Bodega Cat (System Apocalypse, Deck Builder, Litrpg)

It took the better part of half an hour to get all the clown smell out.

He wasn't happy about it but it was good to be clear and free. He almost asked her to spray some lavender, but that was liable to overpower him and he didn't want the attention of the granola moms.

That might have caused a problem though.

Bagel thanked Liza for her contribution to the cause and made his way downstairs, intending to just check in on the Bodega.

The line was out the door but it didn't look like anyone was having trouble getting food. The humans were all on their cell phones or in some cases talking about the mobs.

His Cooks were going full steam. The grill was completely full of sizzling meat. Two huge trays of rice and beans were being placed next to the grill.

Raul and Khaleesi were actually helping them. As fast as they made food, they sent it up and the grill was full. He thought about heading over to the other Bodega down the street to see how they were doing because he had purchased it but let someone else run it.

The Amish market also had a line, one that almost reached his shop despite it being two doors down on 45th Street.

The atmosphere was one of tense, cautious optimism.

Despite the fact that everyone looked hungry, most of the people looked either happy or resolved. Those tired hurdled masses had something in them and he wanted it. Of course what he wanted was that money and what they wanted was his food. Instantly he restocked everything, waiting for the cool down before hitting out it up again. Bare shelves were filled up.

He had to wait thirty seconds to discard his hand of cards each time, as well as drop his worker but Janet could handle the register.

"One credit per sandwich? That's ridiculous," a man said upon walking in.

He didn't notice any of the people around him. In fact, he didn't give anyone any personal space coming right up to the counter.

"Sir, we set these prices because it is the smallest denomination possible. All you have to do is kill one pizza rat and you can get a sandwich," Janet said. "Arguably the sandwich is the more expensive thing here. How many functional bodegas are there around here?"

Bagel and Janet agreed that it was a fair trade. Anyone that killed a mob got at least one credit. The system made it easy for someone to spot somebody a credit. Some mobs now gave two credits.

"How am I supposed to do that if I'm not a deck bearer? I don't want to die?"

Bagel's eyes were now lasers focused on the man who was trying to cause some sort of problem. Perhaps he was just disgruntled. He was wearing a blue post office uniform with shorts. His postal satchel was empty.

"Don't go postal," Bagel said. "If you are not making enough then you can ask any of the people here who just went through an instance dungeon."

The man's face went red.

"I'll have you know that I served in the war! I'm an upstanding citizen here. How dare you impugn upon my honor as a postal worker?"

"Hey buddy," Raul said. "We're all here in early stage system shock. Your lunch is on me."

"System shock?" the postal worker said.

"Pay attention to the news," Raul said. "Or are you one sof those guys who didn't because the news was too woke? New York Post reader?"

The mailman held up his hands. "I apologize. I'm not looking for a handout."

"You're going to get one," Khaleesi said, raising her voice.

All five feet of the teenager posted up in front of the mailman.

Every inch of her reminded Bagel of those Mexican dogs. Chihuahuas? He would have to check.

She looked like she was about to bite his face off and that it would have been deserved. Both Raul and the mailman were so taken aback that they didn't respond.

"You want to come in here on some bullshit? You had better be prepared. Because here we are trying to save the fucking block alright? There's no room for this."

"I just-"

"You just were getting on the back of that damn line and you will have a damn Italian sub with whatever drink the owners mobs deign to give you. You will be grateful. You will let this shit slid. This is no one's American dream. So stop making it difficult for us."

He fully deflated and caved backwards trying to find a spot in the line that wrapped around the outside of the store. The mailman mumbled something very soft about being sorry and saying thanks as he got on the end of the line.

Raul crossed his arms, without giving the ceremonial number of head pats. "Boss! You need to be getting back to the guild in case they need you for one of the big dungeon runs!"

His sister was of course on the job.

"I'm going to have to wash my arms again after this but it's so worth it to just feel your fluff."

"Do they really need me?"

Khaleesi in her haste, did not assume the position of maximum lap.

Bagel let her be. She gave him the look.

"I'll head right over."

---

Paolo was standing out front. There were several cots set up, a small makeshift hospital. He was happy to see that there were no body bags sitting around taking up space. It was all too easy for him to think about how many had died during covid or how many people had died during the last wave and how he didn't want that to happen again.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

"Bagel you look a lot better," Paolo said.

"Thanks. The smell was pretty atrocious. I'm not a fan."

Paolo cracked the tiniest bit of a smile. "I figured that. Liza told me that would were having some issues with it."

"More or less. If there's another clown dungeon, I'm out. How are things here?"

Paolo waved his hand. Three people were convalescing, none of them showing any visible bleeding. Bagel was grateful for that. They might have been bleeding internally but he wouldn't know that. He was pretty sure that the heal card would fix that.

Now if only I think I'd all get back to work. Or really was it work? They were all kind of volunteers even though they got paid. It wasn't like the adventurers guild paid them directly. They got paid from getting experience and credits as they killed mobs as well as specific high-value targets got a notice from the guild.

He was do a large payment for that dungeon run because it was a more difficult dungeon but it was going to go right back into his investments.

"They all are looking good so far and I don't want to say that we're over the hump but last time it was far worse. I think that the neighborhood understands what's going on now."

"I really hope so," Bagel said. "Do you need me to use heal on anybody?"

Paolo shook his head. " No, they'll be hungry soon when they get up. I don't want to mess with that when they're just going to be hungry. One of the side effects that we didn't see happening before was the people who got healed now telling us that they end up being extra hungry."

"Well it's good news for the shop because I can use all the money I can spare no matter what happens."

"No matter what happens. What have you doing? We can. I'm pretty sure that they just sent the money to your shop anyway. Are you worried? Do you need some special dungeon diving gear?" Paolo offered his lap.

