Chapter 46: Are You Really Welcoming Me Home Like This?!

Meow (*#&(@#@()))

Cat swore angrily while hammering the ground hard with its tail.

Damn!

So why was it judged that his greatest achievement was to play himself down to low HP?!

Constitution 200?!

HP 2333??

Even the growth rate of Strength exceeds that of Agility!

Isn't it that he did a lot of big things with his tail?!

He's a cat, you know!

A cat!

Fortunately he saw a useful 【Universal Stone】 appear, otherwise facing that 【Overgrowth】, he would have been so angry that he'd have blown up Xiaohei #4 outright.

Although, but...

There are many flaws, but the gains are definitely abundant.

No wonder the steward repeatedly stressed the importance of the first ten levels to him; he must have stood out among hundreds of millions back then thanks to his extraordinary effort in those early levels.

And this information has never been widely disclosed in the Alliance, not even mentioned in textbooks, and the various documents only briefly note that one should train and tap potential more upon awakening.

Strong ones silent? Information monopoly?

Cat thinks, it's quite possible.

After all, those strong ones, thirty years later, surely have their first offspring, perhaps even a second generation; they couldn't fail to put it into practice...

It seems this world still awaits the great Demon King to liberate it!

A glorious era praising Demon King Cat and heroic Witch Miss, meow hiahiahia!

ヾ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ

His thoughts wander no further; at this moment Cat can only hope that Witch Miss, when farming Beta Beast #3 at home, the stinky old man will hold back a bit.

However, Witch Miss's experience bar doesn't seem too short; as long as she doesn't overexert herself, it should be fine!

=w=

Cat thought for a moment, then relaxed and stopped worrying about it.

They say it's for the grim reaper to collect corpses, but actually it's just taking away the ashes he burned.

When the ash lid is pressed down and stored in the shadows, it feels like these odd things will be useful later.

Even if truly useless, it could be taken to a reputable workshop and forged into a sparkling artificial diamond ring to give to Witch Miss.

It might also have a warding effect.

Eh...?

In that case, would turning my corpse into a ring make it a bit more valuable...?

Thinking that, Cat suddenly whipped his head around to look at Xiaohei #4, who had long been added to his mental chat group for no apparent reason.

Xiaohei #4, caught stealing hidden grilled meat, was snatched by Cat completely off guard.

(ฅↀωↀฅ)

a fish

Seeing his two hands thrust high, and the dried fish falling with a splash onto the ground where Xiaohei #4 lay, Cat abandoned the bold, novel, and creatively artistic idea he just had.

Xiaohei #4 is too naive; taking him up would affect Witch Miss's intellect—who could I reason with?

Indeed, maybe consider after pain-blocking, cutting off a tail and then severing a limb for rebirth?

But would this gift be a bit too gory?

Cat thinks, perhaps there's still a chance to test Witch Miss's understanding of art.

In short, Cat, with an absolute collecting habit, won't miss any loot he drops.

Even worthless items, he'll concoct a perfectly reasonable excuse to keep them.

Perhaps he shouldn't have reincarnated as a cat, but as a hamster.

After the guardian vanished, the act of pushing the door was uneventful, and even the hoped-for guardian behind the door never appeared.

He can only say this dungeon isn't really a dungeon.

Imagine: a party endures countless hardships, finally slays the terrifying Demon Spawn, hopeful, pushes open the great door, only to see a massive gaping maw on the other side.

an evil laugh

Indeed, Cat is still very Demon King-like.

Need to think of a way to get Witch Miss to truly praise my wickedness.

After imagining Witch Miss bowing in awe at his great creation, and not seeing any good outcome, Cat decides to make a complete mess himself.

Concerned for the safety of his own territory, Cat plans to craft a few guardians himself to guard the passage on both sides of the door.

The Demon Spawn guard is too ugly and ferocious; letting it revive would hinder his future plans to travel through the passages.

Besides, that ugly thing should just stay dead! No more revivals! If Witch Miss later explores the back garden and sees it…

Yo, Assistant Dungeon Priority Mission 2: After leveling up, capture and kill all passage guardians!

￥￥￥￥￥￥

After a brief stroll through the dungeon, Cat discovered Dungeon F2334, which, aside from new species of monsters, lacks anything that could be called 'good' resources.

