Chapter 161
Chapter 161
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 161
Chapter Title: Cat Lord (2)
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“What in the world is going on?”
Having barely made it through the portal, I asked Kali, who was busily grooming his disheveled fur.
Kali didn’t stop licking his fluffy golden paw and replied offhandedly.
-You can see for yourself. It’s the wrath of the goddess Rausian.
“……The wrath of the goddess Rausian?”
“That’s right.”
Rausian.
The goddess of temperance and order.
Rausian was the twin goddess of Kerayon, the god of magic and knowledge, and her own magical power was said to rival his.
However, because she despised the primal “chaos” inherent in magic, Rausian had chosen to safeguard temperance and order.
The goddess of temperance and order. True to her name, she was renowned as the strictest among the twelve gods.
In fact, there was even a saying that she was more fearsome than Belek the god of war, Helder the god of vengeance, or Shauta the god of suffering.
Fitting for the goddess of temperance and order, Rausian also oversaw law and justice.
The laws of every nation lay in her hands.
Every country—no, the entire continent—respected and revered the “just” Rausian.
So why was the “wrath” of such a goddess directed at cats?
The lightning I’d witnessed before crossing the portal had been enormous, blanketing the sky with its power.
It was a type of magic no human could possibly produce, but hearing it described as the goddess Rausian’s wrath made the sheer force of it all too believable.
What I couldn’t wrap my head around was something else entirely.
‘Why in the world is the goddess Rausian’s wrath chasing after cats?’
His grooming finished, Kali looked up at me with his emerald eyes.
-I’m sorry it turned out this way for you. I never imagined I’d drag you here without any explanation.
“Where exactly is here?”
-Our sanctuary.
Looking around, I saw patches of catnip trees, catnip plants, scratched-up trees, and tufts of grass that had been torn out.
Butterflies flitted between them, lazily pursued by cats.
‘A cat kingdom or something?’
I started walking, following Kali and Jeomsuni.
In the distance loomed a structure that looked like a massive cat tower.
‘……No way. Is that their “castle”?’
-If things had gone according to plan, we would’ve finished the verification and explanation before holding the appointment ceremony here…… What a headache.
Kali shook his head.
His golden tail flicked irritably.
-No, no. If we appoint you as [Cat Lord] and have you stand against Rausian……
“Talk sense.”
Is this cat insane?
Even if becoming [Cat Lord] granted me nine lives, defying a god would be more than reckless—it’d be idiotic.
-Well, it’s impossible anyway. To appoint you as [Cat Lord], we need the agreement of the other council members.
“That’s a relief.”
-But since it’s an emergency, they might all agree?
“I won’t.”
-You’re an odd one. Don’t you want nine lives?
“If I lose them the moment I get them, what’s the point—nine or a hundred?”
Kali tilted his head this way and that, then shrugged.
That, that, that infuriating cat.
He thinks I’m a total idiot, doesn’t he?
I’d said that, but truthfully, the [Cat Lord] title’s effect—nine lives—did tempt me.
If things hadn’t gone so sideways, it would’ve been an incredible reward.
“But still. Why in the world is the goddess Rausian……”
-It’s a long story.
“I need to understand what’s going on.”
-Are you serious?
“Of course.”
-I wonder if a human can bear this tragedy.
“I can handle it.”
-Hoo.
Kali stroked his long whiskers, pausing for a long moment before finally speaking, as if he’d made up his mind.
-Rausian’s quill pen.
Rausian’s quill pen?
The symbol of Arjan, god of justice and the sun, is the sun.
Donar, god of rivers and seas, is a water droplet.
Rinshaka, goddess of forests and earth, is a leaf.
Nemeya, goddess of mercy and the moon, is the moon.
Riadel, goddess of art and luck, is a small bird.
Kerayon, god of magic and knowledge, is a pentagram……
The gods each had their own symbols.
Hammers and coins, swords and shields, burning skulls, broken bones……
The symbols varied wildly from god to god, and they were crucially important.
In a place like this pseudo-medieval land with high illiteracy rates, the impact of instantly recognizable symbols was huge.
Even if people couldn’t read words, anyone could identify a god’s symbol, a royal crest, or a family emblem.
They were intuitive.
That’s how vital “symbols” were.
Believe it or not, wars had broken out over the animals, plants, or colors in family crests.
It wasn’t uncommon here.
A god’s symbol was something inviolable, utterly sacred—no matter what.
