Nightfall, Hailan No. 11.

  "Why isn't Big Guy back yet, Meow..." The little Catgirl lay sprawled across the bar counter, yawning listlessly as she mumbled.

  "Wasn't he with you?" Yvlan walked over, looking somewhat frustrated.

  Today, she had specially put on a white dress, preparing to dazzle a certain someone.

  Yet, aside from a hurried greeting in the morning, she hadn’t seen even a shadow of that Big Guy.

  His cat, however, had returned.

  "No, he went to the Orphanage, Meow..." Kiki yawned again and said.

  "The Orphanage..." Yvlan pondered for a moment, wondering if she had any tasks related to an Orphanage.

  She couldn't quite remember, but she didn't dwell on it. Instead, she looked at the sleepy Kiki and smiled, "If you're tired, just go to sleep. Same old room—I already had it tidied up for you."

  "I can't sleep without Big Guy, Meow..." Kiki stated matter-of-factly.

  Yvlan blinked, a peculiar glint flashing through her eyes. Then, she leaned in and whispered, "You and Big Guy... how far have you gone?"

  Kiki tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean, Meow?"

  "I mean..." Yvlan bit her lip, then asked, "Have you two slept together?"

  At her words, Kiki immediately nodded. "Yes, Meow!"

  A flicker of disappointment flashed through Yvlan’s eyes, but on the surface, she maintained a knowing smile and teased, "Was it comfortable?"

  Kiki nodded enthusiastically. "Mmhmm! Very comfortable, Meow!"

  "Big Guy is really warm. Sleeping on him makes me feel so safe, Meow!"

  Yvlan suddenly felt that something was off. She raised an eyebrow and asked, "Wait, when you say sleep... you really just mean sleeping, right?"

  Kiki: "???"

  "What else would it be, Meow?"

  Yvlan looked a little exasperated. "So, you two don’t do anything else at night?"

  Kiki tilted her small head before shaking it. "No, Meow."

  "We're always really tired when we get back, Meow."

  "And Big Guy always falls asleep before I do, Meow."

  Yvlan’s eyes brightened, and the corners of her lips curled slightly. "Is that so? Well, mercenaries are like that—once their heads hit the pillow, they sleep like logs."

  "Big Guy isn’t like that," Kiki countered. "He's more like a dragon. He breathes loudly, but he doesn’t snore, Meow."

  "Oh? You've seen a dragon?" Yvlan asked curiously.

  "Mmhmm. A sleeping dragon. But I only dared to take a quick peek before running away, Meow," Kiki recalled.

  "Then you're quite lucky. I hear dragons are terrifying. A single dragon can easily destroy an entire city," Yvlan remarked.

  "Mmhmm, really scary, Meow. Before it slept, that dragon burned everything around it, then lay down on the scorched land to sleep. Even from far away, I could feel the heat, Meow," Kiki said.

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  "I think its breath alone could dry up a lake, Meow."

  "I wonder if Big Guy could beat a dragon, Meow."

  "You're giving me too much credit there." Suddenly, a large hand landed on Kiki's head, gently ruffling her fur.

  "Big Guy! You're back, Meow!" Kiki turned around excitedly and immediately leapt onto Caius, perching naturally on his shoulder.

  She liked this spot.

  Yvlan also smiled when she saw Caius. "You're really efficient. Just three more Gold-ranked missions, and you'll reach Gold, right?"

  She was deliberately asking the obvious. As she spoke, she casually spun around while washing a glass, making her off-white dress flare out like a blooming flower before settling down again.

  There was a hint of anticipation in her gaze.

  But Caius simply chuckled to himself and said, "Of course. I’m aiming to become a Legendary Mercenary—gotta keep up the pace."

  Yvlan hesitated slightly before changing the topic. "By the way, Eli came looking for me. He said you gave him a free Gold-ranked commission."

  As she spoke, she turned around again to place some plates, her dress lifting and falling once more.

  "Yeah, he helped me out. Make sure to refund him the payment, and I'll cover the guild's commission," Caius said, yawning.

  The soothing atmosphere at the Orphanage had relaxed him, making him drowsy.

