Farewell... Chicken
"Huh? How did you know?"
I couldn't hold back my trembling voice.
How does she know...?
Han Seorin didn't avoid my gaze—instead, she grinned like she found it amusing.
"How did I know? No idea what you're talking about. We just happened to bump into each other on the street."
A coincidence...?
Okay, sure, coincidences happen... but how did she know I had gold bars?
"Yeah... I guess that could happen... But how did you know there were gold bars in my bag?"
Under my probing, Han Seorin scratched her chin and shrugged nonchalantly.
She didn't seem flustered at all.
"Oh, that? I saw you coming out of the Jongno Jewelry Store earlier."
"You saw me?"
"Yeah. You were grinning ear to ear like you were about to die of happiness. Didn't wanna interrupt your moment, so I just followed quietly."
Damn... was it that obvious?
My face burned hot.
Me, walking around grinning like an idiot?
To everyone else, it must've looked like some kid clutching a bag and giggling to herself.
Ever since the TS, my estrogen levels must've spiked—my emotions were probably plastered all over my face without me realizing.
"Ahem... Was it that obvious?"
I cleared my throat awkwardly and averted my eyes, and Han Seorin let out a soft chuckle.
"Haha, super obvious. It was adorable, though?"
Her word "adorable" made my ears twitch inside my hoodie.
Han Seorin slowly scanned me from head to toe with her sleepy eyes.
Why's she looking at me like that...?
Her gaze was a bit intense, but I didn't sense any of the madness or obsession Cha Eunwol had warned me about—frothing at the mouth like she was having a fit.
She just gave off the vibe of a neighborhood NEET big sis who hits the booze a lot.
"Anyway, nice seeing you again. Thanks a ton for earlier."
"Huh? Oh, the sandwich recipe I gave you?"
"Yeah, I made it just like you said, and it was so good. Got one over on my friend who's always teasing me about my cooking sucking."
Han Seorin started to pet my head on instinct but caught herself, pulled her hand back, and gave a casual wave.
"Well, I'll get going. Try not to grin like that again—you'll get robbed with that gold."
"...I won't anymore... Take care."
With that farewell, Han Seorin shuffled off into the alley without looking back.
Really... nothing to it? Compared to how Cha Eunwol hyped her up.
I stood there blankly, staring at her retreating figure until she vanished completely into the alley.
A question bubbled up in my mind.
What... she's really just leaving...?
Cha Eunwol called her a psycho, but she just said hi like it was no big deal and bounced. I felt like an idiot for being so on guard.
Was she just trying to scare me 'cause I'm too carefree? Still, calling her own acquaintance that... narrow-minded much?
Anyway, an S-rank hunter—who doesn't even know about my kneading effects yet—has no reason to obsess over me.
"Eh... good's good."
I readjusted my bag and headed home with light steps.
Once she was deep in the alley and Baek Arang's presence faded away,
Han Seorin's shuffling footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
Her sleepy, relaxed eyes suddenly sharpened with intense life—and madness.
The faint smile on her lips deepened into a chilling, heavy curve.
"She lives around here, huh..."
Han Seorin glanced toward the direction Baek Arang had gone and muttered to herself as she exited the alley.
She slowly surveyed the path Baek Arang had taken.
A bit removed from the bustling streets.
"Hm... Security here's kinda iffy, right? Does she live alone?"
Cha Eunwol's got her wrapped around her finger like a kid—why's she living in a dump like this? With Cha Eunwol's personality, I'd figured she'd shoved her right next door by now.
"I'm worried... really worried..."
Actually, this might be for the best? If she lived with that Cha Eunwol bitch, it'd be harder to get close.
She wanted to barge into Baek Arang's place right now, scoop her up in a hug, and drag her home.
She was grateful for the recipe, sure... but more than that, those ears and tail she was desperately hiding were irresistibly appealing.
A cat-eared beauty in the flesh...
She didn't seem to realize... but from the cafe onward, whenever her emotions flared, those ears perked up noticeably. It was so cute.
No... if I force it now... Arang would hate it, right?
That won't do.
