The expression on the Earth Horse darkened for a moment, unsure how to respond.
At that moment, the Earth Pig lifted his head and looked at her, saying, “Just agree for now. Go get your injuries treated first. If you delay any longer, your foot will definitely be ruined.”
The Earth Horse glanced at the people in the room, lost in thought for a while before finally saying, “I understand.”
This time, no one stepped forward to stop her as she left. After all, what needed to be done was already done.
The Earth Horse now was unlikely to do anything reckless. She just needed time to think things through and would return on her own.
The only remaining troublemaker in the room was the Earth Pig. Since they had been enemies just moments ago, no one knew how to handle the situation now.
The Earth Pig took a few steps toward the Spendthrift Tiger, then bent down and rolled up his pant leg, revealing his delicate knee before pointing at it.
“What?” the Spendthrift Tiger asked.
“Kick me,” the Earth Pig said.
“What the hell?!”
The Earth Pig sighed. “Fair is fair. I ambushed you earlier without knowing the situation. Now you kick me back, and we’re even.”
“Damn it…” The Earth Tiger felt completely baffled. “You really are just a kid, huh? You hit me, so what? You didn’t kill me. Why the hell would I need to ‘kick you back’?”
“I was barely thirteen when I became an ‘Earth-level’,” the Earth Pig replied. “Calling me a child isn’t wrong, except I’ve been living here for decades.”
His words plunged the room into silence. If they didn’t figure something out, they’d end up trapped here even longer than he had.
“No wonder your cocky attitude reminds me of my younger self. Damn, you really are a kid?” The Earth Tiger’s tone softened slightly. “If you’re just a kid, then I won’t hold it against you. Let’s just drop it.”
He waved his hand dismissively and limped over to sit down, muttering, “I’m too old to be picking fights with children.”
The Earth Pig thought for a moment, then lowered his pant leg and said, “I don’t want to owe you. As repayment, I’ll do something for you. What do you want? As long as it’s within my power, I’ll do it.”
The Spendthrift Tiger studied him before grinning. “Damn, someone took advantage of me earlier. Go kill that Black Goat for me. I can’t stand it anymore.”
“Fine.” The Earth Pig nodded seriously. “I’ll do it now.”
“Huh?” The Black Goat stiffened. “Damn it, Spendthrift Tiger, you’ve got no gratitude! That was just a stalling tactic!”
Before he could finish, the Earth Pig lunged forward, only for the Spendthrift Tiger to hastily grab him.
“Hey, forget it! I was joking!”
Everyone in the room felt like they’d just gained another problem child.
“You told me to kill him,” the Earth Pig said, confused.
“I’m fully convinced you’re a kid now,” the Earth Tiger sighed, shaking his head. “You love acting like a boss and have no manners, so I really thought you were just a scheming little runt…”
“Either way, I’m not growing any taller,” the Earth Pig said. “If you don’t need me for anything else, I’ll leave now.”
“Leave…?” The Earth Tiger blinked. “You’re not going to interfere with our rebellion anymore?”
“You guys already said it,” the Earth Pig replied. “Your goal is just the ‘Heavenly’ ones. Kill them, and you’ll get promoted. I don’t care about that. Until I find a real path to ascension, I won’t act recklessly.”
“Real path to ascension?”
“Yeah. At the very least, I don’t want to be the next White Goat.” The Earth Pig sighed. “Even if I’m going to vanish here, I won’t die without knowing why.”
The Black Goat frowned. “I think I get it… You thought we gathered here to rebel for Goat’s sake? No wonder you assumed Spendthrift Tiger was our leader.”
“Wasn’t that the case?” The Earth Pig looked puzzled. “You must’ve guessed the White Goat probably died, so you wanted answers from the ‘Heavenly’ ones here.”
The group exchanged glances. The Earth Tiger wiped the blood from his face and limped over. “Listen, kid, what if I told you Goat isn’t just fine—he’s still in the ‘Endgame,’ fighting the ‘Dragon’?”
“What…?”
“It’s true,” the others chimed in, nodding. The Earth Rat added, “Pig Boss, every ‘Zodiac’ in this room today must’ve seen the White Goat during the day.”
They filled the Earth Pig in on what had happened, and he thought back.
He hadn’t noticed anything suspicious—just a tough leather-clad team that nearly outsmarted him.
As for the “unsmiling young man” or the “annoying young man” they mentioned, he’d never seen them.
“So you’re not carrying the White Goat’s will forward… You’re directly following his orders?” the Earth Pig murmured.
“Could you stop being so melodramatic?” the Slacker Dog, silent until now, finally spoke up. “First, it’s ‘a promise from the Heavenly-level,’ now it’s ‘carrying the White Goat’s will.’ I’ve held back long enough—cut down on the anime, will you?”
“Hey, he’s just a kid,” the Earth Tiger said. “Liking cartoons is good—keeps the mind sharp.”
“Damn it…” The Black Goat was exasperated. “Why do you turn soft the second someone’s a kid? I didn’t see you holding back when you two were beating each other up earlier.”
“We were just messing around,” the Earth Tiger said, rubbing his sore knee. “If he’d told me he was way younger, I wouldn’t have hit him so hard. Right, kid?”
The Earth Pig ignored him, muttering to himself, “But it’s so cool… A pact between humans and beasts… A cross-species rebellion…”
“What the hell do you mean ‘cross-species’?” The Black Goat took offense. “If you don’t think you’re human, don’t drag us into it.”
“We’re ‘beastmen,’ they’re ‘humans’…” The Earth Pig asked earnestly. “Isn’t that crossing species?”
The others stared at him in silence, as if watching a child babble nonsense.
“Sure, kid. Got it. Go play now,” the Slacker Dog waved dismissively.
“Wait!” The Earth Pig perked up. “Tell me more about your plans!”
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