Chapter 10: The Gutsy "Catfolk" Girl, Kalua. Do You Desire Power?
The "Race" category is an extremely important factor when it comes to obtaining a job.
There are countless jobs you can only take if your character belongs to a certain race.
For example, the 【Hero】 job, which only the "Protagonist" can acquire, or the 【Saint】 job, which only "Royalty" or "Princesses" can acquire. Jobs restricted to the "Race" category are often quite powerful.
That’s partly because of things like fame values and player count limits being tied to them.
But that’s only for humans.
The "Race" category obviously includes non-humans as well.
"Elves", "Dwarves", "Catfolk", "Foxfolk", "Raccoonfolk", and so on—your typical fantasy otherworldly folk.
These races form a special group that can only take jobs tied to their "Race" category.
In other words, they can’t take normal jobs. On the flip side, humans can’t take the jobs exclusive to these special races either.
Some of these jobs range from weak to incredibly powerful, and many of them are strong enough to earn a spot in any first-rate party without issue.
Back in my gaming days, I used a lot of these "Race" characters myself.
Or rather… any character without a "Race" category was destined to be kicked out of the battle party sooner or later.
It was the fate of <DanKatsu>: as your guild rank went up and you recruited more members, your early party members would inevitably be retired.
The only normal-category characters that stayed around were mostly crafters or support roles. Those could shine regardless of the category.
Of course, just to spice things up, I sometimes tried challenge runs like "no-category only" or "joke-job only," but that’s not important now.
Also, as for the "Race" symbols, well… anyone who’s read a light novel could probably guess.
"Catfolk" have cat ears and tails, "Elves" are slim, beautiful, and have pointy ears—that kind of thing.
Now, the tricky part is how they’re scouted. Unlike humans, it doesn’t depend on fame values—it’s treated differently, with special conditions and restrictions, since these "Races" can get strong jobs.
Each "Race" has its own requirements. For example, for "Catfolk", you can recruit them if you satisfy both Strength and Miru conditions.
This comes from the game’s setting: "Catfolk" traditionally worked as mercenaries.
That’s why recruiting them is framed as hiring a mercenary—you pay them a contract fee in the form of "Miru."
And so, right now, I was the one being actively scouted—or rather, reverse-scouted.
"If you hire me now, it’s just 5 million Miru. Super bargain price."
"…Hmm."
It sounded like a line ripe for misunderstanding, but no—it was a recruitment negotiation.
For 5 million Miru, picking up a "Catfolk" was honestly not a bad deal.
If I wanted to rank up the guild, recruiting more members was essential.
So maybe this "reverse-scouting"… was worth considering.
And conveniently, I’d just come into enough Miru to meet her asking price.
Wait… is that how it works? Did this scout event trigger because my funds just passed 5 million Miru?
Hmm. Not sure yet, but in any case, I needed to carefully evaluate this "event."
I decided to hear her out.
The "Catfolk" girl, who had earlier bumped into me and spectacularly flashed her skirt, quickly realized I was Zephyrus the 【Hero and immediately flipped her attitude into trying to reverse recruit me.
I stared at her with a clear and discerning eye. (…Okay, maybe not that clear.)
Appearance-wise—no complaints. In fact, very good!
She had the kind of cuteness you’d pick right away in character creation. Black hair, black eyes, a slightly sleepy look, petite and slender—pretty much the standard body type for "Catfolk" girls. Baby-faced, making her look younger, but the blue embroidery on her collar marked her as a first-year—same age as me.
If she looks good, then the only thing left to check is her job.
"Alright, let’s hear you out. Shall we move somewhere else?"
"Sure. Just hearing you say that makes me happy. Want to go to the lounge?"
"No, given the time, let’s hit a restaurant. I just got back from a dungeon and I’m starving."
When I suggested eating, her face suddenly turned very sad.
"…Don’t have Miru."
"…Wait. You mean, not even for food?"
"Yeah. The dorm meals—breakfast and dinner—are the only thing keeping me alive…"
Ah, right. It came back to me. "Catfolk" also had a "poverty" setting.
They live by a survival-of-the-fittest principle. In "Catfolk" mercenary culture, "Miru is something you earn yourself."
But without a job or any fighting ability, kids can’t earn Miru. That’s why they’re poor.
So their goal is to land a strong, high-ranking job and get hired by a guild.
Still… I didn’t know it was this bad. Not even able to afford food? That was never a thing in the <DanKatsu> game. Seeing it here caught me off guard—"Catfolk" were harsher than I expected.
"I’ll treat you if it’s just that much."
"Really?"
"Of course. Doesn’t bother me. I make a decent amount, after all."
If a kid like this was crying out meow-meow from hunger, anyone with a heart would want to pick her up and help.
If she’d been sitting in a cardboard box, it would’ve been perfect. I’m pretty sure I would’ve signed the contract on the spot.
Well, I’m still leaning positive now, though.
Since the matter was settled, we decided to move, but before that, I gave my thanks to Marie-senpai, who had been politely keeping quiet this whole time.
"Well then, Marie-senpai, guess we’ll really take our leave this time. Thanks for the <Emblem>."
"Sure, sure. I was almost worried you’d forgotten me. See you around, mister."
No way I’d forget, not when she was watching us with that much interest.
If I had gotten dazzled by this girl’s cuteness and blurted out, "I’ll buy you for 5 million Miru," who knows what Marie-senpai would’ve done to me.
Her information network is not to be underestimated.
