My Scumbag System Chapter 457: The Standoff of the Ice Queen and the Two-Tailed Cat

The snail kept munching on the lettuce, completely ignoring everything.

"Did anything happen while I was gone?"

"Someone knocked on your door twice. I stayed quiet like you said."

"What about the others?"

"The blue one brought food to your door. Left it outside when you didn’t answer. The scary one with the knives walked by but didn’t stop."

I let out a sigh.

"You counted."

"I was bored." She rubbed against my neck. "When do I get to meet them properly?"

"Never."

"Rude."

"Necessary."

She pouted.

She actually pouted, her lower lip jutting out in a manner that ought to seem silly yet somehow only amplified her menace.

"Fine. But I’m going with you to training tonight."

"Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"Because you’ll cause problems."

"I’ll be good."

"You don’t know how to be good."

Her grin turned savage.

"True. But I can pretend."

A knock cut off whatever wicked scheme she was gearing up to propose.

Three sharp raps.

Natalia’s rhythm.

"Hide. Now."

Maki stuck her tongue out at me.

But she transformed.

Her form blurred, shrank, and abruptly a small black cat perched on my bed, with two tails neatly curled around her paws.

I opened the door.

Natalia stood there, arms folded, appearing ready to unleash a sermon on duty and avoiding idiotic deaths.

"We need to talk."

"About?"

"Reyna. The duel. Your total absence of survival instinct."

"My survival instinct is fine."

"Your survival instinct got you hit by lightning today."

Fair point.

I moved aside.

Let her enter.

She shut the door behind her, twisted the lock, and pressed against the wood.

"Three days."

"I know."

"You’re injured."

"I’ll heal."

"Not enough."

She strode across the room.

Positioned herself right before me.

Close enough for the chill emanating from her skin to reach me.

Winter, ozone, and a scent that was purely Natalia.

"Reyna’s been training for this her entire life. She has professional coaches. S-Rank equipment. And she’s been wanting to prove herself against someone like you since the Draft."

"Someone like me?"

"Someone who makes it look easy when it shouldn’t be." Her hand pressed to my chest. Rested atop the regenerator brace concealed under my shirt. "Someone who’s hiding something."

The words lingered heavily between us.

"You think she knows?"

"I think she suspects. And I think she’s going to push until she uncovers what you truly are."

I placed my hand over hers.

"Then I’ll have to ensure she doesn’t find out."

"How?"

"By winning."

"That’s not a plan."

"It’s a start."

She gazed at me intently.

Then she sighed.

"You’re impossible."

"You knew that already."

"Doesn’t make it less annoying."

On the bed, Maki in cat form stretched and yawned, baring her tiny fangs.

Natalia noticed.

"Your cat’s awake."

"She sleeps a lot."

"Mm."

Natalia eyed the cat suspiciously, eyes narrowed.

Maki stared right back.

Unblinking.

It turned into a tense face-off between a telekinetic ice queen and a two-tailed catgirl faking normalcy as a pet.

"She’s cute," Natalia said at last.

"She’s a menace."

"Most cute things are."

Natalia faced me again.

Her face changed.

The mask slipped away.

If only briefly.

And I glimpsed the fear underneath.

"Don’t lose," she whispered.

"I won’t."

"Promise me."

"Nat—"

"Promise."

I drew her into an embrace.

Ignored the ache from my ribs.

"I promise."

She pressed her face into my shoulder.

Lingered there through several heartbeats.

Then pulled away, her poise regained.

"Good. Because if you die fighting La Sirena, I’ll bring you back to life just to kill you myself."

"Romantic."

"I try."

Then she departed.

Leaving me by myself with a shapeshifting familiar who had overheard it all and was surely ready to bombard me with questions.

Maki shifted back to human form.

Still clad in my hoodie.

Still grinning.

"Your purple girl is scary."

"You have no idea."

"But she loves you. Like, wants-to-set-the-world-on-fire-for-you loves you."

"It’s complicated."

"No it’s not. She’s just scared of losing you. That’s simple." Maki jumped down from the bed, her bare feet softly crossing the floor. "The others are scared too. I can smell it. They all think you’re going to die fighting the electric princess."

"I’m not going to die."

"You might. She’s really strong. I can feel her Aspect from here. It’s like..." Maki hesitated, hunting for the right words. "Like standing next to a storm that learned how to hate."

Encouraging.

"Can you fight?"

"Can I—" She appeared truly insulted. "Master, I’m a Platinum familiar. I can level city blocks with lightning. I’ve got nine lives. And I’ve killed things that would make your scary purple girl look like a kitten."

"So that’s a yes."

"That’s a no."

"Good. Because I might need backup."

Her eyes lit up.

They glowed gold for a second before dimming back to their usual hazel.

"You want me to come with you?"

"To training. Tonight. See what you can do."

"And if I accidentally fry someone?"

"Try not to."

"But if I do?"

"We’ll deal with it."

She grinned wide enough to show fangs.

"This is going to be so much fun."

Somehow, I doubted that.

1847 hours.

Thirteen minutes until training.

I stood in the basement gym, waiting for everyone to filter in.

Maki sat on the bench beside me in cat form, tail flicking with barely contained excitement.

The door opened.

Raphael entered first, his usual scowl firmly in place.

Then Marco and Malachi, inseparable as always.

Jaime bounded in shirtless, already flexing.

Hikari followed, her orange combat shorts riding low on her hips, her abs visible and defined from her relentless training regimen.

Isabelle arrived in full tactical gear despite this being just practice.

Always prepared.

Always professional.

Juan shuffled in last, looking like death warmed over.

"Why do we train at night," he mumbled. "Why can’t we train during normal human hours like civilized people."

"Because Braxton hates us," Raphael said.

"Braxton hates everyone," Skylar corrected, appearing in the doorway with her headphones around her neck.

Natalia entered next, her combat suit hugging every curve.

Emi bounced in behind her, already stretching.

Celeste walked in with Noah shadowing her, both in matching black tactical gear.

Akari sauntered in last, somehow making workout clothes look like lingerie.

She winked at me.

I pretended not to notice.

Braxton appeared exactly at 1900.

Not a second early.

Not a second late.

"Line up."