NOVEL NEXT Chapter 238: [Extra] Triple date at the cat lounge~ ฅ^•ﻌ•^ฅ
After Prince Pollux and Hadrian returned from Angio, Florence suggested that the three couples could go to the cat lounge together.
Ren Xiyang agreed on Rian’s behalf, even though he knew Rian would have preferred a private date.
If you knew, then why did you agree, Rian sulked dramatically.
“Because I want to see if all the cats like you the most,” Ren Xiyang said.
“Oh, in that case, we’ll have to find out,” Rian said.
Ren Xiyang looked away, trying to suppress his amusement.
And so, a week later, in the afternoon, Wolfgang closed the cat lounge to other guests and invited in Ren Xiyang, Rian, Pollux, Hadrian, Hespera, and Florence.
Pollux and Hadrian brought along Princess Sasha and Lady Artemis.
Rian’s and Pollux’s guards stayed outside, guarding the entrances and exits.
Upon entering, their shoes had to be sterilised. Wolfgang also cast a spell on them to repel cat hair from their clothes and skin, which would have the added benefit of helping with any allergies.
Wolfgang first showed them the big book placed near the front. “This book records all the cats and their names.”
On each page, there were colour drawings of a different cat in multiple poses, their name, and their characteristics. Most, but not all, had the family name “Titian”.
Wolfgang then took them on a small tour.
The cat lounge consisted of several rooms across three storeys. Each room had a different theme. There was a luxurious lounge, an indoor garden, a study room, a playful sitting area, a whimsically-decorated room, and so forth. There was even a room with beds and hammocks in which to nap in.
In addition to human furniture, there was also cat furniture such as climbing towers, cat shelves along the wall, miniature lounges and miniature tables, and many, many plush rugs and soft mats; the rooms had wide windows and many convenient gazing spots for the cats.
As they walked around, they came across numerous cats. Some looked at them curiously, some ran away, and some followed them.
Several cats went right up to Wolfgang and rubbed against his legs, shameless mewing for food.
Wolfgang introduced them, “That is Lady Oda Titian…this is Lady Gerhild Titian, Lord Willihard Titian, Lord Ásmundr Titian, Lady Eadburg Titian… Ah, this is Young Lord Sonnen Phthalo, visiting from the Phthalo family. No, no, you can’t have any treats right now.” The last sentence was said with much reluctance.
Princess Sasha mewed from Pollux’s arms.
Pollux loosened his hold, and Princess Sasha jumped down.
Many of these cats were Princess Sasha’s siblings and friends. She and Lady Artemis had also been here a few times before and knew a lot of the good spots.
Hadrian was forced to let Lady Artemis go to. The two cats ran away without even looking back at their ‘dads’.
“You’re welcome to sit in any room, or multiple rooms,” Wolfgang said. “If you want to eat or drink something, please remember to place them on the designated trays, as they have spells that prevent cats from knocking things over. You can freely use the cat toys in the boxes in each room, and it’s fine to move cat toys from one room to another. They staff will bring out some cat-specific food later, so that you can feed the cats their afternoon tea.”
Aside from Wolfgang, there were several other staff who looked after the cat lounge, the cats, and served the customers.
“Thanks,” Ren Xiyang said.
“It’s my nap time,” Wolfgang said, yawning. “You can find me if the bedroom if you need anything.”
Wolfgang went to the room with the beds and laid down for a nap. One large fluffy cat followed him in and laid down next to him to sleep.
“Shall we head into the room with the most cats?” Ren Xiyang asked.
Everyone agreed, so they walked to the playful sitting area. Right now, the windows in this room were aligned just right to let in the full afternoon sun. Numerous cats lay in the warmth, dozing.
Rian’s eyes sparked with mischief. To him, this was the perfect scenario to tease the cats! He spotted the box of cat toys and took out two cat wands with a long string and fluffy feathers. He handed one to Ren Xiyang.
Rian advanced upon the cat that seemed to be sleeping the deepest. Swish swish! Rian dangled the feathery end of the cat toy across the sleeping cat’s nose.
The cat’s eyes snapped open and its paw swiped at the offending feathers.
Rian grinned. “It likes me!”
Ren Xiyang: “…”
Rian provoked the sleeping cats one by one.
Ren Xiyang decided to let him be and sat down in the sun himself. Not long after, some of the cats annoyed by Rian came over to Ren Xiyang instead. They approved of lying in the sun and doing nothing.
