My family runs an adventurer's guild.

So, for those cat owners who are truly addicted to cats, is there any difference between male and female cats when they're being cute? Probably not, right?

Since everyone is a cat nowadays, and it's impossible to tell males from females at a glance, he shamelessly followed the girls over.

Since Sitwell was still officially an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., Black Widow Natasha did not refuse his accomplice. Instead, she treated him as her assistant, allowing Sitwell to overhear her conversation with Ainz Ooal Gown (the living version).

After listening to Ainz and Natasha's conversation, Sitwell immediately felt that his trip had indeed been worthwhile!

After hearing the description from this person from the future, he became even more convinced that only Hydra was righteous!

—It was precisely because the great cause that Hydra (Sitwell's imagination) fought to restore order and save humanity ultimately failed that the entire human society on Earth was pushed into the abyss of destruction by those evil and corrupt tycoons!

Although it's unclear why Hydra failed to seize power in the 22nd century, in which this Japanese man lived, and why they seem to have left little trace, based on the other person's description and an analysis from the perspective of Earth's resources, he already knew that humanity's time to make a decision was probably running out.

When the whole world is truly polluted and destroyed, no matter what kind of ideology or organization it is, it will have no place to be used.

It seems we should start organizing an uprising as soon as possible!

Only by overthrowing the corrupt and decadent ruling classes that have long existed in the world today can human society have a bright future.

This filthy and hypocritical world should have been thoroughly cleansed with blood and fire long ago!

As Sitwell thought this, his eyes shone with even greater confidence and determination, almost like a savior about to be martyred.

They were practically shouting "Hey! Hydra!"

Chapter 236, The Empty-Nest Old Man Welcomes the Adorable Black Widow (Part 2)

In short, Natasha, the Black Widow, felt she gained a lot from her interactions with Ainz Ooal Gown, the "Japanese man from the 22nd century."

First, based on the other party's various statements, it can be preliminarily judged that this "future Japanese," originally named Suzuki Satoru but now known as Ainz, is probably not lying. Otherwise, it would be extremely difficult to conjure up such a logical and self-consistent future world out of thin air. In particular, the various subtle clues that seem to resemble 21st-century human society on Earth vaguely reveal the progress of historical change.

Secondly, although Black Widow and Captain America had already learned some of the despair and horror of that "22nd-century future Earth" from Ferry and Lulutia's accounts, living in such a place would be nothing short of endless torture for ordinary people.

According to Ainz, even the so-called wealthy and powerful living in eco-cities only enjoy a standard of living comparable to that of the American middle class at the end of the 20th century. Due to resource depletion and energy scarcity, these eco-cities built by corporate conglomerates are, strictly speaking, just "Biosphere 2" type shelters, and their scale cannot be very large. In addition, most of the space in eco-cities is used to raise livestock that cannot survive outside, as well as to cultivate various fruits, vegetables, crops, and cash crops, leaving even less space for human habitation.

Generally speaking, each eco-city can only accommodate tens of thousands of people, and an eco-city that can accommodate hundreds of thousands of people is already considered very large.

Moreover, in 2138, there are fewer than one hundred eco-cities in the entire world, but the number of people who want to live in eco-cities is at least in the hundreds of millions—one can imagine how high the population density in these eco-cities will be.

Therefore, according to Anz's description, the vast majority of the "upper class" living in eco-cities can only afford to live in small apartments or even dormitories, commuting by bus and eating in the cafeteria every day. Owning a suite with a balcony is already something to be proud of. And the garden villas that are now commonplace in the United States are the exclusive privilege of big bosses and chairmen in 22nd-century eco-cities.

However, compared to poor people like Ainz, the residents of the eco-city are at least fortunate, as they can breathe fresh air...

Of course, there was some good news in Ainz's description. For example, the alien invasion that has been causing S.H.I.E.L.D. so much anxiety seems to have failed to materialize. According to Ainz's recollection, a large-scale alien invasion never occurred, not even before human society collapsed on its own. He even stated that he had absolutely no recollection of the Chitauri's Battle of New York that has already taken place.

