He's Mine
Kyak!
"Oh, is it good? Want another one?"
"Kyak!"
"Alright, alright. Just eat the whole thing."
Dojin smiled warmly as he watched Hwindung-i diligently tearing into the beef jerky with his beak.
After all, wasn't this bird the savior who had resolved the problem that had been giving him a headache for the past few days in a single stroke?
The already handsome goshawk looked exceptionally cool today.
Dojin lowered his gaze.
Beneath Hwindung-i's perch, the Honey Buzzard was enthusiastically tearing apart a hornet's nest.
"You really brought a lot."
There were three hornet nests that hadn't been there as of yesterday evening.
And each one was about the size of a bowling ball.
"Is someone farming hornets around here or something?"
Since they had finished off the nest found in Dojin's forest yesterday, this meant there were at least four other hornet colonies nearby.
No wonder the other villagers hadn't been particularly surprised when they heard the village chief had been stung.
"But do Honey Buzzards normally bring hornet nests back like this to eat them?"
He hadn't thought much of it yesterday, but seeing the bird pile up the nests and feast on them here felt a bit strange.
In the documentaries Dojin had watched, Honey Buzzards usually ate the nests right where they found them.
If they had a nest and chicks, they would cut off pieces of the comb containing larvae to carry back, but otherwise, they devoured them on the spot.
Yet this bird had brought the entire nest here.
A nest containing only the larvae, at that.
"Don't tell me it thinks of this place as its nest?"
Even as he said it, Dojin doubted it.
There was no mate here, nor any chicks.
Besides, according to his internet research, Honey Buzzards were migratory birds.
Since most of them left the Korean Peninsula around September or October, he figured it would probably only stay here until then.
"Still, it needs a place to stay for now."
Even Hwindung-i, who went out for a day or two every week, had his own home in the fourth-floor hallway.
He couldn't make the Honey Buzzard share that space, so he would have to set up a separate birdhouse.
"Kyak!"
"Hm? What is it, Hwindung-i? Do you want more jerky?"
Dojin turned his head at Hwindung-i's cry.
After locking eyes with Dojin a few times, Hwindung-i rubbed his head against Dojin's cheek.
It was sudden, but Dojin felt like he understood what the goshawk was feeling.
"What? Are you jealous because I keep looking at him?"
"Kyak."
When Dojin chuckled and spoke, Hwindung-i feigned innocence.
He acted as if he had done no such thing.
Yet, he shot a subtle glare down at the Honey Buzzard.
"K-Kyak?"
The Honey Buzzard, who had been quietly eating the nest on the ground, caught Hwindung-i's gaze and quickly averted his eyes.
Dojin laughed at the sight and stroked Hwindung-i's head.
"Aigoo, why are you being like this again, Hwindung-i? He's being so well-behaved, so stop bullying him."
"Kyak."
Closing his eyes to enjoy Dojin's touch, the goshawk let out a short cry.
It looked exactly as if he were saying, I'm only letting it slide because you're stopping me.
Is this a hawk or a cat?
Dojin was dumbfounded by this cat-like, petty behavior that even Bo-ri didn't display.
Tap, tap.
"Hm?"
Feeling something touch the top of his foot, Dojin looked down and saw the Honey Buzzard tapping his foot with its beak.
Noticing Dojin's gaze, the bird locked eyes with him.
They stared at each other for a moment.
And what the Honey Buzzard did next took Dojin by surprise.
Bow.
The Honey Buzzard slowly lowered its head toward the ground and raised it back up.
It felt like a human giving a polite, deep bow.
Did he just... bow? To thank me for protecting him from Hwindung-i?
Anyone else would think he was talking nonsense.
But Dojin felt that this was exactly what had happened.
Well, Bo-ri, Ttorang-i, and Hwindung-i are all highly intelligent.
Even Do-hee and Seung-wan often remarked that the animals seemed to understand their words.
Hwindung-i had even brought the Honey Buzzard here for Dojin and the others.
Since he was smart enough to bring a bird of prey that hunts wasps instead of trying to catch the wasps himself, Dojin figured the Honey Buzzard must possess no ordinary intelligence either.
"Come to think of it, you need a name."
He couldn't keep calling him "you," "this guy," or "the Honey Buzzard" forever.
Though he was a migratory bird and would eventually leave Sekki House, he still needed a proper name until then.
"Kyak!"
Seeing Dojin focus his attention on the Honey Buzzard again, Hwindung-i let out another disgruntled cry.
But it didn't last long.
