Walking the Dog

The attic is safe for now.

If the enemies come looking for us, they'll break down the door first, giving us a chance to escape through the window.

Gaoxin observed the battle while quickly recounting everything he had discussed with Silver Hand.

Everyone was deeply moved upon hearing this.

"Right now, I'm not sure if I'm still considered a cat, or if the Organizer will recognize it, but the cat collar is on my neck. Big Beard will definitely hunt down all the mice just to find this collar."

"He might even let other mice escape if they aren't me. That's because he probably saw Silver Hand give me the collar."

"Therefore, staying with me is very dangerous."

Meimei nodded, instantly understanding.

Then, with a strange expression, she asked, "In such a critical moment, you could think of so much? Was this a contingency plan you'd been preparing all along!"

"When the bald man snatched the dog collar, you didn't care. You already thought of the mouse collar then."

"And you didn't want me to follow you because you knew it would be dangerous for me... So you're a good person."

Meimei chuckled at the end.

Gaoxin shot her a sideways glance. "So good people deserve to be framed and end up in this hellhole?"

Meimei blinked. "You were framed?"

Gaoxin nodded. "I am indeed a good person. At least, I've never done anything bad, but now I want to survive more than anything."

"If you hadn't found the attic key, I wouldn't have let you follow me. With you following us, it's more likely we'd all die together."

Meimei understood. If it weren't for the attic, which was practically a safe house where multiple people could hide and escape at any time, then the three of them together would have been meaningless, a liability.

"This guy is truly a madman, giving you the cat collar and going to fight three people alone..."

The three stood in the attic, admiring Silver Hand's fierce battle.

The plan had deviated slightly. Perhaps those two hated Silver Hand too much, or maybe they wanted to join forces to kill Silver Hand quickly, eliminating one threat before dealing with Big Beard.

In any case, Silver Hand didn't get a one-on-one fight; he was facing an ambush by two brothers.

He was incredibly strong, fighting two opponents at once, retaliating and exchanging blows, leaving the other two heavily wounded as well.

Gaoxin said gravely, "Old Cat basically has two strategies. One is to accept protection fees from the mice and drag the game out until the end during the three-dog encirclement, earning 2100.

"The other is what I taught him: first, abandon the cat identity and defeat the strong enemies one by one, then transform back into a cat and kill everyone else."

Meimei felt fortunate. "Thankfully, he's so crazy and truly wants to win everything. He agreed to your method and chose to kill all three of them."

Gaoxin said, "He will definitely choose the second option because he rejected the first one."

"He even said things like, 'The rewards are the same, why wouldn't I choose to kill people?'"

"If he weren't so arrogant, so brutal, and so eager to provoke others and challenge himself, he would have accepted our first plan long ago. So, he will definitely choose the ending where he kills everyone."

The two suddenly realized. That's right, if the other party was the type of person to accept the second plan, he should have accepted the first plan earlier...

"And you still say you didn't plan this all along? When he broke the agreement before, you knew this guy was terrifyingly greedy and would definitely choose the 'win everything' playstyle. This was your contingency!" Meimei laughed.

Gaoxin shook his head. "What's the use of having thought of it early? I didn't want to face this situation. I just hoped the cat would accept the first option..."

"I told you, we are just ordinary people. In this world, there are too many things where even after fighting desperately, you still fail. Perhaps someone's whim, a single sentence, can ruin all your efforts..."

"Actually, even though he accepted the plan then, he still had murderous intent towards me. I almost died."

Meimei asked curiously, "He accepted it, so why did he still want to kill you?"

Gaoxin said helplessly, "Him accepting this plan doesn't mean he accepted me as a person, nor does it mean he accepted some of the details I mentioned."

"He hates the weak, and he hates having to listen to a plan given to him by a weakling even more."

"So, he could have just killed me, then found another mouse, given the cat collar to him, and even helped him hide. It would still have been feasible... and the other party would have been incredibly grateful."

