* * *

Saewoo was flabbergasted by the sudden turn of events.

Mice?

In the room?

“You took this in the room…?”

Unable to believe it, Saewoo asked for confirmation.

The photographer, insisting he wasn’t lying, even pointed out the timestamp, proving that the photo had indeed just been taken.

It was real.

The date showed it had been taken mere moments ago.

The image depicted a nest-like space made of animal fur and twigs, with large adult mice cradling tiny baby mice.

Their beady black eyes glistened with moisture, as if they were on the verge of tears, indicating they were definitely not fakes or models.

They were real, living mice.

‘Why on earth are mice… in there…?’

“No way…”

A sudden realization struck Saewoo.

The photographer, meeting his gaze, gave a knowing nod, as if understanding exactly what he was thinking.

“What’s wrong, Sparrow? What’s going on?”

Minho approached Saewoo, curiosity evident on his face.

“Minho, I’m so sorry. Just give me a moment, okay?”

Saewoo apologized and quickly followed the photographer up to the second floor.

They dashed up the stairs and entered Room 201, where the door was wide open.

The photographer, who had entered first, gestured for Saewoo to follow quietly.

He led him to what was used as a walk-in closet.

‘But… I cleaned this spot thoroughly just yesterday…’

Click.

Saewoo, who had painstakingly scrubbed the area spotless, opened the walk-in closet door with a confused mind.

“…Huh?”

To his surprise, the closet was pristine, just as he’d left it.

“There’s nothing here…?”

“Well…”

As Saewoo looked back, puzzled, the photographer stepped into the closet.

“Why are you going in there…?”

“Oh, right here. Did you not know there’s a hidden compartment back here?”

“A hidden compartment?”

“Yes, some of our predators like to age their meat, so we have separate storage spaces for that. My house has one too.”

“Wait… aging meat…?”

Although Saewoo knew that predatory beings enjoyed meat, he had never heard of aging it and storing it like this.

It didn’t seem all that strange, but… why in a walk-in closet?

He couldn’t understand the reasoning.

“Alright, don’t be too startled, okay?”

“…”

Shhhh.

The photographer pressed his hand against a notch in the wall, and with a small click, a concealed door opened, revealing a stainless steel chamber meant for food storage.

“Oh…”

And there they were: the real-life mouse family from the photos.

“…Oh no.”

The group of mice appeared even more panicked after having their picture taken.

They were trembling uncontrollably, too frightened to even run away.

As soon as they locked eyes with Saewoo, their shivering intensified.

“I tried talking to them earlier, but they didn’t respond. Maybe it’s because I’m a predator. But perhaps you, Landlord, could try?”

“Me…?”

The photographer stepped aside, gesturing for Saewoo to give it a shot.

But the mice were trembling too much to even listen.

Even though he knew, as the owner, it was his responsibility to handle this, Saewoo couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Taking a deep breath, Saewoo approached carefully, trying to talk to them.

“Um… Mr. Mice…? P-please don’t be scared.”

“Squeak.”

“Pardon?”

“Squeak, squeak.”

“What… What are they saying? I can’t…”

Saewoo was bewildered.

While it was normal in the world of beastmen to communicate even when in animal form, he couldn’t make out the mice’s words.

Was it because of the location?

“If it’s okay with you, would you mind coming out and transforming back into beastmen form? Oh, I can bring clothes down from—”

“Squeak!”

Before Saewoo could finish, one of the mice let out a shrill, irritated squeak and began furiously burrowing into the nest they had made.

Rustle, rustle.

The tufts of animal fur scattered everywhere, causing Saewoo to cough and wave his hands in surprise.

“Wait, please!”

All he had suggested was a simple conversation as fellow beastmen, but the mice’s sudden reaction left him thoroughly taken aback.

“Sparrow! It looks like the mice have forgotten how to transform back!”

At that moment, Minho had climbed up to the second floor and shouted loudly.

“What…?”

Both Saewoo and the photographer exchanged uneasy glances at that.

In the world of beastmen, being in animal form consumed more energy than staying in beastmen form.

