Chapter 30: Champ Tiger Creed (4)

“…The cat is quite calm.”

“…Of course, it’s been sedated.”

“…Shall we begin the surgery?”

The sound of sharp blades scraping against each other.

My body, bound and immobile.

A shiver ran through my entire body, and I opened my eyes.

Whatever was going on, I was screwed.

That much was certain.

I needed to escape, fast—

“Oh dear, it seems the anesthesia hasn’t fully taken effect…”

“Jane? Jane! What are you trying to do to me!”

“There’s something that must be done if you’re to become a house cat…”

A chilling sensation touched my chest.

Kazein’s slender fingers slowly trailed down from my chest, moving lower.

Chest… stomach… groin… and then.

“No! Stop! Don’t do this!”

“This is for your own good.”

Bullshit!

This is just as ridiculous as saying, “Mom will hold onto your New Year’s money until you’re all grown up!”

But no matter how much I struggled, my limbs had already betrayed me, no longer obeying the commands of my 30-gram brain.

In the end, all I could do was stare helplessly at the impending doom.

I clenched my eyes shut at the sharp metallic sound ringing in my ears.

I couldn’t bear to face what was about to happen.

“…Are you okay?!”

“Ah… meow?”

…It was just a dream.

I was so scared, thinking I was really getting neutered.

“You suddenly collapsed, you scared me… Should I call the priest—”

“Meow.”

No way.

I darted into the suspicious-smelling inner part of the lab.

At a speed no ordinary human could react to.

From the corner where I was hiding, I saw Kazein looking at me with a troubled expression.

“There shouldn’t be anything harmful to cats in the lab…”

I don’t know why I fainted either.

“Maybe it’s the smell? It’s pretty strong.”

“…Is that so?”

The smell… come to think of it, I can’t smell anything.

Could it be that the smell was so strong it numbed me?

I felt a wave of panic at the thought of losing my sense of smell.

A cat’s sense of smell is a crucial part of who we are.

After all, cats are creatures that can understand another’s territory just by scent.

But I guess it’ll come back once I leave this place, so no need to worry too much.

If it doesn’t come back… ah, whatever.

Right now, I need to investigate this lab more than worry about my sense of smell.

“Reni, come here. Just in case, let’s go to the Theology Department’s clinic—”

“Senior, are you crazy? Do you want to get scolded for bringing a cat there?”

“But—”

“No way. It’s better to just leave it to the professor.”

Now that I think about it, that elf who doesn’t act her age knows healing magic, right?

The healing magic of mages might be less effective compared to that of priests, but it’s better than nothing.

Of course, I didn’t really need it since I wasn’t sick, just fainted for some unknown reason.

But still, it seems like they’re about to take me out.

“Then let’s leave it to the professor. Reni, come here.”

No way.

I’m not going.

I pretended not to hear Kazein and started walking around the lab.

“Reni?”

“She seems fine, but what if she causes trouble—”

So noisy.

I jumped onto the large table in the middle of the lab and sat down.

It’s easier to see everything from up high.

“Reni, you shouldn’t be up there!”

I ignored Kazein’s words and shifted my gaze.

There’s nothing near the door, so no need to look there.

Let’s start with the opposite side.

I turned my gaze to the opposite side.

On the opposite side, there was a bookshelf filled with books, and next to it were what appeared to be parts of animal corpses stored in transparent containers.

Why would they keep them like that?

Some of them looked like monster remains.

Others seemed like ordinary animal remains…

A creepy sensation tickled my fur.

They weren’t cat remains, but pieces of unknown creatures.

The fact that they were collected like this was unsettling.

“Reni!”

Slender arms wrapped around my body.

But what kind of creature is a cat?

A creature with flexible bones that can slip through holes smaller than its body.

If I was determined to escape, the hands of a woman with poor stamina were no match for me.

“Wow… she’s really like a mollusk.”

“Meow.”

Give up, human.

A mere mortal can’t catch me.

“Senior, can you help me?”

Marina’s voice, tinged with laughter, tickled my ears.

Unlike the purple bean sprout graduate student, she didn’t seem too intent on catching me.

Well, that’s good for me.

One less annoying person to deal with.

