I'm on the Ark, and I start out as Gretchen.

Upon hearing Padre's words, Swire narrowed her eyes slightly, showing no restraint whatsoever. Instead, she raised her left hand, which she hadn't used much today because it was handcuffed, and climbed up Padre's other cheek, then gently pinched it without any politeness.

Actually, you can't blame the tiger cub for developing this habit; it's just that you can't imagine it.

A mysterious guy who's always elusive and aloof, yet constantly annoys you. Now, because of his guilty conscience and other factors, he's letting you take advantage of him, and on top of that, he occasionally shows a pitiful expression that contrasts sharply with his usual self... It's practically inviting you to bully him.

Therefore, Swire was naturally unwilling to give up such a rare opportunity for "revenge." Not only was he unwilling to give it up, but because of the fact that he felt no guilt about what someone had done before, he was even more adept at it.

"Ugh!...No, Swire, whatever makes you happy." Hearing this, Paddo originally wanted to say something, but after meeting Swire's "unfriendly" gaze, she decisively changed her mind.

"That's more like it..." Swire said, then gently squeezed her hand again before letting go.

Although the little tiger's expression didn't change much at the moment, the slightly raised tail behind her revealed her joyful mood.

"Alright, continue. Now that you've done this and been discovered, and you're still sitting here in front of me unharmed... did Madam Wen Yue protect you?"

"So what's the price for protecting you?" Swire straightened her expression slightly and got back to the point.

She wasn't stupid. Even though Padofelis hadn't explained things clearly, she pieced together what she thought was the most reasonable answer from various clues and details, and then confirmed it with her.

"Oh dear, your guess is a little right, but not much." After hearing Swire's guess, Pato, who was rubbing her little face, gently shook her head and said.

"To put it simply, Swire, your thinking is very clear, but your information or some of your knowledge is limited!"

Paddo lowered her hand, leaned closer to the person beside her, and looked directly into her beautiful, emerald-like eyes, saying, "In Swire's eyes, what kind of existence am I?"

"You don't really think that someone who can so easily infiltrate the governor's house can escape unscathed because of someone else's protection, do you?"

Because she had a good impression of Swire, and because she was somewhat guilty about trying to ease the tension, Patto didn't mind telling her some of her true feelings and secrets when she was with her.

She was telling the whole truth just now. Although the last incident of stealing from Wei Lao Er's house ended with her "giving in" to Wen Yue, and Wen Yue extending an olive branch of willingness to accept her, that was only on the surface.

Cat never gambles everything on others, especially those in power (corrupt politicians). Everything she does is based on her own strength plus other aspects of herself.

Although Pado often tells others that she is weak, it depends on who she is being compared to...

Take Lungmen for example. Cat Cat is not actually afraid of its threats. The reason it wants to make a deal with the higher-ups is simply because it is afraid of trouble and wants to be safe.

If a fight breaks out, she will definitely not be the one who suffers.

"..."

Swire fell silent, a rare occurrence, as he met Patto's unusually heterochromatic eyes.

Just now, in a few words from someone, she obtained new information and easily hacked into the system...

To be honest, Swire's first reaction upon hearing this was...

She didn't believe it. Because she had complete confidence in Lungmen, not to mention the governor's residence, which was probably one of the best-defended in the entire city…

If you just say you sneaked in and stole something, she might believe you a little. But if you add the phrase "easily," she's less likely to accept it.

Although she couldn't accept this explanation, the little tiger quickly connected it with what Chen and the others had said the night before—that she had been quickly defeated by Padofelis and that she was very strong—and thus became extremely curious about her strength.

"So... what exactly is your strength? And how did you manage to infiltrate so 'easily' as you claim?" After thinking for a long time, Swire finally asked carefully.

"Our strength is a secret!"

This time, Patto didn't readily answer Swire's questions. Instead, she smiled enticingly and said, "If you want to know, you'll have to give something in return. Like investing in us, or becoming our boss or something!"

"Heh, you're pushing your luck, aren't you!" Upon hearing this, Swire sneered and didn't hold back, raising her hand again to pinch someone's face, saying, "You promised me before that you would answer my questions honestly."

"Waaah! Be gentle QAQ."

Chapter 118 The Little Tiger Suddenly Feels Guilty

"Waaah! Be gentle QAQ."

