The System Mistook Me for a Cat

With just over a week left before the Lunar New Year, Chu Tingwu decided to go live on stream, primarily to support her team's promotional efforts. She collaborated with a host hired by the research station and the conservation organization for a joint live broadcast.

She shared some stories from her time in Antarctica and also addressed a few questions related to tabletop RPGs. Her hair had grown a bit longer, tied loosely into a ponytail at the back of her head. Although the livestream wasn’t particularly long, Chu Tingwu showed her face this time, and Hao Dong couldn’t help but replay it multiple times.

Hao Dong was from Jin City, currently a sophomore in high school, one grade below Chu Tingwu, and attended the same high school. Back when Chu Tingwu was still in middle school, Hao Dong had already noticed this content creator who was almost her age and had been following her ever since. She had even considered transferring to the fifth high school because, based on Chu Tingwu’s livestreams, it seemed so interesting, and the idea of attending the same school as her favorite creator felt incredibly appealing.

However, the fifth high school was too far from home, and her parents weren’t willing to rent a place just for her to attend, so she ended up going to the local high school instead.

Fortunately, perhaps because Chu Tingwu’s academic performance had always been strong, Hao Dong found herself more motivated to study whenever Chu Tingwu streamed herself doing homework or solving problems. Later, with the help of some learning apps, her parents promised that if she did well in her final exams, they would buy her VR streaming equipment and a membership card for a nearby VR experience center.

After all, following Chu Tingwu seemed to have improved her daily routine—she even started jogging on her own, though an ill-advised attempt at parkour had nearly resulted in a sprained ankle. She decided it was better to stick to watching livestreams and playing games, as long as it didn’t interfere with her studies.

So, during the winter break, she binge-watched all of Chu Tingwu’s past VR streams and even hired a gamer to help her unlock the hidden content in *Flying Bird*. She practically lived at the VR experience center.

Then, her luck struck—she won a spot in the second beta test for *Cat House*. The number of testers had expanded to two thousand, and with the start of the second beta, lightweight home VR pods were being offered at a discount, along with a free upgrade service for three years.

Hao Dong managed to convince her parents to buy a VR pod, and she was in her element—though the only downside was that her mom and dad also wanted to use it. While the game account was tied to her ID, requiring voice and fingerprint recognition to log in, the VR pod was more comfortable for watching livestreams, so the three of them took turns using it.

Her parents often used the excuse of “you need to go to tutoring class” to get her out of the house, and during those classes, Hao Dong couldn’t wait to get back home.

So, she decided to take a shortcut.

She had it all planned out: get home in fifteen minutes, eat dinner, take a shower, and then play until eleven before going to bed… but why was it so noisy up ahead?

She paused in her steps, and the sounds of pushing and screaming became even clearer. Before she could react, the people in front came into view—

It was that girl from her class, the one who sat in the back row, Wang Classmate, and her boyfriend? There were also a few other guys who looked rough and lanky, all of them arguing!

Hao Dong felt awkward.

It was already the second year of high school, and cliques had long since formed. The “good students” didn’t really hang out with the “troublemakers,” and Hao Dong wasn’t close to Wang Classmate at all—she couldn’t even recall her name at the moment. She felt like she shouldn’t be walking forward into this situation.

Then she noticed the slap mark on Wang Classmate’s face.

The “boyfriend” was shoving Wang Classmate, who looked utterly distraught. She suddenly crouched down, clutching her head and screaming, which only made the boyfriend angrier. He cursed in the local Jin City dialect and raised his foot to kick her. Wang Classmate stood up and shoved him back… and then!

Hao Dong didn’t even know when she had started moving—her mind went completely blank when she saw the flash of a blade in the guy’s hand.

There was a trash can in front of her. They were arguing a few meters past the corner of the trash can, and Hao Dong had been hiding behind it. In that instant, she kicked the trash can, used it as a springboard to leap forward, grabbed Wang Classmate’s arm, and started running toward the alley’s exit.