I continued to evade Kazein’s hands and observed the lab.

But I couldn’t find anything particularly suspicious.

At least not on the shelves.

It’s not unusual for someone involved in research to have monster remains.

Though I’m not sure what that has to do with spirits.

“Senior, just give up. She’ll probably stay still if you don’t chase her.”

Now, all that’s left is the wooden box placed in the center of the table I’m sitting on.

The box, about a meter long, was covered in ominous-looking paper, as if it contained something fragile.

I really want to open this.

It looks so suspicious.

Curiosity killed the cat, but it’s not like you won’t die if you’re not curious.

For a creature at the bottom of the food chain, that’s just how it is.

I tapped the box with my paw and opened my mouth.

“Meow.”

“Reni, it’s dangerous to touch that. Understand?”

“Meow!”

“Senior, doesn’t she understand what we’re saying?”

This guy’s sharp.

“No way.”

Fortunately, Kazein didn’t seem to think so.

“Reni, it’s dangerous, so come here—”

No way.

I’m going to open this.

I quickly extended my claws and tore off the paper wrapped around the box.

The two tried to stop me, startled by my sudden action, but I was faster, breaking the seal on the box before they could react.

“Huff… Reni… you shouldn’t do that…”

“Se… Senior, are all cats this fast?”

It’s because you guys don’t exercise.

You bean sprouts.

I left the two panting girls behind and tried to open the lid of the box…

“Meow.”

It’s damn heavy.

Too heavy for a cat’s puny strength.

“…Senior. She’s asking us to open it, right?”

“Huh? Uh…”

Shut up and open it already, you can openers.

“Reni, this is really dangerous. So come here, okay?”

Talking in a stern voice won’t change my mind, so just open it.

I tapped the box a few more times to urge them on.

“Senior, let’s open it.”

“Marina!”

What’s the big deal?

I glanced back and forth between the unusually excited Kazein and Marina, who shrugged her shoulders.

“It might help with your research, Senior.”

“But Reni could be in danger. She fainted earlier… what if it’s because of what’s inside?”

You worry too much.

Just let it go.

“Reni, you mustn’t touch what’s inside? We don’t know what could happen…”

“Meow.”

With Kazein’s worried voice, the lid of the box opened, revealing its contents.

“Oh.”

A matryoshka doll?

What’s with the box inside a box?

If you’re going to do this, just set it up in a smaller size.

“Whatever it is, it’s overpacked. Senior.”

“The sponsor said it’s a very rare item.”

“A dangerous item?”

“Some kind of spirit’s remains… I heard it’s worth the price of a castle.”

“Come on, no way. Castles are expensive.”

Remains?

I tilted my head at that, and Kazein placed her hand on the box, looking down at me.

“Reni, come here. Just in case…”

Hmm, whatever.

As long as I get to see it, it’s fine.

I obediently let Kazein pick me up.

The soft sensation enveloped my body.

Her chest, which even her loose clothing couldn’t hide, pressed against me like a large cushion.

“Senior, she’s really smart, isn’t she? I think she really understands what we’re saying.”

“She might…”

“Meow.”

Hurry up and open it.

Let’s see what’s so expensive.

“Reni, you mustn’t touch what’s inside?”

Kazein’s pale hand lifted the lid of the box.

Inside the box was…

A rainbow-colored scale.

“This is…”

“…I heard it was a very rare item, but I didn’t expect it to be something like this.”

Yeah.

I didn’t expect this either.

Where did they even get this?

The sponsor must be someone with a lot of money, power, and a dark agenda.

Otherwise, there’s no way they could have obtained something like this.

“Senior, did you really hit the jackpot with this sponsor? How could they send something like this for research?”

“They said they lost a dear friend, so they really wanted this research to succeed… I never dreamed it would be something like this.”

It’s a blatant lie, but it seemed to work on the sentimental Kazein.

Anyway.

Now it’s clear.

Kazein’s sponsor is connected to the dark forces.

Whether they’re a pawn or the mastermind, I don’t know…

And… why these two didn’t appear in the original story.

Wait, they did.

Just not in the form I know.

I looked down at the rainbow-colored scale, thinking of the grim future ahead.