I Am a Cat (8)

"Kong Ning had been looking for Li Jiewei for a long time, but there were quite a few people named Li Jiewei in this world—not necessarily the one this kid knew. Besides, wasn’t there still the assassination mission? They said Li Jiewei had some treasure on her, something that could unlock her potential." Chen Xiaoyi spoke from the side, her brows furrowed the entire time.

The staff beside her was practically grinning from ear to ear. Being in a child’s form sure made things easier—no wonder Zhao Hanyu from the previous world had such a simple time completing the matchmaking mission.

But why were all the missions revolving around Li Jiewei?

Could it be that Si was the protagonist of this world?

That wasn’t impossible.

If they could unlock Li Jiewei’s potential early, then Little Wei’s current mission shouldn’t be too hard to complete.

"Regardless, let’s take her to find that Li Jiewei first," Tang Rui said to Chen Xiaoyi.

Chen Xiaoyi thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright."

The two of them turned to look at where the staff had been, only for their pupils to abruptly constrict.

"Where’d she go?"

"Anyway, that’s the gist of it. Little Wei, some people are protecting Li Jiewei, but others are trying to kill her. One thing’s for sure though—her name is known to all of them."

The staff repeated everything Tang Rui and Chen Xiaoyi had said to Little Wei.

"But most of them still haven’t found Li Jiewei yet," Little Wei mused, rubbing her chin.

"That’s true, but finding someone shouldn’t be too difficult for them," the staff replied with a frown.

Little Wei considered it. For those hosts, something like this wouldn’t be hard.

But this was a society with rules. If they wanted to target Li Jiewei, the best way would be to lure her into a cultivator-permitted zone.

Cultivators.

At the thought, Little Wei narrowed her eyes.

If they tested Li Jiewei and found she had potential, they could take her away openly.

But Li Jiewei had already mentioned she’d been tested before—there shouldn’t be any issues on that front.

"Still, what kind of treasure does Li Jiewei have on her? Can you tell?" Little Wei glanced at the staff.

The staff immediately waved her hands.

"I’m staying out of this from now on. I don’t dare get involved. If you’re curious, go check yourself."

She had no desire to be kicked into a wall again.

"How am I supposed to check? Are you joking?" Little Wei couldn’t help but laugh. "If I had X-ray vision, would I even be standing here?"

As she spoke, she noticed the staff grinning—though the smile was a little sleazy.

"Weren’t you always…" The staff raised an eyebrow. "Haven’t you been checking all along?"

Little Wei: "…"

She got the staff’s meaning now.

But was this really the time for jokes?

More like a kiddie bumper car ride.

"Stop messing around. Besides, Li Jiewei doesn’t even know me right now." Little Wei kicked the staff lightly.

When the bell rang, Little Wei finally left the hallway.

She planned to grab a meal at the cafeteria first. Even if something unexpected happened, she’d still have time to save her master.

"You’re going to eat now?" The staff glanced at Li Jiewei emerging from the classroom and hurried after Little Wei.

Then again, the school was huge. There was no need to hover around Li Jiewei all the time—it’d just draw attention.

No point risking exposure before they could even protect her properly.

"Yeah."

With that, Little Wei strode off. It took them a while to reach the cafeteria. Little Wei borrowed a card to swipe for two meals, transferred the money to the owner, and then found a seat.

"It’s been so long since I’ve eaten here. I kinda missed it."

The staff stared at the rice and side dishes in front of her and dug in eagerly.

Honestly, this was the first time in ages she’d gotten to eat a proper meal in front of Little Wei.

Human food was delicious.

"Mmm, now I get why you love eating so much. It really is good—just a bit too many impurities."

But then again, this was human-world food. It couldn’t compare to the fare in the cultivation realm.

"If you like it, I’ll get you another serving later."

"Really?" The staff’s eyes lit up instantly.

Little Wei: "…"

She’d just been making conversation. Did the staff actually take it seriously?

"Fine, I’ll buy you another one." Little Wei didn’t mind.

With nearly 4,000 points, she could convert them into a mountain of cash.

What they didn’t expect, however, was running into Zhao Ming again.

When Zhao Ming spotted them, he immediately walked over and sat beside the staff.

"Why aren’t you with your friend?" he asked.

"She’s in class," Little Wei replied without looking up.

Zhao Ming clasped his hands, lips curving into a smile. "So, uh, I was wondering—if we ever go out, can we stay in touch?"

"What do you want?" Little Wei’s guard shot up instantly.

Was this guy into guys or something?

"No, no! It’s just rare to meet a host from Leap Void Corporation. Most of us are from smaller companies—systems are everywhere. I’m not exactly lucky, so I’d really like to make a friend."

Zhao Ming’s tone was earnest.

"A lot of romantic relationships start as friendships," Little Wei muttered, lips pressed together.

She was a self-assured woman, and she could sense Zhao Ming’s interest in her.

Damn it, Si’s about to be cuckolded. This is a disaster.

"Huh? Why would you think that?" Zhao Ming looked stunned, then laughed helplessly. "I’m not like that. I genuinely just want to be friends. Besides, I already have someone I like."

Hearing that, Little Wei suddenly understood.

"Who? Is she a host too?" Her gossip instincts kicked in immediately.

"No, she was my girlfriend. We broke up after college because of… certain things. Then I had an accident and became a host."

A tragic backstory.

Little Wei made a sympathetic noise.

"That’s so sad. My heart aches for you, bro." She fake-wiped a couple of tears.

But inwardly, she sighed.

Stuff like this… really was hard to put into words.

"But I don’t want to go back anymore. Now, I just want to get stronger, meet more people, and change my streak of bad luck." Zhao Ming gazed out the window, determination burning in his eyes.

"Ohhh, so you’re an unlucky one too? I used to be the same." Little Wei suddenly felt a kinship.

Two unlucky souls huddling for warmth.

"Haha, yeah. But I’m used to it by now. And after so much misfortune, I’ve grown a lot stronger. Look at you—you’re where you are today because of bad luck too, right? Most hosts have rough starts, but after becoming one, their fates change completely."

Zhao Ming rambled on, nearly out of breath by the end. He took a few gulps of water to recover.

"Mmhm, got it. No need to explain so much." Little Wei waved a hand dismissively.

Then she turned and saw Li Jiewei entering the cafeteria.

When their eyes met, Li Jiewei smiled at her.

At that moment, Zhao Ming suddenly remembered something important.

"Oh, and you’re into girls. Even if I did have feelings for you, it’d end badly for me."

He shrugged.