《[Bleach] Little Black Cat》 Chapter 000: Beginning of the End- | Most Of These Figures Can Be Forgotten About; Only Main Two Are Important The only thought in the legendary cat¡¯s mind was one thing. There was no resistance nor regret in her thoughts; just an acceptance from someone who had lived far longer than anyone assumed she could. Born among a powerful divine beast race yet without any of the benefits expected. A radiant lion with a frail body and with the power of shadows instead of light. Just that alone was enough for her to be mocked but calling her frail was an understatement. Lions loved meat while she couldn¡¯t even eat physical foods due to her weak digestive system being unable to break down stew. Not to mention her (humanoid) height barely hitting five feet in a race with a 10 foot average. Even her ability related to shadows, when each of her race was supposed to gain a unique light based ability, was one that only facilitated the passage of information between shadows. She was pathetic in every meaning of the word. Despite all that, the words of her deceased mother & the bloodline of the father that despised her kept her going long past their era. A wish for her to always smile with a bloodline that turned obsession into an unquestionable power. Her desire to rebel against her fate allowed her to even kill the goddess of fate. With such conviction she created her own methods to get stronger - unconventional abilities to take in the power of reality - letting many accomplish immortality through her research. However she was strangely unable to do little more than prolong her own life. Making her need to rely on more¡­ Abhorrent methods. Still she didn¡¯t go on this path for her own selfish desires. Instead she created an entire new realm for those dead before getting a chance to really live to forever frolic in innocence. Protecting those kids in their paradise while also siring her own little kittens along the way. Even if it was a life that marred her sickly body with scars it was a life she didn¡¯t regret. It was a life filled with many adventurers and untold depths but, in the end, she was unable to escape the slow yet prevalent grasp of the end. As the wound inflicted by her disciple¡¯s sword caused heat to flood out her body - she stood with a smile present on her face. Eyes turning across the rogue gallery here at the end of her life. This was the origin of all demons who howled in anguish that a silly little kitty like her didn¡¯t get a warriors send off. That demon was always a funny one. A part of a single being that had been split into three - similar to her in that they were both forced to earn power rather than waiting to receive it. It was a fact that led to them getting along quite swimmingly and the cat certainly was thankful for the intentions the demon held. Tilting her head back revealed the softly smiling face of her treacherous disciple; perhaps the most powerful god in terms of ability. A little girl forced into the role of a leader. Even as that boob monster withdrew the sword from her body¡­ She could not find herself hating that stupid brat. The girl was born a sociopath and handed the keys to everything - considering the pressure her divine job put on one''s moral compass - everything turned out quite well in that regard. Though the next figure to catch her eyes made those battle hardened eyes soften. Her sweet first born who was cast away due to the fear of the masses. A sweet girl who just wanted to bring the power of dreams to those who needed a break in the harsh lives they led. Seeing the girl cry put a crack in her heart yet she pushed that away. She was a little sad that she didn¡¯t get a chance to see that bumbling little brother, however the image that his heroic figure was likely out saving some species from danger¡­ Well she certainly had more to smile about when she thought of that boy. Who would say she raised that kid wrong? Lastly there was him. One eye of navy and another of indigo; each of them peered at her with amusement as well as an unquenchable flame of anticipation. Those bright eyes seemingly flickering. A dreadful aura exuded from his figure but no one else seemed to even realise he was there. Not that it surprised the cat, it would be stranger if the others could see, since he had likely judged that they wouldn¡¯t be able to take notice of him. Allowing him to fade into the background. Clearly there yet never noticed by anything - just like the ending that all mortals knew was coming yet never breaching. An unspoken topic that had become taboo due to its nature as an eventuality that no entity (no matter their class or race) could formulate a way to avoid. Soon even that facade of humanity began to twist as the cat felt her existence began to be pulled away from the abyssal darkness for which she had hid. For so long she had gotten away from his grasp by hiding in an abyss where he didn¡¯t dare step. That abyss formerly known as herself. Now that she was helpless - the previously beautiful androgynous face slowly morphed into the charred black skull of a wolf with crimson cracks adorning all over. Those cracks glowed as boiling bloody vapour poured out of them. However, the bicoloured eyes remained even if in the form of coloured flames. Underneath her was a skeletal hand that seemed malformed, a mixture between claw & fingers with the tips being adorned in metal, as if to hold her soul up for observation. That fanged maw somehow grinning despite its skeletal state. Two uneven horns, framing a halo wrapped in vines covered in thorns, came out of it¡¯s temples. Only to be painted by the blood seeping from the halo. A representation of the most divine of creatures having been defiled by malice formed life. His surprisingly melodic & beautiful voice (not constricted to either gender) was wonderful among the rhythmic banging of gigantic hammers in the background. