It wasn't until around eight o'clock that people began to trickle away, and when the last person left carrying their birdcage, a cat materialized from who knows where.

With the inherent wariness of its kind, it crouched beneath the piping, observing cautiously for a long moment. Once it was certain all the humans outside were gone, it let out a small cry of triumph and dashed out, first stretching an extravagantly long yawn, then rolling luxuriously in the sunlight. It spared a glance for where the birdcage had been, muttering to itself, "Why does he never forget the cage here? Meow, I really want to play with that bird."

After rolling on the ground for a while, it leaped onto the railing, began to survey the scenery while meticulously grooming itself. It smoothed down every last hair, then gazed approvingly at its reflection in the stainless-steel guardrail. "Coffee is still so beautiful, meow. Master says sunbathing is good for health; I think I look better a little tanner too." It fussed with itself some more, using a paw to straighten the little bow around its neck, then checked its "mirror" again. Apart from having slightly less black fur compared to the white and coffee-colored patches, and the coordination not being one hundred percent perfect, it truly couldn't find a single other flaw. "Master was right after all; Coffee is the most beautiful cat in the world!" it announced proudly and loudly.

One of the greatest joys in Coffee's life was waiting for its owner to leave, using its demonic arts to unlock the door (of course, it insisted this was merely a normal cat ability, entirely unrelated to being a yōkai), and then sneaking up to the rooftop to sunbathe, watch the view, and sleep. Only lately, more and more humans had been coming up to the roof, forcing Coffee to wait quite a while before it could swagger out. This gave it a feeling of indignation that these humans were encroaching upon its territory. "Why are there more and more of these human things, always noisy and disturbing one's morning nap. How annoying!"

After a nap and spending some time watching the surrounding scenery and feeling the breeze, Coffee decided it was time to go home to savor the milk-stewed shrimp its master had prepared and watch television. It padded into the building with its tail held high and swaggering. Only when it sat in the elevator, returning to its own doorway, did its eyes snap wide open: the door was ajar—had it forgotten to close it just now?

Coffee darted inside in a few bounds, and seconds later, a pathetic cat shriek echoed from within the apartment.

In a secluded alley, a group of feral cats were enjoying leftovers from the trash heap and the rare sliver of sunlight that pierced the deep passage. The appearance of two feline shadows shattered their peace. The ferals collectively growled, closing in on the two brazen outsiders, adopting aggressive stances.

"Hmm, it seems like the scent went this way... No, perhaps this way... Maybe over there... So..." The calico of the two visiting cats sniffed the ground while muttering to herself, constantly changing direction.

"If you turn one more time, we'll walk right back where we started," the black cat accompanying her said coldly.

The calico shot it a look, then pressed her nose firmly to the ground to sniff again.

The black cat asked impatiently, "Do you even remember that person's scent?"

"Of course, I remember!" the calico replied confidently.

"Then why have we backtracked so many times?" the black cat demanded.

"You have to blame that human for walking back and forth so much! Besides, I'm not a dog, it's natural to make mistakes," the calico boasted of not being canine.

The black cat was filled with regret. Why had it agreed to help her? And worse, trusted her judgment? Now they had been led around for over an hour and hadn't even left the block. He couldn't back out now, so he vented all his simmering anger on the surrounding ferals. He let out a low, menacing snarl, speaking in human tongue: "Scram! Black Ice isn't in a good mood today. Don't go looking for death! The ferals, relying on their wild instincts, sensed a strange aura emanating from these two foreign-looking felines—an aura laced with something terrifying. In an instant, they scattered, vanishing into the corners of the alley. Black Ice, bringing up the rear, lunged and sent one flying with an uppercut cat punch, eliciting a piercing scream.

"Black Ice, hurry up! How do you still have time to fight alley cats? Stop dawdling, I have to get back before Master gets off work at five; I'm busy!" The calico darted off in one direction, still grumbling, "One's background really does matter. Feral cats are just feral cats, even after turning into yōkai..."

Black Ice glared at her angrily, but remembering he had personally promised to help, he swallowed his irritation and followed.

"Faster, faster! We're almost going to catch that damned thief!" the calico Coffee gritted her teeth.