However, this isn't particularly surprising. After all, the Battle of New York, which the Avengers had just fought and which left a deep impression, was merely a small conflict that lasted only half a day a little over a hundred years ago for Ainz, who was born in the next century. In the years that followed, Earth not only experienced the total collapse of human civilization and the Earth's ecological environment, a major reshuffling of the world's political landscape, and the tragedy of a population loss of tens of billions, but also intermittent warfare and massacres never ceased, with human society hurtling headlong towards the abyss of destruction…

In this chaotic and desperate world where life is worse than death and every day is uncertain, who would care about things from a hundred years ago?

Considering that human civilization on Earth in the 22nd century is barely surviving, it must have experienced a major rupture comparable to the destruction of the Roman Empire. Furthermore, Ainz, being Japanese, is not a resident of Europe or America, only has a primary school education, and is not particularly interested in current affairs... Therefore, in Natasha's view, it is normal for Ainz to lack understanding of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the superheroes.

Humans tend to know a great deal about things that interest them, but they are quite ignorant about things they don't care about.

Even in the early 21st century in the United States, there were still many people who couldn't read a world map and thought that all Chinese women wore cheongsams.

Similarly, Natasha felt she couldn't expect a 22nd-century Japanese to know too much about early 21st-century American society.

Third, as Captain America's partner and a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Black Widow Natasha naturally wanted to inquire about the resurgence of neo-Nazi movements in 22nd-century Europe. Unfortunately, Ainz, being Japanese, knew very little about neo-Nazi organizations in 22nd-century Europe. His strongest impression was that neo-Nazi uniforms were very cool, and some people in Japan had followed suit, even creating a Nazi-style NPC in the game—of course, the kind of Nazi style based on Japanese thinking, which, aside from being "cool" and "exciting," was basically just speechless.

As for neo-Nazi ideology, slogans, and organizational forms, Ainz couldn't say anything at all, and he even forgot the names of neo-Nazi leaders.

However, Black Widow Natasha was not surprised by this situation, nor did she pay much attention to it—because it wasn't worth it.

To give an example, even if the British or Russians of the early 19th century, during the Napoleonic Wars, knew the ins and outs of the Nazi Party that emerged in Germany more than a hundred years later, what could they possibly do? Basically, they couldn't do anything, right?

People tend to pay more attention to things they are good at, but less attention to things they are bad at.

"...Alas, it's unbelievable that a century and a half of peace after World War II would lead to such a result—technology was suppressed, wealth was monopolized, knowledge was blocked, and finally, a total war and the collapse of civilization. What followed was an even harsher dark society after the collapse of civilization."

Now transformed into a hairless cat, the bald Indian traitor Sitwell interjected, "...If we had known it would turn out like this, it's not so great that the Cold War didn't turn into a hot war. We might as well have started World War III, World War IV, and World War V sooner, using the flames of war to weed out the weak!"

"...Do you agree with this social Darwinist view? To glorify war and use war to eliminate the weak and promote the strong?"

Natasha, the Black Widow still lying on Ainz's lap, glanced at him and said, "...This is a politically incorrect viewpoint, seriously violating the mainstream themes of world peace, democracy, and freedom, as well as the universal values ​​of equality, inclusiveness, and multiculturalism..."

"...But doesn't the tragic future described by Mr. Ainz already prove the complete failure of this path?"

Sitwell curled his lip. "...Naive fantasies and lofty ideals, while appealing and beautiful, cannot change the cold reality. World Wars, though brutal, at least eliminated the most incompetent, corrupt, and backward rulers, whipping human society into continuous progress. But in our era, because nuclear weapons are too powerful for everyone to use, major powers can only compete through media and finance, making things increasingly hypocritical, disgusting, and chaotic..."

According to Mr. Ainz, in another hundred years, even the United States will be driven to ruin; in fact, all of human civilization will be destroyed. Shouldn't we hurry up and change course?