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°It¡¯s been so long yet at least I have you within my grasp; without you there is no one who can upset my judgement thus my plans can flourish¡­¡± She didn¡¯t answer since she honestly didn¡¯t care and would prefer if he just hurried on with it. The ¡°fate of the realms¡± hardly mattered as far as she was cornered; as long as he didn¡¯t touch the spirit realm she didn¡¯t mind what this end-obsessed deity wanted. He both taught her everything she knew as well as her closest friend (probably?) but at the end of the day she was a variable he couldn¡¯t account for. That was something an egomaniac couldn¡¯t allow. So it was expected she¡¯d end up in his little hovel - formerly called hell - once she died. Nevertheless, she just didn¡¯t care since she was already dead. ¡°Now what should I do with you~?¡± If a soul could click its tongue she would have long ago. Sure, the titan god of the end was scary and all but she was the manifestation of fear so his ranting just got stale real quick. Unfortunately she couldn¡¯t even fall asleep. Just having to wait for him to finish up as he walked around the massive chamber. Strutting around with his billowing cloak of snow white wool - he brought her towards that could only be called a fountain of pure light with an incalculable number of faces passing by. Not helped by the light that engulfed them all. Quickly working to literally wipe away most of their individuality. ¡°This is only one part of it yet this is the shit show called reincarnation that dares exist in my presence like a parasite on my very existence; fortunately I¡¯m going to fix that in 5 years time. You¡¯ll be able to sit right here and witness it. Witness as I- the fuck?¡± His smug speech halted as a sudden slash appeared on his body - it was certainly a powerful soul attack which could only come from one person. The very disciple that sent her on her way here. A fact that made the coming scene all the more ironic. ¡°OH SHIT!¡± The soul he worked so hard to pilfer, the one being which he feared and also brought terror through many different names¡­ Known as the abyss that consumes the void. Scattered as Munzumira, the architect of fate''s demise. A primordial dread whose name hasn¡¯t ever been uttered. That complex being made from many moving parts, beyond anyone''s understanding, was unceremoniously dropped and just so happened to have occurred in front of reincarnation. It was a set of events that no one could have expected. Such a powerful figure making such a mighty mistake. Her soul - shrouded in eternal darkness - fell into the pillar of light yet that did little to snuff out the abyss that made her who she was. The wolf-faced titan tried to grab onto her but how can someone hold onto something that consumes even the void? Slipping through his skeletal fingers as if not there. ¡°NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!¡± Soon enough that titan fell to his knees while glancing into reincarnation. His fellow forgotten deities, entities with different goals but similar plans, had just been watching this all with a level of amusement that could not be comprehended. To them this was merely an obsession from him and not important to themselves. Their own goals are different enough to never interest her. As such they were more than willing to laugh at the failings (at least the two who were on his level) of who could be considered their pseudo leader. ¡°It would seem your ego got ahead of you¡­¡± ¡°Quite disconcerting.¡± All he could do was growl as he wasn¡¯t willing to fight with those two since he couldn¡¯t be confident. ¡°Talk about inviting trouble.¡± ¡°Right, I could do without the backseat scheming, especially from a repentant demon!¡± Waving his hand to send the two away which (thankfully) they were both more polite than him as they heeded his desire. The flames in his eyes narrowed as he flourished his cloak while turning to walk back to his throne. His sheer size being enough to easily crush countries with his throne being bigger still. A macabre inspired seat worthy of his position as ruler of an entire concept; truly a masterpiece as it stood as proudly as its master. Appearing as a black monolith with volcanic cracks all across it. Each spewing a mixture between navy & indigo flames as it formed a massive cross. Weapons rusted by age appeared all over - containing the essence of different cultures across time. Yet each failed to escape from his grasp. Slouching on his throne with a skeletal hand rested upon his equally boney cheek as he pondered what he would do next. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Cheshire¡­ I¡¯ve been waiting too long for my revenge on this wretched world that sought to use me as they wish; this is just another road bump of many. We¡¯ll unite, I assure you that, for I have judged it to be true and I am the adjudicator that watches those who dare to watch over this miserable world.¡± <¡°Atlas¡±> Chapter 001: -Or Not Within a forest of bamboo; the light from the morning peeked out through the various pillars of nature that made up the little grove. This upset the little black fluffball who was peacefully resting within the depths. A faint tremble went through her as her body fought with her mind about the right to wake up. Most would find pleasure in waking up to the warming rays of the sun yet she was never a fortunate person so could only hiss at the feeling of her skin already blistering up. It was then that she realised something¡­ Dead people don¡¯t ¡°wake up to the sun¡± and she should know on account of her having gathered quite a lot of information on the afterlife. There were different places where different people went, however she doubted that ¡°best friend¡± of hers let her go. Hell was the only destination for her. Opening her eyes allowed for her to confirm that the pesky sun was indeed strutting around the sky as if it owned the place. But she also confirmed that she had lost connection with her jupiter brains. There was also no sign of her alternative selves bumming about using their connection. The silence within her mind was almost eerie; fortunately she was quite used to being eerie so was more than fine taking it in stride. Her crimson eyes did not stop as they darted around the area. Of course she recognised the flora (or at least had something similar to compare) so quickly got an idea of the weather. Furthermore she felt that the energy in this place was¡­ Pitiful. ¡°Nyahaha~!