Chapter 26: The Sun, Cats, and Light

“Of course it’s not lost, Detective. You can’t just suspect people for no reason. But that damn cat...”

The man inside the room spoke through gritted teeth, as if the cat had eaten his entire fortune; his expression was contorted.

“Just get that cat away from here. I am never helping to look after another ginger cat again.”

“Alright, where is the cat?”

Shade asked. He wasn't particularly fond of cats, but for that generous commission, he wouldn't mind carrying one through every street and alleyway if necessary.

“On the roof.”

The man pointed upward, his expression of teeth-gritting frustration intensifying.

“Ever since that detective brought it here for boarding, this cat hasn't let anyone touch it easily. It has scratched my wife and Miss Cindy at least twice. It won't eat cheap cat food, and it constantly bullies the other pets here. I’ve run this place for many years, and I have never seen such a combative six-month-old kitten... At this hour, it must be up there basking in the sun! Just get it away, I can't take it anymore.”

Shade pretended not to hear the man's complaints. He stepped back slightly from the doorway, then looked up at the three-story building.

“How do you expect me to get to the roof?”

“In the courtyard of this house, there is a ladder that goes from the first floor to the roof. I’m not going up there—I never want to see that cat again!”

Shade certainly didn't want to climb that high; he took safety very seriously. Just as he was about to try and persuade the big-nosed middle-aged man, the latter shoved a one-shilling banknote into his hand.

“Detective Hamilton gave me one shilling and ten pence to look after it for two months. Here is this one shilling back. Just get it away! Don't ever let that cat appear in this alley again!”

His voice was nearly hysterical, drawing looks from the children playing in the street and a woman leaning out of a building opposite to hang laundry.

It was truly hard to imagine how much psychological damage that ginger cat had inflicted upon him.

Following the middle-aged man through the house, they arrived at the backyard, which was piled with empty pet cages. While the man held the metal ladder steady, Shade carefully climbed up to the roof.

The rooftop was cluttered with various types of trash and miscellaneous items; it was hard to tell how such things were even transported up here, given that the ladder was the only way. In the southeast corner of the roof, on the only patch of ground that could be considered clean, Shade saw the cat. It was lying lazily on a metal pipe, facing the early summer morning sun.

It was indeed a young-looking kitten, its body as soft as a puddle of water slumped over the pipe. It wasn't large, and could even be described as somewhat small and thin. Its fur shimmered slightly under the sunlight filtering through the thin mist—a sign of good health.

However, rather than a typical ginger cat, it looked more like a white cat wearing a warm orange blanket. It was only when the cat stood up that Shade realized that dazzling orange-yellow layer was indeed the actual color of its fur.

The cat stood atop a discarded metal pipe, which was propped up on one end by a broken sofa cushion, making the cat's position slightly higher than the surrounding objects.

It stood up with its back to the morning sun, its amber eyes turning toward Shade, warily sizing up the stranger. Shade had no experience dealing with such animals, and because of the big-nosed man's words, he was somewhat worried the ginger cat might pounce on him.

But this ginger cat, which shared the same name as its owner, "Mia," did not look very fierce. It was observing Shade, and Shade knew he was being observed, so he tried his best to appear friendly, constantly reminding himself of the cat's value in his mind

*“I’ll take you to see your owner, Miss Mia Sang Gaude.”*

He found a footing amidst the debris, crouched slightly, and clapped his hands together with a deliberate smile. Unsurprisingly, this suspicious behavior did not elicit a response from the cat.

“Miss Mia Gaude.”

The previous sentence had been in standard "Northern Kingdom Common," which was Drarion. This time, he used a sentence with a slight Tobesk local accent—a skill Shade had picked up over the last two days

“I’ll take you to find your owner, Miss Mia Gaude.”

The ginger cat's small ears twitched. It raised its right front paw to lick itself, then lowered it and continued to stare intently at Shade.

Shade pursed his lips and looked around to confirm there were no taller buildings nearby, then extended his right index finger.

“Look.”

A silver light flared from his index finger. The ginger cat's amber eyes widened instantly. It opened its mouth slightly, standing on the rusty metal pipe, its whiskers trembling as it tilted its head toward the light.

“Miss Mia Gaude,” Shade continued, slowly approaching the cat. He reached out his left hand slowly, suppressing his anxiety about "wild animals," and gently scooped it up with one hand.

The ginger cat wasn't heavy—at least, not right now.

The cat continued to tilt its head, watching Shade's right index finger, but once the light from the finger died out, it did not try to escape from his arms. It leaned against Shade's chest, using its small paws to bat at his finger with just the right amount of force, seemingly very interested in the "new toy."

“Good.”

The detective finally let out a long sigh of relief and stood up, preparing to leave. The young ginger kitten, little Mia, merely squirmed uncomfortably but did not struggle excessively.

*“Not fierce at all, quite well-behaved even. It seems I am quite good at making other animals like me,”* Shade thought pleasantly. Just then, he noticed something lying beneath the pipe where the cat had been resting. Holding the cat in one arm, he leaned over and picked the object up with his right hand, seeing that it was an old box of Rhodes cards.

To use Rhodes cards, one had to have a full set of 54 cards. If there were special cards, they could be substituted based on suit and number, because the patterns on the backs of all Rhodes cards were identical.

This particular box was nothing special; it was similar to the set used by the three men Shade had seen in the tavern. The patterns on the faces were extremely simple, and a box could be bought for a few dozen pence.

Seeing that it wasn't anything important, he slipped it into his pocket. Then, holding the cat, he carefully climbed back down the ladder into the courtyard.

“I found an old deck of Rhodes cards on the roof. How much should I charge you for them?”

The old deck looked like trash, but Shade didn't forget to mention it. These old cards weren't worth much; he had only pocketed them because he wanted to complete a full deck with his [Founder · Silver Moon] card.

When the big-nosed middle-aged man saw that Shade was actually taking the cat away, he nearly burst into tears right in front of him. As for the trash on the roof, he didn't care at all.

Afterward, Shade left Violet Iris Alley, but he didn't wander aimlessly with someone else's cat; instead, he headed straight for Miss Gaude's home. During the journey, aside from a brief bout of "purring" at the beginning, little Mia only continuously used her paws to scratch at Shade's sleeves and clothes, never attempting to escape his embrace.

Since Miss Gaude was willing to pay such a high price to find her cat, she certainly wasn't poor. She lived in "Sandru Street," a quiet residential district in the southern part of the city, where every household had its own small garden and nameplates on the gate fences.

(End of Chapter)