Curse of the Kat – ch C3

Chapter C3 – Why am I so useless?

I’m so…
Useless.

I thought I fit into the team with Ignis and Nina.
I felt like I had some purpose.
But really, that was just for show, wasn’t it?
Ignis is a natural born genius with loads of potential.
And Nina…
Comparing myself to Nina would be like comparing an ant to a dragon.
Even though I learned some archery and even got this amazing bow, I feel like I’m always dragging everyone down.

Especially this time.

I couldn’t do anything.
All while Mable, someone who isn’t even an adventurer, had a duel with the pirate king.
Part of me even felt glad I didn’t have to be the one to fight him.
How pathetic is that?
Ugh…
But even after she lost, I couldn’t put up any fight and got captured like everyone else.
If only I could summon my friends again…

…

Back there…
It finally dawned on me just how big of a difference there was between me and Nina.
When the pirate king unsheathed Nina’s sword and the cursed flames struck our cell, I felt my very bones burning with pain.
But all it did to Nina, was wake her up.
Like a gentle breeze.
And on top of that, she somehow absorbed it and made it hers.
That ridiculously destructive blast I saw as my consciousness faded…
I thought for sure that was just a crazy dream.
But after I woke up again, I saw the destruction with my own eyes, along with Nina sleeping right next to me.

That was her true capability.
Her real power she has been hiding to make me and Ignis feel like we are her equals.
I finally understood.
I understood that I can never hope to match her.
I will always just be someone who tags along and leeches off of her.
Just like…
When I was under Matoto’s charm…
…
Has…
Anything even changed?
The only thing that’s different is that I can’t even hug Tapi to calm down now…
…
No, what is wrong with me?
I can’t compare Nina to Matoto!
She’s not holding me down like him!
It’s me!
I’m the problem!
I need to…!
I…
Need to…
…
What do I need to do…?
Train myself to get as strong as Nina?
That’s impossible.
What should I do…?

…

“So, the ability to learn any magic you see…”

“Y-yeah…”

“And a skill that completely erases your presence.”

“M..mhm…”

That was Mable interrogating the two twins.
It seems like Leo, the boy, had some incredible skills he was born with.
Now that I think back at what happened in the pirate’s lair, I remember the pirate king doing something akin to erasing his presence.
Well, I’m not sure how, but Nina still found him and blasted him away.
Maybe the copy of that skill wasn’t as good?
…
But that doesn’t matter.
I don’t care about hiding.
Leo’s other skill is what I’m curious about.
‘Ability to learn any magic you see’?
That must mean he knows a lot of different magics, right?
Right…
Perhaps even…
Summoning magic…?

“Err, but for some reason, I can’t replicate Nina’s magic… that’s the first time that has happened…”
My shoulders drop as he says that.
So he can’t learn all magic?
Is it pointless to ask…?
No…
He said ‘first time that has happened’, so there’s still some hope.

“Umm…”
Ugh, everyone looked at me.

“Something wrong?”
Lina, the girl twin asked me.
Why do I feel so much pressure now?

“Err, d-do you know… summoning magic?”
I-I said it!
But now it feels even more uncomfortable!
P-please say something!

“Summoning…? Umm, yeah, I do!”
My eyes lit up.
He does?!

“Umm, here, look.”
Leo waved his hand and a circle of light shined on top of the table.
A few seconds later, a thick green caterpillar appeared there.

“UAH!”
Ignis, who brought her face closer to it earlier, jumped out of her seat.
She’s not a big fan of bugs, is she?

“Err, this is Cindy. I made contract with her about a year ago.”
Huh…?
Contract?

“Yeah, I know, she doesn’t look very impressive… b-but she’s really cool! I swear!”

“If she’s so cool then why do you never summon her…”
To the Leo trying to glorify Cindy, Lina interjected with a few silent words.

“W-what is a contract?”
I attempted to steer the conversation back before it went completely off course.

“Hmm? Oh, well… you have to make a contract with the one you want to summon… a-and I definitely didn’t get refused by stronger monsters in the past! I CHOSE Cindy!”
Ignoring his excuses, I didn’t understand what he was saying.
I have to make a contract?
How did I summon my friends before then?
I never made any contract!

“Anything wrong…?”
Leo noticed my confusion.

“I… never made any contract…?”
The confusion didn’t disappear from either one of our faces.
Right, Leo doesn’t know about my past.
I should expl-

“Eeeh? Then how were you able to summon Cerberus and the others?!”
… Ignis yelled out in surprise.

“C-Cerberus?”
For some reason, the name startled Leo.

“Yeah, a big dog with three heads! He was adorable!”

“A-ador… what?!”
Once again, the conversation started going off course.

“B-but I never made a contract with anyone… I just kind of… could summon them… after getting cursed.”

“C-cursed…?”
Ugh, do I have to talk about everything right now?
I probably should…

“That curse made her real ugly! And she could summon Cerberus because of it back then!”
…
Or I can let Ignis sum it up in a rude way.

“I-I see… Umm…”
Leo fell into thought for a second before continuing.

“Well… I heard it’s possible to forcefully summon something without needing the contract… but it should seriously exhaust the summoner and anger the summoned one.”
A-anger?
W-were they all angry with me all along?
I thought we were friends!

“Well, she did get exhausted whenever she summoned Fenrir, but other than that…”

“FEN-…!”
Another shocked expression.
Does he know Fenrir?

“Hey Leo… wasn’t Fenrir the name of some legendary beast back in Resuna?”
With Leo frozen with shock, Lina spoke up.
But…
Huh?
A legendary beast?
I-I mean…
Fenrir was very strong and cool…
He even managed to stand ground against Nina…
B-but, a legendary beast?
…
No!
More importantly!
Didn’t she say ‘back in Resuna’?
Is Fenrir in Resuna?

“Yeah there was… what an interesting way to name your dog…”
…
But, I didn’t name him…?
His name was…
Was…
Huh…
Wait, where did his name come from?
I remember I always called him Fenrir, but I can’t recall ever hearing his name was Fenrir, or deciding it myself…

“Well anyway… if you want to be able to summon these creatures properly, you would have to find them in person and make contracts with them…”
Find them in person…
And make proper contracts…
I…
…
I can do that…?
But other than Fenrir, I have no idea where everyone else could be…
Moreover, ‘in Resuna’ is too broad.
I can’t search through the entire neighboring country…
That would take years…
…
No.
I’m falling back to my useless spineless self.
So what if it takes years?
I can’t let that discourage me!

“Leo… would you tell me more about these contracts?”

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Curse of the Kat – ch G1

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Chapter G1 – Thou shall not panic

The ethereal ground beneath me shakes as I stomp forward.
Even though sweating shouldn’t be necessary for gods, I feel my face getting drenched.
Was everything he said true?
I can’t believe it.

I make my way to the observation station.
A dome shaped crystal-like structure with a small pond in the middle.
There’s already someone there, lying next to the pond and staring into it, while waving her two contrasting tails around.

“KAT!”
I shout at the carefree woman, and she lazily looks up at me.

“Oh, Torta. What’s up? Is it my turn already?”

“No, Nix just took over. But more importantly! He told me some disturbing things!”

“Disturbing things…? You mean, about my piece?”

“So, it’s all true?!”
I can’t stop myself from yelling.

“Calm down now… what did he even tell you?”

“Your piece tore through the fabric of the world with sheer force…!”

“Oh that, don’t worry. I fixed it immediately. I don’t think anyone even noticed it.”
She waved her hand as if talking about fixing a minor roof leak.

“That’s not the point, you idiot! If she can break through the fabric of the world, then that’s a serious issue!”
Fuming, I stare down at Kat.

“… It’s fine, I said. She needed a whole month’s worth of time to gather enough power to make only a tiny dent into the fabric. She won’t-”

“ONLY A MONTH?!”

This idiot really doesn’t know what this implies.
Given a few years or so, even WE could be in danger!

“I already reinforced the world’s structure a bit and created a function to repair itself when a similar crack appears. Stop worrying so much…”
She said with a sigh.
As if I was blowing this out of proportion.
Is she insane?
If I recall correctly, her piece managed to create something which has ‘god-slayer’ in its name.
If she somehow manages to break into our divine realm, we would no longer be safe!

“Trust me… I have this under control.”
A serious expression…?
How very unlike you, Kat…
…
But I guess you ARE the most powerful one of us.
I guess, I’ll trust you for now.

“Fine. I’ll leave it to you.”

“Good.”
And there comes the deceptive smile.
Anyway…
That wasn’t the only disturbing thing I heard from Nix.

“Another thing. I heard your piece temporarily split.”

“Oh… yeah, she did…”
Kat furrows her brows for a second before continuing.

“But it happened while she was unconscious and only her soul split. It looked quite bizarre to be honest…”

“Looked…? You looked into her soul?”