¡± With such thoughts, she decided to get a better look at her surroundings, standing up with ease which was actually the first thing that shocked her. Lifting her little paws to her face as she fell on her fluffy butt. No matter where she looked she lacked the scarred & necrotic flesh that she had grown used to. She was never an undead but that didn¡¯t mean she didn¡¯t look like she could pass for one. Unable to eat left her naturally gaunt and her allergy to sunlight left her as pale as they came. Another shock came as she felt her tails touch something that was behind her; something that was impossible before. Her own wonderful tail (singular) having long been cut short. Jumping in startle at the strange experience of actually having a regular - if not slightly longer - as well as double the tail than she did before. Soon running in a circle as she tried to get a good look at her brand new & newly recovered appendage. Thankfully it is an easy task for a flexible cat like her. Soon coming to sit down again as her paw patted her fuzzy chin for a while until she finally got sick of the itching caused by the sun above. The grumpy granny couldn¡¯t help hissing some more as she bounced up once more on all fours before she sauntered over till she could take shade under an actual tree. A lone tree that overlooked the grove as well as allowing her to see she was actually fairly close to civilization. Spotting fields of rice¡­ Or pools? With her goal of developing goals in mind; once more the kitten flopped down yet this time decided to rest on her side with her limbs splayed out. Soon she even got to see the wonderful sight of children running about without a care - little digging tools in their hands along with a bucket. Clearly ready to earn themselves some bamboo thingies. The old cat didn¡¯t really care about that kind of stuff (she found mastication disgusting) but she was still a granny. Like all grannies who headed a big family¡­ She had a soft spot for children. That didn¡¯t mean she threw away any of her morals, or lack off, just because some kid was likely to suffer in the short term. Quite the opposite since she believed that it was through overcoming suffering that one could achieve true strength. Still she couldn¡¯t help closing her eyes to enjoy the joyful laughs as the innocent atmosphere of children wandered all the way up to her little safe space from the wicked sun. Rolling over onto her back so that she could view the foliage above as she noticed just how beautiful the pink petals were. Throughout this whole time she had her usual smile gracing her whisker adorned lips yet now she let that smile fade into something a bit more tame. Just the smile of an old kitten who was enjoying retirement in the countryside. At some point she may have been a being that even the emotionless void feared¡­ But she didn¡¯t need to be. Such a thought allowed, for the first time since her birth, allowed her mind to truly empty out as her mighty mind let go of any projects it was working on. She was known for always being a step ahead so letting herself just stop was¡­ Relaxing. Closing her eyes as she let the salty sea wind blow through her fur. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°Chehehe~.¡± That didn¡¯t mean she was going to become a saint. ¡°Look! Look! Sister, I was right, look there is a kitten here! I knew I heard something!¡± The excited voice of a girl made her ears twitch but she didn¡¯t mind it too much; children were naturally a curious bunch and who was she to blame someone for their curiosity? She was many things yet she wasn¡¯t always a hypocrite. At least she didn¡¯t think she was a hypocrite since she was quite forthcoming about the immorality of her constant ¡°learning adventurers¡±. Still she did decide to at least open her eyes to side-eye the brats who were making their way to her - of course she knew there were two kids approaching her. She wasn¡¯t the martial saint for nothing! Not that she planned to actually do much as she saw two mirror images. If one wasn¡¯t so much taller she¡¯d think them to be twins. Without any caution the smallest of the two, not even tall enough to reach the counter top let alone top shelf of a kitchen, whisked the most feared entity up into a hug. Letting her little legs dangle as even that wise cat was forced to shut down. Still she took it in stride as her eldest wasn¡¯t much better. ¡°Can we keep him, Hisana-nee?¡± ¡°Rukia you can¡¯t just pick up animals like that!¡± In return that girl just giggled as if she wasn¡¯t being told off by her older sister; twirling around which resulted in her lower body picking up air. ¡°Hehehe~ that wasn''t a no!¡± The older sister couldn¡¯t stop from holding her forehead as she clearly was under quite some stress but didn¡¯t want to unload on her baby sister. Not knowing what to say to the girl. Eventually having to just give up sugar coating it in hopes that her sister could be more understanding of her position. ¡°Rukia¡­ We can hardly feed ourselves with both the guards & enforcers constantly breathing down our necks for protection money. This world isn¡¯t nice to children like us. So we need to stick together to protect one another and I¡¯m not confident we can do the same if we bring someone else in¡­¡± With a gentle yet pained smile she crouched down to softly pet the head of her younger sister; the only family she had. Someone who had complete trust in her, however, also the person who she couldn¡¯t even give anything to. Fortunately Rukia¡¯s pouty face turned towards the ground so missed her sister''s tears. Quickly wiping her silent emotions aside with the hand not embracing the warmth of her sister''s head - fine with remaining unseen as long as her sister could smile so sweetly. Except she didn¡¯t remain unseen. Within Rukia¡¯s arms hung the infamous little black cat, although unknown in this new dimension, a true paragon as