“Hmm…”
No matter how much I thought about it, there were just too many Pepero. I sighed as I looked at the pile of Pepero stacked in the corner of the room. I had never seen this many Pepero before. Back when I was a boy, I was more often the one giving Pepero rather than receiving it.
I guess I’ll have to make Pepero my main meal to finish all of this. Why do boys love giving Pepero as gifts so much? And wouldn’t it have been better if they handed it to me directly instead of just leaving it in a drawer?
Of course, there were some boys who brought the Pepero to me directly instead of leaving it in a drawer. Most of them just handed it over, blushed, and then ran away.
“Meow.”
Next to me, Nabi was crying, asking to be held. I picked her up and petted her while saying, “Nabi, just in case, you can’t eat Pepero, okay?”
Since Nabi is a cat, chocolate is really bad for her health. And besides, the Pepero was wrapped in a paper box, so there was no way Nabi could get to it. Unless, of course, she suddenly grew hands. Even if Nabi turned into a humanoid, it wouldn’t matter because humanoids can eat the same things as humans.
Eating Pepero wouldn’t kill her or make her throw up. I held Nabi and rocked her gently. She seemed happy and kept meowing. I scratched her belly. Normally, cats get mad when you scratch their bellies, but Nabi didn’t mind at all.
She was such a gentle cat. Is there another cat as gentle as her? I was just playing with Nabi like that.
—
“Meow.”
Hana got on the elevator with her bag. Nabi came out to see her off at the elevator. Nabi used to hate seeing Hana leave and would sometimes even try to get on the elevator with her. But now, maybe because she’s used to it, she just waits quietly.
Last time, Nabi hid in Hana’s bag, and that was the final straw. Since then, Hana has been cautious, making sure Nabi doesn’t sneak out when she leaves for school.
Nabi has a collar with contact information on it, but you never know what could happen. Someone with bad intentions might ignore the phone number on the collar and take Nabi away. Nabi watched as Hana left.
Immediately, Nabi’s gentle eyes turned into mischievous ones. She slowly walked to the office. Nabi was still less than a year old, so causing trouble was only natural. She passed through the open office door and climbed onto a chair.
Her growing size and flexible body allowed her to climb onto high desks. Nabi climbed onto Maru’s desk and started tearing up paper. Shredding A4 paper with her claws was part of Nabi’s daily routine.
Rip rip!
“Meooow!”
Nabi let out a triumphant cry as she continued her mischievous antics in the office.
As Nabi roamed around the office, she was eventually caught by Maru, who had just arrived.
“Ugh, you little troublemaker!”
Maru grabbed Nabi by the scruff of her neck and carefully placed her in Hana’s room. As soon as Nabi was put down, she sprang out like a spring and rolled around on Hana’s bed, which still carried Hana’s scent.
I’ve heard that pets often bury themselves in places with their owner’s scent when they’re away. Maru couldn’t help but smile at Nabi’s behavior. This office, which used to have only one troublemaker, now had another.
Nabi could cause major accidents if you took your eyes off her for even a second. Last time, she knocked over a glass flower vase with her “nya-nya punch.” In a way, she was even more of a troublemaker than Hana. Hana had mellowed out over time and didn’t cause as much trouble, but Nabi, being less than a year old, was still in her mischievous phase.
It got to the point where someone suggested putting Nabi in a carrier when Hana wasn’t around.
Of course, that idea was rejected. Locking Nabi in a small carrier would be animal abuse. And while Nabi did cause trouble, she never caused any major accidents that hurt or killed anyone. Plus, who knows what Hana would think if she came back from school and found Nabi in a carrier.
Even though it’s tough to manage, there are nearly 10 people in the office…
It was. The number of people was more than enough to take care of Nabi. Maru, knowing this, strongly opposed the idea of putting Nabi in a carrier. She even insisted on taking care of Nabi herself.
Because Nabi was just that cute.
As Maru watched Nabi rolling around on the bed, she noticed Nabi walking towards her. Judging by the way Nabi was moving, it was clear that she was hungry and asking for food. Sure enough, Nabi picked up the food bowl with her mouth and plopped it down in front of Maru.
“Alright, Nabi. I’ll give you some food.”
Maru opened the door to the storage room where Nabi’s cat food was kept. Inside, there were bags of cat food with Nabi’s photo printed on them. The amount of food in there was enough to last Nabi a whole year, maybe even more. There was just that much cat food.
As Maru poured the food into the bowl, she petted Nabi. It seemed like Maru’s long efforts were finally paying off, as Nabi showed no signs of wariness towards her. In fact, Maru wondered if Nabi had ever been wary of anyone in the first place.
Maru took a photo of Nabi happily eating and sent it to Hana. She was doing her best to make sure Hana could go to school without worrying.
—
Park Sang-Woon skillfully wielded a knife and began to dismantle the flatfish.
It really seemed like the flatfish was from Starlight Aquaculture, as its flesh was plump and fresh. From a distance, it almost looked like a pufferfish. The flat, wide fish resembled a round soccer ball.
After preparing the sashimi, Park handed it over to the officials who had come to inspect the flatfish.
Even though Starlight Food was trustworthy, it was only natural to check the product before selling it. There was something unsettling about handing it over to consumers without tasting it first. If something went wrong, it could cause a huge problem.
It wasn’t that they didn’t trust Starlight Food, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
“This really looks amazing.”
Just by looking at it, you could see the glossy sheen. The official thought someone had brushed sesame oil on the sashimi. Park smiled and said,
“This might be the best flatfish I’ve ever handled. The knife just glided through it.”
“Is that so?”
This flatfish would be perfect for the seafood section of the department store. The official hoped it tasted as good as it looked as he popped a piece into his mouth.
He ate it without dipping it in any sauce, wanting to taste the sashimi in its purest form. Some people say that sashimi is just a vehicle for the sauce, but the most important thing is the sashimi itself.
“Wow…!”
The official’s eyes widened after tasting the flatfish. It was the best flatfish sashimi he had ever eaten. The rich, savory flavor filled his mouth with every chew. This was truly a Starlight Food flatfish.
Park watched the scene unfold slowly. Judging by the officials’ reactions, it was certain that Starlight Flatfish would be coming to the seafood section.
Park knew this better than anyone.
Because he had tasted a piece of the flatfish while preparing the sashimi. The flavor was outstanding—no, it was almost fantastical. Even a novice chef could satisfy the palates of gourmets with this flatfish.
The taste of this flatfish was truly exceptional.
If he got the chance, Park wanted to try making sashimi with the mackerel from Starlight Aquaculture. He had inquired with Starlight Aquaculture and was told that the mackerel would be shipped soon, but the exact schedule hadn’t been announced yet.