“Ehh… she somehow managed to call out here in the divine realm, so I responded.”
WHA-
Did I just hear right?
Her piece managed to send a message to the divine realm?!
…
No, why am I getting surprised?
Mine does it almost on daily basis.

“Eh, there were six of them at the end, but when her body woke up, they all fused seamlessly again.”
Six of them…
That would have been a serious problem if they hadn’t fused again.
But still…
This is very concerning…

“Kat… I’ll be honest. This whole thing sounded like a decent plan at first, but I don’t like it anymore. It’s becoming more and more dangerous.”

“Hmm… I get what you’re saying… but do you have any other ideas?”
I don’t.
This has always been a last ditch effort.
But I still don’t like it.

“… guess not. Look, Torta. I know you hate uncertainty, and that this plan is riddled with it. But one thing that IS certain, is that if we don’t do anything, we won’t last.”
…
Dammit…
I hate to agree with her…

“Then at least tell me, why are you antagonizing your piece so much, Kat?”
She always makes fun of her and leaves her hanging.
And I never understood why.

“Antagonizing…? Well, I guess I am… but that’s not the point.”

“The… point…?”
What is she talking about?

“You see… the pieces feel natural hatred towards us.”
Yeah, I know that already.
Even if my piece acts all respectful, I can feel her animosity.

“So I decided to make her hate me for real, while also making her love me!”
W…
Huh?
What is…
…
What are you talking about, you dumb furry?!

“I studied humans quite a bit! And there’s this thing called love-hate relationship. It’s when you hate someone enough to want to punch them on your first meeting, but at the same time, you love them so much that you can’t ever imagine losing them!”

“What in the void realm are you talking about?!”

“I made her want to beat me up, while at the same time not wanting me to die! It’s the perfect safety measure!”

“… you’re still gonna get beaten up if it comes to that.”

“Ahahaha… better than being killed…?”
I don’t understand this woman.
How can such an idiot be a powerful deity?
I thought humans are dumb, but this one is just…

“Anyway! Looks like my piece finally woke up again! Time to continue watching!”
…
Have you evolved from a human, perhaps?
You look very much like a lazy human watching that ‘teevee’ thing.

“Ah…”
Suddenly, Kat froze with her mouth agape.

“Hmm? What’s wrong?”

“S-she just… ate my blessing…”

…

What?

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Curse of the Kat – ch 79

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Chapter 79 – The cat reflects

Ah, I can see the light.
Pure whiteness in front of me.
Has my time finally come?
I can extend my arm towards it, but I can’t reach it…

Wait.
Why are there irregular bumps in that light?
Huh.
That’s not light.
It’s just the white ceiling.
Oh, dammit.
Where am I?
A bed?
…
Am I in a medical facility again?
Well, I guess that’s to be expected.
I passed out because of cheetah soul.
I wonder just how long it’s been though.
Or rather, does this mean the pirate king didn’t come back and everyone got safely out?
Hmm…

I got up and looked out of the window.

Where is this hospital, anyway…?
Am I back at Heiliya?
I can’t see the ocean from here…
There are too many buildings in all directions…
And none of them look familiar…

…

Oh, that’s right…
That guy had a teleport ability, so their base could have very well been on the other side of the world…
Ah, crap…
…
Where are the others?
I better find them and let them know I’m awake.

Done scanning the town through the window, I decided to go outside directly.
It seems like they didn’t strip me this time, and they even left my completely-curse-free sword by my bed.
After grabbing it and putting it on my back, I opened the door and walked into the hallway.
As soon as I did, a doctor-ish looking man noticed me and pestered me with things like ‘oh, you are awake?’ and ‘you shouldn’t be moving yet!’.
Reluctantly, I let him examine me before he let me leave.
Well, at least he told me some useful information.
First…
We’re in the capital.
Oh, boy.
We really aren’t in Heiliya.
On top of that, the capital?
The place I was planning on visiting later?
Perfect.
…
Although, I feel bad for Kent.
My past lion self left him in the port city.
Oops.
Well, he said he has spies in the capital, so I’m sure he’s gonna find out where we are sooner or later, right?
Anyway…
The doctor also told me what happened to everyone else.
According to what he said, everyone is alright.
So, that’s good.

I walk out of the building and look around to get my bearings before heading towards the place where the others supposedly are.
On my way there, I think about what happened back there.

There is a lot to take in…
All of the things Kat told me, this ominous ‘panther of wrath’ thing…
Really, god of balance you say?
How is this balanced at all?
Every cat soul variant has been quite disturbing, and this new thing really takes the cake.
They are not very different from the curses they originated from…
…
Huh?
Wait.
If she said ‘god of balance’, would that mean…
That I can absorb blessings as well?
Since they are the opposite of curses?
Would that balance me out more?
Hmm…
Well, I don’t know.
I don’t think I can take everything she said at face value.
Moreover, wouldn’t it be really rude to just steal someone’s blessing?
I mean, I wouldn’t mind if I was cursed, and someone slurped that curse away.
But if I had a blessing, I would get pretty mad if someone just-
…
Wait.
But I DO have a blessing!

Blessing of the Kat
Allows the user to wear equipment blessed by the Kat. The user is also sometimes able to communicate with the Kat at designated locations. Lastly, all feline creatures will become friendly.

Heheh…
Haha!
That’s it!
I’m gonna try to absorb my own blessing…!
…
Except, wouldn’t that already happen by now?
I know that I sap curses simply by being near someone with that curse.
So if the blessing is literally attached to myself…
…
Argh!
Stupid contradictions!

Whatever…
For now, let’s take a step back and look at this ‘panther of wrath’.
Mmm, let’s see…
…
Hmm…?

Cat soul+
Temporarily turns you into a wild animal. You gain bonus agility for the duration.
You have mastered this skill and are now able to unlock its variants.

Available variants:
Panther soul
Tiger soul
Cheetah soul
Lion soul

It’s…
Not there?!
What the heck?!
Was it all a dream or something stupid like that?
Nonono, no way it was!
Clearly, there’s something wrong here.
Maybe if I examine panther soul…?

Panther soul
In addition to cat soul effects, it allows the use of shadow magic and enhances stealth at night.

It’s still the same…
Gh…
The culprit got rid of all the evidence.
Now, there’s no lead to go off of.
Damn…
Perhaps it was just a special temporary state when I was overloaded with the mana from my sword?
Will it happen again if I repeat that…?
…
What am I thinking?
I DO NOT want that to happen again!
I could demolish a town with that blast!
Nope, nope, nope!
Stop thinking about that manifestation of evil!
Think about nice things!
That’s right!
The whole balance thing!
I’ll try consciously absorbing my own blessing!
Uoooo!
Come on, me!
Absorb that useless feline harem maker and create something nicer out of it!
Hnnnng!

Gulp.

…

What?
I felt like I just swallowed something.
But not in a physical sense at all.
What did I just…
Wait, it couldn’t be…

Name: Nina
Level: 20
Strength: 38/38
Endurance: 40/40
Speed: 52/52
Magic: 33/33

Equipment:
Kat underwear
Kat dress
Kat ear headband
Kat gloves
Kat slippers
Enchanted handbag
God-slayer shadow cursed sword

Skills:
Cat soul+
9 lives

…
It’s gone.
GONE.
WHAT.
Did I just eat the blessing?!
How did I do that?!
Why did I do that?!
Wha-ughghhh!

…

Blessing of the Kat

It’s back…
I…
Hurled it back out.
…
This is not funny.
I’m weirded out.
Is it normal to eat and vomit back vague things like blessings?
It’s not, right?
I just experienced something insane, haven’t I?

Oh, jeez.
Literally everyone on the street stopped whatever they were doing and are staring at me.
What’s your deal?
Have you never seen a girl dressed in cat outfit almost vomit in the middle of the street?
…
Ok fine, I would be surprised if you have…
But still!
Stop staring!
Argh, fine!
I’ll just run away!
The simplest solution!
Off I go!

…

Well, here I am…
The inn where everyone is supposedly staying.
…
But I don’t feel like meeting everyone just yet.
There are still so many things on my mind.
Why is the ‘panther of wrath’ not showing?
Why can I treat an immaterial blessing like an object?
Ugh…
Well, it’s not like I’m gonna figure it out anytime soon.
So might as well just think about it later…
…
No!
What’s with this procrastinator mindset?!
I’m gonna think about it NOW!
I can’t keep going with this ‘whatever happens, happens’ attitude!
Back there, everyone got captured, and it would have been seriously bad if I didn’t suddenly get that power-up!
I can’t rely on it randomly happening again!
I need to get some time to investigate all of this!

…

Sigh…
But if I suddenly disappear without saying a word, they would be worried.
I guess I’m gonna go in, and tell them I need some time alone or something…

Well, here goes nothing.

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Curse of the Kat – ch 78

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Chapter 78 – The cat misses

Ugh, what should I do…?…
He copied Mable’s unstoppable force skill.
And my left hand is out of commission now.
…
I gave him hope now…
He thinks that he can defeat me with that…
Well…
Let’s correct that misconception.