  Yawns were contagious. Seeing him yawn, Kiki yawned as well. Then, hugging Caius's neck, she rested her small face against his head and murmured, "Big Guy, I’m sleepy, Meow..."

  Caius nodded. "Then let’s get some sleep. We need to head to Grilla City first thing in the morning."

  Turning to Yvlan, he said, "Same old room."

  Yvlan sighed in resignation. "Already prepared for you."

  "Thanks. Give me Eli’s task details tomorrow," Caius said with a smile before heading upstairs with the drowsy little Catgirl.

  "Got it," Boss Lady replied listlessly.

  Watching his back disappear, Yvlan chuckled wryly and glanced at her dress.

  "What am I even doing... Seriously..."

  "Oh, right." Suddenly, Caius poked his head out from the stairwell. Yvlan looked at him questioningly.

  "The dress is beautiful. Stay stunning!" Caius grinned, then quickly ducked back, as if afraid she’d throw a frying pan at him.

  But she didn’t. Yvlan stared blankly at the empty stairwell before bursting into laughter.

  Then, she hurriedly covered her mouth, glancing around to make sure no one had noticed. Only after confirming that no one had seen did she relax, though she couldn't wipe the smile off her face.

  Upstairs, Caius paused, surprised not to hear Boss Lady’s usual roar of indignation.

  But he didn’t dwell on it, assuming she was simply refraining from making a scene at night.

  Humming a tune, he returned to his room, tossed the little Catgirl onto the bed, and collapsed onto it himself.

  His massive frame sank into the soft mattress, causing Kiki to bounce twice before naturally curling up on his stomach.

  Caius glanced down to see her already curled into a tiny ball, rubbing herself against him comfortably. Within moments, soft purring sounds filled the room.

  He was used to it.

  With that, Caius shut his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

  ...

  Morning.

  Caius sat at the bar counter, enjoying his breakfast—corn cereal with milk.

  It was a seasonal dish, and he loved it.

  Kiki also liked it, though she didn’t like corn or cereal. So she ordered a corn cereal breakfast without corn or cereal.

  "Picky eater. No wonder you're so tiny," Caius remarked.

  "I’m not picky. I just don’t like eating plants, Meow," Kiki retorted.

  Caius chuckled.

  Yvlan also smiled and brought over a cup of milk and a grilled fish fillet for her.

  Sunlight streamed through the tavern windows, painting a tranquil morning scene—one man, one Catfolk, and one beautiful Boss Lady.

  A peaceful moment—if not for the drunken mercenaries snoring away at the tables.

  After finishing his meal, Caius accepted the task list from Yvlan.

  Eli’s commission was a material-gathering job requiring him to travel 120 kilometers to Nemo Forest to collect Hops Flower.

  Hops Flower was a rare herb used in high-grade potions, difficult to find.

  And with Gold-ranked Magic Beasts roaming Nemo Forest, the mission wasn’t exactly easy.

  But it wasn’t hard either.

  Taking the task sheet, Caius bid farewell to Yvlan and set off.

  Caius had three Gold-tier promotion tasks. One involved hunting a Gold-tier Magic Beast, which could be found in Nemo Forest—perfect for completing alongside Eli's task.

  The second was a delivery job. Caius needed to pick up a crate of expensive premium liquor from the docks and deliver it to a well-known tavern in Grilla City.

  The last task was rather unique—a debt collection job. The objective was to help a creditor recover a total of 4,800 gold coins, including interest. Caius would receive a quarter of that amount as payment, which meant a reward of 1,200 gold coins.

  The debtor was in Ocean City, but inside the Inner City, and he was a Gold Two-Star debtor at that. The Inner City was a wealthy district, and entering required a permit. Alternatively, one could pay an entry deposit of 1,000 gold coins, which was non-refundable but allowed unrestricted access for ten days. After that period, another 1,000 gold coins would be needed to re-enter.

  Caius had already asked Yvlan to help him apply for a temporary permit. As an official of the Mercenary Guild, she could acquire it far more easily than Caius could by applying through the Outer City administration.

  Since the permit would take a few days to process, the debt collection task had to wait. In the meantime, Caius planned to pick up the shipment from the docks and use the next few days to strengthen himself.