The adults were handling the social pleasantries, putting up polite facades. Meanwhile, the little cat was busy with matters befitting a cub.
By Li Ao’s side, aside from the robot and Xun, there were also the Empire’s Captain and Vice Captain of the Guard—Shen Que and Brenna—sticking to him like shadows.
The Federation had sent dozens of people to receive the little cat. Knowing the kid was shy, Shen Que only kept two younger ones—a boy and a girl—and sent the rest packing.
And so, these few people and machines formed a circle around him like stars cupping the moon. Right in the center was the short-legged little cat who, in Isiris’s words, had seniority enough to stand on equal footing with the heir of the Interstellar Federation.
Li Ao stared seriously at the skateboard on the ground, brimming with the tension of a newbie test-driving for the first time.
“Leo Highness.” The boy among the two left by the Federation had an ordinary Western face and clearly wasn’t great at Ancient Chinese. He struggled for a good half day before managing, “Step on it—one foot, push hard.”
“Your Highness, I’ll steady it for you.” Shen Que squatted down and held the skateboard still to keep it from wobbling. Brenna bent over nearby, excitedly holding up a camera.
The little cat hesitantly lifted one foot, his paw pad hovering in the air for a moment before he looked up at the people around him.
Those violet eyes were gentle. Shen Que was actually a bit taller than Isiris, but his mild temperament made him well-liked by cubs most of the time.
Li Ao tentatively placed both front paws on the skateboard, then pushed off with his hind legs and leaped on.
Brenna’s eyes turned to hearts. She didn’t even dare breathe, holding it until her face turned red, snapping away with a burst of photos aimed right at the little cat.
A little cat playing on a skateboard! This was just too cute! If she sent these back, they’d surely drive the Delphi folks wild.
Before getting on, Li Ao had been a bit scared. But once he was up and found the skateboard nice and steady, he grinned like a puppy, revealing a mouth full of little gapped milk teeth.
Great—no flipping over!
Fierce Cat’s confidence soared. Recalling the scenes he’d seen on TV, he stretched out one hind leg, kicking toward the ground just like those skateboard pros, all elegant-like—
His hind paw kicked for ages, flailing desperately to reach the ground, that fluffy paw waving wildly in the air—but it just couldn’t touch down!
Not only was Fierce Cat stunned, even Shen Que blinked in slight surprise.
Brenna’s eyes welled up with barely suppressed laughter. She mentally slapped herself silly, trembling as she switched on video recording.
What could be done? The kid’s form and posture were textbook perfect, but the hardware limitations were right there…
What could be done? Fierce Cat wouldn’t back down!
Li Ao pulled back his leg and stood properly on all four paws atop the skateboard. He thought for a moment, then suddenly flicked his tail—an idea struck. That massive fluffy tail, bigger than his body, drooped down to the ground. He experimentally pushed back a few times, found it workable, then raised his fluffy face and said solemnly, “Queque, you can let go now.”
Though Shen Que utterly loathed his half-brother from a different mother, he had to admit Fitt was right: It was hard to imagine such an adorable little guy could be Isiris’s child.
He smiled and let go, but still stayed close by the little cat’s side to guard him. He watched as he kept probing for the right angle with his tail, then shoved hard—and whoosh, off he went.
Cute, brave, never giving up. Even with his own limitations staring him in the face, he’d find a way to solve it himself.
Truly, the Empire’s most precious treasure.
After a few slides, Li Ao got the hang of it. He excitedly twisted around and called for his little dog.
Xun heard the summons and spread his bone wings, fluttering lightly over to land behind Fierce Cat. His short tactile claws hugged the cat driver’s waist, scarlet beast pupils brimming with adoration. “Li Ao!”
“That’s it! Sit tight!” The cat driver flicked his tail, happily sliding off with his little dog in tow.
The nimble skateboard weaved through the square, wind flattening their ears as the little cat and little dog both lit up with excitement, eyes shining bright.
Star 92 was bustling at the moment. As a famous interstellar tourist spot, plus the upcoming Dawn League awards ceremony and a big star’s concert in just two days, there were tourists everywhere—even the square was packed.
But right now, it was utterly silent. No one spoke, not even daring to breathe. Everyone moved in perfect unison, pulling out phones and terminals, all aimed at the little cat skateboarding across the square.
Thanks to advanced tech, even from afar, every strand of fur on the little cat in their lenses was crystal clear—360 degrees of pure adorableness.
【How can there be such a cute creature!!!】
【I can’t take it, aaaah—that big tail’s been working so hard, it must be super dirty. Quick, let me give it a good wash for you! (reaches out) (righteously)】
The scene was so cute that people even forgot about the towering mech trailing behind the little cat.
Until the little cat slid up to a tanghulu stand, where he came to a stop and hopped off the skateboard.
Li Ao’s eyes locked straight onto the colorful tanghulu, his body instinctively reversing into the mech’s leg. He straightened up, paws clawing at its ankle, blue eyes all watery as he called, “Machine, Machine.”
With a little butt wiggle, Silver Wing knew exactly what he wanted. The mech stayed silent for a beat, enduring the death glares from the Captain and Vice Captain of the Guard, then extended a finger. “Only one skewer.”
Fierce Cat flicked his tail and immediately darted into the shop.
