Even a Lonely Squirrel Has Its Burrow - Chapter 135

Since Garam looked so excited, Sa Muheon wanted nothing more than to leave for the trip right away, but there were matters he needed to take care of first.

The travel destination was a villa owned by his mother. It had been so long since he’d last visited that he couldn’t even remember how old he had been at the time.

The reason it suddenly came to mind was because of Garam, who had been so delighted to see the snow piling up in the garden.

The villa was breathtaking in the snowy winter. His mother had always loved that place, which made her feel as if she had stepped into a fairy tale. Even now, she and his father would spend a quiet retreat there together every winter.

Sa Muheon suggested they leave the following weekend. From that moment on, Garam had shown nothing but excitement.

– Oh my, what’s gotten into you?

“I think Garam will enjoy it more than I will.”

– Hoho, is that so? Then of course I should say yes. I’ll contact the caretaker for you. Is there anything else you need?

“We’ll only be staying for the weekend, so just having plenty of food should be enough.”

– Alright, got it.

Fortunately, his mother gave her permission without hesitation. Since the villa wasn’t in daily use, a caretaker who lived nearby managed it, and she added that it would take some time to get the place cleaned up.

Hearing that next weekend would give them enough time to prepare, Sa Muheon felt relieved. If he had suggested leaving right away without checking, he might’ve seen a disappointed look on Garam’s face.

“What did she say?”

Garam, who had been glued to his side listening in on the call, asked with shining eyes. He probably had a good idea of what had been said, but it was adorable that he asked anyway.

“She said to have a great trip.”

“Waaah…”

Garam beamed and threw his arms around Sa Muheon. Sa Muheon smiled and hugged him back.

“You’re that happy?”

He asked, even though he already knew the answer—because he wanted to hear it directly from Garam.

“Yes, I’m so happy. This will be my first time traveling like this, other than when I went with my parents as a kid.”

“…Really?”

He’d known Garam was excited, but he hadn’t expected a reason like that. Sa Muheon paused for a moment but managed to respond without making things awkward.

“You’ll like it even more once we get there. Should I ask my mom to send us some photos of the villa?”

“She must be busy—wouldn’t that be bothering her?”

“It’s fine, something like that won’t be a problem.”

Fortunately, Garam didn’t grow visibly upset recalling memories of his parents. Sa Muheon knew enough time had passed and that Garam was okay now, but whenever topics like this came up, he couldn’t help but feel a sudden pang in his chest.

But as always, Garam proved to be stronger than Sa Muheon expected. And that strength gave Sa Muheon a strange mix of relief and sorrow.

He was an adult, but still had traces of youth. At an age where it was still okay to lean on someone and be a little needy, how many tears must Garam have shed to become this strong? That thought left a bitter taste in his mouth.

After contacting his mother, a few photos arrived via message right away.

“Wow, it’s so pretty…”

Garam couldn’t stop exclaiming in admiration as he looked at the photos. Seeing the images seemed to heighten his excitement, and he began chattering about all the things he wanted to do.

“Do you think the snow’s piled up this much there right now?”

“Probably something similar? It snowed a lot here too, so it’s likely there’s even more at the villa.”

“Wow… If there’s that much, we could build a really big snowman. When I made one in the garden with my grandma, it turned out pretty big. About this tall.”

Garam gestured to around his waist and continued cheerfully.

“Let’s make one together this time.”

“Yeah, let’s do it.”

Just thinking about it seemed to make him happy, and Garam leaned in even closer to Sa Muheon with a giggle.

Holding Garam’s warm body close, Sa Muheon found himself wishing that this happiness would last just a little bit longer.

Sa Muheon was enjoying a rare moment of peace. Having decided not to reveal the truth about Garam’s parents’ deaths, he even felt a sense of relief.

Of course, nothing had actually been resolved. They still hadn’t caught Ryu Beomju, so it wasn’t true peace just yet.

In fact, the complete lack of leads related to Ryu Beomju still felt strange.

