Chapter 95

Izumi resumed his interrupted vacation. Over the past month, he and Tiamat had been relaxing in the mountains—skiing and riding makeshift snowboards. Izumi drained a mug of hot stew and said:

"Yeah, humans sure know how to have fun. Too bad this kind of pastime is almost forgotten."

"It’s not as widespread now, but it’s not forgotten. The colonies and high-tier stations have decent simulations. Some players in Chrysalis even entertain themselves the same way."

"That’s all small stuff, Tiamat. Tomorrow, we hit the hot springs!"

Just then, a flickering light appeared on the horizon.

"Izumi, I’ve been meaning to ask—where’s the kiir you always keep around?" (Author’s note: A kiir is a cat-like species from Izumi’s world.)

"Left him on Thanatos. He didn’t handle the shift in this world’s energy density well, and Thanatos has the highest concentration. Figured he’d rest there."

"Well, looks like he’s rested—and now he’s coming back to his master."

A massive cat sprinted toward Izumi and pounced on him, licking his face furiously. Tiamat was taken aback by the reaction.

"That’s… weird. Why isn’t he rubbing against you or begging for meat like usual?"

Izumi locked eyes with the kiir and began "listening" to his pet’s response.

"Says he ran into an enemy who could generate ten charges at once with high resistance to force. Malika spared him and let him go when he was already prepared to die."

"Why didn’t he transform?"

"He can’t fully shift forms, and I wasn’t there as a power source. Plus, the enemy easily blocked all his attacks. Honestly, he only survived by sheer luck—so he’s just happy he made it back to me."

The kiir—a symbiotic-type creature—had been Izumi’s loyal companion for centuries.

"There’s only one person in this entire world capable of generating that many charges at once. And your pet actually met him… and lived. Hah. The greater the being, the smaller the world seems."