"...Should we support those far-right groups who idolize Hitler? They're not exactly friendly to people of color."

Natasha raised an eyebrow. "...Don't forget your skin color, sir. Do you want to be relegated to an inferior race by neo-Nazis?"

"...Even being labeled an inferior race and discriminated against is still much better than the complete collapse of human society!"

Silvitt from India sighed: "...Although he promoted racism, Hitler only claimed to 'purify' Europe. My family and I do not live in Europe, so I don't care at all that neo-Nazis want to xenophobize Europe."

However, according to Mr. Ainz's description, if the current world order continues, by the end of this century, no matter where we hide on Earth, our descendants will have to face a dead land and highly toxic air... there will be nowhere to escape!

I seriously doubt whether my descendants will even be able to move into those eco-cities. Moreover, with the biosphere destroyed, how long can human civilization continue with just a few eco-cities? Probably not even until the 23rd century.

Of course, Nazism was ultimately bad, but that doesn't prevent us from learning something useful from Nazi ideology...

As a capable individual who managed to rise to a mid-level position within Hydra and remain an undercover agent in S.H.I.E.L.D., Sitwell is certainly not so psychologically weak as to be unable to keep a secret.

The reason why Sitwell openly expressed such "incorrect thoughts" that leaned towards the right wing and opposed universal values ​​in front of Black Widow Natasha and others was not a momentary loss of control under emotional excitement, but a well-thought-out test.

Because, just now, he keenly realized that his organization, Hydra, seemed to have a glimmer of hope of being exonerated!

While every Hydra member firmly believes in their organization's "great ideals" and that the world should be unified under some supreme order, they are also well aware that under the existing international order, freedom and human rights are the main themes and universal political correctness.

The slogans and ideologies of the Nazis and Hydra have long been relegated to the deepest abyss, with no chance of redemption.

However, once the words of this "22nd-century Japanese" are published, letting the world know what a tragic future they will face a hundred years from now, it will absolutely cause an uproar in the global public opinion and intellectual circles: the collapse of the United States, civil war in Europe, global nuclear war, the massacre of billions of people, the overthrow of state machinery by large conglomerates, global ecological collapse, and the decline of human civilization...

Compared to that, the Second World War started by Hitler and the threat of the Soviet Union seemed as gentle as a spring breeze!

When people are subjected to intense psychological stimulation, their ideologies naturally change. Especially according to Ainz, 22nd-century European neo-Nazis have become seen as liberators in the eyes of the lower classes, the last hope for defeating the corrupt ruling class, tragic heroes who attempted to save the people but unfortunately failed… Such a mind-blowing message should surely resonate with people, shouldn't it?

Since future generations generally believe that Nazism was just, shouldn't these "ancestors" also update their views?

If the current social system will only drag all of humanity toward extinction, does that prove that the world is wrong?

In this way, the political order established after World War II was negated in people's minds. The standards for evaluating black and white, good and evil, heroes and criminals would also undergo a radical reversal. At this point, it would seem natural and inevitable that Hydra would then raise anti-election democracy slogans such as "survival over liberty" and politically incorrect right-wing ideologies, thus legitimately stepping out of the shadows.

In Sitwell's view, the so-called "freedom above all else" is nothing but a fabricated and hypocritical statement.

In fact, survival is the first instinct of humankind. And sacrificing a certain degree of freedom in order to survive has been a consistent choice for humankind since ancient times.

If humanity truly values ​​freedom so highly that people are willing to die for it, then civilized society would never have existed, nor would there be social class divisions. Humans in the 21st century shouldn't be dressed in suits and ties, clocking in and out every day, but rather like in ancient times, draped in animal skins, wielding clubs, roaming the mountains and fields hunting for a living: that would be true, absolute freedom!

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

"...Meow! Meow! This wonderful smell is just too much to bear!"

"...Mimi! Mimi! Oh my god, what's wrong with me?"

"...Come on, little kitties! Jump up and lick my feet! I put catnip on my socks!"

