Cat in Suspenders -5-: The Being Called Silver Flash, Cat Silver Tail
The woman known as Cat Silver Tail, called the Silver Flash, wore suspenders. To her, the world was a place both cold and warm.
In this beastkin isekai world, most beastkin looked like walking animals. But occasionally, there were those who blended human features with animal traits. Treatment varied wildly depending on the region where beastkin lived.
And unfortunately for her, her parents were beastkin from the Muulunbatolam Great Forest who despised half-beastkin.
"What the hell is this!? No fur on her body!! She looks just like a human!! Disgusting!!"
"It's all your fault!!"
So she was abandoned right after birth in front of an orphanage run by the Church of Luminus.
But Cat didn't resent or hate being abandoned. Because...
"Oh my... the child..."
"Nyaa..."
"She's so cute..."
"Don't worry, we'll be your family..."
The orphanage director and nuns treated her like true family, with genuine love.
"Waaah!! Cat!! Your tail is so pretty!!"
"Cat ears!! So cute!!"
"Nya, nyanya!!"
The other orphans were friendly to her too.
"Shadow Dancer!!"
"Ooh...!! Cat!! That's a super rare Unique job!!"
"With that job, you'll definitely become a great hero!!"
"Nyaa!!"
Luckily, she awakened to a powerful, rare job. So she considered herself fortunate.
But as mentioned, the world was warm yet cold.
"Wh-what do we do... The orphanage funds..."
"This is weird... The ledger clearly shows..."
As she grew toward adulthood and neared leaving the orphanage, the world around her began to grow cold.
"Nya!? Leon!! That's dangerous if you work like that-nya! Stop right now...!!"
"D-don't worry... C-Cat... I'm f-fine... Ngh..."
"Leon!!"
Funding for the orphanage suddenly dwindled, and aid for the children became problematic. Not only that, her peers leaving the orphanage faced all sorts of hardships in society.
And it wasn't just them. The era they lived in was the end of the Grion Kingdom, when the Demon King had awakened and was aggressively invading the human world.
"Wh-why-nya..."
Gods existed in this world. But she wasn't omnipotent. Her power wasn't enough to embrace everyone.
So Luminus focused her management and interference on her devout priests and the high nobles above the people, exerting influence that way. The logic was that if the upper waters were clean, the lower would follow.
But as with all our clumsy goddess's efforts, problems arose. People weren't water, and corruption could happen at any level.
The policy seemed effective at first, but as the Grion Kingdom declined and Luminus concentrated on countering the Demon King, issues erupted everywhere.
"We must avoid burdening the citizens as much as possible!!"
"If the king doesn't move, neither will those below!! I'll go to the front lines myself!! For humanity!!"
"Lower the taxes... With men at the front, we can't raise them now."
"Distribute food for relief!!"
The leaders at the top were incorruptible and full of righteousness, thanks to the goddess's oversight. But those below them weren't.
"What? Taxes raised? Never heard..."
"Don't worry, I'll take the other half. Refuse, and well, you're dead."
"Ahh... Luminus... What evil is this...!!"
"Th-there's relief food coming..."
"Where!? Get lost!!"
"What? Conscription? Send a few and fake it."
Too much time had passed since the last Demon King invasion; people grew lazy or corrupt. The system worked under the watchful eyes of the upright leaders, but when they got distracted by the Demon King's assault, the pent-up pus burst all at once.
That Demon King's offensive was among the most ferocious in history, and the war dragged on evenly for 20 whole years. This intense conflict kept the elites focused elsewhere, letting rear problems fester and loop back to harm the front lines.
The more the ruling class poured their troops and wealth into the front for duty, the more power shifted to the corrupt with relatively larger forces.
"Damn it!! Where the hell did all that funding go!?"
"Th-that is..."
The city where Cat lived was no different. The upright leaders tried to manage, but mid- and low-level officials sensed the higher-ups weakening and stirred trouble.
"Damn it!! The numbers are all wrong!! Drag in everyone who wrote this!!"
Even the count ruling the city had few obeying him.
"Damn it!! Why won't anyone listen to me!?"
Perhaps that sowed the seeds for his later downfall.
Anyway...
"I-I'm going to a brothel..."
"Nyaa!? What are you saying-nya!? Mel!! You dreamed of being a courtesan...!!"
"B-but it's a high-class one in the west... The madam there treats the girls well..."
Such harsh realities closed in on Cat.
And what she witnessed was...
"Heh heh, wine tastes like honey while watching those stupid pig bastards."
"..."
Merchants profiting unjustly from the war meant to protect humanity.
"Taxes are up!! Pay more!!"
"Eek...!!"
Corrupt officials exploiting war-weary citizens.
"Ah... I'm hungry..."
"Damn..."
Starving orphanage kids.
"Nyaa..."
So Cat decided to stand up.
This world had the Thief job, but no one with it actually stole. Thieves earned more in the military as scouts, recon, or infiltrators.
No adventurer guilds yet, but mercenary work was similar.
Thus, real thieves were those with worthless jobs scraping by.
"Nyaa..."
But she became a thief in the truest sense.
"What!? My safe!?"
"Uwaaa!! My gold coins!! They're gone!!"
"Taking it nicely-nya~"
She stole wealth from the corrupt and redistributed it to those in need.
"Take this-nya."
"Th-thank you..."
Stolen loot became supplies for the orphanage and the needy.
Her thefts grew bolder and larger. Her infamy spread among the corrupt, her fame among citizens. Soon, she was called the Righteous Thief, Silver Flash.
'Stealing is bad-nya...'
But she knew it. No matter the rhetoric or targets, theft was wrong.
Such doubts and the corrupt's ugliness made her increasingly cynical.
And finally...
"Got her!!!"
"You damn bitch!!"
She was caught.
'It ended like this-nya...'
Cat accepted her defeat and fate cleanly. Punishment for wrongdoing.
Still...
"Nyaa!! Die-nya!!"
"Ugh!!"
"D-don't come closer!!"
She resisted to the end. Resisting death was every creature's right.
And 'Nyaa... Well... It wasn't so bad-nya...'
With that thought, Cat Silver Tail was beheaded.
Or should have been.
"Shadows, arise."
'Nyaa!?'
For some reason, the demonkin revived the clearly dead her.
As a horrific monster.
"Now, monster, under our control..."
'Die-nya!!'
"What!? The control ritual isn't even complete—why is it moving!? No!!"
She slew them before they could tamper with her mind, but there was a problem.
'Nyaa!?'
Shuruk!!
The shadow monster's body stopped obeying her.
The uncontrolled shadow began slaughtering nearby people.
'No!! Stop-nya!!'
Her immense willpower kept the monster's body from leaving the city center, starting at the orphanage. But...
"Aaaah!? Why is a demon beast here!?"
"Ugh... N-no!!"
'Stop it-nya!!'
She couldn't stop it from killing approaching people.
The fact she'd killed, plus centuries eroding her mind...
'P-please, someone... Stop me-nya...'
Her belief that resisting death was natural rang hollow; in despair, she wished for her own end.
'Can't hold on anymore-nya...'
Shuruk—
The shadows began eroding her mind.
'Ahh... Please, someone...'
Despairing as she became the monster, she was—
Kwaaaaaang!!!
'Eh?'
—blasted to oblivion by pale light.
"It's okay now!! Why, you ask!?"
"Ahh..."
"Because I'm here!!"
With the savior's voice, she closed her eyes in relief.
"Arise."
"Nyanyaa~"