Chapter 195: Witch Cat Café, a place where you can pet catgirls
After leaving the medical room, I didn’t rush to ride my broom away because I realized that even if I had to hurry, I had nowhere to go.
Go to class? There are no lessons right now; go to the dormitory? There’s nothing to do there; go to the library? I’ve been mentally busy for nearly a whole day and can’t focus on any books.
I just want to find a relaxing place to spend the little time left today.
“Xiao Han~ I knew you hadn’t gone far. Where are you headed?”
A sudden voice stopped me, and when I turned around, I found it was Senior Ying Shiqian.
“Eh? Senior, what are you doing out too? Is the store manager alone with Tan Han?” A hint of surprise flashed in my eyes as I asked.
“Yeah, she probably told Tan Han some secret and found an excuse to send me back to help that guy Yihan. I’ve finally come out, how could I return so soon?” Senior Ying Shiqian said with a smile.
“By the way, Xiao Han, didn’t you already get your flying license? Why are you walking so slowly? Where are you headed?”
“I don’t know, just wandering around. I’ve consumed a lot of energy in the dream world, just taking a stroll to clear my mind.”
“I don’t know where to go… Hey, how about I take you to relax? After all, the exchange competition is about to start in a couple of days. If you don’t take advantage of now, you won’t get to enjoy it.”
“Where for relaxation?” I looked at her suspiciously, feeling like her tone was strange. “Shouldn’t it be a serious place?”
“Serious? How can a serious place be relaxing? Xiao Han, it’s not that I’m saying…” Senior Ying Shiqian said, then leaned toward me and whispered, “Xiao Han, you were a boy before, you must know about these things, right?”
“What things?”
“Eh, Xiao Han, Senior will share good stuff with you, don’t play dumb.” Senior Ying Shiqian stood up and spoke.
“Hmm?”
“No, Xiao Han, haven’t you experienced it? You being so innocent makes me awkward.” Senior Ying Shiqian held her forehead, looking quite speechless.
“Innocent? This is the first time I’ve heard someone describe me like that.” I shrugged, not knowing why I didn’t feel ashamed, but… actually felt okay with it?
Is it some sort of compliment?
“Eh~ Well, it seems like you won’t get to experience it, I never drag others into it, only take like-minded good friends along. Let’s think about going somewhere else instead.” Senior Ying Shiqian patted my shoulder and eventually shook her head helplessly.
“The Witch Academy is quite large, covering the entire Magic Capital in the real world. You can say that the Witch Academy has essentially rebuilt a school here. Many places are actually unrelated to teaching and have turned into spots for students to relax, check-in, and have fun.”
“Some places even use overlapping space to create uniquely beautiful sceneries.”
“The Witch Academy has such places?” I asked curiously.
“Of course, do you want to check it out?”
“Forget it, going to tourist spots is just a way to k*ll time and energy. I just want to rest well, probably find a nice, unfamiliar place outside where I can sit down and have some coffee or tea.”
“Well, just going to any café will meet your needs, Xiao Han, is that all you aspire to?”
“Then shall we go to the best café in the Witch Academy?” I raised an eyebrow and suggested.
“The café is boring; let me take you to a more fun place, one that can also meet your needs.” Senior Ying Shiqian suggested again.
“What place?”
“The Witch Cat Café! A social place for many witches to exchange and relax alone, enjoy afternoon tea, and pet cats! I heard that such places are a tradition for witches.”
“Witch Cat Café? A proper cat café?”
“Why do you care so much about whether it’s proper or not! The Witch Cat Café is just… the Witch Cat Café! If you don’t believe me, you can search for it; it can be found online at the academy, it’s not indecent or anything!”
“True, let me take a look.” I opened my phone, searched for the Witch Cat Café, and found that there were indeed several listings, not just one.
Many posts had photos attached, a lot of them featuring desserts, latte art, afternoon tea, and numerous cat pictures. Upon closer inspection, it seemed many of the cats had their own names, indicating that the café also treated the cute cats as its signature pets.
Not only were there cute cats but also cute catgirls… wait, catgirls?
Where did the Witch Academy get catgirls?
Even if there is a Beast Academy that has catfolk, it wouldn’t be that easy to make them appear, right?
So I closed the academy’s website, thinking to ask Sister Bai directly if the Witch Cat Café was proper or not.
Since Senior Ying Shiqian’s earlier words had marked her as “suspicious,” it was better to ask the knowledgeable Sister Bai. Sister Bai… a universal encyclopedia suitable for me in the academy!
Yang Yuelan: Sister Bai, are you there?
Bai Yu: Yes, what’s up?
Seeing her reply immediately, I thought Sister Bai must always have her phone at hand.
Han: I want to ask, is the Witch Cat Café a decent place?
Bai: Why do you want to go there?
Han: Oh, I’ve had a busy day and want to relax; Senior Ying Shiqian suggested it.
