chapter 23

Qi Jiajia gave a cold laugh. “I checked just now. He’s alive, but not for long.”

As she spoke, Zhao Liang entered, supporting himself against the wall. Blood covered his body, and his face was gray.

When the others fixed him with cold stares, he forced an ingratiating smile. “Don’t worry. I’ll stay put and absolutely won’t act on my own!”

They remained unmoved. Unease crept through Zhao Liang. He raised his one hand and swore every oath he could think of, pouring out an endless stream of pleasing words. “Think about it. I want to get out too. Why would I ruin your plan?”

Cheng Miao gave him a cold glance. An open attack was easier to avoid than a hidden one, but she still could not kill a person, even if the person did not deserve the name.

They had only one chance. They could not allow such an unstable element.

Zhao Liang had been watching Cheng Miao and Bai Jiang closely. When the same murderous intent appeared on both their faces, he swallowed his resentment and indignation, replacing them with terror.

“Do whatever you want, just don’t kill me. If you murder someone, doesn’t that make you killers too?”

Cheng Miao showed nothing, but sighed inwardly. She could not do it.

She exchanged a look with Bai Jiang. They forced Zhao Liang inside a cabinet beside the desk and bound it tightly with the remaining hemp rope.

Bai Jiang tied a dead knot without hesitation. Cheng Miao said nothing. Qi Jiajia, who had watched from nearby, sounded disappointed. “You’re not killing him? If neither of you dares, let me.”

Rolling her eyes, Cheng Miao chased away the melodramatic girl.

The group rested briefly. When they saw that the sky outside had turned completely black, they delayed no longer. Time to move!

Cheng Miao slowly exhaled the stale air from her lungs, nodded to Bai Jiang and Qi Jiajia standing ready beside her, then sat in the leftmost chair.

So soft. That was her first thought. Following the fairy tale, the softest chair should belong to Mama Bear.

Cheng Miao remained vigilant. This instance layered trap upon trap like a chain of snares. She did not believe it would let them find Mama Bear so easily.

“ROAR! Someone! Someone sat in my chair!” Just as the script demanded, the bear sleeping on the outer side woke and glared viciously at the culprit sitting comfortably in its chair.

“Now!” Cheng Miao shouted.

Qi Jiajia strained until her face reddened, then hurled the sewing basket at the bear.

It struck squarely. The bear froze for several seconds, but the scene they had imagined never occurred. With a roar, it lunged toward Qi Jiajia.

As the monster charged with jaws wide, Qi Jiajia could already smell its rancid breath. She almost felt its sharp teeth sinking into her flesh.

A sudden force slammed her aside. She hit the floor hard but escaped the swinging paw.

Qi Jiajia looked back blankly. Unsurprisingly, Cheng Miao was already scrambling to her feet and leading the enraged bear toward the hemp-rope obstacles.

“Pick up the needle and yarn!” Cheng Miao’s shout snapped Qi Jiajia back to herself. Ignoring the blood flowing from her scraped arm, she crawled on all fours to gather the sewing supplies Baby Bear had scattered.

When the bear attacked Qi Jiajia, Bai Jiang reacted swiftly and sat in another chair. He watched her narrowly escape with his heart in his throat, then belatedly realized that the other bear had not moved at all.

Bai Jiang looked back to confirm it. The remaining bear was indeed still snoring in bed. His thoughts raced, and he quickly understood that he had chosen Papa Bear’s chair.

Their guess had been correct. Papa Bear, already supplied with fish, had temporarily withdrawn from the Game. Even an outsider sitting in his chair could not distract him.

Bai Jiang sprang up and rushed to the final chair. Unable to stop in time, he flung his whole body into it.

This chair seemed extraordinarily soft. Bai Jiang sank completely inside. After several struggles, he managed to turn his head, but the rest of him remained merged with the cushion.

Cheng Miao, repeatedly dancing along the edge of death, had a revelation. So that’s the softest chair!

Qi Jiajia had barely gathered the scattered items when the floor shook violently. A crash like a collapsing mountain made her turn.

The hemp ropes had dragged the furniture into chaos. Many pieces had toppled and piled together.

Baby Bear sat sprawled on the floor, tangled in rope. Countless small knots bound it firmly to the furniture.

Not far away, Cheng Miao braced both hands on her knees and panted. Her eyes shone with startling brightness.

Qi Jiajia exhaled. Her racing heart finally settled. Calm again, she turned and hurled the sewing basket at Mama Bear, who was charging toward Bai Jiang.

The needle and yarn scattered once more, but this bear’s attention was successfully captured.

Mama Bear stared down for a moment, then began crying out in apparent delight.

Holding the needle in one paw and a ball of yarn in the other, she leisurely returned to the bed, sat with perfect posture, and began sewing.

Having finally escaped the chair, Bai Jiang’s mouth twitched. Why did she suddenly look so domestic?

Qi Jiajia relaxed completely. She took two steps toward Cheng Miao and stopped not far from Baby Bear.

Her eyes held interest, though her words remained barbed. “I didn’t expect you to be that athletic. You tripped Baby Bear so easily.”

Baby Bear had not calmed. The rope it could not break and the furniture restricting its movement enraged it further, deepening the red in its eyes.

It bit and tore at the hemp rope, ripping away clumps of its own fur. Cheng Miao frowned. “Don’t stand too close. Its rampage isn’t over.”

Qi Jiajia curled her lip. Of course she knew that.

She was about to reply when a heavy shove struck her from behind. Before she could react, the force sent her flying toward Baby Bear.

At the edge of death, Qi Jiajia did not waste time screaming. She thrust a hand into her pocket and pulled out a rope.

Unlike the giant hemp rope found in the bears’ home, this one was ordinary, about the thickness of a human thumb. Its rough fibers could easily cut bloody grooves into skin.

A loop had been tied at one end like a hangman’s noose.

Qi Jiajia aimed at the bedpost and threw. Miraculously, the loop slipped around it. The resulting pull altered her trajectory, and she crashed onto the floor only a short distance from where she had stood.

Ignoring the pain throughout her body, Qi Jiajia rolled over. The person behind her was Zhao Liang, who should have been locked inside the cabinet.