As Beta and I walked into the towering building, my hand was still pressed firmly against her chest. Her fingers clutched my shirt, and her full figure brushed against me. I couldn''t deny it—the sensation was distracting, the softness of her skin and the weight of her body against mine.

    "Master!" she suddenly called out, her voice brimming with energy as she glanced up at me with wide, sparkling eyes.

    "Yes, Beta? What happened?" I asked, curious at her sudden outburst.

    "I love Master!" she declared, her voice almost bursting with excitement.

    I blinked. "Uh... yes, yes, I know," I replied, trying to play it off coolly, though I couldn''t help but feel slightly amused by her expression. "I love you too," I added with a small smile, patting her head.

    Beta''s tail began to wiggle excitedly, her face lighting up as she beamed at me, seemingly delighted with my response. Her mood was infectious, even though I wasn''t sure how to handle her energy.@@@@

    She is truly like a pet cat or something

    As we continued walking, a thought crossed my mind, and I turned toward her with a more serious expression.

    "Hey, Beta..."

    "Yes?"

    "What happened to your previous Master?"

    Without skipping a beat, she responded, "He died!"

    The nonchalance in her voice caught me off guard. I stopped in my tracks, staring at her. "And... how did that happen?"

    "He was fighting with the enemy boss," she said matter-of-factly. "And he died."

    My brow furrowed. "Shouldn''t your Master be strong enough to defeat a boss?"

    "He was strong," Beta replied, tilting her head as if pondering. "But... he was also weak."

    The contradiction made me pause. "What if I''m weak too?" I asked, half-joking but also testing her response.

    Without hesitation, she bit my cheek, her sharp teeth nipping at my skin. "Master is strong!!" she exclaimed, her voice loud and filled with conviction. "Zero is the strongest Master ever!"

    I winced, rubbing my cheek. "Ouch... okay, okay, I get it," I muttered. Her confidence in me was startling, to say the least.

    "Strongest, huh?" I thought to myself. "She seems pretty certain of that... I guess I should be careful."

    We approached the elevator, and as the doors slid open, I stepped inside with Beta following close behind. I felt a prickle at the back of my neck again, as if someone was watching us from the shadows. I glanced around, but nothing seemed out of place, so I shrugged it off.

    Inside the elevator, two men in suits stood at the back, their faces expressionless, their posture rigid. They didn''t acknowledge us at all.

    "Which floor do I live on?" I asked Beta as I scanned the buttons.

    "Just dial 1 and tell it what you want to eat!" she instructed, her voice filled with enthusiasm.

    I raised an eyebrow, still puzzled but intrigued. I dialed 1, and a woman''s voice answered on the other end.

    "What would you like to eat?" the voice asked, smooth and direct. There was something oddly familiar about it.

    "Uh... chicken pizza," I replied, my stomach growling in response.

    The call ended abruptly, and I stared at the phone for a moment. That voice... it sounded like Epsilon.

    Beta, still sitting on my lap, leaned in close, her arms wrapping around my neck. "Master!" she called softly, her forehead resting against mine.

    "Yes, Beta?" I replied, feeling the warmth of her body pressed against me.

    "Till ten! Count along with me!" she declared with a wide grin.

    I chuckled. "And what happens at ten?"

    She didn''t answer directly. Instead, she started counting down. "Ten... nine... eight..." Her voice was high-pitched, filled with excitement as she swayed left and right.

    I found myself counting along with her, though I had no idea why. "Six... five... four... three... two...

    one..."

    Suddenly, there was a rushing sound from outside the door, followed by the doorbell ringing loudly. Ting Tong!

    "It''s here!!" Beta squealed, jumping off the bed and rushing to the door with the energy of a child on Christmas morning.

    She flung the door open, and there stood a woman holding several boxes of pizza. "Here''s your pizza," The woman on the door said, in a deadpan tone before turning and walking away without another word.

    That was Epsilon only for sure.

    I remembered everyone from the garden very well.

    Beta placed the pizza on the table and opened one of the boxes, her eyes wide with delight. "Master, let''s eat!"

    Even though she didn''t ask for the quantity yet she sent 5 boxes.

    I grabbed a slice, but before I could take a bite, I noticed Beta wasn''t sitting down. Her demeanor had changed—her ears were standing straight up, her expression alert and serious.

    "What''s wrong, Beta? Sit and eat with me," I said, confused by her sudden shift in attitude.

    Beta shook her head. "Master, you eat. I''ll be back in a few minutes." Her tone was firm, but she was trying her best to make it sound natural to me or something I shouldn''t worry.

    Before I could ask what was going on, she dashed out of the room, moving with the grace and speed of a cat. I stared at the door, pizza in hand, utterly bewildered.

    "What the hell just happened?" I muttered to myself, taking a slow bite of my pizza.