Chapter 53: A Cat Should Be A Cat
Evening had fully settled in.
The television continued playing in the background.
Reiji remained sprawled on the couch, one arm casually over the head of the couch.
Beside him, Vel slept peacefully.
The sight was strangely relaxing.
A few days ago, this creature had been a very annoying Velsra, but now he was snoring on the couch like a lazy house cat.
Life really was weird.
Reiji stared at the ceiling. The house felt quiet. Too quiet.
No dungeon alarms. No yandere girlfriend. No system forcing him to do something ridiculous.
Just silence.
Reiji suddenly narrowed his eyes. Something wasn’t right.
He looked down at himself. He was still wearing the weights. Since the system had already given him the rewards, the 8-hour time limit must have already elapsed, right?
Reiji thought as he removed the weights and put them in his inventory. Seeing the damn system not responding or saying anything, he figured it was fine.
Reiji glanced at Vel who was still fast asleep.
The yellow cat was sleeping peacefully.
His stomach rose and fell rhythmically. A moment later his paws twitched. Then his tail moved.
Then...
*Yawn*
Vel stretched his chubby body.
"My Lord, the fish today was truly magnificent, meow..."
Vel immediately sat upright.
The words escaped before he realized it.
The room immediately became silent.
"..."
"..."
The two stared at each other.
Reiji’s expression slowly darkened.
Vel froze, a cold chill ran down his furry spine.
"My Lord, meow?"
Reiji pointed at him.
"You failed."
Vel blinked.
"Meow?"
"You failed."
"But, meow..."
"You spoke."
Vel looked confused.
Reiji sighed, "At least you lasted less than an hour."
Vel immediately lowered his head.
His ears drooped.
For some reason he genuinely looked guilty.
"My apologies, My Lord, meow."
"Wrong."
Vel froze.
"What, meow?"
"You spoke again."
"..."
"..."
Vel looked like he had just realized the severity of the situation.
A few seconds later he slowly lowered himself onto the couch.
Then he covered his mouth with both paws.
Reiji rubbed his forehead.
"This is harder than I thought."
A normal cat didn’t talk.
A normal cat didn’t call people "My Lord."
A normal cat didn’t explain dungeon strategies.
And a normal cat definitely didn’t bow.
Unfortunately Vel did all four.
Reiji leaned back against the couch.
"If suddenly Hina comes home tomorrow, you’re dead."
Vel immediately sat upright.
"What?!"
"You did it again."
Vel quickly covered his mouth.
His eyes widened.
Panic spread across his furry face.
Reiji almost laughed.
Almost.
The sight was simply too ridiculous.
A dungeon creature was currently having an identity crisis because it couldn’t pretend to be a cat.
After a while Reiji stood up.
"Come on."
Vel blinked.
"Meow?"
"We’re continuing training."
The cat immediately jumped off the couch.
His face became serious.
He looked like a soldier preparing for battle.
Reiji pointed toward the center of the living room.
"First test."
Vel nodded.
"Meow."
Reiji folded his arms.
"If I call your name, don’t answer."
Vel nodded again.
A few seconds passed.
"Furball."
That wasn’t his name so he didn’t answer.
"Masturbating Goblin."
Vel’s expression cracked but he didn’t respond.
"Annoying Cockroach."
Nothing.
"Bootlicker."
Still nothing.
Reiji nodded.
’Not bad.’
Then he casually said: "There’s food in the kitchen."
Vel instantly jumped up.
"Where, My Lord, meow?!"
The room became silent.
"..."
Vel slowly sat back down.
"I have failed you, My Lord."
Reiji sighed.
’This was going to take a while.’
An hour later, the training somehow became even stranger.
Reiji was currently holding a feather.
Vel sat opposite him.
The cat’s eyes followed the feather.
Left.
Right.
Left.
Right.
Then suddenly...
SWISH!
Vel launched himself forward and caught the feather.
Reiji stared.
Vel landed proudly.
His tail stood upright.
A victorious expression appeared on his face.
"Why did that actually work?"
Vel tilted his head.
"Meow?"
Reiji rubbed his chin.
Maybe instincts still remained.
That was good.
Very good.
If natural cat instincts existed, training would become easier.
—This training is so weird I don’t even understand anymore.
The next test started immediately.
Reiji grabbed a small ball from a nearby shelf.
Then he tossed it. The ball rolled across the floor.
Vel stared at it.
The ball continued rolling.
Vel stared harder.
The ball eventually stopped. Nothing happened.
Reiji looked at him, "Aren’t you supposed to chase it?"
Vel blinked and asked telepathicaly. ’Why, My Lord?’
"Because cats do that."
Vel immediately sprinted after the already stationary ball.
Reiji watched the performance.
Then buried his face in his hands.
Everything Vel did felt half a day late.
Evening arrived before either of them noticed. The sun gradually disappeared beyond the windows.
Orange light filled the room.
Reiji sat at the dining table.
Across from him, Vel was busy eating.
This time he actually remembered not to speak.
Progress.
Small progress.
But progress nonetheless.
Halfway through dinner...
Ding!
A familiar green screen appeared.
_____
[Hidden Training Progress Detected.]
(Note: This had nothing to do with helping you grow stronger.)
[Servant: Vel]
[Cat Behavior Training]
[Current Completion: 14%]
[Evaluation: Seriously pathetic.]
_____
Reiji nearly choked.
"Fourteen percent?!"
Vel immediately looked up.
"Meow?"
"You’re fucking pathetic."
"Meow?"
Reiji stared at the screen.
Then at Vel.
Then back at the screen.
Somehow fourteen percent felt generous.
"If Hina were to come back, Vel would probably kick the bucket. Maybe twice."
Even without understanding percentages, Vel knew that sounded bad.
Very bad.
Reiji sighed.
Then he stood up.
"Tomorrow."
Vel tilted his head.
"Tomorrow we continue."
The cat immediately straightened.
Determination appeared in his eyes.
"Meow."
This time he didn’t accidentally speak.
Reiji nodded.
"Good."
The house eventually became quiet again.
The dishes were washed.
The television was turned off.
The lights gradually disappeared one after another.
Before going upstairs, Reiji glanced toward Vel.
The yellow cat was already curled into a ball near the couch.
Fast asleep.
"..."
A faint smile appeared on Reiji’s face.
Not because Vel was useful, not because of the system, not because of training.
But because the empty house didn’t feel quite as empty anymore.
Even if his companion happened to be an idiot disguised as a cat.
Reiji shook his head.
"Goodnight, Vel."
The sleeping cat’s tail flicked slightly.
Reiji turned off the final light and headed upstairs.
Tomorrow would be another day of training.
And judging by Vel’s fourteen percent score, it was going to be a very long day.