Coffee had returned from its routine morning stroll on the rooftop platform only to find the front door wide open—it had forgotten to secure it when heading upstairs. It rushed in to check inventory and discovered a highly precious item was missing from the house.

"That thing is very treasured, very valuable, very expensive, Master loves it very much... If it isn't found, Master will cry... Waaah... It's all my fault; I forgot to close the door, Master will abandon me, and I'll become a feral cat, waah..." Coffee immediately rushed to "friend" Black Ice to cry about the huge punishment it would surely receive.

Black Ice highly doubted that the home of a cat like Coffee would possess anything valuable enough to be stolen. However, he was nearly driven mad by Coffee's sharp, ear-piercing wails. He casually suggested, "If something is lost, just go get it back. Can't you even beat a human?"

"Really!" Coffee's tears vanished instantly.

You are a yōkai, after all, aren't you?—though Black Ice wisely refrained from saying the words that would invite a flurry of claws and teeth from Coffee—he asked instead, "Do you know who stole it?"

"I know! I smelled a stranger's scent inside the house!"

"Then go find them! Take back what belongs to your house." Stealing from a yōkai's home—such humans deserved a lesson.

Coffee instantly resolved to go, but then discovered another problem: it barely knew the way. For a house cat that rarely left the building, knowing the route from its home to Black Ice's place was a significant accomplishment. If it were asked to go anywhere else in the city, it might get lost and never find its way back. In this situation, as Coffee's "friend," and considering Coffee had once saved his life, Black Ice felt obliged to take on the role of guide. Together, they set off on their journey of detection and recovery.

The two cats turned out of the alley one after the other, emerging onto a busy street. Coffee, initially charging forward with imposing momentum, covered its ears and tucked its tail between its legs upon hearing several harsh horn blasts, slowly retreating until it hid behind Black Ice.

"Heh heh," Black Ice sneered, striding forward. Seizing an opportunity, he executed several powerful leaps, darting successfully across the gap in the heavy traffic to the opposite side. He turned back, gave Coffee a look of smug satisfaction, lay down in the green belt, resting his head on his paws, waiting to see how Coffee would cross.

"Trying to watch me make a fool of myself!" Coffee's fighting spirit immediately ignited. "You underestimate me too much! You think I've never crossed a road before!" Coffee marched confidently toward the roadside.

"Meow meow, meow..."

Several girls strolling nearby suddenly heard the cat's cry and looked down to see a cute calico at their feet, gazing up at them with pleading eyes, letting out coaxing sounds: "Meow, meow..."

"Oh, so cute!"

"Little kitty!"

"Too adorable, so fluffy!"

The girls noticed the exaggerated meows and crowded around to pick up Coffee. Black Ice watched as Coffee was tightly hugged, kissed, and fought over, causing him to pull back his lips in horror. But Coffee didn't seem to mind at all; in fact, it appeared to be enjoying the attention. After a while, it suddenly remembered its mission, wriggled free from the girls' arms, ran a few steps toward the road, then retreated back toward the girls, called out, ran to the road again, and retreated once more... After repeating this several times, the girls finally grasped its meaning.

"Little kitty, you want to get to the other side, don't you?"

"Meow meow meow meow."

"Shall I carry you over?"

"Meow meow meow meow."

One girl carefully picked up Coffee and carried her across the road.

Coffee called out a few sounds of thanks to the girl before bowing and slipping into the green belt. Behind her, the girls were still discussing, "What a lovely cat, I wish we could take her home." "Right, she’s so smart, it’s like she understands us (she can actually talk, too)." "Too bad she already has an owner; she can't come with us." "How do you know?" "Didn't you see the bow she's wearing? Her owner must have put that on her." "Maybe she needs to cross such a dangerous road just to find her owner!" "Aww, how touching!"

The girls chattered their way off. Black Ice shook his head hard; he was genuinely afraid of that "species." "They are so nice, they really remind me of my Master," Coffee sighed contentedly, causing Black Ice's mouth to drop open.

"This way!" Coffee abruptly changed direction again, running from Building Four in this residential area toward Building Nine, but before Black Ice could catch up, it switched again. "This way!" and darted toward Building Seven.

