Chapter 34: Stay With Me

Nian Tu closed her eyes, but she faintly heard... the sound of a kitten meowing?

The sound was so subtle that she rubbed her ears, thinking it was an auditory hallucination, and continued trying to drift off to sleep. However, the phantom sound did not disappear.

After enduring it for a while, she finally couldn't help but sit up, walk to the window, and open it to look outside. On the windowsill, a small kitten sat obediently, gazing at her with longing eyes. "Meow."

Nian Tu was shocked!

Thankfully, she hadn't fallen asleep yet; she had felt uneasy and decided to check, otherwise, she might have left this little silly cat locked outside all night. Although it wasn't winter and the weather outside was warm enough, it would still be quite miserable for a kitten to crouch outside all night.

Nian Tu hurriedly reached out and scooped the kitten into the room.

The kitten snuggled against her very honestly, not struggling at all, so docile that it didn't seem like a stray cat at all. Nian Tu guessed that it was likely a former pet, which explained why it was so affectionate toward people. Given how clever it was, it probably hadn't run away on its own, but had been abandoned.

She affectionately stroked the ink-colored "king" marking on the kitten's forehead and asked again, "Do you want to stay and keep me company?"

Don't wander anymore; be her kitten.

In the past, she had always wanted a pet of her own, but she had been controlled by her family since she was a child, lacking the ability to even take care of herself, let alone provide a home for a pet. The past was too painful to look back on. Now that she could finally keep a pet, she would treat it very well.

The kitten seemed to sense Nian Tu's complex and slightly downcast emotions; it sensibly rubbed against her cheek and meowed to comfort her.

Nian Tu soon recovered her spirits, smiling as she tapped its nose. "Since you can't talk, I'll take that as a yes. From now on, you're my kitten."

"Let's get you a bath first, and then get something to eat," she said happily, carrying the kitten to the bathroom, mentally planning to check later if she needed to get any vaccinations or pet licenses for interstellar pet ownership.

It is well known that cats hate water, and for every cat owner, bathing a cat is a fierce battle. Nian Tu prepared herself mentally and carefully placed the kitten into a basin filled with warm water. To her surprise, the kitten was very well-behaved, even lifting its little face to cooperate with her scrubbing and washing.

Nian Tu rinsed it off, and it didn't struggle at all, facing the stream of water with a fearless expression.

Most felines fear water, but tigers are an exception. As the strongest of all felines, tigers actually enjoy water and are skilled swimmers; in hot seasons, they even like to soak in water to cool off.

As an atavistic divine beast, the White Tiger, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was naturally not afraid of water. Moreover, even when he lost control and lacked human reason, he remained far calmer and more composed than other beasts. During his time alone, he was as steady as he had been before losing control, possessing the demeanor of the King of Beasts. Only in front of the person he liked would he become a weak and pitiful little kitten.

Nian Tu couldn't wrap her head around it—how could anyone bear to abandon such a cute and obedient kitten?

After the bath, the kitten became completely clean. The blow-dried white fur was fluffy and soft, expanding from a small marshmallow into a white cloud, yet the "king" mark on its forehead remained as clear as ever.

Nian Tu was charmed by the way it sat there so solemnly, thinking it looked like a little tiger putting on a brave front. Recalling the giant white tiger from her dream, she sighed with regret. If only it could transform. She hadn't seen a tiger in person in reality yet. Such a big creature must be wonderful to pet.

"Meow?"

Looking at the marshmallow's innocent eyes as it blinked, Nian Tu couldn't help but smile again. Forget it, this is already great; it’s just as cute even if it doesn't turn into a tiger!

Holding the fragrant, soft marshmallow in her arms, Nian Tu planned to take it to the kitchen to find food. Suddenly, her optical computer chimed—it was a video call request from Xion.

She answered the call and held the kitten's paws up to show Xion. "Look! I have a kitten now!"

Xion had been busy since arriving at the base, and this was his first video call with Nian Tu, so he was quite nervous. He sat up straight, watching the video connect, and was just about to clear his throat to offer a greeting when a fluffy creature was suddenly shoved into the frame. His words caught in his throat, and the script he had carefully prepared was completely rendered useless.