I cover my left hand with the shadows, using them as a bandage before leaping forward.
The idiot in front of me tosses more stones my way, but they are way too slow for the current me.
It’s a joke.

After dodging a handful of these stones, I’m once again right next to him with my sword held up high, ready to finally finish him off.
But noticing that, he throws an arm in my direction, hoping to get a direct hit in.
Since his arms themselves could be empowered by the unstoppable force skill, I make sure to avoid them as well.
And then.
Swish.
My blade hit his neck.
And didn’t cut through it.
Instead, it stopped my weapon completely.

The boy’s head is a ball of sweat.
But even then, he cracks a mocking smile.
“Ha…h-haha!!”

He…
Used that skill on his own neck…?
Now, that is unexpected…

For the first time on our battle, I back off with a jump and assess the situation.

“W-w-what’s wrong?! Weren’t you going to kill me?!”
He sure is full of himself now.
Troublesome…
So troublesome…
What’s the best way to kill him, I wonder?

“Take this!”
Another serving of pebbles pass by me as I think of a new strategy.
Hmm…
I’m still in this weird panther of wrath mode.
I should make use of my tools.

“Stay still you little rat!”
Rat?
Wrong animal, idiot.

“Gh…?!”
Chilling aura.

“Wh-”
And right after that…
Close the gap and slash him.
Don’t give him a chance to do anything.
It’s over for you.

My sword comes down once again.
And is stopped mid-air by something invisible.

“UAAAAAH!”
The pale-faced boy runs at me with his fist readied to punch me.
I’m once again forced to take my distance.

That invisible shield again…?
Didn’t he steal Mable’s skills just now…?
It seems like I made a wrong assumption.
Since he didn’t use any magic after stealing Mable’s skills, I thought he can only use one set of stolen skills at a time.
…
Or maybe that’s still true?
Did he use unstoppable force on… the air?
What a headache…
…
But still.
He should be running out of mana and energy soon.
Just like me…

Magic: 615/33

Funny how I call this overflow ‘running low on mana’.

…

Well then.
Since he likes deflecting my sword swings so much…
I can attack from afar instead.
Another one of those blasts should finish him off.
If I mix blaze magic into it, I should be able to break through even unstoppable force, as it nulifies magic and skill effects.
And finally, if I freeze him with aura magic, he won’t even be able to dodge it.
Sounds good.

Well, it’s gonna be hard doing so many things simultaneously…
But it’s all for the sake of killing him, so I have to do it.
Here we go.

“G-gh…!”
Freezing aura.
Now be a good boy and stay there.

Gather up the shadow mana around my sword…
Pull it back…
Apply blaze magic…
And…!
DIE!

A mass of shadows surged forth once again.
But just before I released the blast, I noticed an unknown person by the pirate king’s side.
I was so focused on combining my magics, I didn’t notice his backup has arrived!
But it doesn’t matter.
They are both frozen by my aura and the blast is coming.
There’s no hope for yo-
?!

The blast shook the ground tore through the wall behind them.
But even then, compared to the first blast, this one was much weaker.
Once the dust has settled, those two were nowhere to be found.
They disappeared without a trace.
…
But I knew it wasn’t because I pulverized them…
No…

It was the teleport guy…
He helped him get away…
They… escaped…

…

He got away.
The one I wanted to kill more than I ever wanted anything else.
I’m mad…
Am I mad…?
Why do I feel so serene?
I should be fuming.
Angry that the little cockroach managed to slip by my fingers.
But for some reason, my wrathful feelings suddenly vanished.
This is really odd.
What happened?

Magic: 1/33
Cat soul+ (Cheetah soul on)

Ah, how dumb of me.
I basically used up all of my mana.
That’s no good.
If they were to teleport back now, I would have a hard time fighting them.
Well, let’s hope they are too scared to return…
And if they do come back…
…
I’ll think of something then.
Also, it seems that the woman I punched ran away.
I guess she was the one to inform the teleport guy who bailed the pirate king out?
Ah, the rest of their group probably evacuated already.
I can’t hear any sounds upstairs.

Ouch…
My left hand is still broken.
Dang, this might take a while to heal…
Even with my regeneration boosted, this is no laughing matter.
Oh well…

But seriously, what a tough opponent that was…
Or as the past, really angry, me said, what a cockroach.
I even got an enormous mana overflow and a brand-new battle mode and it still wasn’t enough to do him in.
Well, maybe I was just a little too rash with my moves…
Hmm…
…
Hmm?
Not that I think about it, why didn’t he attempt to steal MY skills?
Surely, a jerk like him would be enticed by a skill called nine lives.
He even took the Kat clothes and put them on himself, which looked terrible, by the way.
So, why didn’t he try to steal my skills?
Does he need to fulfill some conditions before he can skillsnatch?
Like, the target has to be unconscious…?
No wait…
Didn’t his goons say he could steal skills mid-battle as well?
Huh…

Eh, whatever.
Thinking about that is too tiring for me.
I better check up on everyone before I fall into coma.
Let’s see…
Ah that barred off place, right.
I half-forgot about that place.
But somehow always remembered to aim these blasts the other way, and made sure that the idiot’s magic didn’t fly over there either.
‘Panther of wrath’, huh?
Strange how there was only one target for all that wrath.
During panther soul, I’m wrathful at everything around me.
Really now, what is up with that…

I walk up to the cage, thinking about this new totally-not-ominous-sounding battle mode I just used.
First thing I do is cut away at the bars with my unsheathed whateverium cat sword to get inside.
Since I can’t creep inside the shadows right now, I have to move through reality like other mortals.
Several swings later, I cut out a piece out of one of the bars and manage to enter inside again.
There, my companions, the twins, and the whole ship’s crew lied unconscious.

Let’s see…
I took away most of the shadow mana from them when I transformed…
But not quite all of it.
Hmm, I see now…
This ‘flow magic’ of cheetah soul… is quite the thing.
If I try, I can control any nearby mana at will.
How did I not figure this out sooner?
I must be dumb.

Well then.
Come to mama, mana.
Oo, that’s quite a bit, isn’t it?
I’m surprised everyone is still alive with that amount…
But I’m glad they are.

…

Ah, dammit.
Looking at everyone just sprawled on the ground like this makes me wanna join them.
No no no.
Focus, me.
I need to stay awake.
But it’s so hard…
Argh…
Where are all the split personalities when I need them?
Now there’s nobody to keep an eye on me, making sure I finish tending to everyone before I fall asleep.
Oh well…
They were products of me going crazy anyway.
Not like I would ACTUALLY want to have six distinct selves shouting one over another inside my head.
I like it when it’s more quiet.
It’s perfect for naps…
…
No, I said…!
Stay focused, me!
Argh…
This tiredness of cheetah soul is so annoying…
It’s like the instinct of wanting to breathe.
I am doing the equivalent of holding down my breath here.

…

And there…
That’s everyone.
Now, what should I do with this cute ball of spooky mana?
Hmm…
Can I… absorb it?
Huh.
Now, that’s an idea.
Maybe if I restore my mana with that I won’t go comatose?
Alright, it’s worth a try.
Here I come.

Chomp.

Mmm…
Tastes like chicken.
Just kidding.
It really doesn’t taste like anything.
I’m eating air.
Slightly spicy air.
Well, the question is, did it do anything?

Magic: 2/33
Cat soul+ (Cheetah soul on)

Nope.
So pointless…
Ah dammit…
It was worth a try, I guess.
But I really can’t take this anymore.
This is too suffocating…
…
Good night.

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Curse of the Kat – ch W1

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Hey, sorry for the big break again. To be honest, ‘stuff’ is happening in real life and it was really hard to find the enthusiasm and motivation to write lately. But, I still don’t want to drop this, so, I guess the ‘3-4 chapters a week’ will simply change to ‘whenever I can’. Hope you understand.

Chapter W1 – Panther of wrath

Nobody knew what would happen if the sword is unsheathed.
The girls warned him that it’s a bad idea.
But he didn’t listen.
As soon as he loosened the sheath a bit, it instantly shot out from all the pressure inside.
A massive surge of blackness spewed out of the sword and hit the prisoner’s cell in front of him.

“Holy shit! What’s with this sword?!”
That was the pirate king’s first reaction.
He has never seen such a concentrated mass of mana before.
Moreover, mana this sinister and frightening.

But looking at the damage it caused, he noticed she woke up.
The girl who was unconscious since the very beginning, her eyes were open, peeking through the sea of shadows all around her.

“Oh, hey! She woke up! Ahahaha! Is this thing her personal alarm clock or what?!”
The pirate king laughed at her predicament.
All while her eyes wandered around the cell and noticed her cellmates.

“Hmm? What’s with that dumb look, girl? Are you surprised to be in a cell? Thank your friend who lost to me!”
The girl looked back at him and attempted to stand up.
But the chains held her down.

