We docked at San Island’s port, and the differences from Ni were immediate. First, their port looked like a proper port. Multiple docks jutted into the waters, and at least four sailboats were anchored at the sides.

“Ah. I’d give my tail for one of them sloops,” Portia said as she anchored us off near an empty dock.

“I’m surprised you don’t have one yet, honestly. You charge a fortune for these trips,” Ravyn said.

Portia’s eyes narrowed. “Sure. And sometimes, I even get paid.”

Ravyn dismissed her retort with a wave of her hand. “Water under the bridge, as they say.”

Cannoli’s stare was locked onto something far in the distance. A pale Keke fingered the curve of her bow and chewed her lower lip. I couldn’t blame them. I was feeling queasy myself, and the three of us were still coated with the dried fishcat blood.

Portia stepped onto the dock and laid a gentle hand on Cannoli’s shoulder. “Come on, sweet. Let’s get you cleaned up.”

Cannoli looked at Portia’s hand, then her face. She nodded slowly and stood on trembling legs.

Oh, Cannoli…

Keke followed suit and cupped Cannoli’s waist with one hand to steady her exit. Keke stepped carefully behind her. Ravyn jumped from the boat, causing it to rock uncomfortably beneath me. I gripped the seat and hissed beneath my breath.

“Jeez, you’re all acting like somebody died.” Ravyn chuckled and stroked Ball’s feathers. “We’re here safe and sound, aren’t we? Thanks to me, I might add.”

“And Matt’s the insensitive one?” Portia swatted Ravyn’s back.

“Oof! Okay. Fine. Bathtime for the sensitive snowflakes here.”

“Man up! Squawk! Man up!”

I took a deep breath and got to my feet. Keke held a hand out to me, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. I accepted the assistance and felt immense relief to be on the stable, un-rocking dock. Keke’s hand lingered in mine, and her smile grew wider.

“The inn’s this way,” Ravyn announced, breaking through Keke and my entwined hands. “Let’s go. I’m hungry.”

Portia shook her head. Cannoli nodded slowly. Keke and I flanked her, each hooking one arm through hers.

“You’re safe, Cannoli. Nothing here will hurt you,” Keke purred.

“Yeah. We’ve got you.”

“T-Thank you,” Cannoli whispered. Tears welled in her eyes. “I c-couldn’t do anything. There were so— so many—”

“I know. It’s okay,” I reassured her. It wasn’t like I would have been much help without the damn fishcat jumping into our boat. “It’ll get easier.”

“Will it?” she turned her haunted gaze on me. “Are you sure?”

Keke leaned forward and gave me a look that said Don’t lie to her.

I chewed the inside of my cheek. “I think so.”

“Mm,” she hummed her reply.

We made our way to the inn in silence.

I was so focused on Cannoli that I barely noticed the sweeping city of San. After a shower and a fresh set of clothing, it put a new shine on San. The inn even lent Keke and Cannoli clean dresses in the same style as Ravyn’s while the staff washed their clothing and equipment. Cannoli seemed more herself as she came down the stairs, chatting excitedly with Keke.

“What kind of sweets do you think they have here? Did you see the lanterns? They’re so pretty!” I heard her bright chatter before they reached the inn’s lobby.

I stood to greet them, and my breath caught. Cannoli’s dress was a soft pink while Keke’s a forest green. Both hugged and accentuated their curves with slits up the thighs. Each of them had restyled their hair away from their faces with glittering ornaments. They looked drop-dead gorgeous.

Cannoli saw me staring and blushed. “O-our dresses from Ni are dirty, too. Because, well, you know the b-blood transfers—”

“I know.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “S-sorry. You guys look great.”

Keke fingered an errant strand of hair that had fallen to her shoulder. “Thank you.”

“Alright! Dinner time!” Ravyn shuffled down the stairs with Ball in tow, pushing between Keke and Cannoli without a care. She’d also changed into a slightly different dress, but hers was so short it left very little to the imagination. “Portia’s probably already three drinks deep. We’ll have some catching up to do.”

Keke sighed and followed her to the door. I caught Cannoli’s elbow as she moved past me.

She gasped and doubled back. “M-Matt? Is everything okay?”

“I’m fine. But how are you?” I murmured.

Cannoli touched her chin, and her gaze gained the vacancy I’d seen on the boat. But before I could say anything further, she shook her head, and her eyes cleared. “Yeah! I’m sorry if I worried you.”

