The family's dinner recalled the recent past. Maria brought a tray into the room and her indignation,
"You eat your stinky meat! I'll have pizza!"
She placed a platter of slices of fried meat and a jug of sauce in front of the men. For herself, she made pizza from an old family recipe. Maria's ancestors were from the old city of planet Earth. They came to the galaxy from the city of Rome. Maria knew how to make wonderful pizza. But this time the men clapped their hands and grasped their forks and knives together. Meat! The sergeant chewed the first slice and swallowed it with bliss on his face. But he told the truth at once,
"The meat is a little tough."
"Old snake has old meat," agreed Lee Long.
"It's a good thing you remembered about the tribe and the hunt. You can't spend so much time doing business. I hear you've started a class with the Politology group. Why would you do that?" asked Maria and took a new bite of pizza.
"Ugh! Officials. Lee you're not supposed to betray family values. You're a soldier of a soldier's lineage!" expressed the sergeant.
"I've got Hannah Muller all over me. Everyone is interested in the healer's services. Perhaps she sees me as her personal doctor."
"I don't think you'd agree to give birth," snorted Maria. "But you're right. That kind of relationship has to be cemented from childhood."
"And what do you think of our political situation? Does Europe 9 have a good perspective?" questioned the soldier.
The words sounded slurred, and Nick didn't take his eyes off the meat chewing.
Maria chewed and swallowed her food and only then became indignant,
"Dirty animal, learn to talk while you eat!"
Lee put the piece of meat on his plate and thought about it. The question was difficult and he didn't know what to answer.
"I don't get into Independence issues. The colony is firmly on its feet. Only the Russians and Chinese can compete with us." Said the boy.
"The Russians are always strong! Look into the Abyss and the Russians will look at you from it! The Chinese know what unity and order are. The Ferin do not understand us. They look at our colony as a collection of losers and outcasts!" said Nick.
"Nonsense! All the tribes live in the capital city of Ferin. Our colony is well respected," remarked the woman calmly.
"Are you giving away secret information? No? Then don't compare the capital to our colony. That's ridiculous," grumbled Nick.
It wasn't the first time the boy had heard his elders argue on the subject. It was the first time he had been invited to give his opinion.
"No classified information. We have good conditions for development. We have to work and live for the future. Lee I can give you an invitation to a meeting of lovers to talk about Independence," Maria offered.
Nick laughed,
"Don't waste your time, boy! Empty talk and idiot dreams! That's what you'll find at this meeting."
"I once made the mistake of inviting a stupid moron to a meeting," the woman looked at her husband. Then she winked at the boy. "He behaved aggressively. Now he's persona non grata. Can you behave yourself? There will be representatives from other colonies at this meeting."
Lee said frankly,
"The serious struggle for independence is a secret affair. I can believe that Nick is a member of the secret military organization Europe 9. That's why he laughed in the face of talkers and dreamers. I don't believe in discussing this topic in public. I understand your interest. A spy once is a spy forever. I remember your words. You spy on them. I don't understand, are you recruiting me into your squad?"
It became quiet at the table. The adults were silent and ate their food. Maria broke the silence,
"You're too young to work in my department. You've become interested in politics. I suggested you expand the circle of people you know who are interested in politics."
"And you're too stupid and young for a secret military organization," said Nick.
"Such an organization exists?"
"Of course it exists, boy! The military has always had secret organizations. Life and death. Peace and war. Two sides to the same coin. I am a simple soldier. I'm not an officer. I don't participate in this club," the sergeant said.
"I see," the boy turned to Maria. "I gladly accept your invitation. I'm interested in expanding my knowledge."
"Expand your schedule! And make time for another hunt. And next time, bring home the meat of a young snake!" laughed Nick.
Maria nodded and smiled. This dinner put everyone in a good mood.
***
You don't have to look for trouble. They will find you themselves.
In the capital, Lee Long met a warm welcome from his acquaintances from the lower town. By a familiar pond, he saw a company of small bandits.
"Hard and fast! I thought you were dead in a mine on your planet! Where have you been for so long?" pounced upon him Ripped Ear.
"I don't know how often you go hunting. Running a gang is a serious business. I have to maintain my reputation. I killed a huge shill. It was an epic feat."
The little cat jumped in place,
"Tell me about it!"
"We go hunting, too. I've killed a shila twice my height!" insulted the kitten at the accusation.
"My shila is three times as long as your prey! Yesterday old hunter Mraun suggested to me to walk to an interesting place. I went into the woods."
Lee Long interrupted the story and saw that everyone was listening to him with attention. The boy sat down on the grass and continued his story. The inhabitants of the capital were no different from the inhabitants of the planet. They were enthusiastically discussing the details of the hunt. The boy's knife was examined and nodded respectfully. "Tough bone!" Lee jumped up from his seat several times and showed off his techniques and dexterity. He was made to take a few steps and show the length of the dead shila. Of course, there was a local jerk who yelled,
"You lie, you bald worm!"