“Hah, are you trying to break free? Those chains are special! They not only seal magic, but even skills!”
And then.

“…eh?”
The chains crumbled and let out a black smoke, which blended in with the surrounding darkness.

“Y-you burned through them?!”
As he stood there dumbfounded, all of the black flames in the cell began moving in a swirling motion around the girl.
The other prisoners, who were covered with is just a second ago, were clean again.
Though, all of them have already long lost consciousness.

“How can you control that much mana so freely?!”
The mana continued to unify and covered the girl in a thick cloak, only letting her red eyes peek through.

“…he…hehehe! I get it! So you are the strongest one of them all, aren’t you?! Not that other bitch!”
The pirate king felt excited.
He would get to fight someone really powerful, after all!
…
However, that excitement soon turned into fear.
Where her mouth should have been, the cloak opened, revealing even blacker black than the cloak itself.

“DIE!”
Her distorted voice carried the aura of pressure and chill.
The pirate king froze up for a fraction of a second.
And that fraction of a second was enough for the monster to somehow bypass the cell’s bars and close in on him with her claw already ready to swing down on him.
Swish. Crash.
The ground beneath him cracked and a wave of darkness bled through the surroundings as she swung her arm through the empty air and wedged it into the ground.

“S-so you are a monster, huh?!”
The voice came from a few meters away from where the pirate king stood just a second ago.
He dodged at the last second by teleporting.
However, in his panic, he left the Kat clothes as well as the sword behind.
The almighty undefeatable pirate king stood there naked, pointing at the ‘monster’ with one hand while covering his crotch with the other.
The shadows around the ‘monster’ immediately swallowed up the items he left behind and the unsheathed sword appeared in her hand.

“Well, I’m not gonna yield to an animal!”
The boy turned his head to one of the surrounding prison cells and did a hand grabbing motion in the air.

“I’ll show you what I can do!”
But the monster didn’t care.
She leapt at him again at speeds quicker than he could parse, raising her sword, which leaked shadow mana like an open water tap.
But her advance got stopped by something invisible.
She bounced back with a clinking sound.

“Hah! How is that! An indestructible magic barrier! You’re trapped again! Now-”
But his victorious stance didn’t last long.
The swor sword cut through the air and its tip touched the barrier.
As the leaking shadows touched it, it went out in a puff of smoke.

“What?!”
His moment of shock was enough for the monster to close in and do an overhead slash with her sword.
She only barely missed his skull and instead sent his left arm flying, while releasing a burst of shadow mana into a wall behind him.

“GAAAAAH!”
The sheer air pressure made the pirate king fly away, splattering blood from his armless shoulder all over the ground.
But the monster didn’t give him any breaks.
She dashed at him once again.
This time though, a blast of wind sent her flying the other way.
A barrage of fireballs closely followed, bombarding the airborne monster, but not really dealing any damage whatsoever.

“Mirim! G-get over here!”
The boy’s voice echoed in the spacious rocky room.
But before any answer came back to him, the sword’s blade, still overflowing with shadow mana, approached him once again.
A side swing meant to decapitate.
The sheer circular pressure from it created a black mini-tornado.
But as it settled, the monster’s prey was nowhere to be found.
And this time, not even her ears or nose could detect his location.

Upon realizing her target escaped, the monster roared.
“WHERE ARE YOU?! PIRATE KING?!”
She stood in place as her cloak extended down to the floor and crept through the room.
A few seconds later, the monster turned its focus to a certain spot.
A place, with two feet-shaped imprints in the shadow rug.
“THERE YOU ARE…”
The shadows converged once again, swirling around the sword this time.
The monster held the sword in both of her hands and pointed it at that spot.
She pulled her arms backwards.
And then, stabbed it forward again.
That motion released an unimaginable surge of mana, gouging out the floor and walls as if digging through soft snow.
The whole place shook as the shadows ate through whatever got into their path.
If anyone carefully observed the spectacle from the side, they would notice the light coming from objects behind the attack being warped.
Almost as if space itself got torn.
However, that distortion only lasted for a brief second before it got corrected.

“H-holy shit! You are crazy!”
Only a pinkie’s length away from all the destruction, the pirate king lied on the floor, sweat covering his pale face.

“B-boss! What’s going-”
Finally, someone came from upstairs and peeked into the room, freezing upon seeing the state it’s in.

“Mirim! Get Toel! Quick!”
Holding his bleeding shoulder, the pirate king shouted instructions at his underling, before returning his attention at the living calamity in front of him, not daring to look behind him at the destruction.
The monster’s cloak of shadow magic has been used up quite a bit, now allowing the pirate king to see her actual body shape instead of just a black mass with eyes.

“Y-ye-GRRH!”
The underling woman had the air punched out of her lungs before she even finished replying.
She keeled over and fell on the floor, desperately trying to catch back her breath.
The monster who punched her turned to the pirate king again.

“YOU WILL NOT RUN AWAY.”
But as the monster said this, she could see him doing the same grabbing motion at the prison cell.
After he did that, he grabbed a random piece of rubble and threw it at her while screaming in desperation.
The monster did not care for his pitiful acts of desperation and simply deflected the rubble with her free hand.
… not.
The stone pierced through both her hand and the shadows covering it, making it burst in blood.
The monster grimaced and looked at her broken hand.
And then at the pirate king, who had the expression of shock.
Which changed to an evil grin.

“A..ahahaha! So she wasn’t a useless idiot after all! HAHAHA!”
With the sudden influx of adrenaline, he stood up with another stone in his hand.

“What is it, monster?! How does it feel to be injured by your own friend’s ability?!”

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Curse of the Kat – ch 77

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Chapter 77 – The cat awakens

What an experience.

Indeed, I finally got to meet Kat and ask her something.

Yeah, but…
None of her answers told me anything.
Like, seriously?
The other chosen ones are EXACTLY like me?
What are they?
My long-lost sisters?
Clones?
…
Or am I the clone…?

Stop thinking about that nonsense already.
Kat was obviously just making fun of me.
I should instead think about what the purpose of it all is since she wouldn’t tell me.

You’re right…
Hmm…
That ‘secret’ is suspicious…
What’s so special about me that she completely refused to say anything?
Maybe my purpose is to figure that out?
And when I find out, everything will make sense?

Well, maybe.
Or she could have just tried to mislead us.

A red herring?
I wouldn’t put it beside her.
She is the same person…god…goddess, who claimed that my skills are my own product.

Yeah, obviously!
These cat themed skills are made by me and not by that catgirl goddess!
Hahaha, let’s be real now!

Dial down the sarcasm, will you?

Yeah, sorry.

Also, she said that I made it out of the blessing somehow.
So maybe it’s not complete nonsense…

What do you mean?

Well, she said I’m special, right?

Right.

So…
What if the thing that’s special about me is that I have some kind of skill-creating powers?

Hmm…
Now that’s an interesting theory…
Why would that be the case, though?

I don’t know!
I’m just latching onto the clues!

Well, should we try to create a skill then?

Sure sure.
Wait.
Can we see the status screen yet…?
…
Ooh!

Name: Nina
Level: 20
Strength: 38/38
Endurance: 40/40
Speed: 0/52
Magic: -12/33

Equipment:
Kat underwear
Kat dress
Kat ear headband
Kat gloves
Kat slippers

Skills:
Cat soul+ (Cheetah soul on)
9 lives

Special:
Blessing of the Kat

I can see it again!
I think I finally went fully unconscious at some point.
Can’t even feel the pain anymore.
It’s great.
…
Wait.
Wait wait wait…!
Just a second now!
Is that a minus?!
I have negative mana?!
WHY?!
HOW?!

…

Why are these limits even there?
I already managed to break through and go over.
And now I’m in the negatives.
Seriously, what’s the point?!

Look, cheetah soul is turned on somehow.
It normally turns on when I deplete my mana, so I guess negative mana counts as well?
Ugh, why does this all feel like nothing more than a buggy game?
…
Anyway…
Where was I…?
I was trying to create a skill.

Right right.
Kat said I somehow used her blessing to make these two.
What exactly could she mean?

Hmm, maybe it needs to be something related to cats…

The ability to sleep through the entire day?

Come on…

I’m joking, I’m joking…
Umm…
How about the ability to hurl furballs?

Wow.
Sounds very useful and not disgusting at all.
I’m impressed with the great ideas, me.

Well, I’m trying my hardest to come up with something!
Okay, what about the ability to always land on our feet, then?!

That’s really stu-
….
Actually, that might not be terrible.
That way, even if our air-jumping with the slippers goes wrong, we won’t crack our skull when we land.

Ah-ha!
Let’s do this then…!
…
Alright, what do we do?

Err…
Well, we apparently did it unconsciously last time, so…
…
Argh!
Why is life so difficult!

Calm down, me!
It’s fine!
Just try to focus or something!
Like when we called out to Kat!

