“What about the other two actions of the ‘cat’?” Qi Xia raised his head and asked again. “What do ‘Setting Traps’ and ‘Patrolling’ mean?”
“By ‘Setting Traps,’ I mean I’ll place ‘mousetraps’ in one of the rooms,” Groundhog said with a smile. “Since real-world mice struggle to spot mousetraps, we’re simulating that phenomenon here.”
“Tsk, how exactly?” Saturday asked.
“Rooms with ‘mousetraps’ look no different from the others at first glance. But if you press the ‘Search’ button in such a room and a red light turns on, it means I’ve set a ‘mousetrap’ there. This will cause your ‘Search’ to fail—you won’t be able to take food or escape the room. There are only two ways to free yourself: either a teammate rescues you by reopening the door from the outside, or I take you back to the ‘Cat’s Den.'”
“So even if caught by a ‘mousetrap,’ you won’t be eliminated immediately, but you’ll still be taken back by me?” Qi Xia confirmed.
“Exactly,” Groundhog nodded. “That’s what ‘Setting Traps’ means. As for the third action, ‘Patrolling,’ I’ll designate two rooms and open their doors simultaneously, simulating my patrol between them in an attempt to catch the ‘mice’ inside. However, unlike ‘Searching,’ just because the doors are open doesn’t guarantee I’ll catch the mice. You can use any means to dash back to the ‘Mouse Den’ the moment the doors open.”
Qi Xia nodded. “So ‘Patrolling’ widens your ‘attack range’ but reduces your success rate of catching ‘mice.'”
“Having an intelligent leader like you makes explaining things much quicker,” Groundhog agreed. “Just like you, I’ll choose one of these three actions each turn.”
Seeing that everyone seemed to understand, Groundhog led them out of the room and to the entrance of the ‘Mouse Den.’
“Since I’ve said I won’t enter the ‘Mouse Den,’ please open the door yourselves.”
Without hesitation, Qi Xia stepped forward and pushed the door open.
Inside, five chairs were arranged, and on the wall were five palm-sized holes labeled “One,” “Two,” “Three,” “Four,” and “Five.”
“Esteemed leaders, this is your safe house. All the food you steal must be consumed here. ‘Consuming’ means dropping the fruits into the holes corresponding to your numbers.”
The group checked their collars and indeed found small, inconspicuous numbers inscribed.
It seemed that dropping fruits into their designated holes would increase their ‘Satiety Value.’
“Tsk, what a cheapskate…” Saturday muttered, pursing her lips. “I thought we’d at least get to eat one of those fruits…”
“Oh!” Groundhog suddenly remembered something and addressed the group. “Leaders, my apologies for the oversight. I forgot to mention earlier that if you survive, not only will you split the thirty ‘Tao,’ but you’ll also receive all the ‘fruits’ you’ve deposited.”
“Wha—?!” Saturday blinked. “A-All the fruits?”
“Yes, indeed,” Groundhog nodded. “This feature is why my game has so many ‘regulars.’ They come not just for the ‘Tao,’ but also for the fresh fruits.”
“‘Regulars’…?” Qi Xia found the term intriguing. What kind of repeat players were these?
Five people, each contributing five ‘Tao,’ splitting thirty in the end—Groundhog would lose five ‘Tao’ per game. If everyone survived, the game would be meaningless for him, yet he deliberately offered ‘fruits’ as an incentive.
In a world where food was scarce for ten days, a single fresh, sweet fruit was enough to make people fight tooth and nail.
If the ‘Zodiacs’ truly didn’t value ‘Tao,’ did they value ‘food’? The answer was obvious. No one in this world would run a losing business. If all five participants left safely, the ‘Zodiacs’ would lose both ‘Tao’ and ‘fruits.’
A ‘Zodiac’ who devised such a method to attract ‘customers’ was no philanthropist. He would absolutely ensure casualties in this game.
“By the way…” Groundhog added, “only you can deposit food into your own hole to gain ‘Satiety.’ In other words, you can’t feed on behalf of another ‘mouse.'”
“Understood.” Qi Xia nodded, then asked, “Can we store the ‘fruits’ we collect in this room?”
“Of course,” Groundhog replied. “Leaders, no need to be so formal. This is the ‘Mouse Den’—literally a ‘mouse hole.’ You can store food here and use it whenever needed.”
The group now had a rough grasp of the rules.
Though it was called a ‘cat-and-mouse game,’ the emphasis wasn’t on chasing or physical exertion. Instead, it tested the strategies of both ‘cat’ and ‘mice.’ Surviving this game required more than just ‘filling your stomach.’
“Now that the leaders understand the rules, the game will begin in ten minutes.”
Groundhog cast a cold glance at the group and turned to leave, only to be stopped by Qi Xia.
“Wait.”
“What is it?”
“You seem to have forgotten something,” Qi Xia said.
Groundhog thought for a moment. “I don’t think so.”
“Oh?” Qi Xia narrowed his eyes.
“Leader, I’ve said all that I ‘should.’ Any further questions won’t be answered,” Groundhog replied. “With these rules, you have enough to survive this game.”
Qi Xia nodded, then asked again, “I have a personal question for you.”
“A personal question…?” Groundhog frowned. “Now?”
“Yes,” Qi Xia confirmed. “This will affect my strategy for the game.”
“I may not answer, but you can ask,” Groundhog said, his brow furrowed.
Qi Xia took a step forward, closing the distance to Groundhog’s furry face, and whispered, “If you realized you could never become ‘Heaven,’ would you rebel against those above you?”
The moment the words left his mouth, Groundhog’s eyes twitched violently, and he stumbled back two steps.
Never in his wildest dreams could he imagine a participant asking a question that shook the very foundation of a ‘Zodiac’s’ allegiance.
What did this have to do with the participants?
“You… you…” Groundhog blinked, steadying himself before replying with an odd expression. “I don’t understand what you mean, but my leader is my Heaven. I would never act against them.”
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