It’S A Cat, Adopted By A Wolf Family? [EN]: Chapter 103

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Clyde took a deep, calming breath. He knew that the head of the family should always consider the family’s gains and losses before personal feelings, but he couldn’t understand why he felt so anxious.

“Milady, we’ll go down below, so please wait here.”

“But the fox shifters might be dominated by madness. I have to go too.”

Kitty was right. Clyde couldn’t argue.

The wolf shifters, sensing the humid and fishy air of the underground, approached one by one. Jackal naturally tried to take the lead.

“…….”

However, his broad shoulders and thick body couldn’t fit through Jerian’s secret passage, no matter how much he squeezed.

The entrance was small enough for Jerian to barely pass through in his cat form.

Even if the large, purebred wolves, Ethan and Jackal, returned to their wolf forms, they would surely get stuck in the passage.

Jackal looked for Elliot.

“Go and come back.”

“Lord Jackal, even I would get stuck in a passage of that size. Please consider my broad shoulders and sturdy muscles.”

“Elliot, I remember your animal form being smaller than mine since you’re a mixed-blood.”

Poof!

At Jackal’s urging, Elliot quickly transformed into his animal form. He looked exactly like a wolf, except he was much smaller than Jackal’s wolf form.

“It’s always amazing that Sir Elliot is a mixed-blood. He looks like a wolf to anyone.”

“That’s because he has much more wolf blood mixed in.”

Kitty watched to see if Elliot could pass through the passage.

Fortunately, he trotted through the passage.

“It works if I make myself as small as possible. Clyde and the other foxes should be able to pass through without difficulty.”

In the end, none of the other wolves could enter the passage. Ethan had to swallow a rising sigh.

If he knew the internal structure, he would have destroyed the building up to where the fox shifters were. But since the inside was unknown, he had no choice but to wait for the advance team.

“Kitty, be careful.”

“Hmph.”

Kitty turned her head away and wrapped her bow around her tail. The Goddess’s Bow [likely a powerful, perhaps divine, weapon] dragged on the floor, but she had to prepare for emergencies.

Elliot, Clyde, and Ben transformed into their animal forms and stealthily entered.

“Milady, come behind me.”

Clyde overtook Kitty. His abundant tail swayed right in front of her, and Kitty’s eyes followed its movement.

A cat shifter was so helpless in front of a fluffy fox tail.

Kitty steeled herself not to bite Clyde’s tail.

“Clyde, do you know where they are?”

“Fortunately, the fox shifters are sending signals with their magic.”

The narrow stairs seemed to continue endlessly, but soon the passage widened abruptly. Clyde channeled his magic to illuminate the surroundings.

The surroundings were a mess of trash and dust, and the musty stench unique to basements stung their noses.

“To think those baby foxes were in a place like this.”

Kitty sighed in dismay. She wanted to get Clyde’s companions out of this harsh environment as soon as possible.

Clyde searched for his companions, feeling for their magic. The internal structure wasn’t complicated, so he quickly found them.

He almost instinctively ran towards the fox shifters.

“Hey, are you okay? Are you all alive?”

The fox shifters were locked in cages and very exhausted, but they were all breathing. They seemed to have survived by using water magic to replenish their moisture.

“I can feel madness nearby, but the foxes seem okay.”

Kitty said, emitting magic to purify the surroundings.

Clyde broke the cages with his magic as if he had been waiting for it, and then took out the fox shifters.

“Young Master…….”

The moment they said that with faint smiles, magic surged from Clyde’s chest.

It was a power of a different dimension than before.

The magic that swirled throughout his body slowly gathered in his heart, forming a solid barrier. When he moved his fingertips slightly, the surroundings became much brighter.

Kitty admired Clyde’s light magic, which was as bright and warm as sunlight.

It seemed that the saying that fox shifters become stronger when they are together was true.

“Clyde! Is your mana core complete?”

“It certainly feels stronger than before, but…….”

For some reason, he didn’t feel like the core was complete.

According to the records in the mana record [likely a magical text or archive], the magic should create a vortex, and then a thrill should run through the body.

‘My body didn’t tingle, but the mana core has definitely settled.’

He didn’t know why it was lacking that one thing, but now was not the time to be thinking about that.

Clyde took out the Hwan [a type of emergency food] he had brought and put one in each of the fox shifters’ mouths. It was a kind of emergency food that condensed the necessary nutrients.

While the fox shifters were munching, Kitty looked around.

‘Jerian must have taken everything that was here.’

Only things that seemed to have been abandoned remained around.

“Don’t worry, Milady. I remember all the experiments Jerian did down here.”

A fox shifter who had regained a little energy said. It was the most welcome sound she had heard.

“Then we should help you recover quickly.”

Kitty smiled and held a fox shifter in her arms.