far as rebellion could be considered. An enemy who led an uprising against the divine who judged her an unworthy existence. Also someone whose experience only lost to one other. Such thoughts ran through her head at a space that neither of the children could even begin to comprehend nor expect from a ¡°little kitten¡±. Rukai soon gently put the kitten on her ickle paws with a clear unwillingness nevertheless she still accepted since she didn¡¯t want to upset Hisana. Just a cute little sister caring about her precious older sister even if she couldn¡¯t help. Such sweetness nearly gave the cat a heartache. Clutching her fuzzy chest while walking back with just her rear paws - such an amusing talented display caused the little girl to happily clap. Giggling joyfully at the ¡°little dance¡± of her not-pet. Even her stressed older sister couldn¡¯t help smiling at the brief respite from their hopeless situation. ¡°Why does kitty have two tails?¡± Asking the obvious question that made the cat itself do a black flip to stare at Hisana with curiosity in what her answer would be. It was a good way to help centre her knowledge of this world. How mystical or non-mystical could she expect it to be? Most problematic is if this was treated as monsterfication. ¡°Maybe she¡¯s a yoaki¡­ Or that extra tail made her mamma abandon her.¡± ¡°Aw~ how could her mamma not want her?¡± ¡°Nyahaha~.¡± This reply actually made the kitten laugh not cry; it made sense since the trauma with her past was likely before this universe (let alone world) came into existence. Plus¡­ It was hard to have lasting trauma when her supposed best friend was a murder hobo whose shitty jokes never held back. The two sisters began to walk away while giggling, making the cat smile, only for her expression to subtly transition to something far more serious. Nobody replied with words¡­ Just two insane yet opposing laughs. One obnoxious, arrogant yet ordered to the point it could be imitated by just about anyone. The other was so beyond the tipping point that sometimes it contained noises that even the most skilled voice actor may not be able to replicate. A laugh that constantly shifted in tone & sound. Impossible to predict what came next nor the emotions held within¡­ Other than menacing levels of amusement. Chapter 002: Little Black Cats Spiritual energy was nothing new to her, it was a constant across all realms even if given different names or used in different forms, as she had put a lot of her past life¡¯s research into it. A convenient thing about not being a god was having an infinite amount of ¡°selves¡±. Simple multiverse theory stuff. One may ask ¡°what does that have to do with spiritual energy or two strange laughs¡±. It was a fair question as - from an outsider''s perspective to the cat¡¯s situation - both may be interesting tidbits yet have no relation to the more immediate questions. For most, that information was indeed unrelated. However the cat was unique in that she acted on the knowledge she gained while taking advantage of her unique situation. Utilising some gimmick to connect with her other selves as they worked together with the goal of granting immortality. This led to some interesting results that most split onto two modes of thought; gaining strength through experimentation and gaining strength through self improvement. As a result - a division was made between her¡­ Selves? Some mutilate themselves while taking the goddess of fate''s eyes. Becoming literal abominations called ¡°Munzumira¡± who were akin to eldritchian chimaera who took the form of beautiful doll like girls with hair & eyes the colour of galaxies. On the other hand you had the Cheshire¡¯s, keeping her original name, gaining such reserves of energy through hard work that beating them head to head was impossible. Sadly she wasn¡¯t able to become either due to a third ¡°version¡±. The entity she was meant to become but couldn¡¯t. A tragic tale of a being who was meant for such great things but stifled before even hitting the cradle on account of her would be peers. Forever sealed while tearing apart her now mortal vessel. Essentially the cat was never actually right in the head as there were an annoying amount of voices to keep up with. There wasn¡¯t simply one ¡°Cheshire¡± or ¡°Munzumira¡± but there was only one of her. Something that a lot of her companions - all but the bastard best friend in fact - never bothered to keep up with. To them she simply became Munzumira the weird abyssal creature that ruled over the spirit world. Long story short, nobody except her truly understood herself and no one could comprehend spiritual energy on such a deep level as her. So she felt them. Their forms were different but she felt both ¡°Cheshire¡± and that thing had taken up residence in her soul once again. Even if she only noticed when their interest was peaked by the children. Although their source was the same, their reactions were as vast as the ocean of knowledge which they had gathered. At the same time it felt as if something was missing from the equation. Either way, neither of her ¡°companions¡± cared to fill her in on matters as they remained silent after laughing away. Something she expected from her yet curious when related to the other. Cheshire wasn¡¯t someone who¡¯d keep her in the dark since she was a researcher at heart. The little cat paced back & forth as she pondered her next steps in this life of hers; a realisation beginning to tingle in the back of her mind yet refusing to come to the forefront. An annoying experience however one she couldn¡¯t do anything about. Nevertheless, she was nothing if not productive. Deciding she may as well go for a walk to figure out exactly where (and maybe when) she was. Humans were the most common of the sentient mortal races, like an annoying mould, completely littering the tapestry of existence. They also were about as boring as a race could be. Not even caring enough to hide her presence. She just wandered down the dirty pathway in the direction she saw the children running from - after all there ought to be adults if there were children. If there are adults there should be a settlement. Basic stuff for exploring new territory which you have no information on. Within the mud she made note of heavy ¡°lines¡± that sometimes cut towards the rice fields; obviously denoting they were at least advanced enough to have developed carts. Carts meant wheels. Unless they were actually using sleds¡­ Shivering at the mere thought of chewing on something like an animal. