When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 446: Main Territory

Chapter 446: Main Territory

"Welcome to the main territory of us mice," Caen gave his introduction with an odd excitement in his voice.

As they walked through the dark, dunk tunnels of the underground sewer, the air grew thick with the pungent stench of decay comparable to the waste disposal. The sound of dripping water echoed through the narrow passage, mingling with the occasional faint rustles in the distance.

The walls were coated with slimy film, and Gu Luoxin’s whiskers brushed against the rough damp bricks as he cautiously followed Caen’s lead.

Every step sent ripples through the murky water flowing along the channel beneath his tiny paws. Once in a while, his snout wrinkled as he caught a whiff of rotting garbage and sewage that had accumulated along the edges of the tunnel. Bits of debris floated by such as a discarded scrap of cloth, a broken shard of pottery— remnants of life aboveground.

Despite the darkness, faint shafts of dim lights from the setting sun pierced through the grates above, casting eerie shadows on the walls.

Had it been him from a few hours before, he would have been terrified out of his wits or gagged due to the foul air. But the current him, who had witnessed a royalty scavenging through scraps, fought off a cat with his divine prop, and stole a few mouthfuls of pig feed, had already developed a mentality of iron and steel, no longer easily shaken.

Both his head and heart were as cool as a cucumber, though he never let his guard down, ready to summon his divine prop at the first sign of danger. At the moment, Toki was the greatest and strongest ally he could rely on.

As they ventured deeper, the surroundings grew darker and darker. Gu Luoxin found it strange how his vision faltered in dim light, yet he could still navigate the way using his other senses such as smell, touch, and whiskers.

"We’re here," Caen announced, facing a round steel vertical cover with sieves large enough for mice and other small animals to pass. Squeezing his large body through, Caen explained, "Large animals can’t find their way here, and smaller animals are our prey, so we will be safe."

"Caen?"

A faint squeak echoed in the far distance, startling Gu Luoxin. Like a massive ripple, as soon as that one voice sounded, more voices joined in, forming a chorus of murmurs and exclamations.

"It’s Caen!"

"Caen has returned ciit!"

"Woah, finally! We were about to send a few mice out to search for you, thinking that something has happened ciit!"

Gu Luoxin’s jaws hit the ground as countless – literally countless beady eyes – snapped open in the dark, followed by a surge of creatures surrounding Caen. "You’re injured again?!"

"Why are you always so careless ciit?!"

Caen let out an apologetic laugh, "My bad, my bad ciit. I wasn’t careful and got entangled with Jackie."

"Jackie, that pesky troublemaker! It has been eyeing us for ages ciit!"

"It’s such a relief to see you back safely!"

Witnessing Caen being surrounded by mice who were worried about him, Gu Luoxin seemed to be able to see the shadow of the King within him, who was loved by his subjects. He couldn’t help but let out a soft harrumph. Judging from Caen’s heartrending story, he had assumed the other mouse was a loner who had almost given up on himself. But what did he see here? This person had quite literally built an army of his own, albeit small-sized ones!

"Oh, look who we have here ciit." A mouse with a clipped ear belatedly realized Gu Luoxin’s presence, and in an instant, all eyes snapped to him.

Gu Luoxin: "..."

Even though he knew that they were all on Caen’s side, being stared at by hundreds of pairs of eyes at once was a little... en, it was quite daunting.

"Who is this?" The mouse nearest to Gu Luoxin scurried closer and sniffed him all over. "You smell a little weird ciit."

Gyaaahh!! Gu Luoxin let out a silent scream as he sprang backward, increasing the distance between them, his body trembling violently. W–What’s up with this mouse? How could it just shove its nose into his body? Did it not know the concept of personal space?!"

"Haha," Caen stepped in with an amused chuckle and subtly shielded Gu Luoxin behind him, facing the crowd with ease. "I encountered this little one on my patrol. Everyone, please welcome him warmly ciit. He’s a newcomer around here and could use some guidance. He’s... uh..." Caen was stumped, and only then did he realize that he had never asked for Gu Luoxin’s name despite having gone through multiple life-and-death situations together.

With a sheepish look, he cast a questioning glance at Gu Luoxin, who promptly picked up his signal.

"...Xinxin," Gu Luoxin twitched his whiskers, feeling a little complex to introduce himself in front of so many mice. "E–Everyone can call me Xinxin. Nice to meet you ciit..."

Fortunately, the mice were relatively simple-minded and easy-going. Since Gu Luoxin was brought here by Caen, he must be a good mouse. They welcomed Gu Luoxin enthusiastically and even offered him dead insects as a gesture of goodwill, to which Gu Luoxin politely declined with tears in his eyes.

Settling on the open space, the mice began to exchange information from their day’s activities, with Caen leading the discussion. He talked about his patrol routes and recounted his meeting with Gu Luoxin and their clash with Jackie The Cat, while omitting all details that had to do with their identities as a human. Next, the other mice shared their complaints about the shortage of food, new territories they managed to explore, and the appearance of a new black cat in the area. They all expressed their concerns, hoping the new cat wouldn’t turn out to be the second Jackie.

"Oh, that’s right," Caen exclaimed. "Has any of you seen a human with silver hair and knows the way to her abode, by any chance? I need a few mice to guide me there ciit."

Gu Luoxin shot the one-eyed mouse with a grateful glance, feeling extremely touched. Caen was really a good mouse, proactively searching for information without drawing any attention to him!

An ordinary gray mouse, who heard Caen’s question, instantly reacted with alarm, squeaking, "W–What do you want to go there for ciit?! Don’t go, it’s too dangerous. We should stay away as far as possible ciit! Just last night, I was almost eaten by a human ciit!"

.

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Mini theater

A certain cinderella: *sneeze* who talks bad about me behind my back?!