Rian pouted. Ren Xiyang was both amused and exasperated.
Meanwhile, Pollux, Hadrian, Florence and Hespera looked at the box of toys too.
Pollux took some cat toys that he knew the cats liked. He and Hadrian had been here before, and Wolfgang had brought his cats over in the past, so he knew many of the cats and their preferences.
When Pollux started playing with the cats, most of them cooperated.
This caused Rian to come over. He quickly learned from Pollux and finally was able to play with one black cat.
Rian was delighted. “Ayden, this cat acts like you!”
Ren Xiyang wanted to face-palm and smile at the same time.
Florence took a ball of yarn. She and Hespera sat down on the plush rug.
Florence started to unroll the yarn. Together, she and Hespera pushed the yarn ball back and forth between each other.
One of the cats narrowed her eyes and followed the motion—and then, pounce!
Hespera reached out and touched its soft fluffy body. “Cute,” she said very seriously.
Florence laughed.
Meanwhile, Hadrian went for a mouse-shaped soft toy and tried to entice some of the awake cats in the room. However, every time he came close to a cat, it would get up and run away.
Hadrian: QAQ
Why did this keep happening to him??
Was it because he was too tall and big?
(Among all of them there, Hadrian was the one least likely to hurt someone or some cat.)
((Perhaps that was why the cats scorned him?))
“My lord, perhaps you could try feeding the cats,” the waiting staff member said. She gave him a small dish with a few pieces of dried fish.
The greediest big fluffy cat emerged from behind the staff member. It paused when it realised that Hadrian was now holding the food dish.
Hadrian knelt down and offered the dish. “Here, little kitty.”
“Meow!” The big fluffy cat complained to the staff member.
“If you want food, go get it,” the staff member said helplessly.
The cat reluctantly went up to Hadrian and scoffed down the fish. Before Hadrian could pet it, it jumped out of his reach.
Hadrian’s lips went down. If he had dog ears, they would be drooping. He handed the food dish back to the staff member and sat down dejectedly on one of the cushions. One day, the cats would like him, but today was not that day. At least Prince Pollux was having fun…
After playing for a while and feeding the greedy cats with the food provided by the staff members, the three couples headed to the luxurious lounge downstairs to have their own afternoon tea.
The staff brought out a tea set with cat motifs and small cakes and sandwiches made in the shape of cat faces and cat paws.
A few cats wandered in, eyeing the food. One even jumped onto Florence’s lap and proceeded to stay there.
Florence and Hespera petted the cat, while Hadrian felt a thread of envy.
“If there is a cat lounge, should there not be a dog lounge too?” Rian mused.
Hadrian perked up. Although cats scorned him, dogs didn’t!
“Do you know anyone who has a lot of cute, well-behaved dogs?” Ren Xiyang asked.
“That is a simple problem to solve, my dear,” Rian said.
“I suspect it’ll be less of a lounge and more of a garden or park,” Ren Xiyang said.
Rian’s eyes lit up. “I know what we should do next. We should have couple duelling! Ayden and I will duel against any other couples.”
Pollux, Hadrian, Florence, Hespera: “…”
“Perhaps if you could convince His and Her Majesties,” Florence suggested.
Rian’s lips curled up. “Oh, that is a great idea.”
“Instead of couple-duelling, we could play board games or card games,” Ren Xiyang said.
Hespera nodded.
“Alright, let’s do that next time,” Florence said. “How are your wedding preparations?”
Rian and Ren Xiyang’s wedding date had been announced already. It would be in a year from now, at next year’s autumn. Their engagement was quite long, but there were several reasons.
Firstly, a lot of preparation was required. Rian was extravagantly building a new, big venue located at the border of the Rosewood fief and the Capital and improving the road infrastructure and transport options to get there. Rian was also toying with the idea of setting up large communication mirrors in towns and cities across the kingdom so that even more people could witness his wedding with Ren Xiyang. Hadrian’s increasing large flat glass meant they could make increasingly large mirrors.
Secondly, the long lead time ensured that anyone who wanted to attend should be clearing their calendars during that time period. Ran would deal with the people who should come but didn’t in the future.
And there was a third reason that others didn’t know. In Rian’s past life, the next few months would be the time when the plague-curse broke out.
Rian wanted to safely pass this period of time, so that he and Ren Xiyang could have a wedding and long honeymoon without worry.
Rian straightened. “The wedding preparations are going very well,” he said. “You’ll be stunned and amazed.”
Ren Xiyang patted Rian’s leg for being such a hard worker.
