"Sherwin, wake up meow! It time to start training meow!"
Amidst the urgent calls and shoves, Sherwin groggily opened his eyes, only to see a pair of large green-glowing eyes swaying beside him.
"It already morning?"
Sherwin let out a big yawn. He still felt a bit drowsy, which was quite rare for him after living a healthy and regular life for over a month now...
"Wait… don't tell me you woke me up early on purpose?"
Sherwin reached out and pinched Sanji-meow fluffy cheek, staring at him suspiciously.
Yesterday, to calm down Sanji-meow—who desperately wanted to meet a Beautiful big sister Felyne—Sherwin had temporarily held off explaining the concept of an "alternate world."
Instead, he promised that even if they reached another continent, he'd find a way to bring him to a place with Felynes. That finally settled the little yellow cat down.
And this yellow cat, eager to meet a pretty Beautiful big sister Felyne as soon as possible, actually started urging Sherwin to train and even offered to spar with him…
Unfortunately, Sanji-meow didn't quite match up to the original Sanji in combat power.
Sherwin still had to hold back during their sparring sessions. Besides, most Hunter combat techniques were designed for fighting large monsters, so sparring with Sanji-meow felt a bit awkward.
Still, having Sanji-meow as a sparring partner wasn't without its benefits. After all, Felynes excelled in agility, and his small body made his attacks more concealed.
This helped Sherwin improve his reaction time during battles and hone some of the finer combat techniques.
Judging from how Sanji-meow had offered to spar yesterday, waking him up early today was definitely something this little yellow cat would do.
Sanji-meow clearly had no intention of denying it. Instead, he crossed his arms and proudly declared,
"Don't worry meow, I already made you a special energizing soup. It'll not only wake you up fast but also be good for your body meow!"
"…Well, thanks a lot for that, I guess."
Sherwin replied with an annoyed grunt, then started vigorously rubbing Sanji-meow fuzzy cat head.
Having already been woken up, Sherwin didn't bother going back to sleep. Besides, the little yellow cat in front of him, now in "for the big sister" mode, probably wouldn't let him off so easily anyway.
So after giving Sanji-meow a Belly Rubs as a way to vent his frustration, Sherwin got up and crawled out of the cave. He looked up at the sky, still faintly twinkling with stars, and let out a helpless sigh.
Looks like whether it humans or Felynes, thirst really is the primary force of productivity…
As irritating as it was to be woken up so early by Sanji-meow, it couldn't be helped—this cat was just too cute. Not to mention his cooking was amazing.
So Sherwin generously forgave Sanji-meow, blew on the steaming soup in his bowl, and began sipping it in small mouthfuls.
When it came to food, Sanji-meow never boasted for nothing. Just a few sips of the hot soup, and Sherwin felt the lingering heaviness in his head vanish.
The morning chill was driven away by the warmth of the broth, and he instantly felt revived.
Gulping down the rest of the soup, Sherwin, still unsatisfied, helped himself to another bowl.
"With something this good, why didn't you bring it out earlier?" he asked while sipping again, glancing at Sanji-meow who was also holding a bowl and licking at his own soup.
"I didn't have much catnip to begin with," Sanji-meow replied with some pain in his voice.
"If I wasn't trying to help you finish exploring this island sooner, I wouldn't have let you have any meow.
And besides, you can't eat this stuff too often meow. Staying hyped for too long will wreck your body.
You gotta wait at least ten days before I can make you another bowl meow."
"Cat—catnip?" Sherwin mouth twitched. "That stuff works on humans too?"
He knew catnip was edible, but he had no idea it could act as a stimulant for humans too.
"Normally it doesn't meow," Sanji-meow said proudly, shaking his head. "But once it cooked by me, it does meow!"
Sherwin thought about it. Felynes could use ordinary meat and vegetables to make meals that enhanced all kinds of stats. So making a stimulating soup out of catnip… actually didn't seem all that unreasonable?
Finding it a bit silly to keep questioning something like this, Sherwin finished off the remaining soup in one gulp, then stood up and began training—much earlier than usual.
Meanwhile, after finishing his own portion of the catnip energizing soup, Sanji-meow carefully licked his little bowl and the soup pot back and forth several times…
Looked like he really didn't have much catnip left.
"I'll help you train your combat skills meow!"
After finishing their "early" breakfast, Sanji-meow once again took the initiative to stand in front of Sherwin.
Seeing Sanji-meow this enthusiastic, Sherwin rolled his eyes in exasperation.
Previously, this little yellow cat would either be out foraging for ingredients or lounging on a tree basking in the sun, sometimes chasing bugs in the woods, and occasionally pestering Sherwin to help groom his fur.
But now, just to find out how soon he could meet the beautiful Beautiful big sister Felyne, Sanji-meow seemed like a completely different cat.
Still… it did fit the "Sanji" personality pretty well.
Hopefully, this really was just a different continent in the Monster Hunter world.
Because judging from Sanji-meow behavior, Sherwin was honestly looking forward to seeing what the other anime-inspired Felynes would be like…
Sherwin remembered that back in the game, he had once seen a Palico named Kakarot.
He himself had even named his Palicoes with things like "Sword Lord of Twelve Grudges" or "Li Yuanba," borrowing names from classic Chinese characters.
"There an opening, meow! Prime meat!"
Just as Sherwin thoughts were drifting, Sanji-meow seized the opportunity, leaping toward him with a backward somersault kick aimed at his chin.
Snapping back to reality, Sherwin quickly stepped backward, letting the little black paw swipe just past the tip of his nose. At the same time, he reached behind his waist and drew Longsword Shironagi, sheath and all, and swung it down toward Sanji-meow.
But Sanji-meow twisted mid-air effortlessly and dodged Sherwin strike. Upon landing, he immediately launched another attack.
And so, man and cat clashed with a series of rapid strikes.
It had to be said, in terms of flexibility and agility, the cat had overwhelming advantages. Even though Sherwin held absolute superiority in strength and speed, Sanji-meow could still engage him in a sustained fight, even managing to sneak in a few swipes that left claw marks on Sherwin from time to time.
Unfortunately, Sanji-meow was ultimately a chef cat, not a fighter. Despite seeming to have some of Sanji signature kicks, his attack power was way too low. If not for the purpose of sharpening his combat technique, Sherwin could've just taken the hits and countered directly, exchanging blow for blow.
Even without resorting to those overpowering tactics, Sanji-meow was no real match for Sherwin. So when he realized he was reaching his limit, Sanji-meow decisively leapt back and put some distance between them.
"No more fighting, meow. I'm going to explore a new area and gather ingredients, meow."
With that, he didn't wait for Sherwin reply and zipped off into the woods in a flash.
If he didn't make a run for it quickly, he'd end up like last night—caught by Sherwin and subjected to a barrage of cuddles, sniffs, strokes, and rubs…
Sure, it was pretty comfy, but a little kitty still had his pride and dignity! He wasn't just gonna let people rub him whenever they wanted, meow!