He'd climbed to Church prince step by step through reading divine will and manipulating the faithful around him.

  But becoming Pope required more than guessing and scheming. He had to truly gain the Sun and Moon Gods' recognition to communicate with them. Otherwise, this was as far as he'd go.

  Fortunately, years of effort hadn't been wasted. He'd finally cultivated a vessel that satisfied the Sun God—a recognized faithful follower who gained the ability to hear divine oracles.

  But the more you gained, the more you feared losing it. Alfried often wondered: once the cat caught all the mice, how would the master treat the cat?

  He didn't want eternal sleep underground as his only option. So while letting some mice escape, he searched for a new place to settle.

  The Misty Plains was perfect. The faith there hadn't been controlled by the Sun and Moon Gods yet.

  ...

  The carriage stopped. Without waiting for Yves to bring the step stool, Luo Wei opened the door and jumped down, hurrying into Star Luo Residence.

  She had to warn Troy about the angel at Gelu City fast, before he stupidly charged onto their sword and died without knowing what hit him.

  That guy's nerves were unbelievably thick.

  He'd never questioned why he escaped from Yat Kingdom's prison, or why after two years on the run he'd broken through from knight to magic swordsman. He probably thought it was all his own skill.

  Luo Wei could piece it together. Before she came to this world, the Goddess of the Undead's first chosen follower must have been Troy.

  The reason was simple: he'd been framed by his best friend and just happened to be framed as a follower of the Goddess of the Undead.

  From the goddess's perspective, wasn't he perfect?

  An excellent knight loyal to the God of Light and his king, framed by villains and thrown in prison, unable to defend himself, full of hatred and rage.

  Then she rescued him from despair, gave him revenge power, helped him escape danger repeatedly. Of course he'd worship her madly and offer all his loyalty!

  But straightforward Troy firmly believed he'd just been framed. That the follower's mark on his body had been carved by his framers. Two years of the goddess's investment went down the drain.

  This was all speculation, but Luo Wei was ninety percent certain. Even if the facts differed slightly, she'd guessed at least eighty percent right.

  "Master, you're back!"

  Seeing Luo Wei enter, Chris immediately came forward.

  "Master, about that cat you brought yesterday—"

  Luo Wei raised her hand. "Later. I need to write an urgent letter first."

  "O-okay."

  Chris watched her go upstairs. The courage she'd finally mustered deflated. She sat down glumly on the bottom step.

  "Meow~"

  A cat's cry came from outside.

  Chris jumped up and looked toward the door. A round, chubby orange kitten strolled leisurely inside.

  "Oh, thank goodness!" Chris clasped her hands together. "I thought you'd run off! So you were here all along, little kitty. Where were you hiding?"

  The kitten jumped onto a cushioned chair, flicked its tail, sat down obediently, and meowed twice.

  Chris couldn't understand cat language, but she figured the kitten must be hungry after disappearing all night.

  "Wait here, little kitty. I'll get you a big chicken leg from the kitchen. Can you understand 'big chicken leg'? Please don't run away again—the master's upstairs, and if you get lost I can't explain it to her."

  Chris rambled on, then hurried to the kitchen.

  In the wicker basket under the eaves, the raven heard the cat cry and flipped over, poking its head out.

  The living room window was open. It immediately spotted the orange fat cat on the chair.

  The raven blinked hard. No mistake—the yellow barrel really was back!

  After looking twice, it flew out to check the stone it had left in the garden last night. The messy scratches were still there. It pawed at it—still wouldn't light up.

  So that guy didn't come out of this thing?

  The raven's tiny brain couldn't handle such complex thoughts. It flapped to the window and shouted at the yellow barrel inside: "Caw! Caw-caw-caw-caw?"

  The kitten's ears twitched. It stood up and looked.

  "Caw-caw-caw, caw-caw-caw?" The raven's black beady eyes stared intently, asking loudly.

  "Meow?" The kitten didn't understand. It lay back down and covered its ears with both paws.

