"Just now... what did you say?"
Both Bai Fanxian's face and voice turned ice cold in an instant. The exact opposite of her heart, which had begun burning hot as if someone had stoked a massive fire beneath it.
"Meow!... That hurts meow! Let go meow!"
Kuro struggled in Bai Fanxian's fist. The hand that had given it pleasure was now full of crushing pressure and rough force. It felt as if every tiny bone throughout its body was creaking like it might shatter into pieces at any moment.
"My lady!"
It was Hui'er who rushed in and grabbed her lady's wrist just in time. Bai Fanxian, sensing the warm touch that broke through, gave a faint start. She quickly released the hand that had nearly crushed this adorable little creature to death. At the same time, she circulated pure qi from the Eternal Myriad Heavens to soothe Kuro, who was shaking with fear.
"...I'm sorry."
Bai Fanxian lowered her eyes, feeling guilty.
Her slender fingers gently kneaded along the little cat's body until the trembling from fear relaxed little by little.
"Meow..."
Kuro, sensing some kind of energy flowing into its body, let out a sound without realizing it. At that moment, Bai Fanxian swiftly stuffed an elixir into its mouth before it could react.
"Meow!?"
Bai Fanxian, expecting to see a happy face, was disappointed instead. The little thing writhed back and forth on her hand and tried desperately to gag out the incredibly valuable elixir.
"Meow... bleh! Poison meow! Poison meow!"
The bratty attitude of refusing medicine like a stubborn child made Bai Fanxian exhale with relief. If it had this much energy, it should be fine.
"Kitty, my lady's elixir is really expensive, you know."
Tang Yeye walked closer to look again. The little girl tried to coax it into stopping its retching and spitting the medicine back out.
"Kuro won't eat! Kuro only eats the Alchemy Empress's elixirs meow!"
The black cat shook its head back and forth, not realizing at all that the atmosphere around it had shifted once again.
"...Meow?"
When it noticed, it began looking left and right. Everyone had gone quiet. Even the two small humans were staring at it with strange expressions.
*GRAB!*
Its body, free for only a few seconds, was snatched up in Bai Fanxian's hand again. But this time, the young woman who had calmed down didn't squeeze hard enough to hurt it.
"It seems... we have quite a few things to talk about..."
"..."
"...Meow."
.
.
.
After the commotion passed, most of Bai Fanxian's followers gathered at the mansion on her private island. The Dragon Queen was no exception — no one knew when she had arrived, but the moment she got there, Little Red flapped her tiny wings and flew circles around the black creature she'd just seen, examining it with keen interest.
"Where did this little thing come from?"
The Dragon Queen didn't pay attention to Kuro's trembling, curled-up form. She used her front legs to nudge the little cat until it rolled around like a ball.
Its state was no different from a ball of yarn that was a cat's toy.
"Meow... scary meow... Kuro's going to get eaten meow..."
Kuro repeated over and over in a shaking voice. It didn't dare even look up at the Dragon Queen, as if Little Red were a predator higher in the food chain, ready to swallow it whole at any moment.
The Dragon Queen flashed a rare smile. It had been a long time since she'd been here. She was usually treated like a pet or a stuffed toy — even if deep down she'd recently rather come to enjoy it herself. So when this little thing appeared before her, the urge to "tease" it just a little was irresistible.
"..."
"Stop playing for now..."
Bai Fanxian's words were like a decree. Little Red lost interest and flapped her wings onto the table beside her master, settling close.
"Kuro, I didn't intend to hurt you."
Bai Fanxian spoke calmly. She let the little black cat go free to show her sincerity.
"...Meow... fine, Kuro will talk meow."
When it saw the young woman's demeanor soften, Kuro cooperated willingly. Or perhaps it was only because the Dragon Queen had secretly pressed down on it with a burst of pressure a moment before.
"Earlier... you said you came from the 'Goddess Alchemy Palace.' Is that right?"
Asking this question, Bai Fanxian couldn't keep her voice calm — especially not from the Dragon Queen, whose senses were far sharper than anyone else's. She felt the faint tremor woven into the end of the sentence.
Little Red opened her eyes and looked, then chose to stay silent. Because this was a rare "weakness" that her lady almost never showed.
"Yes meow! Kuro's palace is the best meow!"
Kuro nodded proudly, puffing out its chest.
"Who is the highest ruler there...?" Bai Fanxian asked further, even though she could already guess from its earlier words.
But she still wanted to confirm once more.
"Of course it has to be the Alchemy Empress meow!"
The black cat made a face as if the question was utterly absurd. As if it had been asked something at the level of basic common sense like one plus one equals two.
"Eh?"
This time it was Tang Yeye who let out a surprised sound after failing to disturb Little Red's nap.
"Is something wrong meow?"
Kuro felt rather comfortable with the two small humans more than anyone else. So when it saw the young girl's confused expression, it tilted its head and asked.
"My lady also has the title of Alchemy Empress, you know."
She spoke with pride no different from what the black cat had shown moments before.
"Hmm..."
Kuro hopped up onto the table and narrowed its eyes while examining Bai Fanxian's face. It stared for several seconds until an uncomfortable silence formed.
"Nope meow! This is not the Alchemy Empress at all meow!"
It stated firmly. This time, it made Tang Yeye furrow her brow.
"But my lady is..."
But before the little girl could continue, Bai Fanxian raised her hand to stop the pointless argument first.
"Kuro..."
"...Did you come from another world... or another dimension?"
Bai Fanxian's question was so direct it was startling.