While Ainz Ooal Gown, Natasha, and Sitwell were discussing weighty questions about the fate of Earth and the future of humanity, in another room of the villa, the silver-haired loli Shalltear was playing with cats with great interest—specifically, waving a cat food bowl, catnip, and a cat toy, "playing" with the beauties from various countries who had come from the Marvel universe with special missions.

In fact, if these beauties were to transmigrate in their original forms and seduce Ainz as originally planned, there's about a 50% chance they would be preemptively seduced by Shalltear, a bisexual beauty with multiple sexual preferences, who would then enthusiastically play with them alongside Ainz. The other 50% chance would be that Shalltear, who had just established a relationship with Ainz, would become extremely jealous and treat them with hostility and suspicion, seeing them as philandering vixens.

However, now that all these beauties have turned into cats, Shalltear's potential jealousy has naturally vanished.

In Shalltear's eyes at this moment, they were a group of adorable pets, and pets that were talkative and particularly fun to play with.

As a result, apart from the agile Black Widow Natasha who managed to escape in time, and the hairless, unsightly bald man Sitwell, the rest of the "beautiful cats" were captured by Shalltear and locked in another room to play with her.

As for the opinions of these "beautiful cats" themselves, Shalltear, Ainz, and Natasha ignored them.

"...Meow! Even if I'm locked up here and you hold my head down, I won't lick it...Meow, it smells so good..."

Chapter 237, Cats Don't Need Streetlights When They Go Out at Night

In short, Black Widow Natasha and Ainz Ooal Gown talked for a long time about the topic of "Earth in the future" and benefited greatly, even generating some new ideas in their minds... When they parted, Natasha sincerely invited Ainz to visit Earth at an appropriate time.

According to her, every country on Earth is interested in a future compatriot from the 22nd century. As long as Anzken goes there, he can enjoy the treatment of a visiting national leader, and things like military parades in the square and staying at a state guesthouse will not be a problem.

As a mere agent, Black Widow Natasha naturally lacked such authority, but she believed that Director Nick Fury would definitely have a way and be willing to find a connection. Once the matter was elevated to the level of saving the world, all laws and regulations were just a piece of paper. Remember during the Battle of New York? Some guy even dropped a nuclear bomb on New York, and afterwards, nothing happened.

This is the unique feature of the Marvel universe: on the one hand, the laws are complicated, and ordinary people are punished for their actions; on the other hand, no one takes breaking the law seriously... If the laws, which should be serious and rigid, are so flexible, then the rules and regulations are naturally even more flexible—almost as flexible as they don't exist.

In response, Ainz stated that while he was very interested in the "modern Earth" of the early 21st century, he simply couldn't go—the interdimensional travel technology currently possessed by the Church of Hypnos required the realm of Hypnos as an intermediary. Each journey involved extracting magic power from the target world to create a new body for the traveler, a considerable drain on resources. This was manageable in high-magic worlds, but in low-magic and micro-magic worlds, he frequently suffered from a shortage of magic power.

Of course, the magic of the Marvel universe can still support this kind of consumption, but the soul-traveling technology currently possessed by the Church of Hypnos has another flaw that is criticized: each user's soul can only travel once and cannot jump continuously.

Therefore, Ainz can come to the Golden Dragon Kingdom from the world of Overlord, but he cannot travel from the Golden Dragon Kingdom to the Marvel universe again.

Conversely, the same applies. Black Widow Natasha and her Earth Meow Meow expedition team can travel from the Marvel universe to the Golden Dragon Kingdom, but they cannot continue from the Golden Dragon Kingdom to the Overlord world... Of course, Ainz has provided an alternative solution—he can conduct interviews in this world and then take the audio-visual materials or written records to the Marvel universe, and there are quite a few journalists in this expedition team...

And those female agents who come with special missions can also take on the role of reporters—reporting is, after all, the most similar legitimate profession to being a secret agent! They both make a living by gathering intelligence! Conversely, it's the same; a secret agent who can't be a reporter is unqualified!