  "Caw!" The raven opened its beak, looking offended. It spread its wings as if to charge.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Chris returned with the chicken leg just in time. She cried out: "Ah! Luke, what are you doing? Stop!"

  Luke angrily pointed at the kitten, then at itself, cawing nonstop at Chris.

  "You want chicken too? You want two? Well, you still can't bully the kitten!"

  Chris set the chicken leg on the low table next to the kitten and walked to the window to pick up Luke. "Come on, I'll take you to the kitchen. The kitten's new—you can't bully it. Did you learn those two phrases I taught you this morning? Say them for me..."

  Luke fluttered in Chris's arms a couple times but ultimately couldn't resist the soft warmth. It surrendered contentedly.

  Twenty minutes later, Luo Wei came downstairs with a sealed letter. Seeing the kitten gnawing chicken on the low table, she patted its head. "Tasty, Big Orange?"

  The kitten licked its lips and sat up primly. "Meow-meow~"

  "Good. There's more in the kitchen." Luo Wei couldn't resist poking its little toe beans. Seeing it retract them, she smiled. "You eat first. I need to handle something."

  "Meow~"

  Luo Wei rubbed its head again and walked out with the letter. "Luke?"

  The wicker basket under the eaves didn't move. Instead, from the kitchen, Chris came running out holding the raven.

  "Coming! Master, Luke's here!"

  Luo Wei looked puzzled. "What were you two doing?"

  Chris tattled: "Luke saw the kitten eating chicken and made a fuss. I was afraid it would bully the kitten, so I took it to the kitchen."

  Luke struggled free and protested loudly: "Caw-caw, caw-caw-caw!"

  [That's not true! I didn't!]

  "Caw-caw-caw-caw-caw-caw..."

  [I didn't want chicken! I just wanted to ask where it came from, why it can go into stones. It was rude—ignored me and covered its ears...]

  Go into stones?

  Luo Wei was puzzled. Was the magic cat's ability going into stones?

  "Caw-caw-caw, caw-caw-caw..."

  [Beautiful lady, believe me, I absolutely didn't bully...]

  Luo Wei's ears hurt. "Okay, okay, you didn't bully it. We'll talk later. Right now I need you to deliver a letter to Gelu City."

  "Caw?" The raven tilted its head. Had it heard wrong? Had the beautiful lady just understood what it said?

  If she could understand it, did that mean it didn't have to work so hard learning human speech?

  The raven was getting excited when a copper tube appeared before its claws.

  "This letter must reach Troy's hands. No one but Troy can handle it. I'll cast an invisibility spell on you. Leave now. Understand?"

  The raven grabbed the tube and stretched its neck. "Caw-caw!"

  [Understood!]

  Luo Wei drew her wand and chanted softly, quickly casting an invisibility spell.

  "Okay, go. Be careful."

  The raven's form vanished. Only its caws could be heard as it stirred up a breeze and flew away.

  "Chris."

  "Yes, Master."

  Luo Wei handed her a bag of gold coins and a wooden box containing the sapphire. "You and Yves go to the jeweler. Pick out a waist chain for a noble gentleman. Nothing too flashy—simple and elegant. Have them set this gemstone in it. Buy it and come back. I need to give it as a gift before dark."

  "Yes, Master!" Chris nervously accepted the coins and gemstone.

  The time had come to test her eye. She'd been training her judgment for so long—this gift absolutely could not embarrass her master!

  Chris left on her errand. Luo Wei returned to the living room. With no one home, she pulled out the second summoning scroll Professor Tobias had rewarded her with.

  "Meow-woo~"

  The kitten jumped down from the chair and walked over, watching her curiously.

  "This isn't the scroll that summoned you," Luo Wei crouched down to explain. "This is a different summoning pattern. It can summon a Pegasus. Big Orange, have you ever seen a Pegasus?"

  "Meow?" The kitten looked up, eyes wide. "Meow, meow-woo~"

  "I haven't either," Luo Wei said. "Come on, let's go to the courtyard and try it. See if this scroll can actually summon one."

