"Alice, don't cry. I'm still breathing here, you know ... Listen, little Alice. Even if my body will be withered someday, I'll always be watching you from behind and pray the best for you. Therefore, don't cry anymore..."

Alice, 10 years old, was crying helplessly while hugging her father's arm. Her father was young, around 30 years old, he kept on smiling even he was in deep pain, patted his daughter, tried to wake her mood up. Not a long time ago, her father was still a head doctor in a large hospital, an outstanding person who being loved and respected by many people, both partners and patients since he always smiled to the others. Not only success in work, he was also the kindest father to his little daughter at home. Little Alice loved him very much, and liked to follow him anywhere. He was the number one in her eyes, the inspiration for her to become a doctor, just like her father.

"Daddy, d-don't go... Don't *sniff* Don't leave me behind!" *sniff*

"Alice, listen to your father. Everybody will need to go away one day... Don't cry, my little angel.,, Promise me one thing, kay?"

*sniff* "Y-yes?"

"Try ... to keep your smile on ... in any ... situations. It is ... a powerful medicine ... hope, love, joy, and to keep ... sadness away. Stay strong... okay?"

"I will, Dad. *hic* I will!"

"Maria ... I left her for you... inheritance.. please help her ... at least until she grows up... "

"I will, please rest assure."

"I think ... I'll need... to leave soon." *put his hand on Alice's head* "Goodbye Alice... I'll see you back someday..."

Gathered herself up, she smiled to her father. "S-see you again, father.."

He also grinned back. The only thing he regretted was that he couldn't see his little girl grow up, but he knew that she would be fine. After all, she was his daughter. Staring into nothingness, his conscious was slowly swallowed by the darkness.

"Dad!!"

-----------------------

Alice, 15 years old, grown up into a fine girl, inside. However, her appearance was still like a elementary students who was on the older end, no matter how she exercised or kept a diet menu, her body won't developed at all. Since the time her father gone away, the life was much harder for her and her mother. Despite the inheritance, the fees added up quickly, and after a few years, they were completely gone. Her mother accept various jobs in one day, worked from early morning till late night, sometimes she slept only 2 hours in two days, but the payment was just barely enough to keep her daughter to study at a faraway boarding school. Since Alice knew her mother was working hard, she kept on studying diligently, and earned a scholarship to decrease the school fees down by 80%. On the school, she was known for an intelligent student who never complained or being lazy. She was smiling all the time, gaining the favors from her teachers and friends. Life went on, it was already the time she was graduated from the secondary school. Being the student of the year, her future was shining brilliantly ahead.

Once again, fate decided to make a twist out of her life. That night after the graduated ceremony, she received a call. Her mother was passed away due to illness, she hided everything about her disease so Alice could concentrate on her studying.

Next morning, Alice was already packed up her luggage to go and see her mother the last time. The weather that day was gloomy dark, it looked like a storm will come soon. Pulled her luggage on the train groggily, she looked for a seat on a packed carriage. Looking out of the window, dark thoughts surrounding her mind.

"Why everything is always wrong to me?"

"Why did I even try to do my best, when there is no one left to praise me?"

"I'm tired of smiling every day, nobody understood the real me. Actually, I'm getting tired this world.."

There were shouting and running sounds behind her somewhere, but she didn't pay any mind. Suddenly, the trains deviated from the rail and started spinning around. Alice was flung out of her seat and rolled around in the carriage. She heard some snaps in her body, but didn't feel any pain, the only thing she felt that she was sleepy... The last thing she saw before went to sleep, was a pillar of light surrounded her body...

------------------------------------------------

The sun had went high up, but some certain person was still in their dream world. Lazily crawled in the blanket, Alice didn't want to get up from her warm bed.

Ten more minutes...

After what like one hour later, finally a hand rose out of the blanket. Still feeling sleepy, she stepped out of the bed. The first thing which came to her mind was the black cat she picked up in the town's outskirt. Stepped to the cat's bed she made yesterday, the creature was nowhere to be found. Doing a quick logical analysis, empty bed + open window = she just lost a cat.

But, I just bandaged (mummify) him for hours and fed him, he just ran away? What an energetic cat...

Shrugged off, she went to do personal hygiene, then put some meat out of her inventory to make breakfast. Since she want to save some coppers, she always cook food by herself. Grabbed a piece of rabbit meat and put it on the frying pan, she burned the food up quickly. However, there was a slightly strange thing, she heard some kind a cat's moaning somewhere in the house. Put the pan down, she started searching around.

"Maybe the cat still stuck somewhere inside the house? If it like that, where can he be then?"

Not in the closet, or the bathroom either. Also the under the bed was crossed out, and she tried to dig the house all around, but still, she couldn't found the cat. Frustratingly. she sat down the bad once again.

"Vreeeooow!"

Caught off guard, the girl flew forward to the difference of the sound. Tried to breath normally, she picked her staff up and poked the blanket a few times. After confirmed there was no dangerous, she flipped the blanket open, only to find a flattened-looking cat, who was hugging a newly flattened tail, glared at her with accusing eyes.

"So you climbed on my bed last night, right? Do you miss me that much, little cute cat?"

