Cat 107: Falling from the Sky

Chapter 107: Falling from the Sky

【Want to Be Human】 Stream:

“Hahahaha, oh my god, do you think that big Level 4 streamer wants to kill Kitty now to cover up his black history?!”

“God, this is tragic, but it’s just so comical! I was just worried if the monster would eat them, and then we get this scene—it totally wiped out my tension.”

“I’m going over to check out that guy’s stream—I want a taste of their fear and suspense.”

“Don’t bother, I just came back from there. The audience is already laughing themselves silly! I hear this is the unluckiest he’s ever been.”

“A normal player wouldn’t ruin the mood like that after something like this.”

“But our Kitty never does things normally. I only feel any tension when he’s soloing—whenever he’s with others, I just can’t be tense. Like last instance with the big white tiger—never suspected Kitty’s identity. If they run into him after leaving the instance, he’ll die of embarrassment.”

“You don’t really realize it until you sum it up, but it’s true: players with a good heart who meet Kitty always get out smoothly, those with bad intentions usually don’t make it out at all.”

Yan Jiyun waited until the monster’s thick belly stopped moving before climbing down from the tree. He walked up to the still rigid Chu Mo.

He asked worriedly, “Are you all right?” He realized he shouldn’t mock a teammate who’d fought alongside him and, with a rare pang of conscience, spent some points on a towel and water for him. “Here, clean up.”

Once inside an instance, item prices doubled. Since his temporary teammate had paid for the sword, he’d buy the towel and water—face needed washing first, the other mess could be dealt with at a river.

Chu Mo took the towel and immediately scrubbed at his face. “Quick, rinse me off. The smell is killing me.”

Yan Jiyun poured water over his head. It wasn’t much, mostly just getting the blood off his face—a barely effective effort.

Chu Mo had just wiped his face clean when he lurched over to a tree and began vomiting.

Yan Jiyun quietly stepped back a bit—the sight was making him nauseous, too.

He heard the sound of running water somewhere nearby, though it was at a distance no ordinary person would hear. He decided to wait for his teammate to finish throwing up before finding a reason to lead him to a stream.

There was nothing Yan Jiyun could do to stop Chu Mo from vomiting.

Only when Chu Mo had retched nearly all his guts out did he open the shop to buy more water to pour over his head, then stripped off his filthy clothes on the spot and changed into a fresh set of camouflage gear. The way he spent points, like it was nothing, deeply impressed and honestly humbled Yan Jiyun.

While Chu Mo changed, Yan Jiyun studied the corpse of the monster, poking it with a branch. “Tough hide, thick flesh—what even is this thing?”

Chu Mo, still rinsing his mouth, soul almost gone, huffed, “No idea. Disgusting.” He was not one to forgive easily. “Did you…laugh just now?”

Yan Jiyun chose not to answer. Balancing on a branch, he peered down at the monster. Sprawled out, it looked like a small hill, something you’d never grasp from ground level.

Awkwardly, he changed the topic. “Doesn’t it look kind of…human?”

Chu Mo had no desire to look at it again. Before the championship, he’d always walked away as soon as he killed a monster—it turned his stomach. But seeing Yan Jiyun’s interest, he glanced briefly as well. “It does, a little.”

The thing ate people and stank revoltingly. After a moment of looking, they decided to leave.

Their bicycles were done for—they’d have to walk.

Not knowing if more monsters might appear on the main road, Yan Jiyun suggested, “Let’s go through the woods. You’ll also have a chance to wash off in a stream later.”

Chu Mo would’ve refused the detour, but the prospect of a bath swayed him instantly. He did have a bit of a cleanliness compulsion—why else spend so many points cleaning up? But the points were all hard-won, so it didn’t pain him.

Yan Jiyun led Chu Mo through the woods for about two kilometers until they found the stream. Chu Mo tested the water’s cleanliness before jumping in for a quick wash.

Yan Jiyun rested nearby and checked his trial card’s remaining duration while his teammate bathed.

His time was almost up, so he rapidly added another hour.

If he didn’t make it to Angel City before nightfall—thanks to the monsters of Demon Forest—he’d be done for. Once the card ran out, he’d be stuck in his cat form, and who knew in which stage his true form might be exposed? He had to hurry.

For him, this game was doubly, triply hard—not only did he need to hide his true form, he also had to compete with so many higher-level players.

Chu Mo enjoyed his bath, even redeeming disposable shampoo and body wash.

