Chapter 25: Chapter 25: Her Identity Might Also Be Discovered

"Hurry and get up! Do you want to go to work or not? It’s already seven o’clock, and you’re still not up."

Barto’s voice came from the other side of the door.

Gu Ning heard the knocking, frowned, and rolled over. ’Ugh, can’t they just let me sleep in?!’

’Why is someone still bugging me to wake up early even after I transmigrated to an Otherworld!’

WHINE... Cook’s low cry came from outside the door. He pushed Barto away, not letting him disturb Gu Ning.

Barto ignored him and knocked hard on the door twice. "Get up! I made breakfast. Eat and then go to work."

Gu Ning, wrapped in her quilt, rolled back and forth on the floor like a human caterpillar.

There was no bed in the bedroom. Just as she had done in the living room before, she had simply spread a quilt on the floor to sleep.

After rolling around for a bit, Gu Ning squirmed into a sitting position, still unwilling to emerge from her quilt.

The weather was getting colder. The bedroom had no windows, but she could still feel a chill seeping into her bones.

She sat there for a moment to wake up, then habitually reached out beside her. The space was empty; Cook wasn’t there.

’Right, last night I made Cook go sleep in the living room with Barto.’

Barto had a bad habit of picking locks, and she was afraid he’d suddenly pick his way in while she was asleep.

Cook could keep an eye on him.

Without Cook, her personal human-shaped furnace, Gu Ning felt a little out of sorts. She had woken up from the cold several times last night. She didn’t have a thick quilt and could only pile on a few extra blankets.

You couldn’t even buy thick quilts or down jackets in Zone 19. She decided she would ask Barto to get her a thicker quilt.

Gu Ning raised her arm and checked the time on her terminal. It was already 7:10.

She quickly scrambled out of her warm nest of blankets and threw on her work clothes.

Since it had gotten cold, she wore an extra Beastman long-sleeved shirt underneath. She had simply cut the overly long sleeves and hem to make it fit.

The work uniform was reasonably thick and windproof. It should be enough to get her through the next half-month.

Once she was dressed, Gu Ning opened her bedroom door.

Cook had been waiting right by her door. He had slept there all night without moving an inch.

When he saw Gu Ning come out, he rubbed himself all over her, marking her with his scent.

Gu Ning patted his head and went to the bathroom to wash up.

She hadn’t even bathed last night, only giving herself a quick wipe-down with cold water.

’This can’t go on. Even if I don’t start to stink, with the weather getting colder, I’ll catch a cold washing with cold water.’

’I should probably wait until Cook’s injuries are fully healed and have him help me carry hot water back for a bath.’

Barto watched Cook follow Gu Ning everywhere, mostly on all fours, his behavior becoming more and more primitive and bestial. He frowned and reminded Gu Ning, "Cook’s regression is getting worse. If you have the money, you should buy him some Purification Crystal Stones. Otherwise, he won’t make it through the winter."

Gu Ning nodded. She had noticed it too. That was why she had to earn more money. She’d heard that Purification Crystal Stones weren’t cheap.

Seeing that Barto had breakfast ready, she walked into the living room, grabbed a piece of bread and two eggs from the dining table, and stuffed them into her pocket.

Barto had added quite a few things to the apartment, even a dining table, on which sat a flower vase.

’We’re only living here for a month at most, yet he decorates it so meticulously.’

’This little fox really knows how to live.’

Barto pushed a cup of hot milk in front of her. "Finish this before you go. You can’t stuff this in your pocket, can you?"

Gu Ning picked up the steaming cup of milk and gave it to Cook to drink.

Barto tsked. "That was for you. Maybe drinking it will help you grow a little. With those scrawny arms and legs, you couldn’t even take a single punch."

’I’m already an adult,’ Gu Ning thought. ’No amount of milk is going to make me grow any taller.’

Besides, she was 165 centimeters tall, which wasn’t short. But alas, she had transmigrated into a Beastman World where everyone was astonishingly tall.

Even the female Beastmen she saw on "Paw-Press" were all very tall and slender.

However...

Gu Ning held her hand over Barto’s head, measuring his height.

’The little fox is only half as tall as me.’

Barto: "...What’s that supposed to mean?"

’That little rascal. I was kind enough to give her some extra nutrition, and she dares to mock my height?’

Gu Ning smiled, placed a pre-written note on the table, and turned to leave.

Barto picked up the note and read it:

The food was delicious (heart drawing)

Help me buy Purification Crystal Stones for Cook (get the best ones)

A thick quilt (the thicker the better)

Money is no object

After reading it, Barto cursed ’little rascal’ again in his head. ’She sure is getting comfortable ordering me around.’

’Money is no object? Does she even know how much Purification Crystal Stones cost?’

Just as Gu Ning opened the door, Cook followed her out.

She immediately tried to push him back inside, whispering, "Cook, go back. You can’t follow me. Didn’t we already agree on this?"

But today, Cook seemed much more stubborn, insisting on following her no matter what.

Unable to budge him, Gu Ning felt helpless and looked to Barto for help.

Barto, sitting on a specially raised chair, speared a piece of bread topped with a fried egg and stuffed it in his mouth. "If he wants to go, just let him follow. With him around, it’s like you have a bodyguard. Most people won’t dare to mess with you two. Besides, he’s probably well enough to work again."

Barto had already assumed Gu Ning couldn’t fight and was always a little worried that she’d be bullied by other Beastmen.

Gu Ning: "..." ’What bodyguard? If he goes and the construction site finds out I’ve been the one working these past few days, he’ll be in breach of his contract.’

She had read the contract carefully. There was a specific clause that prohibited substitute workers, with a special mention of Mixed Breeds.

The only reason she’d gone to the construction site in Cook’s place was because they were desperate for money. Cook was severely injured, and the construction job paid more than she could make scavenging. With food and medicine costs piling up, she had bravely put on his work uniform and gone.

The Beastmen there didn’t pay much attention to Mixed Breeds, so they hadn’t noticed the switch. Another crucial point was that the construction site was huge, the work changed almost daily, and there was high staff turnover. Barring any accidents, she should have been able to keep up the charade.

They had been on this contract for so long; there was only half a month left to complete it.

If she were caught as a substitute worker, losing the wages would be one thing, but getting a breach of contract on his personal record was simply not worth the risk.

Completing the contract would increase Cook’s credit score, and she still hoped they could move to a better city to live in the future.

’But that means I have to manage my side of things perfectly. I can’t let anything go wrong.’

Bringing Cook along would make unpredictable accidents far too likely.

Cook’s mental state had degraded significantly. Last night, she had carefully explained to him that she would be the one going to work from now on, but he clearly hadn’t understood.

He was becoming more and more like those low-intellect, easily enraged Mixed Breeds she had seen before.

’How could I possibly let him go out?’

Besides, if they discovered she was a substitute, her own identity might be exposed as well.

Gu Ning shuddered at the memory of the times she’d been captured by Beastmen who mistook her for a Mimic Mixed Species.

If Cook hadn’t been there, she didn’t know what would have happened to her.

Seeing that Cook was determined to follow her no matter what, Gu Ning was out of options. She went back inside and sat down in front of Barto.

Barto looked at her, confused. "What’s up? You’re about to be late."

Gu Ning pulled Cook’s identification tag from her pocket and placed it in front of him.

Barto’s eyes glanced down. He picked up the tag, and a moment later—

"Did a leopard give you your guts?!"