The Sun God and the Star God Came Calling

The system was no longer as much fun as it used to be, but that was all right.

Wuma Xiu still had a close friend in front of him to tease.

They were close friends, after all. Surely he wouldn't refuse his request?

"Anything?" he asked.

When the Night God heard that, his first reaction was, Great, Moon doesn't blame me. He nodded repeatedly, almost unable to contain himself:

"Yes. Anything."

The Night God's answer was firm and decisive.

He thought:

Forget punishment—even if Moon wanted my Night God Palace, I'd give it to him without blinking.

This place is dark and cold anyway.

If I gave it to Moon and he liked it, that would be the Night God Palace's good fortune.

The Night God Palace: ...

The corners of Wuma Xiu's mouth lifted a little higher as he looked at the Night God's earnest expression.

"Then change back," he said.

The Night God blinked, unable to process his words for a moment.

Wuma Xiu was already picturing it.

A fluffy little black cat on his left, and another fluffy little black cat on his right.

They looked exactly alike, but each had his own charms.

One would stiffly roll over to show his belly.

One would purr with practiced ease.

One would shyly bury his face in his palm.

One would burrow into his arms without a trace of shame.

He could scratch one under the chin with his left hand and rub the other's ears with his right, enjoying the bliss of having both cats at once.

Wouldn't that be wonderful?

"Moon...?" The Night God thought he might have misheard.

"Turn into a cat." Wuma Xiu's expression was perfectly composed. "I didn't get to pet you enough just now."

After all these days, the Sun God and the Star God had finally narrowed down the Night God Palace's location.

It hadn't been easy. Not easy at all.

The two gods had followed every scrap of a clue and taken countless wrong turns before finally tracking him down in the vast Sea of Stars.

The Star God snorted coldly and raised a hand, slicing it through the void.

Starlight poured through the rift, casting a faint glow over the Night God Palace's outer walls.

The Sun God couldn't even be bothered to knock.

He stepped inside, golden light blazing around him so brightly that the darkness throughout the palace shrank back into the corners.

The Star God already had several chains made of starlight coiled between his fingers. The moment he saw that kidnapper god surnamed Night, he intended to tie him up first and deal with the rest later.

"Night God—"

"Hand over my little brother—!"

The two gods charged fiercely into the Night God Palace's main hall. The Sun God's golden hair seemed almost ready to burst into flames, and the darkness throughout the palace trembled under the pressure of the light surrounding them.

Then they saw Wuma Xiu.

Their little brother, their big brother.

He was reclining comfortably on a wide obsidian bench at the far end of the main hall, one leg slightly bent and two fluffy little creatures in his arms.

Wuma Xiu raised his eyes at the Sun God and the Star God as they barged in, showing no surprise whatsoever.

"Big brother, little brother, you're here."

All the anger filling the Sun God and the Star God...

The instant they saw the scene, it was as if someone had poured a basin of warm water over their heads—and not even water that had been brought to a boil.

The fire was still there, but it was barely smoking anymore.

The two cats were both pure black and looked exactly alike, except that one had a red string wrapped around his tail.

At that moment, they were curled up on Wuma Xiu's lap.

Wuma Xiu's fingers idly scratched one cat under the chin. The cat nuzzled his head into his palm, letting out a series of soft purrs.

The Sun God looked this way and that, sweeping his gaze over every corner of the Night God Palace's main hall.

The obsidian pillars, the dark curtains, the lonely stone stool in the corner, even the dark patterns carved into the ceiling.

Hmph, it's as pitch-black as he is!

But that annoying bastard isn't here?

He had made such a show of kidnapping his little brother, yet now he wasn't even here?

The eight hundred accusations the Sun God had prepared...

Suddenly had no target.

The Star God's reaction was more direct than the Sun God's.

He withdrew his gaze, no longer caring where the Night God had gone.

He crossed the room in a few steps, lowered himself beside Wuma Xiu, and naturally pressed close to him.

The Star God leaned his shoulder against Wuma Xiu's, buried his head in the crook of Wuma Xiu's neck, and took a deep breath. Then he narrowed his eyes in satisfaction, looking just like a cat that had finally found its nest.

Over the past few days, while searching for the Night God Palace...

He had spread his Stellar Power too far, and when he drew it back, his whole being felt hollow.

Now he urgently needed to recharge with a little big-brother energy.

After clinging to him for a while...

The Star God lowered his head and looked at the two cats in Wuma Xiu's arms.

He didn't much like the look of them.

They were inky black, as black as the gloomy Night God Palace. Even their paws were black.

He had no idea where his big brother had picked them up, but he had somehow found two at once and was holding one on each side.

He was treating them like precious treasures.

Still, he himself was surely the most important.

The Star God reached out, seized one of the black cats by the scruff, and lifted him off Wuma Xiu's lap.

The black cat dangled in midair, his limbs hanging limply. He couldn't even be bothered to struggle.

With a casual flick of his hand, the Star God tossed him aside.

Shadow turned over in midair and landed lightly on all four paws without making a sound. Without hesitation, he turned into a mass of flowing shadow and melted into the darkness around him.

What was about to happen was no place for a mere shadow of the Night God to interfere.

The Star God, the Night God, the Moon God, the Sun God—none of them were beings he could afford to offend.

Running away now was his best choice.

As for his original?

Please.

He was just a shadow. Why should he worry about his original?

The Star God reached out, intending to lift the other cat out of Wuma Xiu's arms too, so he could have the place in his big brother's embrace all to himself.

His fingers had only just touched the cat's scruff.

The Night God Cat suddenly opened his eyes. They were a deep, dark color, and he stared coldly at the Star God. Then he raised a front paw and scratched the back of the Star God's hand.

Several scratches appeared on the back of the Star God's fair hand.

They were fine and shallow, with a few golden beads of light seeping out.

The Star God looked down at the scratches on his hand and froze.

A little cat had actually scratched him?

If word got out, people would probably laugh their teeth out.

But that feeling of dislike at a single glance...

It was so familiar.

Every time that annoying bastard came to the Moon God Palace, he could smell that same irritating scent in a corner.

He looked at the Night God Cat again. The cat was now licking the paw he had just scratched him with, his movements elegant and his gaze indifferent.

When he was done, he tucked his paw away and settled back into Wuma Xiu's arms, resting his chin in Wuma Xiu's palm and curling his tail around to lay it over his paws, as though nothing had happened.

The Star God stared at the cat, his eyes slowly narrowing.

"You annoying bastard! You shameless, annoying bastard! You actually turned into a cat to get close to my brother!"

The corner of the Star God's mouth twitched. He pointed at the cat, his fingertip almost poking his damp nose.

He had been wondering why the Night God wasn't there, and had even thought he'd changed his ways.

As it turned out, the Night God had made his move long ago.

The Night God Cat lifted his eyelids and met the Star God's gaze.

Then he nuzzled his head into Wuma Xiu's palm again, curled his tail around Wuma Xiu's wrist, and snuggled deeper into his arms, settling into a comfortable position.

Then he looked back at the Star God and blinked those feline eyes. Roughly translated, his expression said:

You're right, but so what?

After Wuma Xiu's "Desensitization Therapy," the Night God was no longer the same as before.

"You..." The Star God felt as though he had changed.

"Your skin's even thicker now!" The Sun God finished the sentence for him.