PSW Chapter 33: I Don’t Even Have One
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Lower Egypt, City Lord’s Mansion.
To welcome the King’s arrival, the city lord had specially cleared out his own residence, decorating it in a grand and magnificent fashion.
After all, this was the most prosperous city in Lower Egypt. The city lord’s mansion was enormous and opulent, its yellow stone walls polished smooth, enclosing a vast area at the very heart of the city.
The high yellow stone walls stood tall, with towering palm trees and fig trees inside, their lush green crowns peeking over the top. White stone pillars and the red-tipped roofs of noble villas jutted out just enough to hint at the estate’s majesty and prestige.
Right in front of the city lord’s mansion was the administrative council building. This placement was meant to ensure that, in times of war, the city lord could swiftly handle governmental affairs and command the overall situation.
Nowadays, however, it was mostly used for civil disputes or marriage registrations.
On most days, the council hall remained peaceful, its stillness a stark contrast to the lively streets outside—as if the two belonged to entirely different worlds.
But with the arrival of the Pharaoh, the place was once again put to use.
Bastet had assumed that, upon their arrival, they would either go straight to searching for the Book of the Dead or attend the banquet the city lords had prepared for Yofar. However, as soon as they disembarked, Yofar immediately took Nephthys, Hesse, and the city lords of Lower Egypt to deal with political affairs.
A total workaholic move—“food can wait, work comes first.”
Left behind, Bastet sighed. It was clear they weren’t here for leisure. While their true goal was to find the book, as a king, Yofar’s schedule was undoubtedly packed, leaving no time for relaxation.
Being a king was so miserable…
No way am I ever marrying a workaholic in the future. Not even enough time to spend with a cat.
Even dinner was left for the cat to eat alone.
The sleek black feline sat by the pond in the courtyard, watching the carefree, chubby fish swimming back and forth, sighing and mumbling to itself in little meows.
Not far away, an elderly lady-in-waiting, Alina, who was responsible for taking care of Bastet, pursed her lips in amusement at the sight of the melancholic little figure.
A younger maid beside her furrowed her brows and leaned in worriedly. “Lady Alina, what’s wrong with the Cat God? It looks so listless… Could it be feeling unwell from the change in environment? If anything happens to the Cat God, the King will definitely have our heads!”
“Don’t worry.” Alina chuckled and shook her head. “Bastet is very smart. The King told it to eat dinner on its own before he left. It must have realized that the King will be busy late into the night and won’t be able to keep it company, so it’s feeling a little sad.”
“Oh, I see…”
The younger maid gazed at the black cat’s unexpectedly forlorn back for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. “It looks so pitiful, haha! The Cat God is so well-behaved and clingy, not like the one I have at home. Mine barely even acknowledges me.”
And if she tried to pet it too much? The furry overlord would roll its eyes and bite her.
Alina nodded in agreement. “Bastet does seem to enjoy human company.” Especially when it came to sticking close to the King.
Completely unaware that its tiny thoughts had been seen through so thoroughly, Bastet continued glaring at the fish in the pond. The more it looked, the more it disliked that fat fish. Finally, when the fish surfaced and blew curious little bubbles at it, the black cat raised a wicked paw—
SMACK!
The fish was slapped back into the water!
Bastet bared its teeth: Take that! Go back down!
The fish, flipping over several times in the water: … The hell?! What kind of human behavior is this?!
The fish turned around and swam away without looking back. Before leaving, it gave a mighty flick of its tail, sending water splashing all over Bastet’s smug, cackling face.
Bastet: “…” Come back here if you’ve got guts! Fight me again!
The bored cat yowled after it, but the fat fish never returned.
Just as Bastet was about to unleash its sinful paws on the pond’s lotus flowers, a small stone suddenly plopped into the water right in front of it, giving it another impromptu bath.
“Meow!!” The hell—who did that?!
Caught off guard, Bastet jumped.
“Pfft, hahaha! Sister, look! This cat is so funny!”
From behind a sturdy palm tree on the other side of the courtyard, two little girls—one older, one younger—suddenly emerged, holding hands and giggling mischievously as they winked at Bastet.
Bastet instantly recognized them as the city lord’s daughters. The city lord had mentioned them when speaking to Yofar, explaining that they still lived in the mansion. Though he had tried to move his entire family out, the sheer number of servants and slaves made it impossible.
Of course, this was an obvious lie.
Everyone knew the truth—the round-bellied city lord was simply trying to use this opportunity to have his daughters stroll around in front of the Pharaoh.
Maybe, he thought, if the King took a liking to one of them, I could sing their praises and… who knows? Our family might just become in-laws with the Pharaoh himself!
The city lord had great hopes, but he hadn’t expected Yofar to be so unyielding. On top of that, he was heavily guarded, making it impossible for just anyone to stage a beautiful "coincidental" encounter.
The two little girls, following their father’s orders, wandered around for a long time, only to find that the city lord’s residence—once a place where they could play freely—was now filled with soldiers. There was nowhere they could go.
The fierce personal guards didn’t care that they were girls, nor were they intimidated by their status as the city lord’s daughters. The moment they got even slightly closer, they were met with sharp, menacing glares, as if those guards were ready to tear a piece of flesh from them.
Terrified, the two little girls turned pale and ran away.
As they walked, they found themselves in the courtyard—now the least guarded part of the city lord’s residence.
