Even a Lonely Squirrel Has Its Burrow - Chapter 50

Chapter 50

 

Rustle—

 

The hand holding the documents tensed for a moment. Hearing the sound of the papers crumpling, Sa Muheon realized he was gripping them too tightly.

 

Relaxing his grip, he flipped through the pages and found evidence proving that Ryu Beomju had been illegally amassing wealth, just as his mother had mentioned.

 

“If this is what you managed to uncover, it means there are still undiscovered cases, doesn’t it?”

 

“It’s hard to find everything, after all. There are likely still victims who haven’t come forward.”

 

His mother nodded at Sa Muheon’s question. After calmly going through the last page of the document, Sa Muheon finally spoke again.

 

“I know one of the victims who isn’t in here.”

 

“Oh, really? How do you know?”

 

At her question, Sa Muheon fell silent for a moment.

 

He hesitated about sharing someone else’s story without asking the person involved, but he trusted that his mother wouldn’t let the story leak. Deciding to explain, he thought it might even lead to a better resolution for Garam, given his mother’s expertise as a lawyer who had handled various cases.

 

“Actually, the kid I’m currently taking care of was harmed by Ryu Beomju.”

 

As Sa Muheon began speaking, Sa Heeran widened her eyes and focused on her son’s story.

 

“I heard that after losing his parents at a young age, Ryu Beomju’s mother took him in and raised him. But when she passed away, Ryu Beomju seems to have schemed while promising to hand over the house.”

 

“Hm…”

 

“He even borrowed a billion won from my company under that kid’s name.”

 

“What?”

 

Sa Heeran’s jaw dropped at the amount, far larger than she had expected.

 

“At first, I suspected the kid might be lying…”

 

Sa Muheon held up the documents in his hand.

 

“But after seeing this, it’s clear he’s truly an innocent victim.”

 

“Oh my, how could he stoop so low to target even a child…”

 

Sa Heeran was appalled and began cursing Ryu Beomju with a fierce expression. After venting for a while, she calmed down slightly and asked Sa Muheon in a more composed tone.

 

“But if you suspected the kid, why did you take him into your home?”

 

“Well…”

 

Sa Muheon debated whether to continue being honest. However, he felt that revealing everything might lead to his mother treating him as less than human, so he chose to remain silent.

 

Still, as his mother looked at him with curiosity, Sa Muheon fabricated a plausible lie.

 

“Since he was the squirrel I used to raise… I guess I got attached to him.”

 

“You’re capable of saying something like that?”

 

Fortunately, his mother didn’t doubt his words. Instead, she smirked, as if she’d heard an amusing story, and shook her head.

 

“Well, you denied it last time, but honestly, I still had my suspicions.”

 

Sa Muheon sighed deeply and shook his head at her cautious remark.

 

“Are we back to this topic again?”

 

“Hey, just listen.”

 

Despite Sa Muheon’s exasperated reaction, his mother pressed on with a smile.

 

“You’re not the type to be warm or affectionate, yet you brought someone else into your home to live with you.”

 

“That could happen.”

 

“Sure, it could. But you even assigned Seok-gyu to him for protection, and now you’re regularly eating at home with him, saying you have to eat together?”

 

Sa Heeran’s smile deepened.

 

“Don’t you think it’s a situation that could easily be misunderstood?”

 

“…”

 

Sa Muheon said nothing. More accurately, he couldn’t.

 

Hearing about his actions from someone else’s perspective, even he found them a bit strange.

 

“See? You can’t give a proper answer.”

 

“No…”

 

Sa Muheon tried to refute her, but his mother spoke faster.

 

“You’ll insist it’s not what I think, and maybe you’re right. But from what I can see, it doesn’t seem like you have no feelings for that kid.”

 

“…”

 

Faced with her near-certainty, Sa Muheon clamped his mouth shut again. Yet, even in that moment, he didn’t fully admit to her words.

 

Sa Muheon was aware that he had a particular fondness for Garam. He wasn’t so clueless as to be oblivious to that.

