Chapter 1 Preface

In an alternate world,

On the 15th of a certain month,

8:18 AM,

A young man stood peering out the window at the street, his gaze fixed on a cat-eared girl among the crowd.

The girl's name was Tribe Ruri, and she was currently the young man's boss. He had to "seduce" her into confessing his love within nine days, or he would die instantly with no way to avoid his fate.

"The 'information collection level' has reached the conditions for starting the strategy."

"Begin operation with a 'soft and harmless' persona."

The young man muttered to himself.

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10:30 AM,

The young man stepped into the Cat Girl Restaurant on the street and was immediately scolded.

"Banning! Look at what time it is now! How many times have you been late this month?!"

The scolder was none other than the cat-eared girl, her tail standing up in anger.

"I-I'm sorry, boss! I'll get to work right away!"

The young man didn't dare argue and immediately ran off to the kitchen to work.

The cat-eared girl sighed with her arms crossed, wondering why this human boy, who used to be so well-behaved, had been late so many times this month.

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11:40 PM,

The cat-eared girl who had gone out to negotiate prices with suppliers returned to her Cat Girl restaurant. Normally, by this time, all the employees would have gone home, but tonight the kitchen light was still on.

-(Could it be a thief?!)-

Although the cat-eared girl was a strong woman, she became nervous in this situation.

Just as she was about to rush in with a mop, someone tapped her on the back.

"Ahhhhhhhhh--!!!"

The cat-eared girl was so scared that she swung the mop around wildly and then hid in the corner.

"Who is it?! Who is it? Come out MEOW!"

The girl was so nervous that she even spoke in the language of the cats.

"Uh...boss...it's me..."

The young man, holding his head swollen from the mop, stumbled in front of the cat-eared girl.

"Huh?! Banning? Why haven't you gone home yet? You scared me to death..."

Seeing the young man in this state, the cat-eared girl felt guilty.

"I thought...since I've been late so many times these days...I should stay and do more work...I hope you won't fire me..."

The young man's pitiful words made the girl feel even more remorseful.

She wanted to make it up to the young man but didn't know how to do it.

"I won't fire you. Go back now and take this ointment with you."

After the young man left, the cat-eared girl looked at the spotless restaurant and kitchen, and thought about the beating she had given the young man. She felt very guilty.

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On the 16th,

12:03 AM,

The young man returned to his temporary residence to review his strategy.

"Successfully verified that the boss's type is 'outwardly strong but inwardly gentle,' and the 'showing weakness and guilt strategy' can continue to be used."

"The 'suspension bridge effect' operation has achieved the expected results, and the heart rate response has been confirmed through physiological features."

"It is predicted that the boss will have a high probability of coming to investigate the reason for me being late tomorrow morning, so I will start the 'guilt enhancement' operation in advance."

The young man sat cross-legged on the bed with his eyes closed, murmuring to himself.

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6:10 AM,

The young man confirmed through the window that the cat-eared girl was "ambushing" downstairs.

(Start the "guilt enhancement" operation.)

He put on the prepared bread and, knowing that he was being followed by the cat-eared girl, pretended not to notice and walked to the slum area to distribute bread to the children.

The cat-eared girl watched from afar and felt that she might have been too harsh on the young man before.

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8:45 AM,

Today, the young man arrived fifteen minutes early at the Cat Girl Restaurant, and the cat-eared girl arrived at about the same time.

"Good morning, boss!"

The young man was full of energy and very sunny today.

"Um...good morning."

The cat-eared girl, on the other hand, couldn't look him in the eye and pretended to be busy with other things.

(Confirmed that the "recent cause effect" is starting to take effect.)

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On the 17th,

12:36 PM,

The young man was on duty to serve dishes at lunchtime.

As he walked around the restaurant, he could feel the cat-eared girl's eyes on him from time to time.

(Confirmed that the "love compensation effect" is starting to take effect, and caring is the beginning of liking.)

