The Strange Cat from Fuuto

"3"

"2"

"1"

"Injection begins!"

As soon as the experimenter pressed the switch, a yellow, murky gas instantly filled the entire glass box.

"Ugh!!"

"what!!"

The defeated dragon inside the box let out a mournful howl, but the people around it remained unmoved.

"Dangdang!"

"Dangdang!"

"Dangdang!"

A heavy crashing sound came from deep within the experimental base; in the darkness and depths, it seemed as if a giant beast was stirring.

Everyone heard the commotion, and the lead researcher exclaimed in panic, "Oh no! Did you check Lord Leo's gas supply today?"

"this...."

The lab technician standing nearby stammered, "It seems... they checked it!"

"like?!"

The lab technician roared and grabbed his colleague, saying, "If we can't guarantee the supply of nebula gas to Lord Leo, and he goes berserk, we'll all be killed by him!"

"OK OK!"

A deep, sinister voice rang out again: "A few men, come with me and let's go check on that guy Leo. He's always causing trouble!"

"You, you, you, and you, come with me."

Four people were randomly selected, and the owner of the eerie voice led them into the depths of darkness. But once these four people left, the number of people present decreased.

"Since I entered Faust, I have never heard of any living being that needs to absorb nebulous gas for a long time to survive!"

One of the lab technicians muttered something under his breath, and the older technician next to him replied, "Lord Leo, who left behind this supreme achievement? Who once said that when Lord Leo reached maturity and entered his complete form, he alone could destroy any one of the three capitals of the North, East, and West in one night?"

"Lord Leo is our Faust's trump card!"

"Which one is truly a genius? But are we just going to keep Lord Leo locked up underground like this forever?"

"Of course not. Occasionally, he'll be let out to stretch his muscles. For example, if someone makes a mistake, it's Lord Leo who will handle it."

"I see."

The old man and the young man, who were talking, did not notice that the gas inside the glass box was slowly thinning, and one of their eyes, filled with anger and hatred, opened.

"Clang, clang, clang, clang!!"

Taking advantage of the experimenter's relaxed vigilance, the defeated dragon broke free of the iron shackles on his limbs and smashed the glass dome above his head with a punch.

"what!!!"

Before the experimenters could react, the defeated dragon, having risen from its glass enclosure, launched its attack. After repelling them, the dragon leaped swiftly from the enclosure, looked around, and then ran back towards the passage it had come from.

"Damn it, the experimenter escaped!!"

"Help! The experimental subject has escaped!"

"Someone come here!"

The constant alarm calls made the defeated dragon even more nervous, and his increased speed inevitably led him into a narrow passage and from there into a sewer full of filthy, foul water.

"Lord Blood Stalk, the experiment has escaped!"

The quick-thinking researcher rushed into the deepest part of the base, only to find a burly figure connected to countless pipes. The figure's breathing gave the illusion of a strong wind blowing in one's face.

"I see!"

With his back to the lab technician who came to deliver the message, E looked at the burly figure in front of him and sighed inwardly, "Katsura Takumi, what a terrifying monster."

"They've even created this kind of alien!"

"Sir, what should we do with that experimental subject?"

"Disconnect the gas supply line and send Leo out. It's time to let him loosen up!"

“Oh, right!” E raised his hand: “Send out a Slammer while you’re at it to confuse the enemy.”

"Yes!"

Including the later experimenters, a total of five experimenters began working around Leo, and in a short while, the pipes connected to various parts of Leo's body were disassembled.

"laugh....."

Amidst the sound of scorching gas erupting, the burly figure slowly took a step forward.

"Leo, good boy!"

E patted Leo's arm, "Go and bring that runaway guy back to me!"

"Roar!!"

With a roar, the burly Leo vanished from everyone's sight in the blink of an eye, leaving only the howling of the wind.

"Alright, let's move on to the next experiment. Time is limited, so let's speed things up!"

E's clapping brought everyone back to their senses.

Watching the five lab technicians leave, E stood there muttering to himself, "Where did that bastard Ark go? He hasn't shown up for ages!"

At the same time, at Nascita coffee shop.

"Ah!"

The chubby blue cat, nestled in its soft cat bed, suddenly sneezed. Rubbing its nose with its paw, the cat opened its sleepy eyes and wondered, "What's going on? Who's talking about me?"

"never mind!"

The blue cat, who had rolled over, was still trying to sleep, but a sudden throbbing made him wide awake.

"Iggy!"

“Iggy?”

Where did you go?

Miku, who had climbed out of the cat's nest, found the huge café completely empty.

"Where has that damn dog gone off to gallivanting again?"

"However, this feeling suggests that CEO E used Leo. Why would he choose to use Leo?"

"No, I have to go and see."

"Leo is my masterpiece, and that kid is still in the gestation period, so I have to keep a close eye on him!"

Thinking of how important Leo was to her, Miku climbed out of the cat bed and ran out of Nascita coffee shop in a flash.

The cat, who had just stepped outside, bumped into E, who was carrying a motorcycle helmet. Upon seeing Miku, E crouched down and patted Miku's back: "Not planning to go back to sleep?"

"You lazybones!"

Miku slapped E's hand away impatiently and walked around him, leaving the store.

"What a willful cat! Why did I even adopt him in the first place?"

Chapter Three: I am Faust's subordinate, Ark

Dongdu (Eastern Capital)

Underground waterway.

"Slap, slap, slap..."

The sound of water echoed continuously in the long, dark waterway, and the naked, defeated dragon hurriedly made its way through it.

With an anxious look on his face and covered in filthy water stains, it was impossible to tell how many times this man had fallen in this waterway.

The frustrated dragon, who kept looking back, turned the corner, found a ladder at random, and climbed up. He carefully looked around after opening the manhole cover a crack.

Only after finding no sign of anyone else did they dare to climb out.

The defeated dragon quickly put the manhole cover back in its place, swiftly crossed the road, and disappeared around the corner along the wall of a house.

"Roar!"

A deep roar emanated from the underground sewers, its ferocious intent sending chills down one's spine.

"boom!"

Suddenly, the manhole cover of the sewer exploded from below and shot into the sky. Then, the sewer, which was only wide enough for one person to pass through, was smashed open by the burly armored beast.

Leo, who had squeezed his way out of the narrow well opening, stood on the road, his body hunched over and his nose twitching as he searched for any lingering scent of the defeated dragon.

"Beep beep beep..."

A rapid, deafening horn blared from the other end of the road, and a hint of impatience flashed in Leo's bloodshot eyes.

"Roar!"

Leo, roaring at the oncoming truck, ignored the truck driver's terrified face and strode towards the truck. Just before the truck was about to hit him, Leo threw a powerful punch, easily shattering the truck's front end, and then his entire arm disappeared into it.

The terrified truck driver gripped the steering wheel tightly, his foot instinctively slamming down on the accelerator pedal.

"Sizzle sizzle..."

Because Leo was blocking the way, the truck could not move forward and could only let its tires rub against the ground in vain. At the same time, a piercing sound came and acrid white smoke spread out.

"What kind of monster is this?"

In that brief moment, the truck driver caught a glimpse of Leo's appearance: a frizzy mane like a lion's at the back of his head, bloodshot eyes beneath a dark red mask filled with bestiality, and two enormous metal fangs that reached all the way to his chin.

His body was covered in layers of bulging muscles, exuding a powerful explosive force, and his forearms were covered with black arm guards made of an unknown material.

A tail swayed behind it, each sway leaving a loud bang in the air.