Pillar of Yita

”So, how did it get here?”

In the meeting room, Fang Hong asked the others while curiously reaching out to pet the cat. The cat, unafraid on the table, rubbed its furry neck against the back of his hand, showing a sense of intimacy.

Seeing this, Tianlan felt itchy to touch it too, but the cat’s turquoise-like eyes flashed a bit of caution as it withdrew slightly, extending its paw and scratching her hand, ”Ouch!” Tianlan cried out softly, pulling back her hand in pain.

”Ha, looks like this little thing doesn’t like you, Fuli.”

The Big Catfolk laughed heartily, extending its paw. The cat turned, curiously tilting its head to look at him, then lowered its head to sniff his paw. Only then did it show an assured expression, meowing softly before curling its body into a ball and lying down against his furry paw.

”Hmph,” Tianlan looked at this scene with envy and anger, feeling the scratch on her hand hurt even more, pouting: ”Smelly creatures with mutual appreciation!”

Atira gave her a displeased look, removed her left hand to check the wound, and was relieved to find it was only a superficial injury.

Meanwhile, the culprit sat on the table without any consciousness of its actions, elegantly raising its head and looking at the others with its emerald eyes. Its gaze held neither caution nor curiosity, but rather a scrutinizing look at each one of them.

Under the shine of the crystal lamp encased in glass, its snow-white fur was fully visible, with some gray patterns on the head and front face, and ears pointed forward in a triangular shape, covered in black fur like its front paws.

From the neckline down, it had a ring of fluffy white fur, giving it a majestic yet graceful appearance, almost like a queen inspecting its subjects.

Yet, no one could clearly say how it got onto the ship.

Maybe it had been on board since they left Golande, but no one had seen the little fellow in the past half month. Moreover, it looked spirited, not at all like it hadn’t eaten for half a month.

Even before, Atira offered it some biscuit crumbs, which it didn’t show any affection for, merely sniffing them before brushing them aside with its paw as if to say, I don’t like this, bring me something else.

But saying it’s a wild cat from the forest seemed unlikely, as anyone could glance outside at the snowy, icy conditions and realize this cat didn’t seem to have survived such harsh environments.

Covering her scratched hand, Tianlan asked curiously: ”What’s her name?”

”She is called Daisy.”

”How does the captain know?”

”Miss Tata informed me.”

Gita stood to the side, gently blinking behind her glasses, softly asking: ”Miss Tata, can you understand Daisy’s speech?”

”Of course,” Fang Hong proudly said of his Fairy Miss: ”Miss Tata is the Guardian of the Silver Grand Library, she understands more than sixty thousand languages—”

But unexpectedly, Tata shook her head lightly on the side:

”I gave her the name.”

Her tone was very calm.

The meeting room was also very quiet.

Everyone looked at their captain, only Fang Hong bravely coughed once, muttering softly: ”Still, I wasn’t wrong, right...”

Luckily, everyone was used to his manner, and amidst Tianlan’s loud fussing, they discussed the variety of this little creature.

Opinions were even more mixed about this, as no one could provide authoritative evidence. Even about how many cat species there are in Eteliria, few Invokers could say for certain.

Finally, Miss Tata settled the issue:

”It belongs to the type of forest cat living in the northern region of Colin Ishurian.”

”Its long fur is a typical feature of those living in the temperate forests.”

”Isn’t it a local cat then?” Luo Yu asked.

”But it’s rare to see one this beautiful.”

And regarding the cat’s fate, opinions diverged.

Fang Hong suggested waiting for the storm to stop before releasing it somewhere. After all, it came from the nearby forests, making it a return to the wild. Although the cat seemed affectionate towards him and not fearful at all, its origins remained mysterious, and he, as the captain of the Adventure Group, had to consider more factors.

Luo Yu and Gita also agreed with this view.

Only Tianlan got anxious upon hearing it, wanting to protect the cat but terrified of being scratched again, nervously exclaiming: ”No way, no way! We finally got a cat, and if it’s sent away, what about the mice on the ship?”

The Papalarian expressed indifference, standing on the stool with crossed arms: ”What’s the big deal? There’s a town ahead, we can always buy another one, can’t we.”

”Annoying, can you get one as pretty as this?”

Tianlan glared at the Lion Paladin: ”Mr. Big Cat, say something, it’s your kin, might even be your daughter, look at the fur on her neck—it’s just like yours, isn’t it?!”

The Big Catfolk’s face turned dark, unable to say a word for a long time.

The young girl began searching for more allies, her eyes twitched, a plan forming in her mind: ”Moreover, although the group has some money left, it’s all for the ship’s construction, every penny must be spent wisely,” she looked pitifully at the three women: ”Atira, Hilveld, Sister Elisa, don’t you think?”