Cat Demon

"Meow-aow--"

In the sparse woods, One-Eye tilted its head and let out a loud cry. The surroundings were deathly silent.

It began to sniff the air vigorously, tracking the scent that filled it with loathing as it bolted forward.

A feline's soft paw pads could absorb vibrations, allowing them to move as silently as possible while hunting.

But under One-Eye's feet, every step was a destruction of the mud, more like a trampling.

As the scent grew stronger, it found the source.

A hidden burrow.

One-Eye dove inside without a moment's hesitation.

"Meow-aow!"

"Wooo!"

After a period of commotion inside the den, things gradually returned to silence.

A good while later, One-Eye dragged the carcass of a mother cat out.

Inside was a fox.

It had been dealt with quite easily.

But the mother cat had been dead for some time, and there was no sign of its three kittens inside, nor were they in the fox's belly.

The long-absent fear and that sense of powerlessness began to spread through its heart once more, driving it nearly mad, leaving it only able to roar at the mountains and forests.

Slowly, it seemed to hear the cries of kittens.

It stood up abruptly, pricking its ears.

It had indeed heard them, along with some chaotic noises, but what it cared about most were the cries of those three kittens.

It was in that direction!

One-Eye bolted again.

At the foot of the mountain, in a town that was not particularly remote.

Misa Kobayashi held the three kittens and ran all the way to the park.

"A fox! A fox was fighting with a cat, and I was afraid these remaining kittens would be eaten, so I brought them down."

Misa Kobayashi gestured wildly as she told her peers playing in the park about the "big event" that had just occurred.

"You took the kittens away, but what if the mother cat goes back and can't find her babies?" another little girl asked.

"I heard that cats have very sensitive noses; maybe she'll be able to find her way here," a boy who looked quite knowledgeable said.

"Then what if the mother cat can't come back?" another boy asked weakly.

The group of children formed a circle, staring blankly at the three kittens, who couldn't even walk steadily, as they meowed.

Misa Kobayashi suddenly asked, "Can kittens drink milk?"

"I don't know." The children shook their heads one after another; this question was still too profound for them.

But the knowledgeable boy hesitated after a moment. "My uncle owns a pet shop; maybe he knows."

"Let's go, let's go find your uncle!"

The children acted on their words, scooping up the kittens and heading toward the pet shop.

"These cats are too small, at most a month old. They haven't been weaned yet. Well, this one might be a bit special. By the way, whose family here allows pets? Don't even think about leaving them with me." In a pet shop in town, a man in his twenties rubbed his nephew's hair vigorously. "Ha, do you have enough pocket money? Do you know how much goat milk and vaccines cost? Don't go stealing your dad's money to spend."

"I! I didn't!" the little boy retorted, then said to his friends with less confidence, "I really don't have any pocket money, and my family won't let me keep a cat. I heard my uncle once—ah, that hurts!"

"Talking bad about me right to my face, huh?" The young man gave him another light tap. Looking at the children, he felt a headache coming on. People were always using his pet shop as a dumping ground, or just leaving stray cats and dogs at his doorstep. He had a business to run! He was also the type to send unwanted animals to be euthanized.

"I, my family might be able to," Misa Kobayashi said, not very confidently.

"Oh, the Kobayashi family, huh? Your family might be able to, but you have to convince your mom." Being in a small town, the young man knew a little about the Kobayashi family.

"Can we feed the kittens milk first? They seem hungry." The children held the kittens up high, looking at the young man with expectant eyes.

The young man sighed and patted his head. "Fine, fine. Only for one meal; any more and it costs money. Besides, kittens this small need help with their digestion."

"Hahaha, Imai really can't resist small animals and children, can he?" a customer watching the scene teased.

"..."

After some effort, the children took turns feeding the kittens with small bottles filled with goat milk. The children who weren't taking a turn squatted on the ground, resting their chins on their hands and watching, occasionally chatting and laughing.

But inexplicably, the air pressure in the pet shop seemed to drop instantly. All the cats and dogs, after a series of commotions, fell silent, and the shop plunged into stillness.

The young man looked up curiously and saw a fierce-looking wild cat that had appeared at the door at some point. It caused a husky tied to a rope nearest the entrance to shrink into the corner, using all four limbs, its expression perfectly capturing the words, "Don't you come over here."

"Shoo, shoo, shoo! Don't come over!" The young man immediately grabbed a broom from the side and called the children behind him for protection.

He wouldn't underestimate cats or dogs, especially a wild cat that looked so fierce at first glance. Who knew what germs it might be carrying? Besides, even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit.

At the same time, the young man felt like he had seen a cat like this somewhere before.

One-Eye ignored him, focusing instead on its three children.

Held by the little two-legged beast, it was being fed something that tasted like milk.

It seemed able to distinguish between kindness and malice now, so it didn't show any particular agitation.

"Meow."

With a soft cry, the few kittens let go of the nipples and called out toward One-Eye.

"Big brother, this is the father of these kittens," Misa Kobayashi, who knew the situation, quickly said.

"Father?! There are tomcats that look after kittens? How did I not know this?" The young man didn't have time to marvel at it; the situation was clear enough—the father had come to collect his children. It was reasonable, but still.

He took all the kittens from the children's hands, carefully approached One-Eye, and slowly crouched down.

He habitually began to explain, "Two of these three kids can't be weaned yet. If you take them away, they'll... you know, starve. Are we clear? Fine, I'll leave them here, you take them."

One-Eye swept its gaze over the three kittens. When the two-legged beast had been shouting just now, it seemed to have vaguely understood his meaning.

This made it hesitate.

In the end, its single eye rested on the one that looked the largest. After repeated hesitation, it used its head to nudge the other two kittens toward the young man.

"What! You understood me?!" The young man was shocked, nearly thinking he had run into a cat demon.

But before he could stand up, One-Eye picked up the largest kitten in its mouth, turned, and leaped several meters away. With a few more bounds, it vanished onto the roof of one of his relatives' houses.

The two kittens tried to chase after it, but they stumbled with every step and had no chance of catching up.

The young man clicked his tongue in wonder as he picked up the two little fools. He suddenly felt as if he remembered where he had seen that cat before.