Not something you could ignore or insult.
Anyway, the symbol of Rausian, goddess of temperance and order, was a “quill pen.”
This quill was crafted from the most beautiful feather of the Crystal Crane—also known as the “Crystal Heron”—that had cradled the “world” for eons until its birth.
Each feather shimmered like it was made of starlight.
The laws penned by Rausian with this quill were said to shine eternally like constellations……
Wait.
No way.
“Please tell me it’s not what I think it is.”
Kali’s plump cheeks twitched as if he were about to say something, then he nodded.
-You already possess the wisdom befitting a [Cat Lord].
“Oh god.”
-Young kittens’ curiosity sometimes shakes the world.
Kali’s explanation was simple.
Here in the “sanctuary,” nine special cats are born to watch over the nine worlds.
These nine cats each possess a kind of “clairvoyance” to observe their respective worlds—and that clairvoyance spotted Rausian’s quill pen.
What happened next was obvious.
The kittens, bold and daring, stole Rausian’s quill pen.
Kali spoke of it proudly, like it was commendable, but to me, it just sounded insane.
Stealing a god’s symbol?
That explained her fury.
“Then we just return the quill, right?”
-……
“No way.”
-……
“Where are those cats?”
-Probably playing with the quill somewhere.
“Oh god. You’re not planning to find it?”
-Once they get bored of it, they’ll return it to the goddess. Gods really can’t tolerate a child’s prank, can they? So narrow-minded.
This must be what they call biting the hand that feeds you.
A headache building, I pressed my forehead and stared at Kali.
“We’re talking about a god here. A god. If the quill isn’t returned, it won’t end with just shaking the world. She’ll destroy this whole ‘sanctuary’ or whatever.”
-……Hmm.
“This is madness. Yeah, I’ll pass on the [Cat Lord] appointment.”
At my words, Kali’s whiskers twitched.
Jeomsuni, who’d been rolling nearby, also lifted her head to look at me.
What good are nine lives?
A hundred wouldn’t save you from a goddess’s wrath.
Too bad, but better to bail now.
“……Well, send me back then.”
My words made Kali’s ears perk up.
He gazed at me thoughtfully, then slowly spoke.
-You must help us.
“Why should I?”
-Because we can help you.
“I already said no to nine lives……”
-That’s not what I mean.
Kali extended his sharp claws, then raked the air.
The scenery tore like paper, revealing a swirling void.
Suddenly, red light flashed.
Like a laser scanning space, the red beam swept through the void.
Before it reached the tear, Kali clapped once, and swarming butterflies covered the gap.
-I hadn’t planned to tell you this, but with things as they are, no choice.
“W-what was that just now……”
-Did you think you could humiliate two demons and walk away unscathed?
“……!”
-You’ve drawn “their” attention.
-But fortunately—or unfortunately—you, like us, carry “chaos”…… It won’t be easy for the darkness to find your roots.
That’s right.
Strictly speaking, I wasn’t “from here.”
But no one knew that.
Not the gods watching me, nor the demons I’d encountered.
The demons had caught a whiff of something “different” about me, but they didn’t know what.
If they learned the secret of my soul……
‘I don’t know what would happen, but it sure wouldn’t be good.’
-We are born of chaos and wander the nine worlds.
-……
-We’re not strong.
-But we can traverse worlds in ways even the gods cannot surpass.
In a way, it was a power greater than any divine authority.
To perceive other worlds……
To leap across them.
Maybe, with their help, I could return to my “original world.”
Maybe they were my one true hope for getting back.
-No one can tame us.
-……
-That’s why we can keep your secret.
This is crazy.
Whether to let the world discover my greatest “weakness”……
Or risk my life in a showdown with a goddess.
“Haaah……”
I sank to the ground, clutching my head.
It felt like I’d been headbutted hundreds of times by cat paws.
Argh, what the hell am I supposed to do?
Can you even win against a goddess……!
-Nyaow.
Then Jeomsuni approached, purring as she rubbed her head against my feet.
“……You want me to help?”
-Nyaang.
Gollgollgol.
Feeling the vibrations rumbling through her whole body somehow eased my mind a bit.
Not enough to make me think fighting a goddess was fine, of course.
But……
-……Haa.
But what choice did I have?
There was only one path now.
[Special Quest Activated!]
[Special Quest: Kitten Rescue Operation]
Rescue the kittens from the goddess’s grasp.