Sherwin turned his head toward the sound—only to see a fuzzy, pitch-black little paw rapidly enlarging in his vision.
He hadn't expected even Sanji-meow paw pads to be black…
That was his first thought before being kicked.
No wonder he Sanji-meow—those little flying cat legs pack quite a punch...
That was his first thought after being kicked.
"Pfft! Blech, blech..." Sherwin spat out the sand from his mouth as he pulled his head out of the ground.
Grumbling, he turned to Sanji-meow and demanded, "Why the heck did you kick me? Even if you didn't want me to grill meat, couldn't you have just said something?"
Sanji-meow completely ignored him. Instead, the first thing he did was "rescue" the raw meat from the rack, carefully inspecting it before muttering with clear relief, "Good, good—at least the ingredients weren't ruined, meow."
After finishing his self-talk, Sanji-meow finally turned his head and righteously replied to Sherwin question.
"Meat this good—how could I let you waste it like that, meow?! If you hesitated even a second more, it would've been beyond saving, meow!"
"It not that serious..." Sherwin crossed his arms and retorted unhappily, "My grilling skills aren't that bad."
Indeed, with the Grillmaster title and the help of the classic meat-roasting jingle, his chances of producing a top-tier "Well-Done Steak G" reached a whopping 97.372%!
But Sanji-meow only looked at him with scorn. "You hunters and your grilled meat—no matter how good it is, it only edible, meow. Once the camp is fully set up, I'll show you what real Felyne cuisine is, meow! So this piece of meat—confiscated, meow!"
And with that, Sanji-meow tucked the slab of raw meat—nearly twice the size of his own head—into his left side. In a blink, it vanished with a soft whoosh.
Only then did Sherwin notice that hanging at Sanji-meow waist was a cat-paw satchel, resembling his own interdimensional pouch—just a bit smaller in size.
Sherwin: "..."
So even this kind of thing—turns out every Hunter has one, and even Felynes get one of their own?
Back when he had just crossed over, Sherwin thought having a dimensional pouch right from the start was incredibly lucky. But looking at it now… yeah, not that big of a deal after all...
Tch!His sense of surprise and superiority instantly took a nosedive.
Clicking his tongue and curling his lips, Sherwin finally brought up the real matter at hand. "So, you've already found a place for us to stay temporarily?"
"Of course, meow!" Sanji-meow nodded proudly. "You can totally count on us Felynes when it comes to wilderness survival, meow!"
"Mm-hmm-hmm, you really worked hard," Sherwin said as he reached out to rub Sanji-meow little head.
When it came to interacting with cats, Sherwin actually had plenty of experience. Although Felynes were different from regular housecats, they were still cats at the end of the day.
And as Sherwin skillfully rubbed his head, Sanji-meow squinted his eyes contentedly, just like an ordinary cat, and a soft purring sound rumbled from his throat.
After a round of head-pats that left both human and Felyne quite satisfied, Sherwin followed Sanji-meow deeper into the forest.
And just as Sanji-meow had claimed, Felynes wilderness survival skills were indeed reliable. Though they moved with stops and turns, they miraculously didn't encounter any creature that posed a threat.
The closest call they had was hearing a large creature passing nearby—but thanks to Sanji-meow timely warning, Sherwin had already hidden well in advance and didn't alert the unknown beast at all.
Before long, the man and the Felyne arrived at a patch of forest that didn't seem too different from the surroundings. Sanji-meow brushed aside some weeds, and a hidden cave entrance revealed itself.
"This should've been the den of a lone wild beast, meow," Sanji-meow explained as he led Sherwin inside.
"But the scent inside is really faint now, meow. It probably ran into trouble or moved out, meow.
I think the first possibility is more likely—there aren't any powerful creatures around here, and it close to a water source.
Unless the original owner was a total idiot, it wouldn't have moved out voluntarily, meow."
Sherwin followed him in and was surprised to find the interior surprisingly spacious. It was dry, clean, and lacked any strong smell—definitely not the filthy and smelly kind of place he had imagined.
"Sanji, you're amazing!"
Unable to contain his excitement, Sherwin scooped Sanji-meow up and pressed his face against the fluffy cat in affection.
At that moment, he was immensely grateful to have a Felyne companion from the very beginning. As for the loyal dog he had dreamed of before...
What dog?Is there even such a thing in Monster Hunter?
"What the meow are you doing?! Let me go, meow!"
Clearly, Sanji-meow didn't appreciate such overly enthusiastic displays of affection. He flailed his tiny paws and unleashed a flurry of cat punches at Sherwin face, which was still rubbing up against him.
Sherwin endured the flurry of Felyne punches for a while longer before reluctantly putting Sanji-meow down. He mumbled under his breath, "What the big deal? It just a little snuggling—not like you're losing a chunk of meat."
Sanji-meow, clearly displeased, used his paws to furiously scrub at his own head. Only after a long moment did he turn around, twisting his little body, and mutter, "I only wanna cuddle with smooth-furred, pretty Felyne ladies, meow~"
Even with that adorable cat face of his, the expression he wore at that moment came off more than a little sleazy.
Sherwin: "…"
Tch! This character is a little too faithful to the source.
The thought that his very own Felyne turned out to be a sleazy little yellow tomcat instantly killed Sherwin urge to cuddle. His enthusiasm deflated in an instant.
Feeling a little let down, he smacked his lips and rubbed his empty-feeling belly before switching topics. "Anyway, didn't you say you were gonna show off your skills?"
"Heh heh~"
The moment cooking was mentioned, Sanji-meow immediately reverted to his adorable self. He lifted his chin proudly and declared, "Just watch! The dishes I make are so good, you'll wanna swallow your tongue, meow!"
With that, Sanji-meow scampered out of the cave and quickly cleared out a small open space just in front of it. Then, he stuck his little paw into his cat-paw pouch and began pulling out a nonstop stream of kitchenware.
Pots, pans, bowls, knives, forks, spatulas, ladles—you name it, he had it. There were even tons of seasoning jars and bottles that clearly held spices and condiments…
Why the hell do I only have a damn Longsword?!
Seeing all that, Sherwin couldn't help but feel completely and utterly ripped off.
He wasn't asking for top-tier gear or anything—but come on, couldn't they at least give him one weapon from the Hunter arsenal?
Even if nothing else, at least give him an Insect Glaive!Even the most basic version would be fine!
After all, without a Wirebug or a Slinger, the only way to fly around in the air like a badass was with an Insect Glaive.
While Sherwin was grumbling to himself in his head, Sanji-meow had already whipped up the piece of raw meat he confiscated earlier.
The dish even came with a small assortment of vegetables—whether those were in his pouch all along or scavenged during his exploration, Sherwin had no idea.
Not that it mattered anymore, because his entire attention had been hijacked by the mouthwatering aroma wafting from Sanji-meow cooking.
"Tropical Grilled Meat with Wild Island Veggies, please enjoy, meow."
Sanji-meow elegantly placed the plated dish in front of Sherwin along with a knife and fork, then gave a refined bow.
Unable to hold back any longer, Sherwin snatched up the utensils and began devouring the meal like a starving beast. Sanji-meow also pulled out his own set of cutlery and joined in the feast.
It didn't take long for the two of them to polish off the entire dish. Sherwin let out a satisfied burp, only to realize his stamina was fully restored—and he even felt stronger than before…
As expected of Felyne food—it boosts your stats!
Having a chef Felyne right from the start?Absolutely priceless!
"A few days ago I bought some wonton-style instant noodles… or maybe it better to call it instant wontons?
The taste wasn't bad, but the meat filling? Combined, it probably weighed less than ten grams.
You might as well just call it noodle skin soup. And yet they shamelessly branded it as wontons."