The two were shocked. That's right, in the plan, the person 'Gaoxin' wasn't that important.

What if he killed the person who proposed the method and then told the same thing to another mouse? If anything, it was just that Silver Hand didn't have time to find someone else then.

This was the so-called unprovoked killing intent: "Oh, you're smart, you said it well, but I'm still going to kill you because I have the strength to do so."

Some malice is that simple.

"Then how did you convince him?" Meimei asked curiously.

Gaoxin's eyes blazed. "I simply questioned him, asking if he was afraid he couldn't beat me in the end..."

Meimei nodded. "So that's how it is. He's so arrogant, how could he stand being provoked by you like that."

"Provoked?" Gaoxin was confused. He didn't even know what the word meant.

Meimei's lips twitched, then she chuckled. "So you didn't understand."

"It's about using words to stimulate the other party, triggering certain emotions, hurting their pride, and thus making them make the choice you desire."

Gaoxin felt like he had learned something. "So that's called provocation. Actually, at the time, I was mostly just too angry. I was mocking him as I faced death, and I didn't expect him to fall for it."

As they were talking, a scream suddenly came from downstairs.

"Ughhh!"

On the second floor, it seemed a mouse had been found by Big Beard.

"Another one dead," Sule murmured.

Meimei shook her head. "He won't kill them. Listen, the screams are long and drawn out. His hands and feet must have been broken..."

Indeed, everything was proceeding as Gaoxin had predicted. Big Beard wasn't a cat... he was like a dog catching a mouse, he wouldn't kill.

After a good while, at least ten minutes, screams came from the third floor again.

It was clear Big Beard was much slower at finding mice now. It was unclear if it was a problem with his abilities, or if Silver Hand had already caught all the easy-to-find mice, leaving only those who were extremely well-hidden.

The screams of the mice Big Beard found now, and the one from before, intertwined, forming a duet.

Everyone listened carefully, feeling the sounds getting closer.

They could easily imagine the scene: two mouse players, their limbs broken, being dragged away by Big Beard.

He'd drag them to other rooms, find the next one, and repeat the process endlessly.

"Hiss, falling into the hands of a dog seems even worse," Sule clicked his tongue.

Meimei whispered, "I can tell Big Beard's location by the sound. He's getting closer to the stairs."

All three of them gathered by the window, preparing to escape.

Once they reached the stairs, the fourth floor only had one large room: the attic. When Big Beard saw the locked door, he'd know someone was hiding inside.

"Huh? Why did he go down?"

Meimei's eyes lit up. The screams were growing further away. Big Beard had reached the stairs, but then he went down, and quickly at that.

Sule was delighted. "Maybe he heard something downstairs?"

"Or maybe he felt that carrying two burdens would expose his position, and he wants to throw all the captured mice to the first floor lobby."

As expected, the sounds traveled all the way to the first floor and then stopped.

It seemed the captured mice had their limbs broken and were thrown into the lobby. They could no longer track Big Beard's position by the screams.

Sule worried, "He won't come in through the window, will he?"

"Silver Hand is still fighting, leaving Big Beard free to roam. What do we do?"

Meimei pointed at the cat collar around Gaoxin's neck. "Gaoxin, why don't we take this off you now?"

"If Big Beard comes up, we'll throw this thing into the courtyard and let them fight over it."

"I don't believe that won't result in a few deaths!"

Gaoxin pondered. "A more likely outcome is that we'll just hand it over to Big Beard for nothing."

"Right now, those two brothers are locked in a fierce battle with Silver Hand. If the cat collar suddenly appears, it's likely all three of them will be too busy fighting each other to get it."

"Then, the well-rested Big Beard will easily become the cat, and he'll kill every mouse he finds. Those people he already caught will all die."

"Don't you understand? The biggest role the cat collar plays when I have it is preventing Big Beard from killing people. Even if you're caught, your limbs will just be broken."

