Don't Be Obsessed With Your Cat Butler - Chapter 3
“…Were there always this many kinds of cats?”
Sia, who didn’t know much about cats, murmured in awe as she unconsciously approached the various felines of different fur colors.
“Wow, there’s even a Persian.”
Recognizing one of the few cat breeds she knew, she eagerly moved closer.
“Whoa, you’re so beautiful. Your fur looks almost translucent, so pale and soft. Huh? Isn’t that a Maine Coon?”
As she passed by, the cats lounging in the warm sunlight turned their heads to look at her, their eyes gleaming with curiosity.
Her black hair, tinged with red under the sun, swayed as she excitedly moved through the square. Then, she suddenly remembered Cola.
“…Huh?”
She had assumed he was following her, but when she turned around—he was nowhere to be seen.
“Cola?”
Even in her excitement, she had been careless not to keep an eye on him. Scolding herself, she anxiously looked around.
That was when she noticed a person sitting in a corner of the square.
Looking closer, she realized that while the square itself was teeming with cats, there were also people scattered around the edges of the buildings, watching from a distance.
But something about them seemed strange.
First, not a single one of them had black hair, something that was so common in Korea.
Second, none of them looked even remotely Korean.
And then there was the most peculiar detail. While not all of them, some were wearing cat ear headbands.
“…Is this some kind of theme park?”
That would be the only logical explanation, right? There was no way multiple people would just randomly be wearing cat ears like this.
“No, now’s not the time for this. Cola!”
Snapping out of her distraction, Sia hurriedly resumed her search for Cola. But looking for him was like trying to find a single tree in a dense forest.
With so many cats filling the square, finding Cola among them was no easy task.
She regretted not holding onto him earlier.
Just as she was berating herself, a woman approached her.
“Excuse me…”
“Yes?”
Sia didn’t show it outwardly, but she was startled. Not because a stranger had spoken to her, but because of the language she was speaking.
“I’ve been watching you for a while… What are you doing?”
As the woman continued talking, Sia’s expression stiffened.
The more she listened, the more she realized—it wasn’t Korean.
She stared blankly at the woman, momentarily frozen.
Then, realizing she hadn’t responded, she quickly opened her mouth.
“Ah, um…”
But she couldn’t continue. Would she even be able to communicate in a language she didn’t know? Of course, she understood what the woman was saying, but… Wait, how?
As Sia looked at her in bewilderment, the woman spoke again.
“Are you lost?”
At that, Sia slowly nodded.
The woman—Karin—narrowed her eyes slightly, scanning Sia from head to toe. Her strange attire, her features that differed from everyone else’s. And most of all, her ominous black hair.
If this had been any other day, Karin wouldn’t have even bothered talking to her, but today was different. From the moment she had spotted this mysterious girl, Karin had been unable to ignore the scent drifting from her.
It was intoxicating—and it kept pulling at her senses.
“…Did you come from another country? Is that why everything looks so fascinating to you?”
She had seen how Sia had gawked at the animal-formed beastfolk basking in the sunlight, as if they were something out of a fantasy.
It was understandable if she was a foreigner—but was that really enough to make her this amazed?
“Maybe? I think so?”
Sia hesitated but answered cautiously, sensing Karin’s friendly demeanor.
“…What?”
She froze.
The words felt unnatural coming out of her own mouth. Even though she was certain she had spoken in Korean, what she heard was an entirely different language.
That’s when she finally realized something was seriously wrong. From the moment she had fallen through that manhole, nothing made sense. She should have woken up in a dark, filthy space—not in the middle of a lush, open field.
She had been so distracted by the cats that she hadn’t even processed her own predicament until now. Her face paled, and she stared at Karin in shock.
“‘Maybe’…? So, you’re saying you’re not even the same species as us?”
“…Huh?”
Karin’s patience was wearing thin. Sure, she had been the one to initiate the conversation, but from the very beginning, this strange foreigner hadn’t been able to answer her properly. Now, she just wanted to end the interaction and walk away.
But she couldn’t.
Because the scent was even stronger up close.
Before she even realized it, Karin had moved closer. Her nose twitched as she inhaled the scent again.
“You smell like something… What is that? Can you tell me what product you’re using?”
At her words, Sia suddenly remembered.
She had always carried more than just churu for Cola.
Every day, along with the cat treats, she also carried a small bag of dried catnip.
Recalling the zippered pouch in her bag, Sia quickly rummaged through her belongings.
“Are you talking about this?”
She held out the small plastic bag.
Karin sniffed it—and her eyes went wide.
The intoxicatingly sweet scent was pouring out from the unfamiliar pouch—and it was impossible to resist.