I kept myself on edge so as not to look flustered and headed toward the restaurant area with the "Catfolk" girl.
"—Noted: Mr. 【Hero】 just invited a girl to a dining place."
Behind me, Marie-senpai was typing something into her student handbook, but I never noticed until the very end.
"…We’re being watched. Really closely."
"Well, this is normal for me. This gear tends to draw a lot of attention."
We were on our way to a restaurant, but for some reason, it felt like there were more eyes on me than usual. Maybe just my imagination.
By the way, the massive Dungeon Academy—with over 20,000 students—has tons of restaurants inside.
Too many students aren’t satisfied with just the cafeteria food.
Technically, there are guilds in C-Street that sell cooking items too, but those are loaded with buffs and skills, so they’re way pricier.
I’m interested, but not for now.
"…This…place?"
When we arrived at the restaurant, the cat-eared girl stood with her mouth open in awe.
It was a curry specialty shop, <Marvelous>.
I figured curry suited "Catfolk", and apparently I guessed right.
She sniffed the air eagerly, drool starting to drip from the corner of her mouth. Good, good.
<Marvelous> is a high-class restaurant with private rooms, perfect for meetings too.
I’m glad I took the time to research gourmet spots during my downtime.
We went in and reserved a private room.
"Order whatever you like."
"M-Mmmmmm…"
"You can get up to five refills."
"! …I love you."
Just as I thought, when I told the cat-eared girl—who was already locked in battle with the menu—that refills were allowed, her eyes lit up like stars. Not gonna lie, it felt pretty good.
Catfolk girl + curry + hungry tummy = guaranteed big eater.
I went this far with the generosity partly because, well, accident or not, I did see under her skirt. Consider this my apology.
Not that she seems to care much, but still—principle’s principle.
Anyway, interview after the meal, I guess.
"My name, Kalua. Nice to meet you."
"Kalua, huh. I’m the 【Hero】, Zephyrus. Lv26. I’ll be joining the <Dungeon Exploration Department, Combat Division> starting in May. Nice to meet you too."
Short self-introduction. Still, I gave mine back.
"Straight to the point, but—what’s your job and level?"
"Mm, none yet."
Well, that figures.
If she wanted to sell herself, she’d at least mention her job and level.
Still, that actually works in my favor.
So, I pressed on with the interview.
"You approached me because you knew I was a 【Hero】, right? So what’s your motivation? Why do you want to join my guild?"
"You’re the strongest first-year. I want to follow you."
"Catfolk" are known for a trait: they follow the strong.
Since they’re combat-specialized, most adult "Catfolk" end up as mercenaries. Which is why they naturally seek to serve under someone stronger. But they’ll never bow to anyone weaker—that part’s pure meritocracy.
So she came to me because I’m the strongest first-year. Fair reason.
"But, I’m weak. That’s why—5 million miru. Very cheap."
"Not that cheap, honestly."
For "Catfolk", the minimum scout price starts at 5 million miru. So yes, it’s the bargain price.
Without a job yet, that’s the going rate.
Once they do unlock a job, their value skyrockets depending on its rank and level.
If it’s the strongest "Catfolk"-exclusive job, the price instantly jumps into the hundreds of millions.
That’s why the current meta is to scout them before they unlock anything, then help them into a strong job.
Back in the day, when no one knew the conditions for higher-rank jobs, guilds would pay hundreds of millions upfront. Good times.
She doesn’t seem to have a bad personality either, from the way she talks.
But what did she mean by being weak?
"My possible job, only one."
"Ah. 【Beast Warrior】, huh. Yeah, that’s weak."
【Beast Warrior】—a bottom-tier, lowest-rank job. With only 12 SUP points, it’s about even with a standard 【Warrior】.
Basically, it’s a <Standard Job>. The only condition to unlock it is "must be a Beastfolk." Anyone in the "Beastfolk" race category qualifies. Kalua, being both "Catfolk" and "Beastfolk," naturally has that.
Which means she hasn’t met the unlock requirements for anything else. So she’s weak.
Her lowest price makes sense now.
"I’ll get stronger from here. So, hire me."
Hmm. At least she’s got guts. Most people would get discouraged if they saw others unlocking multiple jobs while they had nothing. But she’s still pushing forward.
There’s potential here.
Most likely, if she waits out the one-month time limit, she’ll be stuck with 【Beast Warrior】. After that, no guild will want to take her. So she came to me now, hoping I’d bet on her future.
"Alright. You’re in."
"Huh?"
"But there’s one thing you need to remember. My guild is aiming for S-Rank. If you join, you’ll need to aim for the strongest. If you’ve got the resolve, Kalua, then I’ll take you."
"…Really?"
She almost blurted out, "But I’m weak." I could see her swallowing the words back in a hurry.
"Think carefully, alright? My guild’s aiming for the very top—S-Rank. With half-baked resolve, you’ll just get left behind. You won’t even be allowed to participate in guild battles."
"…Yeah. I’ll think it through. I want to. But… can I really do it…?"
"If you couldn’t, I wouldn’t be inviting you. I scouted you because I think you can. Even if you can only become a weak job, I’ll get you into a strong one."
Once she unlocks a strong job, both confidence and skill will follow naturally.
Honestly, anyone could do it—not just her. But no need to say that out loud.
Since fate brought us together, I want to bet on Kalua’s guts—the girl bold enough to approach me, the top, despite being the weakest.
…And yeah, her little "I love you" earlier really hit me hard. I want to hear it again.
So then, Kalua—what’s your answer?
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