Black Ice sighed deeply, decided to just sit down, and flicked his tail while waiting for Coffee to finally make up its mind where they were going.

"This way, this way, this way..." After scouting every single building in the residential complex, Coffee collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily, and angrily declared, "That thief must have robbed every single one of these buildings! What absolute villainy!"

Black Ice doubted if such a maniacal thief truly existed. He looked at Coffee sideways, enjoying the situation a little, and asked, "Well? Lost the trail?"

"What do you know!" Coffee instantly sprang up. "Tracking is just one method of solving a case; true detectives catch criminals through deduction and analysis."

"Hahahaha, you think you're a detective?" Black Ice found this too amusing; he rolled on the ground holding his stomach.

"Hmph, I swear by my Master’s name, I will catch that thief!" Coffee shouted in a huff.

"Hahahaha, and how do you plan to do that?" Black Ice continued to laugh uncontrollably. He found this perpetually self-important feline too entertaining, now suddenly claiming to be a detective.

"You just wait and see, I will deduce who that damned thief is," Coffee vowed solemnly.

"First, he's a man," Coffee analyzed, nodding its head sagely.

Black Ice asked, "Why is that?"

"Women are quiet, gentle, kind, and fond of cats—how could one possibly be a thief!" Coffee shot him a disdainful look. How could this yōkai be so dense!

Black Ice rolled his eyes.

"Secondly, he must be a tall, powerfully built man."

Black Ice asked, "And why is that?"

"He's stolen from so many places; he must have taken a lot of things. If he isn't tall and strong, how could he carry it all away?" Coffee felt deep pity for the intellectual gap between them and therefore explained in great detail: "So many households, stealing one item from each—he has to be a strongman just to manage that!"

Black Ice closed his eyes, assumed a resting posture, and pretended to fall asleep, but Coffee continued to drone on: "So he must be easy to identify! If you observe carefully, you're sure to spot him!"

"Then you look for him." Black Ice yawned, stretched out in the sun, ready for a real nap. But Coffee was already scanning its surroundings with a fierce gaze, eyeing every man in sight with suspicion. The more it looked, the more every man seemed like the thief. What to do? Right, target the biggest one! Coffee made up its mind, found its target, raised a paw, and swiped Black Ice. "Get up! I found him!"

Black Ice jumped up instantly. Could it be that this blind cat (Coffee: Who's a blind cat! Didn't you see my big, watery eyes?) had actually found him? "Where?"

Coffee pointed to a very tall, broad-shouldered man. The man looked decidedly ill-natured, with a stern brow and shifty eyes, carrying a large trunk. Coffee declared, "It's him! My Master's things must be in that trunk!"

He looks like a tough human, but I am a yōkai; there's no reason to fear a mere human, Black Ice thought, flexing his claws, preparing to attack. He wanted to settle his debt to Coffee quickly so the cat wouldn't pester him later.

"Take my Cat Claw!"

Before Black Ice could finish preparing, Coffee yelled and pounced. The man was startled by the sudden leap from the bushes and dodged the swipe just in time. "Take my Cat Fang next!" After landing, Coffee dashed forward again and bit down hard on the man's calf. The man immediately howled, snatched the cat—which he assumed must have rabies—and prepared to smash it against the ground. "Cat Kick!" Coffee shoved off with its hind legs, leaving a long scratch mark on the man's wrist before landing lightly on the ground and resuming its attacking stance.

"Damn cat!" the man roared in exasperation, throwing the trunk aside and lunging for Coffee with empty hands.

"Human, I demand a fair duel!" Black Ice leaped out, placing himself between the man and Coffee, solemnly proposing the terms of the duel—a rule of combat among ferals (Black Ice: Who said that was a feral cat rule! That's a yōkai rule!).

"The cat... can talk..." The man briefly wondered if the rabies infection from the bite had instantly taken hold and if he was about to turn into a rabies patient. Unease settled in his heart.

"Who's a cat! I am a dignified yōkai!" Black Ice replied with gravity. This was his standard procedure when challenging humans as a yōkai: maintaining the best possible image so they would remember him clearly.

"Yōkai?" The man shook his head violently, trying to determine if he was hallucinating. But the large black cat walked toward him step by step, staring intensely at his face, and repeated, "Come on, let's settle this. If I win, you return what you stole."

