It Turns out that I am Beautiful, Strong and Miserable [Quick Wear] - 110

 

ITOTIABSAM | Interstellar Orcs | 110

Naturally able to distinguish between animal forms and true animals, Gu Cong was absolutely certain that the creature in front of him was just a normal cat.

He had never owned a pet and was not very familiar with cat breeds, but the cat's appearance was clearly that of a sweet Persian: emerald eyes, long fur, and slightly short legs.

In short...

It looked quite expensive.

Human-formed beasts still spoke human language, which meant that Gu Cong couldn't take any shortcuts to communicate with the cat and could only try to convey goodwill as much as possible.

Tentatively, he raised his hand again and repeated, "Don't be afraid."

Once again, he could barely make out that the silver-white cat retreated, bumping into the umbrella he was using to cover it.

It seemed quite alert. Had its owner trained it specially? Should he call an AI patrol for assistance? Domestic cats should be familiar with smart machines, and he remembered there was a pet hospital nearby.

As they stared at each other, Gu Cong's mind raced. Just as he was speculating whether those cold, metallic contraptions might be more appealing to the cat, it suddenly lifted its paw and gently pressed down on the umbrella handle, pushing it in its direction.

——Due to his personality, Gu Cong was accustomed to using a retro-style umbrella, one without any additional features, and now, leaning towards the cat's preferences, he inevitably got wet in the rain.

But with the cat's movement, the umbrella returned to cover Gu Cong's head.

The cool rainwater was kept outside.

Such a clever and considerate response shouldn't indicate dislike towards himself. Yet when Gu Cong reached out again, the cat dodged away once more.

With a vague suspicion in his heart, he stood up, walked past the cat, took a few steps forward, then turned back. Sure enough, there was a grayish little thing following him neither too closely nor too far behind.

"Are you afraid of dirtying me?" Squatting down again, Gu Cong reached out his hand for the third time. "It's okay, anyway, this outfit was meant to be washed."

It's difficult for ordinary animals to truly understand complex human language, and talking to a strange cat undoubtedly seemed a bit odd. But Gu Cong felt that the cat was very intelligent and might be able to understand his meaning.

As it turned out, his intuition was correct. This time, Gu Cong finally managed to touch the cat's head smoothly.

It was damp and a little cool to the touch.

"The hospital is too far away, I'll have to carry you." Skillfully activating the light-brain navigation, Gu Cong shifted the shopping bag to the hand holding the umbrella, freeing up one arm.

One second.

Two seconds.

With a strong push of its hind legs, the silver-white cat leaped into his arms.

...Then staggered almost imperceptibly.

Trying hard to suppress a laugh, 1101 said, "New body, normal."

 Xie Ye’s alter self had a strong aversion to his beast form and hadn't transformed since adulthood. Even though Xie Ye possessed all of his alter self memories, the larger cat body and lack of practical experience added up, making him inevitably awkward.

Fortunately, Gu Cong, who was holding a cat for the first time, didn't notice the slight slip of its tiny feet. The warmth of a human body permeated through the fabric of his suit, making him shiver unconsciously. Following the familiar heartbeat, Xie Ye stepped on Gu Cong's sturdy and powerful arm, slowly finding a comfortable position nestled against his chest.

The rain continued to fall as they made their way to the floating bus stop, passing by a young man wearing an oversized coat.

Excitedly, 1101 exclaimed, "It's the protagonist, Xia Bai!"

Xia Bai, the protagonist, was a game designer in the interstellar era. According to the original plot, it was Xia Bai who encountered Xie Ye on his way home and took him under his coat to bring him back.

Alert, Xie Ye used his claws to grip Gu Cong's shoulder and glanced backward.

He didn't see the "important prop" that would push the plot forward, but the young man quickly turned and entered the alley where Xie Ye had just emerged from.

A gently raised cat ear brushed against Gu Cong's neck, feeling slightly ticklish and cool. With both hands occupied, Gu Cong had to use his chin to press down on the mischievous little head. "What are you looking at? Hm?"

"Be careful not to fall."

Gu Cong hadn't encountered many cats before, nor did he have the personality to deliberately feed stray animals. But as he held this clever and beautiful cat in his arms, he suddenly understood why many people, regardless of gender, spoke in such gentle tones when they encountered a cat in videos on the Star Network.

What kind of careless owner would allow their pet to run off on its own like this?

Luckily, when they arrived at the bus stop, a floating bus that allowed pets happened to arrive. As soon as they boarded the bus, Xie Ye sneezed from the warm air blowing out. 

After completing the iris payment, Xie Ye heard the mechanical female voice, which he had just heard recently, saying, "Welcome aboard Bus 77. Is there anything I can assist you with?"

Since there were no other passengers on the bus, Gu Cong nodded and requested, "A towel, please."

Beep.

The tail-end standby robot immediately activated and accurately maneuvered around multiple rows of seats to reach Gu Cong, retrieving a disposable white towel from its belly.

【So all the service-related tasks are managed by this one artificial intelligence,】 1101 exclaimed excitedly, reveling in the highly advanced technological world. "I really want to try using my voice."

Xie Ye cautioned, "Behave yourself. I don't want to be mistaken for some fugitive cat hacker."

