The Bunny Girl Refund Incident
***
Miji sprinted toward Seong-a’s house as fast as her legs could carry her.
“Damn it, I’m going to be late…!”
Originally, she was supposed to watch the girl cam day with Ha-im and Rona, but her flight had been delayed. So she had no choice but to swim all the way from Jeju Island to Seoul. And she did it in just one hour.
She had given up on watching the stream and swam here, but missing it entirely would be way too disappointing. She quickly punched in the passcode Ha-im had given her and flung open the soundproof booth door.
“……!”
The moment she saw the scene inside the booth, Miji’s eyes widened. Rona and Ha-im were both kneeling with their hands in the air, and it was obvious from Seong-a’s face that she was furious.
“…….”
Their eyes met. The instant Miji sensed the threat to her life, she spun around to run, but it was already too late.
“Stop.”
“…….”
“Why are you here?”
The question she had expected came flying at her. Miji turned her head and answered.
“Haha, well, I had some business with the Association, so I thought I’d stop by…”
Seong-a gave her a suspicious look, but thankfully didn’t press further…
“Tell the truth.”
“…….”
As expected, she couldn’t lie to Seong-a.
“It’s because you said you were doing a girl cam day…”
“…….”
Seong-a glared at the two of them with an even scarier expression. Rona and Ha-im automatically averted their eyes.
“But I really do have work at the Association!”
Miji defended the other two as best she could, but Seong-a’s anger showed no sign of cooling down. Finally, Seong-a let out a long sigh and stood up.
“You two, stay on your knees with your hands up until I get back.”
“Yes…”
“Understood…”
As the two girls’ shoulders slumped, Seong-a and Miji stepped outside. If they put their hands down while she was gone, she had no intention of answering their calls for an entire month.
***
We ended up at Hongdae.
“Babe, are you still really mad…?”
I took a deep breath. I needed to hold it together for now. They say that holding in your anger three times can even turn a murderer into a saint.
“…Haa. I’m not mad, so you don’t have to be so nervous.”
I swept my hair back. These idiots must think I’m a pushover just because I’ve been nice to them. How dare they prepare a bunny girl outfit?
“U-um, where do you want to go? We can go anywhere you want!”
“Anywhere?”
“Yeah!”
Miji nodded enthusiastically, but honestly, I felt a little awkward. It wasn’t even her fault, yet she was walking on eggshells because of me. I felt a bit sorry.
‘Still… somewhere I want to go…’
I hadn’t really thought about it, but if I had to pick one…
“The aquarium?”
***
We headed straight to the aquarium. Since it was the weekend, the place was packed.
“It’s surprising that you wanted to come to an aquarium.”
“Is it?”
“You don’t exactly seem like the type to enjoy this kind of thing.”
Was that so? Honestly, I didn’t have much interest in aquariums either. I just picked a place I wouldn’t normally go.
“Hmm… babe, want me to show you something cool?”
“Something cool?”
“Just wait! Look around the aquarium for a bit!”
“……?”
Miji waved and disappeared somewhere. It was a little ridiculous, but I had no choice but to explore the aquarium by myself.
‘Hmm, so this is what an aquarium is like…’
It was actually pretty fun watching all the sea creatures gathered in one place. I got so absorbed in looking at the turtles, walruses, and penguins that I lost track of time.
‘I guess I like animals more than I thought…’
I only realized it now. Even when I was young, I hadn’t been particularly interested in animals, and in this world the only pet I’d ever had was a cat named Butterfly. I felt a little regretful that I was only discovering this now.
I wanted to keep looking around, but my legs were starting to hurt from all the walking. Just then—
Knock knock!
A tapping sound came from the glass beside me. When I turned my head, a cute mermaid with pink hair greeted me.
“Hi there!”
“You…”
“Shh!”
“…….”
The appearance of a mermaid that should only exist in fairy tales drew a huge crowd toward me. Cameras started flashing everywhere.
Click! Click!
