Mina felt the animal"s rapid heartbeat from under her paw, the uncontrollable shaking of the creature before her didn"t escape her notice. At this, the black cat smiled looking at the mouse in amus.e.m.e.nt.The sight of the cat"s sharp canine teeth, was enough for the mouse"s fear to increase to another level. The slight tremble became uncontrollable. Of course, this did not escape Mina"s notice.
Still amused, Mina looked at the poor powerless mouse beneath her paws. The creature before her started struggling hard -- this time squeaking while pleading for its life.
She couldn"t help but reminisce while looking at the puny creature -- she was just like this mouse. She remembered her pathetic self in the not-so-distant past. She always walked on thin ice when dealing with superiors and people with a higher status. She seems to be constantly bowing to everyone around her.
She was just like the mouse...
Slowly, memories of the past trickled in...
"I"m sorry sir, I"ll clean this up and deliver the dress your wife likes to your house."
"Please sir, I need this job. I"ll do everything right from now on."
"I"ll pay everything in a week, please don"t throw me out of the house. I have nowhere else to go."
She couldn"t count how many times she swallowed her pride to avoid punishment. Her back seems to have been bent from constantly asking for an apology and keeping her head down.
She tasted a bitter taste in her mouth and felt her paw tighten around the mouse.
"So, being in power feels like this. In this life, I will not be the same pathetic human I used to be."
Determined to overcome her pathetic existence, a dark look flashed on the cat"s face, baring her canines in the process.
The mouse caught the change in the cat"s mood.
Taking in his predator"s ominous presence with its sharp teeth peeking through its mouth, the mouse couldn"t hold in his emotions.
He became so scared that he lost his grip on the cheese. He felt his bladder lose control and a stream of urine soaked the cheese on the ground.
Reluctant but left without a choice, the mouse waited for the cat to pounce, bracing itself for the cat"s attack.
The sudden stiffness under her paw catapulted Mina back to the present. The mouse felt so stiff under her paw that she felt as if her hand is resting on a stuffed animal. If not for the faint heartbeat, she would have thought the mouse went into rigor mortis.*
Paying more attention to her mouse, she realized that the mouse looked like a pig being led to a slaughterhouse.
"I must have been too scary"
She removed her hold on the mouse and tried to pat the creature whose spirit seems to have evaporated.
"Tarou," the black cat finally said in an amused tone, commanding the mouse"s attention.
"I don"t need your meat."
Seeing the cat look gentler, the mouse felt some relief but remained cautious. "You can never trust a predator."
"Good thing the cat declined the cheese. If I give this cat the meat I urinated on, it will tear me to piece."
Still observing the mouse, Mina had a brilliant idea. With a smug look, she observed the mouse for a few more seconds before expressing her thoughts in words.
"Call me boss."
In this life she will not just be a cat, she will be the leader of a gang. She will not allow anyone to bully her in this life and the only way to protect her interest is to be the boss and this mouse will be her first gang member.
The mouse finally felt his heartbeat return to normal. Several ideas were running through his head at that moment.
"This evil cat is called Boss. Boss is a weird name. Tarou sounds better."
For the first time after entering the hut, he felt lucky.
Feeling a bit of hunger, Mina remembered how the mouse was offering something from the bandit"s place. This sparked an idea.
She needs a good dose of adventure in her new body and she wasn"t able to take a tour of this place yet.
"Bring me to the bandit"s place, I"m hungry for freshly cooked meat."
The mouse was at a loss. He had just been redeemed from death and had no idea what the cat was talking about. He nodded reluctantly. Right now, he can"t afford to offend this menacing creature. One swipe of those claws and he is dead meat, he"d rather play along with this cat.
Looking down, he saw the cheese drenched in urine. This juggled his memory and the words finally registered.
"Will Boss raid the bandit"s place?"
He was curious about what the evil creature plans to do. Some of his reluctance actually transformed into excitement. He doesn"t mind eating cheese with a splash of urine but fresh fare is always better. Thinking of the new haul from that place, he became more enthusiastic and made his way towards the door.
"Boss, follow me."
Following the mouse, the cat walked elegantly and with pride.
"This is a better life. For the first time, someone is at my beck and call."
--
"Is that a cat? A black cat," a young man leaning on a tree asked. Another man close to him looked at the approaching creature following what appears to be a mouse.
"Yes, what"s wrong? It"s just a cat," he spoke nonchalantly.
"Why is there such an unusual cat in this forest? That"s a creepy creature."
"Who knows? Maybe it"s lost." The guy answered.
Mina gazed curiously at the two men. As a cat, she couldn"t see them clearly at a distance but now that she"s closer to them, she realized that they wore unusual clothes.
The clothes were a bit shabby but that was not why she found them unusual -- men were wearing tunics, pants, and boots. Both men had a sword attached to their hip and the taller one had a belt quiver containing several arrows. She couldn"t help but compare their clothes to Robin Hood.
This place is a hideout for bandits. But these men look straight out of a medieval series. A sudden thought crossed her mind.
"Could it be possible?"
"Did I become a cat who lived in a different timeline?"