NOVEL NEXT Chapter 100: Adopting Neeko
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"Nom, nom, nom..."
Neeko, who was busy devouring the cake, felt as if she had entered heaven. The sweet and fragrant cheesecake was hers to eat as much as she wanted.
But the no-tail man seemed strange, always staring at her.
"What are you looking at? Cheesecake... Neeko won't share with you!"
Neeko, protective of her food, gave Link a fierce look. Link smiled and wiped the cake crumbs off Neeko's face. "I'm not competing with you. Eat as much as you want."
"Really?"
"Really!"
"You're such a good person!"
The innocent and simple Neeko immediately handed Link a "good person" card, making him roll his eyes. Seeing that Neeko was no longer so wary of him, Link sat down at the table.
Watching Neeko wolf down the cake, Link couldn't help but smile.
Noticing Link's gaze, Neeko picked up a piece of cake and handed it to him. "Here, for you!"
"Thanks, but I'm not hungry yet!"
"Then it's all Neeko's!"
Overjoyed, Neeko continued to devour the cake. Link wanted to pat her head but hesitated, remembering Neeko's unique abilities.
Neeko could touch anyone to absorb their "soul-light" (shoma) and transform into their appearance.
Shoma was essentially the soul of a person.
By absorbing someone's shoma, Neeko could not only transform into them but also sense all their secrets.
As Neeko put it, "Magic shares memories, colors, and feelings. Magic connects everyone."
It was somewhat like a hive mind but purer and more harmless.
In a way, it was the prototype of a true utopia, where everyone lived in a network without secrets or lies—everything was transparent and shared.
Unfortunately, the Oovi-Kat tribe was gone, and now only Neeko remained.
Link had many secrets—so many that even a single leak could turn the entire world against him.
Therefore, he couldn't risk touching Neeko.
But at that moment, Neeko reached out and grabbed Link's hand, her amber eyes shining with innocence.
Soon, Neeko absorbed Link's shoma through the contact. Her body shimmered, and in an instant, she transformed into Link's appearance, though her face was still smeared with cake crumbs.
"This..."
Link was stunned. The unexpected had happened so suddenly.
"Such a strange person. Neeko can't see any of your secrets or past, but your shoma is so warm and powerful, full of vitality and strong influence. It's like being cradled in a mother's embrace—"
Link looked at Neeko, who had transformed into his likeness, feeling a bit speechless. He had been hesitating whether to touch her, but the little girl had taken the initiative.
But this was inevitable.
The Oovi-Kat tribe possessed unparalleled potential, and Neeko, as the last of her kind, had talent unmatched by anyone before or after.
The Oovi-Kat tribe was perfectly attuned to the spirit realm, allowing their shoma to merge with the souls of other beings, even enabling them to mimic their forms. Within the tribe, there were no secrets.
Neeko instinctively sought to touch and merge with others' shoma to determine their intentions and character.
This was Neeko's way of greeting and also a subconscious method of protecting herself.
But Link realized that Neeko couldn't access any of his secrets or even his past. Perhaps it was the dimensional mailbox's automatic shielding, or maybe it was due to his own magical abilities.
Either way, he felt relieved.
"Neeko likes your shoma!!"
After savoring it for a moment, Neeko raised her hands in delight, like a little girl who had just found her favorite toy.
"Is that so?"
Link smiled fondly, wanting to pat Neeko's head. But since Neeko was currently wearing his face, it felt a bit awkward.
In a way, having Neeko was like having all the female champions.
Her ability was far superior to LeBlanc's clumsy illusions.
"Ahem, Neeko, can you change back?"
"Okay!"
Neeko shook her head and transformed back into her original form, then leaned her head toward Link's hand. Link instinctively ruffled her soft blue-purple hair.
Neeko closed her eyes, enjoying Link's touch while further merging his shoma with her own to remember him. But soon, Link's expression turned strange as he sensed Neeko's thoughts and emotions.
"Did you just merge with a fragment of my soul?"
"Yes, all Oovi-Kat do this. Neeko too..."
Thinking of her tribe, Neeko's expression grew sad, and the flowers on her head drooped.
"Alright, don't think about sad things!"
"By the way, after merging with my shoma, did you feel anything strange?"
