The Red Portal's Call
What kind of portal is that? The boy had been quite violent. I still remembered how painful his kicks had felt through the doll's clothing. He was taller and bigger than me, but there was no reason for me to be pushed around by him. I had mana that let me surpass physical limits. The problem was the age difference between the boy and me. An adult couldn't use mana against a child. I needed to talk him down somehow, but whether the boy would listen to someone smaller than him was uncertain. If only he doesn't use violence... What if the boy throws a punch? Do I just have to stand there and take it? Without a clear plan, I walked toward the boy.
"Um..."
"What." The boy's voice was rough, almost a grumble.
"Do you happen to have the Warrior Horned Rabbit card?"
"I told you I'd trade it if you brought two ten-star cards."
"Two is too much."
"...If it's too much, then don't."
The boy waved his hand dismissively, as if telling me to get lost. He knew we were the ones in need. Even at his age, he was quick to calculate.
"Hngh..." Levinas sniffled and held out the Demon King Eagle card with both hands, as politely as she could. "Levinas's eagle card is really good too..."
"I said bring one more."
"But..."
"You really want to get hit?"
The boy raised his fist—not to strike, but to intimidate. It was enough to scare the innocent Levinas.
"Uwaaah..." Saebyeok stepped in front of the terrified Levinas, baring her fangs and growling at the boy.
"Saebyeok, stop."
"Okay..." Saebyeok's ears and tail drooped, as if she hadn't expected to be scolded. The boy frowned at Saebyeok, who had growled at him.
"You want to die?!"
"Ah!"
The boy shoved me aside and stood in front of Saebyeok. Since I wasn't using mana, my body toppled over lightly. Thud. As I fell onto the grass, I thought about how some children in this mana-filled world were truly violent. While I was wondering what to do with this violent boy—
Smack!
Someone struck the boy on the head.
"Gah!" The boy's eyes bulged.
'Where did that kid go?'
Jeong Mi-kyung, the owner of the pork cutlet shop, had three sons. The most stubborn of them was her youngest, Kim Woo-sung. He was always playing in the park, claiming it was the holy land of Animal King cards or something. Jeong Mi-kyung couldn't help but worry when her son came home late at night. He usually played around here. As she looked around, she spotted her son, Kim Woo-sung. He stood with his fist raised in anger, while three beastkin children cowered in fear. One of them was a child she'd spoken to before—the one who occasionally visited the pork cutlet shop, the one with terrifying connections named Winter.
"That..."
Levinas was sniffling, and Saebyeok's ears drooped like a frightened cat. Han Yeoreum, sprawled on the ground, trembled with her delicate body. Jeong Mi-kyung couldn't believe her son had been bullying fragile girls.
"You little brat!"
Smack!
"Gah!"
Jeong Mi-kyung's fist came down hard on Kim Woo-sung's head. After raising three sons, her punches carried considerable weight.
"Did you bully those girls?!"
"N-no! Mom! It's not like that!"
"Don't make excuses!"
Stretch— Jeong Mi-kyung grabbed her son's cheek and pulled. It was a loving tug, hoping for remorse.
"Aaaah!" The boy screamed as his cheek stretched out.
Was it really that painful? Han Yeoreum tugged at one of her own cheeks. Levinas reflexively pulled on the opposite cheek. It stretched even more than the boy's, but it didn't hurt. Whether it was because of the gender difference or the beastkin's flexibility, she couldn't tell.
"Han Yeoreum, what should I do? I'm so sorry."
"I-it's okay. Nothing happened."
"Really? This brat didn't cause any trouble?"
"Aaaah!" The boy screamed again, still caught by Jeong Mi-kyung.
"It wasn't trouble. I was just trying to trade cards, but it didn't work out..."
"Cards?"
"Yes. The Warrior Horned Rabbit card..."
Before Han Yeoreum could finish, Jeong Mi-kyung snatched the card from her son and handed it to Han Yeoreum. It clearly looked like a warrior horned rabbit.
"Take it, Han Yeoreum. This kid has over ten of them."
"Th-thank you..."
Han Yeoreum bowed her head and accepted the card. In the awkward situation, she clasped her hands in front of her chest.
"Is there any other card you want?"
"N-no... This one is enough..."
"Don't you need this tiger card?"
"No..."
When Han Yeoreum refused, Jeong Mi-kyung nodded in understanding. She grabbed her son Kim Woo-sung by the ear and stepped back.
