam message…’
Tsk. Han Yeoreum clicked her tongue and slipped the phone back into her pocket.
“Okay, give me your paw.”
Muttering the unfinished words, she looked forward again. Standing in front of her wasn’t Levinas holding Seol-i, but Winter. In the brief moment she’d looked away, they’d switched places.
“Paw…?”
Winter placed her hand on Han Yeoreum’s outstretched palm. She did it without any suspicion or complaint.
“H-huh?”
They’d swapped spots while she wasn’t paying attention. Han Yeoreum scratched her cheek and looked down at Winter.
“Why the paw?”
“I just thought you wanted to hold hands with Winter.”
Winter clasped Han Yeoreum’s hand tightly. The small, soft hand fit easily in hers.
“Yes. Then let’s keep holding hands.”
“S-sure?”
“Yes.”
Holding hands wasn’t difficult at all. If that was what Han Yeoreum wanted, she would simply keep holding on. Squeeze— Winter’s tail swayed gently at the warm touch. To Han Yeoreum, Winter looked like nothing but a kind and lovable child. Even seeing her every day never got old. Han Yeoreum thought that if she herself had a tail, it would probably wag even faster than Winter’s. She chuckled and sat down on the sofa with Winter.
“Winter, was there anything fun today?”
“Hmm… We trained Seol-i today… Oh. I saw something interesting.”
“Something interesting?”
“Yes. There were emoticons of me going around on the internet.”
Winter emoticons. Han Yeoreum knew what they were. They were emoticons that had recently become popular online, with so many parody versions that derivative images kept appearing.
“What kind of emoticon was it?”
“Well…”
Winter sat on the sofa and blinked. She wasn’t good with the internet, so how was she supposed to show the emoticons? Tilting her head, she clenched her fist.
“Like this…?”
Winter awkwardly thrust out her fist, mimicking a mischievous expression. It was the cutest punch Han Yeoreum had ever seen in her life.
“Guh!”
Han Yeoreum’s body collapsed even though the fist hadn’t touched her.
“H-huh?”
Seeing Han Yeoreum fall, Winter’s tail shot straight up.