My Demon Friends-Chapter 459 - 455 Lord Dumpling Is Just a Little Cat
It was getting later and later.
Zhou Li looked at his watch; it was approaching midnight, and it was almost dark in the Mirror Zone as well.
The room was still the large one from before, vast and empty with just a few hard beds and almost nothing else.
Zhou Li still chose the bed he had slept in last time.
But the Old monster, despite having her own bed, inexplicably chose to lie on his, sprawling out in a starfish shape and taking up the entire space.
Although he couldn’t fathom her inner thoughts behind this action, considering her current mood, Zhou Li didn’t want to argue with her—not that arguing would help. He had planned to quietly switch to another bed, leaving his original for her, but unfortunately, he wasn’t as quick as the Old monster.
So, he switched back and just sat on the edge of the bed, thinking, utterly without a trace of sleepiness.
He heard Huai Xu’s voice nearby, listless—
"Do you know what it’s like when a demon dies?"
"I don’t."
"If someday, you are in the Old Land World, and it happens to be night, and you see a point of starlight suddenly burst into bloom in the distance—so beautiful—but before you get a good look, it vanishes..." Huai Xu stared blankly at the ceiling, her eyes lifeless, "that means a demon has died."
"Didn’t you say that a demon’s death isn’t horrifying and demons don’t care about dying?" Zhou Li tried to comfort her.
"I didn’t say that."
"..."
Comforting failed.
Zhou Li sighed and stopped talking, deciding to let her be quiet.
Perhaps quietness would help somewhat.
After all, the Old monster’s nature was still optimistic. Considering she had lived so many years and experienced so much, she should view death lightly.
It’s just that Master Ming was really important to her.
A brief silence filled the room, with only Tuanzi crawling around the bed, sniffing everywhere.
A moment later, she was stepping on Huai Xu, lowering her head to sniff near her, or even brazenly walking over Huai Xu as if she wasn’t there, seemingly having smelled something unpleasant. Then she ran over to Zhou Li, sniffing him as if searching for something.
"Zhou Ni~~"
Finally, Tuanzi spoke, looking up at Zhou Li with stars in her eyes, "Are you guys unhappy?"
"Lord Dumpling has noticed," Zhou Li whispered in response.
"Lord Dumpling can smell it," Tuanzi said a bit proudly. "Lord Dumpling can smell the scent of happiness and unhappiness on you."
"What does that smell like?" Zhou Li turned to look at her.
"MEOW..." Tuanzi tilted her head and thought hard for a long time before answering, "A pitiful scent."
"I see."
Zhou Li wondered what a pitiful scent smelled like.
After thinking for a while without reaching a conclusion, perhaps it was a feeling humans couldn’t perceive or understand.
So, he picked up Tuanzi and petted her head, pretending to scold, "Why doesn’t Lord Dumpling come when I’m happy? You always run over, quick as a flash, when I’m unhappy, eager to laugh at my misfortune."
"That’s not true!" Tuanzi hurriedly explained, her little face very serious. "Lord Dumpling is here to comfort you."
"Really?"
"Yes! Lord Dumpling has a kind of Magic Power that can make people happy very quickly!"
"Please, Lord Dumpling, cast your Magic Power!"
"..."
Tuanzi stayed quiet in his arms, unblinking as she stared at him, as if she didn’t understand what he had just said.
Zhou Li: ...
Tuanzi: ...
Zhou Li: ?
Tuanzi: ?
Zhou Li: o((⊙﹏⊙))o
Tuanzi: (>^ω^<)
Zhou Li couldn’t hold it in any longer and asked, "What exactly is Lord Dumpling’s Magic Power like?"
"It’s..."
Tuanzi stared at Zhou Li with bright, intense eyes, just staring at him, and then fell silent again.
But even at such times, she never showed a bewildered or guilty expression, nor did she ever feel awkward.
"...Lord Dumpling will let you play with her tail!"
Tuanzi finally came up with an answer. Her chin lifted slightly, her tail pointed toward Zhou Li. "Let me tell you, Lord Dumpling’s tail is very fun. It swings when Lord Dumpling is happy, and when Lord Dumpling is unhappy, Lord Dumpling bites it."
"Does that make you happy?"
"It hurts..."
As Tuanzi spoke, a trace of confusion finally appeared in her eyes, as if encountering something inexplicable.
Zhou Li, however, smiled, feeling much more relaxed.
"Thank you, Lord Dumpling."
"HMM? WHY MEOW?"
"Because Lord Dumpling made me feel happy."
"REALLY MEOW?" Tuanzi looked puzzled as she watched him, twitching her small nose. "But why can Lord Dumpling still smell the pitiful scent? It’s just a teensy-weensy bit less pitiful than before..."
"Maybe it’s because..."
Zhou Li turned his head to look back at the bed and the figure sprawled out in a starfish shape; clearly, the Old monster was the primary source of unhappiness, while he was merely a bit gloomy.
At the same time, the Old monster also turned her head and glanced sideways at them.
"So noisy..."
"MEOW? Lord Dumpling is comforting Zhou Ni!"
"That’s right," Zhou Li corroborated.
"Then why don’t you come and comfort me?" Huai Xu glanced sideways at Tuanzi. "After all, we’ve known each other for so many years, and then there’s Master Ming."
"MEOW?"
Tuanzi actually wriggled out of Zhou Li’s arms and took little steps toward Huai Xu, sniffing as she went—that pitiful scent seemed to soften her heart so much that she didn’t even mind her usual friction with Huai Xu.
