novelraw Chapter 15
Chapter 15
Chapter 15
"We're home, Meow-chan."
"Meow~"
In a shabby six-floor walk-up among the neon lights of the South District, Yan Huan keyed open the door to the east-facing unit. Inside waited a compact forty-square-metre flat—one room, one hall, spotless but snug.
He flicked on the corridor light, revealing a narrow galley kitchen on the left and a separate wet bath on the right.
It was already ten o'clock. The bus didn't run all the way here, so he'd had to change to the subway; that had cost him half an hour.
Meow-chan trotted into the living room, tail held high, inspecting what she'd dubbed Yan Huan's "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse."
Yan Huan dumped his bag on the sofa, hung the clean clothes in the wardrobe, and tossed the dirty shirt into the laundry basket. Then he checked his phone. Auntie Ye had just texted:
Home safe, Xiao Huan?
He smiled wryly at the banana-milk avatar and typed back:
Yep, Auntie.
Then get some rest.
You too, Auntie.
Phone down, he carried Meow-chan into the bedroom and packed tomorrow's books and laptop into his bag. After a quick sweep, a shower, and blow-drying his hair, he finally sank into bed in fresh pajamas.
Eleven-thirty.
Creak-creak.
Compared with the memory-foam mattress at Auntie Ye's place, this rental bed felt like plywood on bricks. Any movement set the frame singing; vigorous exercise would probably turn it into a drum set.
At least the walls were thick.
"A gold nest or a silver nest—still not as good as your own dog kennel," Yan Huan muttered, eyes drifting while he plugged in his phone and opened a streaming site.
Meow-chan finished her inspection, hopped onto the bed, and head-butted his arm.
"So, what do you think of the new digs?" he asked, scratching behind her ears.
"Meow~" She lifted her chin and flagged her tail, eyes shining. "Yan Huan, you really are the best candidate to fight those Systems."
He blinked. "Come again? Why the sudden flattery?"
"I just swallowed a fragment that fell from Ye Shiyu's System."
"A fragment?" He sat up, phone forgotten. "Explain."
"Remember what I told you on Friday?"
Yan Huan thought for a second. "Other-world Systems are invading, looking for hosts. You gave me a System whose perks grow as I resolve more Systems—something like that?"
"Exactly. The way those perks get stronger is by letting me devour fragments dropped by other Systems. It's past midnight now—new week, new boost. Excited?"
Yan Huan rubbed his chin, expression thoughtful rather than thrilled. "Forget the reward for a minute. How does this even work? Why did Ye Shiyu's System drop a fragment? And how does your snack make my System stronger?"
Meow-chan gave him an approving look, sat up like a beckoning-cat statue, and began.
"I told you: the cure is to make the host willingly give up her System. The host's desire to use the System is the pillar propping up that sky-castle. Just now you managed to make Ye Shiyu feel regret; she's questioning whether she should keep using it. That doubt shakes the pillar—and the castle drops fragments.
"These shards, laced with other-world energy, fall within my jurisdiction. After I process them, they become fertilizer for your System. Result: stronger perks!"
So Meow-chan had gone full Pokémon evolution. Yan Huan, gazing at her newly glossy coat, felt the same thrill as levelling up a starter.
He straightened, rubbing his hands like an over-caffeinated fly. "All right, let's see what the empress has brought me."
Still, midnight was a while away. A question occurred to him.
"Hold on—if you eating fragments powers me up, do the enemy Systems get weaker when they drop pieces?"
"Alas, no meow."
"Why not? Doesn't that break conservation of energy?"
Meow-chan gave him the look reserved for slow children, but answered anyway.
"Remember, their Systems come from an adult-oriented otherworld. They run on desire, not physics. As long as the host's craving stays strong, the System won't weaken."
"So even if they lose a mountain of fragments, the effects stay the same?"
"Correct meow."
"Fine, whatever."
He flopped back. Meow-chan batted his arm with a paw.
"Don't be discouraged. Losing lots of fragments means the host is already doubting the System. That's when voluntary surrender is closest!"
Fair point. Barely two days in, and Meow-chan had already harvested her first shard—not bad at all. No wonder she'd called him the chosen one.
Yan Huan didn't care about titles, but he did care about beefed-up rewards. Originally he'd planned to scroll a few videos and crash; now he decided to wait for the midnight bonus.
He petted Meow-chan while watching shorts, and the time flew.
The phone clock ticked to 00:00.
He sat up. "Showtime."
"Meow~"
From her mouth floated out a wisp of golden light. It expanded in front of Yan Huan, forming phantom text.
[System Level Up: 1 → 2]
[Prize Pool upgraded to Level 2. Stronger rewards now available.]
[Evolution Count +1. Random Attribute Fragment +1]
[Choose one of two evolution paths:]
Evolution Path One: Bulk Discount
- Every week you get one extra draw.
- Of the three rewards, two will be from the pool one tier lower.
Evolution Path Two: Demon's Contract
- Each week, one reward comes from the tier below, one from the tier above.
- If you pick the higher-tier reward, you also receive a minor, time-limited curse.
Yan Huan's eyebrow twitched. He grabbed Meow-chan's chubby cheeks.
"Seriously? We're gacha-ing now? What's with the prize pool and evolution paths?"
"Once the System was born I couldn't directly tweak it meow! Whatever the form, it'll help you—believe me!"
Since interrogating the cat was useless, Yan Huan turned back to the choices.
Last Friday he'd pulled three Level-1 prizes—two duds and one decent. Level-1 clearly held both trash and treasure.