It was nearly impossible for someone to completely disappear inside the country. At this point, Sa Muheon began to wonder if he had fled abroad—but knowing the Ryu Beomju he was familiar with, that didn’t seem like something he would do.

Which meant this current peace felt more like the calm before a storm.

Knock knock—

His thoughts were suddenly cut off by the sound of knocking. It was loud enough to instantly snap him out of his focus.

The only people who would knock on his office door were likely Jang Seokgyu or Chief Han. But the unusually urgent sound, combined with his earlier thoughts, stirred an unsettling feeling within him.

Before he could even say “Come in,” the door burst open. Chief Han entered in a rush.

“Director.”

“What’s going on? I’ve never seen you come in this urgently, Chief Han.”

Sa Muheon joked, trying to lighten the mood upon seeing Han’s tense expression. Part of him hoped this wasn’t what he feared.

“A report just came in.”

“A report?”

“It’s about Ryu Beomju.”

At those words, Sa Muheon’s expression hardened as well.

“Where?”

He immediately rose to his feet, ready to rush to the scene. But Chief Han held him back.

“We can’t move just yet. It’s not a straightforward situation. The report didn’t come from just one place.”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

Not just one place? Sa Muheon frowned. As he sat back down, Chief Han began calmly explaining.

“To be precise, we’ve received reports that a tiger was spotted. But there are no wild tigers left in Korea, so it’s almost certain a shifter has revealed their true form. We can’t confirm the identity yet, but based on the circumstances, it’s highly likely to be Ryu Beomju.”

“Where was the sighting?”

Han, the chief of staff, seemed convinced that the tiger shifter was Ryu Beomju. Of course, the same went for Sa Muheon. A tiger shifter suddenly revealing himself under these circumstances—anyone would find that suspicious.

“That’s the problem.”

At Sa Muheon’s question, Han furrowed his brow slightly in frustration and showed him the screen of his phone.

“The first report came in from here. So far, we’ve received a total of five reports, and the marked points indicate where each report was made. Judging by the time intervals, it appears he’s moving along this route, and the location where the most recent report came in is…”

Han’s finger stopped at a place that was familiar to Sa Muheon as well.

“There, right?”

“…Yes, that’s right.”

It was the location of the construction site where Sa Muheon and Ryu Beomju had last faced each other. Sa Muheon’s lips curled upward in a menacing grin.

It seemed Han had his own reason for being so certain. At this point, it would be more suspicious to claim that the suddenly appearing tiger wasn’t Ryu Beomju.

“Have we confirmed his current location?”

“We’ve dispatched people to the last reported area for now. But he’s moving at such high speed, and since the area is surrounded by mountains, it’s highly likely he’s hiding.”

“That makes sense. He’s not likely to show himself easily, not if he’s still got a working brain…”

Sa Muheon tapped his fingers on the desk.

“What do you think made him show up all of a sudden after hiding for so long?”

He murmured almost to himself. After a moment of silence, Han spoke up.

“Perhaps he was injured. According to those who were at the scene back then, he initially lost consciousness.”

“Right. That seems the most plausible.”

It was the most likely explanation, but even so, there were still things that didn’t quite add up. But no matter how much he tried to work it out now, it wasn’t like he could read the bastard’s mind.

“Looks like he’s hoping to scare us a little, but that’s not going to work.”

“We’ll conduct a thorough search of the area and increase security personnel for the time being.”

“Add more people on Team Leader Jang’s side as well. I imagine he’ll think going after that kid is easier than going after me. Especially since he’s already succeeded once.”

“Understood.”

Han hurriedly left the office. Left alone, Sa Muheon quickly reached for his phone.

Garam had said he was going out for the first time in a while today. Of course, he wasn’t alone—Jang Seokgyu had gone with him—so there probably wasn’t anything to worry about, but Sa Muheon still felt he wouldn’t be at ease until he heard his voice directly.

His hand trembled slightly as he lifted the phone. The brief moment the ringtone sounded before the call connected felt like the longest in the world.

—Hello?

Fortunately, Garam picked up not long after. At the sound of his calm voice, Sa Muheon silently let out a long sigh of relief.