‘Ugh, it’s so stuffy…!’
I got swept up in the wave of people taking photos. It was the weekend, so the crowd was insane. It felt like pure hell. Miji must have noticed how uncomfortable I was because she quickly moved to another spot, and the crowd followed her.
Only then could I finally catch my breath, clutching my knees.
‘Phew, I thought I was going to die…’
Having barely escaped the mob, I looked in the direction everyone was heading.
‘Should I follow them…?’
I really didn’t have the confidence to endure that crowd again. Sorry, Miji, but I was going to have to make a run for it. I immediately turned in the opposite direction.
“Hmm, trying to ditch me and run away? I’m disappointed.”
A familiar voice came from behind me. Unfortunately, I’d been caught before I could escape.
“Haha, sorry…”
“Good thing I came quickly. I almost missed you.”
“Places with lots of people drain my energy…”
Asking me to endure another crowd like that was too much. I wasn’t Rona or Su-ha. I looked at Miji, who had slipped inside the tank.
“By the way, why did you go inside the tank?”
“I have something to show you. Follow me!”
“……?”
Miji swam ahead quickly, motioning for me to follow. I trailed after her. When I saw what was in front of me, I was genuinely shocked.
Sea lions, seals, all kinds of fish—animals I hadn’t been able to see properly because I was too tired—were all gathered in one place. I couldn’t take my eyes off the sight.
“How did you do this?”
“You have weak stamina, babe. So I gathered them all here. Take your time and enjoy.”
“…….”
At those words, I slowly looked at all the sea creatures Miji had gathered. Sea lions, orcas, sharks, stingrays, and all sorts of fish species crammed into one space—it was absolutely spectacular.
“How did you gather so many?”
“Most mermaids have a strong affinity with sea creatures. So I asked them nicely.”
Affinity, huh. So she couldn’t control them? When I pressed my hand against the glass, even the orca came over and bumped its head against it. For some reason, it seemed really happy to see me.
“They say they like you, babe.”
“Why?”
Miji asked right away. When she heard the answer, her expression gradually darkened.
“What is it? Don’t hold back, just tell me.”
“Well… they say you don’t feel like a person, so they like you…”
“…….”
They like me because I don’t feel like a person. As expected, animals’ senses were frighteningly sharp.
“Don’t pay attention to that. Animals just say meaningless things.”
“Don’t worry. I don’t get bothered by stuff like this.”
Who in the world would get upset over something like that? By the time we finished looking around, a question suddenly occurred to me.
“By the way, how did you get inside the tank?”
Could normal people just go in and out of aquarium tanks like this?
“I told them I’d be their advertising model, and they immediately agreed.”
“……?”
They accepted right away? That seemed suspicious.
“And as a bonus, I threatened to go to another aquarium if they didn’t let me.”
Ah, then they had no choice. While I was nodding in understanding, my phone rang from inside my bag. The caller was none other than Kim Kwon-ho, the team leader of the Returnee Department.
“Hello?”
“You’re at the aquarium with Miji right now, correct?”
“……?”
What was this about? He called out of nowhere and immediately said that?
“How did you know?”
“I tracked your location, of course.”
The returnee phones were provided by the Association, so tracking the location wasn’t strange. I would have done the same. In fact, it would have been weirder if he hadn’t. Of course, I planned to change the phone later.
“What about her?”
“Please tell her to come quickly. The appointment time has been pushed back by an hour.”
The call ended after that. I looked at Miji.
“Why are we suddenly going to the Association?”
Miji just smiled and shrugged.
“I don’t know either. They just asked me to help with something?”
“…….”
This felt a little suspicious… Having been burned by the Association before, I was a bit wary. It wasn’t another case of the awakeners’ information getting leaked, was it? I felt like I should check.
“Then can I come with you?”
“Suddenly?”
“You showed me something nice, so I should return the favor.”
“Sure, I don’t mind.”
Once our opinions aligned, we headed straight for the Association.