Liu Yianfei, who had been listening for a while, felt the hair on his arms stand up. The words "another dimension" might have sounded absurd if spoken years ago. But now, even though the young General hadn't experienced it himself, it had been firmly confirmed through the experiences of those close to him. The image of the Dragon Queen tearing through dimensions and appearing above the sky was something he would never forget.
"Of course meow! A noble species like Kuro couldn't possibly be born in a dimension where life force is this dried up meow!"
The little cat spoke without consideration for the listeners' feelings.
But the next moment, it felt strange.
"...Why is it so nice to live here meow!?"
The little thing ran back and forth and breathed in deeply. The life force packed densely in the air could almost be seen faintly with the naked eye.
Its eyes sparkled — perhaps because of its own innocence that it took this long to notice.
"It's completely different from the previous times meow!"
"..."
"You've been here before?"
Hui'er, whose thinking had grown considerably, felt her interest rise.
"Kuro comes here every time the moon is biggest meow."
The little black cat pointed its front paw up toward the sky, where the pale golden moon hung bright and full. It swayed its tail happily.
Every full moon... Grandpa wrote that he often heard a woman's voice calling for help, sometimes far away, sometimes right beside him.
The words of the previous island's young owner flashed through many people's minds.
"Or could it be..."
The source of all the commotion about ghosts and evil spirits... the culprit was this clear-eyed little cat all along.
"Why did you do that?" Bai Fanxian asked curiously.
"Kuro came to ask for help meow."
The black cat tilted its head as if being asked the most absurd thing again.
"Because I wanted to show friendliness, so I used a human shape. But the humans here are so mean meow. No one ever talked to Kuro properly."
Liu Yianfei's eye twitched.
So that dark spirit shadow was actually an attempt at communication all along.
Frankly speaking, no sane person anywhere would stay calm and try to understand if they were surrounded by black shadows on all sides with nothing but "help me, help me" being repeated like that.
"Help from what?"
"...From the collapse meow..."
"Collapse...?"
Bai Fanxian furrowed her brow deeply. She found it quite strange that a demon beast like this talking cat would go to the trouble of crossing dimensions over the collapse of a palace.
"Yes meow... it hasn't happened yet. And even though they won't tell Kuro the details... Kuro can tell it's coming meow."
It was the first time she saw Kuro make a serious expression.
"Were you ordered to come out and ask for help from other dimensions like this?" Bai Fanxian asked.
"No meow! Kuro came out on its own!"
A denial that was hard to believe, but at the same time understandable. Looking at the method this little one used, it would be rather strange if a whole group of people put their hopes on using black shadows imitating humans to ask for help like that. If Kuro had truly been sent, at the very least it should have been taught proper methods of communicating with outsiders. Or at minimum there should have been something like a letter explaining the situation on that side.
"Even though they usually smile when they're with Kuro... Kuro secretly saw them crying all the time meow..."
The black cat, whose ears and tail had drooped sadly, murmured faintly. Even though it liked to be bratty and go bother them, they never got angry. They kept giving warmth and love back without fail.
It became unbearable to watch those people suffer. In the end, Kuro secretly used its own species' ability as a "Dimension-Rending Cat" to come out and ask for help from other dimensions with a childlike way of thinking.
"Lucky it didn't run into someone with a cruel heart..."
Liu Yianfei sighed. After hearing the whole story, he could roughly summarize that the black cat's arrival here was a matter of coincidence.
It was a coincidence on a level that could be called a "miracle."
It must not have expected that in crossing dimensions this time, it would actually meet someone who could communicate with it seriously without running away or being afraid first — and someone who would be the only one likely to be interested in what it said.
Because she was the person who knew the name "Goddess Alchemy Palace" and "Alchemy Empress" better than anyone.
"I may not understand everything... but I think I get the general picture now."
Bai Fanxian closed her eyes while processing everything she had learned. Her followers all knew well that this was an important moment, so they let their lady take time to think in quiet without going to disturb her.
"Alright... I'll go with you."
In the end, this was the only way to prove whether the whole story was true or not.
The young woman stood up and fixed her gaze into the little cat's eyes. Her sudden decision would surely make many people anxious, especially Huang Zihuan. The elderly butler wanted to advise his lady to think it over once more, because this might be dangerous enough that she couldn't return to this dimension ever again.
But when he saw those eyes full of complexity and tinged with faint sadness, the words of warning stuck in his throat.
No one could change her mind right now...
"Great meow! Then Kuro will open the door meow!"
The little cat chirped happily. It understood her strength well enough. Even as a noble species, it still couldn't resist when in her hands. So this was certainly someone it could rely on.
*SHHICK!*
A sound like something tearing apart rang out the moment Kuro swiped its claws through the air. Instantly, a dimensional rift resembling a black hole was ripped open before them. It floated between the floor and the ceiling at a comfortable height. This had to be the ability of a "Dimension-Rending Cat."
"Alright! Go in meow!"
It spoke proudly. It was waiting for her to enter first, then it would follow after.
But —
Bai Fanxian didn't move.
"...Is something wrong meow?"
Kuro began to be surprised. It started to worry that she might have changed her mind and no longer wanted to help it.
"..."
Her followers, especially her two little disciples, all turned to fix their gaze on their lady at the same time. No one spoke. There was only the faint expectation and sparkling eyes of the children.
"...I won't be able to go."
"Why meow!?"
The little black cat widened its eyes in shock. It was anxious, unable to sit still, and thought about what could possibly be the reason she changed her mind.
"Don't look at me like that..."
Bai Fanxian didn't say this only to Kuro. She also meant it for her followers who were watching with that hopeful gaze.
"..."
"...Even I can't squeeze through that tiny hole."
Because that dimensional rift floating open in the middle of the room was no wider than about 15 centimeters at most!
...She couldn't even fit her head in.