Kays Translations

Chapter 193: Strategy Meeting at the Forest Cat Café

“Whaaat…!?”

Fifteen cats, including Max, emerged one after another. Adding Orihime and the others, there were nearly twenty cats in total.

Isamu stared in shock at the ground, which suddenly resembled a cat café.

“These must all be partners of the Avalushi pilots! I don’t know all of them, but many of the cats seem familiar.” 

Greg commented, equally surprised.

He stroked the neck of a black-and-white spotted cat that had approached him. 

“This one must be Shadow’s mother.”

“The cats of Avalushi, huh…” 

Isamu muttered, recalling that in this world of Ethersia, aside from Orihime, cats were likely to be found only with the people of Avalushi.

As Isamu observed, all the cats greeted Orihime first.

“Did you call them?” 

He asked Orihime after the greetings seemed to be over.

“Nyaff,” she replied with a strong, short meow, as if to say, “Yes.”

“It seems like something might have happened when she went out with the other cats last night…” 

Elis, who had been on night watch, commented.

“Yeah, they came back quite late. If Avalushi’s cats are here, it’s safe to assume their hideout is nearby.” 

Isamu added, recalling how Orihime had crawled into his bed late at night.

“Cats don’t usually leave their partners’ sides.” 

Greg affirmed Isamu’s guess.

“Then, let’s split into two groups and carefully search the area—”

At that moment, there was a rustling sound from the bushes ahead.

Everyone reacted immediately. The knights quickly stepped in front of Isamu and Samuel, drawing their swords and preparing for battle.

The sound grew louder, and whoever was approaching didn’t seem to realize people were nearby.

Finally, with a loud rustle, the source of the noise appeared, and Felix closed the distance in an instant, pointing his sword at their throat.

“Max, where have you—ah!”

The person who emerged, unaware of their presence, let out a short scream upon seeing the sword.

“Liliene-san!”

“Miss!”

 Isamu and Greg shouted in unison.

The one who had appeared was Liliene, the current head of the Avalushi family, whom they had been searching for.

“Phew, that gave me a fright…” 

Liliene wiped the sweat from her brow, looking more pale from cold sweat than from the exertion of walking through the forest.

“I apologize. We are in enemy territory, so we couldn’t afford to lower our guard.” 

Felix said, bowing slightly, looking a bit embarrassed.

“No, it’s my fault for approaching without confirming the situation first. I’m sorry for startling you.” 

Liliene replied with a small wave of her hand.

“Well then… I think I’ve gotten a rough idea of the situation, but could you tell me the details of what’s happened so far? Or perhaps just what’s happened since yesterday or today?” 

Isamu asked, waiting until he saw that Lilliene had calmed down.

“Ah, as you said, things started moving yesterday.”

Lilliene began recounting the events up to now, still a bit taken aback by the relaxed cats lounging around.

“We gathered at our hideout the day before yesterday, after carrying out reconnaissance and sabotage in the southern region. The plan remains largely unchanged from what was outlined in the last letter. We’re scheduled to join forces with Zun’s troops the day after tomorrow, and we’ve been conducting patrols around Meraja since yesterday. For now, we’re in a waiting phase.”

“Hm, so things are progressing as expected.” 

Samuel muttered as he listened to her explanation.

“And on your end?”

“Ah, sorry for not introducing everyone earlier.” 

Isamu said hastily, realizing he hadn’t introduced their group to Liliene. He hurriedly began introducing them.

“I didn’t expect to encounter the head of a marquis family in such a place. My apologies.” 

Upon learning that Samuel was the head of a marquis family, Liliene straightened up and bowed.

She probably never expected to come across such a powerful man in the middle of the forest, especially with the enemy nearby.

“There’s no need for formalities. I’m merely a fellow traveler.”

“Ha-Haa…”

“Ahaha. Well, that’s how it is, so don’t worry about it.”