Bastet, who had overheard part of the conversation earlier, looked at the two little girls who had run up to him and thought that the city lord’s daughters were awfully young.
The older one was around thirteen or fourteen, holding her younger sister’s hand while carrying a black-and-white mixed-colored cat in her arms. The younger one was probably not even ten.
Sending girls this young to Yofar’s side? His human servant wasn’t some kind of depraved lunatic!
Then again, people in ancient times did seem to marry early…
“Little one, do you want to catch fish to eat? That’s not allowed! Father said the fish here are for viewing only. You have to be as well-behaved as Keke Lian—Keke Lian doesn’t eat them.”
The younger girl, with light brown skin, bounced on her feet, wide-eyed as she crouched beside Bastet, staring at his damp fur and speaking earnestly.
The older girl, who had delicate features, also nodded. “You can’t eat them, or you’ll get scolded.” Her voice was soft, introverted, and shy.
“If you’re bored, just play with Keke Lian. You’re both cats.” The city lord’s eldest daughter placed her cat in front of Bastet.
“…”
Meow meow meow???
Before Bastet could react, he suddenly found himself face-to-face with another furry creature. The black-and-white cat was larger than him, with a small golden bell tied around its neck. It had the same bright green feline eyes, but while one pair looked bewildered, the other was filled with disdain.
“Meow—”
The black-and-white cat stretched lazily, casting a sideways glance at Bastet before elegantly perching a little further away on the grass. It seemed to say: I have no interest in dealing with some scruffy little kitten. Besides, he's too black—not appealing at all.
Bastet · Pure Black · Cat: “…”
“Meow!” Lies! I’m not that black!
“Meow~” I’m not lying. You are that black. Does your owner even like you? Egyptian nobles prefer my fur color nowadays~
“Meow!” He does like me!
“Meow~” Lies! My owner always plays with me—yours doesn’t even pay attention to you!
“…”
Bastet, his little feline heart shattered, spread his legs and buried his head into his belly, frantically searching for even a single differently colored fur.
Just one. Even one would be fine!
After three minutes of flipping himself upside down, Bastet fell silent. Then, he stretched out his paw towards the black-and-white cat.
Bastet: At least my paw pads are pink!
Black-and-white cat: Heh~
Bastet: …Sob, sob, sob.
Already feeling down, Bastet now suffered further humiliation from his fellow feline, leaving him utterly hopeless. He flopped face-first onto the grass, chewing on a few blades in defeat. His small tail drooped listlessly, flicking half-heartedly in the breeze.
Meanwhile, under the urging of the little girls, Keke Lian, still unwilling to play with Bastet, suddenly twitched his nose, sniffing curiously. His proud and haughty demeanor shifted as he hesitantly took a few steps toward Bastet.
The two little girls didn’t think much of it and were instead delighted that their cats seemed to be getting along.
Not far away, the elderly lady-in-waiting, Alina, and a few other maids kept a close eye on them. As the king’s personal attendant, Alina had the authority to scold even the city lord’s daughters if necessary.
However, that only applied in special situations. Since the two little girls were still young and hadn’t done anything to harm Bastet, Alina wasn’t going to drive them away. Instead, she just stood there, furrowing her brows and watching them even more closely.
When they saw the city lord’s daughter’s cat approaching Bastet, their hearts instantly tightened.
Everyone knew that while cats were usually soft and adorable, they were also territorial creatures—classic examples of “two tigers cannot share one mountain.” If they got along, they could play together, but if they didn’t, it could turn into a fur-flying brawl within seconds!
“Lady Alina…”
One of the maids spoke anxiously. “We should step in. The Cat God is His Majesty’s beloved pet—what if it gets scratched in the eye?” Even if it wasn’t seriously injured, just a missing patch of fur would be enough for the Pharaoh to notice immediately!
“…You’re right. Let’s go!”
Sharing the same worry, Alina gathered the other maids and hurried over, lifting her skirts as she quickened her pace. However, just as they reached halfway, they saw something unexpected—
The other cat suddenly pounced on Bastet!
The city lord’s cat was already three years old—a full-grown adult cat, larger and much stronger than Bastet.
Without any suspense, the black-and-white fluffball flipped the little black one over completely! The two of them rolled across the grass, kicking up dust and blades of grass. Sharp, high-pitched meows filled the air as they wrestled into a tangled ball.
They briefly separated once—Bastet, panicked, turned tail and ran. But the black-and-white cat, nimble like a small cheetah, swiftly chased him down and pounced again, flipping Bastet onto the ground once more!
The two cats tumbled several meters across the lawn.
It all happened so fast that no one had time to react.
The two little girls, who had just been excited to play house with the cats, froze in shock, unsure how to separate them. They kept calling out "Keke Lian," hoping their cat would listen.
Meanwhile, Alina and the maids’ expressions changed drastically. They ignored the risk of getting scratched and rushed forward, attempting to pry the cats apart.
“Meowwwww—!”
Suddenly, from the middle of the furball battle, a sharp, piercing shriek rang out—so shrill it sounded like someone had dragged their nails across metal.
One of the cats had clearly suffered a terrible injury.
The maids’ hearts nearly leaped out of their chests when they heard the sound.
The reason was simple—the one who had let out that cry was none other than their king’s cat!
_____
[Author’s Note:]
The two cats… Hmm, didn’t actually fight. I wonder if you guys figured it out—hehe.
T/N: Please give support on my ko-fi page, thank you🍊🍊🍊
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