Bai: Who? Ying Shiqian… the one from the bakery?
Han: Yes, do you remember her, Sister Bai?
Bai: Hmm, which Witch Cat Café are you going to? I’ll accompany you.
Han: Eh? Sister Bai, aren’t you busy? You’re deliberately coming to accompany me?
Bai: It’s fine; the new semester just started, what do I have to do? Send me your location.
Han: Alright, but I haven’t decided yet; I’ll send it when I do.
Bai: Okay.
I scrolled through our chat history again, and since Sister Bai would come with me, it should be a decent place.
“Xiao Han, were you just replying to a message?” Senior Ying Shiqian saw me busy with my phone and took a casual glance at my messages before not looking again.
“Yeah, I asked Sister Bai a bit, but she suddenly said she was coming over.”
“Ah? Why do you need to report to… to your sister?” Senior Ying Shiqian looked shocked by my operation.
“It’s not reporting! I just inquired about what the Witch Cat Café is, and then Sister Bai said she wanted to come over.”
I interrupted Senior Ying Shiqian, as “reporting” sounded like I wasn’t independent; I can’t stand that! I’m an “old guy” with two lives, well, the second life doesn’t really count as human, I should be called a witch, but I’m still me.
“Okay, I can’t keep up with your train of thought, but… since you have your Sister Bai with you, you probably won’t need me as a third wheel~”
“What third wheel! Do I have that sort of relationship with Sister Bai?!”
“Don’t you?”
“Do I?”
“Ah, forget it if you don’t! But I just realized that the guy Tang Yihan is all alone at the bakery, how lonely! I’m worried she might cry, so I’ll head back first~”
“Senior Ying Shiqian, can you find a better excuse?!” I watched as Senior Ying Shiqian pulled out her broom. I think this is the first time I’ve been annoyed by her?
She doesn’t listen to explanations!
“Um, Xiao Han, I’m really sorry, I’m afraid the store manager will do a surprise check and find me absent, um… so it’s just you going to the Witch Cat Café. Oh, remember to get a cat stamp when you get there; there are significant discounts and benefits! For the rest, I can only say to explore on your own; it’s fascinating there!”
“Eh?”
I still wanted to ask more, but Senior Ying Shiqian ran off just like that.
So, ultimately, I was left alone here. I had no choice but to search for the location of the Witch Cat Café myself. After searching, I found that the nearest one seemed quite close.
I sent the location and then rode my broom there, arriving at this iconic building in no time.
“The Witch Cat Café, I didn’t expect it to be such a large place?”
After securing my broom, I looked at the huge words “Witch Cat Café” above, which were written in a very cute artistic font, with elements like a cat’s tail and paw.
I even saw a cat lazily sleeping on the sign, its tail swaying casually.
Just standing outside, I could see that the interior resembled a café layout, with a glass curtain wall along one side offering a great view of the street. I glanced around, saw there was space, and walked straight in.
“Welcome, are you a new guest?”
As soon as I entered, I saw several senior students at the reception.
And they really had cat ears!
I swallowed hard; I think I even saw tails behind them. Are these… really catgirls?
“Excuse me, dear guest, is this your first time at the Witch Cat Café?”
“Um, yes.”
I stepped forward and nodded. After all, I didn’t understand anything right now, and I had to listen to what was going on. After all, customers are kings—if they don’t explain clearly what the Witch Cat Café offers, I only came to pay, right?
“Would you like to register as a cat petting guest here? After registration, you can come to our Witch Cat Café anytime to interact with our little cats, and you can also order afternoon tea to spend a leisurely time~”
“Of course, the little cats in the Witch Cat Café include this type~ Meow~” A nearby catgirl senior chimed in, playfully showing me a cute cat-like gesture, and the meaning was pretty clear!
I turned around to look behind me; there were several people sitting there with cat ears.
“Of course, dear guest, not all the little cats in the Witch Cat Café are service personnel; many are also guests, so if you want to pet the cats, please don’t force it. The Witch Cat Café’s purpose is mutual choice, and we certainly don’t want anything unpleasant to happen.”
“Of course, the little cats in uniforms are the service personnel; if you want to pet them, please give a tip! They will comply with your reasonable requests.”
“You can also order some desserts for the little cats as an icebreaker; it might have magical effects~”
These seniors kept explaining the features of the Witch Cat Café to me, leaving me stunned. Is this really a proper cat café?
While I was lost in thought, a completely black kitten slipped between my legs, its soft fur brushing against my calf, bringing a wonderful sensation.
“Ah, it’s Little Black Cloud~” One of the seniors squatted down, calling the little black cat that just brushed against me, and the cat immediately jumped into her arms.
