"The logic is just that," Pence said, waving his hand. "If you believe that wearing this thing is bad for you, then don't wear it. No one will force you. And if I think it's necessary to wear it for testing or any other reason, then don't interfere with whether I wear it or not."
Wu Yiliu couldn't help but say, "We all came in as testers together—"
"It's precisely because we came in to test the pocket dimension that I think we can't just do nothing," Pence interrupted him, his voice stronger and more robust, making it hard for people to listen due to his thick accent. "You choose to protect yourself wisely, and I choose to fulfill my duties. Neither of us is wrong, so don't threaten me with violence; I don't react well to threats."
This was a joke. Not to mention what his true motives were, there were only four people. If three were harmed, it would be even more challenging for him alone to leave the pocket dimension. Since Pence obviously couldn't be persuaded, and Cuining was subtly making him fearful, Wu Yiliu turned to Abby and asked, "What about you? What are you going to do?"
Pence took two steps forward and kicked a nearby climbing boot towards Abby. She stood there, seeming not to understand why she had suddenly become the focus of the argument, and stared at the boot, exclaiming, "Ah?"
"If you're worried, you can put the climbing boot away, but don't—" Wu Yiliu's words were cut off, his eyelids twitching slightly. He caught a very subtle reaction from Pence, just a slight movement of his eyes and eyebrows, but immediately understood that something had changed inside the house.
When Wu Yiliu quickly turned around, Cuining was standing in the daylight coming from the window outside, with a duck-billed hat on her head. For a moment, no one spoke in the room, and the silence was broken only by the sound of a few breaths.
"C-Cuining?" Abby called out.
Cuining's head was slightly bowed, her face hidden in the shadow of the hat, and even with night vision goggles, it was hard to see her expression clearly. Wu Yiliu took a step back, wanting to move closer to the other two, as far away from Cuining as possible—there wasn't much that scared him, but nightmares from his birthplace could always make him feel like a helpless child.
"Cuining?" Abby called again, this time with a hint of warning.
The duck-billed head finally lifted, revealing Cuining's still normal face. "I don't feel anything," she murmured, seeming a bit confused. "After putting it on, I don't feel anything at all. The TV... there's nothing? Strange."
She turned to look at the TV—since it hadn't been operated for a long time, the screen had dimmed, and it didn't light up again when she put on the hat. If this clothing was indeed an advantage in the pocket dimension, why was there no reaction before or after wearing it?
At this moment, Lin Sanjiu only wanted to break free from Wu Yiliu's body, pressing her back tightly against a wall, but she couldn't struggle—no, she couldn't even maintain the thought of escaping, and had to keep exposing her back to the dark, cold air.
"I'll try," Pence said, finally unable to help himself. Ignoring Wu Yiliu's previous warning, he pulled the clothing over his head. Wu Yiliu didn't stop him, watching his head reemerge from the neckline, his arms filling the sleeves, the hem straightened—then he just stood there, as if he didn't know what to do next.
The few people stood awkwardly in silence for a while, none knowing what they were waiting for. The pullover and hat looked ordinary, making the argument and cold sweat that arose over them seem somewhat absurd and laughable.
"Maybe we were overthinking it," Pence said with a forced laugh, seeming to want to smooth over the nearly ignited tension between them. "Damn it, what a piece of junk, making us all suspicious of each other."
"If it's really like Wu Yiliu said, that putting them on is equivalent to winning some sort of token, then the advantage might only become apparent at a certain moment." Abby, being sharp, scanned the two of them and picked up the combat shoes. "I'll hold onto them for now," she said to Wu Yiliu. "Since you've decided not to touch them, I'll keep them as insurance."
The current situation was far removed from Wu Yiliu's speculation. He always felt that the clothing and boots seemed to have their own consciousness, wanting to worm their way in from unnoticed corners, entwining around their bodies. But once they actually put them on, why did everything become so calm?
"It could be a Divide and Conquer tactic," Abby said, seeming to guess his thoughts. "You might think I'm saying this to get the combat shoes... but I really think it's possible that the pocket dimension wants us to make wrong judgments and kill each other over some insignificant things."
Wu Yiliu nodded, watching her pick up the other boot. "I don't want them, so they're yours for the taking. Just but be very careful not to put them on. I'll keep an eye on you and remind you."
He didn't exactly trust Abby, but compared to the other two, who were already looking out for themselves before a life-or-death moment, Abby was the closest thing to an ally at the moment. Looking out from his night-vision glasses, he couldn't see the details on Pence and Cuining's faces, so he couldn't tell if there was any embarrassment.
After all, they were pocket dimension reconnoiters brought together on a temporary basis, so there wasn't much trust or obligation between them.
"So, what should we do now?" Cuining asked softly, unsure of who she was addressing.
Abby, apparently harboring some resentment towards her, held tightly to the pair of combat shoes, tied together with shoelace. "How should I know? You guys had plenty of ideas earlier."
Unexpectedly, the first to cough, seeming somewhat constrained, was Pence.
"A false alarm, all the things that happened tonight were shadowless affairs, and we almost caused a scene. Don't blame me for speaking harshly; after all, someone has to take the first step... Let's do this, we'll take turns keeping watch tonight." He reached out as if to pat Wu Yiliu's shoulder but pulled back before making contact, casually stuffing something in his pocket. "We'll all stay in the living room and not go out... Eh, what's this?"
Everyone's eyes were drawn to his hand that he had just pulled out of his pocket. He was still wearing the pullover, and the thing in his hand had been pulled out from inside it. Under their intense gazes, Pence's hand trembled slightly as he slowly opened it.
A small woman's hand was clasped in his, looking as if a couple were holding hands—only that extra hand wasn't connected to a body.