Ch 107: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World

When her body began to feel uncomfortably cold and slightly stiff, Lu Yao decided it was time to head back.

On their return, they found themselves near the cluster of belly-up fish. Lu Yao couldn’t resist swimming closer to observe.

Getting a close look revealed that these fish were truly a diverse bunch, spanning everything from sharks, dolphins, and seals to tiny seahorses, jellyfish, and shrimp, all floating upside down in a strangely lethargic state.

Lu Yao also noticed each had a distinctive wound, like Duo Qingmei’s bright red cross-shaped scar on her belly.

Duo Qingmei, longing for the sea urchins, urged, “They’re just sunbathing. Let’s head back and enjoy our sea urchins.”

Realizing her body was already at its limit, Lu Yao agreed and started swimming back.

As they departed, a mantis shrimp in the fish cluster turned its eyes and began to follow, soon joined by a clownfish that slowly flipped upright, gently swimming after them.

..l

At the Furry Shop

Ji Feiming sat cross-legged by the door, with Pounce and Sugar climbing over him, meowing. The store owner had been gone a while, and his worry had grown; he barely focused on the cats. Only when he saw Lu Yao and the small manta ray returning from afar did he finally relax.

Once back inside, Lu Yao removed the equipment, exhausted and lying on the soft white sand, unwilling to move.

“What took so long?” Ji Feiming handed her a towel, checking the time. She’d been underwater for nearly two hours.

Lu Yao wrapped herself in the towel, holding out a basket. “Grabbed some sea urchins and crabs; we can cook them later.”

Ji Feiming stared at the full basket of fresh sea urchins, momentarily speechless.

Duo Qingmei re-entered the shop, returning to her human form. Her clothes and hair were dry, and she casually scooped up Pounce, settling down by the low table near the window to rest.

Lu Yao went to the washroom to change out of her wetsuit and take a shower.

…

Outside the Store

A brightly colored peacock mantis shrimp was anxiously circling near the entrance of the Furry Shop.

It was incredible—an actual cat café at the bottom of the ocean!

He had watched as the people collecting sea urchins and crabs entered. They had talked about cooking crab with salted egg yolk—could it mean he, as a crustacean, might be on the menu too?

Suddenly, Tape appeared near the transparent wall membrane, seeming to spot the mantis shrimp. Tape’s dark, curious eyes sparkled as he gently pawed at the wall, his tiny mouth opening and closing, looking adorably clueless and sweet.

The mantis shrimp’s eyes stopped moving, captivated. He cautiously edged closer to the membrane, meeting Tape’s gaze.

A real kitten! And a baby one at that!

With big, glistening eyes and fluffy orange fur, it was unbearably cute!

Tentatively, the mantis shrimp extended one of his large claws, aligning it with Tape’s paw on the membrane.

Tape, conditioned by Tiger Cub’s training, instinctively tilted his head and leaned in to rub against the outstretched claw.

Excited, the mantis shrimp’s other claw curled in rapid, joyful movements. The Furry Shop was truly the cutest place ever!

Overwhelmed, he swam in quick circles, but then steadied himself, staring back at Tape’s innocent eyes with renewed resolve. He had to go inside and see this adorable creature up close.

With a determined heart, the mantis shrimp swam to the entrance and anxiously knocked.

As the door opened, he quickly darted inside, passing through the transparent membrane and landing on the white sand floor.

Chen Xingyu blinked, stunned.

Standing up quickly, he found himself in his original form—a lanky teenager in dark green velvet pajamas.

Ji Feiming quietly closed the door, trying to hide his surprise.

Did all the ocean fish turn into humans here? And what about the sea urchins and crabs Lu Yao brought back…

A sudden, unpleasant thought crossed his mind.

Duo Qingmei noticed the bright green shrimp that had just entered and transformed into a teenager. She kindly approached him and pointed toward the fish cluster outside. “Did you come from over there?”