"I'm sorry. I'll make sure to scold him properly at home."
"P-please don't scold him too much."
"Oh, you're so kind. Come by the shop later, and I'll give you a free pork cutlet."
"Y-yes..."
It felt like a massive storm had passed. As Han Yeoreum watched the mother and son walk away, she let out a sigh of relief.
"Yaaah!" Levinas ran toward the boy, holding the Demon King Eagle card. Without hesitation, she handed over the precious card.
"Why are you giving me this?"
"It's a trade!"
Levinas gave the boy the card and dashed away, her face filled with fear as she ran without looking back. Even though she could have gotten the card for free, Levinas chose to trade. Han Yeoreum felt proud of her. As expected, our kids were the best.
That evening, back at home, I watched the children play.
"Charge! Levinas is the Warrior Horned Rabbit!"
"I'm just a cat."
"Huh?! But cats are friends with horned rabbits!"
Of course. Cats and horned rabbits were precious friends. I was smiling at the children when—
Vwoom—!
Something rippled outside the house, calling to me. The energy felt familiar, similar to a dungeon portal. It was coming from deep within the park, where people rarely went. I looked around, but no one else seemed to sense the portal. Was I the only one feeling this energy? Why could I sense a portal so far away? With that question in mind, I slipped out of the house without the children noticing.
"This is..."
A familiar scent. Drawn by nostalgia, I moved toward the portal.
Vwoooom—!
A red portal rippled like flames. Without thinking, I reached out toward it.
"Han Yeoreum!"
"......!"
Someone grabbed me from behind. Lost in the portal, I hadn't noticed Han Yeoreum approaching.
"Han Yeoreum, it's dangerous."
"S-sorry. It smelled familiar..."
"Familiar smell?"
"Yes... It felt nostalgic somehow..."
Just looking at the portal made my tail wag. I didn't know what lay beyond that made me act this way. Was there something that stimulated feline beastkin? I sniffed the portal's scent. It was clearly odorless, yet it carried the smell of longing.
"What kind of smell..."
Mana began concentrating in Han Yeoreum's eyes. It was her unique skill for checking information on a target. While it required consent when used on people, no consent was needed for an inanimate object like a portal.
"......!"
After checking the portal's information, Han Yeoreum's body trembled. Grab— Her grip on my stomach tightened. Her shaking spread through my entire body.
"What's wrong?"
"I-it's..."
After struggling to speak for a while, Han Yeoreum picked me up. She began hurrying away from the area.
"Is it okay to leave the portal like that?"
"Yeah. The guild will send people to set up a perimeter soon."
Han Yeoreum carried me in her arms, moving faster than usual. Still puzzled, I looked back at the portal over her shoulder.
"What kind of dungeon is it?"
"U-um..."
"If it's not too dangerous, could I go with you?"
"Uuuuuum..."
Han Yeoreum only mumbled. I couldn't tell what she had discovered that made her react this way. Was it a dungeon I wasn't supposed to know about? Feeling disappointed, I rested my chin on her shoulder.
"I don't know why, but I really want to go in there."
"You feel an urge to just walk in?"
"Yes... Honestly, I still want to go in right now."
I reached out toward the portal for no reason. It was a shame to watch it grow farther away.
"Just so you know, you absolutely cannot go in, okay?"
"Okay. I'll try my best to hold back."
"Try your best..."
Back at home, Han Yeoreum approached Sofia. She covered my ears tightly so I couldn't hear and whispered something to Sofia. My ears were uncovered only after Han Yeoreum finished speaking.
"So it was true."
Sofia's face turned pale. Han Yeoreum wore a similar expression.
"Yes. What should we do...?"
"Let's put Han Yeoreum to bed first."
"...Okay."
I was carried to the bedroom in a princess-carry-like position. Levinas and Saebyeok followed into the room. Not understanding the situation, I stared blankly at Han Yeoreum.
"Levinas isn't sleepy yet!"
"Hehe, how about we go to bed early just for today? Even if you can't sleep, it'll be nice to cuddle together, right?"
"Yeah! Let's go to bed early today!"
Levinas and Saebyeok snuggled into my arms. Suddenly, I couldn't move.
"Shall we go to bed early too, Han Yeoreum?"
"Yes."
I had been perfectly fine just moments ago, but the moment I lay down with the children, my eyes began to close. My body was strange. I didn't know what was going on, but for now, I decided to sleep. Through my slowly closing eyes, I saw Han Yeoreum biting her lip.