He invited Yan Jiyun, “This water’s nice and cold, really refreshing! Come on in, wash off the morning grime.”

Yan Jiyun declined, having already changed his bloody clothes and scrubbed his hands; there was no scent of monster blood left on him.

Chu Mo didn’t linger either. He finished quickly and got out, properly clean this time and without the splotched, battered face—a natural look, easily trusted by strangers.

Yan Jiyun noticed that standing together, they looked like a pair of college freshmen.

Just as they were about to leave, they heard a heavy object fall into water somewhere in the woods.

They were upstream, in a shallow part of the creek. Downstream, the water likely pooled into a small lake—whatever had dropped in must have hit the water with some force.

With a glance at each other, they decided to check it out.

Yan Jiyun: “Let’s go take a look.”

Chu Mo: “All right.”

They followed the direction of the splash. Though it had sounded close, the walk was a good two kilometers along the creek before they spotted something white lying in the water.

Both slowed, approaching carefully. In the center of the stream lay a white horse—complete with wings.

Chu Mo crouched beside the horse, whose eyes were closed. “Is this a…pegasus?”

Yan Jiyun prodded it with his stick. “Looks like it. First time seeing a real one, at that. Beautiful creature.”

Chu Mo shook his head; this pegasus was a goner. “A pegasus fell from the sky, but where’s its rider? Only ten players were given pegasi, right?”

Yan Jiyun had the same question. He looked up and saw, high in the sky, several black shadows circling and cawing.

Having been focused on dealing with ground monsters, neither had paid attention to the noises in the air.

Yan Jiyun pointed up, “Maybe those things knocked the riders down.”

Chu Mo followed his gaze. “Looks like it. So, monsters don’t just show up on the ground—plenty above, too.”

Yan Jiyun: “The system’s transportation props were just to mislead us. In the end, everyone’s on foot to Angel City.”

The pegasus was dead from its fall. As for the player who rode it—dead or alive, there was no sound or movement for kilometers around. The two tacitly began searching the surrounding area for any sign of fallen players.

No sign of anyone, conscious or otherwise. But no death notification from the system had sounded, so the rider wasn’t dead yet.

Yan Jiyun could already imagine the gleeful bulletin: Player XXX fell to their death from the sky—how tragic~

Wait, Shoveler had also been riding a pegasus… Had he suffered the same fate?

If he also fell from the sky, would he be badly injured?

Yan Jiyun felt a spike of worry. Nearly twenty players had already died just from falling at the start.

He found an open spot and looked up; the white pegasi in the sky were weaving to avoid what looked like birds—possibly eagles, though he couldn’t tell for sure. Whatever they were, they resembled the monsters on the ground.

Chu Mo squinted up as well. “Whatever those are, they’re attacking. I thought the riders would just sail smoothly to Angel City. Guess not.”

Yan Jiyun said, “As long as they can handle these monsters, they should be fine. Unless there are more waves ahead.”

Chu Mo went instantly on alert. “Think there are more monsters in the woods?”

No way the game would let them off so easy.

A mere handful of monsters hardly earned the name “Demon Forest.”

Yan Jiyun shook his head. “No idea. Let’s keep looking for anyone who fell from a pegasus.”

He was really worried it was Shoveler.

Chu Mo wasn’t eager to waste time. “Why bother?”

Yan Jiyun couldn’t reveal his real motives. “To get information. The more we know, the safer we’ll be, especially in a monster-infested forest.”

Chu Mo conceded. That made sense, at least. Going to Angel City alone wouldn’t necessarily mean fewer monsters—so he might as well follow his teammate for now.

“All right, let’s look.”

Yan Jiyun nodded calmly, though he just wanted to make sure Shoveler was safe.

They circled the area around the pegasus but found no trace of its rider; perhaps they’d landed safely out of earshot.

Just then, less than five hundred meters away, a scream came from the sky—a woman’s voice. Distinct, unmistakable.

A person and their pegasus plummeted from above.

This time it was not just one but two pegasi falling; above, a new flock of black birds had appeared, all attacking.

It seemed the most dangerous option had been to ride a pegasus after all.

If he’d left the forest any earlier and gotten a pegasus, he’d probably be dead by now. At the start of the instance, there’d at least been a parachute—now, you had to purchase a special item to avoid splattering yourself on the ground.

Chu Mo sighed, “That’s rough.”

