Chapter 163: Cat Lord Part 4

– Flash!

– Rumble!

Fierce winds howled, and thunder and lightning shook the entire sky. Soon, Lausian would appear. However, the kittens didn't seem to care about the goddess at all. To them, the terrifying lightning from Lausian felt like little more than static electricity that made their fur puff up even more, but nothing else happened.

– Meow.

– Meooow.

– Meoooow.

The enormous, ridiculously huge nine kittens buried their noses into bowls far too small for their size and began licking up my homemade treats. Slurp, slurp, slurp. Leisurely, the kittens savored the rich flavor of the handmade snacks. Even after finishing them, they continued to lick the now spotless bowls with dedication.

Taking advantage of the moment, Kali, Camellia and I weaved our way through the fluffy paws of the giant kittens in search of Lausian's quill. We dug through their soft fur and squishy jelly paws, but we couldn't find the quill anywhere. It was no surprise, of course. The kittens were too large, too fluffy and too chaotic. Every time one of them wagged its tail, I seriously feared that being hit by one of those fluffy tails would be the end of me.

"Damn it, which one of them has Lausian's quill?!"

I had been frantically digging through the soft, fluffy fur but eventually couldn't hold it in anymore and shouted. At this rate, we were all going to die! The thunder and lightning were drawing closer, and I could already see cracks forming in the sky. These were signs of her imminent descent.

– Rumble…

– Crash…

With a foreboding noise, a divine light began pouring from the cracks in the sky. That light sliced through the chaotic darkness and carved out a sort of "path".

– Flash!

– Rumble…

If this were a movie, majestic music would have started playing with a loud drumbeat. That's how serious the atmosphere had become. Kali looked at the pouring light, then yelled at me.

– Camellia and I will hold them off somehow, so you keep searching for the goddess's quill!

"…Damn it, fine!"

I dove back into the giant mass of fur.

– Crackle!

– Sizzle…

An ominous sound echoed above my head. When I glanced up, I could faintly see Kali and Camellia struggling against the lightning that lashed out like a whip.

How long could those two hold off a goddess?

…. It wouldn't be long, right?

I hurriedly pushed my way through the kittens and started frantically searching for the quill. Just as I thought my fate might end in suffocation among these furballs, I saw it!

"That's…!"

I spotted the paw of the ninth kitten glowing faintly, like starlight.

…It's stained with ink from the goddess's quill!

I scrambled onto the back of the ninth kitten. The moment I grabbed the fur of the calico cat with its various colors of white, yellow, and black fur blending together, I climbed up toward its head.

– Kaboooom!!!!!!!

With a deafening roar, a blinding light flashed so intensely that my vision turned white. I turned to look at where Kali and Camellia had been. The two of them were sprawled on the ground with their fur slightly charred as if they had been struck by lightning.

– Meow!

– Nya!

– Meooow!

Even the kittens couldn't help but be startled by the thunder, which felt like the goddess's final warning. The kittens who had been eagerly licking their plates puff up their fur in alarm.

The crack in the sky had grown even larger, and something glowing was emerging from it and heading toward us. I realized it was a massive "hand". It was the hand of the goddess.

The goddess' hand seemed ready to grab the giant kitten. But in that chaotic space, the kitten's paw was much quicker than the goddess's hand. Just as the goddess was about to grab it, the kitten's plump paw sliced across the back of her hand. A thunderous sound, like a scream, rang out and the kittens began to run, trying to get away from the goddess' hand.

I clung to the soft fur with all my strength; I was determined not to fall off the kitten racing through the chaos. Holding on to the running kitten felt like being tossed around on a wildly bouncing bed. It was comfortable, yet extremely exhausting at the same time.

How much time had passed? The chaotic landscape blurred as it rushed by, and when the kittens finally stopped, the scene that unfolded before me was completely unexpected.

"…Hah, hah. huff."

I slid off the kitten's back and caught my breath as I looked around.

At the edge of chaos where all distinctions lost their meaning, dust-like particles from the nine worlds had gathered and clumped together. They formed a space that resembled a pit or perhaps a nest.

…So, this must be some kind of drug cushion for these guys.

The kittens settled down and began grooming their fur. Really? We just barely escaped from the goddess's grasp, and they're this relaxed? Well, I suppose that's typical of cats…

While they busied themselves with their grooming, I started rummaging through this "drug cushion" of theirs. It was filled with all sorts of "toys". The problem was, these weren't ordinary toys. I guess that was to be expected from creatures that had turned the goddess Lausian's quill into one.

