Chapter 81

I lowered my phone, feeling embarrassed for Yuna, and slowly approached her.

Yuna slid off the dinosaur statue and spoke to me.

“It’s just that dinosaurs are so cute. They’re like babies.”

It’s both adorable and funny when a baby calls another baby cute, so I couldn’t help but laugh without realizing it. Then Yuna stared at me quietly and said,

“Haeuni likes dinosaurs too, right?”

“…Huh?”

Not really sure what she meant, I tilted my head in confusion. Just then, I picked up my phone to apologize for lowering the screen earlier when several new chat messages caught my eye.

[SeorinSeorin – Maybe Hae-un would find a dinosaur cute. Hey Hae-un, roar for us!]

[StrawberryMilkIsTasty – Oh man, I want one of those plushies now lol]

[GgomulGgomul – Hae-un, there’s also an ant sculpture near the dinosaur. Chae-a might like it.]

When I heard about the “ant sculpture,” I glanced to the side.

“Wow… It’s huge!”

Just as the viewer had mentioned, there was an ant sculpture nearby that was about the same size as the dinosaur. Of course, since it was designed for kids, it looked more like a cute cartoonish ant rather than a realistic one. Still, it seemed like something Chae-a would enjoy, so I turned around to call her over.

DONG DONG DONG DONG!

Suddenly, I heard someone running towards us at high speed. Smiling faintly, I called out to Chae-a.

“Chae-a-ya…!”

Chae-a turned toward me with a bright smile and started jumping happily. As the stomping sound grew louder, I blinked in surprise. Then Chae-a shouted loudly as she approached.

“Over there’s the Ant King…!”

Ant King?

Apparently, because the ant was so big, they were calling it the Ant King. Thinking I understood, I nodded my head, and Chae-a grabbed my hand tightly while whispering,

“Wow, let’s go see it up close!”

Even though I didn’t know why, it seemed Chae-a felt shy about going directly to the giant ant sculpture, so I grabbed Yuna’s hand too, who was watching us, and walked over together.

*

At first, I thought it was just a simple sculpture, but upon closer inspection, I noticed a slide built inside, designed for children.

Chae-a seemed absolutely thrilled by this sight, clinging onto the sculpture just like Yuna had done earlier.

“Wow! Amazing! The Ant King is truly incredible…”

She hugged it tightly and rubbed her face against the slide, clearly delighted. Watching Chae-a’s happiness made me feel happy too, and I giggled softly. But then Han Arin suddenly screamed and rushed to Chae-a urgently.

“Chae-a-ya! You shouldn’t rub your face on that! No-no!”

Upon hearing this, Chae-a pouted slightly and shook her head vigorously.

“No-no isn’t true!”

To show she was upset, she stomped her tiny feet repeatedly, trying to look threatening—but from the side, she just looked adorable. While I struggled not to laugh…

“…It’s scary.”

Yuna, apparently frightened by Chae-a’s anger, trembled and clutched my hand tightly. Seeing this reminded me of how other species aren’t scared when a raccoon tries to intimidate them, but fellow raccoons definitely are. Thinking of this analogy, I patted Yuna’s back comfortingly.

As I observed this scene, I decided to thank the viewers for recommending places Chae-a would like, so I bowed politely at my phone. Immediately, various location suggestions popped up.

[GomtangJelly – There’s definitely a dinosaur playground nearby. You should check it out!]

[MingMing – Yuna looking scared is so precious ㅠㅠㅠ I want to pinch her cheeks so badly.]

[Don’tTestMeBro – There’s also a sandbox around here somewhere.]

A dinosaur playground and a sandbox—both things Yuna loves. After exploring here thoroughly, we could visit those places next. Smiling at Yuna, whose ears perked up at the mention, I gave her a choice.

“Which do you prefer? The dinosaur playground or the sandbox?”

After pondering for a moment, Yuna blinked at me, crossed her arms, and began thinking deeply.

“I love the dinosaur playground because there are lots of dinosaurs. But the sandbox is great because we can build such a big castle. Which one should we choose?”

Closing her eyes as if contemplating the most serious question in the world, Yuna finally made her decision.

“Let’s go to the dinosaur playground first. Seorin-nim can help us build the castle later.”

Since we’d already built a sandcastle during our last visit to the sauna complex, it seemed less interesting to her now. Personally, I didn’t mind either way, so I nodded in agreement. Just then, Chae-a ran up hurriedly and shouted something.

“Aigoo…!”