 

But his affection felt closer to finding a child endearing, not a desire to mate with him.

 

“…Well, he’s cute. He’s still young, after all.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

Sa Heeran stretched out her words, clearly teasing him. Sa Muheon firmly shook his head.

 

“As you know, Mother, I have no intention of forming a bond with anyone.”

 

“Muheon-ah.”

 

The smile vanished from Sa Heeran’s face in an instant. She called her son’s name soothingly, but Sa Muheon remained silent.

 

He had chosen his words carefully to soften the blow for his mother.

 

It was true that Sa Muheon had no intention of forming a bond with anyone, but more importantly, he was a half-snake shifter.

 

Born to a snake shifter mother and a human father, Sa Muheon was a figure whose status was divided even within his own clan.

 

Some of his mother’s siblings looked down on him, while more distant relatives envied the abilities he had been born with.

 

Sa Muheon’s decision not to become a lawyer despite his mother’s encouragement to study law was partly due to his ambiguous position within the snake shifter community.

 

While most snake shifters exchanged a lot of help and support, Sa Muheon had never received any assistance from them.

 

Though there were some in the clan who saw him in a positive light, no one was willing to step forward on his behalf, fearing he might suffer harm from those who disliked him.

 

Ultimately, Sa Muheon inherited his father’s business more out of whim than anything, but it was also something that had been unavoidable.

 

Moreover, Sa Muheon secretly wished to one day retire from his father’s business and live a leisurely life.

 

There was no way any snake shifter would want to pair with him—someone with no notable occupation and a half-snake shifter status, criticized even within his own clan.

 

As if reading his thoughts, his mother spoke in a stern voice.

 

“Sa Muheon, as I always say, you don’t need to pay any attention to those who call you half a shifter. No matter what they say, you are still a shifter.”

 

“I know that. Anyway, that’s not the only reason. I simply don’t want to form a bond with anyone.”

 

“Muheon-ah.”

 

His mother called his name again, but Sa Muheon remained silent.

 

“If that’s how you feel, then so be it.”

 

In the end, it was Sa Heeran who gave in first. Sa Muheon, too, had no energy left for arguing, so he changed the subject.

 

“Anyway, the reason I’m keeping him around is because I’m worried he’ll be in danger. Once everything’s settled, I’ll clear the debt under his name as well.”

 

“A debt of a billion?”

 

“The person who has the money is someone else. What’s the point of collecting it from the wrong person?”

 

With a slight smile, Sa Muheon spoke, and Sa Heeran let out a small laugh. Seeing the smile return to her face, which had been filled with concern just moments ago, Sa Muheon felt a little more at ease.

 

However, it didn’t take long for the smile on Sa Heeran’s face to fade again.

 

“Now that I think about it, there were two things you asked for, right?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Sa Muheon nodded. He had indeed asked for two things. One was about Ryu Beomju, and the other…

 

“You asked me to find a lawyer.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Can I ask why you’re looking for that lawyer?”

 

It wasn’t a difficult question to answer.

 

“Ryu Beomju sent a lawyer after telling the kid he’d transfer the house to him. The lawyer handled the paperwork, and I thought he might have concrete evidence.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

After Sa Muheon finished speaking, his mother fell silent for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. Sa Muheon waited calmly for her response.

 

“Actually, I’ve looked for a lawyer with the characteristics you mentioned.”

 

“Really? I thought it would be difficult to find one.”

 

“Since there are a lot of snake shifters, I didn’t expect to find one easily either…”

 

Sa Heeran trailed off.

 

“But as soon as I heard the characteristics you described, someone immediately came to mind.”

 

“Who is it? Why are you keeping me in suspense?”

 

At Sa Muheon’s question, Sa Heeran let out a deep sigh.

 

“It’s someone you know. You might not see him often, so you wouldn’t know, but I see him quite often, so as soon as you described him, I knew who you were talking about.”

 

Sa Muheon remained silent and stared intently at his mother’s face. With a look that asked who it was, Sa Heeran sighed once more.