Even a Lonely Squirrel Has Its Burrow - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

 

“Why are you doing this to me…?”

 

Unaware of Garam’s feelings, Sa Muheon was still focused on stroking Garam, while on his phone, Chief Han was beginning to bring up the main topic.

 

‘Didn’t Chief Hong mention something about a squirrel shifter last time?’

 

 

“Ah, that’s right. But why?”

 

A squirrel shifter? Garam’s ears perked up. Since squirrel shifter were relatively rare, Garam had never seen another one aside from himself and his late father. Though he didn’t know who Chief Hong was, he couldn’t help but feel curious about the squirrel shifter he would bring.

 

Garam’s slightly opened eyes now sparkled with curiosity. Instead of looking at Sa Muheon’s chest, he turned his head and stared intently at the phone on the bed. As he did, Chief Han’s words continued.

 

‘Even if they overheard our conversation, it seems strange.’

 

“What could be so strange, Chief Han?”

 

Sa Muheon asked in a leisurely tone with a chuckle, thinking Chief Han tended to worry unnecessarily.

 

‘I suspect they might have heard a rumor…’

 

“A rumor?”

 

Sa Muheon asked back, sounding intrigued.

 

“What kind of rumor?”

 

‘You know, the one that spread a long time ago.’

 

“…Don’t tell me, that one? The rumor that started when Yulmu was brought in?”

 

As Chief Han hesitated, sounding troubled, Sa Muheon immediately guessed what he was trying to say. But finding it absurd even himself, he chuckled and added.

 

“No way, would anyone actually believe that? Even if I did call that rascal a cat….”

 

‘Well….’

 

Sa Muheon dismissed the idea as ridiculous, but Chief Han didn’t seem to agree, as no reply came from him.

 

“Ha….”

 

Sa Muheon sighed. At some point, his hand had stopped stroking Garam. Garam lifted his head slightly to look at Sa Muheon’s face. He didn’t know who Yulmu was but figured it was probably a hamster Sa Muheon had kept.

 

More importantly, it was the first time Garam saw Sa Muheon’s face filled with frustration. That unfamiliar and intimidating expression made Garam feel uneasy, so he tightly held onto one of Sa Muheon’s fingers.

 

“Aw, my little one. Were you scared?”

 

At that, Sa Muheon’s demeanor softened immediately, and he stroked Garam with a sweet, baby-talking tone.

 

‘…Director?’

 

“Oh, sorry. I was just lost in thought for a moment.”

 

Even though Chief Han must have heard Sa Muheon’s honey-dripping voice, he didn’t comment on it.

 

“Hmm….”

 

The rumor that Chief Han referred to was one that had spread among employees when Sa Muheon brought Yulmu home. It was an absurd rumor that only came up as a joke now, a “remember that ridiculous thing back then” kind of story.

 

When Sa Muheon first brought Yulmu home, the only person who witnessed the scene was Jang Seokgyu. However, after that, Chief Han, puzzled by how Sa Muheon would rush home as if hiding a treasure trove of honey, pressed Jang Seokgyu for answers. Unable to ignore Chief Han, who was practically the real power behind Mirae Capital, Jang Seokgyu confessed the truth: Sa Muheon had brought a hamster into his home. Unfortunately, someone overheard their conversation and spread the story throughout the company.

 

Most people dismissed it as nonsense. It was widely known that Sa Muheon was a snake shifter, and it was common knowledge that shifter rarely kept pets, except in unusual circumstances.

 

While most employees treated it as a joke, a few who resented Sa Muheon made mocking comments, joking that he must have brought the hamster home to eat it.

 

Sa Muheon knew the rumor was spreading, but he didn’t bother to address it. He didn’t see the need to explain something so trivial. However, the rumor spiraled out of control. As rumors often do, it deviated from the original story and became twisted into something even stranger.

 

He found out about it when a client’s CEO, having heard a rumor that Sa Muheon was recently obsessed with something, handed him a hamster shifter.

 

Recalling that moment filled him with a deep, unshakable irritation.

 

“Tsk.”

 

Sa Muheon clicked his tongue openly, unable to hide his annoyance. Chief Han, who seemed to hear the sound, cautiously spoke.

 

“Shall I look into it?” 

 

“…Go ahead.”

 

When Sa Muheon first learned about the bizarre rumor spreading, he flew into a rage and tracked down its source. Chief Han, equally furious at the audacity of someone spreading such a crude rumor about Sa Muheon, didn’t hold back either. Eventually, they identified not only the person who started the ridiculous story but also those who had spread it further and dealt with them all. Only then did the rumor gradually die down.

