Cat-Man Precautions (Just kidding)

“Hungry.”

“Play.”

“Pet me.”

Inside the cat café, The Shop Manager was meticulously recording audio for a pile of buttons she had purchased.

Each button, when pressed, would play its recorded sound.

Having witnessed the extraordinary Xuan Bai and Wei the Cat, The Shop Manager now firmly believed in the existence of cat spirits.

This conviction led her to overestimate the intelligence of ordinary cats, prompting her to buy these buttons to teach them how to ‘speak.’

After recording only a few phrases, The Shop Manager paused, a thoughtful expression on her face.

“Suddenly, I’m not sure what else to record… What else could be useful?”

“Hmm, titles.”

“How should they address me?”

“‘Boss’ sounds good.”

“And then one for ‘guest’.”

Muttering to herself, The Shop Manager turned her head to look at Jump, who was comically hanging upside down from the edge of a table.

She then recorded “bad” and “sorry.”

After a moment more of contemplation, The Shop Manager added a few more: “unwell,” “toilet,” “thirsty,” “why,” “you,” “I,” “cat,” and “thank you.”

She nodded, satisfied, as she looked at the buttons arranged in several adjacent hexagonal clusters.

“This should be enough for now, I think?”

“We’ll start with the simple ones.”

The Shop Manager scooped up the Large Orange Cat as it walked by, placing its stout, robust body in front of the buttons.

“From now on, if you need anything, use these to tell me.”

“I’ll teach you how.”

“For instance, if you want to eat this.”

As she spoke, The Shop Manager grabbed a handful of cat food.

The Large Orange Cat’s eyes widened, and it stretched its almost non-existent neck, mouth agape, trying to reach it.

The Shop Manager retracted her hand, guided the Large Orange Cat’s paw to press the “hungry” button, and only then did she put a few kibbles into its mouth.

The Large Orange Cat, being an intelligent and clever feline, immediately grasped the meaning.

“Hungry,” it pressed the button again.

“Oh, you’re so smart!” The Shop Manager’s eyes crinkled in delight, and she offered a few more kibbles.

“Next are the other buttons.”

“This one is ‘thirsty.’”

“Press this when you want water.”

The Shop Manager was eager to press her advantage and teach it more.

“Hungry.”

“No, you need to press ‘thirsty’ to get water.”

“Hungry,” “Hungry.”

“Alright, perhaps we can learn something else first.”

“Like this one, ‘cat.’”

“You are a cat, understand?”

“Hungry.”

“…Is all you think about eating, then?”

“Hungry,” “Hungry,” “Hungry,” “Hungry-y-y-y.”

The Shop Manager picked up the Large Orange Cat and set it aside.

Bai lay on a table behind, watching the spectacle, her tail swaying back and forth.

Jump, tongue lolling, chased Bai’s tail, hopping playfully.

‘Is this child truly a cat? They act just like a dog.’[Xuan Bai, Boss Cat~ Come home for a moment, I need your help.]

Just then, Gao Xin and Yun Juan simultaneously sent a contract message.

The tone wasn’t urgent, so Bai, feeling a touch curious, rose and leaped off the table.

She moved to a corner, obscured her form, and quietly vanished from the cat café.

Jump, who had followed, tilted his head and leaped up, spinning in circles, unable to find Bai’s figure.

He wore an expression of utter astonishment.

Gao Xin, Yun Juan, and Xuan Bai had already explained everything.

Wei the Cat had previously cautioned everyone against signing contracts casually.

Yet now, she was actively seeking twenty new contracts at once?

Bai tilted her head in confusion, then tilted it the other way, still unable to comprehend.

[All-Seeing Eye]

Reconnaissance?

Combat?

Rescue?

Special forces?

These were entirely new areas of knowledge for her.

However, since it was her companions’ request, if they were willing, then signing the contracts would be fine.

Meanwhile, Wei the Cat was explaining the situation to the twenty bewildered members of the cat-human reserve squad.

“As I said, this is what happens when a sentient being, not a contained entity, signs a contract with me.”

“It transforms them into, well, a female with feline characteristics.”

Wei the Cat meticulously described the changes brought by the contract: enhanced abilities, altered forms, and so on.

When she mentioned the ability to transform into a cat, Chen Miao’s eyes lit up.

As a scout, she understood better than anyone how immensely helpful being able to instantly turn into a cat would be for reconnaissance.

After Wei the Cat finished her explanation, the group exchanged glances before ultimately accepting.

The first to agree were the ten women.

For them, signing the contract wouldn’t change their gender; instead, it would make them even cuter.

No one would refuse cuteness; it was merely a matter of whether cuteness suited them.

Seeing Captain Wei in her cat-girl form, some felt a stirring of desire.

On the way to the research center where Bai was, everyone was on edge.

It wasn’t their fault; Wei the Cat hadn’t explained what Bai looked like or what kind of existence she was.

An intelligent being who could alter one’s species and appearance, bestowing incredible power.

Coupled with the bizarre and outlandish contained entities they had seen along the way, they couldn’t help but speculate about the true nature of the mysterious “Xuan Bai.”

Were they a tentacle monster?

A normal human?

A majestic deity?

A bird-person with six large wings?

An immortal riding the clouds?

As most of them were lost in wild conjectures, a voice spoke up, rather inopportunely.

“Captain, you just mentioned contracts, right?”

“Contracts should involve an exchange of equal value, shouldn’t they?”

“It provides us with power, but what price do we have to pay?”

Wei the Cat was momentarily stunned by the question.

It seemed there truly wasn’t much of a price.

Did being forced to become a cat-person count?

Asking when unsure was a good habit, so Wei the Cat directly inquired with Xuan Bai via their contract.

