Buster had a list. Technically it was a classified document, but written down it mostly said: Very Old Gouda. The Extra Kind. Not the Orange One. The One That Tastes Like Something Important Happened During the Aging Process.

Buster needed a Dutch SIM card. This was, objectively, a simple errand. The phone shop in Ede was bright and efficient, staffed by people who radiated the calm confidence of those who understand systems. Buster took a ticket. The ticket said 77.

(Even Squirrels have personal brands) Buster had read the invitation twice. It said: Digital Nomads and Location-Independent Professionals — Amersfoort Chapter. Connect. Collaborate. Grow Your Brand. He was fairly certain he had misread Professionals as Hedgehogs the first time. He came anyway.

Buster had never been to a Return Counter before. Especially not one in the back garden of a Trader Joe’s. But there it was—carved into a rosemary bush and staffed by a porcupine in a smock that said “Hilde.”