The Cat-Human Form Makes its First Appearance!

“You mean you shared a skill with us that can turn us back?”

Not long after the contract prompted them, the only two contractors currently in the base quickly stood before Bai.

Gao Xin was there because she was essentially bound to Bai, while Wei, despite her reluctance to face The Cat, had to inquire out of duty.

Bai swung her tail vigorously, signaling a negative.

‘It can change your appearance, but I don’t know if it can change you back.’

‘At the very least, looking through the All-Seeing Eye, I can’t see them changing back anytime soon.’

“Meow… I understand,” Wei the Cat murmured, her brow furrowed and ears slightly flattened.

She concentrated, sensing deeply for a long while before shaking her head at Gao Xin, who was watching her.

“I don’t feel anything. Do you?”

“Me neither,” Gao Xin replied, shaking her head in disappointment.

Even though Bai had shared the skill, it was like handing a smartphone to someone who had never used one and asking them to play a game.

Even with the game pre-installed, for someone utterly unfamiliar with a phone, it was an entirely foreign realm; they wouldn’t even know how to unlock it or find the game.

“Mmm-goo… Meow~” Bai vocalized, drawing the attention of the two bewildered cat-girls.

‘The cat will demonstrate for you.’

Communicating this through the contract, Bai activated the skill, one she had never used herself.

Demonstrate? The two cat-girls exchanged glances.

‘Oh, right,’ they thought. ‘Bai can turn others into cat-girls, so surely she can transform into a human or another form herself?’

A glimmer of anticipation sparked in both of them.

“Aren’t you going to start the demonstration?”

After several minutes of Bai remaining still, Gao Xin couldn’t help but ask.

‘I already demonstrated, didn’t I?’ Bai tilted her head, looking at her companions with confusion.

She flicked her brush-like tail.

It was then that the two finally noticed what had changed about Bai—the tip of her tail had turned black.

A beat of silence.

Wei the Cat opened her small mouth, clearly intending to unleash some aggressive words, but ultimately held them back.

Gao Xin offered an awkward smile to break the tension, subtly messaging her boss through the contract: [Make a more significant change, so it’s easier for us to reference.]

‘A more significant change?’ Bai pondered.

Even if these two inexperienced ones managed to figure out how to use the skill, they could only change a bit of their fur color.

However, Bai never refused such small requests; she was quite fond of her cat-girl companions.

‘Then I’ll turn into a cat-person.’

Bai activated the skill.

Threads of invisible information were drawn from the void, systematically weaving and combining under Bai’s control to form an armor.

It enveloped the cat, then gradually contracted, covering and replacing the feline body present in the world.

To external observers, it appeared as a progressively brightening light that covered the cat’s entire body, then molded into a delicate human form.

As the light receded, the first thing that met their eyes was an exaggerated volume of hair.

Thick, soft, milky-white long hair cascaded across the floor.

Bai, who hadn’t manifested any clothes, would have been exposed, but the hair falling over her chest completely covered her.

Beneath the long hair, Bai, kneeling on the ground, revealed delicate, slender forearms and calves, like a meticulously crafted doll.

Fortunately, fine downy hairs and a rosy, healthy complexion mitigated the inhuman perfection of her appearance.

Her fluffy, large tail was completely buried beneath her long hair.

Bai twitched the ears atop her head, then forcefully pulled her tail out and hugged it to her chest, alleviating the unfamiliar sensation of her exposed front.

The small, exquisite face peeking out from under her long hair was adorable even in its expressionless state.

Her eyebrows and eyelashes were also white, and three delicate, tooth-shaped black markings on her forehead and cheeks lent her an alluring aura.

The only minor flaw was her large, dark blue eyes, which appeared somewhat vacant, their pupils dilated and unfocused.

Bai struggled to stand.

For the first time in her cat life, she attempted bipedal locomotion, wobbling but eventually standing upright, relying on her superb feline balance.

It was then that the two realized Bai’s height was only about 1.2 meters.

Feeling the cool air directly on her skin and the ground beneath her feet, Bai expressionlessly summoned her system-paneled cat bed, enlarged it, and sat inside.

“This…” The two cat-girls were clearly stunned.

Even though they were mentally prepared for Xuan Bai to transform into a human, witnessing it firsthand was still quite astonishing.

Bai sat gracefully in the light blue floating cat bed, her long hair cascading like a waterfall for about two meters, an exaggerated length.

Hugging her tail, her fair, small legs and feet swayed slightly in the air.

Her entire white form seemed to glow faintly, imparting a sense of divinity even in her unclothed state.

Bai opened her mouth slightly as if to speak, and a tender, ethereal voice emerged:

“Ah… ah-ooh-wah.”

The sense of divinity vanished instantly.

Bai tilted her head cutely, looking innocently at the two cat-girls.

Bai’s message came through the contract:

‘How come I can’t meow anymore?’

The two cat-girls didn’t know how to answer this question.

This creature could speak through contracts and illusions, yet couldn’t speak in human form.

Fortunately, Bai quickly realized after a moment’s thought that she was now a cat-person, and cat-people could speak.

“Ah… meow… ooh…”

The intelligent Bai quickly mastered how to use her advanced vocal cords and mouth to produce other sounds.

“Fish… mm… mouse, cat wants to eat.”

In a blink, Bai had learned to speak simple words, progressing at an astonishing speed.

Then again, Bai could already speak; she just hadn’t done so with a human body.

“Amazing!” Gao Xin praised without reservation.

The stunned Wei the Cat beside her also nodded in agreement.

Bai happily wagged the tip of her tail—even though she was hugging it, she couldn’t stop it.

The Cat tilted her head slightly, swinging her legs more vigorously, and said, “So, like this, use your brain… your thoughts, your feelings.”

With that, Bai tried to burrow entirely into the cat bed, but let out a yelp as she squashed her own hair.

After finally squeezing herself in, she tried to groom herself, only to realize her fur was gone, and angrily thrashed her tail.

However, Bai clearly forgot her tail was in her arms and slapped herself twice, reflexively biting it, eliciting another yelp.

Seeing that she was about to fight her own tail, Bai simply transformed back into a cat with a ‘pop.’

‘Oh, what a pity.’

The two pulled their attention away from Bai’s myriad adorable antics.

While Bai’s verbal communication skills clearly needed improvement, the two cat-girls at least understood her meaning.

‘Just feel with your heart,’ they thought. ‘That’s as good as saying nothing at all.’

They sighed, no longer expecting help from Bai, and continued to ponder on their own.

However, they now had a direction: they would try to change their hair color first.

At the research center, the researchers were awaiting Wei the Cat for her second follow-up examination.

While it was truly regrettable that Captain Wei had transformed into this state, Wei the Cat was genuinely adorable.

Everyone was quite looking forward to her physical.

After all, wasn’t seeing a cat-eared loli a feast for the eyes?

“Pfft!” The researcher who was waiting for Wei the Cat spat out a mouthful of water.

“What in the world is this? What’s going on with you?”

Sporting a chaotic, multicolored mess of hair—flaming reds, vibrant greens, purples, and yellows, a veritable explosion of hues that looked like scrambled code—Wei the Cat remained expressionless.

“Side effect of a containment item. Is there a problem?”