Here, there were things like clumps of dark dust, divine artifacts, and relics from ancient legends. Nemeya's ball of yarn, Nuwa's scales, Cerberus's tail fur…

They've got some nerve. How did they even gather all this?

…Lausian's quill must definitely be here too.

There were so many tempting items that it was enough to make my head spin, but strictly speaking, all of these were "stolen goods". I couldn't risk taking them and being accused of theft. I just needed to quietly find the goddess Lausian's quill and return it…

"...!"

While rummaging through the pile, something familiar caught my eye. It was a sparkle similar to the starlight that had clung to the kitten's paw earlier.

That's it!

As I pushed aside the dust and various random objects, sure enough, an elegant quill wrapped in radiant light that was longer than an arm came into view. Each feather shimmered with starlight; it was beautiful enough to be cherished by the goddess herself.

"Finally, I found it…!"

I reached out to grab the quill.

-Thwack!

Or rather, I tried to.

"What… What the—?"

Though I didn't want to admit it, a soft paw was faster than my hand. When I looked up, I saw the calico cat that had followed me here pressing the quill down with its paw and staring intently at me.

"Hey… Kitty."

-Meow.

"Give it here. That's not yours."

-Meooow.

"If we don't return that, we'll never escape the goddess's wrath."

The cat looked at me with a face that said, "What does that have to do with me?" Damn it. Cats are stubborn, but kittens are even worse! When I reached out to snatch it away, the kitten unsheathed its sharp claws as a warning.

"..."

What now?

If we were outside, maybe things would be different, but here in this chaotic space, there was no way I could win against this kitten.

It was clear that it had lost interest in the quill, but it simply didn't want to give it back. I racked my brain. If I had something to offer in exchange for the quill, maybe…

"…Yeah."

Suddenly, a memory flashed in my mind. A memory from when I was a kid. I used to play with Camellia using "that".

"Alright, kitty. How about we make a deal?"

-Meow?

"I'll give you something even better than that."

By now, the other kittens had gathered around; they were sitting in a circle and watching me from above. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and focused my mind.

-Ssssshhh…

A faint halo of light began to form.

Dimensional Garden.

That's right.

The Dimensional Garden was another space that was different from reality. It seemed possible to access it even inside this chaotic space. When I reached into the halo of light and pushed through, the space split open to reveal the view of the Dimensional Garden on the other side. I could even see the Phews, who were diligently tending the garden, stop in surprise and scurry over to me.

…Good. This should be enough.

There was a way for me to cross over into the Dimensional Garden, but if I did that, I might not be able to return to this chaotic space. So, the only option was to keep this connection open and retrieve "it". I whispered something briefly to the closest Phew, and they immediately began moving busily.

"Focusing is tough… Please, as quickly as possible."

-Phew!

-Phew, phew!

How much time had passed? Luckily, the Phews finished their task before the kittens lost interest. I took the seed pouch they handed over and closed the Dimensional Garden once again. Even though I kept it open for only a short time, I could feel a slight dizziness from the significant amount of magical power consumed. Still… there was no time to rest.

I slipped out from between the kittens and poured the seeds from the pouch into my palm. The seeds, which were smaller than grains of sand and looked like nothing more than black dust, scattered when I blew on them…

-Fwoosh…!

The seeds began to spread wildly. In this chaotic space, it seemed the wind didn't blow in just one direction. The seeds swirled and scattered before they took root in various places.

The seeds that had taken root among the void's dust soon sprouted long stems. And at the tip of those stems…

-Meow~!

-Meoowww!

Fluffy, plump, and soft green tufts that looked like a cat's tail, or rather, flowers, appeared. The kittens couldn't take their eyes off of them.

These were, of course, "green foxtail".

After they got enhanced by the pews, the foxtails had grown larger and fluffier as they swayed randomly in the erratic winds. This was more than enough to attract the kittens' attention. They began pawing at the swaying foxtails, and soon Lausian's quill was forgotten.

"Finally!"

I grabbed Laussian's quill, which had been carelessly tossed aside in a corner.

Now, I just need to get back…!

That's when it happened.

-Rumble, rumble, rumble…

[Foolish…]

-Rumbleee…

[Insignificant being…]

-Flash!