Becoming a Cat in a Horror Game

I felt like I was about to faint.

 

Is this some kind of joke?! Just 50 gold was already overwhelming, but now 150 gold? That means I’d be stuck in this mansion for over 10 years…!

 

I can’t live like this. I refuse! Even if it’s not because of the murderer, I can’t spend my entire life as a maid in this transmigration…!

 

“If you’ve understood, you may leave now. If you try to escape again and get caught, the penalty will triple again.”

 

450 gold. The thought of what my life would be like in a few decades made me feel dizzy.

 

I left his office, completely dejected.

 

What am I supposed to do? The debt in reality was just as terrifying as the monsters of the night.

 

* * *

After Mia left, Isaac remained seated at his desk for a long time. Only a small lantern was lit, casting a dim glow in the room. His silver-gray eyes gleamed in the darkness, filled with a deep, unsettling calm.

 

…That woman.

 

He was thinking about the maid who had just been in the room. Isaac’s expression was cold and hard.

 

Why is she still alive?

 

He remembered clearly. The maid he saw for the first time today was the woman with long black hair who had looked at him with startled eyes. When she suddenly called his name, he thought it was strange, but then her next words made him frown even more.

 

She claimed to be Mia.

 

It was an absurd, nonsensical claim. The moment he heard it, he immediately knew who was behind it. It had to be those guys—the ones who would go to such lengths, even bringing up Mia to try and get close to him. That’s why he killed that woman as a warning.

 

But the time has reversed.

 

After killing the maid, it was suddenly morning again. It was strange. And when he checked, that dead maid was alive again.

 

What on earth is going on?

 

Something strange was definitely happening. He had some suspicions about what it might be. Part of him wanted to kill that woman who claimed to be Mia again or torture her to extract information, but he decided against it. Now that he knew her identity, it seemed more beneficial to keep her close and watch her actions. So, he let her live, and she made her move on the first day. When she left the house, he wondered if she was going to make contact with those people.

 

But to think she got caught by a thug and was completely helpless. He had secretly followed her, only to witness an absurd scene. It made Isaac question things.

 

For someone supposedly sent by them, she was far too clumsy. So clumsy, in fact, that he wondered if there might be another purpose behind her actions.

 

What could that purpose be? Isaac sighed quietly as he pondered this. A name naturally came to mind as his thoughts grew complicated.

 

“Mia…” He murmured the name once more, this time with a voice full of longing and affection.

 

His dear cat, whom he had finally met again. He longed to feel the comfort of her soft black fur once more. Burying his head in his arms, he muttered softly, “I miss you, Mia.”

 

* * *

Two days have passed since I started working in this mansion. After another exhausting day, I collapsed onto my bed.

 

“Huaaa… I’m dying here…”

 

I worked so hard today that I almost forgot about the existence of my murderer. But I couldn’t forget about my debt. 150 gold. A whopping 150 gold…!

 

After working all day, the money I earned was…

 

[Current Funds: 2 silver 90 copper.]

 

I washed countless dishes, and all I got was 2 silver and 90 copper? Are you kidding me…?!

 

Ugh, this is driving me crazy. What am I supposed to do? Just thinking about the real-life problems was overwhelming enough, but there were other things bothering me too.

 

First of all, this wasn’t the Dias mansion. I had known from the beginning that it wasn’t the Dias mansion, but this place truly wasn’t the Dias mansion in any sense. And that’s because Isaac was no longer Isaac Dias.

 

Isaac now used the surname Blackwood. His title had also changed from marquis to baron. What had happened to cause this? And Isaac’s father was nowhere to be seen. When I subtly asked the other maids, they only mentioned that he had died a long time ago.

 

Second, when Isaac killed me, he asked if ‘they’ had sent me. Who are ‘they’? It didn’t seem like something from within the game.

 

I had played the game all the way to the end. The game’s plot revealed that Isaac had drawn people into the night world to sacrifice them to demons. That was the whole story. But now there’s talk of ‘them.’ I couldn’t make sense of it. And even if I asked Isaac, he wouldn’t answer…

 

Sigh. I guess I’ll have to figure this out slowly as well.

 

Meanwhile, it was getting close to midnight. I hoped nothing would happen tonight, just like yesterday…

 

I watched the clock anxiously, seeing the second hand move slowly. Tick, tock, tick, tock… And when the second, minute, and hour hands are all aligned,

 

[The night is spreading.]

[The time of darkness has come.]

 

Ha, so I’m being dragged in today…

 

The surroundings suddenly darkened, and a moment later, the scenery completely changed. It was the dim Dias mansion—a place that felt familiar yet unpleasant.

 

Just then, I felt a gentle touch next to me.

 

“Mia, it’s been a while. How have you been?”

 

Hearing that voice sent chills down my spine. I quickly turned around to see Isaac standing there. His gaze was completely different from how he looked at me when I was human. His eyes were warm and filled with kindness—like honey dripping from them.

 

“Meooow…!” I backed away, bristling with fur as I watched him warily.

 

Isaac looked startled. “Mia? What’s wrong? It’s me, Isaac.”

 

“Meow!”

 

“What’s the matter…? Did something happen?”

 

When I showed hostility, he immediately looked downcast. Seeing him like that reminded me of Isaac from his childhood. My heart softened a bit, but then I remembered the moment Isaac killed me.

 

That’s right, Isaac killed me…! I couldn’t just sit calmly in the arms of the person who had killed me. Slowly backing away, I slipped out of the room.

 

“Mia!”

 

Ignoring Isaac’s call, I quickly hid in another room. I could hear Isaac running off somewhere.

 

Ugh… my head hurts. I had managed to get away from Isaac, but that didn’t mean I was safe. There were creatures lurking around everywhere. In a way, it might have been smarter to stay with Isaac despite the unease. But I needed to act on my own.

 

I have to find a Guardian Stone…! I needed to find a Guardian Stone, even if it meant taking some risks. It was the only way to protect my life.

 

Last time, Isaac spent the entire night holding, petting, and kissing me, not moving an inch. I couldn’t let that happen again.

 

I moved as cautiously as possible, keeping an eye on my surroundings.

 

Uu, uuuuu… I heard a strange, eerie wailing sound from somewhere. It was probably the sound of the spiders. In the game, you had to hide whenever you heard that sound.  Maybe it was because I was a cat, but I felt like I could hear the sound better. It seemed like this body was better suited for searching and running away.

 

Avoiding the creatures, I headed in the opposite direction. As I meticulously searched one dusty room, I saw something shiny under the bed. Could it be a Guardian Stone? I rushed over to check what it was.

 

…A brooch? Unfortunately, it was just a brooch. Well, it couldn’t be helped. Guardian Stones were never easy to find in the game. Still feeling a bit disappointed, I poked the brooch. A notification window popped up.

 

[You have found a ‘Brooch.’ Would you like to add it to your inventory?]

 

Huh? This can go in the inventory too? I wondered if it was a key item in the game’s story, but as far as I remembered, there was no such item. So what could it be?

 

I pressed the question mark next to the brooch in my inventory to find out.

 

[Brooch: A brooch crafted by an exceptional artisan. It has no special function. Price: 1 gold.]

 

…What? 1 gold?

 

My eyes widened at the amount. 1 gold was the same as my entire month’s salary!

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