The two mice that had been targeted ran off in different directions, while the black-and-white dog recoiled its paw in pain after using too much force.
It looked like it was suffering... Alice felt a little remorse over what she had just done. She regretted doing that.
Just then, the experienced black dog suddenly leaped up, but this time, its target was not the mice—it was its opponent.
The trajectory of its pounce made Alice's pupils contract. Without Thinking, she stuffed another dose of Doom into it.
The sturdy black dog's front leg cramped up, turning its pounce into a roll across the ground.
But its hostility was noticed by the other black-and-white dog. It turned toward the black dog, and its foolish gaze became fierce as well. Its body arched slightly, its claws dug into the ground, and it bared its teeth with a threatening growl.
This game of Dogs Catching Mice, under Alice's instigation, ultimately turned into a duel between two dogs.
The gamblers had yet to realize the seriousness of the situation. At the call of the gambler who had been the most excited earlier, they became fired up again. "Go! Tear it apart!"
The two dogs seemed influenced by the atmosphere. They lunged at each other and tangled together, one swiping with a claw, the other biting back, neither willing to give ground.
Alice thought for a moment, then edged closer to the bar and leaned against it to watch the two dogs fight.
With little difference in size or strength, the black dog was clearly more experienced, fiercer, and more explosive than the other.
Unfortunately, it carried more Doom, making the fight go anything but smoothly. The two dogs actually ended up more or less evenly matched.
The mice squeaked as they fled, moving away