Being the handsomest boy in the block, he sat up on the man's lap. Paolo was a long tall wiry man. His lap was comfortable in the way that a worn couch was. There used to be more cushion but now age had gotten him and he might not be as strong as he used to be. But he damn sure looked like he could eat more.

Not the bagel was someone to judge. He didn't mind. A laugh was a laugh unless it was too bony then it was interesting.

"Did you see anything interesting?" Bagel said.

"Absolutely nothing of any interest happened and I am going by my hope that President at times will stick around for as long as I can. We anticipated this. We planned for this and now... We are working together so much better than before."

"What about Kate and Ashley?"

Paolo paused his petting. Then he leaned in, conspiratorially. "I heard that one of them was going to proposed the other or something. But this is all second hand. What actually happened in that cloud dungeon? Did one of them have a life or death experience?"

Bagel had absolutely no idea what they were talking about, but they often talked by themselves alone without him being there or even paying any mind. He wouldn't put it past them to do some weird human thing like get married or stress him out. They tended to like to stress him out. Or at least that's what their actions told them he was doing. He wasn't sure exactly what they wanted to do besides wreck shit and spend a lot of time together.

"I don't know about those too. I wouldn't say that they are long-term compatible but they keep together."

Paolo nodded. "I used to fight with Liza like cats and dogs and then I just realized one day that I just had to agree and everything would be so much simpler and I'll be happier and she would too."

"I think that the argument is part of their mating ritual."

Off in the distance, all the way down another party was returning. They were coming up second avenue on the sidewalk.

Meatball was easily visible, flanked by several humans.

"How about you? Have you ever thought about settling down or anything like that?" Paolo said. "Not that it's possible in this economy."

"I have no idea what you're talking about. I already own my home."

"You've never thought about another cat? As. Partner?"

"Meatball is my business partner. If Indie I want her to manage the Bodega. Well her or Raul. Don't tell him I said this but I would trust him with the store."

Paolo grinned, waving to the returning adventurers. "Welcome back! If you need healing come see me!"

He got a lot of grunts. It was to be expected.

"All these gen z deck bearers. They just walk on by without a care in the world," he said.

At that exact moment, meatball jumped up and joined him in Paolo's lap. She curled into him, a calming presence and they just kind of sat there for a bit. They listened to Paolo talk about how he loved his wife and how he just wanted to make sure that all the kids were all right.

Through it all, Meatball and bagel listened to the man speak.

Bagel was going to give him a minute or two to talk but he kept going on for two and then three minutes. Maybe was because there was nothing else going on but he didn't feel the price. He need to go inside the adventurers skill and report. Now when Kate could just as easily not have been there or even Ashley.

The human nose wasn't as sensitive as a cat that was which led him to believe that perhaps they didn't actually smell any of the clown. They might have been done.

They might have actually beat him back, especially since he took some time in the Bodega.

It was ten minutes later when Bagel realized that Meatball was asleep. Paulo had stopped talking.

It was nice.

The Brazilian man was a helper, his warm hands hadn't stopped moving. The motion felt as much for him as it was for the cats. Bagel took it in stride.

He purred with delight.

But he was still going to have to talk to whoever was in The adventurers guild. He might be needed he might have wanted but at bare minimum, he needed to report in that he was available again. That was a protocol during stungeon surges and he was not going to break with protocol, especially when it was so important that they eradicated all the bad dungeons.

"I gotta check in. Meatballs team probably got her."

Paolo released him.

The makeshift hospital was in front of the adventurers guild and he popped right inside.

There were not a lot of people there. He'd seen it much more packed and crowded, but right now, all he saw was people resting or eating. He hadn't missed the runners going back and forth between the bodega and the guild. Trying to keep things moving.

It was also the only place that he could buy when he had the often too so he went with that. Well there was also the Amish market but that wasn't like an option. He wouldn't shop there and the lines were too long to reliably have a runner come back and forth with orders.

No it was far easier for them to take orders and send stuff over with a very limited menu.

Bagel floated over to the admin table, sniffing deeply as he tried to smell any clown possible.

The scent had lingered in his nose. It wasn't that he hadn't gotten everything correct and scrubbing it was just that he couldn't scrub his nose out.

Ashley was sitting by the map with wet hair. Or at least it was slicked back and put into braids. Clearly she had done something in the time that it had taken him to get clean and based on how short her hair was she probably needed some help with that. But Bagel didn't know the ins and outs of hair versus fur.

He assumed that she would cut off all her hair if the clown meat had gotten into it.

She turned.

All the sudden she looked very professional as if she was prepared to give him a beerstein.

He didn't know what that was, nor did you think that he could drink something the size of him. But that doesn't mean that he wasn't willing to try. Maybe after this was all done, they would go down to that rumored German place on 3rd avenue. He wonder what would happen if they got drunk and passed out.

Would he be able to hold on to the bodega? Or would it despawn and if so... was he going to have to summon Janet again?

The system wasn't clear on this. And Janet didn't know. So he wasn't ready to take his chances. He would for taking some catnip if they ever got some but much. Was her pet shop in the area had already been ransacked or smashed in by roving mobs.

Wasn't the roving mobs that were the problem or was he the problem? He didn't have a had any problem. He could stop at any time. But it was just that there was so much catnip that he couldn't get to because it was locked or destroyed. And that was not great.

"You got your perk right?" She said. "For level twenty five?"

Bagel cracked a smile. "I got something that lets me buy things easier and for less money."

"Excellent. So are plans for world dominations are able to be accelerated?"

"Naturally," he said.

She hadn't looked up. She was still looking at some tablet screen that was displaying an output about whatever was going on. He couldn't blame her. He was worried. He was so worried about it that he immediately jumped into her lap. Again, felt warm and comfortable, this time with less bones and more meat.

It was acceptable.