“Na-oh.” Translator: MadHatter

Thatmottled patternedcat was there.

Mythoughts becamedownright disorganized atthat moment.

Howcould thatcat be in a place likethis―

Seatedbefore the garbagedumpster, its eyes glinting amidst thedarkness, itstail wagging slowlyin a steady rhythm, itwas without a doubtthe cat that hadbeen stood in frontof the white catcarcass last night, staringat me witha grudging look embedded inits eyes.

“Naa-oh.”Not shared on lightnovelreader.me

Itsvoice wasuncanny to thepoint that goosebumpsrose on myskin.

Itwas far from a normal meow. Coulda cat purr likethis?

“Naaaah.”fubeiow

Likeyesterday, it openedits mouth wideand meowed inalarm, which was evidently peculiar. Whatwas thiscat trying to convey tome?

However, itwas beyondmy capacity tograsp whatthe cat was saying tome, andwhy did itappear in front of meagain after yesterday’s occurrence? I mean, thiswasstrange.

Thethought that somethingsinister was about toensue naturally senttremors through mybody, and Ithrew the garbagebag I was carrying into the dumpster and left theplace.

Ireturned to the frontof thestore, feigning composure as though nothing hadhappened, but perspiration drenched myhands, my pulse wasracing, and by all accounts, I was not calm.

The25-year-old freeter was pathetically reassuredby the brightness of the store.

Whatanembarrassment.fweg4

I heaveda small sigh thatcouldn’t be heard.

The delinquentswere still hanging outin front of thestore. Theywere too muchof a nuisance… for heaven’s sake, hurryup and disappear.

While experiencing a strangesense of fatigue, Itook a big detour aroundthe delinquents’ hangoutand walked to theentrance of thestore.

“―Oh, thatreminds me. Thecat I ran over isstill there, right?”

Thevoice I accidentallyheard from behind me brought meto an involuntary halt.

“Ah… thatwhitecat, right?”fwe

“It’s decomposing quickly, isn’t it? The flieswere swarming all overit.”

“It waspretty gross, huh!! Haha! Plus, itstunk!”

Holdon…fegqw

Thatconversation. It couldn’t be…fewq

“Haha, it waswrong of it to leap out in front of us, that was likeasking us to run over it!”

“Kahaha! Catsnowadays are dumb, they are too carefree! Aha!”

Oneof them laughed and several others caught on and began to laugh aswell.

…No way.Not shared on aggregator websites

Theseguys ran over it… They ranover that cat that was at thetunnel exit…

Theseguys were theones who ran overthat cat.

How could they be laughing after havingrun over that cat? Thesepeople wereinsane.

“It’s not like I ranover anybody. Whocares about that?” the manwith the flashy-colored head spatout.

Hearingthat, my face heatedup as if my blood was rushing to myhead.

These guys…iqd3uw

Iwasn’t a cat lover, nor was I amember of any animal rightsgroup. I didn’thave anyinterest in what theseguys were talking aboutbut…

Aslong as itwas not aperson theyran over, they wouldn’t careabout it…?

I couldn’t bear to ignorethat with them laughing thisway. That white catwas reduced to a miserable mess.

Besides… thethought that because of these people, Iwas being haunted by that creepy catwith the mottled pattern and getting embroiled in another nefarious situation made me irrationally… aggravated.

I had noclue why the cat was showing upbefore me, nevertheless, it was theseguys that the catshould be resenting, not me. What was unquestionable was thatthese delinquents ranover that white cat, incurring the wrathof the mottled patterned cat. The fact that theywere laughing it off oblivious to all of thissparked a silent fit of indignationin my chest.

“Oi, you, whatareyou listening to?”gr3

Aslight painwas felt in theback of myhead, and thenan aluminum canstruck the concrete ground and tumbleddown. That aluminum can washurled at theback of my head.

“No, you―”Translator: MadHatter

Youbastard! What the hell wereyou doing! I intendedto yell at himbut I lost that inclination immediately after turningaround.

Becauseeach of the dozen orso delinquents was staring at me, their eyes glaring. Evenmore so, they were all wearing anaura as if they were ready to starta fight withme.

Oh no―Not shared on aggregator websitesmagic

As Iretreated, a man who seemed to be the leader of thegroup approached me, swaying his body and shoved me on the shoulder vigorously.

Anyone would be stunned by such an abrupt action, and Iinstantly forgot my rage and let my heart skip a beat.

This guy may be younger than me buthis height was insanely tall…!

“Oi, you were justeavesdropping on us, weren’t you? Right?”

I couldn’t sayyes, so I clenched my teeth and heldone of my arms to protect the shoulder that hadbeen pushed away. Perhaps this actionwas interpreted as defiance, the leaderof the group furrowed hisbrow deeply and cameat me forcefully. It was agonizing to be seized by the chestwith all his force, and I unconsciously turned my face awayin discomfort when he blewhis rough breath, which reeked of alcohol, at closerange.

Goodgrief… such people who have been drinking were trulyawful.

“What? Doyou have something tocomplain about, hah?”

“You’re nothing but astore staff, don’t youdare listen to our conversation!”

“If youhave something to say, why don’t you trysaying it!?”

Notonly did the man whograsped me by the chest raise a ruckus but the cronies behindhim did as well.

Theseguys…fwe4th

Withoutcompanions behind them, they couldn’t even drink or get violent. Disgracefulbunch.

I detested these people, I absolutelyabhorred them.

Withouteven having a job, they gathered like-minded individuals and incited uproarwithout even being aware of thetrouble they were wreaking onothers.

“Hea… ven…”rwqf

“Aah?”fwegh

“Faceheaven’s judgement.”

Theexpression in the eyes of the man in front of me shifted as I said these words whilehe gripped me by the chest.

I was convincedthat I was going to bebeaten.

No, I was preparedto be beaten up, and I saidthat bombshell remark thatwould rub the delinquentsthe wrong way. Undernormal circumstances, I would have just letit drift by, and prioritized myown safety, even if theresult was hard to swallow.

Tonight, though, Iwas in a foulmood.

Therefore, eventhough I wouldsuffer a little pain, I decided to be a bit more honestwith myself.

Asolid fist flew at me from diagonallyacross me.

Oi… Whatwas with that lumpy, pointed silverring?

If I… tooka serious hit from thatthing.

Bloodwouldpour out from me, right?

Ireflexivelyshut myeyes.