He’s a Fox Ch 34

Chapter 34

“Moong-moo! …Oppa.”

It seemed the matter of honorifics and nicknames wasn’t quite settled yet, but at least the hostility had clearly died down. The tiger cub rolled right across the floor into the room and clung tight to Hohyun’s leg.

While he felt a brief swell of pride at the shrinking distance between them, it didn’t last long. With her face buried against the fabric of his trousers, Yuri mumbled something under her breath. The fox couldn’t make out the words—her pronunciation was still muddled—but what was clear was the heavy note of sorrow in her tone.

Kangwoon, watching from the side, moved as though to pick up the child, but she extended her claws and clung to Hohyun as though her life depended on it. Unless he wanted Hohyun’s pants shredded into rags, forcing her off wasn’t an option. The fox, who preferred not to wear torn cloth, stopped the tiger’s hand and instead bent down to pick up the cub himself.

It seemed the issue wasn’t with being lifted, but with who did the lifting. This time, in Hohyun’s arms, she relaxed without resistance.

Still silent, the cub only clenched both fists tightly around the hem of his shirt. There were no tears flowing, but her chin was stiff like a locked box and her pouty lips trembled with injustice.

Hohyun knew that look well. Where had he seen it before? Ah. He sighed softly. Right—his youngest niece, Seon-i, when she was exactly this age. Back when he was nineteen and away for a four-day school trip, she had been devastated that her favorite uncle suddenly disappeared. He had to spend an entire week afterward enduring her clinginess.

Seeing Yuri asleep at the front door earlier, he had thought she was “just waiting.” But looking at her now, she must have been genuinely shaken. Instead of trying to peel her off or comfort her with words, he simply shifted upright against the back of the sofa, seating her more securely.

No matter how he moved, she remained stiff, lips sealed. Watching her sulk, Hohyun slowly swished his tail behind him. The subtle flickering motion just out of her sight-line caught her attention almost immediately.

Sway. Left, right. Then tuck away behind his back. Then reveal again several seconds later. The temptation was too much for a cub; feline instinct won over sorrow. She released the shirt and tossed her tiny hands toward the tail.

She grabbed the middle with all her might. “Ugh,” Hohyun winced, but he didn’t pull away. Instead, he wiggled the tip to lightly tickle her chin and cheeks. Soon her face bloomed into a wide smile, and at last she burst out into childish giggles.

Meeting her sparkling eyes, Hohyun smiled back warmly.

“You were surprised when I suddenly disappeared, weren’t you?”

“…Mm-hm.”

“Sorry. Next time, I’ll make sure to tell you first.”

He reached out, offering his pinky finger like a promise—but before he could voice the word, the cub’s head jerked up and she yelled loudly:

“No! Moong-moo will stay with Yuri forever!!”

It was a bold rejection, but one with toddler-logic that adults couldn’t guess.

That very morning, before his outing, Yuri had finally begun to ease the distance. He smelled the same, Kangwoon’s logical explanations kept piling up, the identical tail and ears—all the evidence pointed to the fact. Though she still didn’t dare smother him with affection like his fox form, the cub wanted to play with the “puppy” adult and so had dashed off to fetch toys.

But when she turned back—he was gone.

Her small mind couldn’t comprehend that he had merely stepped out. She had poked her head out of the room expecting him but only found the Alligator standing guard.

“Uncle Alli… where puppy?” she had asked.

“Ah, he just stepped out. Said he had something to do, but he’ll be back this afternoon.”

“…He went… out?”

“Yes. Probably back by evening.”

But those last words meant nothing to her. Stunned, Yuri remembered the fox huddled nervously in the car surrounded by predators. Her tiny brain leapt to a grim conclusion: Had puppy left because she scared him away?

If Kangwoon had overheard, he would have teased her mercilessly: That little wimp, scary? But for a three-year-old, the thought was dead serious.

In her imagination, she saw a black fox with a luggage bundle fading away like a cartoon cloud: Goodbye! I’m leaving to find a nicer predator than you! Her chubby face crumpled instantly into a tearful pout.

So while Hohyun thought she was merely startled by his unexplained absence, in truth, Yuri feared she had driven him away forever. In short: separation anxiety.

To her, what mattered wasn’t whether he said where he was going—it was that he had to stay by her side. Her uncompromising declaration made the big tiger inwardly click his tongue. She never cared this much when her real brother left, but for this “puppy,” she was desperate.

Caught off guard, Hohyun was speechless. Interpreting his silence as rejection, the cub grew frantic. She stomped her little feet and tugged insistently at his shirt.

“Put Yuri down!”

Her urgent tone made him oblige immediately. The moment her feet touched floor, she bolted out. With no patience even to wait for the Alligator to open the door, she squeezed through the crack into the hall. The adults could only stare blankly after her. Minutes later, she returned, arms full of toys.

In her left clutched a yellow block with a butterfly printed on it, in her right a blue block with a dolphin. They were her favorite toy blocks, ones the fox himself recognized—he had seen her gnawing and playing with them daily, even once held one up as a “toy phone.”

Puzzled, Hohyun could only watch as she dumped the blocks onto his knees, then met his eyes directly. When he didn’t react, she simply dashed out again.

This repeated three more times. A toy car. A set of crayons. A sound-book that sang when pressed. Soon his lap was piled high with a mountain of children’s treasures.

Though at first both caretakers were confused, by the time she returned with the third haul, Kangwoon understood. He explained softly for the fox’s benefit:

“She’s bribing you.”

“…Bribing?”

“She’s offering her favorite things so you won’t go anywhere.”

Indeed, by always clinging to Kangwoon, she had learned that to get what you wanted, you sometimes gave something of value. But at age three, “something of value” meant toys—her most beloved possessions.

Realizing this made Hohyun hesitant. If he accepted, would he essentially be trapped here, forbidden from leaving at all? That was impossible—of course he’d have errands. But he also couldn’t just carry her everywhere. It needed refusal.

Resolving to reject gently, Hohyun’s determination wavered at the sight of her next attempt: too heavy to manage alone, she had enlisted the Alligator to lug in her entire toy chest.

A 120-liter living box stuffed full of toys.

Even Kangwoon had to scratch his face in disbelief. The little cub had gambled everything. Hohyun bit his lip to hide laughter at the absurd sincerity.

But when Yuri saw even this didn’t gain the response she wanted, she grew pensive. Thinking furiously, the cub decided to bring out her trump card.

What she returned with nearly made Kangwoon collapse.

Strutting like a victorious soldier returning from campaign, she dropped into Hohyun’s lap not another toy—

…but a heavy, sleek black leather wallet.

Anyone could tell at a glance—it wasn’t hers. Too solid, too expensive-looking. Clearly the wallet belonged to the massive tiger seated opposite.

At this, the tiger finally broke. Watching his own child steal his wallet to bribe the fox into staying, Kangwoon groaned and dragged one giant palm down his face.