Aigoo? Her tone sounded strange. Guessing she might’ve been imitating something Han Arin said earlier, I chuckled softly. But then Chae-a pointed at the base of the ant sculpture and exclaimed,

“Over there… There’s something amazing!”

She must’ve run incredibly fast, because I could hear her panting heavily. Gently patting her head to calm her down, I suggested we go take a look.

*

Walking together toward where Chae-a had directed us, we found…

A large wall covered in all sorts of stickers.

I wondered how sticking stickers here was allowed until I noticed a small sign nearby.

[Stick stickers on the ants!]

Apparently, this area was set up specifically for kids to stick stickers and play. Finding this concept fascinating, I marveled at it while observing. Then Chae-a, pointing at some nearby stickers, told me excitedly,

“Wowwww! That’s a deer horn glowing cat-bug…!”

“…?”

The name was so long it momentarily confused me. Simplifying it to just “cat-bug,” I realized it was quite the hybrid creature. Meanwhile, Yuna stared intently at it, her eyes sparkling.

“It’s so cute…”

Seeing their enthusiasm, I thought it would be nice to let Chae-a and Yuna experience sticking stickers themselves. Looking around, I noticed a sticker shop conveniently placed nearby.

“The cunningness of adults…!”

Impressed by the clever marketing, I stood tall and turned to Chae-a and Yuna with a proposal.

“Should we try sticking some stickers?”

At this suggestion, Chae-a’s eyes lit up brightly, but then she looked sad and shook her head, explaining,

“Chae-a doesn’t have money, so we can’t…”

Following her lead, Yuna also nodded and added,

“Same here…”

Hearing this, I chuckled softly and pulled out an emergency stash of cash from my pocket.

“Here you go!”

Unfolding a crisp ten-thousand won bill, I held it up and said,

“If we have this, we can buy some. Come on, shall we?”

At this, Chae-a smiled broadly, nodding enthusiastically.

“Haeuni is amazing…! Chae-a wants to be just like Haeuni!”

Seeing Chae-a so happy made me feel good too. Feeling a sense of pride, I clutched the money tightly and confidently headed toward the sticker shop.

*

Thanks to it being a weekday morning, the sticker shop was surprisingly empty.

“Lucky we don’t have to wait in line!” I thought, scanning the countless stickers displayed neatly.

“There are so many…”

While marveling at the variety, Yuna spotted a cute dinosaur-themed sticker pack and her eyes sparkled.

“That’s a baby dinosaur…”

She stared at it intently, so I carefully picked it up and said,

“Then let’s get this one and…”

I glanced around to see if there was anything else worth buying, when Chae-a dashed over holding a bug-themed sticker set and handed it to me. Holding both sets, I decided to purchase them and walked toward the cashier.

“Isn’t Haeuni getting any?”

Chae-a tilted her head curiously, and I shook mine to indicate I was fine. However, Chae-a looked shocked and asked,

“Is it because Haeuni doesn’t have money?”

The mention of money drew attention from nearby adults. Sensing this, Han Arin, who had been watching us from behind, quickly pulled out her wallet. To prevent unnecessary drama, I waved my hands frantically and assured everyone,

“I have money…”

“But if you don’t like stickers, why aren’t you buying any?”

It wasn’t that I disliked stickers—it was simply that I didn’t feel particularly attached to them. However, explaining all this amidst everyone’s gaze felt complicated, so just as I was about to say I’d get something too…

“Give me everything from here to here.”

Han Arin whipped out a black card and proceeded to make a grand purchase.

“…!”

Trying to stop her excessive spending, I hesitated, but Han Arin smiled kindly and reassured me,

“Don’t worry, this is barely within my allowance.”

Her casual explanation left me stunned. Meanwhile, the clerk struggled to fill a large box with countless stickers, looking increasingly exhausted. Feeling guilty for causing such trouble, I slouched apologetically.

*

An enormous box filled with countless stickers.

Though having so many was impressive, it was hard to imagine practical uses for them all. So, I proposed to Chae-a and Yuna:

“Why don’t we share these with others?”

At this idea, Chae-a eagerly agreed, grabbing a handful of stickers and starting to distribute them to nearby children.

Despite being tempted to hoard them, her willingness to share impressed me, so I followed closely behind her. Gradually, children around Chae-a’s height gathered around her.

“…?”

Confused by the sudden influx of kids, I watched in bewilderment. Then Yuna explained proudly,

“Yuna knows this. It’s the Pied Piper Effect with Chae-a.”

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