Isamu told the confused Liliene, but it was impossible to tell her not to worry about it. In fact, Isamu was unable to hide the bitter smile on his face as he said it.

“What’s the meaning behind these cats gathering here? It almost seems as if Orihime called them.” 

Samuel continues his conversation without paying any attention to Liliene’s confusion.

“That’s what I’d like to know as well.” 

According to Liliene, all the cats had left the hideout during the night, but since they had returned by morning, no one had paid much attention. 

“However, about thirty minutes ago, Max had suddenly severed his magic link in the middle of their scouting and rushed out of the cockpit, leading me to this location.”

Since the effective control range from the hiding place was not enough to cover the entire reconnaissance area, Liliene controlled the golem from a location away from the hiding place.

So it was only just now that she found out that the other cats had gathered there.

“I see. So that’s what happened. I don’t know anything other than what’s happening, so I can’t really say anything for sure, but…”

Following Liliene’s words, Isamu now gave his explanation.

That is to say, last night it seems that Orihime and the other cats briefly ventured into the forest, that they were led here today by Orihime, and that, about 30 minutes ago, after a long meow they had never heard before, the cats and Lilliene appeared.

That was all there was to know.

“It seems likely that Orihime and the cats met last night and made some sort of arrangement, one part of which was bringing you here.” 

Orihime seems to understand human language to some extent, but since she can’t actually speak it, this is only a guess. However, given the situation, that seems like a reasonable assumption.

“That makes sense. But what’s the purpose of gathering the other cats?”

“Maybe they’re only gathering allies?” 

It was Samuel who answered Liliene’s reasonable question.

“Only allies?”

“Yes. Liliene-san’s cat brought her here, but the others did not bring anyone else. From what I’ve heard, most people aside from Liliene-san are on Zun’s side, correct?”

“Ah, I see. So, by gathering only the cats without other people, they’re indicating that all the cats are now allied with us?”

When Isamu confirmed this, Samuel nodded slowly.

“Orihime, is that what’s happening?”

“Nya-fu.”

Orihime, who had somehow perched herself on Samuel’s shoulder, gave a short, proud-sounding meow in response to Isamu’s question.

“… I think that’s exactly what’s going on. Liliene-san, if only the cats were to ally with us, what kind of advantage would that give us?”

“Amazing, Isamu-sama. You’re willing to trust Orihime’s intent just based on that response… Ah, apologies. You want to know the advantages if the cats are on our side?”

Liliene looked wide-eyed at how readily Isamu believed Orihime’s intentions.

“You may already know this, but the cats can interfere with mana pass. Up until now, because they’ve always supported the operators, this gave operators a huge advantage…”

Liliene began to explain the potential benefits of having the cats as allies, and as they listened, Isamu and the others pieced together their plan.

“Understood. Then we’ll begin the operation tomorrow morning.”

Once the strategy was set, Liliene returned with Max. Given that she was on a reconnaissance mission, if the cats were absent for an extended period over two days, someone might notice and grow suspicious.

A surprise attack remains effective only if undetected. Whether the cats were aware of this or not, they didn’t all leave at once but instead slipped back into the forest in small groups.

Franboise and Laurel accompanied Liliene to scout the hiding spot about an hour away. Once the two returned, Isamu and the others completed their exploration and headed back to meet up with the standby group by the roadside.

“So many cats, huh…”

“Captain, that’s not fair!!”

“…”

Upon reuniting with the standby team and reporting their findings, as expected, Mizeroi and Tiramisu were quick to jump at the mention of the cat café-like situation they encountered. Even Annemarie seemed a bit miffed, though she didn’t say anything.

“Well, you’ll get to see them tomorrow, so please hold on until then.” 

Isamu said, trying to calm the three down. With daylight still on their side, the group moved a bit further west to position themselves closer to the target area.

They avoided traveling at night to stay safe and avoid drawing attention; the magic lanterns used in place of headlights on their convoy of magic vehicles would be too conspicuous.