As soon as Dojin handed him a fresh piece of jerky, his attention instantly shifted back to the food.
Having successfully defused the tension with a single piece of jerky, Dojin looked back at the Honey Buzzard.
"Now, let's see. Hwindung-i is named after his white feathers. For you... Blackie? Dark Blue? Which do you prefer?"
Unlike Hwindung-i, who was pure white, the Honey Buzzard's feathers were entirely dark.
However, they had a subtle blue sheen under the light, giving him an elegant air.
"Kyak?"
The Honey Buzzard tilted his head at Dojin's words, then shook it.
"Hm? You don't like either? Then... Heuk-cheong? No? How about Nam-cheong? Bluey? Cheongdung-i?"
The Honey Buzzard, who had been shaking his head at every new name, suddenly snapped his head up at the last one.
Seeing this, Dojin asked again.
"Cheongdung-i? You like Cheongdung-i?"
"Kyak."
Watching the Honey Buzzard—no, Cheongdung-i—nod his head along with a cry to clearly express his approval, Dojin smiled with satisfaction.
It had taken a bit longer to name him compared to the other animals, but Dojin was glad the bird seemed happy with it.
"Kyak."
"Oh? Is this for me?"
Perhaps because he liked his new name, Cheongdung-i tore off a piece of the hornet's nest and offered it to Dojin.
It was packed full of larvae, clearly the most nutritious part, but...
"No, thank you. I can't eat this, so you have it, Cheongdung-i."
Dojin declined the offer as gently as possible.
He didn't want to make Cheongdung-i feel awkward.
"Kyak?"
Fortunately, Cheongdung-i didn't seem to mind much.
He tilted his head at Dojin for refusing the gift, but soon went back to tearing into the nest as if nothing had happened.
Slurp, slurp, slurp.
As Cheongdung-i began plucking out and eating the larvae, Dojin turned his head away.
He knew it was the bird's staple diet, but he didn't particularly want to watch it up close.
Just then, he heard someone calling him.
"Oppa!"
Dojin smiled happily at the voice of the person he loved most in the world, but concern quickly clouded his face.
He was worried about Do-hee, who had been stung by a hornet a few days ago.
"Are you alright? You should rest for a few more days."
"I'm fine. I'm taking my medicine, and the doctor said everything was okay."
"..."
Despite Do-hee's reassurance, the worry didn't fade from Dojin's face.
Do-hee had always struggled with anemia.
While her natural constitution played a part, it was largely because she hadn't been able to eat proper meals while her family extorted living expenses from her.
She had finally gotten much healthier after we started living together...
It was thanks to regular meals and a clean environment.
After all, Do-hee had been the sickest of the three of them when they caught COVID-19, suffering the worst aftereffects.
But now, having grown stronger while living at Sekki House, she was able to maintain her normal condition even after being stung by a hornet.
With her old physical condition, she would have had to be hospitalized for a few days.
In many ways, bringing Do-hee to Sekki House had been an excellent decision.
Just then, Do-hee noticed Cheongdung-i at Dojin's feet and spoke.
"Is this the one Hwindung-i brought? The one that eats all the hornets?"
"Yeah. He's a Honey Buzzard, a hawk that mainly eats hornets. His name is Cheongdung-i."
"Cheongdung? Like thunder?"
"No, 'Cheong' as in blue. Because his feathers have a slight blue tint."
"Ah! I see. Cheongdung-i, that's a cool name."
"Kyak?"
At Do-hee's words, Cheongdung-i, who had been busy tearing at the nest, raised his head.
He looked back and forth between Do-hee and Dojin as if he knew they were talking about him, then quickly returned to his meal.
Do-hee spoke in admiration.
"He has a similar vibe to Hwindung-i. He looks very smart."
"Kyak!"
This time, Hwindung-i reacted to Do-hee's words.
However, unlike Cheongdung-i, he flapped his wings and shrieked harshly, looking quite displeased.
Watching this, Do-hee spoke in surprise.
"Oh my? Hwindung-i, are you angry because I compared you to him?"
"Kyak!"
Hwindung-i reacted once more to Do-hee's words.
Do-hee looked at Dojin with a bewildered expression.
Her eyes asked if she had really just witnessed that.
Dojin chuckled and shrugged.
"They say some birds of prey are highly intelligent. I suppose Hwindung-i and Cheongdung-i are just like that."
As Dojin stroked Hwindung-i while speaking, Ttorang-i, who had been sitting quietly, stepped forward.
"Woof!"
"Hm? What's wrong, Ttorang-i?"
