Chapter 22: Worry About Yourself, Not the Leopard

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Lu Yao wore only a shirt. As the room temperature slowly dropped, the cool air seeped through the fabric into his skin. He handed both cat bowls to the kitchen housekeeping robot and went upstairs to his bedroom to rest. He didn’t know if Torque was sulking at him or playing some kind of tease-and-avoid game—tonight, the little white cat hadn’t jumped onto his bed as usual.

The Eighth District had more than sixteen hours of daylight, making it the prime location for most flying apparatus research bases. As the first morning light crept over the land, a white cat quietly slipped along the walls from the shadows into the living room. It jumped onto the sofa and found the leather jacket Lu Yao had left behind.

The lingering scent of the big predator made the little white cat’s fur stand on end. Yet, after years of domestication, the cat seemed emboldened, no longer fully accustomed to the raw power of a wild animal. It first sniffed the areas with the strongest scent, then rubbed its cheeks and neck against them, trying to mask the snow leopard’s lingering smell. The cat was thoroughly enjoying itself.

Unseen in the shadow of a column, another pair of eyes watched its every move. If Zhou Yunchen were still human, he probably wouldn’t have reacted. He wouldn’t have cared about a little cat playing. But now, he was a large feline. His intense territorial instincts stirred within him, and a mix of irritation and ferocity resonated from deep in his throat.

The snow leopard crouched low, bent his hind legs, and launched with sudden force. Spanning the distance of several feet, he struck the sofa like a guided missile, pinning one corner of Lu Yao’s jacket. Amid Torque’s screeches and invisible claws, the snow leopard’s weight flipped the sofa entirely.

Lu Yao’s sleep that night had been miserable. The indoor temperature was too low, so he used a thicker blanket, only to wake several times from heat. Uncovering himself left him shivering. He barely slept at all.

When a loud commotion erupted downstairs, Lu Yao was instantly awake. He grasped the edge of the bed and sat up, every nerve sending sharp pains, his nasal passages congested and uncomfortable. The AI detected his movement and automatically turned the floor-to-ceiling windows from dark to transparent, and the sunlight stung his eyes.

Below him, the fighting continued, accompanied by the sound of furniture being knocked over. Dragging his unsteady legs, Lu Yao made his way downstairs.

The living room was in complete chaos. The sofa was overturned, clawed through by sharp feline claws, its stuffing scattered across the floor. The snow leopard and Torque had fought, and tufts of cat fur flew through the air like a snowstorm.

Lu Yao inhaled some of it accidentally, making his headache worse. He furrowed his brow. The two cats, seeing Lu Yao’s increasingly pained expression, froze, letting the jacket fall to the floor with a snap. Under their claws and teeth, the leather jacket was ripped into countless holes, rivaling any punk leather piece in Mo Feng’s former rock-star boyfriend’s wardrobe. The two culprits lowered their ears, looking both timid and innocent. Lu Yao groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead. Both cats pressed lower to the ground.

“Meow…”

“Au—oo…”

Lu Yao had no time to respond. Darkness crept inward from the corners, speckled with countless tiny black dots, fully obscuring his perception. His sense of balance and awareness quickly faded. His steps faltered, and he toppled backward.

The snow leopard, seeing Lu Yao falling, leapt to catch him. With a loud thud, Lu Yao slammed into the snow leopard, collapsing him onto the floor. After all, humans are also large creatures of nature; an uncontrolled fall from one could crush a snow leopard.

Lu Yao’s metal-reinforced occipital bone struck the snow leopard’s hind leg, sending waves of pain through muscle and bone. The snow leopard didn’t cry out but turned to nudge Lu Yao’s shoulder. Still, he couldn’t rouse him.

Had they really knocked Lu Yao unconscious? Guilt bubbled from the snow leopard in a few pitiful whines. But he couldn’t let Lu Yao lie there; he had to get a doctor. Just as he considered contacting his aide, Zhou Yunchen realized that would reveal his identity.

A snow leopard couldn’t possibly have the intelligence to contact a General’s aide personally. Without that, Zhao Minghe had no reason to come to Lu Yao’s home.