Yan Jiyun’s face was calm, but inwardly he was anxious. The top ten riders were all close together; Shoveler must be among those being attacked.

Chu Mo had no teammates among the pegasus riders—otherwise he wouldn’t be standing here so unconcerned.

“Yeah.”

The players falling from the sky reached terrifying speed. The pegasi crashed into the woods with a splash, their riders tumbled after. Still, there was no death notice from the system.

The female player had survived—it seemed she’d used an item.

The game was siphoning points from the players. The more they spent early on, the more the competition would intensify as the numbers thinned and points dwindled.

They decided to stay put for now, watching the aerial assaults.

Soon, more players and pegasi continued falling from the sky.

One after another, none managed to break free of the black birds.

Yan Jiyun sighed: Pegasus, all show and no substance. If only it could breathe fire, players wouldn’t be getting knocked down like this.

Chu Mo watched with a “let’s-see-what-happens” attitude, craning his neck but unwilling to look away.

Chu Mo: “Down to the last one… Wonder if he’ll make it.”

Chu Mo: “That pegasus is flying lower and lower—looks like it’s about to give out.”

Chu Mo: “Worse off than us, honestly.”

Yan Jiyun was inwardly frantic—he couldn’t make out who was left in the sky, but if there was only one player, Qi Feng must have fallen, too.

Chu Mo continued narrating.

Chu Mo: “Nope, not gonna make it. That pegasus is dropping lower by the second.”

Chu Mo: “It’s hurt—about to fall.”

Chu Mo: “No one is coming to the rescue.”

Chu Mo: “Damn, up there, we don’t even have a chance to intervene. That guy’s coming down!”

Yan Jiyun kept his eyes on the last plummeting player. “I doubt the game ever meant for us to use the vehicles to fly out. Maybe going on foot was always the true path.”

All ten had fallen from the air—one of them had to be Qi Feng!

At least, there was still no death notice from the system.

As the last rider hit the ground, Yan Jiyun hopped off his vantage rock. “Let’s go find them.”

Chu Mo squinted suspiciously. “You’re not thinking of…”

Yan Jiyun raised an eyebrow. “Of what?”

Chu Mo eyed him. “Strike while the iron’s hot?”

Yan Jiyun was only after Shoveler, but Chu Mo had no obligation to help him. It was one thing to help when the first player fell, but now, all ten had come down—it was hard to justify, unless they intended to loot the wounded.

Whatever answer he gave now risked suspicion.

Yan Jiyun stepped back. “So that’s what you think, huh?”

Chu Mo wasn’t dumb. His temp teammate’s insistence on finding people was suspicious. “If you think so, then I have to ask—why do you really want to find them?”

Yan Jiyun stuck by his original reason. “To get information. I don’t want to die in this game without knowing why.”

Chu Mo fell silent for two seconds. “Fine. I’ll trust you this once.”

“Believe it or not.” Yan Jiyun shrugged. The trouble with teaming up, especially with a veteran, was the inevitable trust deficit—their vigilance was worlds beyond that of a new player.

Chu Mo, persuaded by the “for information” angle, continued teaming up.

Truth was, Yan Jiyun was leading the way the entire time.

The fallen pegasi hadn’t landed far off.

Given the flight path, Angel City would be in that direction. It made sense to follow.

A while later, they came across another crashed pegasus—no other sounds of movement nearby.

Chu Mo tutted at the dead pegasus. “What a waste of such a fine beast.”

Yan Jiyun approached and stroked its neck. Aside from the wings and larger stature, it was just like any regular horse.

The first pegasus they’d seen hadn’t been badly wounded—mostly just battered by the fall. But the impact from such a height was still fatal. This pegasus, though, seemed to have wounds from sharp weapons rather than bird beaks.

Yan Jiyun felt at its neck—a slight breath, eyelids half-open. “Not dead yet.”

Chu Mo asked, “You’re not going to try saving it, are you?”

Along with lacerations, the pegasus had sticky traces from colliding with trees.

Yan Jiyun, rubbing his chin, said, “You just said it was a pity. And it’s not dead.”

Chu Mo looked at him like he was an idiot, rolling his eyes. A fool, surely? Who helps the animals in a place like this?

Maybe it was time to break their temporary partnership now.

As Chu Mo hesitated, Yan Jiyun sensed the pegasus’s fierce will to live—an animal’s intuition.

The pegasus looked at Yan Jiyun and tears streamed down.