Well, I wasn’t going to force it out of her. I released her arm. “You know that you can, well, talk to me? If you’re feeling bad?”

She clasped her hands at her chest, faced flush. “O-okay! Thank you, Matt!”

“I mean it.”

“I know!” She flashed her dazzling smile. “I’m fine. Really.”

“Alright.” I followed them outside, and Ravyn led us to the town’s haunt.

Well, one of them, at least.

The sun had already set. Our voyage was longer than I’d realized. Glowing paper lanterns hung from brightly decorated doorways. The buildings were set closely together, creating a thin strip of walkway between them. However, unlike Ni, it seemed that each store, eatery, and artisan had its own roof for business instead of a market stall. Aromas of cooking meats, spices, and perfume drifted along the air. My mouth watered.

“Is this the main city?” I asked.

“No, this is the Port of Meow. Shulan is north of here,” Ravyn replied with a knowing grin. “It’s bigger.”

The San Island girls were dressed in the same style as Ravyn’s casual clothing with Mandarin-styled collars and heavily embroidered fabrics. Many of them stared at me with wide eyes, but the flow of traffic moved so quickly that it was impossible to stop in the middle without causing a scene. As it was, I kept my hand on Cannoli’s shoulder to ensure that we wouldn’t be separated.

What took me by surprise was the number of pregnant women strolling through the streets. It was too loud—not to mention tasteless as hell—to ask the others, well, how? For all the expecting catgirls, I didn’t see a man in the crowds.

“Here we are. The Golden Dragon,” Ravyn announced, turning into a doorway featuring the giant golden head of a dragon.

“Is that real?” I pointed at the shiny beast’s open maw.

Keke looked at me, then laughed. “Oh. You’re serious?”

“Like a dragon is so far-fetched here in Nyarlea,” I teased.

“Yup. Just as I thought, Portia’s here already,” Ravyn called, pointing to the back corner of the very crowded restaurant. As she scanned the room, her arm dropped. “Oh no.”

I followed her stare. Most of the catgirls had conglomerated around a single point in the opposite corner. At its center was a man in glimmering armor. His dark hair was tied back at the base of his neck, and his pearly white smile was a striking contrast to his tanned skin. His grey eyes flickered to our party, and, for just a heartbeat, his smile faltered. It was so fast that I wondered if I made it up.

“Excuse me, ladies.” He waved a gloved hand and parted the girls around him like the red sea. He approached us with his chin held high and confidence in his stride.

Cannoli and Keke shifted behind me, and Ravyn crossed her arms over her chest.

Something about him seemed off, beyond him wearing combat gear in a civilian area. Then I realized what it was. Long, shapely ears poked between the strands of his hair. The guy was an elf.

“Ravyn, it has been a long time.” He threw his arm over his waist and performed a sweeping bow.

“Yup,” Ravyn replied.

“How is life on...what was that little backwater island you were so fond of? Ni?”

“Yeah. It’s great. Thanks, Cailu.”

“Cailu the cunt! Cailu the cunt! Squaaawk!” Ball shouted.

Cailu shifted his icy stare to Ball, but his smile remained. I coughed behind my hand.

Ravyn looked from Ball to Cailu. “Keke, Cannoli, let’s go sit down, hm?”

“A-alright,” Cannoli whispered. She leaned into Ravyn’s ear as they walked away. All I heard was, “Hey, what’s, um, what’s a c-” and Ravyn’s hysterical laughter.

Cailu watched them go, then turned back to me. “I’ve not seen you before. You must be a new citizen of Nyarlea.” Cailu offered another sweeping bow. “I am Cailu Raloquen, first of his name.”

Uh, okay. “I’m Matt. Er, nice to meet you.”

“Please, Matt. Let us drink together as friends!”

I’d almost forgotten about my hangover. Was that really only last night? God, today’s felt like a week. “Alright. Cool.”

He led me back to his table. A red cloak of velvet billowed behind him, and a scabbard covered in precious-looking metals crossed his back. When we sat down, the girls descended once more.

“Ooh! Cailu! Is this your friend?”

“Is there a new man here?”

“What’s his name?”

The questions hurled from every direction. I felt dizzy and tired. The thrill of a new city filled with catgirls was masked by my desire to stuff as much food into my face as possible with Keke, Cannoli, and Ravyn.