She hated the idea of hearing "I hate you" from Arang, and Cha Eunwol would be a pain too.
Now that it was clear Cha Eunwol was hovering protectively, trying to snatch her by force would just annoy everyone—and Arang would definitely avoid her.
Slowly... gotta take it slow... She liked the cafe, so... build friendship gradually.
Very slowly, like clothes soaking in a drizzle—melt into her life naturally, ease her guard, until she comes to me first.
"Gotta touch those ears someday."
Han Seorin glanced up at Baek Arang's place as she entered, then turned on her heel without regret and vanished into the darkness.
Click.
The door lock engaged with a solid sound, and only then did the tension drain from my body.
"Haa... finally feel like I can breathe..."
I kicked off my shoes haphazardly and shuffled into the room.
I carefully set the heavy bag on the desk, then headed straight to the bathroom for a quick shower.
I was getting used to my naked reflection in the mirror now.
Still... so small.
I pushed aside the uncomfortable truth and let the warm shower water melt away the day's fatigue.
Tiger beastkin supposedly hate water, but not me.
White Tiger thing, maybe?
"Mmm..."
After the shower, with my body all steamy and warm, I slipped into fluffy pajamas and flopped onto the bed.
Thanks to daily kneading reinforcements, the mattress cradled me like a cloud.
I wriggled over, grabbed the two gold bars from the desk, hugged them tight to my chest, and lay back.
Hehe, dream come true at last.
The cold touch of the gold against my warm skin felt oddly satisfying.
This is capitalism's flavor.
The eternal, unchanging weight of gold.
"Grrr... purr."
Feeling so good, a lazy purr slipped out unbidden.
My tail swished happily back and forth.
This is life...
Gold bars in this tiny studio felt a bit out of place, but fulfilling my old dream made me blissfully happy.
I rolled around on the bed hugging them for a while until—
Gurgle.
My stomach started protesting for food.
Oh right... haven't eaten.
Come to think of it, just a bit of sandwich at the cafe, then nothing—forgot all about meals while making strawberry cream donuts and running around buying gold.
"Hmm... what to order?"
Still sprawled on the bed, I opened the delivery app and scrolled thoughtfully.
What to eat... to satisfy this tiny tummy without wasting any...
The tasty food pics made my mouth water, but thinking of my small stomach brought on a wave of gloom.
Then I remembered the soggy leftover chicken shoved in the fridge.
"Ah... that was still there..."
Cold, soggy, dried-out chicken from the fridge.
Gold bars at home, and I'm eating leftover chicken. What a joke.
But I couldn't toss it—the poor chicken that died to become this deserved to be finished.
No waste.
A brief wave of depression hit, but I sprang up and headed to the kitchen.
I pulled out the chilled leftover chicken box from the fridge.
It'd lightened up nicely from eating most of it before.
"Can't eat it plain—too dry and mushy..."
I gloved up and carefully stripped the meat off the bones.
Put a pan on the fire, added a drizzle of oil, tossed in the chicken, and stir-fried slowly.
Poured on a sauce of soy, oligo sugar, oyster sauce... and a splash of hot chicken sauce.
Sizzle. Spicy-sweet aroma filled the kitchen.
Good, filling's done.
Now for the wrapper bread.
Not sure if it's the TS, but I've been eating more bread than rice lately—oh well, it's tasty.
In a big bowl, flour, salt, warm water—light kneading to form dough.
Plopped the rough dough on the board, rolled it super thin and wide with the pin.
Into a dry pan, flipped both sides—homemade tortilla done in a flash.
Laid the fresh tortilla on the board, piled on heaps of stir-fried chicken.
Grabbed some lettuce rolling around in the fridge, topped it, squirted mayo, rolled it tight.
"Done."
Tortilla chicken wrap or something?
I gripped it with both hands, opened wide, and took a big bite.
Crunch.
"Mmm!"
My eyes flew open at the flavor explosion.
Chewy, neutral tortilla perfectly hugging spicy-sweet chicken and crisp lettuce.
Couldn't believe it came from stale leftovers.
"This is really good..."
I stuffed my cheeks full, chewing away.
Now, farewell to the chicken.