Chu Mo noticed too. “It’s…crying.”

Yan Jiyun nodded, “Yeah.”

Chu Mo cursed inwardly. A veteran of countless scenarios and he was actually tempted to help save this thing!

Yan Jiyun pushed the decision to him. “Save it or not?”

Chu Mo could see his teammate’s eyes didn’t actually hold excess pity—he suspected even if he refused, Yan Jiyun would do it anyway. If they disagreed, they’d probably part ways, and he wasn’t in the mood for that quite yet.

Yeah—mostly, he didn’t want to go alone, and saving a pegasus didn’t seem all that problematic.

Chu Mo gritted his teeth. “All right, let’s save it. Might turn out useful.”

Yan Jiyun had his own reason for helping—the pegasus bore Qi Feng’s scent.

Qi Feng must have fallen too, but there was no sign of him, no human blood—likely, they’d separated during their fall.

He prayed nothing happened to his Shoveler. That was his golden ticket!

Yan Jiyun checked the pegasus: legs fine, just surface wounds. It was conscious, so internal organs should be safe.

He bought medicine and bandages—thanks to Dr. Peng from the last instance, he knew a thing or two. He stopped the bleeding, then began bandaging it up.

Chu Mo watched, clicking his tongue. “Were you a vet?”

Yan Jiyun: “Sort of, but not exactly. Don’t just watch—help me lift its body so I can get this wrapped.”

Chu Mo had no choice but to help. What if the pegasus really was a shortcut to passing?

When they finished, the tears stopped. The pegasus struggled, then stood up.

Its wings were damaged too—Yan Jiyun could only splint one with a branch.

Suddenly, Chu Mo slapped his thigh: “Shame, really. I’ve never tried pegasus meat before. Should’ve butchered that first one—would’ve saved on food points, anyway.”

Yan Jiyun swallowed. Just talking about it made him hungry. “Not a bad idea. Want to go back?”

Chu Mo was so thrown by his partner: saving a pegasus one moment, wanting to eat it the next. Was this guy naïve or pretending?

【Want to Be Human】 Stream:

“I bet Kitty’s hungry—he normally eats six small meals a day.”

“I wonder if pegasus tastes good? I’ve heard it’s a bit sour?”

“This dog teammate has been completely baffled by Kitty! I’m dying!”

“Come to think of it, I don’t recall any player ever helping an animal during the championship. Kitty’s got a real soft spot.”

“Must be ‘side effects’ from the last scenario. It’s only been a few days, not enough time to recover—the more time you spend with animals, the more attached you get. I get why he’d save the pegasus.”

After tending the pegasus, Yan Jiyun had only about three thousand points left.

He stroked its white mane. “Come on, horse, lead the way.”

The pegasus seemed to understand and, after finding its bearings, began walking through the forest.

Chu Mo: “…” Is this legal?

He’d used NPCs before—but never animal NPCs.

Yan Jiyun hurried alongside the pegasus, whispering, “Quick, take me to the person who was riding you.”

Chu Mo, trailing behind, thought his teammate just had a soft spot for animals. After all this time in the game, it was rare to see anyone so kind.

【Let’s Hide-A-Little】 Stream:

“Doggy’s gone quiet—does he feel outclassed?”

“I’ve been watching Doggie stream for years, but I’ve never seen him interact with animal NPCs. Who would waste time saving an NPC in such a cutthroat game? I don’t get why he’s still teaming with that newbie. Wouldn’t solo be better? The other guy’s an idiot.”

“Right? It’s infuriating. Why bother? They should be rushing Angel City before dark, not wasting time patching up NPCs.”

“But you forget, their teamwork against the pointed-head monster was flawless.”

“Doggie could have managed it on his own without the newbie anyway.”

“I say they should split up ASAP!”

“What’s the point, they can’t read our comments anyway.”

Yan Jiyun was desperate to confirm Qi Feng’s safety. The pegasus clearly understood him and led the way into the forest, ultimately stopping at the edge of a cliff.

Chu Mo muttered inwardly—a useless pegasus, all right. Was it lost, or bringing them to a dead end?

As he grumbled, he saw his teammate suddenly dash to the edge. Chu Mo jumped, startled. “Hey, what are you doing?!”

Yan Jiyun didn’t hear him at all. He’d spotted Qi Feng, unconscious, tangled in vines and slipping ever lower over the cliff’s edge.

A few minutes later, and Qi Feng would fall.