Darklock: "You Want Me to Steal That???" / The Great Herrscher of Sentience Makes Her Entrance-Celebrate!

"Meow~~"

Upon hearing this, the Canned Food's furry ears twitched slightly, and then it let out a soft croak in response.

"I was so confused, I forgot you're just a Canned Food. But you're really smart." As she spoke, Rope gently rubbed the Canned Food in her arms, then gave it a gentle smile that Pardofelis had never seen before.

Meow~

Once inside Swire's yard, Pardofelis was not as cautious as usual; her actions could even be described as brash and uninhibited.

After all, the owners already knew about it, so the cat didn't care about a little accident, especially since this might be the last time she visited.

Because the second task only has this one last purchase left. After this purchase, that dazzling, golden superstar will appear. At that point, Pardofelis will have no reason to come here anymore.

As for preferences... all I can say is that after coming here so many times, I've already discovered and collected anything that interests me.

"Oh dear, they changed the locks. I knew they'd found it."

Pardofelis stood at the front door of Swire's house, looking at the changed locks, without the slightest surprise on her face.

"However, this is no problem for me."

As she spoke, Pardofelis slowly curled the corners of her lips, and with a sly expression, she took out her special tool from her spatial storage and began her skillful operation.

"Click--"

A moment later, with a crisp click, the newly installed lock on Swire's house was easily opened by someone.

Then, Pardofelis pushed open the door and walked in as if she were in her own home.

However, this time was different. She didn't look for any specific products to stock up on, but instead went straight to the cabinet at Swire where cat Canned Food was available.

After so many visits, there's really nothing left in this house that the cats want to take. If I had to say, the only thing they're still thinking about is this cabinet full of cat Canned Food and canned cat food.

Since she and the Canned Food might not be coming back again, Pardofelis decided to pack everything up and take it all with her this time, adhering to the principle of not wasting anything.

Once she had an idea, the cat didn't hold back. She opened the cabinet, grabbed Canned Food of food, and started stuffing it into the bag she had taken out.

"Wow, there's really a lot of stuff..."

After a long and tiring process, Pardofelis finally finished packing the things. She stretched out her arm and wiped non-existent sweat from her forehead, sighing softly.

After sighing, perhaps feeling that the cabinet she had cleaned was too "empty," the cat hesitated for a moment before closing the cabinet door, then took out an adorable cat paw ornament from her pocket and put it inside.

Unlike before when she was careful to put the silver coins in, afraid of being discovered too quickly, this time she put the trinkets, or rather, Pardofelis's collection, in the center of the cabinet without any hesitation, as if she was afraid that others would not see them.

"Alright, let's go!"

After restoring the entire scene, Pardofelis picked up the "goods" on the ground and left the house happily and without any regrets.

But before leaving the yard completely, the cat suddenly felt playful. It turned its head towards a reflective spot in the corner of the yard, gently tossed the Canned Food of food in its hand, and silently said, "We won't be polite then."

In the past, Pardofelis wouldn't have dared to be so "arrogant," but now... since it's the last time, she's fearless.

Hiding in a corner outside the wall, petting her cat, Rope looked at the bag that was suddenly thrown out with a curious expression. But before she could go over to check, a figure landed on the ground right after it.

"Um... Welcome back, Miss Felis, and congratulations?"

Rope looked at Pardofelis who appeared in front of him and congratulated her in an uncertain tone.

"Well, let's not talk about that now, let's get out of here quickly." With that, Pardofelis picked up the goods in one hand and pulled her henchman with the other, preparing to leave.

Well, although Pardofelis acted very "arrogantly" in the courtyard, she decided to leave as soon as possible once she was outside.

After all, nobody knows if Swire is so deranged as to connect her home security cameras to her phone for real-time monitoring...

To ensure this was the last time for the mission and the first time leading her underlings without any mishaps, Cat sincerely chose to quickly activate the speed boost.

"Huh? Oh, have you gotten yourself into some kind of trouble?"

After being suddenly pulled along by Pardofelis, Rope asked with some confusion.

"It's not going to be a big problem, it's just to be on the safe side. Let's go, we've finished our tasks for today, I'll take you to buy some suitable clothes later."

