Amidst the chaos of panic and indecision, Lin Sanjiu was ironically the calmest person in the room.
Whether it was genuine composure or sheer cunning, Lin Sanjiu quickly categorized the tour members into distinct groups in her mind based on their opinions and inclinations.
The first group firmly believed that the situation had nothing to do with them. They argued that even if the mysterious organization waiting outside entered the pocket dimension, the situation wouldn't escalate too severely—as long as both Lin Sanjiu and the gray-haired woman were handed over.
"Their member isn't dead, and their target is already tied up. What does any of this have to do with us? Just hand them both over," said a tall woman with long, curly hair and strikingly purple teeth that glinted with iridescent light whenever she spoke. She was the most resolute among the first group. "Miss Bee, when does this pocket dimension end? I suggest we open the door and let them in as soon as possible."
"Once we've solved three cases in total, we'll have the option to exit," the tour guide replied, her voice laced with uncertainty. "But..."
The second group was much warier of the mysterious organization waiting outside. Feng Maomao and the scholarly-looking man belonged to this camp.
"This really has nothing to do with us, but do you honestly think they'll believe us if we say that?" the man countered immediately. "If this is something we weren't supposed to know, and we've already heard and seen too much, what guarantees they won't come after us next?"
"And what have we seen?" scoffed the purple-toothed woman. She cast a disdainful glance at the gray-haired woman lying on the ground. "She just asked a few questions. Did she spill any sensitive information? If it were so confidential, she wouldn't have asked in front of us."
Feng Maomao muttered, "But that troublemaker..." She jerked her chin in Lin Sanjiu's direction. "She's the kind of person who might drag us all down with her."
Lin Sanjiu seized the opportunity to nod in agreement. "She's right. If you abandon me, I'll make sure to drag as many of you down with me as I can."
Predictably, this declaration didn't endear her to anyone. Every tour member cast her a sharp glare. If looks could kill, she'd have been long gone.
The third group consisted of a few undecided individuals who eventually voiced their stance. "Regardless of whether they believe us, we don't want to get entangled with that organization outside. What do we do now?"
"Come over here, everyone," the purple-toothed woman called. The tour members gathered around her, leaving Lin Sanjiu behind. She glanced at Lin Sanjiu, still bound in iron chains, with her neck craning to catch snippets of their conversation. With a wave of her hand, a green illusion of a forest with interwoven branches and leaves rose around the group, completely isolating their voices from the outside world.
Lin Sanjiu exhaled a frustrated breath and cast a quick glance at the gray-haired woman's limp body not far away.
At least five or six minutes of the current round had already passed. Regardless of what the tour group ultimately decided, it was unlikely they would let the gray-haired woman die. This meant that Lin Sanjiu had at most four or five minutes to free herself. If the pocket dimension ended while she was still bound, she'd face the worst possible scenario.
Quietly, she extended her Higher Consciousness toward the gray-haired woman, using it to lift one of her wrists. She gave it a slight tug, but the scraping sound of the body dragging across the floor immediately drew the attention of the group behind the green barrier, who all turned their heads in unison.
So, they could hear the outside world, but the outside world couldn't hear them?
Suppressing a curse, Lin Sanjiu lowered the gray-haired woman's hand back to the floor but kept her Higher Consciousness wrapped tightly around it.
"We've made our decision," the male tour member announced as he strode forward. His words, however, weren't directed at Lin Sanjiu but to the gray-haired woman. "You infiltrated our tour group, so you should be well aware that we have nothing to do with this. We've decided to stay out of it and leave her to your organization. We hope this gesture of goodwill will ensure that you don't drag our group into this matter."
"Hey!" Lin Sanjiu blurted out, her heart sinking, but the man cut her off.
"Your character isn't trustworthy." He gave her a disdainful glance. "Even if we didn't help you, you'd still try to drag us down with you. If we actually did help, we'd never be able to get rid of you. Since you're trying to use threats to pull us into your mess, we have no choice but to hand you over to them just as you are. It's the only way to prove we're not involved."
"No, wait," Lin Sanjiu said, panicked. "I'm actually a good person..."
1
What would the old Lin Sanjiu have done in this situation? The question left her mind in chaos. Back then, wherever she went, she always managed to make a few friends, and people rarely lashed out against her defensively; she never gave them a reason to. But now, everything she faced was completely unfamiliar territory, consequences she had never encountered before. 𝘙ＡŊ𝘰BЕ𝙨
1
The group had made up their minds. They ignored her and moved toward the windows, opening them one by one. Even though the pocket dimension was still active and the windows didn't lead outside yet, the group prepared to jump the moment they could. As they stood by the windows, they all turned their attention to the tour guide.
The situation had become crystal clear: the moment the guide announced the correct answer and chose to exit the pocket dimension, the group would leap through the windows without hesitation. They weren't worried about transportation; yellow ribbons, their Special Items from the earlier bungee-fishing activity, were already appearing on their wrists.
The tour guide sighed.
"I invited you to join us because I noticed a few posthumans lurking around and watching you," she said quietly, looking at Lin Sanjiu. "I thought they were planning to rob you or had some other scheme. I figured if you joined the tour group, those people wouldn't dare to act."
Shaking her head, she added, "I thought it was just a small favor... I didn't expect things to escalate like this."
Lin Sanjiu couldn't hear a word. She focused entirely on pulling the gray-haired woman's body toward her with her Higher Consciousness. Dragging the body over wasn't difficult, but the final step of unlocking the iron chains required the gray-haired woman's finger to press a specific spot on the chains. It demanded precision and dexterity Lin Sanjiu simply didn't have, leaving her sweating from the effort.
"We choose to exit the pocket dimension."
As the tour guide spoke the final phrase, the group began leaping through the windows one after another. Feng Maomao glanced at Lin Sanjiu, shook her head, and jumped out into the blue sky. At that moment, a strange, absurd thought flashed through Lin Sanjiu's mind: if the memory pocket dimension hadn't altered her personality, Feng Maomao could have been a delightful friend.
She quickly shoved the thought aside. It was too late for that now. The gray-haired woman would wake up in seconds, and Lin Sanjiu still couldn't get her finger to press the right spot. Frustrated, she glanced at the window and made a decision.
Biting her lip, she braced herself.
Her Higher Consciousness released its grip on the gray-haired woman's wrist. The limp hand flopped onto the ground with a soft thud. Then, just as it lay still, the hand twitched and flipped over, palm pressing against the ground. The gray-haired woman was waking up.
The tour guide was thorough in her work.
Even in such a tense situation, she waited for the other group members to leave before making her jump. But as her foot pushed off the ledge and she launched herself into the air, Lin Sanjiu's Higher Consciousness lashed out.
Using the fine control needed for a single finger was impossible, but wrapping around an adult's waist? That was easy. As the tour guide let out a startled cry, Lin Sanjiu's Higher Consciousness coiled around her and yanked her back mid-leap.
The tour guide had already cleared the window. Lin Sanjiu, bound tightly like a cocoon, was dragged out along with her, tethered like a spider's silk catching a hitchhiker.