"Meow…"
Elysia Cat stared at the one-seventh-scale cat-tail artifact, her watery eyes filled with indecision.
"Inori-chan Meow Meow."
"Fairy Cat."
"Fairy Cat's Tail."
…
She thought of many names but was not satisfied with any of them. Naming a tail was just hard. Cute names and pretty names all felt weird.
And this was Inori's gift.
The pink piggy cat, who was supposedly good at naming things, fell into deep 고민.
Meanwhile, Inori lay on the hospital bed and opened the Cat System.
According to the Cat System operation log.
She had obtained four achievements so far: Mysterious Killer, Pilgrimage to the Divine Engine, Pioneer of the Stars, and Impulse of Destruction. Each granted 400 cat biscuits.
Her total balance reached 4,000 cat biscuits.
Twenty-five pulls.
That was a number that could yield an SSR in any gacha game. Inori considered herself neither particularly lucky nor unlucky, so she opened the Shop first.
She would not buy anything. She still wanted to pull new cats.
Unless something like a Scepter, Rupert Empire Differential Engine, or Anti-Organic Equation showed up.
[Scepter φ-ln7 Computational Coordination Unit]
[1,600 cat biscuits]
"Matter is building blocks, energy is a puzzle. Starting from particles, assembling step by step. A Scepter whose computational power could overturn an entire galaxy. Unfortunately, this is only a tiny fragment of that scepter."
"Purchasing this artifact increases the Cat System's computational power."
"After the increase, new functions may unlock. Or they may not. The Cat System cannot confirm due to insufficient computational power."
Inori: (⊙_⊙)
It really was a Scepter!
She was tempted, but the imperial scepter was extremely dangerous. What new functions the Cat System might unlock was completely unknown, and 1,600 cat biscuits were hard to save up. She suppressed the urge to buy it.
[Star Rail Express Pass]
[1,600 cat biscuits]
"A direct ticket to the Astral Express. Records the coordinates of a specific world and is suitable for passengers with clear destinations."
"After use, the next gacha pull is guaranteed to draw a Honkai: Star Rail cat. The probability of Nameless faction cats increases. This item is destroyed after activation."
Massive value. An instant buy.
All cats in the Cat System gacha were five-star. In other words, ten pulls guaranteed one, so pulling anything was a win.
This shop refresh was absurdly strong.
Inori nearly bought both items, but in the end she only purchased the Star Rail Express Pass, temporarily giving up on the Scepter unit.
She was a cautious person.
The imperial scepter was different from ordinary scepters. It was driven by an anti-life equation and specialized in simulating countless paths of civilization destruction. It was a weapon among weapons.
Even as a mere component, it was extremely dangerous.
Even though it appeared in the Cat System shop with notes claiming it could boost computational power, it was still the Cat System. It gave her a strange sense of "Will we win? Nah will win," right before everything collapsed.
If she was going to mess with it, she decided to do so under Herta's watch. That way, if the Cat System crashed, at least someone could take responsibility.
After browsing the Cat System, Inori opened her eyes.
"I have decided! It will be called Inori-chan Meow Meow!"
Elysia Cat shoved her head close to Inori's face.
"What a weird name."
"Naming a tail is too hard, meow! I really tried, but I could not think of anything cute!"
Inori blinked.
"Ah, did I not tell you? This thing can actually change its appearance."
"Huh?"
"It can turn into a cat plush, a cat-paw badge, or even a matching hairpin. Haha, what is that look for? The tail is just the easiest to hold and hardest to lose!"
"Meow!"
Elysia Cat grabbed Inori's face with her paws and leaned close.
"That is such important information! Why did you not tell me earlier, meow!"
"Is that really so important? (⊙_⊙)"
"Very important, meow!"
Elysia emphasized.
"It is just like girls shopping for clothes. If you can see different looks, maybe inspiration for a super cute name will strike, meow!"
Blind spot.
For Inori, who had transitioned from being a boy to being a girl, this was undeniably still a blind spot.
Sixteen years had passed.
She still did not understand why girls loved shopping so much, or why they kept changing outfits.
Honestly, even though her family bought her plenty of clothes, her favorites were still shorts and T-shirts, or long pants and long sleeves. Dresses and yukata were just too hard to wear.
Inori: (O_o)
Being complained at by the pink piggy cat, Inori made a face she usually only saw on the pink piggy cat when studying.
At that moment, the door opened.
"Oh, you are awake, Kiyono!"
She heard a familiar voice. The girl at the door removed her hat, mask, and glasses, revealing her face.
Misumi Uika.
Inori did not interact much with her at school. On one hand, there was that infamous scene burned into everyone's DNA. On the other, Uika rarely attended class.
Golden. Sparkling.
Judging by appearance alone, when she was not going crazy over Sakiko, Miss Uika fit those traits perfectly.
"Thank you. Were you the one who brought me here? I appreciate it."
Inori smiled politely, though her expression was a bit subtle.
"Ahaha, I just happened to be there. It was nothing special."
Growing up in a blended family, Uika was good at reading the room. She noticed the girl's unease. Whenever she talked to Inori, Inori always wore this kind of expression.
"Oh, right! When the ambulance arrived, I noticed a Chinese restaurant nearby. After handling the paperwork, I thought you probably had not eaten yet, so I bought an extra portion. Let's eat together later."
As she spoke, the blonde girl lifted the plastic bag in her hand.
"Tada! Delicious meat buns and egg drop soup, plus a few side dishes. You are okay with Chinese food, right? During history class today, you seemed really knowledgeable about it, so I got inspired. Sorry if I overstepped."
Inori: (⊙_⊙)
My friend, are you really Misumi Uika? This feels completely different from the image I had of you.
Inori fell into thought.
She tried to recall the few times she had seen Misumi Uika attend class since the start of the semester after spring break at Hanasakigawa.
Back then, she had been anxious about magical girls and Stand users, constantly witnessing supernatural events and walking on eggshells, afraid she would get elbowed into oblivion by someone with powers.
So… she basically had no impression at all.
"Kiyono…?"
Uika waved her hand in front of her face and blinked.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Ah… nothing. I was thinking about the food."
Inori shook her head.
"Thank you so much, Misumi."
"Hmm, the kitty must be hungry too."
Uika took a small bag out of her pocket.
"These are cat treats I promised you earlier. I did not know your cat's preferences, so I bought a variety."
"Meow!"
Elysia Cat meowed at Inori, meaning, "I do not want cat treats, I want to eat with you!"
…
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Let me know if I got a name wrong. I know basically nothing about MyGO.