A while later, her voice sounded drowsy. “Sherry.”
“Mhm.”
“You must get along well with Xia Mi from now on.”
“I will try.”
The words were soft.
Yet they were taken seriously to heart.
Sherry moved a bit closer, and the two pressed against each other until there was no gap between them.
The same quilt, the same night, the same warmth.
In this moment, neither of them slept alone.
Drowsiness washed over her. Sherry whispered, “Goodnight.”
Enise was already half-asleep, but she still replied—
“Goodnight.”
***
The next day, Enise completely emptied the Cage Bedroom she had once lived in, transferring all her personal belongings to Sherry’s room.
After her renovations, the original Cage Bedroom had become her potion-brewing room.
There were only two people here—more accurately, one person and one cat.
Xia Mi.
She was the only “living thing” Enise had been allowed to keep during her imprisonment.
She had originally been adopted as a powerful tool for escape, but in reality, she was more like a warm shadow.
When Enise was buried in research and felt she could not go on, she would rub the cat’s small paws or scratch its head.
At night, the cat would jump onto the bed, curling into a ball against her forehead as she breathed.
No Mana, no bloodline, no ulterior motives.
She simply existed there to accompany her.
Now, she was tilting her head, batting at the new materials on the table.
It was a piece of light green Magic Crystal Ore, with light seemingly sealed and flowing slowly inside it.
Unlike common elemental crystals, it had no obvious attribute markings. Instead, it looked like a primordial crystal forgotten by the world.
Natural Energy Crystal.
This was the official name Enise had confirmed in the Magic Book.
This item was rare, and using it for alchemy was even rarer.
Because it could not be precisely categorized by the elemental system, it felt more like growth itself.
Using a carving knife, she peeled a small flake from the surface of the crystal and placed it in a mortar.
The flake shattered under the impact. Just as it was about to turn into powder, she added some distilled water.
In this way, what emerged was not powder, but transparent droplets resembling dew.
A hint of forest scent filled the air; it was the first time Enise had smelled such a scent.
The scent of nature.
Xia Mi’s ears twitched. She seemed extremely sensitive to this scent, actively leaning in to sniff it before letting out a soft meow.
She certainly knew what her master was doing, and she knew what she was about to face.
Excitement, anticipation, anxiety, and unease.
But she chose to trust her master.
“Do not rush,” Enise said softly. “It is not ready yet.”
She mixed the droplets with another base medium—this time not distilled water, but her own improved “neutral solvent.”
The solution in the crucible reached a strange, stable state. There was no boiling, no rejection; it seemed as if it were always meant to be this way.
Enise stared at it for a long time.
This was the first time she had tried to apply Pure Structural Thinking to a non-healing purpose since successfully treating Rubia.
If Mana Circuits could be reconstructed, if the way life functioned could be rewritten…
Then…
Would she touch upon some deeper, more profound mystery?
She looked down at Xia Mi, and images of the black-haired girl with twin tails and a wagging tail from her dream appeared in her mind.
Xia Mi wagged her tail and sat down, pawing at Enise’s sleeve.
Enise chuckled.
“It is fine. This might be the last time you explore something with such curiosity.”
She poured the solution into a long, thin glass tube.
The liquid was a very faint green, almost transparent.
Theoretically, this was an induction-type potion. it would not force a transformation but rather allow the body to find a new stable structure on its own.
The prerequisite was that the subject possessed enough plasticity.
A creature like a cat fit perfectly.
She did not force Xia Mi to drink the potion; she did not want to see Xia Mi gagging again.
It would break her heart.
Enise flicked her Magic Wand, using Mana to turn the potion into an extremely fine mist.
The mist spread slowly within the array, enveloping Xia Mi’s body as she slowly inhaled it through her nose.
Initially, there was no change. She simply squinted, as if she were about to sneeze.
Then, her fur began to emit a faint glow.
It was not the piercing glare of magic, but rather like moonlight reflecting off a lake.
Xia Mi’s body curled slightly, and she let out a short meow.
Enise immediately reached out to comfort her. “Do not be afraid. There will be no side effects on your body. Master is one hundred percent certain.”
“From now on, you will become much wiser.”
The mist gradually thickened, and Xia Mi’s silhouette began to change.
Bones made faint adjusting sounds, like wood slowly bending in moisture.
The tail became thinner and longer.
The proportions of her limbs shifted, and her spine straightened.
Her body stretched, transitioning from an animal form to a humanoid one.
The entire process was not instantaneous but a slow, clear reorganization.
Enise was witnessing the internal logic of Race Transformation for the first time.
It was not a transformation spell or an illusion, but a new physiological structure being filled in bit by bit by natural energy.
Fur receded, and skin appeared.
When the mist dissipated, a strange figure lay at the center of the array.
It was a young girl who looked to be about the same age as Sherry.
Her black hair was streaked with tabby patterns, and her ears remained cat-like, poking out from her hair.
Behind her was a long, thin tail that wagged slightly.