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. That settlement shouldn¡¯t have been too far (since those children sure didn¡¯t seem particularly winded upon running to the bamboo grove) but she also wasn¡¯t in a rush. Plus she only had little paws due to being a very literal kitten. Not that she didn¡¯t have some techniques to make up for her tiny body. All the while the sun settled overhead; a clear sky that brought warmth upon all those who were blessed to be under its grace. Although it was bright, few complained, all were excited for the start of a new day. At least most didn¡¯t seem to mind the bright sun - some certainly weren¡¯t thrilled that they had another day. The little black kitten finds herself scampering up a wall into a gated settlement. However, one could hardly say the gate was particularly good at it¡¯s job, the ones whose job it was to watch were instead watching the inside of their eyelids. Its doors were only half hanging on the latches. Actually entering the city showed that it only got worse from there. Below the wall were countless muddy streets that had clearly seen no form of maintenance since they came into existence. All around there were people, whether walking or lying in their own vomit, yet none of them seemed exactly exhilarated at the prospect of being there. Most of all¡­ She absolutely couldn¡¯t stand the filthy stench that was always associated with one infamous local; slums. One glance around let her understand the wealth inequality but a second was needed to truly understand how bad it was. This hardly surprised the kitten, though. Noticing this seemed to be a feudal era which translated to the top one percent not even trying to hide the fact they took advantage of the less fortunate. Thinking they were blessed by some ¡°divine entity¡± which was only the case 10% of the time. Though that was a factor that depended more on their location than chance - certain worlds just don¡¯t have an active divine presence after all. She didn¡¯t care either way. Clicking her tongue as hopped from the outer wall to land on a hastily patched up roof; lifting her little nose to the air where the tiny pink button wiggled about. <¡¯Bout time that I check up on those two brats.> Pouncing between roof tops with nothing but her nose to guide her - fortunately her sense of smell was one of the few things that she could consistently rely on. Even a battered body like her old one had at least a few redeeming qualities. Hers being her sense of smell that was more acute than her peers. Gazing down from her advantageous point of view revealed what looked like some thugs beating on a starved man with nothing left but the rags on his body. Their words demand money. Something that man clearly didn¡¯t possess any more of yet the kitten wasn¡¯t going to get involved. It would be hypocritical when she had a very similar hustle back in the day. |Does indeed make one wonder what colour their blood would take when splattered in the mud~?| |No.| That voice caused her to stumble away from the side in shock. The tone contained a curiosity that surpassed that of mere child-like wonder; instead filled with a kind of joy that could only come from not caring about any outcomes. Purely invested in its own amusement despite the horrific costs. Thankfully the second voice silenced the first as the kitten finally understood the internal battle that was happening inside her¡­ It just so happened she also didn¡¯t really care. Merely shrugging her shoulders as she began leaping from roof to roof without a care in the world. ¡°Nyahahaha~.¡± A smile on her feline face as she followed her nose. It was more fun to take care of some little girls; all the evil brewing within this city had completely nothing to do with her. Plus they were only mere humans. Though she did pause when she heard those thugs cursing out in frustration. Turning to see that the body of the bankrupt man was no longer moving which matched up with the curses from the thugs as they searched his body for cash. Floating to the side, however, was a mirror image of the would-be dead man. Connecting him to his body was a chain that crumbled at the end. Separating him from the mortal body that previously held his spirit. That man didn¡¯t even seem to notice as he panicked upon seeing the thugs - running away without so much as looking back. Chapter 003: A Soul With a Chain She had seen souls before. It should be obvious that she was quite knowledgeable on the matter of souls - she had developed a safe haven for young souls. Such a task doesn¡¯t get done without a certain mastery over souls. That cat having certainly accomplished a lot more in her time than many species ever managed before their extinction. This was why she was sure that (what she was looking at) was most definitely the soul of the human man who just got beaten to death. Not a very hard conclusion to arrive at but certainly one that would make those less confident second guess themselves. So it also wasn¡¯t what got her attention. What did get her attention¡­ Was the chain. |That chain seems like a tether of spirit energy, likely what keeps the soul in the body, which is certainly an interesting change from what I am used to. Unless we¡¯re discussing necromancy. Although I guess it¡¯s not too strange that a universe with certain factors would be an anchor for the soul & body?| Her little paw pounding on her chin as she thought about the soul of that man. Promptly deciding to begin bounding across the rooftops to follow after him - she did say she wanted to retire yet she could already feel the eyes of Cheshire on her. That old cat¡¯s curiosity is a driving factor in her actions. |It¡¯s a possibility but I believe that is just a hypothesis so let''s find out more!