Upon hearing this, Pardofelis, who was focused on observing the retreat route and the surrounding situation, answered without turning her head.

"Huh?"

Clearly, Rope hadn't expected that the clothes Pardofelis had mentioned earlier would be delivered so soon.

P. S.: So sleepy. I didn't get there early again today. Bye, everyone, I'm going to sleep now zzz.

Chapter 39 Hidden Lock: "You're going to steal this???"

"Ah~ put dinner on my tab tonight, you guys continue, I'll head back first." After glancing at the already late sky outside the window, Swire wearily and said to her two friends beside her.

"Alright, then I'll keep drinking! Oh, and remember to send a message when you get home." Hoshiguma, who was drinking, replied with a smile.

"Don't worry, there's plenty of alcohol tonight! After all, besides that guy, you've all been a bit of a bother today." Swire smiled and waved her hand after hearing Hoshiguma's words.

"Well, we're all colleagues, it's only right. Since you're tired, go back and rest. Old Chen and I will stay a little longer."

"Okay, see you later."

After saying goodbye, Swire didn't linger and turned to leave the restaurant; she was going home to rest.

What happened this morning was still quite a shock for her, not to mention she had been busy all afternoon. Now she was completely exhausted, both physically and mentally, and all she wanted to do was go back and get some sleep.

After watching Swire's figure completely disappear, Hoshiguma turned slightly to look at Chen, who was silently drinking his wine with his head down beside him, and said, "Not in a good mood?"

Although Hoshiguma appears to be a carefree and easygoing person on the surface, she is actually quite meticulous in many ways.

It was precisely because of her attentiveness that she noticed her two friends were actually not quite in the mood today.

However, compared to Swire, who was simply irritable and absent-minded due to new knowledge and the Pardofelis incident, Hoshiguma was more worried about Chen, who kept everything bottled up inside.

"I'm fine."

Upon hearing this, Chen looked up and gently shook his head at Hoshiguma.

"... Oh dear, you're all alright, but I'm in a bad mood. Old Chen, why don't you have a few drinks with me today? It's rare that Swire." Faced with Chen's brief reply, Hoshiguma scratched his head and said with a troubled expression.

"..."

"Hey, Old Chen, you're not going to refuse me such a small request, are you?"

Hoshiguma looked at Chen, who remained silent and did not answer her, and couldn't help but reach out and put her arm around her shoulder, saying...

"All right..."

"That's more like it!"

After a long and arduous journey, Swire finally made it home and eagerly pulled out her keys to open the gate to her yard.

Now all she can think about is how to quickly wash up and go to bed.

And yet, this little tiger, who was now content to rest, noticed a tiny scratch on his brand-new lock as he reached for his key to open his villa's front door...

"..."

Then, Swire at her door lock in silence for several minutes before slowly raising her hand to cover her face, her voice trembling with pain as she gritted her teeth and said, "Pardofelis..."

Others might not know what kind of mark it was, but as a senior superintendent, she knew it all too well...

However, compared to her previous outbursts of anger, Swire, now physically and mentally exhausted, couldn't even muster any more anger, and seemed to have given up entirely.

"Call--"

After a while, Swire finally let out a long sigh and opened her front door. Although her mind was filled with thoughts of "Destroy it all, I'm done!", she still needed to check the situation.

While it's possible that other thieves were involved, Little Tiger thinks it's unlikely...

On the other side, at a certain restaurant--

"Achoo--"

"Miss Felis, did you eat too much ice cream and catch a cold?" After hearing the commotion from Pardofelis's side, Rope couldn't help but turn his head and ask.

"How could that be? I'm perfectly healthy, I don't get sick that easily. Rather than being sick, I bet someone was talking about me behind my back just now." As she spoke, the image of Swire unconsciously appeared in Pardofelis's mind.

It's no wonder the cat thought of her; it's getting late, and it's almost time for someone to come home from get off work and discover the "abnormality."

"Narrive?"

