I woke up comfortable and fairly clean, enough to justify the hassle spent sleeping on the incubator worth it, despite not having a very good rest. A hand caresses my fur slowly and soothingly, greatly adding to the comfort. I let out a long yawn, arched my back, and reached in front of me with my paws. That hand no longer caressed me, but withdrew, and I lazily opened one eye to see who was so bold to caress me?

A girl, from the way she looked tired and grumpy, was probably only in her teens. She had dark green eyes, shoulder-length brown hair, and a large tan bag in one hand and the other on the ground next to her.

She looked at me apologetically. "I'm sorry, but I need you to move." Yes? No, it didn't happen. I'm on the magic radiator, and if you want me to leave, you'll need a crowbar to scrape me off here. Ha. I curled up, buried my face in my paws, and immediately ignored her. However, I felt like my body was leaving against my will. I squirmed a little as I tried to escape her palm, but her grip was strong and unwavering against my struggles. She gently placed me on the floor and turned back to the incubator.

Her fingers ran sideways for a moment, then she put her hands on the grooves I hadn't noticed before and pulled them up. The top of the box (my bed!!) Open on the hinges and spew out the smell of burning junk, revealing the inside, and if I could see it, I might find it very interesting.

But alas, I was evicted. I meowed at her angrily, causing her to giggle.

"Sorry to bother you, kitten!" Good. You should. "But I have to, if I leave the garbage out overnight, Mom and Dad will be very angry."

As she spoke, she picked up one of the bags, untied the cloth from the bag, closed the mouth of the bag, and poured the contents into the box. There was some paper and some scraps of broken plates inside, but the vast majority of what was poured in was food. The rest of the bones, the leafy vegetables, the half-eaten bread, and the unfinished meat were all poured into the box.

I ate only a small loaf of bread all day, which really didn't do much for me, and she threw up enough food in front of me to eat me for a month. Who cares if it's garbage or not, some of it is still good, right? There's also a second bag from which maybe I can get a juicy steak.

"Can you please give me some food? You're going to throw it away anyway, and I really appreciate it. I meowed.

"Are you a talkative cat! Don't worry, you'll be back to sleep soon. As she spoke, she poured the whole back of home-cooked leftovers into the box, obviously not understanding cat language. She slammed the lid shut, wiped her hands on her skirt, then bent down and picked me up again. I'm still fighting in vain like last time, at least she can warn me first! As I tried to escape, my hindpaws, the one with the shards inside, grazed her clothes and got a small patch of blood.

She unceremoniously placed me on top of the box, the magical bin. After petting me a few more times, she waved goodbye to me, grabbed her empty sack, and turned to walk back into the alley. Maybe I can steal some of her food by following her secretly? I didn't want to get into the habit of stealing, but she was clearly more than enough. She hasn't turned a corner yet, and I can still catch up with her.

I jumped off the box and slipped quietly to the ground. Cats are supposed to be secretive, right?

My injured paw fell to the ground. I screamed, a burning pain coming up my leg and finally falling to the ground. Trembling all over, I got up from my limp position and began to limp towards her, my legs clumsily stretched out to avoid any weight.

I was slow and didn't go very far. I slept for two hours, one of my legs couldn't be used, and I began to think that croissants weren't the most nutritionally balanced meal for cats. Halfway down the alley, I couldn't move forward. I'm just too weak. Now with nothing to do but curl up on the damp, disgusting floor to sleep, I can't even jump back into the comfort of the bin.

Footsteps approached me. Looking up, I saw the girl walking towards me. She was only 10 feet away from me and probably saw my injury. Great. She crouched beside me, her eyes glinting with concern.

"Are you okay?" She asked tentatively, looking down at me with a look of pity. "Oh wait, your paw is bleeding! And you don't look like you're eating very well......" She took me in her arms, and I didn't bother to struggle once, and gently led me down the alley. "Don't worry, little one, I'll definitely take care of you!"

By meeting the required criteria, you've unlocked a new skill: Pathetic

Yes?

A light blue rectangle with white text appeared in front of me, floating in the air in front of me. Is this one of the skills that Radia told me in her dream? I reached for it curiously, but my claws went through it as if it didn't exist. What kind of skill is pity? It's really not for people like me, but maybe there's some hidden meaning behind it. Ha.

The girl doesn't seem to see it. If I can't touch it, then it has to work the way I want it, right? I thought about the poor skill and wanted more information. Maybe things aren't as bad as they sound?

Succeed! The notification rectangle has changed!

wretched

Levels - 1 of 5

Effect - Passively ensures that others will take on your power less than usual and look at you with more compassion. Skills acquired due to your incompetence and inability to survive in general without help.