| |Oh me~ oh my~ dost thou not think that a little bit of gen~o~cide, therefore, would help some little kittens like us learn more about our slot in life~?| |Do shut up.| Both her ¡°other selves¡± didn¡¯t seem to get along due to a fundamental difference in personality that can be easily seen being expressed in how they talked. Cheshire being slow and methodical thus allowing anyone to understand her. The other was constantly shifting pace and tone to get the opposite effect. Seemingly this ¡°aspect¡± of her soul had fully embraced her role as an avid researcher; desiring to use their new freedom to dive into the mysteries of the world. Desiring to know about the unknowable. Likely also why she kept that other crazier cat in line. Too much chaos would make for a rather shitty experiment. True scientific progress could only be achieved by one''s ability to reliably repeat the phenomenon through replicating the conditions. Something chaos and chance would interfere with. Shaking her head as the curious cat decided to forget the old adage as she tailed that unknowing soul who ran through the streets. He was so focused that he didn¡¯t even seem to realise he sometimes partially phased through other people when he would have otherwise barged into them. Believing it was just luck. Evidently the kitten didn¡¯t believe the same and was far more observant than the panicked perished as she made note of it mentally. She perhaps would have physically noted it if she could. Lacking paper, pen & opposable thumbs to make use of either. |We could also just transform into a humanoid as it would also make many matters more convenient.| Silence spoke louder than words, just receiving a hum of acceptance, but the last of the trio did not seem to care about what her other selves thought. By luck or design she was the one in the driving seat. So she acted with a certain amount of grace despite being a kitten who was stalking a seemingly homeless man. That kitten eventually noticed that the chain on his chest was slowly dissipating into ash. Seeing something decay like that couldn¡¯t help give her thoughts to a certain wolf - she was actually starting to get annoyed at him keep coming up. Either Way elements of his M.O could be seen lingering about. It seemed like it was actually the negative karma of the man that was eating away at the chain - not helped that merely existing in the mortal realm after death was a ¡°sin¡±. As such the speed of the chain was slowly but surely getting faster. That begged the obvious question that got Cheshire excited. |What will happen to his soul when those juicy chain links completely decompose; the obvious answer would be their soul gets destroyed but that¡¯s impossible since souls can¡¯t be destroyed Perhaps they go to hell? That is also unlikely on account of¡­ No he could be hiding more shit from us..| The main cat couldn¡¯t be arsed to wait long enough to find out; narrowing her eyes as she could easily tell that it¡¯d take a few months for that chain to finish the process unless the last quarter randomly sped up. Even then she had better things to do than follow around some randomly grown man as he learns about his new afterlife. Although she did doubt that it simply ended like that. Personally she was of the mind that the chain vanishing would lead to him entering the cycle of reincarnation as that was most obvious. She knew her other self likely thought the same but didn¡¯t mention it due to ¡°being too obvious¡± so she too never brought it up. It was strange that they had their own unique thoughts. When she first awoke she thought she may be Cheshire yet that was clearly not the case¡­ So who was she? This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. This wasn¡¯t some sudden existential crisis¡­ She just didn¡¯t have a name yet. Shrugging her fuzzy shoulders as she bounced off to once again follow her nose - not taking too long to find the sisters since they also lived in the outer part of the city. There she found that they lived in what was best described as a hut. It had four walls and a roof but that was about it. Truly more of a hovel than a home. Shaking her cuddly head with an audible sigh; an unusual little sight considering she was a kitten arguably only slightly bigger than a grown man''s palm. Sadly no one was there to see it. Her ability to skulk around may as well have not diminished since the ¡°good old days¡±. At least against plain humans who only had to worry about their kidneys getting a little metallic tickle if they weren¡¯t paying attention. Compared to a proud cat like her who had to worry about all sorts of troubles over the years. You never knew when a random hawk was going to swoop down! That little hut unfortunately didn¡¯t have a window yet it did have a chimney of some kind since some smoke could be seen rising into the air. Seeing this made the cat frown. Such little kids should not be making fires in such a small space especially with the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. She highly doubted that the two of them were using clean fuel - even if it existed in this era a bunch of poor little urchins were far from being able to afford it. Steal it maybe but they didn¡¯t seem the type who had fallen that far. Yet. It was a risk to their health; both long term & short term! This just wouldn¡¯t do. Fortunately, even if Hisana wasn¡¯t willing, she had no qualms about stealing from some rich pigs to give to some poor little girls. If anything she¡¯d love to do it; she did have to find some hobbies even if she plans going to live a far more peaceful life this time. Still she didn¡¯t leave since she had to make sure that the girls didn¡¯t pass out from their improper health & safety standards. Jumping down from the roof she was upon to approach the ranshack door. Easily being able to squeeze her little body under the gap between the door & floor. Entering allowed for her to instantly see that Rukia was excitedly using her finger to draw something in the dirt while Hisana was watching over a boiling pot. Clearly the girls didn¡¯t have any spices. So all they had to throw into the pot were the bamboo shoots they managed to scavenge. ¡°Rukia, food is nearly done.