Ten Day Ultimatum

Chapter 436: Begging for Mercy

“Ah?!” Zhou Six froze. “A–Are you sure about that?”

“I only assume the worst-case scenario,” Qi Xia replied. “But my assumptions are usually quite accurate.”

“Tsk, then... Wang Eight is doomed, isn’t he? What do we do next...?” Zhou Six asked, furrowing her brow.

“I need to contact Luo Eleven,” Qi Xia said. “We must ascertain {Cat}’s movements.”

Hearing this, Zhou Six hurriedly nodded, mentally contacting Luo Eleven. Perhaps it was from the overuse of her {Sound Conveyance}, she was beginning to feel somewhat lightheaded.

Qi Xia had no vantage point within the {Mouse Room}; all he could do was wait. Qiu Sixteen remained beside him, silent and tense, not daring to speak.

After several tense seconds, Zhou Six’s anxious voice came through, “Qi Xia! Tsk, it’s just as you said! Terrestrial Mouse is hovering between Room Four and Five! He looks like he's about to make a choice. What should we do?!”

Qi Xia narrowed his eyes, and after a moment of contemplation, he said, “Have Wang Eight deliberately expose his location, and then make a wager with Terrestrial Mouse.”

“De–Deliberately expose himself?”

“Yes. Do as I say.”

Zhou Six hesitated for a moment. “Alright... I understand.”

Several more tense seconds passed before Zhou Six’s voice came again. “Tsk, it seems we’ve managed to stop Terrestrial Mouse, but Wang Eight’s position is now exposed. Terrestrial Mouse knows he’s in Room Five and is standing at the door... Can this really work?”

“Terrestrial Mouse would figure it out sooner or later; better to reveal himself voluntarily,” Qi Xia remarked.

“Tsk... but what kind of wager is he supposed to make? Can he really stop Terrestrial Mouse?”

“You have Wang Eight tell Terrestrial Mouse, {If I guess the fruit count in the Room Three correctly, you’ll overlook me this once, deal?}”

“Ah?” Zhou Six froze. “Tsk... Don’t you think that’s a little too childish—”

“Relay it verbatim,” Qi Xia commanded. “Not a single word altered.”

There was silence on Zhou Six’s end, seemingly as she went to convey Qi Xia’s words to Wang Eight. Nearly a minute later, Zhou Six’s voice returned.

“Tsk... that Terrestrial Mouse really doesn’t play by the rules,” she said. “This is going to be a big problem...”

“What did he say?” Qi Xia asked.

“Tsk, he said, {Esteemed leader, you jest. If letting you go were that easy, how would I ever be worthy of a Terrestrial-grade? Let’s change the wager: guess what fruit lies in the third room. If you're right, I’ll leave you be.}” Zhou Six said, worry evident in her voice. “We’ve never been to the third room... how can we—”

“Just as I expected,” Qi Xia said. “The wager was nothing more than bait, meant to provoke Terrestrial Mouse into upping the challenge and stepping right into my tempo.”

“Huh?!” Zhou Six found herself once again taken aback by Qi Xia’s words; she’d lost count of how many times he had startled her like this. “I...I don’t quite get it... Tsk, you did that on purpose? But trying to guess something we’ve never seen before is just too—”

“Have Wang Eight agree,” Qi Xia interjected. “I’ll do the guessing.”

Zhou Six fell silent once more, apparently relaying his words to Wang Eight.

“Alright...” Zhou Six’s voice rang up once more, a trace of anxiety in her voice. “G–Go ahead and guess, and I’ll relay it to him...”

Qi Xia stroked his chin, pondering for a moment, then lifted his head, expression solemn. “Papaya (木瓜).”

Zhou Six felt certain Qi Xia had lost his mind.

“Tsk... what the hell?” she asked, voice tight with urgency. “Are you just guessing randomly? The fruits from the other rooms were all common ones, but {papaya}? That’s something ordinary people hardly ever—”

“The answer is papaya,” Qi Xia said firmly. “The probability of guessing correctly exceeds ninety percent. Just have Wang Eight relay it to him.”

Zhou Six hesitated for a moment, then fell silent again. Qi Xia found a chair and sat down slowly, waiting for the final outcome.

Before long, heavy footsteps sounded outside the {Mouse House}, each step deliberate and measured.

Qi Xia touched his chin once more, then rose and moved to the door, standing in patient anticipation.

{Knock, knock, knock}.

A faint rapping echoed from the wooden door.

Qi Xia stepped forward, leaning close to it, and exhaled a single word, “Speak.”

“Esteemed leader.” Terrestrial Mouse’s voice came from the other side of the door. “No matter what, that fat one shouldn’t be able to guess this answer, right?”

“Hard to say,” Qi Xia replied. “There are no useless members in my team.”

“You truly love to jest...” Terrestrial Mouse let out a muffled, bitter laugh. “I confess I was rather disrespectful before. I’d like to make amends.”

“Oh?” Qi Xia’s lips curved slightly. “And what do you intend to do about it?”

“This is but a crumbling tile-and-mud house. Continuing to show you such a crude game might be beneath you. Could you perhaps worship at another temple?” Terrestrial Mouse said. “In the next few rounds, I’ll open all the doors and stop catching mice. We could both benefit and bring this game to an end. Would that be acceptable to you?”

Terrestrial Mouse’s words left Qiu Sixteen, who was also in the room, utterly stunned.

Although every word this Earthly Branch had spoken had always been courteous, his tone had carried condescension and mockery from the very beginning. How could he now sound like a completely different person?

Was he... begging for mercy?

Qi Xia rubbed the back of his neck and said quietly to the door, "Unfortunately, I didn’t prepare an option for a {smooth and uneventful run}. Hearing you say this puts me in a very difficult position.”

The two stood on opposite sides of the door, their expressions equally complex, as though every word exchanged between them was part of an intricate game.

“Esteemed leader, that’s where you’re in the wrong,” said Terrestrial Mouse. “A man of your stature shouldn’t hold grudges against the likes of me. Isn’t it a bit unfair to take this so seriously?”

“No need for such courtesies,” Qi Xia replied. “Allow me to restate my position.”

“Please, go ahead.”

“This game is utterly ridiculous to me,” Qi Xia said. “It’s the first time I’ve encountered a game where one can kill an Earthly Branch on the spot without having to {stake one’s life}. You’ve exposed such a glaring flaw yourself—you should have been prepared for this outcome.”

“Yes, yes, you’re absolutely right.”

“So, I’m giving you only two choices,” Qi Xia said.

“May I ask what they are?”

“The first is to die from that collar around your neck.”

“Alas... if I were truly going to die, esteemed leader, you wouldn’t just stand by and watch, would you?” Terrestrial Mouse gave two dry laughs. “We’ve talked for so long now, surely we’ve built some rapport. Could you really watch me die? Don’t you think so?”

Qi Xia made no reply, and a chill crept into Terrestrial Mouse’s heart.

“Esteemed leader,” he asked at /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ last, voice faltering, “then what’s the second option?”

“The second option,” Qi Xia finally said, “is {rebellion}. You will survive today...only to die gloriously in battle when we rise against Celestial Dragon.”

Terrestrial Mouse stood outside the door, his hands clenched tight, yet he still wore a smile as he said, “Esteemed leader... you’re not truly joking, are you? Are you saying that from the moment I encountered you, I was already doomed to die?”