The General Who Was Forced to Make a Cat Cartoon

Zen Kuon jolted awake, his muscles tight. The air he inhaled smelled sharply of cured leather, dust, and polished metal—a stark contrast to the stale coffee aroma that usually greeted him back on Earth. He lay on a luxurious fur pelt, his body covered by a heavy wool blanket. Everywhere he looked, he felt an unnerving wrongness.

"I must be having an extremely detailed nightmare," he thought, blinking his eyes against the unfamiliar light.

Yet, as his vision slowly focused, reality forced him to accept the truth: he was inside a gigantic military tent constructed of thick canvas. Instead of his cracked apartment walls, the tent was adorned with banners bearing the Golden Lion emblem of the Kingdom of Althea, and in the corner, three sets of gleaming Plate Armor stood ready under the light of an oily lantern. The scene was ripped straight out of a fantasy strategy game he used to play, only this was real—horrifyingly real.

A cold voice echoed in his mind, ignoring the throbbing pain in his head.

> [TIME LEFT ON TASK: 47 HOURS 57 MINUTES.]

> [KEY PROFESSION: CATASTROPHIC ANIMATION CONTENT PRODUCER. MINIMUM 50 FRAMES.]

"Forty-eight hours... the damn deadline followed me into the fantasy world!" Zen inwardly groaned. The absurd Quantum Life Experience System (QLES) contract was real, and now he was in Althea—a Crisis World Level 8—with an animation deadline that had to be met in the middle of a literal fantasy hellscape. He had to finish the task, or face an unknown system penalty.

Just then, a heavy voice, filled with reverence, broke the silence of the tent.

"Commander! You are awake! Thank the gods!"

Zen jumped. A large, middle-aged man wearing silver armor, identified as Commander Elarius (as Zen briefly saw on a nameplate), quickly dropped to one knee in a deep salute. The man—a genuine General, with a scar running across his eye—looked at Zen—who was only wearing his shabby hoodie under the wool cloak—with a mixture of relief, fear, and absolute reverence.

"Commander? I'm—"

"Do not burden your mind, Lord Zen!" Elarius cut in hurriedly, his voice strained with anxiety. "We know you must be exhausted after your mysterious transference to our realm. The Priests confirmed you were sent by the High Council to be our Covert Strategist. We just need clarification."

Elarius stepped to the giant table map that dominated the center of the tent, pointing to the Demon forces drawn in thick black ink.

"The enemy, the Demon race, is advancing in the 'Vulture's Claw' formation. They aim to cut our supply lines and force our troops out of Hope Fortress. We are paralyzed, Lord Zen! We need the code from your 50-frame visual task! Is it the key to our counter-offensive strategy?"

Zen swallowed hard. Clearly, the General had seen the System's message in his place and completely misinterpreted it.

"Ah, the 50 frames?" Zen forced a smile that he hoped looked cunning and mysterious, but probably looked like someone with severe indigestion. "That is... yes, it is absolutely crucial."

Zen summoned his system interface. It appeared as a transparent panel visible only to him. He immediately navigated to the "Quick Content Production" feature.

"Okay," Zen muttered internally, ignoring the General's adoring gaze. "The task is 50 frames about 'Catastrophe.' What's the most catastrophic thing I can draw?"

In a panic, he began sketching crudely on the holographic panel with his finger—a feature provided by the system so he could complete the task without professional tools. He had no time for fancy stop-motion animation.

Frame 1: A small, agile Cat figure (fast unit) is chasing a Laser (an attractive lure).

Frame 2: The Cat is too fast, hitting a wall (the enemy's defense line).

Frame 3: The Cat is trapped in a Sack (a sealed trap).

Frame 4: The Sack is thrown into a Ravine (total destruction).

...

Frame 48: The Cat, having heroically survived, lies alone.

Frame 49: The Cat is given canned food by a girl.

Frame 50: The Cat refuses the laser pointer forever (trauma).