"Why are you unhappy, MEOW?" Tuanzi leaned closer to Huai Xu, tilting her little head. "Did Hong Ran make you angry?"
"No!" Huai Xu didn’t really want to talk.
"Why does Lord Dumpling always dislike Hong Ran?" Zhou Li couldn’t help but speak up. "Actually, she likes Lord Dumpling a lot too."
"Lord Dumpling doesn’t like her," Tuanzi turned her head to look at him.
"Why not?"
"She is not nice to Lord Dumpling."
"That’s not true. Hong Ran is strict with Lord Dumpling because she cares about her," Zhou Li paused. "Actually, every time we go to Hong Ran’s place to freeload food and drinks, the treats we bring back for Lord Dumpling are specifically prepared by Hong Ran for her, and she has us bring them back."
"REALLY, MEOW?" Tuanzi’s eyes widened, and she stared blankly. This revelation greatly wounded Lord Dumpling’s pride.
"Yes."
"But... Your Highness also spoke ill of her," Tuanzi tried to prove the legitimacy of her dislike for Hong Ran from another angle.
"Hmm?"
"Yes, indeed!" Tuanzi was very certain. "Your Highness said so. Said she didn’t seem like a demon, more like a human."
"...Is ’human’ a derogatory term?" Zhou Li felt a headache coming on.
"Yes, indeed!" Tuanzi did not hesitate. "Humans scald kittens with hot water."
"But I am also human."
"OH! REALLY, MEOW?"
"..." Zhou Li ignored this Little Trash Cat’s habitual nonsense and continued, "Why did Your Highness say Hong Ran is like a human?"
"Because she is very smart," Tuanzi answered without hesitation.
"Because she is smart?" Zhou Li was astonished.
"Right, indeed!" Tuanzi affirmed.
"...So, are demons supposed to be dumb?" Zhou Li’s headache intensified. "And isn’t being smart a compliment?"
"MEOW?"
"...Isn’t Lord Dumpling smart?"
"Smart, indeed!"
"...Anyway, Hong Ran is very good to Lord Dumpling," Zhou Li gave up. "Lord Dumpling shouldn’t dislike her so much; it would hurt her feelings."
"MEOWWW~"
"..."
A conversation with Tuanzi lacked logic. She’d automatically pretend not to understand human speech if contradicted even slightly, leaving even Zhou Li struggling to keep up. Therefore, Zhou Li decided to drop the topic, leaving the task of comforting Tuanzi to the Great Demon who needed it more, and he sat listening to their conversation.
But was Hong Ran really like a human?
Perhaps she was.
She enjoyed surfing the internet, was planning a game room, her temper was more volatile than the average demon’s, she considered things more thoroughly, and she vented on WeChat...
However, there were many other demons like her who embraced human culture, such as Lord Han Hong, who loved painting and calligraphy.
In the brief moment his mind had wandered, Tuanzi had already moved on to discussing Master Ming’s situation with Huai Xu.
Although Huai Xu’s tone seemed impatient, and she appeared reluctant to talk to this silly cat, in truth, she told Tuanzi everything without holding back.
It was just that Tuanzi, with her limited understanding, didn’t know how to offer comfort and kept repeating the same old line—
"When demons die, they return to their source and become new demons."
"I used to think so too, but that’s no consolation!" Huai Xu retorted, offering an example. "For instance, if the Demon King were dying, would you also feel indifferent?"
"Your Highness won’t, you know! Your Highness can live a very long time!"
"What if her life comes to an end?"
"It hasn’t come, you know!"
"But what if? Wouldn’t you be sad if she died?"
"Not sad, you know!" Tuanzi stared back at Huai Xu with bright eyes, even tilting her head in confusion.
"What if! What if! It means *if*! *Supposing*! *Assuming*! Do you understand?" Huai Xu was so frustrated she looked like she was about to tear her hair out, her expression very annoyed. It reached the point where Zhou Li thought letting Tuanzi console her might have been a bad choice. "Haven’t you read any books?"
"Haven’t read, you know!"
"I can’t get through to you!!"
"Lord Dumpling can’t get through to you either..." Tuanzi muttered defiantly.
"You little..."
Huai Xu gritted her teeth, incredibly furious. The way she turned her head in that instant made it seem like she never wanted to speak to Tuanzi again.
But in truth, she only paused briefly before turning her head back to ask, "What if Zhou Li were about to die like Master Ming, wouldn’t you be sad? Zhou Li hasn’t become a demon; he won’t return to his source."
"MEOW?"
Tuanzi’s eyes widened, seemingly unable to understand, so she turned her head to look at Zhou Li, "Then what happens when you humans die, MEOW?"
"Then there’s nothing left," Huai Xu interjected.
"Nothing... left?" Tuanzi couldn’t believe it, continuing to ask, "Won’t they turn into other humans?"
"Don’t listen to her," Zhou Li smiled. "We also return to the source, just in another way—if we are buried underground, soon after, lush flowers and plants will sprout from our burial site, thus also becoming other forms of life."
"Will we turn into pretty little flowers?" Tuanzi’s eyes turned into stars.
"Yes."
"SO AWESOME!!"
"What a silly cat..."
Huai Xu rolled her eyes at them and sighed inwardly. She didn’t pursue the matter further, lest she actually managed to make this silly cat understand.
But sometimes she really couldn’t tell—
Was this little silly cat truly foolish, or did she see things more clearly than Huai Xu herself?