As for assassination, it's just a secondary skill for special agents. Which legendary agent is known for being good at killing?

So, Black Widow Natasha happily informed the "beautiful cats" who were "playing happily" with Shalltear: they didn't have to go back today; they could stay here until the mission was over and be interviewed by Ainz (as Shalltear's toys)! Remember to extract as much useful information as possible from this time traveler so you can report back to your superiors, and don't forget to give S.H.I.E.L.D. a copy too!

As the decision was announced, all the beautiful cats stared intently at Natasha, their eyes seemingly exchanging sparks. However, Natasha completely ignored their mournful gazes and, with Sitwell by her side, gracefully swayed away with her feline gait.

On the other side, the silver-haired loli Shalltear was overjoyed: she hadn't had enough fun with these talking cats yet! Now she could have a blast!

It's a pity the cats are too small to be used as cat mats to sit on, otherwise they'd be crushed... It's decided! Tonight I'll try catching a few cats to use as bath towels, and tomorrow I'll train these adorable cats to jump through hoops of fire! I heard the little fairy who came to visit last time said this game is super fun, but it seems difficult to find a few smart and obedient cats—but now I've got them all!

Here's a moment of silence for all the female cats from Earth... If they could survive until the end under Shalltear, the expert in torturing multiple fetishes, they'd probably be top stars in some "special interest clubs" when they get back.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Finally, by the time Phil confirmed that Black Widow Natasha had returned from Ainz's villa and then took Tony to visit Ainz, it was already evening. So they discussed it and decided to have dinner first to avoid Ainz misunderstanding that they were trying to freeload.

As soon as darkness fell, Tony, that arrogant and conceited man, began his incessant complaining, expressing his dissatisfaction with the world's overly rudimentary lighting conditions. Forget the dim, yellowish light and pungent smell of candlesticks and oil lamps; even the magical lamps blessed with "perpetual light" were clearly not bright enough to satisfy Americans in the early 21st century—in Tony Stark's words, "not magical at all, probably dimmer than Edison's bamboo filament light bulb, and there isn't even a single streetlamp outside!"

"...The town's lighting certainly can't compare to New York. But you also have to consider another issue: this isn't a human town!"

Phil, the cat-man, pointed to his ears and eyes, “...We never carry lanterns when we walk at night, so the town doesn’t need streetlights.”

"...You mean night vision? Uh, that makes sense, cats don't need much light to see things..."

Tony immediately understood, "...Could you tell me about your experience reading at night? Can you read in the dark?"

"...Well, the night vision in cat-human form and cat form is a bit different...I can't really describe it, but anyway, you're a cat now and have the ability to see in the dark, so just look for yourself later! Unless you're really old and have terrible eyesight and can't see without a torch..."

"...Go away, go away, how could I possibly grow old and look like that?"

And so, without relying on streetlights, Garfield and Tony ventured out together at night, their sharp cat eyes gleaming, and successfully made their way to Ainz's villa in the dark, where they chatted amiably. Although Tony's social skills were truly lacking, his chubby orange cat appearance was undeniably endearing. No matter how sharp or sarcastic his words, when spoken by a Garfield cat mixed with meows, they became less offensive.

At least, Ainz, a mild cat addict, showed absolutely no sign of displeasure, even when Tony scratched him with his cat's paw.

Nevertheless, Tony was still not very happy and complained to his face that "the technology level of the 22nd century is really too backward!"

At first glance, the world Ainz Ooal Gown lived in before his transmigration seemed to be quite technologically advanced: nanomachines injected into the body, immersive VR games, human computers inserted into the back of the neck, eco-cities with internal circulation systems, and artificially synthesized ration packs...

However, in the early 21st century in the Marvel universe, these technologies had already been invented, but they were not yet cheap or widespread.

Therefore, in Tony's eyes, the technological level of the 22nd century was equivalent to standing still, with nothing about it that interested him...

Meanwhile, while Natasha and Tony were busy inquiring about the 22nd-century Earth society described by Ainz Ooal Gown, the rest of the cats on the Earth expedition team had already begun their regular work: investigating the socio-economic conditions of this fantastical world.