No, nonsense.

Who knew that an emotionless notice could be so condescending? It sounds completely useless. Although I am now being held by a poor person who pities me, maybe it is not entirely scary.

Still, my first skill is to feel pathetic about all the things that get stung. I know I've decided to just live my life and not fight the Demon King, but is a cool skill too demanding?

My inner complaint was interrupted when the girl moved me to one arm and opened the door to the building. Above the door hangs a large sign that reads "Adventurer's Guild & Tavern". The sign depicts a sword and a shield on one side and a glass of bubbling malt on the other. There was some muffled conversation coming from inside. When I opened the door, I was greeted by the smell of fresh food.

The interior of the building is warm and the atmosphere is quite convivial. There is a counter on the left and no one in the back. The walls are lined with shelves containing a variety of weapons, bottles of colored liquids (perhaps potions), and various travel items such as ropes, backpacks, and water bottles. To the right of our entry, there are wooden tables, chairs, and booths, and several people are scattered to enjoy food and drinks. Leisurely music played, and melodies wafted through the room. There was a bar on the other side of the room, and behind the bar was a pale, scrawny man absentmindedly wiping his glass. As we approached, he looked up at me and the girl, frowning, his beard twitching slightly.

"Hello, Mina." He said dryly, though there was no lack of affection. I think I know the girl's name now.

Mina took a deep breath. "Hi Dad! So, well, this cat. Can I take it in? It's on the incinerator, it's hurt, I guess it could be with some good food. I promise I will-"

"Absolutely not." He said authoritatively.

"Please, Daddy?" She pleaded.

He looked tired, as if he had had a similar conversation before, and he knew what the outcome would be. "It's lively enough. Maybe if we arrange for one more person to work in front, but do you really want to work while taking care of the cat? ”

"I'm going to work as hard as I always do, I swear! And this will not last forever until the injured paw heals. Look at it! No cat can hold out in the face of such a serious injury. It's just a fragment, but I appreciate the exaggeration. I looked innocently at Mina's dad, and my poor skill took effect.

He was silent for a moment, thought for a moment, and finally sighed. "Great. But you have to ask your mom first, she's in the kitchen. ”

"Yes!! Thank you Dad! She said excitedly, running behind the bar and through the door to the back.

We walked into the kitchen and there was a strong-looking woman with brown hair in a bun who was piling dishes into a bucket of foaming water. When we came in, she looked up with a warm but slightly cynical smile.

"Let me guess, you asked Dad if he wanted to keep that cat, and he gave in and let you ask me first." She said in a joking tone.

Mina hesitated. "Hmm...... Is it? ”

Her mother thought for a moment, looked at me, and stopped when she saw my bloodstained paws, apparently not ruthless enough to refuse shelter for the poor injured cat. "Yes." Whining! "But you have to take care of this cat alone, your father and I can't help much. You know how busy we are. Make sure it doesn't damage anything or cause any trouble, then you can keep it. ”

Mina almost jumped for joy. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!!" She screamed excitedly, grabbed a few pieces of meat, and carried me out of the room, past the bar, up a flight of stairs in the corner of the tavern. "I can't believe they all said yes!!" She ran down the hallway, led me into the bedroom, and opened the closet door, revealing a few bottles of wine, which she began rummaging. There was a mirror on the door that allowed me to see my new body clearly for the first time.

I'm a little black cat. I'm pretty small, with black furry triangular ears and green cat's eyes. Because I'm a cat. Crazy. I wasn't really overwhelmed by the change and it took me a day to get used to it. Big things to do, and won't be impressive, just no longer feel very important. I guess I'm just numb?

"Aha!" Mina exclaimed, took out a small blue glass bottle from the closet, and reached out to grab another dark blue bottle. When she closed the door, the mirror came into her view. "Uh, is there your blood on my dress? I guess I'll have to wash it off. ”

She cleared some bottles from the table and put me on top. "Well, this is a sleeping pill, with painkillers in it, the effect may be weakened, the cat is much smaller than me, about 10 drops can make me dizzy. The painkillers should have been a little more numerous, the medicine was a little weaker......" she muttered to herself for a moment, dropping one drop of light blue liquid and three drops of dark blue liquid onto the minced meat and placing them on the table in front of her. It's mine. "Alright, kitten, eat it! I don't want you to go berserk while I clear the debris. ”

I sniffed the flesh. Usually I don't eat food that I just saw someone wearing lace, but hey, it just makes me fall asleep faster. This is pretty much the best that a diet can bring. I gobbled up the meat and felt sleepiness start to hit me, Mina giggled and gently stroked my back, I curled up and soon passed out, the sleeping potion worked.