"Strange?" Neeko tilted her head, carefully sensing Link's shoma, then firmly shook her head. "No, Neeko only felt warmth and vitality!"
"Neeko really likes your shoma!"
"Is that so?"
Link withdrew his hand and let Neeko continue eating while he rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought.
"I initially thought my ability was like the Soul-Soul Fruit, allowing me to give life to inanimate objects. But the development of the body-enhancing serum made me realize the untapped potential of my magical abilities."
"It seems my magical talent is indeed, as Janna said, a miracle among miracles.
Not only can it give life to inanimate objects, but it can also subtly influence any living being, sensing their thoughts and emotions."
"Miss Fortune and Graves are living proof that my magic can sense and influence others."
"But even someone like Neeko, who is naturally gifted with powerful magic, can be influenced by my abilities. I need to reassess my magic!"
"How far can I sense a living being, and how much can I influence them?"
Link felt it was necessary to prioritize the study of his magical abilities, pushing back some of the weapon and equipment development plans in his memo.
He needed to dedicate some effort to exploring his magical potential—how much of it remained untapped and what its limits were.
As he pondered, there was a knock at the door.
Both Neeko and Link turned to look. Neeko glanced at the figure outside the door, then looked back at Link.
Link said gently, "Don't be afraid, it's my subordinate."
"Come in," Link's voice turned cold, leaving Neeko wide-eyed.
This no-tail man is so interesting—
"Sir, we've brought the person you wanted to see!"
The spy stepped aside, revealing a nervous Krett.
Krett walked into the kitchen hesitantly and, upon seeing Neeko with cake crumbs all over her face, quickly said, "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't know Neeko would barge onto your ship. If she caused any damage, I can..."
Krett gritted his teeth, "I can compensate!"
"No need. In fact, I lured her here!" Link waved Krett over while wiping cake crumbs from Neeko's mouth.
"What?"
Krett's expression changed, and he looked at Link with some suspicion. Neeko, meanwhile, looked at Link with confusion.
Link gestured for Krett to sit. "Come, sit down first!"
"Excuse me."
Krett sat down cautiously, unsure of Link's intentions.
After a moment of thought, Link got straight to the point. "Actually, I want to adopt her."
"This..."
"Don't worry, I mean no harm to Neeko. In fact, aside from herself, I might be the person who understands her best in this world."
"But she left her tribe. If she doesn't return—"
"Her tribe is gone."
"What?!"
Krett's face paled, and he looked at Neeko with a complex expression. No wonder Neeko never talked about her tribe.
Link glanced at Krett. "I know what you're thinking. You're worried I have ulterior motives, which is natural. No one trusts a stranger they've just met."
"But I can assure you, on my honor, that I mean no harm. In fact, adopting her is also a way to protect you."
"Protect us?"
"You know how powerful Neeko's abilities are, and you must also know how others would view such power."
"So you mean..."
"I will adopt her." Link snapped his fingers, and a spy brought over a check and a bag of gold.
Krett glanced at the gold and the check, swallowing hard.
The bag contained at least a hundred gold coins, and the check—
Just one look at the string of zeros made Krett's head spin.
"Since you saved her at sea, I'll consider you her temporary guardian."
Link pushed the gold and check toward Krett, speaking earnestly. "You've been drifting at sea, alone and far from home. You know the hardships. If Neeko continues with you, she'll eventually leave without a word, leaving you constantly worried for her."
"I understand, sir."
Krett looked at the money and the check, biting his lip as he tried to push them back. But Link firmly pressed them into his hands.
"This is what you deserve, and it's also my way of thanking you."
"I hope you'll take good care of her, sir."
"I swear on my ancestors, I will."
Seeing Link's sincere expression, Krett nodded, then turned to Neeko with a smile.
"Neeko!"
"What is it, horned man?"
"Don't run off like that again!"
"Neeko knows, you're so annoying!"
Neeko turned away impatiently, her back to Krett.
Krett picked up the heavy bag of gold and the light check, standing up as he looked at Neeko softly. "Neeko—"
"Huh?" Neeko turned around, her eyes still innocent.
Krett reached out and ruffled Neeko's hair, smiling as he said, "Goodbye!"
Note: So far this story is published up to chapter 145 on my patreon go take a look and remember if you reach 240 stones of power I will publish the next chapter.