DSMC Chapter 88.2

As expected of a named NPC. The student’s fixed mindset immediately assumed it was a zoo animal, while the teacher’s dynamic vision was sharp enough to directly expose the truth.

He successfully slipped out through the veterinarian’s office.

But now Yan Jiyun was a bit troubled. If he left the medical building in cat form, he would run into Xixi and the big white tiger. In front of the tiger player, he would have to keep using the transformation card. He might as well move freely, so he decided to act alone and not go look for Xixi or the tiger.

Even though he didn’t like the animal medical building, it wasn’t easy to come here. He might as well explore it properly and not waste his card time. Even one minute was worth using.

One thing was clear now: he had only explored the most superficial part so far, which was the doctors’ offices, essentially the consultation area. Anyone could come here, any animal could approach; there was no particularly useful information.

The lab required animal blood samples to determine the cause of the animals’ aggression. The NPCs related to this were currently Dr. Peng and Dr. Zhou.

The X-ray room and infusion room could be checked later. Those were usually paired with the consultation rooms and probably didn’t hold any important secrets.

He could first go to the pharmacy and the isolation area for injured wolf cubs.

The consultation area was on the first floor. The second floor should be the isolation area for sick animals and cubs.

He went up to the second floor via the staircase at the corner. Only by seeing it in person could he know whether the sick animals and cubs were related to the aggression incident, so he could use the method of elimination.

Different cubs were isolated in different rooms, and at this time there were indeed nurses taking care of them.

Following the direction of the light and sounds, Yan Jiyun saw the panda cub area, which was wildly popular in the real world. Their cries were soft, probably asking for milk. Soon, a tall man in protective clothing came in with a bottle. Everything seemed normal.

He didn’t hear the little wolf cub’s cries; the cub area and the sick ward should be separate.

The left side was the isolation area, so the right side should be the ward area, probably called that even though nothing was written there.

The windows were all closed, probably to prevent the animals inside from jumping out. Yan Jiyun couldn’t jump in even if he wanted to.

But the lack of windows didn’t stop him from entering. The doors weren’t locked. He easily jumped up, pulled down a handle, and went inside.

It was very quiet. This area housed terrestrial mammals. Each animal had a single room, basically a cage in all but name. The temperature was suitable, and water and food had been placed inside.

Some animals were woken by Yan Jiyun, some were nocturnal and hadn’t slept at all, and some were resting for various reasons.

Yan Jiyun was puzzled. Were there really this many injured animals every day? Animals becoming aggressive at night in the zoo wasn’t impossible.

These were all injured cubs. Adults must be arranged elsewhere.

He found Pudding, the little wolf cub, placed further inside. Its nest was decent, and it hadn’t been abused, but its leg was injured, making eating and drinking inconvenient.

The zoo staff were limited; they couldn’t provide overly meticulous care.

Seeing Pudding wanted to drink water, Yan Jiyun used his paw to push the water bottle’s spout closer so the cub could lick the droplets.

The cub was quite surprised to see a black cat feeding it.

Yan Jiyun pushed its food bowl forward as well, signaling it to eat properly.

Pudding had probably rested for a few hours and was hungry, so it began eating seriously.

Watching it eat almost made Yan Jiyun hungry himself. After confirming there was nothing wrong with this ward, he quietly left.

The neighboring area housed key protected animals, probably offspring born in the zoo. The cubs were well protected, and everything seemed normal, and there were no unusual cries.

After finishing the second floor, he wanted to go to the third floor, but there was an iron gate between them. Yan Jiyun tested the width of the bars and successfully squeezed through. He didn’t know why the third floor was locked, but the lock was useless against him. He easily went up.

After looking around, it seemed to be a temporary resting area for nurses, used by NPCs on night shift. There didn’t seem to be anything else to explore.

Having gained nothing, Yan Jiyun prepared to go back down.

At the same time, he heard the iron gate open. Someone was coming up.

From the sound of shoes on the floor, he could tell who it was.

It was Dr. Zhou from downstairs. Why was he coming up at this hour?

Wasn’t he supposed to stay in his own office as the doctor on duty tonight?

Yan Jiyun retreated to the third floor and hid at the doorway of the farthest room.

Damn this floor! There wasn’t even a potted plant to hide behind. No concern for environmental design at all.

How was he supposed to hide?

Dr. Zhou’s footsteps drew closer and closer.

Why was he getting nearer?

Shouldn’t his room be one of the rooms ahead?

Why wasn’t he stopping?

If he kept walking, they’d run into each other.

Sure enough, Yan Jiyun met Dr. Zhou’s gaze. The last room was Dr. Zhou’s on-duty resting room.

Dr. Zhou squatted in front of him, tossing the keys in his hand. “Little black cat, why are you hiding at the door of my room?”

