Ten Day Ultimatum

Chapter 439: Dire Straits

Qi Xia moved forward through the pitch-dark passage, soon realizing it was a staircase descending downward, though its construction was remarkably simple.

A strange, pungent scent lingered in the air, and the stair edges were perfectly aligned, as if no one had ever set foot here since its creation.

“Pity...” Qi Xia murmured, running a hand along the wall, a trace of regret on his face. “You so cleverly wove the principles of the Five Elements into your own game, yet no one could truly comprehend it. Even you had to wear a collar to participate.”

After rounding a left turn, the staircase began ascending. Qi Xia traced the wall to confirm the direction, and before long, he spotted a faintly glowing green button along the far wall.

He reached out decisively and pressed it. The wall before him trembled slightly, then slowly rose.

Standing before him was Qiu Sixteen.

‘The {Mouse House}...?’ Qi Xia’s lips curved in a small smile. ‘That certainly makes the game far easier.’

Qiu Sixteen turned in shock, staring at Qi Xia as he emerged from the wall holding four fruits, utterly at a loss for words.

“Wh—Where did you come from...”

Qi Xia gave no reply. He merely placed all four fruits on the table, then turned and stepped out once more. Time was running short. Though he had already uncovered the path to certain victory, each night lasted only ten minutes.

‘Time is of the essense...’

Inside the {Cat House}, Terrestrial Mouse sat in silence for a while before reaching into the pocket of his suit and taking out a faded photograph.

In the picture stood a man and a woman. The woman had her lips puckered and eyes crossed in a playful expression, brimming with life; beside her, the man wore a helpless smile, gazing at her with unmistakable tenderness.

Terrestrial Mouse gently brushed his fingers over the photograph, then carefully placed it on the ground, far away from himself—as though fearing that the collar’s explosion might destroy it.

Losing his head would be nothing. But that photograph must not be lost.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered hoarsely, voice trembling. “I’ve tried everything I could think of...but there isn’t a single way out.”

His words broke apart, choked by the weight of despair. “I’ve thought through every possible plan...I don’t /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ even have a shred of hope left...”

Terrestrial Mouse cast one final look at the lively, lovely woman in the photograph with those monstrous eyes of his. He reached out to touch her face on the photo, then touched his own short-furred mouse head, letting out a bitter, wry smile.

Yes... there was no going back.

Why had he ever naively believed that becoming a massive mouse covered in brown fur would bring him any closer to returning? His former self had been ten days away from escape; his current self was no longer even human.

The most laughable trait of humanity is its refusal to give up, clinging to hope even in hopelessness.

{Click}.

The {Cat House} door swung open. Terrestrial Mouse slowly rose to his feet, smoothed the fur atop his head, then donned that same despairing smile once more as he stepped into the corridor.

All five doors before him were locked.

One by one, he opened each door from the outside. Inside, there was neither a single {Mouse} nor any fruit.

Before him lay only five empty rooms.

That team captain had comprehended the game far too quickly. In a game meant to last six rounds, he had spent the first round testing his speculations, and by the second round had fully grasped the rules. Now, in the third round, all the fruit had already been brought to the {Mouse House}. In the days to come, the {Cat} would find no fruit and capture not a single {Mouse}.

The {Cat} would starve to death.

“Why...” Terrestrial Mouse murmured, a bitter smile creeping onto his face. “Why is it that everyone wants me dead... yet I’ve been clinging to life with all my might. Have I been too willful?”

He moved forward with heavy, mechanical steps, opening each door and closing it behind him.

“This cursed game should have ended long ago...” he whispered. “A place where one must kill to escape...should never have allowed anyone to survive.”

Crossing the corridor, he felt the collar around his neck tighten once more, this time constricting so sharply he could hardly breathe.

Finally, he stopped before the {Mouse House} door.

{Knock, knock, knock}.

After a short while, a sound came from inside.

“Speak.”

Terrestrial Mouse slowly lifted his head. “It’s over. I’m leaving.”

“Oh?” Qi Xia replied. “You’re not going to keep playing?”

“There’s no need.” Terrestrial Mouse shook his head. “This is the best ending I can hope for.”

“Then is there anything you wish to say?” Qi Xia asked.

“It might sound presumptuous, but I do have a request...” Terrestrial Mouse began.

Qi Xia glanced at the four teammates standing neatly behind him and said, “You’re the one requesting a favor, yet somehow the words {esteemed leader} doesn’t seem to exist anymore?”

“There’s no need.” Terrestrial Mouse’s voice was calm. “When this round ends, my collar will detonate. There’s a photo in my {Cat House}. I was afraid the explosion would destroy it, so I left it there... Could you, after I die, put that photo back into my pocket?”

Qi Xia remained silent.

Terrestrial Mouse went on, “I just want to die with it. That way, even if someone finds my bones...they’ll at least know who I was.”

“I refuse,” Qi Xia said. “That is your affair; there is no need to trouble us.”

Terrestrial Mouse sighed faintly. “You strike me as someone exceptionally skilled at deception yet at a moment like this you’re too lazy to even lie to me?”

“I need not flatter you with falsehoods here,” Qi Xia answered. “I do not know you, nor do I know how precious that photograph is. It is entirely possible that once you are dead I will tear it apart myself; out of sight, out of mind.”

“You...” Terrestrial Mouse forced another bitter smile. “Is that necessary? If we are strangers, why must you see me utterly destroyed...?”

Only now did Qi Xia’s expression harden. He spoke through the door with an edge in his voice, “To be frank, if your game continues you will die sooner or later. You will never become a {Celestial}.”

“Is that so?” Terrestrial Mouse turned away, expression blank, and leaned against the door. “Would joining you really offer a way out?”

“When dead ends close in on all sides, the primary task is to smash straight through the wall.”

“I don’t believe that’s how it goes.” Terrestrial Mouse replied. “Even if I do not break the wall, someone else will. My best course is to follow the one who breaks through; less effort, less worry, and it ensures my safety.”

“But you are already in extreme danger,” Qi Xia said with a cold laugh. “I have you at gunpoint, will you still resist breaking through?”