Indeed, adventurers stream in constantly; roughly every few hundred meters a party appears, forcing invisible Cat to sometimes add a 'flight' mode and climb upward.

But when Cat watches them smiling, holding crystals and bulging packages, Cat wonders if his own rating of good stuff is off.

Next time, when Witch Miss explores a dungeon, he'll just observe.

Due to lack of knowledge, even when Cat reaches the deepest level, he can't claim territory like in Dungeon B56, and his enthusiasm for exploration abruptly ends.

Is it because the BOSS hasn't respawned? Or because it isn't human? Or perhaps the already‑cleared dungeon has a different loot‑snatching mechanism?

Cat doesn't plan to rouse the grass and snakes by exploring now; handing it over to the Pikachus might be the safest choice.

After all, the news from the Eastern Alliance will surely be— a horde of yellow monsters seized control of Dungeon F2334, not a single Xiaohei.

What yellow electric mouse, what demon‑king army, and what does that cute little Xiaohei have to do with them?

The Day 2 mission's sudden termination lets Cat collect Loot ahead of schedule.

So, he dispatched Xiaohei No. 3 cat‑head to gather intel, Xiaohei No. 5 to freely spread the Cat virus, the Pikachus went home to farm, and he set off to roam freely.

Meowฅ´ω`ฅMeowฅ´ω`ฅMeowฅ´ω`ฅ

Cat is now watching a group of freshly entered 'newcomer squads' in the dungeon.

Their setup… Cat didn't look closely, because Witch Miss has no friends, and Cat has none either.

He and Witch Miss each harbor secrets unspeakable to outsiders, and they could never recruit barbarians into a team.

Things like teams, adventure, friendship—those have no connection at all to Witch Miss and Cat, who are truly gearing up to sprint through the dungeon with all their might.

What Cat watches is the pack they bring into the dungeon.

After returning home, he must team up with Witch Miss to complete the school‑organized dungeon‑clearing assessment!

Even though he has the handy 'Shadow', when it's in front of teachers and classmates, he still has to symbolically carry a backpack, right?

Hmph, Cat stands at a distance, applying righteous peeking and appraisal to their brown leather big backpacks.

Simple tent, pots and pans, rice, grain, meat, seasonings…?

Picnic…?

Are they really here to clear the dungeon?

Just gather a makeshift pot on the spot, and for food just eat monster meat, right?

Later, as Cat watched them scramble in panic, chased by sly little goblins, having to boil river water, purify it, and then drink, Cat realized this was a classic 'why not eat meat porridge' scenario.

Humans have limits; most adventurers not only cannot challenge monsters above their level, they end up being over‑leveled beaten by those monsters.

A single monster gang‑up on an entire adventurer squad seems quite common in dungeons.

For example, the party just chased by goblins is now being mobbed by a Siberian golden‑gradient big cat.

ummmmm

Witch Miss, go for it!

Cat thinks that even relying solely on attribute stats, Witch Miss, perfectly blending her assassin traits with magical ranged kiting, should be able to run without trouble.

At the very least, whether it's this group of goblins or that big golden‑gradient cat.

Even now… if she fights with a 'replace' mindset, Witch Miss still has a chance.

But if Witch Miss gets injured, it would probably hurt a lot.

How about giving her a pain‑reduction debuff and… an ultra‑fast recovery buff?

But pain reduction would also weaken her sense of danger and 'smell', right?

Cat was momentarily stuck in hesitation.

As for how exactly to buff his daughter.

After tracking a few more adventurer parties, Cat understood the current leveling method of low‑level adventurers.

Nature selects the fittest; the losers eat dust.

Low‑level adventurers are somewhat like guerrilla fighters against monsters, gaining experience through 'engagement' and staging a battle‑royale inside the dungeon.

Compared with pricey supplies, everyday household items are actually what low‑level adventurers need most in a dungeon.

Because only when they're full can they have the strength to keep fleeing.

Got it (o´ω`o)ﾉ, go to the dungeon and bring Witch Miss a bag of food.

Rice balls, buns, sandwiches, boxed meals, "fat otaku" happy water, juice, energy drinks. (Thick fog)

￥￥￥￥￥￥

With a blink, it's finally the last day in the dungeon.

Last night, Cat finished setting up all the security systems related to the base construction.

Calling it a 'security' system, Cat actually thinks 'escape' system is more appropriate.