As the culprit, the cute little female poked her head out and asked him softly, "Can I keep a cat in your house?"

How could Xion refuse? He naturally agreed wholeheartedly. With his consent, Nian Tu felt relieved. As she carried the kitten toward the kitchen, she asked him concernedly about how he had been over the past two days.

Xion had never felt so tongue-tied. Facing the little female he loved, he wanted to chat about interesting topics, but nothing came to mind. In the military camp, there was nothing but hard-headed males, mechanical weapons, and various dull reports.

"Where did you buy this cat?" he asked, forced to shift the topic to the cat.

The cat was of top-tier quality. Seeing how Nian Tu carried it everywhere, she must love it dearly; anything related to it was surely a topic she enjoyed.

Sure enough, Nian Tu's eyes curved into crescents, and she said happily, "I didn't buy it." She began to tell him the whole story, starting from their chance encounter on the swing, all the way to catching it outside the window just now.

The noise of their video chat in the kitchen soon drew Lu Zhan over.

Lu Zhan nodded casually to greet Xion, then cast a cold gaze at the kitten in Nian Tu's arms. The man and the cat stared at each other from a distance, filled with hostility. Undercurrents surged and sparks flew in the kitchen.

Nian Tu pinched the kitten's cheeks, forcing it to look away, and blocked the space between them. "Alright, we're all family now. No fighting from now on!"

The kitten let out an unwilling "meow," then curled up obediently in her arms, no longer acting out. In front of Nian Tu, it had to be a well-behaved little kitten. As for whether it would quietly use violence against the annoying guy when Nian Tu wasn't looking, that was another matter.

Lu Zhan, meanwhile, was secretly calculating whether to find an excuse to throw this creature out.

He sneered and said to Xion on the other side of the video, "Shouldn't the security system of your house be upgraded?"

Xion did not accept his insinuation and frowned. "The security for this house and its courtyard is S-level, the highest level available for private use outside of the royal family and high-level government agencies. The fact that this cat could get in just proves it's an ordinary animal."

Beastmen's animal forms were different from ordinary animals; there were significant differences in various physical indices, and the security system could distinguish between the two with a single scan.

"Ordinary animals are not within the system's defense range unless the system judges the animal to be too large or fierce, posing a danger."

"But if a beastman enters the villa grounds without permission, they will definitely be expelled."

"Only an SS-level male could possibly be strong enough to evade the system's search."

There were only a handful of SS-level males in the entire empire, and every one of them was a powerful figure in a high position. Who would be bored enough to trespass on private property? Even if Nian Tu awakened S-level spiritual power in the future, those big shots wouldn't stoop so low as to break in and abduct her, no matter how much they coveted her.

So, this cat of unknown origin was truly an ordinary animal, not a beastman.

Lu Zhan finally relaxed. Since that was the case, although his aura clashed with the cat, he couldn't stand Nian Tu being disappointed. If she wanted to keep it, then let her keep it. He couldn't bear to let Nian Tu down.

Lu Zhan tentatively forgave the cat for scratching him and even let bygones be bygones, graciously making another meal for it. However, the kitten remained as picky as ever, only willing to eat what Nian Tu fed it by hand.

Nian Tu scratched the kitten's chin and sighed helplessly. "I'll have to look for other recipes."

Xion secretly made up his mind that he would definitely find time to learn how to cook for cats. If the cat didn't like what Lu Zhan made, it must be because Lu Zhan's skills were poor. For Nian Tu's sake, Xion vowed that he would evolve into a cat-care expert as quickly as possible. After all, pleasing Nian Tu's pet was essentially the same as pleasing Nian Tu herself.

He probed, "I'll come help you take care of the cat in the future."

Nian Tu paused for a moment, then smiled and nodded in agreement.

While feeding the cat and chatting with Xion for a while longer, Nian Tu didn't see the message pop up on her optical computer until after the video call ended and she had returned to her room to lie down.

The message had been sent half an hour ago, and it was actually from Marshal Feli.

Why would Uncle Marshal have something to ask her?

Nian Tu suddenly felt nervous. She set the kitten aside and clicked on the chat box to view the message.

Feli: [Nian Nian, I have something I'd like to ask you, but it might be a bit presumptuous...]