"Meow, meow, meow. I only made high-quality imitations; the taste might not be entirely the same, and I can't make dishes that boost stats," Boss Cat reminded them.
It had heard from Lanqi that Tata and her friends might really enjoy Demon Realm-style cuisine, so it had studied it diligently.
Although it felt this line of dishes might not necessarily become a new specialty of Boss Cat Restaurant, at least it didn't have to worry about the Hutton National Security Bureau investigating its establishment for harboring demons. All of its fine employees were completely clean, and every single one acted thoroughly human.
"Thank you so much, Boss Cat. It really feels like going back to those days," Hyperion stroked Boss Cat and said with a smile.
She recalled that back at Purgatory Corridor Academy, the Demon King's Bestowed Restaurant had two dishes that provided temporary stat buffs. Lanqi had let her have both. Thinking back on it, her combat stats hadn't ended up being of much use anyway; she had simply enjoyed delicious food.
This time, however, she could share the meal with Lanqi.
Accompanied by the delicate melodies of restaurant instruments, Lanqi and Hyperion began their dinner.
"By the way... is the livestream still on?"
Hyperion picked up her fork, looked across the table at Lanqi, and asked.
She felt that Lanqi had been kissed silly just now and hadn't even thought to cut off the broadcast right away.
Or rather, cutting it off immediately wouldn't help anyway—it would only cause people to misunderstand even more. It was better to just let it run naturally for a little longer.
"You know what? When everyone thinks it's a broadcast accident, we just need to keep acting calm. That way, it looks like we did it on purpose rather than by accident," Lanqi said with a smile.
"Oh, honestly, don't bring it up again."
Hyperion knew this was Lanqi's so-called "Lan-style defense."
And bringing it up proactively was itself a form of Lan-style defense.
"Meow, meow, meow? What are you two talking about?"
Boss Cat looked up in confusion.
"Nothing."
The two exchanged a smile, not telling Boss Cat what had just happened.
And so, while the two enjoyed their candlelit dinner, Boss Cat sprawled on the floor beside them, looking once again at the scoreboard it cared so much about.
Today was still their twenty-eighth day in this Shadow World.
Although it had already checked it this morning before departing with Lanqi for the palace, Boss Cat kept an eye on it constantly.
[Popular Support: 565 → 586/1000 (The populace's approval rating and cohesion)]
[Parliament: 176 → 175/1000 (Approval rating among high-ranking officials within the Polant Empire)]
[Military Power: 182 → 199/1000 (With the Horning Empire as a reference)]
[Finances: 323 → 325/1000 (The Polant Empire's current productivity status)]
[Diplomacy: 232/1000 (Diplomatic relations with the Demon Realm and neighboring nations that have yet to surrender)]
[Overall Win Rate: 0.0074%]
Thanks to Lanqi's efforts at the Demon King's Palace during the day, their win rate had finally leapt from 0.0013% to 0.0074%.
Although it was still far from the 1% requirement, Boss Cat wasn't worried at all now.
[Popular Support] was slowly rising even without interference; currently, Prime Minister Lanqi Wilfort's image was steadily taking root among the citizens of the Polant Empire.
Boss Cat couldn't even guess how explosive the spike would be once Lanqi returned to the Polant Empire and delivered an impassioned speech like the one he had given in the Protos Empire.
Since the demon race had not yet officially allied with the Polant Empire, [Diplomacy] remained unchanged for now.
Once he brought the Lord of the Fallen back to the Polant Empire, persuaded the cabinet, and successfully forged an alliance with the demon race, the diplomacy stat would likely shoot up dramatically. At the same time, an increase in [Diplomacy] would also reflect in [Military Power] and [Finances].
The current rise in [Military Power] was probably because the Blood Clan had lost a battered Tier 9 Fourth Progenitor, Duke Eduardo, and an unscathed Tier 8 Tenth Progenitor, Marquis Ulysses, causing their total combat strength to drop by a few percentage points, which in turn lifted the Polant Empire by a few points relative to the Horning Empire.
The more Boss Cat thought about it, the closer it felt to its dream of reaching Tier 8.
"Guardian Divine Beast, meow meow meow!"
It rolled around on the floor in sheer bliss.
"Don't worry, Boss Cat. I guarantee the rewards from this Shadow World will be fantastic," Lanqi said, glancing down at the little black cat on the floor.
He had already devised a plan to help Boss Cat farm contribution points.
All kinds of war-criminal deeds could just be left to the cat.
After all, the laws of war didn't state that a cat couldn't do such things.
And the rewards of a Shadow World, beyond being tied to contribution points, in terms of the magic cards and magic materials dropped, usually depended on the challenger's combat style or the enemies they defeated within the Shadow World.
The highest-tier spell Boss Cat had used in this Shadow World was the wind spell Roar of the Storm Dragon, and it hadn't defeated any enemies with its own paws. Thus, once its contribution points were boosted sky-high, the reward would undoubtedly be wind-attributed.
It was likely to wander further and further down the path of playing a High Priest.
Who knew, this Shadow World might even reward it with an epic wind spell that even Dean Loren didn't know!
"Meow meow meow, once we're back in the Polant Empire, lend me your Prime Minister account to play with! Either way, it's pretty much the same whether you play or I play, meow. Won't make much difference anymore."
Boss Cat swaggered over, tail raised smugly.
Every time it hid in Lanqi's shadow, it felt like a pilot operating a machine.
Lanqi's slick moves felt like plays it had made itself.
However, the moment those words left the little black cat's mouth, Lanqi's expression froze, and Hyperion realized something was terribly wrong.
Lanqi hastily shut down the livestream.
"Lanqi, what's wrong, meow?"
Boss Cat didn't know if it had said something wrong.
"It's... a bit hard to explain."
Boss Cat's words sounded completely normal to Lanqi.
Outside, however, they might take on an entirely different meaning.
"Lanqi, should we... come clean to the outside world about our current situation?" Hyperion asked worriedly.
Loren was out there bearing immense pressure all by himself, while the two of them were doing a sweet duo-queue in the Shadow World.
She was a little worried Loren's lane would collapse first.
"But if we do that, wouldn't it expose that you've become the princess revered by the demon race?"
Lanqi knew Hyperion disliked her demon heritage, which was why he only briefly turned on the livestream to report they were safe during those rare moments when no other demons were in sight and it was just the two of them alone.
"Uh, but Dean Loren..."
Hearing Lanqi's words, Hyperion felt a touch of warmth. He was becoming more and more considerate, remembering everything she had ever told him.
Yet a pang of guilt surged in her heart right after.
"It's fine. I promise you, Dean Loren only needs to withstand the pressure for a few more days. You and I will clear this Shadow World completely, and when that time comes, every questioning voice will turn into reverent praise."
Lanqi clenched his fist, speaking with firm determination.
If they reopened the livestream now to give an update on their situation, a huge portion of those questioning Loren probably wouldn't believe it anyway.
It would be far more convincing to present concrete results when the time came.
Lanqi did a quick calculation: back in the real world, it was only morning. As long as Dean Loren hadn't just returned to the school from some tribunal, walked into Jera Memorial Square, and suddenly seen Hyperion kissing Lanqi on the screen, he should still be able to hold out under the pressure.
Chapter 591