The Room You Can't Escape Until You've Done 80 Animals

“I want to turn back into a human!!”

Mao Ai throws his head back and wails, but all that comes out is a pitiful bird call.

Three days ago, after a long bout of insomnia, Mao Ai finally managed to fall asleep early. Then he dreamed that his body was covered in feathers. After flapping his wings a couple of times, he somehow figured out how to fly!

It was an incredible experience

if only the eagle behind him hadn't been chasing him and trying to peck him.

He squawked in bird language: “It's my first time being a bird too! Don't hold it against me. Please let me go, okay?”

Strangely enough, the eagle actually stopped chasing him.

But then something even more terrifying happened!

The eagle opened its beak and spoke in a mechanical voice: “Congratulations, Host. You have been bound to the Animal System.”

Mao Ai: ???

Who bound me? Who got bound? Who signed me up?!

System: Complete the current animal role mission: survive for five days. Once completed, the next role mission will begin automatically. You must complete all eighty missions to unlock your human form.

Mao Ai: What happens if I fail?

System: Dea, bzzzt, *%#=/-

Mao Ai doesn't understand, but follows the instructions. He makes it through four and a half days in terror, only to be shot in the chest by a bird hunter with ten minutes left on the fifth day. He's on the verge of death.

Gu Jing, a passing veterinarian, takes him home and treats his wound.

The instant Gu Jing turns away, the mission timer runs out. The System automatically repairs Mao Ai's injury, and he turns into a cat.

Gu Jing freezes, bandages in hand. A man and a cat stare into each other's eyes.

He hurriedly pries open the cat's mouth. “Where did you come from?! Did you eat the bird?!”

“Meow, meow, meow!”

After several strange incidents like this, Gu Jing actually comes to accept the weird things happening to Mao Ai.

Until one day, Mao Ai turns into an elephant.

*

A few notes before reading:

1. “Eighty” is just a figure of speech; there may not actually be that many missions.

2. Both are each other's first and only partner, happy ending.

3. The story contains a lot of original worldbuilding.

4. This is a work of fiction, and some things may not follow real-world logic.

(2025.8.6)

Theme: You can love someone in any form they take (?)