"Fine," 1101 quickly accessed the information from the small robot, appearing much more active than usual in the mental realm. It shrugged metaphorically and reminded, "It has emergency supplies in its belly. Have Gu Cong handle the wound first."

Meanwhile, Gu Cong, who was simply wiping off the rainwater from the cat's body, also noticed that the cat's left front paw was injured, with a deep red scab almost piercing through the entire paw pad. However, he was unsure if human medicine could be used on cats, so he quickly got off the bus as soon as it arrived at the station and hurried into a nearby pet hospital.

"It's a boy," the gentle-looking female doctor said after a series of examinations, finding no collar, name tag, or locator on Xie Ye. "There's no information about him in the database."

"It's unfortunate, but this little guy is a stray cat," the doctor said.

A stray cat?

Such a beautiful stray cat?

Gu Cong was surprised.

"Other than the injury to its front paw, it's relatively healthy. It's just a bit exhausted and hasn't eaten for a long time, so its stomach is empty," the doctor listed the data in front of her truthfully. "But this is common for stray cats. If you don't have the energy to take care of it, you can leave it here, and we'll contact an adoption agency."

Just as the female doctor mentioned adoption, Xie Ye, who had his wound bandaged, was conveniently brought out by the machine. He had just taken a thorough bath, his fur revealing its pristine white color with silver tips at the end, his nose pink and tender. Dragging his smooth and fluffy tail behind him, he looked like a soft cloud from afar.

1101: Help, it really wants to rua its host.

Getting punched was worth it.

However, Gu Cong stood still in place.

In the past few worlds, Gu Cong had also raised some animals, but those were all in ancient settings, for plot purposes. Xie Ye wasn't sure if the other party in front of him would be willing to take him home. After all, he was just a cat now, a weak and small animal form that couldn't be perceived by humans.

Waiting patiently for the man to come forward and pick him up, Xie Ye impatiently flicked his tail and jumped off the examination table, determined to give the other one last chance.

"Meow."

Losing his human breath also meant he couldn't speak human language anymore. Since crossing into this world, Xie Ye hadn't uttered a single meow. Now that he finally did, he realized that the tone he produced after transforming into a cat sounded unexpectedly cute.

Furrowing his brows slightly, he regretted it.

That meow just now didn't sound threatening at all; it sounded more like being coquettish.

But the man in the suit with several rows of plum paw prints already bent down to pick him up. Turning to the female doctor, he politely said, "No need to bother. I've decided to take him home."

Restricted by his breed, even if his fur fluffed up after being blown dry, he was still just a small bundle. Gu Cong, who had lived alone for years, hesitated for a moment, wondering if he could take care of him by himself.

However, when the silver-white cat jumped down from the examination table and meowed at him, Gu Cong knew that he couldn't bear to let the cat go to someone else.

Ten minutes later, Gu Cong paid the bill again using his iris.

In addition to the convenience store snacks he bought earlier, he now had two large bags of packaged cat supplies in his hands, all personally selected by him after carrying Xie Ye to the counter.

Originally, Gu Cong wanted to buy an airline carrier suitable for taking the cat out, but Xie Ye immediately climbed onto his shoulder with all four paws and firmly sat down, decisively indicating his refusal.

So, at this moment, Gu Cong had an unmistakable weight on his shoulders. The fluffy tail draped down his shoulder, covering almost half of his back, providing warmth.

In the capital star, only public transportation and law enforcement vehicles could "fly" in the sky, to avoid congestion as much as possible.

Following the route suggested by the light brain, Gu Cong chose the floating bus that allowed pets, and returned home just before eight o'clock.

Click.

The lights came on, illuminating a clean and simple, typical bachelor apartment. Gu Cong didn't use the smart home system; instead, he personally turned on the lights.

The injured paw pad was covered with trimmed medical bandages. Xie Ye roughly estimated the height and was about to jump when a large hand gently pressed down on him.

Then, the man squatted down, bringing himself closer to the ground, and lightly touched the paws: "Slow down, that will hurt."

Xie Ye's tail swayed slightly.

At the hospital, Xie Ye had already consumed some cat-specific nutritional liquid, so Gu Cong didn't rush to feed him. Instead, he neatly organized the purchased items and changed out of his soiled suit.

The human meridian lines flowed smoothly downward, with the shirt concealing well-defined muscular contours. Xie Ye only caught a glimpse before being covered by dark pajamas.

Perhaps it was because his stomach had food in it, or perhaps it was because the temperature in the apartment was just right. The next moment, as he squatted on the floor, Xie Ye suddenly felt a wave of overwhelming fatigue.

1101: "Sleeping Beauty Syndrome, it's Sleeping Beauty Syndrome."

1101: "Endure it a bit! Don't collapse directly! You'll hit your head!"

...

Xie Ye's eyelids were fighting to stay open, and he felt the voice of the system becoming increasingly distant and blurred.

As Gu Cong was about to close the door, his hand on the doorknob, the silver-white cat, which had been sitting obediently outside the bedroom, suddenly staggered over as if drunk.

Then, it collapsed onto his slippers.

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Author's Note:

1101: Well, it's better than hitting the floor.

Additionally: Because in Gu Cong's eyes, Xie Ye is still a real cat, so some descriptions temporarily use "it".