Fine.
But I don’t expect this cheap power of believing to work again.
That only works in kid shows, after all.

Good good, say more of that.
Reverse psychology might kick in.

It’s not…
Whatever.
Let’s do this.

HNNNG!
SKILL CREATE!
ALWAYS LAND ON FEET SKILL, GO!

…
Is that what you want that skill to be called?

Shut up, I’m concentrating.

Hnn-
ARGH?!

GYAH?!

…

What did you do?!
What was the tremor?!

I just tried to make a skill!

…
Then, maybe it worked?

Let’s look…

Name: Nina
Level: 20
Strength: 38/38
Endurance: 40/40
Speed: 0/52
Magic: -21/33

Equipment:
Kat underwear
Kat dress
Kat ear headband
Kat gloves
Kat slippers

Skills:
Cat soul+ (Cheetah soul on)
9 lives

Special:
Blessing of the Kat

UHH, NOPE!
And somehow, we dropped even further in the negatives now!
How does that even work?!

I don’t know!

…
Hey guys.

…
Huh…
What…?

Where did you come from?

I’m not sure.
I just… happened.

Ugh…
The last thing is need is another alter ego in my head…
I’m seriously going crazy, aren’t I?

Yep.

Don’t agree with me!

…

Alright, Nina the second, what is our situation?

Bad.
I feel like our body is being thrown around.
And…
The Kat outfit disappeared from the equipment in our status.
And in its stead, we got ‘slave rags’.

…
So, everyone got captured by those pirates?
And they even stripped me naked?

Seems like it.

Well this is just getting better and better, isn’t it?
Ugh…
Nina the third, how is it on your end?

Eh, I can’t figure out how to use this skill-creating ability.
Or rather, we don’t even know if we have an ability like that!
Why am I doing something so pointless?!

No progress on your end, then…
Nina the fourth, what about you?

No good, Kat isn’t answering anymore.
We either can’t connect anymore, or she is ignoring us.

Damn…
That stupid troll of a goddess!

Hey, calm down, first.
We gotta stay positive!

Ugh, well I guess so…
But fifth…
More alter egos keep popping up.
And I’m running out of jobs to give them!

Ah…

Hmm?
What is it, fourth?

Well, I heard a cough…
I think it was Kat’s.

…
So she’s really just ignoring us!
That little…!

…

Argh, I’m so tired of this.

Pretty ironic, isn’t it?
I thought that being unconscious is supposed to be relaxing.

Not for me apparently.

This is the most stressful coma I have ever experienced.
I didn’t even know one can be aware they are in coma!

There’s always a first time…

…

Ugh…
I just wish we could do something…

…

An impact!
Something hit us!

Yes, we all felt that, second!
What was it?!

I… don’t know!

E-everyone!
Look at the status!

Magic: 1835/33

What the heck?!
Weren’t we in the negatives just a second ago?!
What’s with this ridiculous overflow?!

We’re regaining consciousness!
Prepare for take off…!

…

Eyes.
Opened.
A prison cell.
And a sea of black flames.
I’m in the middle of them.

“Holy shit! What’s with this sword?!”
There’s someone.
A boy.
Wearing my Kat clothes.
Holding my sword.
Unsheathed.
The blade was pointed at me and all the accumulated shadow mana hit me.
I see.
I get it.

“Oh, hey! She woke up! Ahahaha! Is this thing her personal alarm clock or what?!”
Around me.
Cana, Ignis, Mable, the twins and the ship’s captain and crew.
They are all being swallowed by the black flames, screaming.
That’s not right.
You are supposed to enjoy the sensation.
I guess I can take it off of you if you don’t want it.

“Hmm? What’s with that dumb look, girl? Are you surprised to be in a cell? Thank your friend who lost to me!”
Lost to you?
I see.
So, you are the pirate king.

“Hah, are you trying to break free? Those chains are special! They not only seal magic, but even skills!”
Is that so?
Then why haven’t they extinguished the shadows yet?
Have you thought about that?

“…eh?”
And…
If something as simple as chains could hold me down, how would I ever be able to kill you?
Have you thought about… that?

“Y-you burned through them?!”
I’m not sure why…
But I can use blaze magic in this state.
I wonder what state I’m in?

Cat soul+ (Panther of wrath on)

What a fancy name.
Did panther soul level up?
Well no matter…
This is quite a strange sensation.
I feel completely calm inside.
And at the same time, I feel an unparalleled rage toward that one person in front of me.

“How can you control that much mana so freely?!”
How?
Simple.
All of this mana originated from me.
It belongs to me.
But more importantly…
Flow magic.
The thing I get with cheetah soul.
I finally know what it does.
That’s right…
It allows me to control the flow of mana.
Any mana.
That’s the joke.
When I’m out of mana, cheetah soul turns on.
And in that state, I should be able to manipulate my opponent’s mana.
But…
Since I had no mana in that state, I couldn’t figure it out.
What a blessing this ‘panther of wrath’ is.
I can use all of my variant soul’s magics for some reason.

“…he…hehehe! I get it! So you are the strongest one of them all, aren’t you?! Not that other bitch!”
And you.
You made a grave mistake.
Making an enemy out of me was not smart of you.

I open my mouth and see the boy shudder.
A distorted voice leaves my mouth.

“DIE!”

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Curse of the Kat – ch 76

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Chapter 76 – The cat is crazy

Ugh…
I hear noises similar to voices.
My vision is completely blurred.
My entire body is in pain.
…
I’ve really done it now, haven’t I?
I thought I was smart, compensating the mana loss by getting it back from my sword…
But who would have thought something like this would happen…?
…
Well, the good news is, I’m in great pain.
Which must mean that I’m still alive.
Amazing.
…
And also nonsensical.
My senses are so messed up, I can’t even tell whether I’m sitting, lying down or being carried!
So…
How am I still conscious?!
Ugh…
Why does this always happen…?
Every time I try a new cat soul variant, I end up regretting it.
Sure, they were originally curses, but come on!
The drawbacks keep getting worse!
I wouldn’t be surprised if the next one just outright killed me and sent me straight to hell!
…
Alright, calm down.
I’m getting used to the pain.
Is there something I can do?
What about looking at my status…?
… uhm, nope.
Can’t even read any of that.
What the hell?
I thought status is something in my mind.
Why does my actual eyesight matter…?
Ugh…
I guess my mind is in chaos as well.
But really.
What should I do?
How long am I gonna be left in this state?
Out there, they will have to duel with the pirate king!
And if he has the copy ability, that means he can use his goon’s teleport, and might be able to copy Mable’s destructive skills as well!
That sounds like a disaster…
…
But…
Then there’s me.
What would happen if he copied my skills?
Would he get the nine lives…?
That sounds like a bad idea.
Well, I still don’t know what it does…
But no villain should have access to immortality or a way to revive themselves.
That just spells trouble.
Argh…
But thinking about all of this is pointless since I’m in this state!
When is this gonna end?!

…

I think I’m going crazy.
Ain’t that right, Nina?

Indeed, Nina.
I’ve lost sense of time.
It could have been an hour, or it might have been years.
There’s no way to tell.

Hmm.
Well, at least you have someone to talk to.

Right.
But you are still me, aren’t you…?
In other words, it doesn’t help at all!
I’m stuck in limbo and the only one I can talk to is you!

Hey, calm down!
I’m stuck here with you as well, you know?!

Sorry…
I’m just getting impatient.

Ugh…
What should we do?

Hmm…
Oh, oh, I have an idea!
Since we are in this weird spiritual state, maybe it allows us to talk to Kat?

… that came out of nowhere.
I mean, what makes you think that?

Well, you know the cliches, right?
This kind of state is what allows the protagonist to talk to ghosts and spirits and whatnot.

Are you saying Kat is a ghost?
Well, he’s equally annoying and mysterious, so…

Eh, sure.
So, how do we go about doing that?

I dunno…
Something like focus and try to call out to him?

That’s really vague, but I guess we can try.

Kaaaaat!
Are you here, you prick?!

…

Nothing.
Let’s try to put more oomph into it.
KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!

…

Hmm, I guess that was just wishful think-

“… you called?”

…
O-oh…?
It connected!
…
Wait, it connected?!
Is that really Kat?!

“It’s me alright… do you need something?”

Hey, he’s being weirdly cautious compared to when I last heard him.
Is it really Kat?

“… hahaha, what are you talking about, honey? I’m still the same cheery Kat we all know and love!”

Oh, there we go…
Anyway!
I’ve got a ton of questions for you!

“My, how adorable! My little girl came to mama to ask questions!”

You shut your-!
Huh?
Mama?

“Hmm? Something wrong?”

… hah!
You just called yourself mama, idiot!

“And what about it…? Oh, I get it! You thought I’m male, didn’t you?”

What?!
You aren’t?!

“Ah, I guess I never showed you my appearance, did I? Well, let me remedy that!”

