The Cat's Secret Language
“Have you played with the cat yet, Seia?”
“Nooo. Seia wants to pet the cat, but I think I have to give it food first.”
Oh ho.
She meant to draw its attention and affection with food, then try petting it once its guard was lowered.
“All right. Daddy will help.”
“Yay!”
“Wait just a moment. I’ll have it ready soon.”
Jungwoo took some of the meat he had bought earlier, boiled it briefly in water, tore it into small pieces, and placed it on a plate for Seia.
Seia accepted the plate with both hands, her expression now saying there was nothing left to worry about, and headed back outside the restaurant.
The bell chimed softly. Jungwoo watched her from inside.
“Can’t miss a scene like this.”
There was still work to be done, but a short break wouldn’t hurt. Yes, it was the perfect excuse for a quick rest—the time it took to drink a fatigue recovery potion.
He pulled out his phone and captured photos of Seia and the cat. The glass window between them only made the shots feel more atmospheric. He was quite satisfied.
Seia, carrying the plate of meat, recalled yesterday’s memory. She remembered how she had tossed the food instead of offering it directly, so as not to startle the aloof cat.
So this time as well, she didn’t pick up the meat with her hands. Instead, she carefully set the plate down right in front of the cat.
“Seia brought the meat.”
The cat flinched at the hand that had come too close, then twitched its nose at the tempting scent of meat. It began to eat cautiously.
Seia crouched a short distance away and watched the cat eat in silence. She wanted to speak to it, but she kept her mouth firmly shut, worried that bothering it while it ate would only backfire.
The cat, which had been eating with gusto, suddenly turned its head away with a prim air after finishing about half the portion.
“Are you all done?”
Seia felt bad about the leftovers, but she figured the cat wasn’t so different from herself. It would probably come back for the rest once it got hungry again. With that thought, she climbed back onto the chair beside the cat.
It was a wide chair, spacious enough for Seia to sit with her legs stretched out comfortably.
While she sat there, the cat suddenly leaped up and landed right beside her.
“C-Cat!”
Perhaps the cat had found its old spot too cramped. Maybe it had already begun to open its heart the first time it came here. Of course, the wider, higher chair might simply have been more comfortable, but that explanation alone didn’t account for how the cat now settled beside Seia and began to knead the seat with its paws—as if to say it was all right to touch it. As if it were granting permission for a hand to stroke from its head down its back.
Seia swallowed and slowly reached out toward the cheese-colored bundle of fur. The coat looked impossibly soft. The white rabbit plush at home was always soft to the touch, but Seia had never felt the fur of a living animal like a cat or dog before.
Her careful hand finally touched the cat’s back. The cat simply stared straight ahead, pretending not to notice.
“S-Soft…”
It was soft, and above all, warm. She could feel the gentle rise and fall of its breathing. Seia’s hand slowly moved upward, as if following her own desire. What had started as stroking its back had, without her realizing it, reached its neck. One more step higher, and her hand could touch its head. At last, she could run her palm along the gentle curve from the cat’s head to its back.
“Heehee…”
It was only petting a cat, yet she felt nothing but pure happiness. She was always happy when she was with her father, but this was a slightly different kind of happiness.
Then, suddenly, Seia’s hand stopped. The cat had begun to make a low, rumbling sound.
“Ah!”
Did that mean “stop”? Was it uncomfortable? No matter how she thought about it, that low growl didn’t sound like a good thing.
“S-Sowwy, Cat…”
Had it been greedy of her to pet its head after it had only allowed her to touch it? Seia pulled her hand away and looked at the cat with a slightly downcast expression. What if the cat left today and never came back? The worry filled her mind.
“……”
Someone was watching Seia.
Yeeun’s usual route to work happened to pass right by Seona’s Restaurant. Normally she would have driven, but after learning yesterday that the restaurant stood along her path, she had chosen to walk today.
“She’s playing with the cat.”
At S-rank, a hunter’s vision and hearing were sharp enough to perceive distant scenes as clearly as if they were right in front of them. She hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, yet she had unintentionally caught the conversation between Seia and the cat.
‘S-Sowwy, Cat…’
Yeeun wondered what Seia was apologizing for. Had she accidentally hurt the cat? Worried that something might be wrong, she kept watching—and the situation was quite different from what she had imagined.
Seia was apologizing to the cat that had been growling. Without realizing it, Yeeun found her feet turning toward the restaurant. It was a small story she would never have witnessed if she hadn’t walked to work. She felt grateful to have seen it with her own eyes.
