Fate Trading System – Chapter 161

Plan A

Spirit Alliance 2

Chu Qiu

A small hamster, shivering in a rain shelter pavilion, memorized the face of its benefactor. At that time, she thought her benefactor must have been very cold, otherwise why would the hands holding her tremble so severely.

Spirits have always believed in repaying kindness, so the hamster spirit remembered her benefactor’s appearance and began searching everywhere, wanting to go to her benefactor’s home to show her cuteness.

Today, after much difficulty in finding her, she discovered that her benefactor was afraid of rodents.

She had struggled to climb up to the windowsill, only to hear her benefactor’s screams, as if seeing her was like seeing something terrifying.

The hamster spirit had no choice but to leave dejectedly, and thick-skinned, moved into the nearest rat hole, becoming sworn brothers with the male rat living there.

That male rat had achieved spiritual awareness, but hadn’t reached the level of a spirit yet.

In this world, animals are divided into three types: those without spiritual awareness who are ordinary animals without consciousness, those who have achieved spiritual awareness and are very intelligent, and the highest level – like the hamster – who can transform into human form.

The rat cousin warmly welcomed her arrival, after all, she was a rodent he could communicate with. Rats could naturally communicate with animals of their own species through special methods, but not with different species. However, those who had achieved spiritual awareness could communicate across species, provided that the other animal they were communicating with had also achieved spiritual awareness.

“Tch, didn’t they say after the founding of the nation [referring to the establishment of New China], becoming a spirit was forbidden? Why are these fellows still secretly achieving spiritual awareness?”

The hamster spirit asked her rat cousin to help dig up her buried ID card. The rat cousin grandly called some underlings to help her dig. The hamster spirit had hidden her ID card in this hole, and spent every day secretly watching her benefactor.

From her rat cousin, she learned that her benefactor was terribly afraid of rodents and it would be better to keep her distance, as humans had many types of rat poison. So one day, the hamster spirit transformed into human form, but unfortunately was completely naked, giving Bai Qianqian quite a fright – she thought she’d encountered a pervert. Later, upon learning that this young girl had no clothes to wear, though not knowing why, Bai Qianqian kindly lent her a set of clothes. The hamster spirit originally thought she could now live under the same roof as her benefactor, but she was being naive and innocent, as Bai Qianqian had no intention of permanently taking in a strange girl.

The hamster spirit stayed at Bai Qianqian’s home for a few days, during which Bai Qianqian kept sneezing non-stop and developed allergic reactions. It wasn’t until one day, overhearing Bai Qianqian’s self-talk, that she understood what was happening.

Bai Qianqian was allergic to rodent fur.

The world was truly full of increasingly strange situations.

The hamster spirit could only helplessly stay away from her benefactor, quietly watching her from afar, unable to offer any help.

A rat emerged from the rat hole, pitch-black in color, with two small eyes like black beans, very bright and alert.

“Cousin, cousin, what would you like to eat today? I’ll go get it from the kitchen for you.”

He spoke with such righteousness, not at all like someone going to steal food.

“Cousin, I have to go.”

“Where are you going?”

“I want to become human and establish myself in human society. I should have done this long ago, but even though I can transform into a human, I’m still scared and more comfortable being a hamster.”

“Well… cousin, where will you go? The human world is very dangerous. As far as I know, they have many ways to kill rats now. Although you’re a hamster, it probably won’t be much different.”

The rat cousin gave himself a name, trying to be proper about it, calling himself Yangyang [meaning: sunshine].

It was a name extremely similar to what human boys would have, representing a kind of hope in the rat cousin’s heart – you could say it was quite meaningful.

The rat cousin said he hoped that one day he could walk proudly in the sunlight, without having to hide everywhere, without being beaten or poisoned by humans.

At that time, the original host very straightforwardly said, “If you’re so capable, then stop stealing other people’s food,” which made the rat cousin angry from embarrassment. He tapped the little hamster’s head with his pitch-black claws.

“If I don’t steal food to eat, how do you expect me to survive? Do you want me to grow my own grain? Think about who I’m doing this for – for you, for our family!”

“Cousin, isn’t that from the TV drama we watched at that house last night?”

“You talk too much.”

Cousin Yangyang couldn’t be considered a good rat, as he often stole food from human homes. Having achieved spiritual awareness, he was exceptionally cunning. The humans’ cats couldn’t catch him because he was incredibly fast and never got greedy. If he had different colored fur, he could have starred in Tom and Jerry.

“Cousin, I’m sure I’ll live well, and when I make it, I’ll come back for you.”

Su Xin naturally wanted to become human and absolutely wouldn’t continue living in hamster form. Getting a job would be fine – anything but this. The original host couldn’t adapt to being human, but she could.

Master Fourteen, where are the original host’s clothes?