“Au—oo… au—oo…” Zhou Yunchen had to improvise. He clawed at the personal AI assistant strapped to Lu Yao’s wrist. His paws were too large for precise control, so he pressed with his nose. 

After navigating the contacts list, he found Mo Feng and nudged the video call open with his nose. Thirty seconds later, Mo Feng appeared on-screen, still half-asleep. Another person in the background asked, “Who’s calling at this hour?”

“It’s Lu Yao. I need to check on him.” When Mo Feng saw Lu Yao lying on the floor, eyes closed, he snapped fully awake. “What happened? Lu Yao, what’s wrong?!”

“Au—oo—” Only the snow leopard’s cries responded.

Realizing he’d been asking the wrong creature, Mo Feng understood that it was impressive enough that the snow leopard could operate the communication device while Lu Yao was unconscious. It wouldn’t understand questions.

“What’s wrong?” the person at Mo Feng’s bedside asked.

“Lu Yao fainted at home. I need to go. You keep sleeping.” Mo Feng leapt out of bed, dressing as he called a doctor to come immediately.

Meanwhile, the snow leopard carefully pressed his ears near Lu Yao’s neck, listening to the faint flow of blood to ensure circulation was normal. Torque didn’t dare move, quietly lying beside Lu Yao’s hand.

Lu Yao awoke in a haze, the soreness in his muscles and the pounding headache flooding into his consciousness. He squeezed his eyes shut, flexed the muscles around them, and then opened them. The cold gray ceiling struck him as unfamiliar, and it took a moment to remember he was in a new home.

“Awake, huh?”

Lu Yao turned his head and saw Mo Feng had pulled up a chair beside the bed. A floating light screen shimmered with work data he was reviewing.

“Mm.” Lu Yao’s throat was hoarse and dry. He only remembered fainting while coming downstairs. “Why are you here?”

Mo Feng looked up at him. “You fainted from a high fever with a bad cold. The doctor and I rushed over in the middle of the night and brought you upstairs from the first floor.”

So it had been a fever… Lu Yao pressed a hand to his forehead. The heat hadn’t fully subsided yet, radiating warmth into his palm. He hadn’t been sick in a long time.

“How long did I sleep?”

“Not long. Only six hours. The doctor already gave you an antipyretic injection, but it might take a few more hours to fully take effect.”

Suddenly, Lu Yao frowned. “How did you know I fainted?”

He remembered how sudden it had been; there hadn’t been time to react to anything.

Mo Feng sighed and glanced at the large creature crouching at the foot of Lu Yao’s bed. “Well… he somehow activated the video call after you collapsed, and that’s how I realized something was wrong.”

The snow leopard’s pale gray eyes fixed on Lu Yao. Gone was the cold, imperious gaze from the cliffside. Now only concern remained, ears drooping, tail limply hanging down.

Mo Feng continued, “But Lu Yao, what were you thinking? Setting the indoor temperature so low you ended up catching a cold?”

When the doctor explained the possible cause, Mo Feng’s mind filled with question marks. Lu Yao had always been sensitive to the cold, dressing more warmly than most. How could he have ruined his health this time?

“Did something bother you?”

Lu Yao was about to shake his head, telling Mo Feng not to worry, when the next, more teasing suggestion came.

“Or… you just didn’t want to go to work today?”

Lu Yao shot Mo Feng a sharp look. The snow leopard on the bed widened his eyes, taking in every expression on Lu Yao’s face. So even those striking, frost-like eyes of Lu Yao’s could roll in exasperation.

Lu Yao felt the room temperature gradually climb back to seventy-three degrees. He pressed his lips together and said slowly, “Snow leopard is sensitive to heat, so I lowered the temperature.”

Mo Feng stared at him, full of question marks, then glanced at the snow leopard, thick with dense fur. Lu Yao’s expression was clear and earnest, as if naturally considering the pet’s comfort. The snow leopard, as if understanding human speech, curled his front paws together in delighted surprise.

Mo Feng was left speechless, his mouth hanging open for a moment before he finally said dryly, “You should think about your own health first.”

Lu Yao didn’t respond.

Author’s note:

Lu Yao: My precious baby must be really sensitive to heat…

 

 

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