Against the Algorithm

Chapter 6: The Guardian and the Claim

Da Bing, utterly unbothered by the conversation, flicked his tail and stretched out further beside Yao, looking completely indifferent to the chaos he had caused.

Sicheng, still staring at the cat, narrowed his eyes slightly.

Da Bing, sensing the look, turned his gaze toward him.

A silent standoff.

Amber eyes met icy blue.

No movement.

No sound.

Just pure dominance play between a six-foot-two professional gamer and a thirty-five-pound Siberian cat who clearly thought he owned the place.

Yao, watching this unfold, groaned and buried her face in her hands. "This is not what I meant," she mumbled.

Yao sighed, already regretting bringing Da Bing with her, but there was no going back now. Shifting slightly, she adjusted her position and carefully reached down, her fingers sinking into the massive fluff of Da Bing's fur. "Come on," she murmured, gently bobbing him up and down in an attempt to distract him from the absolute chaos unfolding around them. "Just ignore them."

Da Bing growled. Not a full growl—not aggressive, not threatening—but a deep, grumbling sound from his chest that immediately made the room go silent.

Because the reason he was growling?

Was Yue.

Who had leaned in too close to Yao.

Yue, blinking in surprise, immediately froze mid-motion, his hands slightly raised in surrender. "Wait, wait, wait—is he growling at me?"

"I told you, he doesn't like anyone but me." Yao sighed again, still gently bobbing Da Bing.

Lao K, watching in pure entertainment, leaned forward. "Oh, this is great."

Pang smirked. "Yeah, I dunno, Yue... he does not like you near her."

Yue, now very aware of Da Bing's sharp blue stare boring into his soul, slowly stepped back. "Hey, hey, it's cool, it's cool—no need for violence, man."

Da Bing grumbled again.

Sicheng, still watching from his usual calm, composed stance, didn't say anything. But his lips curled ever so slightly at the corner, an almost imperceptible twitch of approval.

Yao, noticing this, huffed and gave Da Bing one last gentle bob before setting him down. "You're being dramatic," she muttered at him.

Da Bing simply sat down beside her again, his tail curling neatly around his paws, his icy blue gaze still locked onto Yue like he was making absolutely sure he stayed in his lane.

"Looks like you're not the favorite, Yue." Ming chuckled softly with his arms crossed over his chest.

Yue, still mildly offended, muttered, "I literally didn't do anything."

Lao Mao shrugged. "Doesn't matter. You got too close to her."

Yao, exasperated, rubbed her temple. "He's not guarding me—"

Yue crossed his arms. "Yeah? Then why is he still staring at me like that?"

Everyone turned to look.

And sure enough—

Da Bing was still staring.

Expression unimpressed.