Huh?!
The blue box with text dropped down to the floor and transformed into… a human?
No…
It’s a woman, but she has cat ears.
And two tails.
One of them searing with darkness darker than the black void around me while the other shines brighter than the sun.
Her eyes are similar, one of them white and one of them black.
I can’t tell whether her hair is pitch black or pure white, and the aura she gives off is equally ambiguous.

“Hello-“

Punch in the face.
But my fist phased through it.

“Oh, such violent love you have for me!”

What?!
No way!
I finally met the source of all my suffering and I can’t even get a single punch in?
Dammit!
This is not fair!

“Settle down my love! Let’s have a nice heartwarming family chat!”

I don’t remember ever becoming your family, evil god!
And don’t just comfortably sit on this void as if it was nothing!

“Ah, so cruel… to call me, your loving caretaker, evil…”

Your fake crying won’t convince anyone!

“Haha, that’s where you’re wrong, my dear! Nix falls for it all the time, you know!”

Well then he’s an idi-
…
Wait, what?
Nix…?

“Yep, Nix. Something wrong? I thought you know the other two gods already.”

I know them, but…!
Aren’t you supposed to be an evil god in opposition to those two?!

“Oh, that’s right… you were lead to believe that, weren’t you? Well, it couldn’t be more wrong, hahaha!”

Don’t just laugh it off!

“Of course us three are best friends! Don’t let yourself be fooled by fake news, silly!”

…

“Hmm, but you aren’t completely wrong if you say I’m an evil god.”

What… do you mean…?

“I’m the god of balance! In other words, I’m both good and evil!”

…
That’s cheap.

“Hahaha.”

Enough of this!
Answer my questions now!

“Ah, what an aggressive tone… are you in your rebellious phase?”

…
First, what’s up with the ‘chosen one’ business?
Do the two other gods have people just like me?

“Oh, for sure! Those two other girls are exactly like you! Same name, same appearance, same voice, same personality and even the same flat chest and dirty mouth!”

You!
That’s not what I…!
Ugh…
Second…
What’s your goal in all of this?
Why are there other reincarnators and why was I ‘chosen’?

“For fun!”

Don’t give me that nonsense!
What ridiculous reason is that?!

“Nonono! Fun is serious business! Don’t make fun of fun!”

…

“That is your real mission in this world! Have fun! I’m serious!”

…
I’ll figure out what it really is.
Just you wait.

“Oooh, you don’t know what having fun really is? Poor you, I didn’t realize-“

Stop twisting my words…!
…
Third question…
Why did you give me the ability to absorb curses…?
And what does nine lives do?

“Hmm… you’re wrong. I didn’t give you any skills.”

What…?

“I only gave you that cute outfit and my blessing! You developed those skills on your own!”

…
Stop spouting bullshit already!
I don’t remember making myself such disturbing abilities!

“Hahaha, your true nature shows in these skills!”

You were the one who made them!

“Nonono, I’m telling you, I didn’t! You took the blessing and made those skills out of it!”

…
Then, it’s just the blessing, isn’t it?!
You’re still the one at fault!

“No way! You are the only one who got these skills after receiving my blessing!”

Don’t give me that!
You are just trying to make me feel special!

“But I mean it, you know? It’s the reason why you were… er, chosen, you see?”

…
I’m not buying it.
What’s so special about me?
…
And what’s with the mouth zipping motion?

“Classified information! Hehe… Well, you might figure out when you meet the others. So, good luck!”

You little…

“You’re the little one here, though?”

Shut up!

“Weeell, anyways. I need to get going already. I’m quite busy, you see?”

What?!
Get back here!
I’m not done with you yet!

“Sorry, but I really am busy! Bye bye!”

You…!

…

Her image just blurred out and gradually disappeared.
I’m left alone in this void again.
Argh…
Damn it all!

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Curse of the Kat – ch 75

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Chapter 75 – The cat interrogates

“I-I-h-hai-I…”
Indeed.
I have overdone it.
You can’t even get past the ‘I’ in your sentence.
But it’s not my fault.
You intended to drug us, so I needed to destroy your resolve.
I mean, how was I supposed to know you would break this quickly?

“Mm… ’tis a paralyzing poison. Good thing ya’ noticed em lass.”
I’m not sure why the captain has experience with paralyzing drugs, but good job identifying it.

“These are the culprits? They look too pitiful to be evil…”
You twins should shut your mouth.
If you judge how ‘evil’ someone is by their appearance, nobody will take you seriously.

“I-h-I-ai-hai-…”
But we aren’t really getting anywhere, are we?
Did I traumatize him?
This aura magic is ludicrous.
I barely even turned up the dial and this happens.
Ah whatever…

“You guys interrogate him.”
Let me just go to the tent and listen from there.
I’m sure he will get calmer once I’m out of sight.
…
Also, can someone change his diaper already?
It really stinks.

…

I’m lying in the tent all by myself while everyone else is trying to make that man talk.
It’s taking really long…
Almost half an hour already, and he still can’t even say a full word.
Come on now!
I’m suppressing my aura, so it shouldn’t have any effect anymore!
Why can’t-
…
Oh well…
If the first batch doesn’t work…
I guess we can always ask… the other group.
Four… no, five of them this time.
Damn, where did they come from?
Does the enemy have some sort of instant teleportation?
What a bother.
Let’s go knock them out.

“We should- gha?!”
Hello.
Didn’t expect the back of this tent to suddenly burst open, did you?
“Who- AGH!”
Now now.
It’s dangerous to open your mouth.
You could bite your tongue off.
“Gfu!”
“Egh!”
“Gha!”
There we go.
Knocked them out and nobody wet himself this time.
Hmph…
These people…
I bet they were supposed to ‘clean up’ after we all got paralyzed.
But they ended up getting cleaned up themselves.

“Nina?! What is-… huh?”
Hey, Mable.
Just in time for interrogation part two.

“Who are they…?”

“Janitors.”

…

Now then.
We have seven captives.
And one of them could have some sort of ability to teleport.
This is problematic.
If that someone wakes up and instantly teleports everyone away, we will be back at square one.
So, we decided to separate the five new captives and waited for each one of them to wake up.
Me, Mable, Ignis, Cana each guard one of them while the twins guard the last one.
I guess it’s a good thing we brought those two with us, huh?
Eh, there’s still the captain and his crew, so it’s not like they are irreplaceable.
Anyway…
It took a bit for the man I’m guarding to wake up.
And when he did, I heard a lifetime worth of swears in a few seconds.
What an experience.
But I think he got an even more unforgettable memory from our exchange.
Though, unlike the man we interrogated before, he kept his speaking ability afterward.

“W-we are all just some insignificant underlings…! P-please d-don’t k-”
“Of who?”
“T-…t-the pirate king.”
The pirate king…?
Seriously?
Did I hear that right?
Someone ACTUALLY calls himself a pirate king?
Or is it just those guys calling him that?

“And who is that?”
“H-h-he…”
Stop avoiding my gaze and answer.
Or what?
Are you telling me that the ‘pirate king’ is scarier than me?

“He… l-looks like some kid. But he’s stronger… than anyone…”
…
Argh, looks like a kid, but is overpowered?
This smells of reincarnation.

“Stronger than anyone? What does that mean?”
“H-he… you… no matter what you use against him… he can use it too… he’s unbeatable…”
…
A copy skill?
Is that what you are saying?
What a cliche.
And…
What a bother.
Hmm…
There are only a few ways to beat someone who can copy skills of his enemies.
Let’s see…
a) Defeat him in a single blow.
A surefire way to beat almost anyone.
b) Use an item he doesn’t have and can’t copy.
A master swordsman will still lose to another master swordsman if he lacks a sword the other one has.
c) Keep changing your strategy into something that beats your previous strategy.
Bait him into copying something and then use something that counters it, simple.
…
But all of those assume that copying is all he can do.
If he has another ace up his sleeve however…
I have to prepare another plan.

“Gyaaaah! L-Leo!”
A scream came from the twin girl.
What happened?

I let go of my captive and rushed to where the twins were supposed to be.
But instead of the twins and their captive, only Lina, the girl twin, was sitting there.

“Where did they go?”
“T-that man said he would tell Leo some secret, so he got closer for him to whisper into his ear and…”
… I already can’t help but facepalm.
“And then they both glowed and disappeared!”
Did you really fall for something like that?!
You not only let the guy with teleport escape, but he also reverse-captured your brother?!

“What happened?!”
The rest of the gang is here.
Ugh…
The second time around, your explanation makes you look even dumber.
And I’m not the only one who thinks that.
Look.
Mable is livid.

“I-it should be fine! It’s Leo, after all! I’m sure he can just teleport back without a problem! J-just wait a few minutes…”
Right, he can instantly teleport, can’t he?
…
Except, why should it take a few minutes?
Is the teleport not instant, after all?
Or is there something you aren’t telling us…?