"A yōkai..." The man let out a cry of alarm and turned to flee.

Black Ice closed the distance in a single cat-stride, leaped high, and brought a claw down squarely on the back of the man's head. Startled, the man tripped and fell onto the ground.

"Thief, give me back my Master's property!" Coffee shrieked, surprisingly lifting the leather trunk and throwing it at the man. With a dull thud, the man, concussed from the fright and the impact, slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Black Ice nudged the trunk open, only to find it empty—no wonder Coffee could lift it. He couldn't help but ask Coffee, who was sniffing the man, "Where is this thing you said was stolen? There's nothing in here."

"Oh no," Coffee shrieked, startling Black Ice. It pointed at the man. "This person's scent is wrong; he isn't the thief."

Black Ice promptly tumbled headfirst into the empty trunk.

"Someone's collapsed here!"

"Quick, call 110!"

"Call an ambulance! Call an ambulance!"

The unconscious man had been discovered. People flooded in, shouting, while the two culprits hid themselves in a flower bed to argue.

"You were so certain, but you didn't even confirm the scent!"

"I found him based on my deduction, not the smell!"

"What do we do now? We harmed an innocent person. If Master finds out, I'll be punished." Black Ice was frantic.

"What's the big deal? I get scolded even when I bully the neighbor's kids and dog owners ten times over. You should quickly change that Master and find one like mine," Coffee remained completely unconcerned by its own terrible behavior, still persistently saying, "My reasoning was watertight! Where did I go wrong? I'll just re-deduce it from the beginning."

"First, the thief must be a man; that is unquestionable. Second..."

Black Ice closed his eyes in annoyance and refused to pay attention. If it weren't for his Master's instruction to always repay kindness, and the fact that this calico had "saved" his life again, he would have immediately pounced and scratched her.

"Second... second..., yes, this is where the error was. Why would a thief carry stolen goods around in his hands? He must have a means to transport the loot! The driver! The thief must be the driver! Black Ice, let's go find if there's a suspicious vehicle!"

Black Ice dejectedly followed, having entirely given up and allowing himself to be bossed around.

"A luxury sedan? Impossible. Someone driving a car that nice wouldn't stoop to theft."

"A bicycle? Impossible, too small. I wouldn't even use one to steal something."

"A small van? A small van! It has to be this one! Black Ice, quickly, he's going to drive off to commit more crimes!" Saying this, Coffee charged toward a certain vehicle. "Sigh, another innocent person is about to suffer..." Black Ice sighed, dragging his tail, ears drooping, following with heavy steps.

Coffee clearly saw the two men loading a large box onto the van. It cautiously sniffed the air again—this was the scent. One of the strangers who had been in its house was among them. "Stop! Thief!" Coffee charged forward with one hundred percent certainty.

"Go away, little cat, be careful not to get stepped on!" One of the men carrying the load kicked lightly at Coffee.

Coffee shrieked, "Cat Claw!" and leaped up, swiping at the man's face. The man, startled, dodged the attack, but the iron home appliance he was carrying slipped, crashing heavily onto his foot, causing him to let out a sharp cry.

"Why did you suddenly let go! You'll pay for damaging it!" his companion yelled.

"That cat suddenly scratched me!" the victim groaned, clutching his toes, which were likely broken.

"A mere kitten made you..." Before he could finish his grand pronouncement, Coffee opened its mouth and lunged for him, shouting, "Cat Fang!" "Aiyee!" The man vigorously waved his hand, batting Coffee away, and said breathlessly, "Mad cat?"

"Take another Cat Claw!" Coffee landed lightly, immediately springing up like a coiled spring, pouncing again on the thief who was still resisting capture.

Black Ice walked over, looked at Coffee bravely fighting the two humans, then looked at the small van. He frowned; something felt wrong, but he couldn't quite articulate it.

"Black Ice..." Coffee's cry was suddenly cut off as if its throat had been squeezed shut. Black Ice whipped around to see that its throat was indeed being squeezed. The man, though scratched and bloody on his hands and face, still held Coffee in one hand, tightening his grip on its head, preparing to smash it onto the ground. Black Ice couldn't hold back; saving the cat was paramount. He roared, "Stop!" and charged the man.

