The Villainous Female Side Character Pretends to Be an Omega in the Apocalypse and Raises a Cat - Chapter 24

Xu Luo slowly pushed herself up from the charred silk net, her pale cheeks still smudged with soot, yet she broke into a smile the moment she saw Xu Chuyao.

“Mother.”

Xu Chuyao’s call was choked with tears as she threw herself into Xu Luo’s arms like an injured young animal.

Feeling the warmth of her mother’s embrace, her sobs could no longer be restrained.

The apocalypse demanded rapid growth from everyone. Throughout this journey, she had shown remarkable bravery, making people forget she was still just a first-grade child.

After a long while, Xu Chuyao finally calmed down and looked up at Xu Luo’s face.

Yet her hands still clung desperately to Xu Luo’s clothes, afraid that if she let go, her mother would disappear again.

Everyone in the room was moved by this scene.

Even the Ant Queen showed a flicker of complex emotion in her compound eyes.

She gently swayed her antennae, and the soldier ants immediately opened the remaining two “mummies” before retreating to the corners, making space for the humans.

The Ant Queen approached Chi Yingdong, her antennae twitching slightly.

Immediately, the Ant Queen’s voice appeared in Chi Yingdong’s mind: “May I hold your kitten?”

Chi Yingdong protectively tightened her arms.

The kitten had fainted earlier after touching the Ant Queen, so she had reservations.

“I won’t harm her.”

The Ant Queen’s tone carried a hint of helplessness. “Or I could ask the kitten myself if she’s willing.”

Chi Yingdong looked down at the kitten in her arms.

The kitten was spacing out.

Meng Qinghe nearly thought she was hallucinating when she heard the Ant Queen ask: “Do you want to become human again?”

The kitten’s ears shot up immediately, there was no doubt she wanted to.

The Ant Queen called: “Then come here.”

Meng Qinghe hesitated slightly, but her desire to become human again ultimately prevailed.

She struggled to get out of Chi Yingdong’s embrace, but found herself firmly restrained, unable to move.

“Meow?”

Meng Qinghe looked back at Chi Yingdong, not understanding why she was suddenly being held so tightly.

Chi Yingdong didn’t know what the Ant Queen had said to the kitten, but judging by the kitten’s reaction, her heart ached with a gripping pain, as if she was being abandoned by the kitten.

The determination in the kitten’s eyes to leave was clear.

Chi Yingdong silently released her grip, only to see the kitten eagerly throw herself into the Ant Queen’s embrace.

Even though she could tell the kitten was afraid of ants, why was she so urgent now?

When Chi Yingdong met the Ant Queen’s gaze, the queen gave a faint smile.

Though the smile appeared gentle, even somewhat maternal, Chi Yingdong detected a hint of mockery in it.

The Ant Queen’s gentle voice appeared in Chi Yingdong’s consciousness.

“Don’t be angry. Don’t you want to see her become human?”

Chi Yingdong was momentarily stunned, images of the kitten turning human flashing through her mind. “What do you mean? You have a way?”

The Ant Queen didn’t respond verbally, answering with action instead.

Chi Yingdong watched as the Ant Queen lifted the kitten with her forelimbs, her antennae connecting with the kitten’s head.

A pale golden light flowed through the antennae into the kitten’s body, resembling some kind of energy transfer ritual that radiated sacredness.

Only then did Chi Yingdong realize she had misunderstood the Ant Queen.

After the energy transfer was complete, the Ant Queen retracted her antennae and returned the kitten to Chi Yingdong.

The kitten was sleeping peacefully.

Chi Yingdong suddenly remembered that there’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world. The other party had helped her kitten like this without asking for anything in return.

“What’s the price?”

Chi Yingdong asked directly, her fingers unconsciously combing through the kitten’s fur.

The smile on the Ant Queen’s face became more genuine.

“Wise human. I have transferred most of my energy to your kitten. Once she fully absorbs my power, she will regain her human form. I need you to help me find the world’s fissure and send me home.”

Chi Yingdong furrowed her brows in contemplation. “What is the world’s fissure?”

Faced with her question, the ant queen fell into deep thought, her translucent wings drooping as the glow on them dimmed slightly.

“I come from a highly advanced interstellar civilization. Our species excels in psychic manipulation, and we accidentally discovered that every world possesses a fissure.”

“In my youthful boldness, I wanted to explore other worlds, but while crossing through the fissure, I lost my original body and became trapped in this form.”

The ant queen’s voice echoed in Chi Yingdong’s mind, tinged with nostalgic melancholy.

Her compound eyes flickered faintly, as if seeing her former self.

Chi Yingdong remained silent for a moment, as if gauging the truth in the ant queen’s words. “How can I find this world’s fissure?”

The ant queen shook her head gently. “I’m not certain either.”

“The kitten in your arms carries the scent of the fissure on her soul, she came through it. Also, the investor behind this laboratory has been studying my power and might know something.”

Chi Yingdong had suspected the kitten’s unusual origin but never imagined she came from another world.

Yet none of that mattered now.

She had resolved to never see Qiao Ying again in this lifetime, yet circumstances kept connecting them. Was she truly unable to defy the world’s will?

“I’ll help you search for it,” Chi Yingdong promised, “but I can’t guarantee success.”