The dog, who had been perfectly calm when she first walked over with Do-hee, suddenly started reacting the moment Dojin stroked Hwindung-i.
Do-hee laughed, finding it absurd.
"She's jealous too."
"Jealous? Of whom? Don't tell me... Hwindung-i?"
"Who else?"
Do-hee looked around as she answered Dojin.
Hwindung-i was wary of the newly arrived Cheongdung-i.
Ttorang-i was jealous of Hwindung-i.
And at the center of all these relationships was her boyfriend.
"Honestly, you're like the Pied Piper. Isn't your charm a bit too much?"
"Huh?"
"Nothing. I just think you're way too popular, Oppa."
Dojin wore a blank expression at Do-hee's words.
He couldn't understand what his girlfriend meant.
Popular? But I only stay at home.
The only times he had gone out recently were to tend to the crops.
"Woof, woof!"
"Just give Ttorang-i some attention. She's barking because she wants you to look at her."
"Oh, alright."
Just as Dojin reached down to stroke Ttorang-i's head at Do-hee's prompting...
Something suddenly dropped from the sky toward Dojin.
"Meow!"
"Samsaek-i!"
The familiar meow and Seung-wan's shout rang out almost simultaneously.
Immediately after, Dojin felt something land squarely on his shoulder.
"Meow."
"Huh? Samsaek-i? What are you doing here?"
Startled, Dojin looked up.
He remembered hearing Seung-wan's voice from that direction.
Sure enough, Seung-wan was looking down from the second-floor window, her face pale with fright.
"Seung-wan? What's wrong?"
"Ah... well... Samsaek-i suddenly escaped from the playroom. I chased after him, but... he suddenly jumped out the window..."
"Meow~"
Seung-wan's voice was slightly choked up with tears.
However, neither Dojin nor Do-hee pointed it out.
Recalling her scream from a moment ago, they could easily understand how terrified she must have been.
Instead, Dojin picked up Samsaek-i and looked him in the eye.
Despite worrying his caretaker, the cheeky cat was already trying to settle into a loaf position on Dojin's shoulder.
"Samsaek-i, you rascal, why are you giving Seung-wan a hard time?"
"Meow?"
"Don't play dumb. You gave Seung-wan a huge fright."
"Meow?"
"Are you going to keep ignoring me? Apologize to Seung-wan right now."
"Mee-ow..."
At Dojin's scolding, Samsaek-i reluctantly turned his head.
Tucking his front paws politely, he locked eyes with Seung-wan, tilted his head slightly, and let out a soft cry.
"Meow!"
"...Sigh, he really knows how cute he is."
Despite her words, Seung-wan's face had already melted into a soft smile.
To a cat lover like her, the aegyo of a kitten—especially one as handsome as Samsaek-i—was an instant get-out-of-jail-free card.
Relieved, Dojin let Samsaek-i settle back onto his shoulder.
There was no point in putting him on the ground only for him to climb right back up, and this way, his paws wouldn't get dirty.
But this time, Hwindung-i reacted to the sight.
"Kyak!"
"Meow!"
Hwindung-i flapped his wings as if demanding the cat get off Dojin's shoulder immediately, but Samsaek-i refused to back down.
Instead, he clung to Dojin's head and let out a cute, defiant meow.
Seeing this, Do-hee's expression grew strange once again.
"Hwindung-i is jealous of Samsaek-i, and Samsaek-i is jealous of Ttorang-i. What is this, I Am Solo?"
Do-hee had seen it all.
She had watched Samsaek-i jump from the second floor without hesitation the moment Dojin started petting Ttorang-i.
In other words, the cat's sudden reckless behavior was purely to stop Dojin from showing affection to Ttorang-i.
Samsaek-i was keeping an eye on Ttorang-i, Ttorang-i on Hwindung-i...
And Hwindung-i was wary of Samsaek-i. It was a vicious love triangle.
By now, Cheongdung-i's presence didn't matter to the three of them at all.
They were solely focused on keeping each other at bay while vying for Dojin's attention.
Snap!
"Hey, he's my boyfriend..."
Provoked by the animals openly trying to steal her boyfriend, Do-hee grabbed Dojin's hand and pulled him close.
"Huh? What's—mgh!"
Smooch!
At the sudden kiss, the cat, the dog, and the two birds stared blankly at the couple.
After about ten seconds, they parted.
"D-Do-hee? What was that for?"
Do-hee smirked.
Ignoring Dojin, who was flustered by the sudden skinship, Do-hee declared to the animals,
"This guy is mine, so back off, you beasts!"