"Meowtherfucker!"
"No, it's Methew."
"Meowtherfucker?"
"Your name. It's Methew."
Mikhail said with a bright smile on his face, trying his best to make the cat say it.
The cat tilted his head with a confused yet innocent look on his face.
"Meow…."
Mikhail urged him. "Yes, say Met~hew~."
"Meowtherfucker!"
"Urgh."
Mikhail fell down helplessly on his bed as he rubbed his face in defeat.
He had made a mistake and there was no way to reverse it.
'What have I done…..'
He thought, placing his hand over his eyes.
For the last three hours he had been trying to correct his mistake but it was of no use.
'There goes my social life….'
He thought, opening his eyes when he felt the cat jumping on his bed.
He quickly picked him up and raised him high like a trophy.
"Well, at least you are cute." He said in a grumbling tone. "I just hope that is enough."
With a sigh, he threw the cat on the bed who landed perfectly on his feet.
Mikhail had plans to visit the forest the next day after the academy.
He had already registered himself as an independent hunter and gotten the permission slip.
There wasn't any restriction for normal humans to visit the forest, but it wasn't advised as such.
But how could a warning stop those in desperate times trying to make quick money?
Knock! Knock! Knock!
The door of his room knocked as a child's voice echoed from the other side.
"Uncle! Dinner is ready!"
"Coming."
"Okay!"
Mikhail heard the child running back as he stood up.
He took a quick glance at the mirror before he walked out of the room.
The yellow cat followed right behind him like a child.
He walked down the stairs and was immediately greeted with his entire family.
His father was Eric Brightburn, a middle aged man in his early fifties with a somewhat fit body, the front part of his hair already gone and replaced by a shining bald patch.
Eric had worked his early life in the military as a blacksmith and had a lot of connections because of it.
His brother was Ronic Brightburn, a man in his late twenties and cursed with a receding hairline.
'Sometimes I wonder if I would be like them when I grow old….'
That thought alone terrified him more than anything else.
Eric looked at Mikhail and coughed lightly.
"Don't sweat about the awakening." He said in his usual deep voice. "You are smart enough to become a top civil officer."
Mikhail rubbed his face awkwardly. "About that…."
As if on cue, the yellow cat jumped up and landed on his shoulder.
"….I did Awaken a class, father."
"..."
"..."
A complete silence draped over the main hall as both Jasmine and Emiliya also walked out of the kitchen.
"What!?" Ronic was the first to snap. "You really did Awaken!?"
"Well, yeah."
"Hahahaha!!" Eric let out a heartfelt laugh as he stood and walked towards him. "I knew my son would Awaken, it was all that damn orb's fault!"
Eric kept on patting his shoulder, his laughter echoing.
"Alright, stop laughing like an idiot." Jasmine interrupted him. "Come sit back."
Eric immediately stopped and awkwardly walked back to his seat.
Mikhail would have done the same if not for the little girl blocking his path.
"Uncle!!" She yelled, showing her uneven teeth. "Give me the cat."
"Meow?"
Mikhail grabbed the cat and passed it towards her.
"Don't hurt him." He said to his cat, who was already repulsed when the girl squeezed him like a teddy.
Mikhail walked towards his seat at the dining table as his mother served them.
"So, which class is it?" Ronic asked with a smile.
"Tamer class of the Viscount rank." Mikhail replied. "I will register it on the academy database tomorrow."
"I see." He replied. "But why a cat?"
"Ronic is right." Emiliya said, taking her seat while picking Olivia up to feed her. "You could have asked for more money if that was the problem."
Mikhail's lips twitched. 'You would have thrown me out had I asked for money.'
"I needed someone easy to control by blood pact." He replied. "I can get a better beast at the next rank up."
The others nodded in understanding and didn't question his decision.
"Meow!"
"Ah, kitty!"
The cat escaped Olivia's hands and landed on Mikhail's shoulder.
"Give me kitty back, uncle!!"
The cat hissed at the girl as he roared. "Meowtherfucker!"
"...."
The entire table froze and all of them turned to look at the cat and its owner.
'….I am cooked.'
Mikhail closed his eyes and accepted his fate.
And in the next instant, he felt Jasmine's hand pinching his ear.
"What did you teach the cat, child?" She asked angrily.
"It was a mistake, mother!" Mikhail replied, pulling his face away. "I swear it was unintentional."
Jasmine let out a sigh and sat back on her seat.
The dinner passed in an awkward silence accompanied by occasional "Meowtherfucker."
---
After dinner, Mikhail asked his father for some time.
"What do you need?" Eric asked as soon as they were in a different room.
"I need some gear." Mikhail replied in a serious voice. "Something under eight—."
"Alright, don't talk about money." Eric replied, cutting him off. "Let's go to the storeroom."
"But I would like to pay—."
"We can get that money back once everyone knows that you Awakened." Eric said, taking the lead. "Think of it as my investment."
Mikhail let out a sigh and nodded his head.
The pair walked inside the storeroom that was at the very end of the house.
"Are you going to visit the forest?" Eric asked, guessing why he needed gear.
"Yes." Mikhail replied. "It would be better to start early before the college exams."
Eric nodded. He understood that to gain strength as an Awakened one, you needed to kill beasts.
Though he tried, he still couldn't hide his concern. "Just be safe."
Eric unlocked the door to the storeroom and lit up the bulb.
Inside, the room was filled with items, armour and weapons that he had brought back from his shop.
Armours made from the skin of wild bears, armoured boars, dimond lizard and swords and spears made from rare meterials.
Eric's main business was to make custom gear for customers and sell items. He had all the experience that Ronic was trying to gain.
"Take what you want." Eric said with a proud smile. "They are all my best works."
Mikhail smiled back and took one look around the room.
He knew exactly what he needed.
A complete set of items for every range of attack.
'Let's customise my character.' He thought, cracking his fingers.