Ace was excited. He was finally sending a divine body down as an incarnate to meet Rino. Of course, he wasn't going to expose his identity. Hence, the best identity to assume was an animal. Negotiating with Rino might be impossible, but tempting him will work. It was just how curious minds were programmed.
Rino, who was still in the middle of weighing his options, heard a loud sound coming from his traps in the forest. Cout it be...?
The lich did not wait and took off running. Thankfully, it was now night, and he did not have to worry about the sun rays. He hurried over, using his shadow tendrils to carry him by the ankles and float over. For something to make such a loud sound, it must be a very big catch!
Ace wasn't expecting such a rough arrival. If anything, he thought he would be slightly more graceful with his choice of incarnate. Unfortunately, he did not have much time to complain about the rough landing. His target was already approaching. The God of Prayers had to put up a good show.
From above, Ark was impressed. Ace's divine body was still sitting by the reflecting pond, but his soul wasn't present. Stephanie looked over at her sleeping rival and wondered if he would kill her if she took this opportunity for petty revenge. Then again, her brother and Phil were present. It would be too petty to draw on Ace's face in their presence. She would wait for the opportunity to present itself instead of acting hastily.
Everyone held their breath at the reflecting pond. Rino was getting closer to where Ace was. They wondered how the first encounter would play out. Will their last hope be able to successfully change Rino's mind and work with them?
Whatever creature Rino was expecting to catch, he wasn't expecting to see such a small animal. Why would an animal as small as this dark furball cause such a huge din? It even destroyed his traps. Could this be the true boss monster in the forest?
A pair of glowing green eyes peered into the hollow eye sockets of an undead. The staredown lasted long, with neither opponent willing to make the first move. From the outside, it looked tense. However, for the Gods sitting by the reflecting pool, they could not understand what they were hearing.
"T-this beautiful coat of black cuticles... those shiny jewel-like eyes, that playful flick of its tail and those terribly pink, soft paws! I-It's a real cat!" Rino almost couldn't breathe.
Wait, he wasn't even capable of breathing in the first place. However, the sight of his secret crush standing before him made the lich feel as if his non-existent heart was about to explode! How could there also be cats in this world?! All hail the feline species!
Ace was slightly crept out after hearing Rino's silent monologue and wanted to take a step back. However, he now knew one more of Rino's weaknesses. It was time to exploit it.
"Meow!" the black cat taunted and sneezed, conjuring a whirl of darkness below its shadow.
Rino was stunned. Are cats usually capable of magic? He didn't think so. However, this cat belonged to a different world. Maybe they were more magically talented. It was not a secret that some monsters in his previous world were capable of learning and using magic. Perhaps the same could be said about cats of this world. After all, they were a superior species in just about everything from intelligence, grace, cuteness and even laziness. He respected cats and adored them so much that he regretted not being able to find a way to cure his hyper allergy to fur in his previous life to own a hundred of them.
In this life, he had the immunity of a lich and the power on an undead. Nothing was going to stop him from befriending cats!
Ace leisurely liked his paws and listened to Rino hyperventilate at his action almost in the same way an event commenter would when they saw their favourite gladiator appear in the colosseum. He had an idea. There might be a change in plan, but it was more favourable to Ace now that he had a very powerful card to play.
"Meow!" Ace called out once more and flicked his tail, brushing it past Rino's shinbone and made small shadow teleports towards the direction of the mud hut.
Rino followed, trembling ever so often from excitement and disbelief as if he was in a trance. A CAT was walking around on his land and making itself comfortable in his house!
When he reached Rino's mud hut, the first thing Ace did was to claim the poorly made mattress as his. Rino watched as he circled and kneaded the cotton lumps before curling up and yawning deliberately.
From the reflecting pond, Stephanie raised a brow. "What is he doing?"
Ark shrugged. He had no idea what kind of negotiation technique this was, but he had complete faith in Ace.
"Perhaps it is a way to mentally disarm Rino so that he could ease the terms into the negotiation," Phil offered a helpful reply.
Compared to earlier, Rino appeared to be a lot more honest and willing to do things. He just didn't know what Ace would do now that he had Rino's attention and unadulterated adoration as a cat.
Rino was still thinking about ways to please this cat when he heard a voice in his head.
"What are you standing there for, dumb undead? Go fetch me something to eat!"
Stunned, Rino froze. What was that? It sounded nothing like the system's messages of divine voices. If anything, the voice sounded rather young but arrogant. He could not tell the gender, but his suspicions were confirmed when the cat cracked an eye open from his mattress.
"What? Cat got your tongue? No pun intended, skelly. Never heard a cat talk before?"
This time, there was no mistaking it. The cat was using the same skill he had. It was using thought projection.
"I must say, I was surprised. You had me fooled there thinking you were an ordinary cat. Since when did cats know how to use magic proficiently?" Rino thought back.
Ace smirked, looking sinister as his pupils dilated in excitement. "For an insignificant undead, you sure know how to talk back.
Rino laughed with his teeth chattering noisily. "An insignificant undead, you say? I'm afraid you're mistaken. I'm a lich and also a very powerful magician."
This time, Ace attacked Rino's sore spot. "A powerful magician? You don't even compare close to my master. What kind of magician are you if you cannot even teleport? You even had to walk to catch up to me."
When Rino found out that the cat had a master who was a magician. He paused. This cat... while its background was suspicious and mysterious, it might be just what Rino needed now.
"Dark magic... is not my strongest. I can use water, fire and earth magic fairly well."
The cat scratched behind its ear with a leg and lazily glanced at the mud hut.
"You call this fairly well? You don't even have a fireplace in here. It's freezing at night, and your house is not made from brick! The mattress is lumpy, and cotton is slipping from the gaps at the sides. My master may be poor and sloppy, but at least she had better standards than you!"
Getting up, Ace walked to the door. "That's it. I thought that I might find a new master, but you're such a mess. It's painful to even look at you. I'm leaving."
Stunned and filled with a sense of urgency, Rino quickly called out to the cat. "Wait! Don't go yet! If I build a better house from bricks and a fireplace, will you stay?"
The black cat glanced back. "I'll consider it. It's too cold to be here tonight, so I'm leaving. The new fireplace and house had better be done in three days, or I will never return."
With a sneeze, the cat summoned a shadow beneath its feet that consumed him, leaving only a few black strands of fur behind as evidence of its presence.
Rino looked at his daily quests. To hell with it! For the sake of winning the cat over, he would do it!
Back in heaven, Ace opened his eyes and groaned. "Can you give me a better landing next time? My incarnate almost died before I could meet Rino."
Ark patted Ace on the head and praised him for the job well done. Already, they saw how Rino geared up with all his woven baskets on the teleportation pad, jumping over to the clay mine to gather the materials he needed for the kiln.