Chapter 238, A Socioeconomic Investigation of Totoro Town

"...In this otherworldly town called Totoro Town, there are blacksmith shops, carpentry workshops, tailor shops, pottery workshops and other handicraft workshops, but there are no factories in the modern sense. If residents need to purchase clothes, furniture, sheets and utensils, they tend to order them individually."

The size differences among the town's various inhabitants are so vast that it's not just a matter of size—it's hard to imagine how cat-people, averaging 80 centimeters tall, could fit into the shirts of bear-people averaging 3 meters tall, and human socks couldn't be interchanged with centaur horseshoes. Similarly, a single centaur could sink a rowboat capable of carrying seven or eight cat-people.

As for the shoes used by different races, not only are there obvious differences in size and shape, but even the shape of the toes and the soles of the feet are different.

One can imagine that their tableware, clothing, and even beds had different requirements and had to be ordered separately from artisans to be suitable.

Given the vast differences in customer requirements, large-scale standardized production in modern industry is naturally difficult to achieve.

"...The residents' daily staple foods are bread and wheat porridge, as well as some plant tubers and edible algae crops that do not exist on Earth. There are many kinds of vegetables, fruits and seafood, a considerable number of which are unfamiliar. There are also a wide variety of alcoholic beverages, and no obvious dietary restrictions can be seen at the moment."

"...Commerce and trade are very prosperous. The town already has a commercial street and a large number of permanent shops, in addition to regular markets. To avoid the embarrassment of customers who are too tall to enter, the facades of high-end shops and public buildings are generally built to be very tall, to the point of being considered a waste of space. On the other hand, small restaurants or pubs have outdoor seating to prevent large customers from feeling cramped."

"...Bartering was very rare. The medium of exchange was mainly precious metal currency such as gold, silver, and copper. I did not see any paper money. There were only some drafts issued by large merchants and temples of the God of Wealth, but the face value was very large and the credit was not very reliable. Ordinary people rarely encountered them in their daily lives."

"...Prices in the market were very high, and the purchasing power of gold and silver coins was far lower than in medieval Europe. A gold coin minted by the Dragon Kingdom could only buy a basket of vegetables at the market in Totoro Town; a silver coin of high purity could buy a cheap meal of bread, hot soup, and salted fish at a small restaurant. Because Totoro Town was close to the sea, fish and shrimp were relatively cheap and were the main source of meat for the town's residents."

As for the prices of manufactured goods and clothing, they fell somewhere between those of industrial and agricultural societies on Earth. They were expensive compared to modern times, but relatively cheap compared to medieval Europe. Nevertheless, many people still bought secondhand clothes from pawnshops.

"...On the other hand, by modern global standards, the local residents' income was quite high. Unless they were the poorest beggars, every citizen had some gold coins. In contrast, in medieval Europe, ninety percent of commoners never had the chance to touch a gold coin in their entire lives."

Because the purchasing power of local gold coins was low and there was no paper money, merchants either kept accounts with each other or used platinum coins and gemstones for large transactions. However, gemstone valuation was complicated, prices fluctuated greatly, and they were easy to counterfeit, often leading to conflicts among merchants over large transactions.

However, some gemstones contain magical power, capable of creating various wondrous spells, but unfortunately, these are all otherworldly treasures not found on Earth. Additionally, certain corals, pearls, and monster bones also possess similar magical effects, but overall, they are not as useful as gemstones.

"...The financial system in the Golden Dragon Kingdom is extremely underdeveloped; the concepts of futures and stocks are nonexistent. Apart from the Temple of the God of Wealth, there are no dedicated banks. Even the Temple of the God of Wealth primarily focuses on currency exchange, remote payments, and asset storage, rarely engaging in small-scale lending. Customers receive no interest on their deposits at the Temple of the God of Wealth and must pay storage fees. Withdrawals using the God of Wealth's checks are not only subject to limits but also discounted."