Generally, they avoided transforming unless absolutely necessary.

And it was said that if someone remained in their animal form too long, they might forget how to transform back, making life in civilized society difficult.

It had always seemed like just a rumor, but now, faced with this reality, Saewoo was utterly unprepared.

“…Oh no, so that’s what happened,” the photographer muttered, rubbing his chin.

“I heard some beastmen do this on purpose, living in their animal forms. There’s a tribe along the river that prefers this lifestyle, living like otters, building wooden homes rather than embracing modern conveniences.”

The more he talked about the otter folk, the more it reminded Saewoo of human society.

Even in the human world, some communities deliberately lived off the grid, relying only on minimal electricity and necessities, documented in various TV documentaries.

‘But still… Mice, in this building?’

It seemed implausible, given that the building was new, despite having been vacant for a while.

“Squeak, squeak…”

Even as the photographer explained, the mice paid no attention, continuing to sniff the air and chatter nervously among themselves.

“Sigh…”

A sigh escaped him. Just why had this family of mice ventured so far in?

And not just anywhere, but into a region fit only for predators.

He desperately wanted to understand their circumstances, but it was futile when they couldn’t communicate with each other.

He had hoped to avoid escalating the situation, but…

“What in the world…?”

At that moment, as Saewoo heaved a deep sigh, a curious old man popped his head up between Minho and the photographer, having climbed up there when no one had noticed.

“Oh… well, it’s, uh…”

Seeing the old man’s curiosity, Saewoo struggled to explain.

Or rather, he doubted explaining would be of any use anyway.

“Oh ho, mice, are they?”

“Yes…”

“Looks like those mice set up camp here to survive the winter.”

The old man clicked his tongue in disapproval, though he’d quickly assessed the situation without any need for Saewoo’s explanation.

Beneath his wrinkled eyelids, his golden eyes glinted with sympathy.

“Step aside, will you?”

The old man, squeezing between Minho and the photographer, gestured for Saewoo to make room.

“Um, Elder… the thing is, these mice don’t understand our language…”

“What’s their origin?”

“Excuse me…?”

Saewoo was left bewildered by the sudden question.

“Not your lineage, but that of the squeakers.”

“Oh… but why ask that all of a sudden…? And besides, they don’t even understand us…”

Thunk.

Just as Saewoo was about to give Minho a subtle look, asking for help, the old man suddenly tossed aside his cane.

“Chuuua! Chiiii- Huaa! Cheek!”

“What…?”

The old man called out in a bizarre, indecipherable language, leaving Saewoo once again at a loss.

“Fuchuup! Huaa Cheee-! Cheek-cheek-kuaa, Chuaaa!”

Despite Saewoo’s confusion, the old man kept shouting at the mice in that strange tongue.

“E-Elder…”

The idea of merely watching from the sidelines felt suddenly wrong.

As Minho and the photographer stood there, wide-eyed and speechless, Saewoo tried to address the old man gently, but then he froze.

“Chu-chiip! Chiiik! Chupchup-kung! Ah, chichik chuaa-!”

It wasn’t the old man this time but the mice themselves who were now responding in the same peculiar language.

“Chup! Huaa! Chupchup, Huaa! Cheek-cheek-kuua, chaa!”

“Chiiik, chaa! Chupchup, huung, chupchup!”

“Huaa! Cheek-cheek-kuua! Chupchup!”

It seemed like an actual conversation.

One by one, the mice, who had been hiding in their fluffy nest, emerged, slapping their chests and thighs as they replied.

The old man mimicked the mice’s actions, slapping his chest and thighs while bellowing loudly.

‘What… is this? A hidden camera prank…?’

Saewoo, bewildered and clueless about what was happening, turned to Minho, who silently approached and showed him something on his phone.

“Mr. Sparrow, I looked this up out of curiosity…”

When Saewoo glanced over, he saw a video playing on the phone screen.

The main title read, The Traditional Ritual of the Mouse Tribe: Jikka Mice Ceremony.

* * *