28: Master-Servant Contract

"Meow!" The Fat Cat cried out in pain, but with someone else there, it became even more energetic. It wiggled, leaped with all its might, and pounced into Kato Megumi's arms. Finding a comfortable spot to nestle in, it then raised its cat head triumphantly:

"Can't a cat even speak? Meow! Do you know who Megumi was... ah, no, who she was slightly bewitched by this Great One for?!" This Fat Cat wasn't ashamed of its dark methods at all; instead, it righteously blurted out the truth, "She just cares about you too much. She feels she's too ordinary and transparent, that she's not good enough for a flirtatious guy like you. That's why she wanted to 'change the status quo' and become more capable of attracting your attention!"

Its words were like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, stirring silent ripples in the quiet classroom.

Kato Megumi's body suddenly stiffened, her entire face turning bright red in an instant, even the tips of her ears tinged with crimson. She instinctively wanted to cover the Fat Cat's mouth, but it was already too late. She didn't dare look up at Lin Luo, so she could only bury her burning cheeks deep into the Fat Cat's soft (and very face-obscuring) fur, letting out a nearly whimpering, mosquito-like sound:

"N-no, it's not like that... don't listen to its nonsense..."

The expression on Lin Luo's face instantly became extremely colorful. He already harbored "ill intentions" toward Kato Megumi that went beyond being best friends. Now that the Fat Cat had pointed it out directly, his heart accelerated uncontrollably, a mix of surprise, astonishment, and guilt rushing to his head.

However, the latter half of the Fat Cat's words snapped him out of that secret joy instantly.

"Wait!" Lin Luo blurted out, his tone carrying the urgency of being wronged. "Flirtatious? Where did that come from? Heaven and Earth be my witness, I, Lin Luo, am currently a clean and single individual!"

As he spoke, he instinctively took half a step forward, his eyes burning as he looked at Kato Megumi, who had her face buried in cat fur, trying to defend himself: "Megumi, don't listen to this Fat Cat's nonsense! When have I ever been flirtatious?"

The Fat Cat wagged its tail proudly, continuing to fan the flames: "Hmph hmph, isn't your relationship with that teacher also ambiguous? She told me everything—it's with that World History teacher of yours, right? Coming down from the rooftop with disheveled clothes, just a man and a woman alone together, who knows what you two were doing—"

*Thump!*

Before it could finish, Kato Megumi's small fist had already smashed onto the Fat Cat's round head, causing it to let out a pitiful "Meow!"

"Megumi! What are you doing! I'm trying to stand up for you!" The Fat Cat aggrievedly covered its head with its paws.

"Unnecessary things like that..." Kato Megumi's entire face was flushed red, even her neck tinged with crimson, yet her voice carried a rare firmness, "don't need you to talk about them!"

Her clenched fists trembled slightly, whether from anger or embarrassment. Those eyes, which were usually as calm as water, now flickered with a complex light; she didn't want to hear the Fat Cat continue its nonsense, yet she couldn't help but care about the content it mentioned.

Lin Luo watched this scene and suddenly chuckled.

Amidst Kato Megumi's surprised gaze, he took a step forward and gently held her fist, which she hadn't lowered yet. The girl's hand was cold and trembling slightly.

"So this is what you were worried about." His voice carried a knowing smile as his gaze tenderly watched her dodging eyes. "It wasn't easy to explain before, but since you've also been entangled by a strange thing, I'll tell you about it so you don't overthink things."

Amidst Kato Megumi's surprised gaze, he took a step forward and gently held her fist, which she hadn't lowered yet. The girl's hand was cold and trembling slightly.

"So this is what you were worried about." His voice carried a knowing smile as his gaze tenderly watched her dodging eyes. "It wasn't easy to explain before, but since you've also been entangled by this strange thing," he glanced at the Fat Cat playing dead, "I'll tell you about it so you don't overthink things."

He pulled her over to sit at a nearby desk and selectively told Kato Megumi the beginning and end of the rooftop incident, including Kirisu Mafuyu being accidentally locked in and some subsequent troubles that were inconvenient to state clearly. He didn't reveal the core secrets of ghosts and world Fusion, but it was enough for her to understand that it wasn't some ambiguous private encounter, but rather involved events that exceeded common sense.

After learning the truth, Kato Megumi's tightly wound heartstrings suddenly relaxed. Like a breeze blowing across a calm water surface, only shallow ripples spread as those accumulated guesses and anxieties quietly dissipated.

Lin Luo looked at her noticeably softened profile and couldn't help but tease: "Paying so much attention to my every move? It seems what this Fat Cat said isn't entirely nonsense?"

Kato Megumi's ears felt slightly hot, and she immediately turned her face away, stubbornly saying: "It's not like I was paying special attention. It's just... just that day I happened to see you two going downstairs to the parking lot through the classroom window."

Her voice grew smaller and smaller, clearly lacking confidence. The Fat Cat in her arms let out an ambiguous "purr" as if it were snickering, but it was quietly pinched at the base of its tail by Kato Megumi and immediately behaved.

Lin Luo felt a bit more at ease; it seemed Kato Megumi hadn't encountered any real danger this time. Although this Fat Cat coveted her special Physique—which naturally made her easy to overlook—with its current level of cultivation, it couldn't strip away such a life trait without leaving hidden dangers.

Moreover, it didn't seem to want to truly hurt Kato Megumi; the so-called "price" was just a slight side effect of being prone to sleepiness. Its previous exaggeration about "dried fish only lasting three days" was mostly to inflate its own value and hide the fact that its abilities were limited.