【No clothes.】

The clothes that Bai Qianqian had given to the little hamster were taken by a scavenger after she transformed back into a rodent.

What about the clothes she wore in the system space?

【I Photoshopped them on.】

Impressive, my boss.

【It was my duty.】

“When the deed is done, brush off your clothes and leave, hiding both achievement and fame.” [classical Chinese saying about staying humble]

“Ah… I was originally thinking of going with you. Would you consider keeping a pet? For example, a clever and cute rat like me?”

The elder cousin enthusiastically introduced his good points, such as having spiritual awareness, being able to keep her company when she’s bored, being small enough to fit in a pocket, having strong vitality and not dying easily, and being very easy to feed as he could survive on almost anything.

“Right? Don’t you think I have many good points? Besides, cousin, we’re of the same kind. Please take me with you! I’m very easy to care for, and I want to live in a human house too, just like that stinky cat, having my own nest and an owner who feeds me daily – what a wonderful life that would be!”

Yangyang gazed at Su Xin with endless yearning in his bean-like black eyes.

This rat spoke with such dramatic flair, it was absolutely ridiculous [“ri le gou le” – internet slang meaning extremely absurd]. Who knows which TV drama he learned it from? This rat loved watching TV dramas, and despite being a bachelor rat, he especially enjoyed watching human dramas about mother-in-law conflicts.

Su Xin thought for a moment – keeping a rat shouldn’t be a big deal, as long as the rat was clean. Besides, cousin rat was really quite good, a decent rat indeed.

“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely be clean. Although I look quite dirty now, you know this is just due to circumstances. I’ll use the bathroom by myself and find my own food. I absolutely won’t cause you any trouble. No matter how big or small your place is, I’ll stay with you. Even if it’s tiny, I’ll be there with you.”

The rat cousin’s voice wasn’t sharp; his tone was always light and quick, speaking very rapidly, sometimes using a sing-song manner.

“Alright, I’ll go out first. After I find some clothes to wear, I’ll come back for you.”

“No need to be so troublesome. I can go out with you. I absolutely won’t peek at you, I swear on my rat’s honor.”

“But what about my ID card? We can’t take it out now, can we?”

“No problem, I’ll have my underlings carry it for you. You go find clothes first, and we’ll secretly follow behind you. I guarantee we’ll hide well – we’re very fast runners.”

Rats don’t just run, they scurry.

“Fine, fine, I’ll head out first, you follow me.”

Su Xin planned to get some clothes from anywhere, but their current location was next to an apartment building, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to transform on someone’s balcony. Finding a place with a yard would take some time.

But time was the one thing Su Xin had plenty of.

Su Xin moved very quickly on the road. It was autumn now, and the road temperature wasn’t scorching, posing no threat to her little paws.

Su Xin passed by a coffee shop and paused there for some unknown reason. She had a sense of déjà vu, as if she had waited there for a long time somewhere, sometime before – perhaps a memory from some mission world. Su Xin didn’t dwell on it.

“After wearing out iron shoes in searching, what you seek comes effortlessly.” [Chinese idiom meaning something sought everywhere suddenly appears unexpectedly]

Su Xin sensed a strong spirit aura, which must have come from a powerful spirit. Su Xin’s gaze fell on a sedan parked some distance from the coffee shop. Someone had gotten out and entered the coffee shop, probably to buy a coffee to go. Su Xin could sense that the spirit’s aura remained in the car, in the back seat.

If it was indeed a spirit, especially a powerful one, they must be registered with the Spirit Alliance.

The first rule of the Spirit Alliance: protect your kind and help each other.

This spirit seemed quite wealthy; she wondered if she could ask for a set of clothes.

Su Xin laboriously climbed up the car’s tire, then pressed her body close as she inched toward the window.

Chu Qiu sensed a spirit aura. She tilted her head slightly and saw what looked like a hamster pancake pressed against her car window.

The little hamster looked extremely pitiful and helpless, its two bean-like black eyes staring at her intently. She heard a tiny, soft voice.

“Miss Great Spirit, may I ask if you’re a member of the Spirit Alliance?”

Su Xin asked very politely.

“Yes, do you need something?”

“It’s like this – I’m a spirit who has been wandering for a long time. I’ve never been comfortable living as humans do, but now I want to transform into human form and live like them. However, I don’t have any clothes. Could you lend me a set?”

Su Xin’s voice was soft and baby-like. She wasn’t quite used to it herself, but it matched her appearance quite well.

“Come in and let’s talk.”

Chu Qiu rolled down the window, and Su Xin immediately retracted her paws and nimbly jumped inside.

Chu Qiu pressed a button in the car, completely separating the driver’s seat from the back seat and blocking the view.

The driver had gone to buy coffee and would probably return soon.

“Transform for me first, so I can see what size to buy for you.”

Alright, though she would be completely naked.

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