“Auntie.” He called to the white-haired old lady shopkeeper, “I want one tanghulu!”
The shopkeeper’s age was advanced even by today’s standards of 150-160 year lifespans. Being called “auntie” by such a tiny cub melted her heart. “Good child, call me grandma.”
In this era, even plain fruit was exorbitantly pricey—let alone tanghulu. The old lady didn’t fuss, just picked out a skewer of bright red berries. “These are strawberry berries. Here, for you.”
But in Li Ao’s heart, there was only one grandma. The little cat glanced at her and still said, “Thank you, auntie.”
He was a very sensible good kitty—if someone offered, he wouldn’t just take it for free. He turned to find the too-tall-to-enter mech and righteously extended a paw. “Give me one dollar!”
Fierce Cat knew the robot held all his earnings.
“Your Highness.” Shen Que squatted down and hung a small pouch on the little cat. “Silver Wing’s wallet is in here.”
Pretty much everyone in Delphi knew the little cat only recognized one-dollar coins. The national treasury had long since minted a batch of special silver coins for him—face value all ones, but the smaller ones worth 100, the larger ones 10,000. Delphi-official exchange rate, fair for young and old alike.
Fierce Cat had no clue about that. He peered into the pouch at the various-sized silver coins, picked out a big one, and handed it over. “Auntie, for you.”
The elder had no idea of its value either—and she’d planned to give it to the little cat anyway. She smiled and took it, naturally patting his little cat head before handing over the tanghulu. “Come back if it’s good, little Highness.”
Li Ao struggled to hold up the skewer almost as tall as himself, clambered onto a street-side chair, then beckoned his little dog over. “Xun, eat too!”
One lick for you, one for me—the two little ones licked away, melting the syrup and getting sticky all over, a total mess.
The robot couldn’t stand it anymore. It pulled out some wet wipes and squatted to clean the little cat’s matted chest fur.
“Give me the thing.” Silver Wing pulled a cat bowl out of nowhere like magic, stripped the berries one by one into it, and set it in front of the cat. “Eat.”
【…This is an Alpha machine?】
【Feels like such a good househusband… and he’s hot too, not bad at all…】
【Wake up, people! This is the Alpha machine that nearly caused secondary species to rule the stars!!】
【It’s raising a cat now—what bad machine could do that?】
The people in the square stayed quiet, but that didn’t stop them from surfing the Star Network. In no time, videos of the little cat and the robot shot up online. Most were cheering and squealing over how cute the little cat was, but there were still some who thought—
“The Alpha machine nearly caused human extinction, and now you’re openly bringing it onto Federation soil!” There were dozens of Federation colonels big and small, but they all spouted pretty much the same lines.
Even in foreign lands, Isiris sat in the seat of honor as a visiting dignitary.
The blond monarch propped three fingers against his face, impatience clear in his downcast eyes. For the first time, he somewhat regretted his decision—he should’ve brought Caleb along to save himself from having to attend these events.
“You’re questioning me?” His tone was flat, instantly silencing the Federation colonel. A bead of sweat dripped down the man’s forehead as he instinctively glanced toward Fitt beside the main seat.
“You misunderstand.” Fitt smiled and took over. “The brutality of that war before the Star Calendar—you know it well. As fellow humans, please understand the fear ordinary people feel toward Alpha machines.”
“I said.” Isiris uncrossed his legs and stood. “There is no Alpha machine—only Delphi’s citizen, Silver Wing.”
These idiots. He’d thought they were here to discuss joint operations against the insect tide, but no, more of this nonsense. No point wasting breath—better to go keep his Leo company.
“Isiris Majesty!” Someone rose to block him, only to be slammed back into place by the king’s sudden burst of Spiritual Power.
Fitt kept smiling, made a halting gesture, and watched Isiris stride out of the room.
“Aiya, take a look at this.” Delphi’s Foreign Minister chuckled dryly. “Our Sun just wiped out a few waves of bugs on the fringe star. We’re currently troubled by how these xenoid variants are getting tougher and tougher, with their mutations deepening.”
The implication was clear: Never mind all that talk about humans versus machines—the xenoid problem, do you still want it solved or not?
In the Star Calendar Era, countless large and small bug tides had erupted. Who did humanity have to thank for the stability they enjoyed today?
That bunch of good-for-nothings in the Federation who spent all day scheming politics?
Delphi’s previous Monarch had held back the bug tides with sheer force, only to perish on the Abyss Frontline. Twenty years ago, Delphi’s Sun had single-handedly slain a newly born S-Rank xenoid, buying humanity a chance to catch its breath. Ten years ago, Delphi’s Prince had covered the retreat of League students and ended up devoured by a xenoid.
And now, Delphi’s Little Sun was healing everyone.
Humans?
What right did you lot have to claim it was for humanity? What right to call yourselves fellow humans?
What had the Federation ever done for humanity? Was it protecting capital interests so ordinary folk couldn’t even eat fresh fruit? Or preemptively euthanizing Doom disease patients to keep them from losing their minds?
“Yaah—!” Someone on the square let out a scream. “Someone come quick! Guards, guards! Doom disease outbreak here!”
The little cat, who had been licking its food bowl, lifted its head and licked the corner of its mouth, unaware of what was happening.