The ant queen nodded, and their agreement was sealed.

Noticing that Qian Ruanruan and Jiang Yun had awakened and were looking around in confusion, the ant queen warned, “You should leave quickly. This building becomes dangerous after dark.”

After a moment’s silence, Chi Yingdong replied, “Understood.”

Soldier ants escorted them to the staircase, but they would have to descend on their own.

Only then did Chi Yingdong ask Xu Luo what had happened over the past two days.

Two days earlier, residents from the neighboring building had approached Qian Ruanruan, revealing their pre-apocalypse identities. One had worked for a food research company and disclosed that their company possessed a large warehouse.

The warehouse contained emergency supplies like compressed biscuits and chocolate.

They proposed collaborating with Qian Ruanruan’s team to retrieve the supplies, with both teams splitting the resources equally.

After consulting her team members, Qian Ruanruan agreed to cooperate with the neighboring building.

Unexpectedly, the building housed an advanced zombie with a devouring ability. It had consumed other zombies in the building, growing tremendously powerful.

Qian Ruanruan was the only one who managed to escape.

She sought Jiang Yun’s help, hoping they could defeat the zombie together, but even their combined efforts only resulted in a stalemate.

Fortunately, at the critical moment, Xu Luo awakened her fire ability and delivered the final blow.

However, all three of them fell unconscious due to energy depletion.

On the return journey, at Qian Ruanruan’s request, Chi Yingdong stored all the warehouse supplies in her spatial inventory.

Qian Ruanruan needed these supplies to provide closure for the families of her fallen teammates.

…

Meng Qinghe woke from a deep sleep, still feeling abundant energy coursing through her body, apparently not fully absorbed yet.

She stood up from the sofa, looking around in confusion. “Meow, meow, meow?”

How did we get back? Where’s the ant queen?

Hearing the noise, Chi Yingdong glanced at the kitten and guessed, “Are you wondering how we returned?”

Although Chi Yingdong’s understanding was slightly off, it wasn’t far from the truth. Meng Qinghe nodded in agreement.

Chi Yingdong gently stroked the kitten’s head. “The Ant Queen is still in the laboratory. She helped you, and we’ll see her again someday.”

Meng Qinghe recalled that before falling into a deep sleep, she had asked the Ant Queen what price she would have to pay for being transformed into a human.

The Ant Queen had told her that her master would cover the cost.

The kitten suddenly grew anxious, its front paws clutching Chi Yingdong’s collar as it meowed urgently, “Meow! Meow! Meow!!!”

Did you promise the Ant Queen something?

There was still a language barrier between cat-speak and human speech, and Chi Yingdong truly couldn’t understand what the kitten was saying. Seeing how agitated it was, she fetched a writing tablet.

Impatiently, Meng Qinghe picked up the stylus with her mouth and clumsily scribbled a few words on the board:

[What did you promise the Ant Queen?]

Chi Yingdong cradled the kitten in her arms, gently holding its front paws and rubbing them softly.

The Ant Queen had said that the kitten came from beyond the cracks of this world, that within its small body resided the soul of an adult.

She ought to discuss matters with the kitten openly; there was no need to hide anything.

Chi decided to relay everything the Ant Queen had told her to the kitten.

Chi Yingdong said, “She said that neither of you belongs to this world. She comes from a star-faring civilization of higher advancement…”

Meng Qinghe’s tail froze mid-air.

Only then did she understand what the Ant Queen meant by saying they were alike, their souls both originated from other worlds.

But wasn’t this world just a book she had written?

And would Chi Yingdong be afraid? Would she see her as a ghost?

Meng Qinghe looked at Chi Yingdong anxiously, afraid she might see fear in the other’s expression.

Yet Chi’s gaze remained as gentle as ever, filled with trust in her.

“Would you like to tell me about the world you came from before?”

Chi Yingdong lightly scratched the kitten under its chin.

The kitten’s body went limp against its will, even though the topic at hand was so serious.

Chi Yingdong asked, “You don’t want to talk about it?”

Perhaps it was the tenderness in her voice, but Meng Qinghe felt moved and tried to speak, only to let out a soft “meow.”

The kitten froze, and Chi Yingdong was momentarily taken aback as well.

Finally, Chi Yingdong chuckled, her tone indulgent. “Never mind. You can tell me about your past once you’ve turned human.”

Meng Qinghe felt that the current Chi Yingdong was nothing like the vicious supporting character she had written.

She was gentle, considerate, completely devoid of any malice.

Suddenly, Meng Qinghe stood up, her small body leaning into Chi Yingdong, trying to push her down onto the sofa.

Chi Yingdong lay back willingly.

The kitten sprawled across Chi Yingdong’s chest, enveloped in a soft, comforting sensation, and nestled her head trustingly into the crook of Chi Yingdong’s neck.

As the tip of her nose brushed against the smooth skin, her fur lightly grazed a slightly raised gland.

A tingling sensation, like an electric current, spread from the gland throughout Chi Yingdong’s body. Her breath hitched, and she couldn’t suppress a shiver.

“Qingqing, stop fooling around.”

Her voice was slightly hoarse.

With that nuzzle, Meng Qinghe caught that sweet, intoxicating scent again.

The fragrance wisped into her nostrils, causing her body to slowly grow warmer and drawing her deeper into its allure.