"And as long as I'm not caught, you won't die."

Sule understood. Gaoxin was now the 'lifeline' for all the mice. If he was caught, they would all die.

If he wasn't caught, even if everyone else was wiped out, there was still a chance.

Meimei sighed. "So that's how it is. I understand now."

Sule pondered. "But what about you, Brother Xin Ku? How long can you keep hiding? There's still over an hour left."

"Why don't we just hide the collar? Yes, that way you'll be safe too. If he catches any of us, he won't kill us because we don't have the cat collar, and he'll keep searching."

"This way, no matter who gets caught, the worst outcome will be broken limbs."

Gaoxin chuckled. "Then why don't you just throw it outside the walls?"

Sule's eyes lit up. "Ah, that's right! We'll just throw it outside the walls! Once players enter, they can't leave until time is up."

Gaoxin shook his head. "What's the point? The number of mice is limited. Nine have already been killed, and one suffocated in the lobby stairs."

"That means there are only ten mice left."

"Big Beard has already caught two. Excluding the three of us, there are five hiding in various places."

"If he catches all of us and finds none of us have the cat collar, what do you think will happen?"

Sule was stunned. Meimei said softly from the side, "That will be worse than death. He'll definitely torture us, forcing us to reveal the cat collar's whereabouts."

Who knew what methods the Radiators had? They wouldn't be able to endure for over an hour.

Even if they did, what would be the point? It would cause others to lose their points, and they would still kill them all in the end out of spite.

Gaoxin said calmly, "For us, this game cannot be without a cat. With a cat, there's still a chance to negotiate. Without a cat, the rest will be garbage time, turning into a game of torturing mice for revenge."

"Once they know the collar was thrown outside the walls, every single Radiator will think, 'These damned mice cost me my redemption vouchers.' At that point, the four of them might even team up."

Sule scratched his head, staring at Gaoxin. "I get it. Where the cat collar is doesn't matter at all. The important thing is that at least one mouse must not be caught."

"As long as one isn't caught, the other mice won't die."

"Brother Xin Ku, it's up to you. You absolutely must hide well."

"At the critical moment, I'll buy you time!"

Meimei nodded beside him. "Everything is for covering you. You cover your neck, and when we run later, I'll pretend to have the cat collar to lure Big Beard into chasing me."

Gaoxin nodded, took off his shirt, and wrapped it around his neck.

After discussing for a few more sentences, they each stood by a window.

However, this time they weren't facing forward, but on the left, right, and back sides of the mansion.

Everyone gripped the ropes, fully focused...

Suddenly, Meimei cried out, "Ah! He's climbing up from my side!"

It turned out that the big, bearded white man wasn't stupid.

He had actually seen them descend from the attic and deliver the collars from outside, so he knew the attic had many ways in and out.

And when he was dragging the two wailing mice earlier, he had reached the stairs and seen the attic door, but he hadn't rushed to break it down.

Instead, he deliberately took the wailing mice downstairs to the hall, and then secretly climbed up from the direction of a window.

He climbed the stairs directly with his bare hands, incredibly fast.

If the three of them hadn't been cautiously standing by the windows, constantly watching below and not letting their guard down, they would have been in serious trouble.

"Scatter and run!"

Gaoxin threw his rope and was the first to climb out the window.

Meimei's window was right where Big Beard was climbing, so she naturally couldn't go down that way. She hurriedly ran to another window.

But this clearly wasted time.

Seeing this, Sule didn't immediately jump out the window. Instead, he rushed over, picked up a heavy box, and smashed it out the window from which Big Beard was climbing.

"You bastard, I'll smash you to death!"

Sule kept picking up nearby debris and throwing it forcefully at Big Beard, buying time for Meimei.

However, this didn't delay him for long. Big Beard endured the debris, climbed with one hand, and with the other, he swung his giant axe upwards.

"Holy crap!"

The flying axe was extremely heavy, making a terrifying whistling sound as it soared up.