Wang Classmate: “Ah—what are you doing?”

Hao Dong: “Run… just run!”

They had knives! This was dangerous—someone could get killed!

After all, Hao Dong was just a diligent high school sophomore who spent most of her time studying. The most rebellious thing she’d ever done was secretly use her allowance to buy game cartridges and stash them at a friend’s house who had a gaming console. Now, faced with a group of knife-wielding delinquents, she was lucky she could even move. After just a few steps, she was already terrified out of her mind.

And she could hear footsteps behind her.

Hao Dong: “Wuwu…”

She shouldn’t have taken the shortcut!

She sprinted.

-

Wang Classmate’s boyfriend and his friends were stunned.

He had acted impulsively, pulling out the knife to scare his girlfriend, but he “hadn’t actually planned to use it.” Then, out of nowhere, a girl in the same high school uniform as Wang Classmate appeared, grabbed her, and started running.

Running was one thing… but she was *fast*.

At first, they instinctively gave chase, but as they kept running, they started to despair. Were they chasing a track athlete? She wasn’t even looking back, her steps were chaotic, and she looked like she was on the verge of collapsing… but they just couldn’t catch up!

Then, while running, Hao Dong raised her other hand and called out to a stray cat on the wall, “Meow!” before shouting, “Help… help!”

Boyfriend: *Panting*… Seriously… *panting*… Who’s the one who should be calling for help here?

They didn’t take her actions seriously, thinking she must have lost her mind to call out to a cat instead of a person. The tabby cat on the wall seemed just as confused, peeking at them for a while before meowing a couple of times and lying back down.

Boyfriend: Damn it! The wind’s so strong, and I didn’t dress warmly enough!

They stopped to catch their breath, leaning on their knees. He carefully hid the knife behind his back to avoid cutting himself, but then he heard the sound of wind above him and a sharp command: “Don’t move!”

*Slap*—a cat’s paw swiped at his wrist, and he felt a sharp pain as the knife fell to the ground. A black-and-white figure picked it up in its mouth and leaped onto a nearby mailbox. Only then did they realize it was a cow-patterned cat.

Black Cat Sheriff!

The police officer who arrived was in plain clothes but carried a baton. He called out, “Milk,” and then said, “You lot, who started this? Come with me.”

The delinquents: “…”

Hao Dong and Wang Classmate hid behind the officer, cautiously peeking out.

The delinquents had chased them with a weapon and had hit Wang Classmate, so the boyfriend, as the ringleader, would definitely be held responsible. But Wang Classmate was the victim, so her wishes would need to be considered.

Hao Dong was still shaken. She couldn’t believe how “nimble” she had been (for her, jumping over a trash can to grab someone was incredibly agile) and how brave. Thankfully, in her panic, she had called out to the stray cat… and then, wait, how had the police shown up?

The ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‍officer handed her a piece of candy: “I happened to be patrolling nearby with Milk, and the cat led me here.”

He had been brought over by his police cat.

Meanwhile, the police cat not only helped apprehend the suspect but also jumped onto the table and started using its kneading technique to comfort the victims, making both Hao Dong and Wang Classmate feel a bit embarrassed… Then Wang Classmate’s boyfriend started bawling, insisting it was just a lovers’ quarrel.

Officer: *Snorts.*

Wang Classmate hesitated.

Hao Dong glared at the boyfriend, suppressing her anger.

Wang Classmate suddenly tugged on Hao Dong’s hand: “Um, I won’t forgive him. Can you be my friend at school? I… I’ll definitely study hard…”

Hao Dong: “Huh?”

She agreed, somewhat bewildered, and was later picked up by her parents, who made her promise to “be more careful in the future.” But her mind kept replaying her actions from earlier—

I was so agile!

I ran so fast… Should I sign up for the 3,000-meter race this year? Chu Tingwu ran it at the school sports meet before…

My reflexes were amazing! So cool!

