Chapter 53: The Cat Gets Ready to Pounce

"Hungry?"

Without unnecessary words, Ethan asked just as he used to.

The Ragdoll cat nodded at him.

"Let's go. There's some leftover pork belly and bread at home—oh, right, and some sour cream."

"Meow~"

The Ragdoll narrowed her eyes into a smiling expression, running towards Ethan with three steps in two just like she used to do in the past. She leaped high, and using Ethan's extended arm, agilely jumped onto his shoulder. She found a comfortable position, her fluffy tail gently wrapping around Ethan's neck like a scarf.

After arriving home, Miss Chloe also sprang into action. She trotted all the way down the street, first carrying the cauldron into her own bedroom, and then pushing a dead-drunk Hagrid onto the sofa. There was no telling what kind of dream Hagrid was having, as he kept shouting "Wife, wife" endlessly. Miss Chloe fetched a pillow and shoved it into Hagrid's arms, finally managing to quiet him down.

Following that came the first meeting between Miss Chloe and Lucky.

Miss Chloe lifted her chin, curiously sizing up the Ragdoll cat who stubbornly refused to leave Ethan's shoulder. The Ragdoll glared fiercely back, tightening her tail around Ethan's neck as if to assert her dominance.

Ethan, with his back turned to the cat and the chicken, remained completely oblivious to all this. He was leisurely humming a little tune—"Today is a wonderful day for stew"—while pouring the seasonings into the pot one by one.

Old Sen's Stew, his signature dish.

In his memory, this was Lucky's favorite meal. At the same time, he couldn't help but marvel at how accurate the fortune teller's prophecy was; this truly was an unexpected reunion with an old friend.

"Coo?"

Miss Chloe tilted her head in confusion. She felt that this new guest from the apartment seemed a bit unfriendly. Suddenly thinking of something, she bounced over to the corner of the kitchen, buried her head in a bag, and a moment later, came out holding a piece of hard bread in her beak. Standing on tiptoe, she offered the bread to the Ragdoll cat.

Miss Chloe also narrowed her eyes, puffed out her cheeks, and smiled amiably.

The Ragdoll finally responded to her, leaping down from Ethan's shoulder and landing gracefully on the kitchen cabinet—this spot was still quite a bit taller than Miss Chloe. Miss Chloe pushed the hard bread toward the Ragdoll, then darted over to bite open the cabinet door, dragging out the jar of sour cream and placing it right beside the bread.

"Coo-coo, coo!"

The Ragdoll's gaze softened somewhat, and she fell into a thoughtful silence.

This little hen looked rather foolish; she probably couldn't pose any threat as a rival.

She gladly accepted the little hen's tribute, hugging the hard bread stained with sour cream, and began to gnaw on it with great relish.

It was still the familiar taste.

Back then, when Ethan used to study hard into the night under the gas lamp, she would sit on the table and chew on hard bread.

And then she gained five pounds in a single week.

Having learned her lesson, the Ragdoll exercised moderation. After taking just a few bites, she pushed the bread aside. While waiting for the stew to finish, she began to study the strange creature before her. It looked like a mutated chicken, yet its temperament seemed very docile, like a carefree optimist.

The Ragdoll stretched out a paw and patted Miss Chloe's head. The little hen immediately rubbed against her happily.

So it was just a pet chicken.

Her last shred of worry vanished.

Before long, Ethan had the stew ready. He placed the pot of stew on the floor, brought over a small stool for himself, gave Lucky a bowl and Miss Chloe a basin, and used a knife to slice up the meat and distribute it.

He took the lead in lifting his bowl. "Here's to celebrating Lucky's return to town!"

"Meow~"

"Coo!"

"Haven't seen you in all these years, and you're still the exact same," Ethan said smugly. "Though I'm no longer who I used to be; I live in a big house now."

True to form, the Ragdoll once again shot him a look of utter disdain.

This was a Ragdoll cat who could understand human speech. However, in a world brimming with extraordinary powers, this wasn't even considered rare. Ethan had even seen high-level monsters capable of transforming into human forms in the Monster Compendium, and he suspected that this Ragdoll probably had some monster blood flowing in her veins.

Lucky was extremely clean. No matter when you saw her, her fur was never soiled by dust, nor did she ever emit any unpleasant odors.

Since Ethan was the only one at the table capable of speaking, he took the initiative to talk about what had happened after Lucky left.

He recounted the truth behind the story of "The Three Knights," which dated back to Baron Glating's grandfather's era—how they had poisoned the drinking water source to kill a witch who was wreaking havoc in the small town, and how years later the witch had made a comeback and attacked Riverside Town. Then he spoke of the Roxane case; Mr. Jester had already left the town forever.

Time ticked away second by second, and the stew was devoured before anyone noticed. Miss Chloe was the main combat force among them; her appetite had always been an enigma. No matter how much food Ethan prepared, Miss Chloe could always finish it all. Her most dazzling feat to date was the night they encountered the Great Wild Boar King in the forest.

Miss Chloe had eaten through the entire night, stubbornly swallowing the Great Wild Boar King—which was several times larger than her—down into her stomach without wasting a single bit.

After a while, the Ragdoll yawned.

"If you don't have anywhere to go, you can stay here for now. Follow me."

Ethan walked in the lead, leading the cat and the chicken to the guest bedroom. "This is Miss Chloe's room. There's a big bed inside. From now on, you guys are roommates."

"Meow!"

The Ragdoll's face was plastered with rejection. She shook her head violently and didn't stop walking until she reached the master bedroom.

"Here? This is my room."

The Ragdoll simply looked up at Ethan, straightened her body, and began scratching at the door with her paw.

"You want to stay here?"

The Ragdoll nodded repeatedly without hesitation.

"I really don't know what to do with you."

Ethan figured that if felines had aristocrats, Lucky must be a spoiled young lady. Back when they were at the guild, she hadn't been willing to stay in the cat bed he built for her; the moment darkness fell, she would claim the big bed before him. At first, she had a very strong sense of territory, and once she occupied the bed, she wouldn't let him up.

Later, there was a period when Lucky fell ill and looked listless all day long. After he studied numerous books on medicine and nursing and cared for her for a long time, she gradually stopped resisting him so much.

Ethan could understand the reserve of Lucky's status as a feline young lady, so he had drawn a line on the bed, gotten two quilts from the guild, with Lucky sleeping on the inside and him on the outside.

However, that was when times were hard.

Just as he had said, he was no longer the man he used to be!

"Fine then. Since you insist on this room, the master bedroom is yours. Worst case scenario, I'll move to the guest bedroom and share a bed with Miss Chloe. Wait here while I go pack up my quilt and pillow... Huh? What kind of look is that?"

The cat didn't speak, glaring at him with blazing eyes.

Ethan learned something new today: a Ragdoll cat's eyes could actually widen to this extent.

The cat's eyes were filled with sheer disbelief, and even... a hint of ferocity.

"Are you an idiot?!"

The cat seemed to want to convey this message to him through her gaze.

Then,

The cat arched her back.

The cat braced herself.

The cat bounced off the floor, hurling herself at him like a cannonball.