"Can I hug her?" I pointed straight at the cat girl, startling both her and the other women. "Go ahead!" the blonde boy said with a big grin, giving me a thumbs-up from his bondage. I tore off the vines wrapped around her and scooped her into my arms like a fluffy doll. She was so soft and fuzzy, her cheeks, her ears, her tail, everything about her was just unreal! She squirmed at first, clearly not used to being hugged , but eventually, she gave in and started enjoying the petting. "Uhm... we also need saving..." the elf muttered under her breath, "Without the sexual harassment, of course." "How rude!" I snapped back, still gently rubbing the cat girl’s belly. "I’m just playing with her respectfully! Sure, there are things I’d like to do, but I’m holding back—she’s not actually a cat doll, after all!" "Don’t listen to Irene, Hero!" the blonde boy chimed in, "After what you did for us, I’ll even sell her to you!" So... she’s not going to be free, huh? Levi eventually arrived on the scene. "Now, as my Lord has saved you," she looked down at them, her gaze unflinching, "what, excluding the cat, do you have as an offering to him? Depending on your answer, you might end up as dessert for some very large rats in a village not too far from here." The women flinched, clearly anxious not to say anything that could be taken the wrong way. Yet their leader remained as cheerful as ever. "What the hell!" he exclaimed with a grin. "Giant rats?! You’re not talking about those stubborn Hell rats that live alongside the isolated Nor-dwarves, are you?" "They are precisely what I’m referring to," Levi replied with a nod. "We’ll give you all our money! Just take us to see one!" the blonde leader exclaimed, shocking his party. "Wait... Nico! How are we going to survive if we do that?!" the elf, whose name I think was Irene, scolded him. Nico turned to her, a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "So naïve, Irene dear. If they actually take us to meet the rare-as-hell Nor-dwarves, we could come back with powerful, one-of-a-kind equipment. Maybe even some food if we beg well enough." Nico, please... keep those ulterior motives locked away in your insidious little mind. Apparently, Nico was an adventurer, and his harem was made up of his party members. "Levi, I think we just met the protagonist of TSP. So it wasn’t me after all." Levi had no idea what I was talking about. She didn’t have any forbidden memories, it seemed. {You shouldn’t have, either.} Anyway, the group had apparently come all the way out here in search of rare monsters. They’d hoped to cash in by selling off the monster parts, but due to their greed, they wandered too deep into the Hades Border. In the end, they were kidnapped by Kaiserfoot, and on top of that, they lost all their equipment in the process. "I believe I saw an adventurer-looking trio yesterday," I said, holding my chin thoughtfully. "They struck me as a bunch of reckless idiots with no regard for their own safety." "Ah, that sounds like us!" Nico beamed. "No. It’s just you, Nico," the elf replied flatly. "No, it wasn’t you guys I saw," I said. "One was a blonde woman. The others were a fat man and someone with their hair tied back." It turned out those three were actually well-known... famous for being fools,. apparently. And their names? Blonde, Chubby, and Ponytail. How unbelievably generic. Levi released the others and emptied their pockets, taking all the money they had left. The elf looked visibly upset, unable to stop glancing at the tyrant’s hand full of coins. Levi was being a dictator again. And since Nico seemed happy to be extorted, I found it awkward to step in. Well, the least I could do was invite them to the village for the festival. It was actually a fun festival, if we ignore the reason for the event. "I’m Ruben, by the way," I introduced myself to them as we walked out of the cave. "That bully over there is Levina." "It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Levi bowed politely. "Please, continue to be good friends with Master Raven." "Master Raven?" The adventurers raised a brow in confusion. Right. Levi decided to call me Raven since Alicia already called me Ruby. I better explain before things get awkward. "Haha, one would almost connect the name to Ravenwood, the evil Dark Fenrir those town folks worship, right?" "O-Of course not," I quickly waved a hand to dismiss the notion. "Raven is just a nickname Levina gave me, since she’s, uh, yeah, a fan of the Dark Fenrir. Right, Levina?" "No..." She closed her eyes and took a soft breath, suddenly growing serious. "I call you Master Raven because of your deep black hair—dark as the Abyss. It reminds me of the Raven... of the night. I love the night, if you have noticed. So, I call you that because I love you with all my heart. It’s a symbolism to me." I... I didn’t know. I thought she just shortened my original name... That was kinda... touchi— (How was that save, Master Raven?! I made sure not to tell them that I just shortened your original name!) (...Hm. Sure. Nice acting though. Had me fooled too.) Okay, Levi is a bundle of dictatorship! "Ah, wait!" Nico perked up. "If Levina calls you ’Master,’ does that mean you’re a guy?" "What’s with that?! Of course I’m a guy... technically...!" Damn Pluto! Giving me this misunderstanding form! It’s androgynous! Not feminine! And I actually had to fight with all my strength to stop him from turning me into this beautiful woman with big breasts and thighs! Ah, the trauma... As we talked and walked out of the cave, Nico said he never realized there was another... world beneath the one above, and he always wondered how many adventurers had failed to discover Kaiserfoot’s hideout through the centuries. "About this Ravenwood cult..." Levi began to fish for information. But before I’d join the gist, I noticed Felina walk closer to me. She was quite short, and that made it nigh impossible not to want to pat her—so I indulged again. Rubbing her softness all over my body, I felt completely revitalized! It seems she initially thought I was female, which must be why she let me pet her so freely. But now that she knows I’m actually a guy... she still lets me touch her either way! Hurray for cat girls. I know what you’re probably thinking. "How in the world is a wolf this attracted to a cat?" That’s rude! Because that’s basically calling me a dog! Like I’ve stated many times already, I’m not some ordinary animal. In fact, I’m more of a demigod, if we’re being honest. Both of my parents are essentially gods: the golden Fenrir and the silver Fenrir. I’ve only seen them a handful of times in my life. My father? Maybe just once or twice. I only remember him because he had radiant golden fur. Mother left me in the care of the Asgardian gods when I was still very young. I haven’t seen her since then. So no, I am not some mindless creature like Dearth always implies.