“Would you like to register for a cat card, dear guest? Then you can become a cat petting guest at the Witch Cat Café~”
“Or~ you could also choose another path, becoming a guest catgirl? You can pet cats for free at the Witch Cat Café, of course only in the literal sense, like this Little Black Cloud, but guest catgirls can’t proactively order desserts at the Witch Cat Café, though they receive a complimentary dessert every day as part-time cat food! Only one serving per day, no freeloading!”
“However, guest catgirls can accept feeding from cat petting guests too, and have the right to decide whether to continue the interaction with that guest! If possible, they can even accept feeding from multiple guests at once, if you have that kind of skill.” One of the seniors continued to explain.
I couldn’t shake the feeling that they were encouraging me to become a guest catgirl?
“Can I ask, what’s the cat stamp?” I recalled what Senior Ying Shiqian said before she left and asked.
“The cat stamp is an alchemical item; by pressing a stamp onto your hand, you can obtain a catgirl transformation spell effect within the Witch Cat Café, with no additional benefits, but you might develop a strange speaking quirk. Generally, it’s something used by guest catgirls~”
“Of course, if you have a catgirl transformation spell, you can use that too~”
“Are you asking about the cat stamp because you want to become a guest catgirl?”
“Oh, no, no, not at all, I just wanted to ask what this so-called cat card is about.”
I quickly rejected the idea. Did Senior Ying Shiqian really plan to trick me into becoming a guest catgirl? What sinister intention is that?!
“Do you want to become a cat petting guest? This way, we have different levels of cat cards~ First, there’s the ordinary cat card; registration is free, but you need to recharge it, with a minimum of one dollar. The recharged money is available for withdrawal anytime, and canceling the cat card will also return the cash. The cat card serves as a voucher for purchasing various items in the Witch Cat Café, which deducts the money directly here, so please always keep an eye on the funds available in your cat card. You can directly check with our Witch Cat Café app on your phone~”
“We also have bronze, silver, and gold cat cards, but those cannot be applied for with regular currency; you need to use corresponding red copper coins, secret silver coins, and extraordinary gold coins to apply for them. After applying, you must store at least one coin of the corresponding type in them. Very few people apply for these three types of cat cards, as those currencies are quite precious, but the holders of these three cat cards can enjoy different degrees of discounts at the Witch Cat Café~”
“Of course~ cat petting guests can also work part-time as guest catgirls~” A senior continued to recommend the guest catgirl role.
“Ugh… I should just apply for a cat card.” I finally decided.
As for what level of cat card to get, that was tricky. After all, I just wanted to relax a bit, and I shouldn’t spend too much, but if I wanted to buy some desserts or coffee, I did need to spend some money. Actually, I didn’t have much money on me; I had a lot of secret silver and extraordinary gold, but those are precious materials. Would it be too extravagant to use them here?
Secret silver could also buy extraordinary potions; spending it in the Witch Cat Café to pet cats and buy desserts just feels wasteful, and how many desserts could one extraordinary silver buy?
“Let’s go for a gold cat card then, please.”
“Hmm? Eh? Sister Bai, you came so fast?” Suddenly hearing a familiar voice, I turned around and saw Sister Bai’s figure.
“Hmm, Xiao Han, is it just you?”
“Yeah, I mentioned you were coming, and then my senior suddenly ran off halfway.” I shrugged and said, “By the way, is getting a gold cat card a bit…”
“One extraordinary gold it is, just consider it me treating you. You should save your money for now.” Sister Bai smiled as she patted my head.
“Eh? Xiao Han… wait, you’re that new student Xiao Han!” At that moment, the senior behind the reception finally reacted.
“Wait, are you that all-powerful witch Xiao Han?”
“It’s really her! Is Xiao Han coming to the Witch Cat Café?”
“I don’t know, but if it’s Yang Yuelan, our store manager has sent you a gold cat card; don’t you often check your mailbox?”
“Eh?” I was confused at that moment. What’s going on? The store manager of the Witch Cat Café sent me a gold cat card?
Wait… I recall that Teacher Ji mentioned something about invitation letters for auctions and that they would be sent to my mailbox. I’ve been forgetting about that, and I didn’t expect the Witch Cat Café to be using this to get closer to me for relaxation!
I think I still underestimated my identity at the Witch Academy…
“Um, your store manager…”
“It’s fine, the store manager loves making friends; it’s normal for you not to have met her. In fact, none of us have, as her identity is very mysterious. I’ve heard that sometimes she even disguises herself as a cat petting guest to relax at the Witch Cat Café~”
“Just accept it, Xiao Han, I’ll help you with it. This is actually quite common; many people have received gifts from the store manager before. Just help promote our Witch Cat Café when you have time~”
“Hmm, Xiao Han, just accept it; you’ll have to get used to this kind of thing now or later.” Sister Bai said beside me.
“What a shame, I was really looking forward to seeing Xiao Han’s catgirl form; I’ve only seen it a few times at the arena…”