Yan Jiyun: “……”

Thanks. What a coincidence.

He hadn’t expected to crash straight into the man’s doorstep.

At this time, the best plan was, of course, to run.

Dr. Zhou stood up again, without trying to catch him.

Taking advantage of the moment he opened the door, Yan Jiyun ran.

It should be said that Dr. Zhou deliberately let him go.

This was the first time in an instance that he had been allowed to escape so smoothly from an NPC’s sight. It was really unexpected.

Comparing all the NPCs, Dr. Zhou seemed rather decent. Maybe he simply didn’t like cats, or animals at all.

But there was no malice toward animals in his eyes either.

Dr. Zhou was one of the only two NPCs in this instance who hadn’t shown hostility toward him. He was worth investigating.

At this moment, Yan Jiyun wasn’t in such a hurry to leave.

Dr. Zhou’s door hadn’t been closed, and light from his room spilled into the corridor.

Yan Jiyun ran back and crouched at the door, poking his head inside. He heard the familiar jingle of a small bell.

Dr. Zhou somehow produced a cat teaser wand and waved it at him.

“I knew you’d be attracted to this. Little kitty, want to play?”

Yan Jiyun stared at the swaying wand without moving at all, with no intention of playing.

He had just run half the zoo and had no energy for such childish games.

Seeing him unmoved, Dr. Zhou rummaged around and took out a tube of cat treat. He checked the date. “Not expired yet. You can eat it.” He tore it open, and a faint fragrance drifted out.

Yan Jiyun only wanted clues! He wasn’t here for food!!

B-but… the treat smelled good, even better than the fish and chicken in the cafeteria.

It probably wasn’t poisoned, right?

No! He couldn’t eat randomly. He had to endure it.

Dr. Zhou might or might not be a good person, but his owner had repeatedly warned him to absolutely not eat snacks from strangers. If his stomach got upset, who would take care of him? He had already learned his lesson in the previous instance and couldn’t repeat it.

He had to control his craving for snacks and ignore all these human cat-coaxing tactics.

More worth thinking about than the treat was this: why would a zoo veterinarian keep cat toys and cat food in his duty room?

Too suspicious. What if he wanted to abduct cats for experiments?

Yan Jiyun felt he had been careless and turned around and ran.

Dr. Zhou merely sighed softly. “Sigh, veterinarians really aren’t liked by small animals.”

Yan Jiyun still dashed downstairs. Sure enough, not a single NPC was normal.

Putting aside whether Dr. Zhou really wanted to pet cats or had other motives, he definitely had secrets.

When Dr. Zhou waved the teaser wand earlier, Yan Jiyun had glanced around the room. The layout was clearly more refined than the keepers’ dorms.

A sofa, a double bed, a desk, bookshelves, a wardrobe. Everything was there, and the furnishings were plain to see.

Yan Jiyun had previously searched Dr. Zhou’s office and found nothing suspicious at all.

He guessed that the cleaner an NPC seemed, the more closely they were tied to the main storyline.

What role did Dr. Zhou really play in this instance?

No matter what role it was, Yan Jiyun’s transformation card time was almost up.

[Human Form Time Card remaining time: 30s]

He rushed to the first-floor restroom and changed back into human form in a stall.

Just as he was about to leave, he heard Dr. Zhou’s footsteps again.

Dr. Zhou said, “Strange, I just saw the little black cat come in. Why didn’t I see it?”

Yan Jiyun was standing right by the sink. “……”

Dr. Zhou asked him, “Have you seen a black cat?”

Yan Jiyun glanced at the cat treat in his hand and pointed to the open window. “Not sure if it was a cat, but I just saw a black shadow jump out the window.”

Dr. Zhou didn’t seem in a hurry to chase the cat. Instead, he looked Yan Jiyun up and down. “Are you a new zookeeper?”

Yan Jiyun nodded. “Yes, hello.”

Dr. Zhou said, “You’re on night shift tonight, right?”

Yan Jiyun said, “Yeah.”

Dr. Zhou studied him for a moment. “It’s hard for newcomers to do night shifts, especially since animals riot at night. Do you want to come to my office and sit for a while?”

Yan Jiyun: “……”

Why was this NPC so weird?

He was about to chase the cat just now. Why was his attention suddenly on him?

[Want to be Human] Livestream channel:

“I always feel like Dr. Zhou has bad intentions.”

“Same here. Is he trying to flirt with our darling baby?”

“Our Kitty Baby just became an adult, right? No way!”

“Hmm… has this cat been neutered?”

“Upstairs, neutering is going too far!!”

T/N:

Yan Jiyun’s refusal of the Tube™ reminds me of many youtube videos of pet groomers giving “peace offerings” to wary cats before bathing them.