…

A few minutes later.
We finished interrogating the people we had while we waited for the idiot twin’s heroic return.
Turns out that the two people who were here to poison us were just disposable slaves to the pirate king.
They had no other choice but to obey him.
After them, the ‘janitor’ squad arrived to transport the new captives back to their base.
Just in case the slaves wouldn’t do their jobs, the whole group was supposed to be strong enough to beat any average sailor group with force.
Of course, with just me being here, we aren’t an average sailor group anymore.
Apparently, this was the first time they were beaten, let alone beaten by a single person, in a few seconds.
…
Anyway…
What happened to the twin who was supposed return in a few minutes?
It’s been quite a bit longer than that.

“Any second now…”
Are you doubting your own words?
I don’t like the expression you are making.

“Any s-?!”
Oh, there we go-
…
That is not the other twin.
It’s a teen girl, I have never seen before, dressed in ragged clothes.
Looks like yet another slave.
She’s trembling while looking at the ground and holding up a sign…
‘If you want to see the boy again, send your strongest to duel with me. This girl will be your guide. -The pirate king’
…
Oh, you have got to be kidding me…

“W-what?! L-Leo…”
This girl is breaking down.
What happened to your cocky attitude?

“The strongest one to duel…?”
Yeah…
It’s a letter of challenge from the final boss.
This sure escalated quickly.
…
And I’m pretty sure this is a trap.
But still…
It’s not like I can decline, can I?
Hah…
I’ll show him who the true king is!
…
The hell?
I’m a girl.
Why would I need the title of a king?
Must be lion soul infecting my brain…

“What do we do Nina…?”
Well, it’s simple.

“We-gha!”
Wha-?!

“Nina?!”
What… the hell?
My aura just shrunk back into me and shook my entire being.
I coughed out some blood.
What is this?
Was there a time limit on this?
Did I exceed it?
Shit…
Why now!
If I keel over now, who will face the pirate king?!

“P-panther?!”
What…
My hand…
It’s giving off the black smoke…
The same I give off when I’m in panther soul.

“Tiger?!”
“Cheetah…?”
It seems like…
I cycled through all of the other souls.
Anger, depression, sleepiness…
Each cycle shook my entire being again.
I feel like I got hit by a storm of razorblades.
But I’m not bleeding.
What the hell…
What the hell?!
Is this the drawback of lion soul?!
Why?!
All the other ones were psychological!
What’s with this insane physical pain?!
Argh…!
I can’t…

“””NINAAAA!”””

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Curse of the Kat – ch 74

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Chapter 74 – The cat and mouse game

There are thirteen people on this ship.
Me, Mable, Ignis, Cana, the idiot twins, the ship’s captain and six crew members.
Is that enough to overthrow a bunch of pirates and rescue the hostages?
Well, unless there is an army of reincarnators waiting for us, I alone should be enough.
…
By the way, it seems like we left Kent behind.
…
What an unreliable brother.
Getting left behind while we go on a rescue mission.
How did someone like him become a mafia boss?
Seriously…

Well, anyway…
I can’t see anything other than water right now.
And there’s no guarantee we’ll run into those pirates.
They might just hide in their cove or whatever.
If that happens, I’m not sure what to do…

“Hey Nina… are you alright?”

“I feel great.”
I’m not sure why you guys keep asking.
Sure, this lion soul probably has some drawbacks as well, but I don’t feel anything weird right now.
Meaning, something will probably happen after it’s turned off.
That’s why, I’ll keep it on for now until this matter is settled.
I can’t risk falling unconscious for three days or something similar.
And as for my mana reserves…
I thought there was a danger of running out and having lion soul turn off.
But I figured out a trick ragarding my sword.
Even with so many layers of protection, it still leaks a tiny amount of mana.
And since that mana was originally mine anyway, I can reabsorb it even if I’m not in panther soul form.
And so, if I don’t actively use my mana, I won’t run out.

…

Well, other than keeping an eye out for any potential pirates, there wasn’t much to do.
And it turns out that doing the mana absorption from the sword leaves me with a bit surplus.
So, I decided to experiment.
With aura magic.
The magic that comes with lion soul.
Just like shadow and blaze, it’s quite unique and probably really strong if I can use it correctly.
So, what does it do?
Well…
It radiates ‘something’ from me and affects my surroundings.
If I don’t pay attention to it, it seems to radiate ‘fear’ or ‘respect’.
That’s the reason why everyone acted the way they did at the guild.
But that’s not where its capabilities end.
I can change its effect and do all sorts of things.
Freeze the water around me, and make the nearby people shiver.
A chilling aura.
Or I can radiate pressure, which prevents anyone from getting close to me while pushing away nearby objects.
A pressure aura.
…
Though…
When I say, people shivering or not being able to get close to me, it’s not quite as you might think.
It’s in the physical sense, yes.
But also in a psychological sense.
Pressure aura only gently pushes objects aside, so people should have an easy time overcoming that.
But they can’t.
Their body refuses to move any closer…
Or so everyone said.
Hmm…
So it’s a magic to make literal metaphors?
‘Pressure’ and ‘chilling feeling’?
Interesting…
Though, I’m a little concerned.
What if I try to make everyone ‘fired up’?
Will they literally catch on fire and burn alive?
I better be careful with this…

…

Stop.
A few hours of sailing, we finally discovered something.
Tiny island covering about the same area as an average house in Kalamas.
And since no trees or plants grow on it, it only appeared as a sand mound sticking out of the sea.
Clearly, there are no pirates to be found there.
…
Or so we are meant to think.

“Can you dock at that island?”

“Ay, we can. But why there?”

“I can smell humans from over there.”

“… ya can smell ’em? Aight’ then. BOYS WE ARE DOCKING AT THAT ISLAND!”

“””ROGER!”””

Somehow, my eardrums didn’t burst from him yelling right next to me.
Aren’t I supposed to have enhanced hearing?
Or is it enhanced in other ways in this form?
Well, I won’t complain.

We disembarked on the island and I put my nose to work.
It didn’t take long until I located the source.
Several pieces of cloth buried a few centimeters underground.
No actual humans here.

“It’s a miss, huh…”
That’s not neccessarily the case, Mable.
Even something like this can be a clue.

“Are there any other small island around here?”

“Ay, there’s bunch of ’em, but we usually avoid these, cuz it’s a pain to sail ‘roun em.”
Hmm, I see.
A bunch of islands sailors tend to avoid.
Now doesn’t that sound like the perfect base for pirates?

“Lass… you don’t want us t’ sail to every one of ’em, do you?”
Of course I do.
You already got paid, so don’t complain.
Or what?
Are you scared?

“… ah, I’ll be damned! ALRIGHT BOYS! WE’RE SAILING THROUGH THE SATAN’S WARTBED!”
“””ROGER THAT CAPT’AN!”””
…
Satan’s wartbed?
What a name.
…
Also, I didn’t know this world had the concept of satan.
I guess since Nix and Torta are ‘good’ and nobody knows about Kat, the role of an evil god needed to be fulfilled by someone, huh?
Well, anyway.
Let’s go.

…

Second island.
Also has human scents.
This time, a little digging uncovered a box full of bottles of alcohol.
The ship’s crew got really happy, but the captain reminded them they had a job to do before they were allowed to drink.
We sailed on.

Third island.
A golden pendant.
Once again, a layer of sand covering it.

…
Hmm…
I see now…

“T’s already gettin’ late… Ya dogs better be ready to keep sailing all night!”
“””GOT IT CAP’AN!”””

“No. We will spend the night here.”

“””Huh?”””

“If we get attacked while everyone is tired, it won’t end well.”

“Ay… ye’r right. But I thought you’d force us to keep goin’ all night…”
Who do you think I am?
I don’t run a slave business.
…
Sorry Mable.
I get that you want this to proceed as quickly as possible, but…
There’s more to this than I’m letting on.
That’s right.
I’m not planning on sleeping just yet.

A little wink at you.
Surprised?
Confused?
Whatever it may be, I think you understand I’m planning something.
That little nod of yours confirms it.

Well then…
Time to set up camp and then pretend to sleep.

…

Us girls plus the twins are in one tent while the ship’s captain and crew members are in another one.
Naturally.
You wouldn’t want maidens sleeping in the same tent as rowdy sailors, would you?
Anyway…
Cana and Ignis fell asleep pretty quickly.
The twins too.
However, Mable, knowing I’m up to something, stayed awake.
As for me, I’m waiting for the fish to bite.
…
What’s all this about?
Well…
Here’s the thing.
Every time we dug one of those things out of the ground, I sensed a tiny disturbance in my aura.
The first time, I barely even noticed it.
The second time, I decided to ignore it.
But the third time, I figured it couldn’t have just been a coincidence.
These buried objects were rigged to send out some kind of signal once dug up.
Though, a very weak one, that spread out in all directions.
Meaning, I couldn’t simply follow it to find the receiver.
That’s why…
…
Oh, they are here.
Will you look at that.
Criminals work fast, don’t they?

