CH 305

Bang Eunji squinted at me; though the movement was barely anything, her large size made any action look intimidating.

Meanwhile, I flinched back, startled, when she reached a finger out to me; however, I couldn’t avoid her since I was trapped in the palm of a hand.

Just like that, her index finger touched my head. I was so nervous, I retracted my neck into my body as much as possible.

[Hmmmm….The fur *is* soft.]

Bang Eunji kept rubbing my head as she said that; the force she applied wasn’t as much as I had feared. It felt like…she was being cautious with her touch? Of course, though, I felt uncomfortable when Bang Eunji’s flashy nail tips touched my forehead.

I patiently endured her petting and, as soon as she removed her finger, instinctively shook my head. Bang Eunji’s lips opened slightly when she saw that.

[He~eh.]

I couldn’t tell what she was thinking just by looking at her delicate face. Unexpectedly, she asked the owner for the price.

[How much is he?]

[1200]

‘…Don’t tell me… 12 million won?’ 1

I paused at the unexpected price; Bang Eunji took out a card without hesitation. The owner of the hand picked up the card and placed me back in the cage.

After this series of events, I could hypothesize what I became. ‘Did I perhaps… Become a hamster?’

My reflection dimly shining on the transparent plastic wall of the cage wasn’t clear, but I could clearly see myself–as I usually was.

Although I was smaller than Bang Eunji or the man who seemed to own this pet shop, I stood on two legs. When I looked down at my hands, I definitely saw two normal human arms… However, the issue was that I didn’t seem to be a human in their eyes.

I clung to the wall of the cage and kept an eye on Bang Eunji, wondering how I should speak with her about the [Vengeful Ghost Contract].

While I was lost in contemplation, the owner, who finished the payment calculations, lifted the entire cage that housed me with a grin on his face and handed Bang Eunji the cage.

Soon after, she left the store and, holding my cage, skipped lightly to her next destination.

‘I’m getting motion sick…’

As dizziness that resembled seasickness surged over me, I caught and held onto the slowly-swaying hamster wheel; there was nothing else I could hold onto other than that. Fortunately, Bang Eunji soon entered a car and I was strapped into the passenger seat.

10 minutes later, we arrived at a wealthy residential complex in the center of the Hub’s downtown.

We seemed to have stopped at her house–an antique two-story building. There was little light in the interior; antique wooden furniture and vivid, primary-colored sofas caught my eye at first glance.

Various shelves and drawers were crammed full of knickknacks; each shelf contained detailed, beautiful dolls. The dolls themselves weren’t scary like Chucky or Annabelle, but, stricken by a strange fear, I tried hard not to look at them. 2

[Hmm… So I should give him some water and food first?]

Bang Eunji took out a small instruction book from a jewel-studded bag, which was probably given by the pet shop owner who sold me, and read through the pages eagerly.

She soon hoisted a delivery box that had been on the floor onto the large table my cage was placed on and began tearing it open with a knife.

Inside, the box contained small housing goods–minuscule enough that it felt like they were meant for doll houses. Bang Eunji took them to the sink and wiped them clean, one by one, with a pristine cloth. Then, among these small props, she selected a round, white porcelain bowl, filled it with water, and placed it into my cage.

‘It really feels like I’ve become someone’s pet…’

When I froze, uncertain as to what I should do next, Bang Eunji looked at me with eyes laden with expectations.

Just in time–I was thirsty and it felt too burdensome to keep looking at Bang Eunji, so I approached the water bowl she placed in the cage.

[I guess you were thirsty…]

The issue was that, as soon as I took a sip of the water, Bang Eunji relentlessly touched me.

She patted my head enough for her fingerprints to wear off. I ran away to the corner of the cage since I was worried that my neck would become crooked at this rate; she didn’t touch me anymore, but her blatant staring continued.

[Do you want to eat this?]

She tried to attract my attention by placing a few sunflower seeds in her hand. When I didn’t approach, she gently shook the seeds in front of my nose, trying to entice me with its scent.

After she shook the sunflower seeds several times, I became disoriented. In the end, in a fit of anger, I screamed, “I’m not going to eat it!”

I knocked a huge sunflower seed out of her hand, but Bang Eunji’s obsession did not stop.

Eventually, I crouched in the gap between the wheel and the wall–an area she couldn’t reach. After looking at me for a while, she poured a lot of sunflower seeds on one side of the cage before turning back to me with an anticipatory expression.

“Haah…” I sighed.

Fortunately, her cell phone rang then; she looked at me with a face full of lingering emotions before going to the other room to receive the call.

I looked in the direction she disappeared before popping out from behind the gap. “Can’t I… climb up this?”

I thought that if I were to climb up on the wheel and reach out with my hand, I would be able to barely touch the cage’s lid.

So, I looked for something to fix the wheel in place; I discovered the water bowl and brought it to the general location first. Though my clothes became soaked as I moved the bowl–the water inside sloshed around–I didn’t mind. After all, escaping this cage was an urgent matter.

“Let’s place it here like this…” When I put the bowl vertically in the gap between the teeth of the wheel’s axis, the wheel no longer rolled around since the bowl was quite heavy. Afterwards, I climbed up, struggling, and stepped on top of the wheel, but…

“I-It’s slippery. Argh!”

The top was higher than I thought, and it wasn’t easy to grab onto the sides of the cage. It’s not like I had any special equipment either…

My body’s balance was already tilted, so it wasn’t easy to climb back down again. I was stuck between the wheel and the transparent cage walls.

[Ara?]

At that time, Bang Eunji returned to the room after finishing the call. She caught me very easily and placed me in the palm of her hand.

[Did you try to escape?]

I rolled my eyes, unable to say anything. Bang Eunji pressed at my cheeks hard and poked me here and there before placing me back in the cage. And… she removed the wheel–the only foothold I could use to escape this cage.

“No…!” I tried to protest, but Bang Eunji had already thrown the wheel to the floor.

Then, she took the small furniture items she had carefully washed earlier and began populating the cage, one by one. Princess-style beds, dressing tables, closet drawers, carpets… Well, at least it was better than the hamster-like atmosphere.

I stood in front of the gigantic pile of sunflower seeds in the corner of the room and gave a bewildered stare at the transforming room.

‘I don’t really want to… sleep in a place like this.’

However, the real hardship had yet to pass.

[Hmm… What should I name you.]

Bang Eunji mumbled, poking me in the stomach with her pink, cubic zirconia-embedded nails. Unable to endure this anymore, I leaped to my feet, “My name is Choi Lee-kyung!”

[You’re so small and stupid…Just like that man. Alright, I’ll call you Garam-ie from now on.]

“I said it’s Choi Lee-kyung!!” I protested and tried to move beyond her reach. But, Bang Eunji caught me regardless.

And…

[I prepared a pretty outfit perfect for Garam-kun.]

“W-Wait a minute!!”

Bang Eunji grabbed me, went to a cabinet that housed many dolls, and opened a drawer.

The drawer was filled to the brim with pretty, frilly dresses. When I saw the cute clothes that seemed to fit my size, I was terrified; the blood drained away from my face.

“I don’t want to!” I even bit her finger, but it didn’t seem to hurt. Bang Eunji even rubbed my mouth again. I continued to rebel by biting, but in the end, I ended up with a hurt jaw.

[He’s a total baby.]

And, as a result of that rebellion, the clothes I wore were…

[This is perfect for a baby.]

…a sky-blue baby jumpsuit adorned with a bib.