Chapter 48-Mysterious gift

Chapter 48: 48-Mysterious gift

For a few seconds after finishing her food, Aymara sat there with a bright smile on her face.

The dishes were nearly empty, Nathaniel had eaten well, and the hot pot was still simmering gently in the middle of the table, filling the room with warmth and the comforting scent of broth.

Outside, the apocalypse continued without mercy. Hurricanes screamed across the ocean, tsunami waves crashed against whatever remained of the world, and lightning tore through the black sky. Yet inside the fortress, Aymara couldn’t have been more excited.

The system had finally decided to reveal her mysterious gift. She had been waiting for this moment since the mission was completed.

A new ability? A rare item? Another upgrade? Perhaps an incredible treasure that would make the fortress even more powerful? Aymara’s eyes sparkled.

"System."

The familiar mechanical voice immediately responded.

Ding!

[Mission Reward Ready.]

Aymara straightened in her chair. Nathaniel glanced at her with worry. "What now?"

Aymara ignored him. The system screen appeared before her eyes.

[Mysterious Gift: Preparing to Reveal.]

Her heart raced. "Come on..." She leaned forward. "Show me."

The system remained silent for another second and then a soft sound came from the hallway.

Meow.

Aymara froze. Nathaniel froze. Both of them slowly turned toward the doorway.

A white cat casually walked into the dining room. It was a beautiful little creature with completely white fur, a fluffy tail, and bright eyes.

It walked as though it owned the fortress, completely unconcerned by the storm outside. It stopped near the table, looked at Nathaniel, then looked at Aymara.

"Meow."

Aymara’s jaw dropped. Her eyes widened, and her face went blank. The system screen remained floating before her.

[Mysterious Gift Successfully Delivered.]

Aymara stared at the cat, then at the system, and then back at the cat. Her expression slowly twisted into disbelief. "You’ve got to be kidding me."

The cat meowed again.

Aymara’s lips twitched. She hated cats. She had never liked them. They shed everywhere, climbed onto furniture, knocked things over, scratched people, and stared at humans as though they were beneath them. And now the system had just used her precious mysterious gift to bring a cat onto her survival fortress.

After everything she had done. After completing a mission specifically for Nathaniel. After preparing him the perfect dinner. This was her reward? A cat?!!!

Aymara looked up toward the invisible system. "You cheated me!"

Nathaniel blinked. "What?"

"The system!" She gritted her teeth. "It’s a cheating bastard."

He stared at her and at the space where her eyes were locked on. "What system?" When he saw nothing, he went back to confirming what he’d just seen.

Before Aymara could explain, something completely unexpected happened. Nathaniel’s spoon fell from his hand.

Clink!

It struck the plate. He stood so quickly that his chair nearly tipped backward.

"Yaya!" He confirmed it, the cat was his cat. The one that he kept at home.

His voice broke with such raw, overwhelming excitement that Aymara’s entire body went rigid. The sharp irritation in her chest vanished beneath startled disbelief.

His eyes were shining, his breath coming fast, and for one unguarded instant, he looked less like the wounded man who had spent the day keeping her at arm’s length and more like the a father seeing their child after a long time. It was evident that he loved that cat with his whole heart.

Nathaniel rushed toward the cat.

"Nate!" Aymara jumped up. "Slow down!"

But Nathaniel wasn’t listening. The frail young man who had spent most of the day moving carefully suddenly seemed to have forgotten that he was supposed to be weak. He hurried across the room as the cat’s tail lifted.

"Meow!"

"Yaya!"

Nathaniel dropped down carefully and scooped the white cat into his arms. The moment he held it against his chest, his entire expression transformed.

His eyes lit up with almost painful brightness, his face crumpled with relief, and a huge, trembling smile spread across his lips.

"You are here!"

The cat purred. Nathaniel hugged it tightly, his arms shaking.

"Yaya!"

He buried his face against its soft fur, and a breathless laugh escaped him.

Aymara stood several steps away in complete disbelief. What was happening? This was the same Nathaniel who had spent the entire day telling her to stay away from him, the same Nathaniel who had looked at her with cold eyes, and the same Nathaniel who had refused to forgive her. And now...

He was smiling like a child who had just received the greatest gift in the world.

Aymara stared. Something unexpectedly tender tugged beneath her ribs before she could stop it.

She had been so focused on earning back his trust that she had forgotten how badly she wanted to see him smile. Seeing that joy break through his guarded expression made her chest ache with a tenderness she didn’t know how to handle.

"Nate?"

Nathaniel completely ignored her. "Yaya, I missed you so much."

His voice trembled on the last word. The cat rubbed its head against his chin, and Nathaniel laughed again, the sound bright and almost disbelieving.

"You remember me."

"Meow."

"I know, I know."

He hugged the cat tighter, as though afraid it might disappear if he loosened his grip.

"You must have been scared when I was away."

"Meow."

"I’m sorry. I promise I won’t leave you alone again."

Aymara’s eye twitched. She had never seen him this happy. Not once. Not even when she had shown him the fortress, given him his favorite food, prepared his room, or heard him call the ship their fortress.

But this cat? This ridiculous white ball of fur? It had apparently stolen his entire heart in less than ten seconds.

Aymara slowly pointed at the cat. "What is that?"

Nathaniel finally looked at her. His expression immediately changed. The happiness remained, but his eyes narrowed, and his arms tightened protectively around Yaya.

"What did you do?"

Aymara blinked. "What?" She tensed and took a step back. "What are you looking at me like that for?"

Nathaniel hugged the cat closer. "Why did you kidnap Yaya?"

Aymara’s mouth fell open. "Kidnap?" Her jaw fell, again. Of all the things she could be accused of taking without consent, a cat should’ve made the bottom of the list.

"When did you take her?" He pointed the accusation at her.

"I didn’t!" She defended but she saw how it looked. His cat appearing on her ship did indeed seem as though she had kidnapped it but it was the system.

The stupid system that had decided to go silent after putting her in a hot spot. How convenient!

Nathaniel frowned. "Then how is she here on your ship?"

Aymara pointed toward the system screen only she could see. "The system gave her to me... to you... I don’t know!"

Nathaniel stared blankly at her. Words were coming out of her mouth but she wasn’t making any sense at all.

"What?"

Aymara folded her arms. "Apparently, she is my mysterious gift," her tone was full of displeasure.

Nathaniel looked down at the cat, then back at Aymara. His expression became suspicious. "You kidnapped my cat and brought her onto this ship?"

"I didn’t kidnap anyone!" She defended herself and them realized that she had kidnapped Nathaniel and sighed. "...except maybe you..."

"Then explain how my cat got here and in english please. I actually want to understand what you say."

"I don’t know!" Aymara threw her hands into the air. "I thought the system was going to give me something useful!"

Nathaniel looked at the cat again. Yaya purred peacefully against his chest. Aymara stared at her, and the cat stared back. Aymara narrowed her eyes. The cat blinked. Neither seemed impressed by the other.

Nathaniel immediately noticed her sharp gaze and blocked YaYa’s eyed. "Don’t look at her like that."

"I’m not doing anything," Aymara felt like beating the system up and tearing it to tiny pieces. "Someone save me," she groaned.

"You look like you’re planning something."

"I am not!"

Nathaniel hugged Yaya protectively, his expression suddenly fierce.

Aymara’s eyes widened. "Why are you holding her like that?"

"Because I don’t trust you."

Aymara gasped. "And you trust a cat more than me?"