Chapter 174 More Cat Then I Was

Mishal picked me up and carried me through the encampment while Sakura kept giving me sideways looks. I wasn't sure what she was waiting for me to do, but she had her eye on me. Mishal was scratching between my ears, so it was hard for me to be concerned about anything at this point.

I was taken to a much larger tent and going inside, I was hit with an aromatic smell that instantly made me feel relaxed. Whatever the smell was, I really liked it, and I would have to ask where it was purchased from.

"Chi, we found something for you. This cat here," Mishal said, holding me forward to an older woman that looked to be in her late thirties.

She looked similar to Sakura but in a more mature sense. Chi had the same black hair, but even from sitting, I could tell that she was much taller than Sakura. Mishal wasn't very tall either, but I liked shorties.

"You brought it raw?" Chi asked, and I flinched. I think it was time to change form.

Unfortunately, my transformation skill seemed to be working on pure intention, and I slammed down on my ass as Mishal was forced to drop me. Everyone jumped back, and Chi stood up.

"Asura Cat! What have you bought for us?!" Chi exclaimed as she stared at me with abject horror.

You know, I wasn't sure if this was worse than the groupies that were chasing me around. Having people think I was a demon over a god did have its romanticism. It would pull the real freaks out, but it would also have a lot fewer people chasing me around. So many advantages. No wonder why people turned to the dark side. Being bad was easy, it was staying good that was a pain in the ass, but that was the struggle.

"I am Galio," I said as I tried to stand up but then stayed back down, or I would have been hunched over. "I came to talk to all of you about your time here and see what I can do to help. If there is anything. I don't want to break people away from their ways of life," I said as I crossed my legs out in front of me and put my arms back to prop myself up.

My tail was swishing on the dirt floor, so I grabbed it and pulled it around to my lap to pin it down, but damn, it was soft. I could see why Listenia was trying to grab it.

"Galio? You are that God that everyone in the city is going crazy over?" Chi asked, and I nodded.

"Yes, my true name is Ophiuchus, the thirteenth Astral God, protector of the mortal realms, blah, blah, blah. You should make sure that little bit gets sent out on the Vine. I am tired of telling this, but please don't mention that I was a cat, or I will wipe all your minds. I need to be able to get around from time to time," I said, and Chi sat back down, motioning for the girls to do the same.

There was a table in front of Chi, but it was more than low enough for me to see her clearly. Mishal came and sat down beside me while Sakura still kept her distance. She looked slightly traumatized after seeing me transform.

"Do you mind?" Mishal asked, slowly reaching for my tail, and I nodded.

Mishal placed her hand on my tail, and a grin formed on her face as she began to stroke it. Her dark hands were a stark contrast to the snowy white fur, but the feeling was relaxing and only slightly distracting.

"So, you come here to hear about our pitiful life?" Chi asked, and I looked up and nodded.

"Yup. Tell me about how things are here, how you got here, and why you aren't somewhere more suited for human habitation. After that, I want to hear Mishal's opinion on it. Since she is here, I can assume that she doesn't agree with the way that things are being done in Bramma," I said, looking at Mishal, who looked up from my tail and nodded.

"Can I touch it?" Sakura asked from much closer than she had been before.

Sakura had been five feet away from me, and I hadn't heard her move, surprising me as I looked over to see her sitting nearly right beside me. She was leaning back from me with her hands up strangely like a cat thinking about pawing some water.

"Yes," I chuckled, and she leaned in.

"Ehm! Did you not bring something in here for a purpose, girl?" Chi said, clearing her throat, and Sakura jumped back from me to her feet in a single motion.

This woman was more of a cat than I was!

Sakura turned back to grab the pot of water she had brought in, and Chi started to speak.

"I shall answer your questions in the order asked. We live here because this is the safest place for us that is free from hate. The people of Northwall treat us kindly, even if they don't fully approve of our encampment," Chi explained as she removed the lid of a teapot.

? Sakura came over and slowly filled it up with steaming water. Chi reached under the table and pulled out a single cup, dropping some thin dried leaves. I guess that this wasn't actually meant to be drunk.

I didn't really know much about divination of this nature, even after some probing of my thoughts, only knowledge of how crystal ball clairvoyance worked. It wasn't something that you could do unless you were born with it. You could understand it, but there were others like this that were birth gifts. There was a good chance that I had met this person in a past life for this exact same thing.

"Well, the south side of the city is much safer now. There is also a village of people that is beside a river. I am sure that I could talk to the people there, and they will let you all set up huts or whatever," I suggested, and Chi nodded as she poured the hot water from the teapot into the cup.