He named the file: "Catastrophe Cat Strategy (50 F.)" and hit the Output button.

> [CONTENT RECEIVED. KEY PROFESSION #1: CATASTROPHIC ANIMATION CONTENT PRODUCER—COMPLETE.]

> [REWARD: 10 QEP (Quantum Experience Points).]

The System immediately displayed the file on an ancient silver tablet lying on the table beside his bed.

Commander Elarius, who had been observing Zen's every move, immediately stepped forward and respectfully retrieved the tablet. His eyes scanned the sequence of silly sketch frames Zen had just made.

At first, Elarius frowned. Then, his eyes widened, his head trembling as if struck by sudden enlightenment.

"This... this is madness!" Elarius roared, but his voice was filled with sheer wonder. "We were all fixated on a frontal defense, but Lord Zen did not see our weakness—he saw enemy psychology!"

Elarius dropped the tablet—his silver armor clanging loudly on the floor—then he pointed at the drawings one by one, explaining to his rushed aide:

* Frames 1-5 (Cat & Laser): "The Cat is our weak, fast scout unit. The Laser is the powerful Lure we feed the Demons. We showcase a vital resource somewhere, baiting them."

* Frames 6-15 (Hitting the Wall): "Our scout units do not retreat; they are sacrificed to hit the enemy's main defense line (the Wall). The Demons will see an easy victory, and halt their advance at that position!"

* Frames 16-40 (Sack & Ravine): "The Sack is a Pincer formation by our hidden units. Once the Demons pause to savor their victory, the hidden units (The Sack) will close in and push them into the Ravine (a geographical vulnerability we overlooked)!"

* Frames 48-50 (Trauma Cat): "And this is the most terrifying part—after the operation, the remaining forces (The surviving Cat) will be traumatized by that specific tactic (the Laser) and refuse to use it again! This is a genius, unpredictable, one-time strategy!"

Commander Elarius then prostrated himself at Zen Kuon's feet, his head touching the tent floor.

"Oh, Lord Zen! We were fools! We only saw the front lines, but you saw psychology, timing, and long-term impact! Your genius surpasses our comprehension!"

Zen, who had just been praised for his trauma cat animation, felt nauseous. Pure panic gripped his throat. He opened his mouth, wanting to scream that it was just a silly cartoon to meet a deadline.

However, he recalled the desperation in Elarius’s face, and the gleaming armor. He had just won the trust of the top Commander in the middle of a crisis. If he told the truth, he would be executed or thrown into the Demon dungeons.

Zen took a deep breath, forcing a deceptive calm—it was the only thing he could do to survive.

Zen had to be Zen.

"It's... merely basics, General Elarius," Zen managed, his voice sounding calm and slightly dismissive, as if bored by the praise. "The strategy has been delivered. I require it to be executed precisely as I demonstrated. Ensure your logistics team is prepared for 'The Sack Maneuver.'"

"Ready, Commander!" Elarius sprang to his feet, his face shining with new determination. "We will deploy the Cat scout units immediately! In the name of the Kingdom of Althea, thank you for the destiny you have given us!"

Zen simply nodded once, closing his eyes. Commander Elarius took Zen's silence as a final, grand approval and rushed out, leaving Zen alone in the tent that suddenly felt much colder.

Zen slumped back onto the fur pelt, no longer caring if he ruined the expensive Commander's cloak. He touched his forehead. The panic had not subsided; instead, it was now mixed with cold dread.

"I’m... I’m a War Commander," he whispered, his voice hoarse. "I just improvised a military tactic based on a cat cartoon, and now millions of lives will depend on whether that 'Sack Maneuver' actually works. If this fails, I won’t just be fired—I might be cooked and served for a Demon dinner."

Zen grabbed his shabby hoodie—the only reminder of his old self—and rubbed his face. On Earth, he only had to avoid render failures and angry clients. Here, failure meant geopolitical catastrophe. The irony was suffocating. He earned 10 QEP from the system, but those points felt like play money compared to the price he was paying: selling his soul to a role he didn't understand.

