Chapter 126: A Tuxedo Cat Shows Up at the Door

It took quite a while for Kei to finally convince Lucas and Hwang Do-Hyun to temporarily leave the shop.

In the end, all he could do was promise to give them an official response regarding the matter in three days, as there was simply no way he could immediately conjure up a solution that satisfied Hwang Do-Hyun’s demands right on the spot.

"We’ll be back in three days, then," Lucas said with a strained smile. "We’re counting on you to come up with a workable plan for us by then."

Even though he knew none of this was Kei’s fault, Lucas truly had no other option left. And Hwang Do-Hyun certainly wasn’t going to let Kei off the hook just because he was a low-rank Craftsman, the man’s eyes had been locked onto Kei the entire time.

"Understood," Kei nodded.

He already had a general direction in mind, but the idea was still far too vague. If he wanted to turn it into an actual piece of gear, he needed to conduct deeper research into both the materials and the morphological shift mechanisms of beast-type hunters.

Hwang Do-Hyun shot Kei one last, deeply meaningful look before finally agreeing to follow Lucas out.

"Don’t make me regret this," he laughed heartily, striding out the doorway.

Once the two of them had departed, Kei stood at the threshold, watching their figures vanish down the far end of the street.

He didn’t know whether to feel a sense of relief or a throbbing headache.

Right at that moment, a heavy rumble of thunder shook the heavens.

*BOOM!*

A blinding flash of white lightning tore through the dark clouds. Just seconds later, a torrential downpour cascaded down like a waterfall. He could only wonder if Hwang Do-Hyun and Lucas had managed to find shelter in time.

"Kei-nim! Help me pull the inventory inside!"

Kim Sora hurried back and forth in a panic, scrambling to gather the crates of materials stationed near the window. A few bolts of fabric intended for wrapping equipment had already been whipped away and scattered by the wind.

Kei quickly snapped back to reality and rushed to help Sora clear the goods away.

He glanced quietly out the window.

The sky was pitch-black, punctuated by continuous flashes of lightning. Rain lashed against the glass pane, carving winding trails that looked like countless fractures creeping downward.

Bad weather was terrifyingly similar no matter which world you were in. With wind and rain like this, the hunters returning from Dungeons were bound to be exhausted to the bone.

Kei didn’t know when he had started caring about so many things.

When he first arrived here, all he wanted was to find a quiet place to live. No fighting, no forced socialization, and zero responsibility toward anyone.

Yet, the longer he stayed, the more people he grew entangled with.

Granny Kim, Sora, Thunder, Ular, Yudian, Kai...

Each of them had unwittingly left a mark on his life.

It had only been a few days since he last saw Kai, yet Kei already found himself missing the dragon. Kang Ian was still a constant source of mental chaos, and that fellow classmate of his still hadn’t replied to his messages after several days.

As he stared out at the thick sheet of rain against the window glass, the image of a certain black dragon that always loved to show off involuntarily surfaced in his mind.

’I wonder when I’ll get to see my black dragon again?’ Kei thought.

"Meow..."

A faint, pathetic cry sounded right by Kei’s feet.

Kei looked down. Tucked right against his shoes was a shivering kitten. Its pitch-black fur, marked by patches of white on its chest and four snowy-white paws, was completely soaked through, plastered tightly against its tiny frame.

It lifted its head to look at him.

Its golden eyes gleamed, shimmering like the reflection of the lightning outside.

Kei’s heart instantly melted. He dropped down quickly and scooped the kitten up into his hands. Its minuscule body was trembling in his hold, chilled to the bone in a way that made Kei frown.

"Where did you come from, little kitty?"

The kitten didn’t answer, letting out another weak squeak as it buried its face deeply into his chest.

"Kei-nim!"

Sora came running over, her eyes lighting up the moment she spotted the kitten.

"A cat! So cute!"

She reached out, intending to take it from Kei.

Yet the moment the kitten was transferred to Sora’s arms, it thrashed violently. It clung desperately to Kei’s shirt, its four tiny claws tearing right through the fabric.

*Rip!*

A clean hole appeared on his clothes.

Sora froze, quickly loosening her grip. The kitten scrambled right back into Kei’s embrace, clutching onto him tightly as though terrified he would hand it over to someone else.

Kim Sora’s jaw dropped.

"This cat... does it hate me?"

Kei couldn’t help but chuckle. "It’s probably just terrified of strangers."

"But I didn’t even do anything to it!" Sora clutched her chest, wearing the expression of someone who had just suffered a devastating blow.

Kei reached out and gently stroked the kitten’s head. "Alright, alright. Let me go give the little guy a warm bath first."

He carried the kitten into the back room, giving it a quick wash with warm water before wrapping it in a clean towel to absorb the excess moisture. Afterward, using a gentle current of magic-infused warm air, Kei meticulously dried out every matted clump of fur.

The kitten had been shivering at first, but before long, it closed its eyes comfortably, curling up in his lap while letting out a soft, soothing purr from deep within its throat.

"Where’s your home?" Kei muttered. "Or are you just a stray?"

The kitten opened its eyes to look at him. Those golden irises still shimmered brightly.

Kei remained silent for a few seconds before letting out a sigh.

"Fine. You can stay here for the time being."

Sora, who had been watching the kitten intently the entire time, instantly brightened up at those words.

"Really? We’re going to keep it?"

"Just temporarily." Kei looked down at the well-behaved kitten resting in his arms.

Yet even he knew that once those words were spoken, the likelihood of this cat ever leaving the shop was practically zero. Besides, it was clearly a genuine stray; its tiny, skeletal frame looked nothing like a pampered house pet.

Suddenly, the window to Kei’s room was blown wide open by a violent gust of wind.

*Bang!*

Rain instantly lashed inside, scattering the stack of notes Kei had left sitting on his desk.

"Kei-nim!" Sora screamed.

Kei hurriedly set the kitten down on the bed and strode quickly toward the window. He reached out to grab the window frame, but suddenly froze in place.

Right outside the window, amidst the sheet of blinding white rain, a figure stood perched precariously on the edge of the roof. Soaked black hair clung to his forehead, and his cold, sharp features were nearly swallowed by the shadows.

Only a pair of platinum-gold eyes stared directly at him.

Kei was struck dumb.

"Kang Ian...?"

The man outside the window gave no answer.

The chilling wind whipped through his soaked hair. Rainwater streamed down his pale face, yet those platinum eyes remained locked onto Kei in unbroken silence.

Behind him, another bolt of thunder tore across the sky.

At that moment, the Kang Ian standing before Kei looked remarkably similar to the stray cat Kei had just rescued from his doorstep a few moments ago.