When they came in, they had no choice but to walk because they didn’t know the internal coordinates, but it wasn’t the same when they left.

Ben and Elliot also held fox shifters in their arms, respectively. Clyde drew a teleportation magic circle that was three times more elaborate than before.

“Let’s get out of here.”

The fox shifters, feeling the sign of escape at that one word, teared up. Eyes that were embedded like blueberries between the dark brown fur became moist.

“Young Master, I knew you would definitely come to save us.”

The voice saying that was slightly cracked.

Clyde, who had been trying to act as if nothing was wrong, spat out on purpose to avoid trembling his voice.

“What are you talking about? I was the one who got caught because of you.”

He poked the fox’s snout for no reason. He felt like he would show an unsightly appearance if he opened his mouth any more.

“To see the Young Master, who was so small and weak, grow up like this…….”

The fox shifters couldn’t continue speaking because they were choked up. Ben, Clyde’s adjutant, was already crying.

The fox shifter in his arms also couldn’t avoid the falling tears because he was sobbing.

Kitty poked Clyde with her elbow and smiled brightly.

“See, Clyde? I told you everyone would be waiting for you.”

“…….”

“Everyone will know how hard you worked to become this strong, right?”

Clyde stared at Kitty’s smile as if he was possessed. Her slightly flushed cheeks revealed that she was sincerely happy.

Her emerald eyes, which seemed to be moved, were glistening. It was as she said.

In the end, he rescued the fox shifters with his own hands.

He was certain that he would soon be able to take out the baby foxes who were still in Jerian’s grasp.

“Ahem, ahem. Clyde, congratulations.”

Elliot skillfully cleared up the strange atmosphere and moved to the teleportation magic circle first.

“Let’s go quickly, Clyde!”

Kitty also jumped into the magic circle.

Clyde took a moment to catch his breath. He hadn’t done anything, but he was out of breath.

Ben said to him with a voice full of anticipation.

“Lord Clyde. Is the mana core complete?”

“Almost?”

“The day when foxes with immunity will face the panthers is not far off.”

Clyde blinked slowly.

He had forgotten for a moment.

He himself wondered if it was possible to forget the goal of a lifetime, but he really did.

It felt like time had stopped at the moment he exchanged glances with the innocent lady.

But as Ben said, he had a goal to achieve soon.

“……That’s right. First of all, I have to finish the research I was doing at the Gridwolf mansion.”

Clyde smiled bitterly and jumped into the magic circle.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jackal glared at Ethan as soon as Kitty and his party disappeared into the secret passage.

His golden eyes were blazing with his father’s unique anger.

The wolves couldn’t stand the cool energy flowing between the two heads and retreated little by little.

“Ethan Weebis.”

“Yes, Lord Jackal.”

Jackal was very dissatisfied that the prickly little wolf had now grown up to be dignified and reliable and paid his respects to him.

Wasn’t his respectful attitude as if he were facing his future father-in-law?

“Ethan. Didn’t Kitty ‘hmph’ at you just now?”

When the dignified voice imitated Kitty, the wolves’ eyes trembled greatly.

Ethan, who knew very well why Kitty was sulking at him, couldn’t answer and rolled his eyes.

“Catherine Weebis, do you know the reason?”

“…….”

Catherine also had nothing to say. No matter how much Weebis blood she had, there was no way she could say that she had used a jealousy-inducing tactic in front of that terrifying wolf.

‘I guess there’s something fishy.’

Jackal lowered his voice and said.

“Ethan. I received a message that the leader of the night cats has departed this way.”

When Jackal and Hashuka first received the letter brought by the black cat, they asked the sender several times.

Even though Kitty went directly, they didn’t expect a positive answer to help the wolves at their first meeting.

She was willing to help even in a situation where she might be at odds with the cats of the same race.

‘Even if they are relatives, they haven’t been in contact for a long time.’

It must be because Kitty gave her faith.

Now that their goal of heading to the upper reaches of Yaong River had been achieved, Ethan, who had come out to support them, was now time to return to the central training center.

“So you can go back now.”

“…….”

“Depart tonight.”

Jackal said firmly.

Since there was no other way, Ethan hesitated for a moment and then said he would.

Kitty had been turning her head away since this morning, not even trying to show her face to him, and now it seemed like she would disappear leaving only misunderstandings.

His expression became a little depressed.

Jackal was relieved by the sight and waited for Kitty and the fox shifters.

Dad.

When Kitty called him that, Jackal was immersed in happiness even though he knew it was a mistake.

It was a word that was so lovely even in pronunciation.

‘When she comes back, I should tell her to forget about the foxes or the black-haired wolves and have a campfire with Dad.’

However, Jackal did not realize that what he had said to Ethan tonight would bring about the opposite result of what one person wanted.