It was lucky that this guy really had no malice; otherwise, with Lin Luo's personality, he would have killed it long ago.

Thinking of this, a thought suddenly occurred to him. Although this Fat Cat didn't have much ability, its Demon Power should be more than enough to deal with some low-level Monsters and Ghosts. Now that the world was becoming increasingly unsettled, letting this guy stay by Kato Megumi's side as a bodyguard seemed like a good choice.

His gaze turned to the Fat Cat still pretending to be aggrieved in Kato Megumi's arms. He suddenly struck, grabbing the scruff of its neck as fast as lightning and lifting it up entirely.

"Hey, dead Fat Cat," Lin Luo stared expressionlessly at its suddenly widened golden pupils, "I'll give you two choices. Do you want to die, or do you want to live?"

Being held in mid-air, the Fat Cat's four short legs kicked around wildly, but it couldn't break free at all. Upon hearing Lin Luo's question, it immediately stopped its useless struggling and shouted urgently at the top of its lungs: "Live, live, live! I want to live! Meow!"

Lin Luo nodded with satisfaction and casually tossed it onto the ground. The Fat Cat's chubby body rolled half a circle on the floor. It quickly used its claws to grab onto Kato Megumi's shoelaces to steady itself, looking up with a "I'm super obedient" expression.

"Since you want to live, I'll give you a chance." Lin Luo crossed his arms and looked down at it. "Establish a Guardian Contract with your 'Megumi'."

"C-contract?" The Fat Cat froze for a moment, a hint of hesitation flashing in its golden vertical pupils. But seeing Lin Luo's unquestionable gaze, it immediately shrank its neck and nodded repeatedly, "Meow! A contract is good! This Great Demon... ah no, I am best at guarding!"

It immediately turned to the still somewhat dazed Kato Megumi, rubbing its head pleasingly against her ankle, its voice softening by several degrees: "Megumi~ let's sign a contract! I'll protect you from now on. Whoever wants to bully you has to get through me first! As long as... as long as you give me those dried fish every day!" At the very end, it still didn't forget its ultimate goal.

As it spoke, the Fat Cat hovered in mid-air. A blue rune began to slowly form and light up on its forehead, emitting a soft wave of equality and mutual aid.

However, before the rune could fully take shape, Lin Luo accurately flicked the cat's head again, interrupting its spellcasting.

"Who told you to take the initiative to form an Equality Contract?" Lin Luo's tone was unquestionable. "Sign a Master-Servant Contract for me."

"Meow! This is too much!" The Fat Cat was flicked until it saw stars and immediately began to clamor loudly, its fur standing on end like a round hedgehog. "I'm a Great Yokai! My willingness to sign an Equality Contract with a human is already thinking highly of her! A Master-Servant Contract? This is pushing me toward a dead end! Absolutely not!"

It roared angrily, its Demon Power surging violently, even condensing into tiny dark blue electrical sparks that crackled, trying to show its "majesty" and determination to resist.

But in the next second, all its Aura vanished like a punctured balloon, instantly dying down.

At Lin Luo's fingertip, a wisp of incomparably sharp golden spiritual light was dancing. That light was condensed as if it were solid, emitting a sharp Aura like Sword Qi. Just a trace of the Aura leaking out was like an invisible blade, silently slicing off several of the Fat Cat's longest whiskers, which fell lightly.

The Fat Cat froze in mid-air, its golden pupils staring fixedly at that wisp of golden light that made its very Soul tremble. It let out a "gulp" in its throat, all its dissatisfaction and protests being forced back down.

It had nothing left to say.

The situation was stronger than the cat; this guy was truly someone it couldn't afford to provoke!

In the next second, it changed its face at light speed, redrawing the rune with lightning speed. This time, the color of the rune turned into a dark gold representing absolute obedience, and the structure became more complex and coercive. With a flash of dark gold light, the Master-Servant Contract was instantly established, an invisible bond tightly connecting it with Kato Megumi.

After completing the contract, the Fat Cat fell back to the ground with a "plop." It then immediately scrambled up, leaped with effort, and accurately jumped into Kato Megumi's arms. It rubbed its chubby, furry head vigorously against her palm, letting out an extremely fawning, sweet, and cloying cry:

"Meow~ Master~ please take good care of your most loyal servant from now on~!"

Kato Megumi looked down at this Fat Cat at her feet—which had been bewitching her just a moment ago but was now begging for mercy—and then looked up at Lin Luo, who had an "this is very reasonable" look on his face. For a moment, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This turn of events was too fast; she felt like she had somehow gained a... cat-shaped accessory?

Lin Luo nodded with satisfaction, looking at the Fat Cat trying its best to be cute in Kato Megumi's arms. "Not bad, you're quite sensible."

He then turned to the still somewhat bewildered Kato Megumi and instructed: "By the way, don't take this guy seriously. If there's any dirty or heavy work in the future, like moving things, running errands, or cleaning up, just make it do it." He pointed at the ball of fur. "It's a Yokai after all, tough and durable, not delicate like an ordinary pet. There's no need to spoil it."

"Meow?!" Upon hearing this, the Fat Cat's rubbing motion froze instantly. It looked up, its golden pupils filled with an unbelievable accusation. Just as it was about to open its mouth to protest, it met Lin Luo's "you have an objection?" gaze. It immediately swallowed its words and aggrievedly buried its head back into Kato Megumi's arms, letting out a whimper full of bitterness.

It hadn't found a master; it had clearly found a long-term meal ticket combined with a free labor contractor! Life as a cat was hard!