Detective Rabbit Baaang!
The detective rabbit went Baaang! After honking the horn, I switched lanes and pulled up alongside the car in front. I rolled down the window with a flourish. It was some middle-aged guy with a patchy beard.
"Listen here."
"Listen here, my ass, you piece of shit. Who the hell changes lanes without signaling, you crazy bastard? Is your blinker detachable like that useless head of yours?"
"W-what did you just say? I've never seen such a crazy bitch!"
"We almost crashed, you moron. How'd you even get a license with a brain the size of a soju cap? Ugh."
Baaang! Baaang!
I said my piece and shut the window. The guy kept blasting his horn like he was about to explode.
"I really want to slap him. I've got so much more to say, but I'm holding back."
I remembered the tattoo arm sleeves one of Manwook's guys had given me, saying I'd need them if I ever drove. I should've taken them back then.
"You guys okay?"
"Yeah!"
"Beep!"
The two fluffy bundles clinging to the window looked startled, eyes wide. I gave each of them a quick pat on the head, and they went right back to chattering and staring outside.
"Buying a car was great, but this is the real problem."
"If I took a taxi, the driver would handle the fighting for me."
After making the right turn at the intersection, the market parking lot came into view. I pulled in with a screech and parked.
"We're here. Time to get out, fluffballs."
Once I opened the door, the two little ones who had been glued to the window tumbled out in a rush.
"We'll do some shopping and stop by the pet store for toys and supplies. Dan-pung doesn't have anything decent at home."
"Yep. She made a friend."
"Great!"
"Oh, that's nice."
"Yeah!"
I reached up and patted Baek Seol's head on my shoulder. A tiny ear poked out between my fingers.
"Beep!"
"Yeah, we're going to buy Dan-pung some toys."
"Beep-beep!"
The two fluffballs chattered nonstop the whole walk to the store. Back when I first started streaming, just dealing with viewers was already overwhelming. Now that things felt manageable, I'd somehow picked up another chatterbox. No breaks at all.
"He jumped down from a big tree and wanted to come with me, so I brought him along."
"He said he was stressed out because of his neighbors—a huge chicken and a pig."
Listening to a squirrel complain about chicken and pig neighbors while out for a walk… even saying it out loud felt ridiculous.
Ding-a-ling!
The moment I opened the pet store door, the owner—who'd been tidying the shelves—greeted me with a smile.
"Welcome! Oh my, our little lady is here."
"Hello, ma'am!"
"Come on in. Baek Seol, you too."
"Yeah!"
"Beep!"
"Oh my goodness?"
The owner, who looked to be in her forties and still young, came closer and stared at Dan-pung before turning to me.
"A squirrel?"
"Yep. His name's Dan-pung. We met on a walk and became friends."
"He must be wary of people, yet he didn't run away. How fascinating."
Dan-pung flicked his fluffy tail on my shoulder, greeting the owner.
"Beep-beep!"
"Aww, how adorable."
"I came to buy him some toys."
The owner smiled and pulled out a basket, dropping a brush inside before handing it to me.
"This one's on the house."
"Thank you!"
"Take your time looking around."
She probably knew that every time I visited the market, I left with my hands full. At this point, I could confidently call myself the market's VIP.
"If you see anything you like while walking around, just toss it in here."
"Yay!"
"Beep-beep!"
"Don't wander off—stay together."
"Okay!"
"Beep!"
The two fluffballs hopped down and started their shopping spree, glancing around curiously.
"You two, cut the nonsense or you're getting cut off."
After calming down the bickering viewers, I finally had time to shop. I strolled slowly, scanning the neatly lined-up products.
"Hey, what about this?"
Just like the viewers said, since Dan-pung originally lived high up, a hammock would probably suit him well.
"This bark-textured scratching tower looks good too."
Since big items had to be delivered, I kept browsing while tossing smaller things into the basket. Then a group of kids came running over, each holding a packaged item in their mouth.
"Put it in here."
I lowered the basket, and they tossed their finds inside.
"You picked a doll?"
"Beep-beep!"
"Yeah!"
I thought they'd pick more, but both of them climbed back onto my shoulders. Guess the shopping game was over.
"Let's see…"
Baek Seol had chosen an acorn-shaped doll, and Dan-pung had picked a carrot-shaped one. They must've chosen them for each other.
"How did you know Baek Seol likes carrot dolls?"
"Beep-beep!"
"You heard that too?"
"Beep-beep!"
Every time Dan-pung flicked his tail, his soft fur brushed against my neck, tickling me. They must've had quite the conversation while I wasn't looking.
"If you're done, let's pay and go."
When we reached the register, the owner greeted us with a warm smile.
"Can the large tower with the bark scratcher be delivered?"
"Of course."
It was too big to fit in the SUV, so I hoped Dan-pung would like it at least a little.
Beep! Beep!
"That'll be 520,000 won."
"Yep."
More than I expected. The dolls the kids picked were only a few thousand won each. The expensive wooden tower must've been the main culprit.
"Let's go."
"Come again soon."
"Yep."
Once we stepped outside, the two fluffballs started bouncing with excitement. They really did prefer being outside.
