Against the Algorithm

Chapter 6: The Guardian and the Claim

Eyes judgmental.

Tail flicking slightly, like he was waiting for Yue to try something stupid.

"I swear to god, it's like you sent him after me." Yue groaned and turned to Sicheng.

Sicheng, who had yet to actually involve himself in this conversation, simply exhaled through his nose. Then, in a tone so casually indifferent it made the room pause, he muttered, "Good cat."

Yao nearly choked.

Yue gasped. "YOU'RE SIDING WITH HIM?!"

Ming smirked. "I mean, he does have good instincts."

Lao K cackled. "Oh, this is gonna be fun."

Yao, burying her face in her hands, groaned. "I am never going to survive this team."

The moment those words left Sicheng's mouth— Good cat —Da Bing's ears perked up. His massive, fluffy body shifted, his sharp blue eyes flickering toward Sicheng with an unmistakable awareness. Then, without hesitation, without fear, the massive Siberian cat sauntered across the room.

The team froze.

Yue's mouth dropped open. "Wait. Wait. What is he—"

Lao K, now fully invested, leaned forward. "No. No way."

Ming was watching like this was the most fascinating experiment he had ever witnessed.

And Yao?

Yao stared in horror as her cat, the same cat that had ignored every other human being in existence, calmly walked right up to Lu Sicheng and sat down at his feet. Not just sat down. Plopped down with a sense of entitlement, tail wrapping neatly around his large paws as he lifted his demanding, judgmental gaze up at Sicheng. Like he was expecting something. Like he was waiting.

Yue wheezed. "Oh my god—he wants you to pet him."

Lao K laughed outright. "What the hell, Yao?! I thought you said he doesn't like anyone but you?!"

Yao, still reeling, stammered, "H-He—he doesn't—I-I don't—" But before she could even finish her sentence, before she could process the absolute betrayal happening before her—

Sicheng moved. Casually, smoothly, like he had expected this all along, he reached down and scratched right behind Da Bing's ears.

Da Bing purred.

Not just a soft purr.

A deep, rattling, content purr that made everyone in the room lose their minds.

"EXCUSE ME?" Yue gasped dramatically, nearly falling over the couch.

Pang pointed. "YAO, EXPLAIN THIS."

"That's it. He's not your cat anymore." Lao Mao let out a low whistle.

Yao, completely speechless, gawked. "I—w-what—h-how—"

Meanwhile, Sicheng—completely unbothered—simply continued scratching Da Bing's ears, his expression unreadable, his touch expertly precise like he had been meant to do this all along. Then, in a calm, smug, dangerous tone, he murmured, "Looks like you were wrong."

Yao died inside.

Yue collapsed in laughter.

And Da Bing?

Da Bing purred even louder, as if sealing his fate.

Yao, still utterly overwhelmed by the betrayal unfolding in front of her, could barely find her voice. Her mouth opened, then closed, her hazel eyes flickering between her cat—who was happily purring under Sicheng's touch—and the smug man currently scratching behind his ears like he owned him. Finally, after a few seconds of pure internal struggle, she stammered, her voice barely above a whisper, "B-But—b-but Da Bing even... h-he even hates Ai Jia and Jinyang..."