That night, they set up camp in a spot with good cover for the magic vehicles. Samuel, comfortable with camping, even offered to help with setting up, which ended up making others feel they had to mind him more.

The team established a rotation for keeping watch, pairing one person with a golem operator to increase vigilance.

“This is incredible… the accuracy for night watch is on a whole new level.” 

Drexler said excitedly after his shift, having used the thermal imaging on the magic giant golem.

“Hoho, that’s what the first generation called ‘Serpent’s Eye.’ It’s useful, but it burns through magic stones quickly, so we don’t often use it for watch duty.” 

Greg commented. The golem’s ‘Serpent’s Eye’ required both general-use and fire-type magic stones, making it a luxury feature best used sparingly—a luxury only the Klaufeldt family could afford due to their access to non-elemental mana stones.

Meanwhile, another hallmark of the Klaufeldt family was on display elsewhere in the camp.

“To think we’re eating a hot meal while camping in enemy territory…”

“Yes… it’s not just impressive; it’s revolutionary, really.”

Samuel and Franboise, who had taken the first watch shift alongside Drexler, were similarly amazed. Despite insisting on taking a turn, it seemed too much to ask them to stand guard in the middle of the night, so they took the first shift instead.

“Is this the so-called ‘magic stove’? Is that thing installed in there?” 

Samuel asked Isamu, pointing at the small table where they’d just finished cooking inside the bath-equipped magitech vehicle.

“Yes. It’s basically the same setup, but I’ve made a few modifications so it can be used even while on the move, as long as the road is stable.” 

Isamu explained, enjoying a hearty soup he’d prepared for Samuel and the others.

“I see… In times of war or when leading large caravans, we do sometimes cook with an open fire, but it’s cumbersome and attracts attention. This tool, while it uses magic stones, has almost no drawbacks… A remarkable magic device indeed.” 

Samuel remarked, praising the stove.

“Ahaha, thank you! I just made it because it seemed convenient.” 

Isamu replied, scratching his head in modesty.

“Heh, the fact that you simply thought it up and made it is what’s impressive. While your skill plays a role, this way of thinking you wanderers have, something we lack, may be the greatest gift of your arrival.” 

Samuel mused.

The group continued to enjoy the portable bath’s footbath feature, to much acclaim from those outside the Klaufeldt family, until dawn finally broke.

“Alright, let’s go over the plan one last time. First, we’ll avoid the main hideout and ambush the two units patrolling alone with cats in tow.” 

Isamu began the briefing over a light breakfast.

“We’ll set an ambush at the patrol points Liliene shared, and we’ll hit them with magic when they get close. At that moment, Orihime will signal the other cats.”

“Nyaf,” Orihime replied, tapping on Isamu’s head as he spoke.

“Once they get the signal, the cats should disrupt the operators, and, like Max, abandon their posts and dash toward us at full speed.”

As Isamu glanced at Orihime on his head, she tapped it again—confirming the plan, it seemed.

“… The goal here is capture, so we’ll avoid their attacks and block their path while another team quickly finds and restrains the operators, following the cats’ guidance.”

“And if the enemy cats don’t cooperate as we expect?” 

Felix asked, wanting to cover all contingencies.

“In that case, we’ll have to disable the magic giants by other means. It’ll be troublesome if they retreat to their base…”

Isamu explained, confirming plans discussed the previous day. 

“It’d be ideal if we could leave them in a repairable state, but we’re dealing with a formidable opponent. From there, we’ll switch to an alternate strategy.”

“Understood,” 

Felix nodded.

Seeing no other questions or clarifications, Isamu u looked around at everyone, then gave the signal to begin.

“Alright then, let’s capture those two magic giants with our feline allies.”

“Understood!” came the group’s synchronized response.

And so began the unprecedented mission to capture magic giants with the cooperation of their cat allies.

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