By the time Yeeun reached the front of the restaurant, Seia still hadn’t taken her eyes off the cat. Her head was slightly bowed, her lips and cheeks faintly puffed out. Yeeun looked down at her, and Seia, sensing the presence, lifted her head.
“Oh, Onnie?”
“Ah, hello?”
“Hellooo…”
Seia’s voice was completely deflated. It had started bright, but the moment she remembered the delicate situation with the cat, it sank noticeably.
“Um… Is something wrong?”
Yeeun wasn’t sure how to begin. How had she used to talk to her little sister? It was a distant memory, and she had worked hard to forget most of it. This wasn’t something willpower alone could solve. Ever since magic stones—objects imbued with unknown power—had appeared in the world, science had advanced at an unimaginable pace. While completely erasing memories was impossible, it was possible to remove most of them.
“Well… I petted the cat, and it didn’t like it…”
“Hmm… Why did you think that?”
Yeeun spoke in the kindest tone she could manage, but even to her own ears it sounded more like she was interrogating the child.
“When I petted it, it growled at me.”
“I-I see. But cats make that sound when they’re happy.”
“…Weally?”
Hope flickered in Seia’s downcast eyes.
So it hadn’t been because the cat was upset or uncomfortable. On the contrary, it had purred because it was enjoying itself.
“Yeah. Want to try petting it again?”
“…Yes!”
Seia nodded vigorously at Yeeun’s words and carefully placed her hand on the cat’s back once more. Thankfully, the cat didn’t move. When she went further and stroked its head, the same low rumbling sound returned.
Purr, purr.
The sound came at regular intervals, yet the cat remained perfectly still—as if to say it was all right to continue.
“I-It’s twue!”
“See? The cat’s happy.”
“Wow… Onnie, you’re so smart.”
Yeeun found herself smiling without meaning to. It wasn’t exactly a radiant smile, but at least it no longer looked stiff.
“Well then, Onnie’s going to head out now.”
“Where are you going?”
“To work.”
“Okay! Bye, Onnie!”
“…Yeah. Bye.”
Something about Seia’s final farewell felt less like “have a good day” and more like “see you again soon.” Yeeun kept her smile as she turned to leave.
“W-Wait a moment!”
Jungwoo’s voice called out from behind her.
While preparing to open the restaurant, Jungwoo had glanced outside to check on Seia and the cat. To his surprise, he spotted Yeeun—the very person who had given him the ten-thousand-won bill yesterday.
He grabbed three ten-thousand-won bills and rushed outside, calling her to a stop.
“What is it?”
“It’s about the bill you gave me yesterday.”
“Ah, yes.”
Yeeun had assumed he wanted to thank her, so she was about to say it was fine—when Jungwoo continued.
“I think you gave me the wrong one.”
“…Pardon?”
“It looks like a ten-thousand-won bill, but it isn’t worth ten thousand won. The appearance is the same, but the value isn’t.”
“So…?”
It was the last thing she had expected to hear. It wasn’t a hundred thousand won, nor a million. Even if the other person had made a mistake, pretending not to notice could have netted her thirty million won later. And this man had a child to raise. She didn’t know where the mother was, but it was obvious they weren’t living together.
“So I thought you gave it to me by mistake. I wanted to return it.”
“…You’re returning it.”
Yeeun’s voice had dropped, unreadable—neither cold nor blunt. Jungwoo looked at her in confusion.
“Um… yes. I’m sorry…?”
What was he supposed to do with someone like this? Raising a child while being unnecessarily honest. He could tell at a glance: this person didn’t want the money. She wanted to know the truth about it.
It wasn’t a mistake. It had simply been a small gesture, hoping the child could be raised without hardship.
“…You’re right. I must have given it to you by mistake.”
“Whew… That’s a relief. Here it is.”
Jungwoo let out a genuinely relieved sigh as the three bills passed from his hands back into Yeeun’s.
Yeeun handed one of them back to him.
“Why are you…?”
“It’s a reward.”
She knew he would never accept it if she simply gave it to him. So she framed it as a reward—something he couldn’t refuse.
“Excuse me?”
“If you had pretended not to notice, I probably never would have found it. Thanks to you, I did. So I’ll give you one bill.”
“Still, one bill is a thousand…”
“Please take it. It’ll put my mind at ease.”
“Ah, all right. Then I’ll accept it. Thank you.”
Jungwoo still looked utterly bewildered, as if he couldn’t quite decide whether he was allowed to keep the money.
Perhaps it was frustrating at times, but maybe it was precisely because he had this kind of personality that he could raise Seia the way he did.
Yeeun turned and walked away. After a few steps, she looked back and waved at Seia.