"If you want me to be gentle, just say so," Swire said emotionlessly once again, having almost become immune to Paddy's pitiful expressions.

"Oh dear, I really can't do anything with you, Swire. Let me think of what to say..." Seeing that her seduction had failed, Pado, for the sake of her face in her rival's eyes, gave up and reluctantly compromised.

“My strength is such that if I wanted to leave Lungmen, no one here could stop me.” After organizing her thoughts, Pado chose a compromise and euphemism.

"Huh? Real or fake?"

Upon hearing this, Swire couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, release her hand, and look at the person in front of her with suspicion.

"You don't believe me? Why are you asking? Of course! If we didn't have some skills, why would we bother with those big shots?" Facing Swire's skeptical gaze, Paddo pouted and then earnestly presented her evidence.

“Then you really are more powerful than I imagined… Paddophilis, your true race shouldn’t be Felin, right?” As she spoke, Swire couldn’t help but look at the end of Paddophilis’s long tail.

Actually, the little tiger had noticed the special feature at the end of Pado's tail a long time ago, but she hadn't paid much attention to it. In addition, the two of them hadn't been in close contact many times, so she just thought of it as an ornament or something on her tail...

It wasn't until today, after getting up close and observing the flexibility of the needle-like structure at the end of its tail, that she noticed this again.

"Hmm... I guess?" After hearing Swire's words, Patto tilted her head slightly and said uncertainly.

"What do you mean 'should'? Don't you even know your own race?" Upon hearing this, Swire's lips twitched involuntarily, and she looked at the person in front of her speechlessly.

"I really don't know, after all, I've always been alone since I became conscious... Well, it doesn't matter, as long as I'm human!" Seeing the speechless expression on the person in front of her, Pado smiled at her without caring and explained.

"?"

Upon hearing Paddo's explanation, Swire was completely stunned, and then subconsciously asked, "Wait, you're conscious? You're... ugh, then how did you grow up to be this big?"

"Of course, it's all thanks to cats! I've been hanging out with stray cats since I was a kid, and by the way, I learned all my sourcing skills from them!" Pado said with a grin as she got excited.

"..."

Hearing what Paddo said, Swire silently looked at the can that was now nestled in her arms.

Noticing this, Pado instantly understood what the person next to her was thinking, and then denied it with a smile: "The cats that taught me skills and found food for me when I was little did not include canned food! They were just ordinary stray cats."

"It's a real shame that after that unfortunate incident, ordinary cats stopped wanting to come near me..." A hint of sadness flashed in the cat's eyes as it said this, a sadness not only for the real "Padofelis," but also for its current self...

She had tried before, and even the stray cats or small animals in this world still couldn't get close to her; they would be scared away...

You see, Pado now feeds the stray cats in Lungmen using a secret method. The moment she gets a little closer, the animals scatter and disappear without a trace.

"you……"

Noticing Pato's dejection, Swire carefully considered what to say to comfort her, but before she could say anything, the person beside her seemed to have thought of something, and her gloom vanished as she spoke again.

"However, it's not a big problem, since we have Canned Food with us now! Swire, you saw it last time, right? Canned Food isn't an ordinary cat, so she's not afraid of us."

"..."

Swire, whose words had been interrupted, was not angry at the moment. Instead, she looked at Patto, who was laughing foolishly again, covered her face, and fell into an eerie silence.

Honestly, Little Tiger wants to go back a few minutes and slap himself twice... Why did he have to be so stupid as to ask those questions? Now look what's happened—the orphan, the cat who hangs out with stray cats, and now the cats he loves, all refuse to come near him...

"Hmm? Swire, what's wrong?"

"Are you feeling unwell because you've been shopping for too long today? Or do you not want to talk about this? Then we can change the subject." Looking at Swire who suddenly covered her face, Patto's beautiful heterochromatic eyes showed a hint of worry as she asked softly.

Cat hadn't forgotten why she came to see Swire today. Her original purpose was to help Swire adjust her mood and ease tensions. If she ended up making Swire uncomfortable instead of adjusting her mood, that would be putting the cart before the horse.

"No, I'm fine... Let's change the subject." Hearing this, Swire slowly lowered her hand, looking at Patto with a complicated expression, and followed her words to change the subject.

"Alright then, Swire, what else do you want to know?" Patto observed for a moment, and only after confirming that Swire didn't seem to be in any discomfort did she gently blink and ask.