"Gotta go grocery shopping. Maybe I'll do a cooking stream for once?"
"Drinks sound good."
While chatting with the viewers as we walked, I spotted someone dashing around frantically, black hair flying. Twin tails. A familiar face.
"Haemalgeum."
"Huh?"
Haemalgeum whipped her head around at my voice and came running over in a panic.
"Unnieee!!!"
"Whoa."
She threw herself at me and hugged my waist tight.
"What are you doing here?"
"I was drawing and the cat ran away!"
"What are you talking about?"
Her face was covered in paint as she rambled.
"Remember that stall drawing you asked for last time? I've been coming out whenever I had time to draw for the elderly vendors."
"Oh, that's cool."
I patted her head, but her expression only grew more miserable. Normally she'd be smiling brightly, so something must've happened.
"I was drawing at one of the vendor stalls when the owner—who keeps a cat—let me try petting it. It was so cute, but it ran away. What do I do…?"
"What do you mean, what do you do? How are you planning to find a runaway cat?"
"Uuuung!"
She stomped her feet, on the verge of tears. Her big eyes were brimming with moisture.
"Unnie, it's cold…"
"Beep!"
"Unnie, huh…?"
Haemalgeum, still clinging to my waist and chattering, looked up. Her eyes met Dan-pung's on my shoulder.
"This is Dan-pung."
"Yeah."
"Beep-beep!"
"Nice to meet you! I'm Haemalgeum… Unnieee."
Her bright greeting faded instantly. She probably tried to pet the cat without thinking, assuming it was used to people, and things went wrong. Still, a cat is a cat. They're sensitive creatures that panic and bolt at the slightest loud noise.
Boing! Boing!
Seeing Haemalgeum's gloomy face, Dan-pung gently tapped her head with his tail.
"Dan-pung… Unnie's cold…"
"Beep-beep."
"Alright, alright."
"Really!?"
She looked at me like I was some magic lamp that could grant any wish. I'm just a human with limits. Yet she grinned like it was obvious I'd find the cat.
"Haemalgeum, did you actually touch the cat?"
"Yeah. Just brushed against it once."
"Then give me your hand."
"Hand?"
She held out her hand, looking confused as I rubbed it a few times.
"Baek Seol, want to sniff her palm?"
"Yeah!"
Baek Seol slid down my arm and sniffed.
"Smell!"
"Does it smell like a cat?"
"It does!!"
"Can you tell where it is?"
"Smell!"
Baek Seol rubbed her face against my palm.
"Got it. Sorry."
"Smell!"
"Yeah, sorry."
"Smell!"
The rabbit on my palm couldn't stop rubbing and even started rolling around. Baek Seol already hated other animals getting close to me, so making her sniff like this was understandable.
"Unnie, why's Baek Seol acting like that all of a sudden?"
"She doesn't like other animal smells."
"Ah…"
Baek Seol kept sniffing my palm and rubbing against her own body, trying to cover the foreign scent with her own.
"All done?"
"Yeah!"
Guess the limit was Dan-pung. Baek Seol wasn't an ordinary rabbit. I only did this because I was worried Haemalgeum might get hurt, but now we had a whole situation on our hands.
"Think you can find somewhere with the same smell?"
Baek Seol rubbed her cheek against my palm once more, then looked up at the sky. Her ears twitched as she seemed to be pinpointing the location.
"It's there!"
"There?"
"Yeah!"
"Nice. Let's try out what we just bought while we're at it."
Among the things I'd swept up at the pet store was a small camera that could be worn around an animal's neck.
Click.
"Not uncomfortable, right?"
"Nope!"
It was light enough that Baek Seol seemed fine with it.
"Want to watch too?"
"I've got this."
I tapped one of the apps on my phone, and a notification popped up with a chime.
Ding-ding!
Welcome to Cosmos Link
Cosmos Link. The so-called orbital communication internet service. It worked fine even on deserted islands, so this would be no problem. Good thing I'd used it during the island survival stream and asked the organizers to keep the service active just in case.
"Baek Seol, can you bring the kitty back?"
"Yeah!"
"Dan-pung, you going too?"
"Beep-beep!"
Thud, thud.
The two fluffballs hopped down without hesitation and headed forward.
Ding-ding!
Meanwhile, the Cosmos Link connection notification chimed.
"Wow, Unnie! I can actually see from Baek Seol's perspective!"
Haemalgeum excitedly shoved her phone toward me.
"Yeah. They're doing great."
In the video, Baek Seol was moving purposefully in one direction. A few strands of her fur were visible on the camera, confirming the connection was solid.
"Is it really okay to just send Baek Seol and Dan-pung like that?"
"Yeah."
"Waaah, that's a shame."
"What's a shame?"
"Baek Seol moving around is so cute, but it only lasts once."
"Hmm…"
I stared at Haemalgeum. She rolled her big eyes around before breaking into a sly grin.
"You can edit it and upload it yourself."
"Huh… Really? I thought you hated YouTube, Unnie."
"Just this once."
"Okay."
"Over there!"
"Beep-beep?"
"Yeah!"
Thud. Thud-thud.