Chen Xingyu’s expression shifted when he saw her, but a moment later, he understood. “You’re the manta ray?”

Duo Qingmei nodded, “In this shop, we can return to human form, but when we leave, we turn back into fish.”

Chen Xingyu: “So that’s how it works.”

After exchanging names with Duo Qingmei, Chen Xingyu couldn’t wait any longer and looked down to find Tape.

Tape, looking like a small puffed-up potato, was still sitting by the transparent membrane, gazing up as he pawed at tiny floating organisms in the water, occasionally reaching out with a paw.

Chen Xingyu’s heart melted. He squatted beside Tape, and seeing how small he was, he simply sat down and hugged his knees, watching the tiny drifting organisms with the kitten.

In that quiet moment, he felt his anxious thoughts slowly ease.

Lu Yao emerged from her shower in fresh clothes and immediately noticed the new guest, feeling quite pleased.

Ji Feiming handed her a strange green paper note. “This is from the young guest.”

Lu Yao examined the note—an unfamiliar green bill, quite different from her world’s currency. However, the system confirmed that it was valid currency in this world, valued at 1,000 units, roughly equivalent to 500 yuan.

While the note wasn’t immediately useful, it might come in handy once the snack shop was upgraded and they could trade onshore.

Lu Yao put the bill away and went to the kitchen, using magic to filter out any toxins from the sea urchins and crabs. After cleaning and preparing them, she plated the dishes and brought them out.

Lu Yao prepared some sea urchin sashimi, sliced raw fish, and crab stir-fried with salted egg yolk for the guests, and even set aside a small plate of sashimi for Double Heart.

Pounce, Tape, and Sugar were too young for raw food, so they could only watch their mama eating.

Duo Qingmei firmly resisted Pounce’s pleading looks as she took the sashimi for Double Heart from Lu Yao’s hand and happily began feeding her.

Lu Yao handed a seafood platter to Chen Xingyu, who was sitting with Tape by the window. He accepted it with thanks, though he didn’t start eating right away. Tape, however, seemed to notice the food and tilted his round little head, gazing up at him with a soft, pleading “meow~~~.”

Barely able to resist feeding him, Chen Xingyu looked up at Lu Yao, his voice trembling with admiration, “He’s so adorable. Does he have a name?”

Lu Yao crouched down, gently petting the little orange cat who was now starting to paw at the guest’s pant leg, her expression soft. “This is Tape. He’s laid-back and always a little slower than his siblings.”

Chen Xingyu nodded, “Yeah, his movements are so slow.”

As a cat, this kind of slow charm was just perfect. But if it were a person, moving so sluggishly would make it hard to be well-liked.

Lu Yao replied casually, “His hobbies are eating and sleeping. He’s the slowest eater and loves to nap, always lazing around and daydreaming. Not as playful as Pounce or as good at begging for attention as Sugar, but somehow he ends up being the favorite around here. He just effortlessly wins people’s affection.”

Chen Xingyu looked thoughtful. “Cats are different from people. Just being cute is enough for humans to adore them.”

Lu Yao glanced at him curiously. “For cuteness, Pounce and Sugar could rival Tape any day. He may eat slowly, but he always finishes every last bit. And when he naps, he picks the sunniest spots, often curling up on the windowsill with a flowerpot. He looks a bit slow, but there’s this charming little cunning about him.”

Chen Xingyu paused, suddenly wanting to laugh. This little orange cat was indeed adorable. And here he was, feeling a strange sense of competition with a cat.

Snap out of it! Of course, cats are cuter than people.

After slowly savoring his seafood platter, he joined Tape for a spontaneous afternoon nap, leaving him feeling remarkably refreshed.

Standing by the shop entrance, he turned to bid Tape farewell. “I’ll come by next time for another nap.”

As the door opened and closed, the pajama-clad teenager’s figure vanished.

Lu Yao slowly turned her head to Duo Qingmei, “Did you see that? It looked like the world outside the door just now wasn’t the ocean.”

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