He tried to focus on the QEP. Ten points. What could he buy with ten points?

Zen opened the [SYSTEM SHOP] hoping to find an escape map or a secret combat skill.

[SYSTEM SHOP]

* Skill [Brew Perfect Turkish Coffee]: 1 QEP

* Skill [Analyze Enemy Weakness (One-time Use)]: 500 QEP

* Skill [Draft Terrible Business Contracts]: 5 QEP

* Skill [Run Quickly on Ice (Passive)]: 25 QEP

"The damn system!" Zen almost wept. "I'm in a Level 8 crisis world, and the only affordable skill is 'Brew Perfect Turkish Coffee'? I could do that without losing my job and my life!"

Zen’s despair peaked. He decided the QEP was useless for now. Survival was the priority. He had to get back to Earth, live peacefully, and retire. To do that, he had to complete all the professions QLES demanded.

Just as he was about to close the shop, the system interface flashed, this time in an attention-grabbing fiery red:

> [CONGRATULATIONS. KEY PROFESSION CYCLE #1—PRODUCER—COMPLETE.]

> [PROFESSIONAL COMPANION (PPC) MANIFESTATION REQUIREMENTS MET.]

> [FIRST PROFESSIONAL COMPANION: LIARA (THE ANALYST) — READY FOR COMMAND.]

Zen stared at the notification. "A Professional Companion? Liara? I never knew I had a girlfriend!"

Suddenly, the tent seemed to vibrate. The air to his left swirled, and an aura of cold blue light began to materialize. In an instant, standing by the map table that Elarius had left, was a young woman. Her silver-grey hair was neatly cut, her eyes sharp behind square glasses, and she wore a perfectly tailored, modern business suit that clashed violently with the medieval tent setting. In her hands, she held a bulky, futuristic-looking laptop.

Liara, Zen’s first Professional Companion, smiled confidently and pressed a key on her laptop.

"Apologies for my delay, Commander Zen Kuon," she said, her voice seamless and cold as steel. "I have completed the data analysis on the Vulture's Claw Formation. Your 'Catastrophe Cat Strategy' is a masterpiece. My analysis shows that after the Sack Maneuver concludes, their primary weakness lies in the eastern logistics sector."

Zen gasped. He recognized Liara’s face. She was a freelance analyst who had worked in the same office complex as him back home. He had always found her too intense and terrifying.

"But... who are you?" Zen asked, his voice wavering.

Liara tilted her head, her expression pure admiration. "I am Liara, The Analyst. My job is to ensure all your strategic plans and data are executed flawlessly, and—" She paused and gestured towards Zen. "—I deeply respect you for knowing that my passive [Rapid Data Analysis] Skill would be key in this war. You are indeed a genius, Commander."

Zen Kuon was speechless. He did not choose Liara. He did not know Liara existed. And worst of all, Liara genuinely believed Zen was a god-tier war strategist.

Just as Zen was about to blurt out the entire misunderstanding, the final notification arrived, sealing Chapter 1 with deadly irony.

> [Key Profession Cycle #1 Complete. Key Profession #2 Assigned.]

> [CURRENT KEY PROFESSION TASK: FERMENTED BREAD MASTER. CREATE 100 VARIETIES OF SOURDOUGH WITHIN 72 HOURS.]

"Bread?!" Zen nearly jumped up. "In the middle of a military campaign?! I have to make sourdough now?!"

But Liara was already standing rigid, her eyes fixed on the map. "Fermented Bread Master? A brilliant idea, Commander! This isn't just for sustenance. This is for Bio-Tactics! We will study fungal and bacterial resistance in the enemy's supplies!"

Zen could only bury his head in his hands. He knew, from this mom

ent on, every absurd action he took would be new evidence of his unintended genius.