¡± She said gently with the warmest smile a girl in her situation could provide - it kind of shocked the cat that a girl had managed to keep that kindness. It was refreshing. Just two sisters finding strength in one another''s presence however that also meant a single upset in the status quo could ruin that bond. Shaking her head as she headed to see what Rukia was drawing, the girl happily bound towards her older sister, with curiosity. Perhaps that girl was a genius in the arts. Allowing her to drag her elder sister out of the slums and finally grant them the ability to enjoy all the simple pleasures of life. Peeking on the artwork revealed a¡­ Even that cat (who had smiled since she was child with barely a twitch in her life) couldn''t help finding her expression strained as she tried to find a compliment for the child¡¯s artwork. Shaking her head after spending a few minutes of contemplation on the artistic abilities of Rukia; at the end of the day it was just a child finding something to do to amuse themselves. Especially hard to do when one is as unfortunate as Rukia is. As such, she could hardly dissuade the kid from doing what she liked. Instead she took one last glance at the surprisingly innocent pair of sisters - seeing the oldest happily laugh at their younger sister''s actions. In turn the youngest laughed. Not sure why her sister was laughing but was more than happy enough to just see her older sister having fun. Such a scene reminded her of her own silly brother. Unlike her he won the genetic lottery, likely being the strongest of their race even without her teachings, yet was such a goofball. It was these innocent scenes of kids just being kids that reminded her why she held no regrets in her long life. Because she gave kids a place to just be kids. Letting out another sigh at the folly of man. . With her thoughts mingling about, realising she probably needed more information about this kingdom before she learned about the world as a whole, she squeezed under the door again. Ready to head out & explore once more. Chapter 004: Impartial Police The kitten didn¡¯t really have a place in mind, she didn¡¯t even know the name of the city let alone where would be best to ¡°visit¡±, but she wasn¡¯t worried. She didn¡¯t need to know the exact geography. Instead she just needed to know where the approximate centre of the feudal era city was. People in power always worried the most about keeping themselves protected; it was natural to want to keep you and your family safe. That meant setting up shop in the most defensible position or, if holding back the danger isn¡¯t possible, the place it¡¯s easiest to run away from. In either case¡­ That was the centre of the city. With that idea she didn¡¯t even jump up on the houses; instead she just headed in the opposite direction to the outer walls. Deciding to take in the settlement from a ground level view. Quickly realising it was just as bad as she thought it was when she was watching it from above. She didn¡¯t believe every single noble was an evil irredeemable reprobate yet she also used to be a noble in her own race. She was never surprised when they were incompetent or lost sight of what their actual role was. Rarely is it the first generation but eventually they forget that they are meant to lead their people. Instead they focus on bettering their own position. Completely ignoring the intentions behind noblesse oblige due to it getting in the way of their own goals in life - usually either lining their pockets or climbing up the social ladder. Those both often feed into one another as an example of a positive feedback loop. One that she had consistently seen during her long life; not that she could blame mortals since (despite what they may tell you) ¡°superior entities¡± also fell for the enticement. ¡°Nyehehe~.¡± That cat couldn¡¯t help chuckle. All around there were just people trying to live their lives, certain people setting up stalls to hawk their self-made sandals or sell gigantic bags of rice, without worrying about anything else. It was a simple life with no rewards but it was their lives. A fact that made the kitten somewhat respect these people. Humans were weak yet (somehow at the same time) hearty in how they could keep going no matter what their lot in life was. To them tomorrow was often reason enough to go on despite their sentience. It was different from animals who only knew how to survive and would never expect anything else. These were people that knew there were people of the same race as them but were only born with a different spoon in their mouth. In all meanings of the word¡­ It was unfair. There was no doubt that many of them could have done a better job than their lord if only they were given the same opportunities. However, they¡¯d never get those opportunities. Still they continued on without grumbling since they had accepted the unfair nature of life. That was respectable no matter how you look at it - of course not every human accepted their lot in life and she could certainly respect that. She didn¡¯t accept hers either. ¡°COME GET YOUR CLOTHES REPAIRED!¡± ¡°Do you think the crime lords will let up on their fees next month?¡± ¡°GET THE BEST GRUB IN ALL OF JAPAN!¡± ¡°Who knows¡­ Winter is through so we can hope.¡± ¡°COME GET ANTI-EVIL SPIRIT TALISMANS TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND FAMILY!¡± ¡°What use is hope for poor shomin & peasants like us¡­¡± ¡°FRESHLY DUG UP BAMBOO SHOOTS!¡± Some of the humans had wooden stalls, others just a blanket on the floor, others a straw mat and a few even had a cooking setup. Seeing just the vast difference between the ¡°merchants¡± brought a smile to the kitten¡¯s face. Sadly all good things need to come to an end. *BAM* ¡°Did you think you could just set up shop wherever you wanted and not get fuck up when you didn¡¯t even both paying your protection fee?