 

But now, years later, the thought that the rumor might have resurfaced made his head ache.

 

Sa Muheon closed his eyes tightly before opening them again and added, “Find out for sure. If that nonsense is spreading again, this time I might really have to bury whoever started it.”

 

Tsk. The sound of his tongue clicking was unusually sharp. Sensing Sa Muheon’s discomfort, Chief Han quickly responded.

 

“I’ll investigate thoroughly.”

 

“If you say you’ll handle it, I trust you’ll do it well. I’m counting on you, Chief Han.”

 

With that, the call ended. Garam, who had been silently listening to the conversation, began squirming to draw attention to himself.

 

“Aw, my little one.”

 

Sa Muheon’s voice was as gentle as ever, but perhaps due to the earlier conversation, it sounded oddly drained.

 

“Squeak.”

 

From the content of the call, Garam couldn’t figure out exactly what had happened, but he felt sorry for the tired-looking Sa Muheon. Maybe it was because Sa Muheon had always been kind to him, but Garam felt genuinely concerned for him.

 

“Squeak!”

 

“Cheer up!”

 

Garam jumped onto Sa Muheon’s shoulder and nuzzled against his neck. Only then did a chuckle escape from Sa Muheon.

 

“Ha ha, that tickles.”

 

Sa Muheon gently removed Garam from his neck and placed him on his palm, quietly gazing at him.

 

“…You’re really something.”

 

“Squeak?”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

Garam tilted his head in confusion.

 

“Even now, sometimes it feels like you understand everything I say.”

 

“Squeak, squeak!”

 

Garam’s flustered squeak came out awkwardly.

 

“Are squirrels naturally this smart?”

 

Sa Muheon muttered to himself, and Garam clamped his mouth shut. He thought that making any sound now might genuinely raise Sa Muheon’s suspicions.

 

“Hmm…”

 

After staring at Garam for a while, Sa Muheon blinked and then chuckled.

 

“Well, it must just be a coincidence.”

 

Garam let out a sigh of relief. Only then did he realize he had been too relaxed lately. Now that he had planted a seed of suspicion in Sa Muheon’s mind, he resolved to put on a more convincing act as a regular squirrel from now on.

 

As the tension left him, a yawn escaped. Garam rubbed his face a few times before opening his mouth wide in a yawn, prompting Sa Muheon to laugh as he moved Garam to a small bed.

 

“Goodnight.”

 

“Phew…”

 

A small sigh escaped from Garam, who was now sprawled out on the bed.

 

—

 

Knock, knock.

 

“Come in.”

 

Sitting at his desk in his office, staring seriously at his phone, Sa Muheon didn’t even look up as he called for the visitor to enter. After all, there were only a few people who would bother to visit his office—most likely Chief Han or Jang Seokgyu. Besides, anyone entering would first have to get through Jang Seokgyu, who was stationed at the front. So whoever knocked on the door had to be a vetted and trusted individual.

 

Click.

 

Sure enough, it was Chief Han who appeared as the door opened. Only then did Sa Muheon glance briefly at the door to confirm his visitor before setting his phone down.

 

“Chief Han. What brings you here?”

 

Since Chief Han had his own office on the same floor, it wasn’t often they saw each other. For him to come directly to Sa Muheon’s office meant there was something important.

 

“Are you busy?”

 

“Oh, no. I was just looking at some pictures of my little one. Do you want to see?”

 

Without waiting for a reply, Sa Muheon picked up his phone and held it up to show the photos he’d been looking at earlier.

 

On the screen was a picture of a squirrel curled up on a small bed, hugging its tail.

 

“Cute, isn’t it?”

 

“…Yes, indeed.”

 

Chief Han didn’t bother hiding his half-hearted response as he nodded. It was clear to anyone that his agreement was forced, but Sa Muheon didn’t seem to care. Instead, he proudly showed a few more pictures before finally stopping.

 

“So, what’s the matter?”

 

At that, Chief Han opened his mouth as if he’d been waiting.

 

“It’s about what we talked about before.”

 

This was the news Sa Muheon had been waiting for.

 

“Has the rumor really spread?”

 

“It seems so.”

 

“Ha, and people actually believe that? They’re not even worth calling tigers, more like kittens…”

 

Sa Muheon muttered darkly, his expression turning grim.