She didn't consider the cat's feeling, nor its injuries at all, immediately swooped him up and squeezed him tight. The cat looked like it gonna ran anytime soon, even after he hugged her all night, now he still pretended like nothing. While thinking along those lines, Alice automatically pet the cat down, but then the cat stop squirming at once. Sniffing something out of the air. the cat used a front paw to point in a vague direction.

"Meow?"

Tilted her head to the side in the confusion, she turned around to see what the cat was pointing at. As it turned out, a pillar of smoke had formed on a particular object while the smell of carbon dioxide floating around the room.

"My breakfast!"

Quickly threw the cat aside, Alice sprinted to the burning pan.

"Water Ball!"

That was close, I almost burn the house again!

Felt a chill in her head, she picked out the contents of the pan out. Almost everything closed to meat were gone, the thing she had right then was basically a lump of charcoal. Since it will be a waste if she threw it away, beside she couldn't cook anything to substitute since the pan was burned and now had a hole in the middle.

Separated the meat into two dishes, she turned around again and looked at the cat who managed to sit up right on the bed. With a charming smile, she brought one of the dish (the bigger one) front of the cat.

"Your share. Eat it up before we go outside!"

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Flattened-tail cat's POV

After a night of being crushed under a somewhere-around-forty kilograms body, he couldn't sleep anymore, therefore he turned on grumpy mode today. That inconsiderate kid dare to squeeze him around after sat on his poor tail, and now she asked HIM to finish that black lump of CHARCOAL that she couldn't consume it alone! He switched his eyes between the dish and the girl who stared at him expectantly, then used his paw to push the dish to her.

There is no way I can consume this.

Burned Rabbit MeatType:Healing itemDurability:1/10Quality:Extremely PoorThis charcoal used to be the fried rabbit meat not a long time ago. Despite the bad look, this is still edible (to an extent). However, cautious (and antidote) is required just in case. Being made by a novice who never made a good food properly (lol).Effect:+30% Satiety

Has 20% percents of chance that you will stuck in the toilet for a whole day

Shook his head side by side, he indicate that he'd rather skip the breakfast than stuck in the bathroom. However:

"Come on, I'm your friend. And friends are supposed to share the weight together, you know?"

The girl pushed the dish back to him.

Even you said that, why don't you eat it first?

The dish was pushed back again.

"Meo" (Nope)

The girl seemed to be thoughtful, then she suddenly smiled mischievously. She picked the cat up to her lap, then squeezed the cat's tail.

"Vraaooww - *gulp*"

Shoved a mouthful of charcoal into the cat's mouth while he was complaining, the girl smiled once again. Lucky for the cat, he didn't get to be sick of the food. Although, his eyes blanked out and looked into a far distance. Decided not to take a chance, Alice dumped the rest of the contents into the trash bin.

Cheater!

He was annoyed seriously with this girl. If he hadn't made a resolve last night, he would have gone away right back then. Nonetheless, he wanted to stick around with the girl to see where this route would lead him to.

-----------------------------------------

After the horrible breakfast, the duo went outside to purchase various stuffs before go outside to level up, Although, it was actually one went shopping while squeezing the other in one's arms. They didn't buy anything much to mention about, a few herbs and apples, while the cat managed to persuade Alice to buy a while board for him. She wondered what the cat would do with it, but she didn't ask and just gave him as an apologize for the morning.

"Hey Alice, would you mind to help me with something?"

"Miss Lelia, how can I help you today?"

The seller, named Lelia or that's what Alice called her, was a girl in her twenties. She was a beauty in the town, and people liked to keep her company every once in a while. With that appearance, I think she could be a model if she wanted. Shame that she was an Alchemy NPC though.

"Well, I said that you can call me Lelia earlier. By the way, I need some Silver Grass to make some potions later, but I'm kind of busy right now. Can you help me to collect at least 20 of them?"

"I think I should be able to, Mi.. Lelia. Just a little question though, where can I find these grass? They don't sound like ones I see grew around the town.."

"They are growing at a small cave in the North Alysium Forest, you can find it if you walked on the main trail of the forest, then when you see a lone rock stayed at a clearing, you turn to the left and go straight forward. There are a group of wolfs deep inside the cave, but as long as you don't venture too far in the cave, you should be fine. I will give you 5 vials of Basic Healing Potion. And if you manage to subjugate the wolfs somehow, I'll give you additional rewards! Are these conditions fine with you?"

Alice didn't hesitate about the details, she said with a cheerful tone.

"Deal, I will get them right away. See you later!"

Dang, North Alysium Forest again? My level isn't sufficient for that place yet, I should stick around the outskirt befo..?!

"Come on kitty, lets beat those dogs up! We are about to running out of food, and I'm sick with rabbit meats all the time already!"

With that, she scooped the cat up again as he was trying to dive away into the crowd, then walk quickly to the familiar forest nearby.

Quest window:

Quest name:Grasses CollectingDifficulty: FDescription:Get at least 20 Silver Grass inside the cave in North Alysium Forest.Reward: 5 vials of Basic Health potion.

Increasing intimacy with Lelia.

Quest name:Subjugate the wolfsDifficulty:F++Description:Clean every single wolfs inside the cave. 11/11 leftReward: ???

Increasing contribution with Alysium town

Failure:Decrease intimacy with Lelia.

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Author's note:

Sorry for late release, I'm studying for the EoY exams in 1 weeks, so a bit busy here and there. I will try to keep the story around 1 chap/ 2 days though.