  She hadn't been hopeful at first. Professor Tobias said magic cats and Pegasi had both gone extinct.

  But after she'd lucked into summoning the magic kitten, she felt confident again. If magic cats still existed, could Pegasi be far behind?

  Luo Wei patted the kitten's soft head and headed outside.

  The kitten raised its tail, legs moving fast as it chased after her excitedly. It seemed just as eager to see the legendary Pegasus.

  Luo Wei glanced back and almost laughed.

  When the kitten ran, it became a blur. Its decent proportions were completely hidden by its chunky body—it looked like a propane tank rolling along. And it wasn't fluffy fat either. The muscle was solid, packed tight. Nothing jiggled when it moved. Maybe it was a bodybuilder cat?

  Thinking about how much it loved chicken legs, all that muscle made sense.

  Chicken legs weren't just high in protein—they had thick layers of fat underneath, perfect for bulking up.

  But if it kept eating like this... Luo Wei pictured a muscle cat inflated like the Michelin Man.

  Honestly, she probably couldn't appreciate a cat like that.

  Luo Wei glanced at the kitten. She'd need to diversify its diet—beef, fish, vegetables, fruits, everything. Cats should be sleek and agile. How could it turn into the Michelin Man?

  "Meow?"

  The kitten noticed her staring and looked up questioningly.

  Luo Wei opened the scroll with a serious expression. "Big Orange, back up a bit. I'm starting the summoning."

  The kitten retreated and sat by the flower bed, bright amber eyes fixed on her.

  Luo Wei focused and slowly channeled magic into the faded pattern's center. The old yellowed parchment blazed with golden light. The pattern's lines came alive, writhing and coiling as the scroll floated upward.

  This pattern was more mysterious and ancient than the one that summoned the kitten. It greedily absorbed her magic but refused to open a spatial passage.

  Maybe Pegasi really were extinct. Or maybe she didn't have enough magic. Either way, she couldn't hold on much longer.

  Summoning high-level magical creatures was still beyond her current abilities.

  Her magic depleted. Luo Wei reluctantly prepared to give up when an orange blur shot across her vision. The kitten launched itself high, pouncing precisely on the scroll. Its round paws pressed down on the pattern.

  Deep magic flooded into the pattern. The parchment blazed brighter. Violent air burst from the spatial passage. A black vortex appeared above the garden.

  The airflow sent the kitten flying. Luo Wei caught it instantly, pulling it close and retreating under the eaves with the heavy cat in her arms.

  The vortex grew larger. A pitch-black shape gradually formed inside.

  The wind forced them to squint. They tried to see what it was when—thump—a black horse with a horn on its forehead tumbled out. A pair of glossy black wings beat in the air, whipping up fierce winds.

  The black horse seemed dazed. After two seconds it realized what happened and frantically wheeled around, trying to dive back into the vortex.

  Too late. The summoning pattern had dimmed. The spatial passage had closed. The black horse dove through empty air.

  "Neigh—!"

  The black horse beat its wings and screamed in terror.

  Luo Wei and the kitten froze for several seconds.

  Like griffins, Pegasi were mythological creatures. Their ancestor Pegasus was born from Medusa's blood and supposedly carried Poseidon's bloodline.

  But the mythological Pegasus was a white winged horse. The fountain its hooves struck became poets' source of inspiration. Its image was sacred and elegant. How could it have black descendants?

  The Pegasus circled above the courtyard. Worried it might escape and cause a scene, Luo Wei shouted: "Stop flying around! You can't get back without the spatial passage! Come down and let's talk!"

  "Neigh-neigh—!"

  The Pegasus lowered its head, eyeing her warily.

  Luo Wei stepped forward and picked up the scroll that had blown to the ground. She held it up. "Recognize this pattern? It's a summoning contract your ancestors made with human mages. I used it to summon you."

  "Snort-snort..."

  The Pegasus landed and trotted over skeptically, black eyes fixed on the pattern.

  "See it clearly? Is this the Pegasus clan's summoning contract?" Luo Wei asked.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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