Chapter 623: The Eighth Person
Everyone fell silent at his words.
"Even though I'm not familiar with all of you... but is any of us truly willing to kill?" Earth Rabbit asked. "Those who become 'Zodiac' members—when you get right down to it, aren't we all people who had no other choice, people who wanted to escape from this place?"
He sat down in a chair with a dejected look on his face, clearly deeply shaken by his own thoughts.
The others understood how he felt. Everyone here could kill without hesitation only because they had no alternative.
When a "Participant" died, they could come back to life—but not a "Zodiac."
There was some twisted curse in this place. Only those bearing the title "Participant" could be resurrected. The moment anyone stepped outside that category, death was final.
It was a game that seemed fair on the surface but was actually full of deceit, forcing every "Zodiac" to go all out.
"So... let me join," Earth Rabbit said, his head slowly drooping. "I don't know if I'll ever have as good a chance as this in the coming decades, but this time, I'm willing to try."
"Bro... you..." Earth Tiger opened his mouth as if to say something, but stopped.
"Don't try to talk me out of it..." Earth Rabbit said with a serious expression. "Even though this matter seems to have nothing to do with me, I've been thinking about it for a whole day and night, and I finally understand now."
"No, I mean—"
"It doesn't matter," Earth Rabbit interrupted. "All men must die someday. That outcome was already decided the day we became 'Zodiac'."
Earth Tiger stared blankly for a long moment, then finally couldn't help saying, "I was actually just going to ask if you wanted some sunflower seeds..."
Earth Rabbit's face flushed with awkwardness. He turned to look at Earth Tiger, who was holding a handful of sunflower seeds in his furry palm.
"Uh, sure... I'll have some." Earth Rabbit reached out and took them, still a bit dazed.
"Good, eat up..." Earth Tiger didn't know how else to express his goodwill, so he just stuffed as many seeds as he could into Earth Rabbit's hands. "Your teeth are better than mine—at least you have incisors. My tiger teeth make it really hard to crack these."
"Oh, oh... d-do you want me to crack some for you?" Earth Rabbit nodded, then awkwardly began chewing on a seed, realizing that his solemn vow to join this team might have been a bit rash.
"N-no, that's fine..." Earth Tiger gave an awkward smile.
Earth Rabbit had no choice but to awkwardly smile back.
"Eat more, don't be shy," Earth Tiger said boisterously. "There aren't many rooms on the train that have roasted sunflower seeds. I asked for these special. They're really fragrant."
"Alright, alright..."
The awkward atmosphere between the two spread to the others in the room, making everyone's expressions a bit uncomfortable.
"If you have nothing to say, don't force the conversation," Earth Dog said, lying sideways on the sofa and scratching his ear. "Quite a crowd today. Should we meet like this every day until we come up with a plan?"
Before Earth Tiger could answer, footsteps sounded from outside the door.
Everyone turned to look. It was Earth Pig and Earth Horse.
"Oh!" Earth Pig was surprised. "I was just passing by and thought I'd check in. Never expected everyone to really be here! Good one, Big Tiger!"
Earth Horse's foot was wrapped in thick bandages. Leaning on a crutch, she hobbled through the door. As she passed Earth Goat, she shot him a resentful glance.
Earth Goat didn't care and returned her look with a cold stare.
When she'd made a scene in front of him and ended up like this, there was no need for an apology.
"Little Pig's here! By the way, why didn't you guys close the door?" Earth Tiger asked. "Is this place that open now? Anyone can just walk in?"
The Black Goat standing by the door reached out and closed it. He had originally wanted to leave, but now there was no reason to. If he let things go, Losing Tiger probably wouldn't be able to handle these people on his own.
The exact same lineup of "Zodiac" members as yesterday now filled the room. Earth Tiger had to admit he was impressed. White Goat really was White Goat.
Even though he had never seen this scene himself, he had already anticipated it.
Now came his last prophecy…
Would it come true?
Earth Tiger nervously glanced at the wall on his left, then at the wall on his right.
"Neighbor...?" he murmured to himself. "Why would a 'Neighbor' join us?"
As he was lost in thought, Earth Dog and Earth Pig had already started arguing.
"It looks like we all showed up as promised!" Earth Pig said seriously. "A promise is a promise. This is great."
"Didn't I tell you to stop talking so cringey?" Earth Dog replied lazily. "Also, do you have to sit right next to me?"
"Give it a rest, will you?" Earth Pig frowned. "Since when do I need you to teach me how to talk? Do I need your permission to sit where I want?"
"In short, I don't like you. Go sit somewhere else."
"Are you going too far?!" Earth Pig slowly stood up, his eyes icy cold. "Do you think just because you're a few years older than me in the real world, you can boss me around?"
"Boss you around?" Earth Dog scratched his ear, then casually looked down at his nails. "Yesterday you came in here and started a fight without a word, nearly ruining our plan, and you say I'm bossing you around? I just can't stand people who are all brawn and no brains."
"Bastard..." Earth Pig rolled up his sleeves. "I really hoped this would be an unbreakable team, but running into someone like you was inevitable! If you have a problem, let's settle it with fists instead of lip service."
"What a pain..." Earth Dog rubbed his forehead, then looked up at the others. "I suspect this kid is going to cause trouble sooner or later. Let's kick him out of the team now."
"You!" Earth Pig didn't waste another word. He launched a flying kick straight at Earth Dog's face.
The usually lazy-looking Earth Dog suddenly revealed a murderous intent. He sidestepped to dodge the attack, then braced his hands on the chair and kicked back at Earth Pig.
Earth Pig blocked with his arm. A loud impact rang out, and both of them stumbled back a few steps.
"You don't seriously think you can win with your fists, do you?" Earth Dog said. "When are you going to break that nasty habit of throwing punches first?"
"Hey, hey, hey!" Earth Tiger quickly stepped in to mediate. "Both of you, that's enough! We're all in the same boat now. Making a scene won't do anyone any good."
"And you're okay with this?" Earth Dog said. "At least it wasn't my face that got scratched up yesterday."
"Ah, well, there was a misunderstanding back then!" Earth Tiger gave an embarrassed smile. "Now that we've cleared it up, right?"
"Big Tiger, stay out of this!" Earth Pig barked coldly. "This world has always been about survival of the fittest. Today, I'll make him submit with my fists!"
"I really can't take this anymore." Earth Dog turned to Earth Tiger. "Losing Tiger, listen to him! Does he sound mature to you?"
As he spoke, Earth Pig leaped again, crashing violently into Earth Dog.
While the two were locked in a stalemate, a faint knock came from the door.