It features an 'identity recognition' 'ultra‑fast teleport array'.

When danger arises, Pikachu can crush the Xiaohei cat‑head he made to teleport.

The earless Xiaohei cat‑head teleports back to the base; the one with ears teleports to the 'safe zone' he set up on the dungeon's lowest level, and only that lowest safe zone contains the nested spell array that sends you back to Witch Miss's home.

This convoluted setup mainly prevents tracking and ensures Cat and Witch Miss's safety.

Through two days of observation and personal experience, Cat can almost figure out what the dungeon's most valuable product is.

The wool comes from the sheep; the endless monster‑spawning dungeon's beasts are his secret to becoming the richest man!

The feathers of the Long‑necked Blue Bird, the eyes of the Five‑claw Lizard, the scales of the Silver‑patterned Forest Python… plus various rare flesh and the crystals they produce.

Of course, Cat has no intention of sharing this flesh and crystals with the despicable outsiders.

He must reserve these for his ever‑growing Pikachu army… and as his own daily snack stockpile.

There's no way; leveling up Cat is too hard.

Since there's no reasonable way to squeeze monsters, let them 'die' twice.

The first death yields experience, crystals and flesh; the second death yields experience and random attribute points.

After Cat's series of calculations, the local specialties for Witch Miss have already broken the two‑package threshold.

Although some are blood‑soaked and some even twitch now and then, Cat thinks these authentic local specialties should delight Witch Miss, right?

Looking at these gifts, she'll probably feel as if she's out exploring the dungeon with him, right?

Definitely.

Cat thought confidently.

Thus, with confidence brimming, Cat bid farewell to the teary‑eyed Pikachu and stepped into the teleportation array that would bring Cat home.

Cat is now impatient to see Witch Miss moved to tears.

Hmph!

What a cute apprentice cat, after finishing work outside, still remembers to bring a souvenir home!

Cat is definitely more useful than that frog who travels every day and only knows how to take photos.

During the few seconds of teleportation, Cat slipped its tail into the shadow, weighed a few oranges, whistled a little tune, and thought proudly.

￥￥￥￥￥￥

April 30, Friday, 5:30 a. m.

Accompanied by a gentle breeze, Cat landed smoothly in Witch Miss's bedroom.

In the dim bedroom, only a beam of light filtered in through the gap of the sheer curtains.

The familiar scent of Witch Miss filled the room, making Cat comfortably close its eyes and take a deep breath.

Sure enough, the bedroom is the most comfortable place for Cat to stay.

Cat's paw pads are soft, so walking makes no sound, and leaping lightly onto the bed does not disturb the sleeping Witch Miss.

Huh— sniff—

Witch Miss's breathing is even and steady, the blanket wrapped around her rises and falls, giving Cat an urge to jump onto it.

ฅ(●ↀωↀ●)ฅ

Thus, under the pull of an unknown force, Cat actually did so.

Bang.

So soft! So good!

Unable to hold back for a moment, Cat jumped in place and gave Witch Miss's rear a heavy smack.

At that moment, after a night of insomnia, Witch Miss, who had just finally fallen asleep, was jolted awake by the sudden series of heavy blows.

She sat up straight, and the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was Cat, proudly standing on her blanket.

(=｀ω´=)

"Meow~"

Good morning, Witch Miss~

"……"

From Cat's upward‑looking perspective, within just a few breaths, Witch Miss's facial expression shifted from bewilderment to surprise, to sudden realization, and then to anger.

"You jumped up to step on me, and you're still so proud!!!"

After a roar, Witch Miss ripped the blanket off, snatched a tool (drag child) and rushed toward the Xiaohei cat that had been rolled onto the floor by the blanket.

"Meow!!!!"

Is this how you welcome me home!!!!

If Witch Miss could understand Cat's shout, she would surely reply, "Did you just greet me like that right after coming home!!!"

Bang.

In a frantic scramble, another loud crash echoed through the room.

It wasn't the sound of Cat being hit.

It was the sound of Witch Miss slipping, stepping on the local specialty that had slid out from Cat's cocoon.

Seeing Witch Miss with her face pressed to the ground, Cat silently swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

White teeth.

Things seem to be getting serious.

Is it still possible for Cat to pretend to have just arrived and tell Witch Miss that it was all caused by her sleepwalking?