“Our wedding will be next summer,” Florence said. This meant it would happen before Rian’s wedding. “Our parents and extended family have been urging us to marry as soon as possible. Prince Pollux, Hadrian, will you be available?”
Pollux nodded. “Yes, we won’t go back to Angio next summer. We’ll go back after Ayden’s wedding and spend the new year in Angio before our wedding.” It had been a long time since he and Hadrian had spent the new year at home.
“How many guests will you have?” Rian asked Florence.
“Not as many as you,” Florence said.
Ren Xiyang poked Rian, lest he started becoming competitive in public.
Rian stood up and held out his hand. “Ayden, come for a short walk with me. If you’ll excuse us,” he added to the other couples.
“Don’t mind us,” Florence said.
And so, Rian and Ren Xiyang left the room. Rian told the staff not to follow them.
Seeing them leave, Pollux turned to Hadrian. “Shall we look for Princess Sasha and Lady Artemis?” he asked.
Hadrian nodded. Yes, at least he could possibly pat Lady Artemis!
Now, there was only Florence, Hespera, several cats, and a staff member left.
Florence gave the staff member a helpless look. “Can you clear away the used dishes?”
“Yes, my Lady.”
When the staff member carried away the dishes, several cats followed the staff out, leaving the cat on Florence’s lap and the lazy cats on the elevated cat beds near the window.
Florence gave Hespera a light kiss. “This is nice.”
“Hm…”
Florence leaned against Hespera’s shoulder and enjoyed the warm company.
Pollux and Hadrian knew their cats’ favourite rooms. In particular, Lady Artemis like the study room—there were so many things to knock over. So, they had gone up to the study.
—And lo-and-behold, their cats and several other cats were there, knocking things over. The staff member here was sitting on a chair, letting them play around. They’d clean up afterwards.
Pollux and Hadrian sat down with the staff member and ended up chatting with them about the different cats and which one was the cutest.
“Lady Artemis is definitely the best,” Hadrian said, just as she knocked something over, causing it to smash.
“Meow!” Lady Artemis agreed.
Meanwhile, Rian and Ren Xiyang had wondered to the indoor garden, located on the top floor.
No one and no cat was around. Rian gave Ren Xiyang a meaningful look.
Ren Xiyang pulled Rian behind a leafy plant and kissed him. Rian kissed back with enthusiasm.
“Do you want a cat or dog in the future?” Rian asked, once they stopped kissing.
“Perhaps once we retire. Though, I may prefer cuddling the cat more than you. After all, some of them are quite soft and fluffy.”
Rian: “…”
Ren Xiyang ruffled Rian’s hair. “Parts of you are also soft and fluffy.”
Rian captured Ren Xiyang’s hand. “My dear, not in public! Fix my hair for me.”
“Yes, yes.” Ren Xiyang said, with a look of fond exasperation. Kissing was possible in public but not messing his hair? Only Rian…
Eventually, Wolfgang woke up from his nap, secretly gave treats to some cats, played with some others, and then remembered that he needed to find his guests before closing time. (Both he and the cats needed to have time off work!)
He asked his cats and they led him to where each couple was located.
“How do you like the cat lounge?” he asked each of them.
“It’s well decorated,” Ren Xiyang said.
“Quite interesting,” Rian said.
“Could you add some dogs?” Hadrian asked.
Wolfgang look horrified at the thought.
“Enjoyable, as always,” Pollux said.
“Good,” Hespera said.
“Thank you for allowing us to book the entire space. The cats were lovely and cute, and the food was delicious,” Florence said.
“Then, you’re welcome to return,” Wolfgang said.
“We will,” Florence agreed.
“Perhaps I could devise some new cat toys,” Rian mused, mischief in his eyes.
Wolfgang: “…” That sounded like a good thing, but why did Ayden have that expression??
Wolfgang led everyone out and undid the cat-hair repulsion spell. “Have a good evening.” He waved goodbye to the three couples.
Everyone left in a good mood, having felt that they had a successful triple-date at the cat lounge.
(Yes, even Hadrian was in a good mood now, as he was carrying Lady Artemis in his arms!)
Author: No human or cat was harmed in the making of this chapter!
Hadrian: QAQ
Cats who were poked by Rian: (≖_≖)
toutcequonveut’s request was for a triple date with Ren Xiyang and Rian, Florence and Hespera, and Prince Pollux and Hadrian at the cat lounge!
I hope you enjoyed this~
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