The emotions must have been clear on my face because Cailu dismissed them.

“Will you give us some room, if you please? I am certain Matt here will adore you all just as much as I do.” Cailu toasted them with his goblet, then called for the waitress. “Mina! Another round, please?”

“Right away, sir!”

The girls dispersed with dreamy sighs and comments on Cailu’s physique. When they were gone, Cailu stole a drink from his sake cup, then leaned forward. “Appear, iPaw.”

A duplicate of my iPaw appeared on the table and Cailu enlarged the screen with one gloved finger. He made his way through the menus before pausing on one.

“Goodness. You are new. Only Level 3?” Cailu asked. “Ravyn must have ensured your safety to San, then. Is she your lover?”

He can see my stats? “N-no. It isn’t like that.”

“Oh. One of the other girls, then? Surely you’ve taken them all to bed by now.”

Is he serious? “I—”

The waitress, Mina, set a cup of sake in front of me before placing a grooved box on the table for Cailu. Then she placed a small glass in the center that seemed to bloom around the edges. Mina took a decorated bottle off of her tray and poured into the glass. She continued to pour and pour with no sign of stopping.

“Wait, it’s going to—”

Mina paused and Cailu held a hand up, shaking his head. “It is quite alright.”

Mina continued and the glass overflowed with the clear liquid, spilling into the box below. When the box was nearly full, Mina stopped. “Was there anything else I could get you, Master?”

Master?

“No, Mina. That will be all. Thank you.” Cailu waved her away.

I sipped at my sake and appreciated the warmth that returned to my sore limbs.

“What’s with the box?” I asked.

“You are not a very cultured individual, are you?” Cailu sipped from his glass. The alcohol dripped from the bottom onto the table, but he didn’t seem to mind.

“Guess not,” I mumbled. I didn’t care enough to push the issue.

“Hmm.” Cailu’s attention returned to his iPaw. “Your gear is certainly lacking as well.”

“How are you seeing all of this?” I summoned my iPaw and stared at the [Home] menu, wondering what black magic this jackass was performing.

Cailu chuckled. “You must advance to a second class to see the statistics of the men you encounter. Most do not make it so far.”

“I see.” I took another drink. “You must’ve been here a long time then, huh?”

“Oh, yes. Many years. I’ve protected and procreated this island over and over again.”

I blinked. “Wait. The pregnant girls outside—”

“You are quite slow to catch on, aren’t you, Matt?” Cailu leaned his elbows on the table and set his chin on entwined fingers. “How else will we replace the ones we’ve lost?”

“That’s, uh, noble of you, I guess. Keke and Cannoli have told me how many catgirls die to the Defiled every day.”

Cailu tilted his head, then barked a laugh. “Oh! Slow to the uptake again!” He wiped a tear from his eye. “Not the ones who foolishly embark on their own. The ones that travel with us.”

A cold chill slid down my spine. Every word out of this guy’s mouth rubbed me the wrong way. I wanted to punch that stupid smile off his face. “You mean your party? Do you not protect them?”

“If they are keen on acting foolishly, why would I put my life in danger? Matt, there are only four men in Nyarlea at all times. There are thousands of catgirls.” He shrugged and shook his head. “It is a means of natural selection. We should have only the most adept of persons at our sides, don’t you agree?”

I think I’m gonna be sick. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” I spat.

“Excuse me?”

“They have lives, feelings, goals, desires. And you toss them to the monsters without a second thought?”

“There will always be more to replace them—”

I stood up from the table. “No. We’re done here.” I scraped a Bell I’d picked up off the ground from my [Cat Pack] and slammed it on the table. “Thanks for the drink.”

“We could help each other. I can help you not make the same mistakes as the last expatriate to Ni Island. You can introduce me to your—”

I couldn’t listen to him anymore. I turned and headed toward the table housing Keke, Cannoli, Ravyn, and Portia. When I sat down, Cannoli slowly slid a plate of skewered meat in my direction.

“So. What did you think of Cailu?” Ravyn asked.

I looked between them, taking my time to memorize each of their faces. I picked some of the meat free from one skewer and nodded.

“Thank you, guys. For everything,” I said. “I don’t think I say it enough.”

Cannoli blushed while Keke averted her gaze. Portia grinned, and Ravyn laughed.

“You’re a good guy, Matt.” Ravyn patted me on the back. “Now, can we please order more food? I’m about to die here.”