It was less the sudden appearance of a second cat that scared the two men, and more the use of human language from its mouth that terrified them (Black Ice: Nonsense! Would they understand me if I spoke cat language!). Both men instinctively reached up to touch their own heads, then each other's, confirming they weren't running a fever. Black Ice seized the moment, bit the man's hand, and freed Coffee.

"I will never forgive you!" Coffee, boiling with rage, prepared to attack again.

"Heavens! What is going on here!" A high-decibel female voice filled the scene. "My air conditioner! Why is my air conditioner smashed! I told you to take it for repair! What did you do to it like this!"

"We're sorry, but there were two cats just now..." one man tried to explain to the furious woman.

"I don't care why! You must compensate me! I'm calling to complain!" After inspecting her home, the woman's voice grew louder.

"But, that cat... it can talk..."

"A cat can talk? Where is a cat? How can a cat possibly talk! I demand to file a complaint, a complaint that you hire lunatics for staff!"

Heibing had already dragged Kafei into the bushes. He stared at the painted words on the side of the small van, reading them out one by one: "XX Air Conditioning Serves You." (Don't underestimate Heibing; he learned the complete Three Character Classic from his Master.)

"What does that mean?" Kafei asked, his bright eyes blinking rapidly.

"It means that's a maintenance vehicle for an air conditioning company," Heibing sighed, utterly dejected.

"So, they steal things while fixing air conditioners! How despicable!"

"...You've gotten it wrong again, haven't you..."

"How could I be wrong! His scent is clearly left in my home."

"Did you have your air conditioner repaired recently?"

"Now that you mention it..." Kafei tried hard to recall, "The air conditioner broke yesterday, and then..."

Heibing stood up dejectedly, his tail drooping, and walked away into the distance, muttering to himself, "Goodbye, Kafei, you can think I’m ungrateful. I never want to see you again. You absolutely must not look for me again, never..."

"Heibing, you can't leave! What about my Master's things? Heibing... Wah... You're so heartless, so ungrateful... Waaah-woooo..." Kafei burst into loud sobs, but Heibing didn't look back, walking step by step into the bustling crowd.

"I didn't find it... Master's things are gone... I can't go home..." Kafei, tears welling, gazed at his own front door. At this hour, his Master should have already returned. Usually, she would be busy making herself instant rice porridge, taking a bath, and cuddling him with kisses. But now...

"Master, Kafei is sorry for you. Kafei is too ashamed to see you. Kafei is going to live the life of a stray cat,, maybe tomorrow Kafei will turn into a terrifying Yōkai...... I don't want to..." Kafei wept heartbrokenly, but he dared not step through the door.

"Kafei! What are you doing here!" The Master's sharp shout suddenly rang out.

Kafei squeezed his eyes shut. The Master was angry and was going to punish him. Master, hit me then, wooo...

"Kafei, why are you outside the door? How did you get out?" The young woman threw down the large handbag in her hands and rushed over, scooping Kafei into her arms. "Oh my god, did I lock you outside this morning! Oh dear, poor Kafei, look how dirty you are! It's all my fault, poor Kafei, my precious baby!" The woman turned Kafei over and kissed him repeatedly, then carefully carried him inside.

The Master hadn't noticed her things were missing yet, but she would discover it any moment now, any second... Kafei closed his eyes, waiting for the storm to break.

"Kafei, look what I got! Cough, cough, cough..." The woman excitedly pulled a beautifully framed picture out of the large bag. Set inside the frame was a piece of hand-embroidered traditional Chinese painting—a craft popular at the time called cross-stitch. The subject of the painting was a cat that looked very much like Kafei. "Isn't it lovely? I spent half a month embroidering this, and I just got it framed today. We can hang it in the living room—this is my precious Kafei! Kafei, do you like it?"

Kafei's eyes widened. This, this wasn't, wasn't...

"I want everyone who walks in the door to see my precious Kafei immediately..." the woman chattered, already searching for nails and a hammer, preparing to hang the picture.

"Master... so it was you..." Kafei could hold back no longer. He collapsed onto the sofa and began to weep uncontrollably...