¡± Her fuzzy little ears twitched at the sudden shouting turning to see that one of the people on a quilt had been kicked over causing their clay creations to shatter. A shame. The person in question rubbed blood from the corner of their lips as they looked up to the three figures surrounding them. That unfortunate seller was visibly trembling as they clearly didn¡¯t want to be there - their eyes shaking more than their body. They tried to either calm down the aggressor or defend themselves. Lifting their hands up towards the trio in a pitiful attempt to prevent them from approaching. ¡°B-but I did pay your protection fee.¡± ¡°Aw~ well I don¡¯t remember it so it clearly wasn¡¯t enough!¡± Lifting his arms up in a shrug while looking around. Getting a laugh out from his companions while the surrounding people soon joined in when his gaze began to linger on them. Meanwhile the person on the ground could only clench his fists Unable to resist as the kitten was now shown the darker face of what she respected about the weak mortal communities. Just when the apparent leader of the criminals was about to turn to his most recent prey; the sounds of people being ushered away could be heard. A pair of light chain armour bound men with pole-arms made for restraining rather than killing. Although they weren¡¯t afraid of using them to beat civilians aside. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Their presence was enough to make the silly humans run around like headless chickens, trying to get out of the way, leading to the little black cat needing to quickly jump up. Ironically ending up on the roof top despite her intentions. Still their reaction alone told her enough about the people who just came. It didn¡¯t take the two long to reach the scene of the crime however that cat had no faith that these people would actually help the seller. If those ¡°police¡± did their job properly¡­ Those gangsters wouldn¡¯t have dared to so openly hustle the seller in the first place. A belief that was proven to be well placed. ¡°Well, well, well, what do we have here?¡± ¡°Seems like someone is causing trouble to me¡­¡± Both of them soon stand behind the trio of thugs with their polearms either lazily resting on their shoulder or on the floor. All four of them turned to face the newcomers. That seller attempted to stand up using the wall at his back as a support; practically crawling up it while clutching his battered cheek. They all seemed nervous with the evident leader of the punks resting a hand on the back of his head as he clearly took a respectful position. ¡°Nothing much, officers, we were just dealing with someone who didn¡¯t want to pay his dues.¡± ¡°I-I already paid!¡± Clearly fed up with the obvious lies that the assholes were using to set him up. Unfortunately he wasn¡¯t among allies as the guard resting his pole-arm on the floor suddenly used it to restrain the clear victim. Encasing his neck with the U-hook at the end. Not caring that his forceful use of his weapon sent the poor man''s head viciously against the wall with an audible thud. ¡°Tch did I ask you a question, criminal?¡± ¡°Should just pay what you owe so that we wouldn¡¯t need to get involved¡­¡± The sound shook his head as he instead used his weapon¡¯s butt to slam into the unprotected abodemen of the civilian. His hands were busy trying to protect his neck from the hook by holding the pole. A fact that made him unable to resist as the butt made him lurch forward while releasing spittle from his mouth. It didn¡¯t even end there as he ended up accidentally moving towards the pair again - giving the one restraining him a good enough excuse to once again slam his head against the wall. One didn¡¯t need to be a Cheshire level intellect to figure out they were experienced with this sadism. Knowing exactly how to make their captives feel pain. |What a bunch of violent thugs.| |You should show them what real fear is~.| Snorting at her other self''s thoughts as she looked down at the scene coldly. Turning away to continue heading towards the middle of the city as the sounds of flesh hitting flesh soon began to echo through the street. Sounds of pained screams only barely discernible. That doing nothing to worry the kitten who sauntered away with just as much grace as ever. Wagging her tails with amusement as well as zero guilt from letting that man get bullied; it simply wasn¡¯t her job to clean up after humans. Even back when Cheshire was the one in the control seat. The most they interacted with humans was as a business catering to all layers of class. Additionally¡­ Their ¡°business¡± was not exactly squeaky clean with morally grey being the standard while morally black was the usual. So she wasn¡¯t about to act like a hero when she certainly couldn¡¯t find herself caring about what may as well be standard operating procedures. Plus it wasn¡¯t as if she planned to let either group completely off the hook - she planned to at least skim some of their profit off the top. In her perspective she was still helping out the poor man. Just doing it a little later than he would have wanted. Consequences? There would be some even if she stopped the attack so she couldn¡¯t really be judged for taking the path that gives her the best personal result. Plus, at least this way the most he can expect is an increased number of visits as they try to recoup from their losses. If she repeated it a few times she may even be able to take care of them for good. Whether that was her plan was another matter. Finally she seemed to arrive at her destination as a decently grand (for humans) residence with a fairly frequent set of patrols. Additionally, there were plenty of wealthier looking people laughing joyfully or sitting on their porches. The road was paved while the police happily answered any questions the residents had. That wasn¡¯t the only direct contrast to the ¡°outer city¡±; however the wealth gap wasn¡¯t too important to the little black cat. What was useful was the fact that there were a lot of tall walls isolating the various home estates. Reminding the cat quite a lot of the Demon Realm though those demons were better organised.