Xuan Bai wasn’t entirely clear but still provided a thoughtful answer.

Wei the Cat remained silent for a moment before relaying Bai’s response to the group: “Play with her.”

Play with her?

Did that mean they would be treated as toys?

What if she truly was some kind of tentacle monster or fusion beast?

Their wild imaginings grew even more severe.

In truth, signing the contract itself was a form of compensation.

By contributing to the expansion of Bai’s Soul Lantern Network, they were making a contribution, and a portion of the energy consumed when using public skills was also taken by Bai, which could be considered a price.

Fortunately, they soon arrived at the research center, and all veils of mystery were lifted the moment they met their host.

A small, pure white girl floated in the air, seated on a pale blue, unknown object.

Her silky long hair cascaded down like a waterfall, forming a backdrop for her.

Her bare, pristine white feet dangled in the air.

Following her fair, slender ankles and calves upwards, a simple white dress enveloped her delicate, childlike frame.

Her endearing, adorable face carried a hint of baby fat, and three fang-shaped black markings adorned her forehead and cheeks, creating an ethereal contrast against her pure, sacred aura.

With a tremor of her white eyelashes, Bai’s listless black-blue eyes looked at the newcomers.

She opened her mouth, and her ethereal, soft voice rang out as she recited the prepared lines with a blank expression.

“Sign a contract with me, and you shall no longer retain human form; henceforth, you shall be non-human.”

“You may face calumny, betrayal, discrimination, fear, and other such calamities.”

“Your destiny shall intertwine with mine.”

“Do you agree?”

The scattered lights gradually faded, and a group of tall figures in military green uniforms were all transformed into short statures within the glow.

Just kidding.

They were simply shorter than before.

While there were indeed a few short individuals, standing only about 1.2 to 1.3 meters tall, whose cat breeds were unknown, some cat-girls still reached a height of 1.5 to 1.6 meters.

Yes, now that it was mentioned, they were all quite short.

Compared to the monotonous hair colors of the three previous cat-girl predecessors, perhaps influenced by Bai watching The Shop Manager play games last time, this batch of cat-girls’ hair colors was decidedly… unrestrained.

Yellows, whites, reds, pinks, and purples—they had it all.

Chen Miao stared blankly at her delicate, small hands, lost in thought, as if she had returned to her childhood.

Her purely black ears twitched atop her head, and she looked into a mirror.

Her black, shoulder-length bob, black ears and tail, and golden vertical pupils all confirmed that her transformation was complete.

“What an incredible existence.”

After a brief moment of stunned silence, the room instantly erupted.

A cacophony of chattering voices filled the air, as if they had entered a cat-girl kindergarten.

“Holy crap!”

“It really changed?! That fast?!”

“I’m so cute, hehehe.”

“Ah~ Ahh~ Is this my voice, meow?”

“Oh! I can jump so high now, meow!”

“There’s a bug, meow!”

“My eyesight is so good…”

“Quiet!” Wei the Cat tried her best to control the scene.

“Come to me to receive your fitted clothes, change in the changing room, and then reassemble here.”

Having changed into their fitted clothing, the group—now a group of cat-girls—reconvened to find two unfamiliar cat-girls on the stage.

Captain Wei clapped her hands, signaling everyone to look over.

“These two are your… predecessors.”

“They will now inform you of some important considerations.”

Yun Juan, pulling Gao Xin along, took two steps forward.

No one noticed their tails secretly entwined behind their backs.

“Everyone, please do a roll call and report your numbers.”

“Without a new list, I won’t recognize you all, meow.”

“I’ll tell you a few things while you fill out the forms, meow.”

“Captain Wei will teach you how to use your transformation later.”

“Those who aren’t used to their current appearance can briefly transform back to adapt, but to always be ready for missions, I recommend conserving your mental energy.”

“Someone will soon take everyone for a physical examination.”

“Remember to collect your nutritional supplements, meow.”

“Your dietary composition needs to change now.”

“For accommodation, those who were originally male will be in one dormitory, and females in another.”

“Then there are some minor issues, meow.”

“As you’ve seen, after transforming, you might occasionally lose control and adopt this kind of verbal tic, meow.”

“I hope everyone doesn’t pick it up from her and tries hard to overcome it, even though it doesn’t have any real impact.”

“Oh, oh, and about menstruation issues, congratulations, you won’t have that.”

“It won’t shorten your lifespan either; in fact, it might even extend it.”

“Then there are some strange instinctive reactions you’ll all experience.”

“Don’t panic when you encounter them later; you’ll get used to it.”

“For example, unconsciously licking your hands, washing your face, licking your tail, and a fondness for physical contact.”

“Don’t be shy; you’ll get used to it.”

“Furthermore, there are dietary changes and such; the doctors during your physical exam will tell you about these.”

“I’ll remind you again not to forget to collect your nutritional supplements.”

“Actually, cat food and cat treats are quite delicious…”

“That doesn’t need to be said!” Seeing the two cat-girls starting to stray off-topic unreliably, Wei the Cat ushered them off.

“That’s about all.”

“Do any of you have any other questions?”

The group was so overwhelmed by their current situation that their brains had somewhat crashed.

Not a single cat-girl raised a question.

“Then that’s it.”

“The medical team is here.”

“You’ll slowly get used to it; everyone goes through this.”

“If you really can’t accept it, there are psychological counselors.”

“Our psychological experts here are quite highly regarded.”

Seeing Dr. Sun personally come to lead their physical examinations, Wei the Cat nodded to her.

“If there are no questions, let’s go.”

“Form a line!”

“Follow this doctor.”

“Understood, meow!”