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3:15 PM,

While everyone was resting, the young man imitated someone else's handwriting and quietly wrote a note:

"I heard that the boss likes Banning. They stayed at the restaurant until late the other day."

Then deliberately placed it where it was easy to be found.

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5:08 PM,

The news that the boss likes Banning has spread throughout the restaurant, and even she has heard about it.

ραndαsΝοvεl ƈοm Although the cat-eared girl clarified it and even praised Banning for taking the initiative to work overtime before, everyone just laughed it off.

The failed clarification made the cat-eared girl even more flustered.

(The "hint effect" is starting to take effect.)

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On the 18th,

As the end of the workday approached, the cat-eared girl nervously approached the young man.

"B-Banning, I'm sorry I hit you the other day."

"It's okay, boss. It's all good now, see?"

The young man approached the cat-eared girl to show her where he was hurt, and the suddenly shortened distance made the cat-eared girl's heart beat faster.

"I-I'm glad everything's okay...oh, by the way, this is for you."

The cat-eared girl withdrew and handed a box to the young man.

"Boss, I can't accept this. If everyone finds out, they'll misunderstand."

"Huh? Misunderstand what?"

"You know...everyone's talking privately...about how the boss...likes me or something."

As soon as she heard the young man say that, the cat-eared girl's face turned red in an instant.

"T-That's not true!"

The cat-eared girl threw the gift down and ran away in a hurry.

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On the 19th,

The young man deftly handled a group of rowdy tiger-people customers, winning the favor of all the staff.

The cat-eared girl wanted to praise him, but feared being teased, so she remained silent.

However, the young man's mind-reading abilities made her thoughts crystal clear to him.

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On the 20th,

The young man noticed that the cat-eared boss had started paying more attention to her appearance. (Confirmed the "Hawthorne Effect".)

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On the 21st,

The young man proposed some ideas to improve the workflow in the restaurant, which were well received by everyone. They jokingly referred to him as the "landlady" of the shop. The cat-eared girl politely avoided the topic.

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On the 22nd,

Rumors began to circulate in the restaurant that the young man might resign. This news also reached the ears of the shop owner, the cat-eared girl.

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On the 23rd,

11:12 PM

The Cat Girl Restaurant had already closed, and everyone except the cat-eared girl and the young man had gone home. Although they hadn't planned it, they both intuitively stayed behind.

(Beginning the final "Endowment Effect" operation.)

"Boss, there's something I need to tell you..."

"Can you stay a little longer?"

The young man was interrupted by the cat-eared girl before he could finish speaking.

"But...if I stay, it might not be good..."

"What's not good about it? Is it because you're unhappy with your salary? I can give you a raise..."

"No, it's not that, boss."

The young man shook his head.

"It's because everyone is saying that you like me...I can see it...you're troubled by it, aren't you? Even though you don't actually like me...I don't want to see you troubled, so...it's better if I leave."

The young man lowered his head, and as he spoke the last few words, his voice became as soft as a mosquito's.

Both of them fell silent.

The restaurant was so quiet that they could hear each other's breathing.

The young man didn't receive a reply, so he silently stood up and prepared to leave. At that moment...

"There's no such thing."

The cat-eared girl spoke.

"Huh?"

"There's no such thing. I'm not troubled by anything."

"...Huh?"

The young man seemed to have not understood the hidden meaning in the cat-eared girl's words.

Seeing this young man acting foolishly at a critical moment, the cat-eared girl couldn't help but feel annoyed. But since she had already said it, she might as well say it all.

"Argh...so annoying! Do I have to be so blunt?"

"Don't leave. Stay, I LIKE YOU, and I don't feel troubled at all!"

Seeing the cat-eared girl, who was now blushing and staring at him, the young man smiled shyly.

--"Received confession from 'Catgirl Tribe Ruri'."

All of this was just his acting.

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Regarding why the young man was trying to conquer a girl in a different world, it all started from the day he suddenly died.