She lay curled there naked, looking as if she had just been plucked from the water.
Her chest rose and fell.
She was breathing.
Enise sat stunned for a long time until those eyes slowly opened.
Glassy blue, exactly the same as Xia Mi’s.
“Meow…?”
But the voice had become human.
Tiny, confused, and with a slight drawl.
Enise’s throat suddenly felt tight. She draped the prepared robe over the girl.
“You cannot call out like that anymore,” she said. “You can speak now.”
The girl tilted her head as if trying to understand the language.
Then, she spoke hesitantly. “Master?”
The pronunciation was imprecise, but she had indeed uttered human speech.
Enise’s fingertips trembled slightly, but she shook her head gently. “Do not call me Master anymore. Call me by my name, Enise.”
Enise continued to probe cautiously. “Do you still remember the things you did when you were a cat?”
“I remember.”
Xia Mi pronounced the words clumsily, trying to speak clearly. “You… draw things… I… press down.”
Enise could not help but laugh. “Yes, you sat on many of my drafts.”
The girl looked down at her hands, then at her tail, as if realizing for the first time that she had many parts that “did not belong to a cat.”
“I am like this now?”
“Yes.”
Enise nodded. “You are now a Cat-kin, half-human and half-beast.”
“You can speak, you can walk, and your lifespan has become as long as a human’s.”
The girl looked up at her, her eyes brightening. “I can live for many, many years?”
“Yes.” Enise reached out and gently stroked her head. “Are you willing to continue living with me and this family?”
“I am willing, meow.”
Enise’s heart suddenly softened. She realized that this was the first time she had changed the world without using medicine for healing.
She had brought a new existence into the world, a new possibility.
She crouched down to eye level with the girl. “Do you still remember your name?”
“Xia Mi?”
“Yes, Xia Mi.”
Enise smiled. “Please look after me from now on.”
She took the little cat-girl’s hand and said softly, “Come, I will take you to meet someone.”
“She will also be your new master from now on.”
The hallway was quiet.
Xia Mi was led by Enise, walking with hesitant steps. Her tail swayed slightly behind her, showing both nervousness and curiosity.
She looked up and whispered, “Will the new master give me fish?”
Enise was stunned for a moment, then laughed softly. “She is not very good at raising cats, but she will give you a place to stay and guide you toward your future.”
Xia Mi nodded, not entirely understanding.
When they reached the corner, Sherry happened to be coming toward them. She clearly had not expected to see such a combination.
She first saw Enise, then the girl with cat ears and a tail beside her.
Sherry’s footsteps halted. “Could this be…?”
Xia Mi almost immediately hid behind Enise, peering at Sherry with only her amber eyes showing.
It was the wariness of animal instinct.
But she quickly recognized the girl before her, who was about the same size as her, and her pupils instantly dilated.
“Wooo-meow—hiss—!!!”
She hissed loudly at Sherry. Sherry tilted her head, a metaphorical question mark appearing over it.
Sherry: ?
“Xia Mi, you must not hiss like that. She will also be your master from now on. You will serve her and assist her with her work. Do you understand?”
“But she… is very mean.”
Sherry’s eyebrow arched slightly. “I am not mean to you.”
“But you threw me out of the room last night.”
The atmosphere turned awkward as both of them simultaneously recalled the events of the previous night.
“Xia Mi,” Enise reminded her in a low voice. “Try to greet her. After all, we will be together for a long time.”
Sherry looked down at the cat-girl hiding behind Enise.
Her tail was visibly fluffed up.
“Ahem.”
Sherry cleared her throat. “You are her cat, right?”
“Not a cat. I am Xia Mi,” Xia Mi corrected.
Sherry was stunned for a moment and frowned. “You are clearly a Cat-girl.”
“Say what you want. Regardless, I hate you.”
As she became more familiar with the situation, Xia Mi’s courage gradually returned. She stepped in front of Enise to protect her former master. “You are very annoying. You always bully Master Enise. I hate you.”
“You little thing! I am the one largely responsible for the changes Enise has undergone!”
“Wooo-meow—”
The two stared at each other like two animals meeting for the first time, neither willing to back down.
Enise sighed softly. She had long anticipated this situation.
“Stop. Both of you.”
She stepped between them, breaking their staring contest.
Then she turned and spoke earnestly to Xia Mi. “Xia Mi, from now on, she is your new master. If you want fish, you must behave well.”
“Eh? Wait. I remember your cat eats vegetable leaves?”
Sherry suddenly recalled this, which also left Enise stunned.
‘That’s right.’
Enise asked Xia Mi, “Do you no longer want vegetable leaves?”
“No. I want to eat fish.”
Enise’s brow furrowed slightly. ‘Could it be that after becoming a Cat-girl, her habits and preferences have also begun to change?’
“Well, regardless, there will be fish. Before that, you must get along with her.”
Enise let go of Xia Mi’s hand, walked behind her, and placed her hands on the girl’s shoulders, pushing her forward gently.
“Go on and greet her properly.”