CHAPTER 49: CAUTIOUS

"Could it be... she received some kind of gift from Lord Siamelumis?"

"Quick, Emilia, check her status!" Ariana urged eagerly, her eyes shining with anticipation.

"Alright." Emilia nodded, then closed her eyes in concentration.

Through the bond between a beast master and her companion, she peeked into Mimi’s status screen.

However...

"There’s... nothing changed?" Emilia murmured, her voice carrying a faint trace of disappointment.

Eh???

Mimi’s ears shot straight up.

Nothing... changed??? But... didn’t I receive that divine skill—Divine Curse Reversal??? What is going on?!

Her little heart began to pound wildly. She quickly pulled up her own status in a rush, claws tapping anxiously against the air.

Don’t tell me... that skill is gone?! No way, no way! That can’t be! I just got it—don’t tell me it disappeared already?!

I worked so hard for this! Marshmallow and Siamelumis sacrificed a lot for this!!!

Her chest tightened with panic as she scanned through line after line.

And then—

Oh wait... it’s still there!

Relief crashed over her like a wave as she saw it. In her status screen, she could still see the writings.

[Divine Curse Reversal]

Skill Rank: Divine

Description: Target one curse on yourself and reverse it for a limited duration, turning it into a buff! The stronger the curse, the shorter the buff duration provided.

Nothing had changed.

Phew!

Mimi let out a tiny sigh of relief, a soft, wimpy meow slipping past her lips. Her little ears twitched as her heart finally calmed down.

So... could it be that even Master Emilia couldn’t see it?

That was when Mimi remembered the last thing Siamelumis had warned her of before she left: Mimi must never reveal her reincarnation to anyone, not even to her master...

Not yet.

For now, everything had to remain a secret.

Otherwise, it could bring about severe, unwanted consequences. Not just for her, but also for Emilia, for Siamelumis, and even for the Goddess Fauveline herself. After all... her very existence here was irregular—an illegal move. A soul from another universe bound into the body of a magical beast... such a thing could hardly escape Heaven’s eyes.

Well, it wasn’t like Mimi could talk anyway! So there was no real risk of her blurting it out!

If anything, only when her bond with Emilia grew strong enough would she unlock the telepathic skill that allowed her to speak directly to her master’s heart. But that day still felt far away...

"Oh wait—actually, there’s something else!" Emilia exclaimed suddenly, her eyes narrowing as she peered deeper into Mimi’s stats.

Mimi perked her ears again, startled. Eh? Something else?

"There’s... something there," Emilia muttered, "but... it’s written in a language I can’t read!"

"What?" Draco leaned in, frowning. "A language you can’t read?"

"Yes," Emilia said, her brows furrowed in frustration. "The letters... they’re glowing, moving around like they’re alive. I’ve never seen anything like it. But... the words make no sense at all! It’s all gibberish!"

"Oh?" Draco mused, rubbing his chin with interest.

"I see..." Lady Ariana leaned closer, gently patting her daughter’s hair with a calm smile. "Then, I suppose it must be because Lord Siamelumis wants it hidden."

"Wait... hidden?" Emilia blinked, still staring at the strange letters only she could see.

"Yup." Lady Ariana nodded firmly. "It must be something important that she bestowed upon Mimi, but chose to conceal, perhaps to keep her safe."

As Ariana said those words, Mimi’s ears twitched, and her eyes widened, because she too, realized...

Safe... yes. That was it. That was why Siamelumis had warned her. It was better—no, absolutely necessary

—that Divine Curse Reversal remained hidden.

Sure, if it was only Draco or Lady Ariana who knew, maybe it would be fine. They were kind people, somewhat trustworthy. But what if it wasn’t them? What if someone else—someone cruel, ambitious, or utterly wicked—ever discovered her divine skill?

Then... things would turn very, very bad.

Mimi could already picture it.

In this world, there were secret organizations, lurking in the dark, infamous for their twisted deeds. They captured rare beings, tore them apart, and experimented on them, mercilessly, all in the name of "truth."

Mimi knew, because she had played countless quests in the past that involved hunting those bastards down.

To them, life was nothing more than material to dissect.

It reminded Mimi of the sci-fi movies she remembered from Earth—stories where people with extraordinary powers were dragged into laboratories, strapped down under cold lights, their bodies cut open, their screams swallowed by soundproof walls.

Her little heart thumped faster.

And if that wasn’t enough, there were others, even more terrifying.

The Skill Stealers.

Yes, they existed here.

They were people cursed with powers from a dark god—abilities that allowed them to strip away the very essence of another’s skill, either by killing the victim or through brutal rituals. To meet them was to risk losing everything that made you you.

If such people ever found out about her... if they managed to capture her...

Mimi swallowed hard, her fur bristling. They would see her not as a living being, but as prey.

And prey she was.

There was probably no fatter, more delicious, more tempting prey in this world than a tiny noctifelis carrying a divine skill, yet far too weak to defend herself.

Literally... the perfect target.

They could turn her into nothing more than a living skill stone. Something to dissect, to shatter, to drain until every trace of Divine Curse Reversal was ripped out of her.

At that thought, Mimi shivered violently, curling her tail tightly around her paws as if to make herself smaller.

Lord Siamelumis... she must have known. That’s why she hid it. And I must be careful too... I have to!

Mimi told herself firmly.

...

And with that, the meeting with Lord Siamelumis came to an end.

The group bid farewell to the Glacionis and the Forbidden Peaks.

Passing back through the dimensional gate, they returned to the Chamber of Gates in the Silvervein Clan.