"Hmm, it's probably the police or something." Meeting Rope's questioning gaze, Pardofelis didn't explain further, just casually mentioned it before changing the subject:

Okay, okay, let's not talk about that anymore. Let's eat quickly. After dinner, I'll take you to find a place to stay, and then we'll get some rest. We have things to do tonight."

"Eh, are there any more operations tonight?" Rope couldn't help but show a look of surprise.

"Of course! Let's do something big tonight!"

At this point, a cold glint flashed in Pardofelis's heterochromatic eyes.

Tonight, Cat isn't planning on going out to buy or deliver goods; instead, she plans to take Rope to deal with the "garbage." She doesn't believe the Lungmen Guard Department could have cleaned it all up in just one morning...

"He's up to something big...?"

Upon hearing Pardofelis mention this, Rope couldn't help but recall the scene that afternoon when Pado showed him the large bag of cat Canned Food and canned cat food she had stolen after they left the villa area.

Honestly, before Pardofelis opened that bag, Miss Purple Rabbit had made all sorts of guesses... but she never expected that it would contain Canned Food and cat food.

Even Rope wasn't unaware that her cheap "boss" had actually stolen something valuable, but was deliberately hiding it from her. However, when she saw Pardofelis showing off her spoils with that genuine smile...

Miss Purple Rabbit finally believed the fact that her cheap "boss" had dragged her all the way and gone through all the trouble of climbing over into someone's house, just for a bag of cat Canned Food and canned cat food.

But to be Rope, I still have one complaint I haven't voiced yet: Girl, you have this skill, and you steal this???

"Hehe, you'll find out when the time comes." Pardofelis chuckled twice, keeping him in suspense and not directly telling Rope her plans for tonight.

Because she was afraid that if she told him, he wouldn't want to go with her that night.

While it's definitely faster and less likely to be discovered if Cat gets up alone, how can she take her underlings to the factory without them? She still remembers how those guys Rope money, and bullied her.

"All right."

Upon hearing this, Rope didn't dwell on it too much, and simply sped up his eating.

After spending a day together, the sensitive Purple Rabbit finally developed a sliver of trust in Pardofelis. At least she no longer thought of her cheap "boss" as a heartless dealer trying to sell her off...

P. S.: Today's update is a bit late. Okay, I've finished being busy lately, and I'll try my best to keep updating twice a day from now on.

Chapter 40: The Great Herrscher of Reason Appears! Let's celebrate!

"..."

After watching the surveillance Swire couldn't help but cover her face again, falling into a long silence.

Clearly, after reviewing the surveillance footage, she realized that she had not wronged anyone.

To be honest, this was the first time in Swire that she had encountered someone like Pardofelis, someone who evoked such complex feelings of love and hate in her...

"What are you trying to do, you idiot...?"

A moment later, Swire slowly lowered her hand, slumped in her chair, and murmured as she stared at the ceiling above her head.

Although there is still no evidence, based on Pardofelis's reaction this morning, the little tiger is quite certain that she is connected to the "Lungmen Thief".

If she had received this reaffirmation earlier, things would have been fine. However, after witnessing what she saw in the slums today, Swire Yaqi found herself caught in a dilemma.

Did Little Tiger really not know about what was happening in the slums? Of course he did. Although he hadn't witnessed some of it firsthand, he had heard about it...

However, sometimes the difference between knowing about suffering and witnessing suffering is quite significant.

Swire doesn't consider herself a person who discriminates against or hates those infected, but because she hasn't had much contact with them and only has a vague understanding of their situation, she hasn't cared about their plight, let alone offered any help...

However, after witnessing the suffering firsthand today, she couldn't help but feel complicated about the "Lungmen Thief" who were helping these infected people.

Not to mention, this special being could very well be Pardofelis, the one who both stole from her own home and saved her and her friends' lives...

Although Swire's values had always told her that these events should be addressed separately—rewards should be given where there were opportunities, and problems should be dealt with—the thought of what Chen had said in the slums kept replaying in her mind.

[The number of lives lost in Lungmen during winter is never small...]

"Ugh, Lungmen swear words! Never mind! We haven't even caught them yet, why think so much! Time to sleep!" After a while of random thoughts, Swire jumped up from her chair and slammed her hand on the table.