I wake up to the sound of the evening bells.

The sun is setting and the town is getting colder, but I wasn’t bothered as I slept in the middle of the cat dumpling.

I slept so well…

It was a good nap because I was able to go to sleep after realizing I gained so much from going to the mansion…Thanks to that nap, I’m full of energy.

…It’s good that I’m full of energy, but…isn’t it kind of noisy?

This is the time of day when the town is supposed to be quiet as everyone retreats to their homes, but today, the streets are buzzing with noise.

Is there a festival going on or something?

I escape from the cat dumpling in a way that doesn’t wake up the other cats around me, stretch once and head for the main street.

As I pass through the dark alleyways and come out into the street, I see a wave of people flowing by.

Is this a festival after all? It seems like it is, but it isn’t. Why not?  Because everyone’s faces are so dark.

They look like prisoners on death row…Are they okay?

I am curious, so I follow the crowd and walk alongside them.

After walking for about ten minutes—

We arrive at the square in front of the demons’ mansion.

The plaza is lit up by the dusk, dyed crimson as if it were ablaze which made the demons surrounding it look like demons amid the flames of hell.

Isn’t it bad to be in the demons’ territory though? …I just escaped from their mansion at noon, and it’s possible that the criminal who broke into the mansion and killed two of their guards was me—or maybe they even noticed a cat.

While being careful not to get trampled, I hide at the feet of the people gathering at the square to be on the safe side. I’m not using [Concealment]. If I use it, people would step on me without realizing it.

…In case you’re wondering, I’m not hiding under women’s skirts, you know? Even if I did hide, I wouldn’t be so rude as to look up, as a former human being. 

We wait for everyone to gather in the plaza.

All the people who come, stand motionless with their mouths closed, looking like defendants in a courtroom.

I feel uncomfortable, as if I am surrounded by mannequins, but I also know that if I stand back enough for the demons to find me, I might be in trouble, so I stay put.

As soon as I feel a little drowsy, I finally find out why everyone is gathering.

“Listen! Stupid humans!!!”

I can’t see them from my point of view, but I can hear their pompous voices from the mansion.

I could use my [Bird’s Eye] and see who is talking, but I immediately remember being traced when I peeked into the mansion before.

Even without seeing them, I can tell that it’s the demons.

“The reason that we gathered you here today is to convey our anger and sorrow!”

Anger and sorrow?

Eh? What? Is he talking about having a broken heart? Is it something that will make him feel better if everyone hears it?

“The other day, a human invaded our house!”

The humans are immediately abuzz.

A person gets angry and says, “They did something stupid!”. Some said, “Well done,” and praise in quiet whispers. Others laugh as if they’ve given up completely.

Amid the blend of voices, the demon continues on.

“We, the demon race, have tried our best to build a good relationship with you, but this is clearly betrayal! I’m very resentful and heartbroken.”

What do you mean, “good relationship”? I’d like you to look up the word “good” in the dictionary and come back.

“Therefore—tomorrow, the intruder will be executed!!”

Ehhhh? A sudden development?

Execution, they mean to execute someone?…Damn it, I am too upset to think straight.

I’m pretty sure the intruder they are talking about is Yuri, right? The fact that the announcement of the execution is happening now means that it definitely has something to do with the fact that I broke in…

Damn, this is bad.

“The location is this plaza and the time is at the noon bell.”

A public execution!?

Hey, fuck you, man! If you drag Yuri out in front of everyone, it’ll be impossible to sneak in and save her. If I want to save her, I’ll have to fight the demons directly to get her back!?

The demon continues to talk.

“But, I am a benevolent master.”

Don’t say things like that about yourself. I can only tsukkomi so much.

“I’m sure it hurts you to see your own kind die as a sinner, doesn’t it? So, I have a suggestion. If you do something that resonates with my broken heart, I’ll let the intruder go without issue. What you do with them after that is up to you.”

Wow…They’re being like this.

The demons are sending me a message, “If you bring what you stole, I will release the hostage.”

The time limit is the noon bell where the execution will be carried out—I have until noon. They want me to return it by then?

…Well, if you rush me like this, I have no intention of doing what you want at all.

It’s not that I’m scared and saying that to make myself feel better.

I’m pretty sure that if I took the Divine Weapon and the Abyssal Box to them, the demons would lynch me while saying, “I’ve been waiting for you!” That’s not the point, though. I’m not worried about that right now, just that my life is hanging in the balance…No, it’s a problem because this situation is life-threatening.

If I gave them the stolen goods, what would happen? What happens then?

The demons would laugh and say, “Hahahaha, you dumbass!”, then kill Yuri in front of me. It would be my turn shortly after.

Yeah, it’s over.

It’s obvious that giving it back won’t solve anything! In fact, if I do bring it to them, it will end for me in several various ways.

“Well, goodbye until the bell rings at noon tomorrow.”

The demon that had been talking seems to have finished.

The humans who have been gathered are visibly relieved. Maybe the guy who was talking was the leader of the demons here and the humans were just really scared of him?

As the people started to disperse from the area, I followed the flow, leaving the plaza as well.

…What should I do…

I wander aimlessly through the town.

Honestly, can’t I do something about it now that I’ve come this far?

The fact that they announced that they’re going to execute her tomorrow means that their security is going to be much tighter than it’s ever been before. Of course, there’ll be a lot of demons surrounding Yuri.

It’s impossible to break in again, much less take Yuri from them without being noticed. That being said, it would be more impossible to get her through direct battle…wouldn’t it?

If there is going to be a good time to jump in, it would be the moment that they’re put on the execution table.

There’s probably going to be a lot of demons around at that point. But, the executioner’s table will be surrounded by both humans and demons.

I can’t avoid fighting, so I’ll probably end up hurting the humans too.

…Wanting to help Yuri is an act of self-satisfaction that comes from the guilt of feeling that it is my fault that she was captured. The question I have now is whether it is right or wrong to involve other people in this.

To be honest, I feel like I should stop here.

I’ve done as much as I can with my cat body…I’m not sure I made anything better…That’s the thing, though…

The reason they dared to gather all the people in the town to declare the execution like that is because they don’t know who I am.

If they knew who I was, they would’ve gone around catching all the cats in town before they did something like that. That means I’ll be safe as long as I pretend to be just a normal cat until the commotion dies down.

I can feel myself trying to find a way to escape—

Because…I’m scared.

I don’t know the exact number of demons in the town, but it’s probably more than a hundred. I’ll have to deal with all of them…so there’s plenty of reason to be scared.

I can’t help but give up, right? I’m just a cat.

I can’t help it.

They are demons, right? I’m not sure how a kitten is supposed to handle a deformed monster that makes even humans grovel at their feet.

I’m convinced.

I’m convinced to run away.

Let’s pretend we didn’t see anything.

I’ll pretend I didn’t hear anything.

There’s nothing I can do about it anyway.

All right, I’m convinced…but deep in my mind, the human me is whispering.

—Are you really okay with that?

As if evoked by the whisper, the image of Yuri tied up in that basement fills my thoughts.

I am hit so hard by it that I forget to breathe.

Is this good?

Are you okay with this?

—It’s not good at all!!!

I might be in danger or involve someone else…I don’t know everything!!

Are you so gutless that you won’t do something when you have the ability?

No, I’m not!

Even if I’m gutless, this is probably one of those moments that I should go all in!

I am only a cat now, after all.

So, like a cat, I’ll do whatever I want to do!