“Mable. Get ready.”
To my whisper, Mable puts on a serious expression and nods.

For a few seconds, I heard silent footsteps outside our tent.
I waited patiently for the perfect chance.
And then finally, a hand grabbed the tent’s entranace cloth and slowly pulled it aside.
At that moment, I shot up out of my sheets and tackled the culprit as well as his buddy.

“Ag…ghh?!”
With my fingers gripping their necks, they could do nothing but let out weak grunts and pointlessly struggle.
Of course, I’m way stronger than them thanks to my gloves.
There’s no way they can tear me off of them.

“There you are, you little rats.”
Upon closer inspection though, the two people don’t really look like pirates.
It’s an adult man and a woman in ragged clothes.
Those two seem more like the prisoners, don’t they?
Hmm…
It might just be a disguise, I can’t let my guard down.

“Nina! Are you-… huh?”
Mable immediately came running and also noticed this oddity.
Yes, they really don’t look like bad guys.
But the fact is, the man had dropped a bottle of something he was carrying when I gripped him.
And I don’t need to even check up close to know that it’s filled with some sort of drug.
Poison, a sleeping pill, muscle numbing serum?
It could be any of those.
But anyway…
If I choke them to death right here, that won’t solve anything, now will it?

I let go of them and they drop down, holding their throats and cough repeatedly.
A moment later, I intensify my aura to make them think twice about trying anything.
…
Though, I might have overdone it.
The woman passed out and the man wet himself.
Eh…
It’s fine.
I can still get information out of him.

I grab his clothes and pull him closer, making his eyes meet mine.

“Who are you and who sent you?”

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Curse of the Kat – ch 73

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Chapter 73 – The cat receives bad news

‘You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.’
That’s quite the famous line, but I guess it’s true.
Kent’s second life as a cat started out heroically, defeating reincarnators who abused their powers, and putting them in their place.
But eventually, he created a shady underground organization, and used the captured people for experiments, working in collaboration with the government.
Huh…
Why do I feel like that if I didn’t have my feline charm he would have attacked me as well?
…
Well, never mind.
Back to the important stuff.
Apparently, there is a tribe of cat beast people near this country’s capital city.
And they worship a god who is neither Nix, nor Torta.
A third, unknown god.
Kat…?
…
Well…
Mable got this information from a merchant, whose friend was recently in the capital, where a few of those idle rumors went around.
In other words… ‘a friend’s friend’s friend heard something’.
Yeah.
Not a very reliable source of information.
But, it’s the best lead I currently have.
So, yes.
After we greet Mable’s parents and all that, my goal is to visit the capital and try to find this tribe.
That’s my current plan.

In the meantime…
There really isn’t much to do anymore.
We have already exhausted all attractions of this city.
I even went ahead and took a goblin den extermination request and finished it in a few hours!
I am THIS close to going back to the cosplay shop and trying everything in there out of boredom!
Ugh…
Baiting kidnappers?
Been there, done that.
I expected the twins of justice(lol) to heroically save me again, but they didn’t show up.
Maybe they left the city already…?
That’s kind of disappointing.
I know they would be annoying, but…
Anything would be better than this boredom!

Mable’s mom and dad!
Hurry up and arrive, will you?!
It’s already been seven days!
What?
A delay of a day or two is normal?
I don’t care!
Come on now!

“Meow…?”
Tell me Ku-Kent.
Do you have an underwater organization as well?
Please send your catfish spies to investigate how much longer we will have to wait.
What?
There is no such thing?
Hmph…
How disappointing.
Well, do you at least have a branch office of Cat mafia in the capital?
Let me onto some of those cat tribe gossips.
I really wanna know if they are true or not.

“Meow.”
He drew out a paper.
‘I sent someone to the capital yesterday’

Oh, good.
But the capital is really far away, isn’t it?
About a week on carriage from Kalamas, or so I heard…?
It’s just waiting, waiting and more waiting these days…

Three days later.
We all started to worry whether something happened.
And our worries were spot on.
We came into the guild after our breakfast, and ran into a commotion.
After asking around, we found out what happened.

This morning, a man sailing on a single plank reached the port.
‘Our ship got attacked by pirates.’
That’s what he said.
…
The man was a merchant.
A business partner and a friend of Mable’s parents.
They sailed aboard that ship together.
But the ship sunk and everyone aboard got captured.
Only he managed to hide in the water and barely swim his way back to the port.

…

What…
The hell…?
Pirates?
The ship sank?
Everyone got captured?
Are you kidding me?
This is just…

…

I don’t think I have ever seen Mable cry.
That huge gorilla crying just doesn’t look right.
The sight of Ignis and Cana consoling her also seems…
…
Well…
It’s not that odd, is it?
Unlike me, who never liked her parents, and didn’t get new ones here, Mable grew up with these people.
And she loved her parents.
But now…
Ugh, dammit!
We gotta go and rescue them!
I just hope these pirates didn’t-

“FRET NOT! FOR WE HAVE ARRIVED!”
A familiar voice resounded in the guild, drawing everyone’s attention.
It’s those two kids playing heroes again.

“That’s right!”
“In the brightest day!”
“In the darkest night!”
“Do not dismay!”
“For we, will fight!”
“”WE ARE THE PHANTOM HEROES! THE TWINS OF JUSTICE!””
This again…
Why are they coming out now?
I’m seriously annoyed…

“We shall rescue the innocents!”
“And defeat the evil pirates!”
“We won’t even ask for two cents!”
“Leave this to us! The justice’s pilo-”

“Shut up.”
My silent, yet oppressive whisper silences the twins.
In fact, I feel like everyone in the guild made a step back when I said that.

“H-how dare you interrupt-!”

“You think this is a game?”
I interrupt them again and cross my arms as I stare at them.
The two of them shrink under my stare as I approach them.

“O-o-of course not! We-”

“Then stop trying to feed your own ego.”

“W-we’re not feeding our ego!”
“T-that’s right! We just want to help!”
Help, huh?
Then why are you disguising yourself and always doing everything on your own?
That’s not helping.
That’s just trying to be in the spotlight.

“Oh really? How long did it take to come up with those rhymes just now?”

“E-…er…umm… f-five minutes?”

“That’s five minutes spent on boosting your ego instead of helping.”
Hmph…
Looks like that shut them up.
Well, whatever.
If I spend any longer here, I will become a hypocrite.

“Mable, Ignis, Cana.”

“””Y-yes?!”””

…

“What’s with you lot? Why are you staring so much?”

“Your… hair…”
My hair?
What’s up with my-
…
Did my hair grow in volume?
Or rather, it’s like my hair is floating, expanding into all directions.
What is-
Gah, never mind!
We can’t be losing even more time now!

“Never mind this. Let’s get the details of where the ship sank and set off.”
The girls didn’t respond and silently followed me.
As I made my way to the counter, everyone moved out of the way automatically.
The receptionist seemed very nervous while she told me the details.
And as I collected my thoughts and prepared to leave the guild, one of the twins called out to me again.

“Wait! We’re going with you! We’ll prove that we aren’t just boosting our ego!”

“Suit yourself.”
I didn’t slow down or turn around to respond to them.
There’s no time to lose with their childish games.
According to the information I got, it’s been over two days since the pirates attacked and captured everyone.

On our way to the harbor, I tell my plan to the girls.

“Mable, get us a ship, a captain and a crew, I’ll come with you. Cana, Ignis, go to the city and buy a compass and a map of the sea if you can. Don’t waste time if you can’t find the map.”

“”Y-yes!””
We split off.
Me, Mable and the twins head to the docks.
Right as we arrive, Mable catches a nearby sailor and asks him whether there’s a ship we could borrow or buy.
He sends us over to another sailor, where Mable starts negotiating.

Since I wouldn’t be much of help with that, I walk near the water and lean in to look at myself.
My hair…
Looks ridiculous.
It’s shorter, but every strand stands on its end, making it seem like it has more volume.
Rather, it looks like…
A lion’s mane.
Well…
Figures.

Status.

Cat soul+(Lion soul on)

As expected.
This is lion soul.
But…
That’s wrong, isn’t it?
I’m pretty sure female lions don’t have manes.
And it must look pretty dumb to have this mane while wearing a dress.
Add this to my list of complaints for Kat.

“A’right, you’ve got a deal, lil lady!”

“Thank you very much!”
Hmm, seems like the negotiations are done.
Now we just have to wait for Ignis and Cana.

“Hey ya dogs! Prepare ‘er to set sail! We’r goin on a rescue mission!”
“””Aye sir!”””
Hmm, the captain has quite the loyal crew, doesn’t he?
Well, he better.
We’re paying quite a bit for this.

“We’re here!”
Good.
They have the compass and the map.
Now, nothing is stopping us.
If I’m not mistaken, this lion soul enhances my senses even more.
I hope that’s enough to find them.
If not, I’ll need to think of different plan.

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