He had no real concept of Level-2 or higher rewards, but they couldn't be too outrageous. Meow-chan's goal was to keep the worldline stable; the perks were meant to help him finish the job and then live a normal life—not spawn another Superman.
With that in mind he felt better. First, a little appetizer.
He skipped the evolution paths for the moment and focused on the [Random Attribute Fragment].
No explanation needed—time to roll the dice.
[Charm Fragment – Slightly increases your attractiveness to humans of the same species.]
"Kid, this world runs on looks."
[Procreation Fragment – Slightly improves your abilities related to procreation.]
Once upon a time, some smooth-talker used it as an excuse.
[Stamina Fragment — slightly increases your physical stamina.]
"Well, quitting late-night gaming would probably work faster," Yan Huan muttered.
He pressed his lips together and picked the first option.
The third was pointless—anything you can earn by actually working out isn't worth wasting a Modifier on.
As for the second...
Honestly, when you're already walking a tightrope against the Modifier and one slip unlocks an R-18 defeat CG, taking that perk feels like paying for the privilege of going to work.
Options one and two were similar, but the Charm Fragment was more broadly useful.
The golden motes of the Charm Fragment dissolved and streamed into Yan Huan's body. He flipped to the front-facing camera and studied his reflection—no visible change.
"Slightly," he echoed the description, and rolled his eyes.
This "slightly" was so slight it might as well have been homeopathic.
With a sigh he turned to the heavyweight choice: Evolution Path.
He chose the second branch.
He had no idea what high-tier rewards awaited, but the low-tier ones were laughably weak—no matter how many he stacked, they'd still be useless. Might as well roll the dice.
Go big or go home—bicycle into motorbike.
Buzz-buzz-buzz!
As he confirmed his choice, the golden light surged and condensed into three spheres of light that spilled out of Meow-chan.
From left to right they grew larger, each tier corresponding to a higher grade reward pool.
The biggest sphere—the tier-three—was laced with faint black mist.
[Technique: Vocal Mimicry. Exactly what it sounds like.]
[There once was in the capital a master of vocal mimicry.]
[Ability: Unrestrained Vitality. Your stamina and energy recover faster, but your appetite skyrockets.]
[Greater power, greater hunger.]
[Ability: Learning Conqueror. While studying, you gain one stack every thirty minutes of focused work, up to ten stacks. After ten minutes of inactivity the stacks reset. Each stack increases learning efficiency by 15 %. At ten stacks you receive a major intellect boost.]
[I shall conquer every unknown until my bones turn to dust.]
[Curse: Whenever you are not focused, you feel mildly drowsy; duration: five days.]
Yan Huan let out a low whistle.
Tier-three wasn't going to rewrite the laws of physics, but the numbers were solid—250 % efficiency at max stacks, plus a hefty brain boost, achievable in five hours.
And "mild drowsiness" sounded manageable.
He nodded to himself and selected Learning Conqueror, curse and all.
It would turbo-charge his studies—great for future prospects—and free up time he could devote to fighting the Modifier.
All in all, a net win.
The sphere exploded in gold and black, and both colors poured into Yan Huan's chest.
He blinked once—then the drowsiness hit before he could test his new power.
His eyelids sagged; if he relaxed for even a second he'd be out cold.
"Anti-insomnia device," he joked around a yawn.
At last he could sleep.
The feeling was like staying up to watch a best-of-three esports final, only to watch your favorite team lose 1-2: the matches were amazing, but the ending stung.
He set an early alarm, clicked off the bedside lamp, and scooped Meow-chan against his chest.
"Meow~"
The cat tucked its paws beneath itself and settled on his sternum. Yan Huan pulled the quilt over them both, leaving only Meow-chan's luminous green eyes staring at him in the dark.
"Meow-chan, I really thought you were going to power up, sweep the field, and reclaim your former glory. Instead, post-mega-evolution you're still light-years behind those other Modifiers."
Bai Yi's Indifference, Ye Shiyu's hypnosis, the blonde girl's unknown superpower...
Thinking about it gave him a headache.
"Meow?"
Meow-chan merely tilted its head.
Then, inside his mind, the cat spoke.
"Yan Huan, do you honestly believe those Modifiers came here to grant their hosts' wishes?"
"I know they're invaders bent on destroying the timeline. But if they're that powerful, fulfilling a few wishes is probably trivial—no matter how twisted those wishes are."
Meow-chan shook its head solemnly.
"I call them Modifiers, not cheats, not plug-ins, not systems. Because they aren't harmless power-ups—they're tumors that will devour their hosts along with everything else."
In the darkness, the cat's clear green eyes locked onto Yan Huan's.
"There is a steep price for using them, Yan Huan."
He stroked Meow-chan's warm fur.
"Don't tell me the price is divine retribution, karmic cycles, or moral condemnation. I don't buy that."
"No, I'm talking about a real cost. I don't know exactly what it is yet, but I know it exists."
Yan Huan studied the cat's silhouette, then exhaled and closed his eyes.
"Well, whatever it is, at least I can sleep easier now."
"Meow~"
Meow-chan snuggled closer.
Silence descended, the prelude to sleep—
—until Yan Huan's eyes snapped open.
"So, using your Modifier has a price too, right? Even if it's not as severe as theirs?"
"Meow~"
Meow-chan lifted its head as if to say, "I'm a cat—how would I speak human?"
"Yes or no?"
"Meow~"
The cat batted its eyes with deliberate cuteness, the undisputed champion of adorable.
Yan Huan recognized the act: payback for his earlier remark that Meow-chan was weaker than the other Modifiers.
He scowled and pinched the cat's chubby cheeks.
"Meow-chan!"
"Okay, okay—there isn't one! Stop squeezing my face, meow!"