"In that case, first duel and kill one, then go after his brother. The big-bearded guy still won't intervene, because your infighting, all bloody and battered, benefits him. As long as I don't get caught, once you've taken care of the two brothers, it will just be you versus the big-bearded guy in a one-on-one battle."
"Then, you will have accomplished 'strike one by one, three in a row.'"
"The key point is, one has the identity of a dog, the other, that of a mouse, so even if you do find the other mice, you won't kill them but instead might only break their legs, and wait to kill them after you become the 'cat' yourself, to get the redemption tickets."
"That is, as long as I'm not found and you become the last man standing in duels, it's as if they are helping you catch the mice, saving you the trouble of looking for them. At that time, whether to kill or to flay is up to you. This is..."
Gao Xin looked up, his gaze intense as he stared at Silver Hand: "This is the real essence of 'the dog catches the mice.'"
The real essence of the dog catching the mice?
Silver Hand Youth was truly taken aback for a moment.
The game is called 'the dog catches the mice,' not 'the cat catches the mice.'
Could it really be about getting the dog to look for the mice, and then the cat reaps the reward at the end? After all, a dog finding a mouse is useless; it won't kill it. Whoever becomes the last 'cat' eats all.
During the process, the strongest cat must actually rid itself of the cat identity to avoid becoming the target of everyone's arrows.
It doesn't matter if a mouse becomes a cat either, because a mouse has no killing power; even as a cat, it's still just a sick cat, capable of nothing but hiding and struggling to survive.
The focus of the game of the dog catching the mice is that anyone can catch mice during the process, but only the last player to become a cat is the real winner.
"No, that's not right." Suddenly, Silver Hand Youth calmed down and said sternly: "If I hide the cat collar, isn't that the same thing?"
Suppressing his fear, Gao Xin asked back: "How could it be the same? Where do you plan to hide it?"
Silver Hand Youth coldly said, "Bury it straight into the ground."
Gao Xin forced a smile: "You think of a method, and you believe others can't think of it?"
"The front yard is under watch; you can only bury it in the backyard. How long do you think it would take for that big-bearded guy with a giant axe to scrape the whole yard?"
"Of course, you can also hide it in the mansion, but the collar is an inanimate object; it won't run away once found."
Silver Hand Youth said disdainfully: "It's safer than keeping it on a mouse; do you think Radiation finds it easier to look for a living thing than an inanimate object?"
Gao Xin shook his head: "That's not the point... You shouldn't be considering which is harder for the big-bearded guy to find, do you know him? Do you know his abilities? That's nothing but gambling."
"Boss, you should consider the worst outcome of each method and whether you can accept it."
Silver Hand Youth paused.
Gao Xin explained: "Worn around my neck, the worst outcome after being found is it ending up on the big-bearded guy's neck. At worst, you'll just have to kill the big-bearded guy..."
"But if it's hidden, the worst-case scenario is that it's thrown out over the fence… the game will have no cat ever again."
"Huh?" Silver Hand Youth frowned.
Gao Xin stared at him: "Don't underestimate the mice; everyone who wants to get the cat collar isn't just the big-bearded guy, it includes all the remaining mice..."
"Although it's harder to find an inanimate object, the number of people who might find it increases tenfold. And if a mouse finds the collar, they'll for sure toss it over the fence to ensure there's no cat."
Silver Hand Youth angrily said, "Who would dare! I'll slaughter them!"
Gao Xin said: "When death is certain, what isn't there to dare? You can kill me now, but you can't kill all the mice right now."
Silver Hand stared coldly at Gao Xin. He had underestimated the mice, subconsciously thinking they didn't have the gall to go against him, hence previously failing to consider collecting the mice's collars after a kill.
But reality had slapped him in the face, leading to his current predicament, where he had to face three peers of equal strength.
If he now hid the collar and a mouse found it first and threw it over the fence, then even if he killed all the mice in retribution, there would be no reward left for him.
This was truly a consequence he couldn't accept.
One must not assume all mice are foolish; once they secretly see he doesn't have the cat collar, they'll likely know what's going on.
Gao Xin said gravely: "With the collar around my neck, I can't take it off myself. I'll risk my life to hide and buy you time."
Silver Hand Youth suddenly showed an amused smile: "Little mouse, I fail to see your benefit in this plan, a plan where the cat kills everyone in the greediest way, yet it comes from a mouse's mouth? What's in it for you?"
Gao Xin bitterly said, "If I don't tell you this, I'm dead now."
"You've rejected a peaceful ending with the mice; what else can I do..."
"I can only beg you, can't you spare the lives of us mice? After the settlement, we really will give you all the redemption tickets."
Silver Hand Youth stared at Gao Xin, his tone icy: "The plan sounds easy, but to bring down each of those three guys one by one, how could it be that simple? What if it's not me who takes back the cat's position in the end?"
Gao Xin looked puzzled: "Aren't you the strongest?"
"In a duel, you're unbeatable, even two against one doesn't scare you, and three at the same time is just a little more trouble."
"One by one, you think you won't be the last cat?"
He repeated the other party's words.
That made Silver Hand silent.
After a while, he said, "Heh, the one who wanted to partner with me earlier was you, wasn't it? All that nonsense the foolish bald guy said too, did you teach him that?"
Gao Xin resentfully said, "I certainly didn't teach him to do such a stupid thing as give you only 90 redemption tickets."