Perhaps her family was worried that she might be startled, so they allowed her to play games until midnight today.

Hao Dong: Double the joy!

She gleefully logged into the game, happily crafted furniture, tweaked decals, and waited contentedly for her calico kitten to bring home today's gifts. Along the way, she made her usual stop to rummage through the trash bin—

Then, Hao Dong heard the flapping of wings.

She peeked her cat head out from behind the trash bin and immediately got furious: "Those blasted crows!"

With a swift kick of her hind leg, she toppled the trash bin. The crows, busy wreaking havoc in the field, were startled. The tortoiseshell cat pounced forward, stepping on the overturned bin. The crows scattered, but Hao Dong managed to scratch one and bite off the tail feathers of another.

Yes!

The injured crow fell to the ground and transformed into a blueprint for a lamp from the "Whispers of the Crow" set. Meanwhile, the tail feathers, when pressed by Hao Dong, entered the warehouse's furniture materials section, ready to be used as crafting materials or to brew dye.

Thinking this, she quietly righted the trash bin and crouched behind it again, her tail swishing back and forth, waiting for the sound of crows returning.

Hehe, she was really on a roll today. She had to share this with her friends.

-

"New Year's program?" Chu Tingwu slipped on her gloves. "I don't have any ideas... Does everyone have to perform?"

Senior Brother: "It's not mandatory, but it's almost New Year, and the ship still lacks a festive atmosphere. If all we do on New Year's Day is have a meal and then disperse, it'd be so boring..."

Chu Tingwu: "We could play cards, as long as there's no gambling."

Senior Brother winced: "Can you return the notebooks and snacks you won from me...?"

Chu Tingwu said coldly: "You can win them back."

Senior Brother: "Are you even human? If I could win them back, would I be here?"

...If they were to play cards, Chu Tingwu wouldn't be allowed at the table because, unless it was purely luck-based, she would win almost every hand. Even in games of pure chance, she won more often than not, as if her intuition was razor-sharp.

Senior Brother: "But during New Year, our research vessel will also send New Year's greetings to the entire nation..." Of course, it was mainly the original crew members who would be on camera; they were just hitching a ride and hoping to sneak into the frame.

Chu Tingwu realized: "So you just want to be on the Spring Festival Gala—"

Senior Brother: "Hey, hey, hey."

Chu Tingwu: "=v="

Wanting to be on the Spring Festival Gala wasn't shameful; it was human nature. Even if it was just a fleeting shot as part of the "New Year's Greetings from the Antarctic Research Vessel" segment, judging by everyone else's expressions, they were clearly tempted.

Chu Tingwu took off her gloves and stroked her chin: "What's your idea?"

Senior Brother: "Dress up as penguins? Put on a play?"

Chu Tingwu threw her gloves at him.

Senior Brother: "Ahhh—"

However, once everyone else arrived, they did seem interested in putting on a play. It was mainly because it allowed multiple people to participate and gave off a grand, well-prepared vibe—but with only a few days left, there was no time to come up with a new script. So, why not perform... *The Icebreaker's Voyage: Viking Pirate Crisis!?*

Chu Tingwu: "=="

Do you really have to say the full title?

Everyone seemed excited, so Chu Tingwu raised her hand and said, "Then I'll handle the equipment and be your post-production person, okay?"

She could also use AR devices to create atmospheric projections—her (system) was good at that.

But the group disagreed—

Misha encouraged her: "You should join in too!"

Chu Tingwu: "Then I'll play a foul-mouthed but highly skilled Viking pirate who boards the ship first?"

Misha: "...That's a pretty specific character?"

Chu Tingwu smiled faintly, pinned Misha down on a soft mat without hurting her, and kept her immobilized. The others quickly jumped into their roles, trying to help, but were swiftly taken down one by one—

Senior Brother: This is *The Crisis!?* not *The Viking Pirate Massacre*! Master Chu, please spare us, or the icebreaker in the play won't be able to leave the Antarctic Circle!