“Tell me all the details of how you stole the Governor’s private money, including your motives.” Swire paused slightly, as if remembering something, and added:

"Padofelis, don't tell me you're just doing this for fun without any ulterior motives. I'm not stupid!"

"Oh dear, it's still about this. So, Swire, are you really not considering investing in us or becoming our boss or something? You only need to contribute a small amount of money."

As she spoke, Paddy raised her unshackled left hand and held up two fingers, gesturing them in front of Swire.

Swire looked at Patto, whose eyes were sparkling as she gestured towards her. Unlike before, she didn't refuse outright. After considering it for a moment, she said:

"Explain this to me clearly first, then tell me what kind of investment you're making, and then we can discuss it further..."

Without even realizing it, the little tiger himself had long since given up the idea of ​​handing the guy over to the Royal Guard. The anger that had been simmering inside him had completely vanished during their time together…

"Okay! Then we'll have to explain this properly to our future boss!"

Swire's lack of refusal naturally caught Patto's eye. After realizing that there might be a chance, her eyes lit up slightly, and she was instantly motivated to give a detailed account.

Chapter 119 Methods to Become Stronger

Just like Swire and Patto, who were having a long chat in a restaurant, Chen asked Gretchen what she wanted to eat and then took her to one of his usual restaurants to have dinner.

"Here you go, Gretchen, this is the food you ordered. Be careful, it's hot." Chen carefully pushed the food that the waiter brought over in front of Gretchen and reminded her.

"Oh, I see."

Looking at the steaming rice bowl in front of her, Gretchen nodded gently, not in a hurry to eat.

Although the little girl was very busy today and went to many places with Hua, she ate quite a bit on the way there and back, which meant that even though it wasn't early now, she wasn't very hungry.

"Oh, right, did Sister Huijie and Sister Xiaoshi make some kind of agreement today...? Would you mind telling me?" As if she suddenly remembered something, Greta turned to Chen and asked quietly.

“What’s inconvenient about it? It’s true that an agreement has been reached.” Hearing this, Chen nodded first, and then continued, “As for the content of the agreement, it’s nothing much, just a friendly sparring match.”

"A friendly sparring match? ... Sister Huijie and Sister Xiaoshi?" Although Gretchen already knew about this, she was still stunned when she heard it.

Why did she agree so easily? The little girl clearly remembered telling Chen about Xiao Shi's abilities and other things just yesterday...

"That's true, but there's no need to be so surprised..." Chen, who hadn't taken the matter too seriously, touched his nose and whispered after meeting the surprised look in the little guy's eyes.

"Ugh... When you're sparring, please be sure to include me!" After a short silence, Gretchen came back to her senses and said with a serious expression.

She quickly added, as if remembering something, "Of course, we can also invite Sister Hua along. With her there, Sister Xiaoshi won't dare to do anything reckless..."

The instant Gretsch's words fell, a voice tinged with annoyance quietly echoed in her mind: 'Gretsch, you little traitor! How am I supposed to get revenge after this?!'

"Hmm???" ...I'm sorry, Sister Xiaoshi, but I can't let you bully Sister Huijie! Faced with Xiaoshi's accusation in her heart, Gretchen obediently apologized, but did not compromise.

'You! You traitorous bastard!'

"Oh, there's nothing I can do... Sister Xiaoshi, you're too strong, and Sister Huijie is too weak." After hearing Xiaoshi's words, Gretchen used words she liked to hear to reason with her.

'...'

And as it turned out, these words were quite effective. After a moment of silence, Xiao Shi spoke again: "Hmph, what you said is true. Since you're so honest, I'll reluctantly let this matter go."

'However, I will continue this sparring match, even if the old fogies come.'

It's no use! At worst... at worst, I'll just get a scolding!

"Mmm!" Having gotten the result she wanted, Gretchen didn't say anything more, but instead agreed in her heart.

After all, the little girl never intended to cancel the sparring match or the agreement between the two from the beginning. All she wanted was for Xiao Shi to compromise.

"Hmm? Why are you suddenly spacing out?" Chen couldn't help but pat Gretchen on the shoulder as he looked at her, who had just finished speaking and then froze.

"It's nothing..." After ending her mental conversation with Xiao Shi, Gretchen looked up at Chen, shook her head, and said: