79 Happiness +1

Although Sherwin had mentally prepared himself for the possibility that Seijuro Meow could master Haki—and had even predicted that once the Felyne understood what Haki was, he might pick it up immediately…

After all, any Felyne capable of soloing a Pink Rathian definitely had top-tier physical abilities.

But when Sherwin actually saw Seijuro Meow effortlessly use Armament Haki, he still felt a serious blow to his confidence…

What the heck is going on with the cats I summon?! Doesn't this make me, the Hunter, look totally useless?!

Klee Meow, who mysteriously learned Observation Haki out of nowhere…

Seijuro Meow, who picked up Armament Haki after seeing it once…

It really felt like every Felyne he summoned was more of a transmigrator than he was.

…Wait, actually, they are transmigrators, aren't they?

But still! I have inherited Hunter memories! That my golden cheat!

Why can't I outperform my own Palicoes?!

This doesn't make sense! Neither scientifically nor magically!

But just as Sherwin eyes fell on a certain little yellow cat, he suddenly calmed down.

Compared to those two overpowered genius Felynes, Sanji Meow—this clueless little dummy—felt much more normal.

Even though the little guy had irritated him plenty in the past, Sherwin now found him surprisingly endearing.

"What kind of meow-look is that?! Wanna fight, meow?!"

Sanji Meow, sensing Sherwin "ill intent" in his gaze, waved his tiny paws and barked back in challenge.

"How could I?" Sherwin, now feeling great kinship with his "fellow struggler," was unusually magnanimous. He wasn't the least bit offended by the little yellow cat rudeness.

Instead, he reached out and gently scratched under his chin. "You're my dearest companion, my closest brother!"

"Ew—so cheesy, meow!"

Sanji Meow twisted his head away in mock disgust, pushing Sherwin hand with his paws. But the purring from his throat and the way his tail stood high betrayed how he truly felt.

"What about Klee? What about Klee? What kind of meow is Klee to Brother Sherwin?"

The clingy little ragdoll instantly ran over to join the fun.

You're my EU—blegh, no, stop that…

Sherwin cut off his thoughts just in time, picked up Klee Meow, rubbed his cheek against her little head, and said in a syrupy voice, "Klee, of course, is my most most most most——precious little sweetheart~"

"Ehehe~"

The little plush Felyne was overjoyed by the answer, spreading her arms to hug Sherwin head and rubbing her face against his nonstop.

Watching Sherwin interact with the two fellow Felynes, Seijuro Meow usually stern expression wavered slightly.

His upright sitting posture also shifted a bit, and a desire to join in began to rise in his heart.

But it was quickly suppressed by his samurai discipline, and he returned to his stiff, formal demeanor.

However, Sherwin had long noticed Seijuro Meow subtle change. With a hearty laugh, he picked up the formally seated Seijuro Meow as well.

"L-Lord Sherwin?" Seijuro Meow seemed a bit flustered from the sudden embrace.

"Come on now, I told you not to be so stiff," Sherwin said with a mischievous grin while rubbing Seijuro Meow head. "Besides, you obviously like it too, don't you?"

"Yeah yeah! Sherwin-nii pets feel super nice, meow!" Klee Meow squirmed in Sherwin arms, then clambered up to perch on his shoulder with both paws and feet, sweetly making room in his embrace. She even stuck out her tiny tongue and

licked Sherwin ear. "Klee loves Sherwin-nii the most, meow!"

"T-Then forgive my rudeness…" Seijuro Meow said a bit shyly, then let his stiff body relax in Sherwin arms.

There we go—now that what a normal little Felyne should be like. That stiff, traditional look might have its own kind of contrast charm, but this more cat-like version was far more endearing.

Sherwin flexed his fingers and began another round of his daily cat-petting routine.

...

"Ha—ah—"

The next morning, Sherwin let out a long yawn and tried to sit up from bed…

But with three Felynes lying on top of him, he couldn't get up.

He reached up to wipe the tears from the corners of his eyes, then squinted at the window…

The sun was already high in the sky—it was clearly late in the morning.

Because there was an extra Felyne last night, Sherwin had ended up petting cats late into the night, so it was only natural that he got up a bit later today.

As Sherwin woke, the three Felynes on top of him also began to stir.

Seijuro Meow was the first to hop off him, looking slightly embarrassed—clearly still not quite used to this way of interacting.

Sanji Meow, who had been lying on Sherwin stomach, simply sat up and casually remained there, licking his paw and starting his morning face wash right on Sherwin belly.

Klee Meow, lying on his chest, nuzzled her head against Sherwin chin after waking up, then stuck her butt up and stretched lazily.

Right after that, she began kneading with all four paws on his body, "making biscuits" with great enthusiasm—managing to snag and pull threads on several spots of the brand-new clothes Sherwin had just bought yesterday.

Only after these two little troublemakers finished their morning routines and hopped off the bed did Sherwin finally manage to get up.

And this was just three Felynes. What would happen if he had even more in the future…

Once again, Sherwin fell into a state of blissful worry.

Since the clothes ordered for Klee Meow and Sanji Meow hadn't been finished yet, they had to stay in Loguetown for a few more days.

So Sherwin simply took Seijuro Meow back to the clothing store to order a few outfits for the new arrival as well.

And then...

Naturally, Sherwin continued roaming around Loguetown with his three Felynes.

There was no rush to start learning the Flying Cat Sword Style anyway.

And honestly, with Sherwin current strength, mastering a sword style like the Flying Cat Sword Style shouldn't be too difficult.

After all, the sword techniques from Rurouni Kenshin were relatively realistic compared to the over-the-top moves in most manga—even the concept of sword energy flying through the air didn't exist there...

Two days later, the outfits for the Felynes were finally completed. Only then did Sherwin and the others set sail from Loguetown port aboard the Explorer No. 1.

But not long after they left, several other ships also departed one after another. One of them even fired a flare into the sky.

"Those guys really haven't given up yet, huh..."

Sherwin sighed helplessly as he looked at the flare rising in the distance.

During their days in Loguetown, even without using Observation Haki, Sherwin could sense that someone had been watching them.

But since the watchers never made a move, Sherwin couldn't be bothered to do anything about it. Now it looked like they had gone to get reinforcements...

Just as Sherwin was sighing, several pirate ships appeared ahead and to both sides of them. Together with the ones approaching from behind, they completely surrounded the Explorer No. 1.

"Lord Sherwin, please rest assured! I will protect everyone, meow!" Seijuro Meow drew his sword and stepped forward to shield the others.

"Since I completed the Flying Cat Sword Style, I've yet to test it in real combat. This is the perfect opportunity, meow."

"Uh… well, you might be slightly overestimating how much Klee and the others need protecting," Sherwin said, patting him on the shoulder.

"Let save your Flying Cat Sword Style for another time. When stuff like this happens, we usually let Klee handle it."

"Meow?" Seijuro Meow big round eyes were filled with big round confusion.

But he didn't stay confused for long—Klee Meow had already pulled a huge pile of Boom Boom Bombs out of her little backpack and promptly hurled them all into the sky.

"Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—"

The bombs thrown into the air trailed flames behind them as they scattered, flying toward the pirate ships surrounding the Explorer One.

After tossing the bombs, Klee Meow raised two claws to her face in a V-shape, while stretching out her other paw toward one of the pirate ships in the distance—then clenched it tightly!

"Art is explosion! Meow!"