"You insulted me. I challenge you to a duel. Yes!" yelled Lee and immediately pounced on the unfamiliar kitten.
They clawed at each other and rolled off the bank into the pond water. With an angry yell, the boy began to drown the kitten. The kitten tried to unhook the man's hands from his throat. The kitten's tail wrapped around Lee's neck and began choking the boy. An adult cat jumped into the water and interrupted the fight.
"You both lost! You fell in the water, that means you fell out of the battlefield!" said the cat.
"It's one of the Dust Batons," hissed the cat.
"The Dustbats want a beating again. Do you want to fight? Let's fight!" shouted Ripped Ear.
But the competitors didn't want to start a fight. They had no chance of winning. That nasty Hard and Fast was too strong an opponent. Everyone had seen videos of his fights.
Several kittens from the Dust bats Gang left the company at the pond shore.
Lee Long was able to finish his description of the hunt. And made everyone present laugh,
"We had old snake meat for dinner. It was delicious but tough on our teeth."
The ferin laughed and began joking about people's weaknesses.
The adult cat crouched down next to the boy. His words came out softly,
"Are you ready to take part in the new competition? I'll be interested in making some bets."
"I watched a video online. I have a good commercial. You won't win many credits. I have a special offer for you."
Cracked Bone squinted his eyes and waited for the sequel. The boy didn't say much but said enough,
"A serious proposition. Serious business. Serious amounts."
The cat stood up and invited the boy in,
"Hard and fast. Come with me to the cafe. I'll buy you some milk and sweets. You can treat your friends."
Lee Long appreciated the invitation. He got up and followed the cat. On a mushroom hat, they entered the establishment and walked to the far wall. Cracked Bone sat down at the table and invited the boy to sit beside him,
"Sit down and talk."
Lee did not sit in the chair. He walked close to the cat and whispered,
"Many are interested in the ferin tree. I, too, am interested in the ferin tree. I have one ability."
He took a step back and retrieved a bag of milk from his inventory.
Cracked Bone couldn't believe his eyes. He shook his head and hissed,
"That's impossible. How did you do that? Is this some kind of trick? You hid the bag in the hunter's suit!"
The boy didn't mince words. He unbuttoned the neck of the suit and lowered it to the ground. Now he stood before the cat completely naked. Lee felt no embarrassment or shyness. The Ferin did not understand the concept of nudity. They had no prohibition against body nudity. A new bag of milk appeared in the boy's hands. Lee put the bag on the table and put on his suit. He sat down at the table and took one bag. Delicious and cold milk is so good and nice on a hot day.
The cat blinked and mumbled an assumption,
"Impossible. Humans don't have the magic of Extension. You don't look like a half-breed. One of your ancestors from the Gangaru race? Ugh! I can't believe it. Humans are such strange creatures."
"The galaxy is full of strangeness. My ancestors are decent people. I can do this magic. Extension magic is a mystery to humans. I don't know how to work this magic. I'm a little novice at magic. I can do it for a start."
Lee Long reached out and took the milk bag. The next moment the bag was gone from the table.
The little duelist watched the cat's face with pleasure. He did not deny himself the pleasure and punished the scoundrel. Questioning the virtues of Lee Long's ancestors? That's very rude.
"You have insulted my ancestors. You lose your portion of milk!" said the boy with a look of insulted dignity.
Cracked Bone remained silent and stared at the little wonder with renewed interest. Thoughts and details of possible deals flashed through the cat's mind. A plan began to take shape in his mind. He quietly asked a question,
"How much can you hide? Is it safe and secure? Can you get past the checkpoint?"
"I haven't dealt with this stuff. I can hide about 20 cubic meters. That's 20 universal galactic volume measures. A cube with a side length of one step. Weight matters! I can carry 200 kilograms."
The cat waved his paw and got up from his chair. He went to the bar and returned with a pitcher of drink.
"You drink your human milk. Now I need to drink toxic milk right away. Boy, I ain't no savage. I know your weight measures. I didn't mean to offend you. I've slept with human females. It was... fun. We enjoyed it. Now I feel uncomfortable in front of my ancestors. You're right when you said the galaxy is full of strangeness."
Cracked Bone took a sip from the pitcher and closed his eyes.
200 kilograms of ferin wood. If you smuggle the goods across the border of the sector, you can earn a great sum. "But how do you arrange a pass into a foreign sector for a little human boy?"
"Will you be able to be away from home for a couple of days? Won't that cause problems?" asked the cat.
"Two days' absence is the maximum. I am obligated to be at the colony tomorrow night. I have healer duty at the hospital."
"That's great news. I can make you an invitation to the tribe at the border of the sector. It's only a couple of dozen hours' flight to Bregan. Hard and fast are you in?"
Lee Long rubbed his nose and stated his claim,
"First let's discuss the terms of profit sharing. How much credit do I get?"