"Bang!"

Sule leaned back and fell to the ground, narrowly dodging it.

The giant axe directly smashed through the roof and brought down the roof beams!

Suddenly, half of the attic roof collapsed, burying Sule.

Meimei turned her head and saw the collapse on that side, with concrete walls pressing down on Sule. She was full of anxiety.

"It's fine, you go. Protect the collar," Sule shouted. He was already prepared to be captured, and he even deliberately said a few false words to cover for Gaoxin.

Meimei let out a sound, and then used the rope to escape from the other window.

At the same time, Big Beard had already jumped up, only catching a glimpse of Meimei escaping.

"Still trying to run?"

Big Beard the white man completely ignored Sule. He casually picked up his axe and strode after her.

He charged like a bull, smashing through the window and a section of the wall, then leaped out the window himself!

Meimei was terrified. She was still climbing down the rope!

"Ah!" The window shattered, and the rope immediately came loose. Meimei fell heavily to the ground, with a pile of broken bricks and wood crashing down beside her.

"Thud!"

When she got up, ignoring the pain, and scrambled to her feet, she saw Big Beard had landed right in front of her. With one hand, he lifted her small body.

"Hmm? Where's the cat collar!" Big Beard was furious. He had been tricked. This woman didn't have the cat collar on her.

Meimei stammered. Experiencing this feeling of being prey up close, she couldn't even form a coherent sentence.

Although theoretically, he wouldn't kill her, being held in his hand, she couldn't help but feel terrified.

Big Beard crunched down, shattering her left shoulder.

The intense pain made Meimei scream loudly.

Immediately after, her legs were also kicked and broken. The woman's face contorted to the extreme.

At the same time, she understood why the captured mice had been wailing incessantly... Pain! It was too painful!

Big Beard, carrying the crying Meimei, quickly turned to the back of the mansion.

This was where Gaoxin had descended. He had just landed.

In reality, he had been fast this time, practically risking his life, but unfortunately, Big Beard was faster.

At the critical moment, Gaoxin covered the clothes on his neck and shouted, "Let go of that woman, I have the collar!"

After saying that, he turned and ran.

Big Beard was furious, but after chasing only two steps, he suddenly froze.

He then abandoned chasing Gaoxin, slung his Giant Axe behind his back, and started climbing back up to the attic.

He was very strong, carrying Meimei in one hand and climbing with the other, still moving quickly.

Although Meimei was wailing, she saw the situation and realized that this guy hadn't carefully examined the collar on Sule's neck before.

Gaoxin's neck was covered up, making Big Beard even more suspicious, thinking it was another attempt to distract him.

The priority was to catch the cat; once he was a cat, the mouse couldn't escape, and a flying axe from a distance would be fatal.

"Run! He's climbing up again!" Meimei screamed, warning Sule.

With this reminder, Big Beard immediately threw her down and climbed up faster with both hands.

Meanwhile, Sule, hearing the commotion in the attic, braced himself on his hands, veins bulging and muscles tensed.

"Ughhhhh!"

He knew that Big Beard mistakenly believed the collar was with him, so he couldn't be caught so easily. He had to buy Gaoxin more time.

"Lift!"

This young man was truly strong; he pushed away the concrete wall that was pressing down on him.

Freed from the pressure, Sule quickly climbed out of the window on the other side.

When Big Beard arrived, he saw the empty attic and his face immediately darkened.

But when he rushed to the other window, Sule was nowhere to be seen, only a swaying rope.

Big Beard's expression turned grim. His ears twitched, and knowing Sule was on the third floor, he immediately leaped.

Passing the third floor, he grabbed the windowsill in mid-air and flipped inside.

Thus, with the cooperation of the three in leading the dog astray, Gaoxin gained a rare and ample amount of free time.

At this moment, his eyes were resolute. In a corner, he rapidly stripped off his clothes, leaving him in only his underwear.

p.s: Sorry.