Cat 214: Thrills and Dangers

Chapter 214: Thrills and Dangers

The store manager, despite walking at a normal pace, was going about his usual business, tidying the shop and moving left and right—nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Yet who could’ve predicted that he would suddenly turn and enter the break room?

The three of them wanted to hide, but even if they could sprint a hundred meters in no time, it was already too late to evade him—unless, of course, the manager wasn’t looking at the floor at all.

Unfortunately, the manager came for the two robbers, who were locked in a cage on the floor. As soon as he pushed open the door, his gaze swept downward, and he came face-to-face with Yan Jiyun and the others.

There they were, completely exposed and visible in front of the manager. No one could say they weren’t panicking.

Had he been alone, Yan Jiyun would have shifted back into a cat, darted into the darkest corner, and waited for an opportunity to slip away. This time, though, he couldn’t just abandon his teammates; he had to stick with them, for better or worse.

When it came to teamwork, Yan Jiyun lacked experience. In that moment, he hesitated, his mind going blank for an instant, unable to react.

To them, the manager was a giant. If he wanted to grab them, no matter how fast they were, the three would find escape nearly impossible.

Yan Jiyun found himself hoping the manager might not see them because of the indoor lighting—only for him to turn on the lights, flooding every corner and making the trio stand out even more clearly.

Qi Feng, ever the seasoned team leader, responded at once: “We’ll split in three directions. You two take opposite routes toward the door—wait for an opening to dash out. I’ll head inward.”

Unlike what you’d see in TV dramas, there wasn’t any of the useless “I won’t go if you don’t go, let’s die together” nonsense. Yan Jiyun ran even faster than Wen Ye, afraid that, if he hesitated even a second, it would cost everyone dearly.

The manager spotted them and exclaimed, “How did you get out?”

He clearly knew they’d been trapped inside the snow globe. As an NPC, he seemed to recall their existence: the players must have been customers he’d locked up!

After glancing at the two unconscious men in the cage, he shifted his focus, heading their way, intent on catching the little people.

Yan Jiyun heard that the manager was chasing after Qi Feng and shouted back, “Qi Feng, when he gets close, run under the table!”

He had experience dealing with much larger creatures. Hiding in spots that are hard for bigger beings to reach buys time to think and choose a better escape route, instead of panicking at the critical moment.

He and Wen Ye made for the door on separate paths, but just then the manager suddenly spun around—not bending down to grab at them, but slamming the heavy door shut, blocking any attempt at escape.

With a cold chuckle, he said, “You want to run? Not without my say-so.”

They were done for. All three of them were now trapped inside the “printer” room, with no idea what the manager planned to do with them.

The manager, surprised at the extra catch, shut the door, then rubbed his hands together in anticipation. “Since you’ve delivered yourselves to my doorstep, I won’t stand on ceremony.”

To the giant manager, the three of them were no match—insignificant, their voices like the buzzing of a fly, barely even heard let alone understood.

Still, the three each stuck to their escape directions. If even one could get away, there’d be hope; so long as there was life, there would be a chance—better to survive.

Once the manager had closed the door, he turned. The one who’d hidden best was Qi Feng, tucked behind a table leg, lost in the shadow beneath the desk—hard to spot.

Wen Ye dashed for a pile of white cardboard boxes overflowing with broken toys. As the manager turned, Wen Ye dove into the pile and managed to bury himself.

The two, tense, watched as Yan Jiyun, still without cover, scrambled for safety.

Yan Jiyun was miserable—why did disaster always follow him? Luck truly never favored him.

He mentally rolled his eyes so hard they could fall out, cursing under his breath: Dammit!

The manager strode straight for Yan Jiyun. Compared to the two robbers, he wanted to catch the new little one even more—to know how he’d escaped the snow globe. After all, he had worked hard to collect so many interesting people.

“Little rascal, let’s see where you run now.”

As the manager uttered his greasy line, Yan Jiyun found himself cornered—not by a wall, but by a metal staff locker, with no gap to squeeze through, no path left!

He gritted his teeth at the manager’s black sneakers and shot back, “Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—once I’m back to normal size, I’ll make you the little one!”

Who couldn’t spout corny lines?

To the left was the door, to the right the wall, ahead the manager—behind, the locker. Nowhere to run.

A massive foot came down before him as the manager bent over, reaching a long hand toward Yan Jiyun.

From afar, neither Qi Feng nor Wen Ye could see past the giant, so they had no clue what was happening.

Just as the manager bent low, Yan Jiyun shot under his legs, grabbing his shoelace and leaping onto his shoe, then—before the manager could react—climbing up the back of his jeans, inch by inch.

The manager moved, but to Yan Jiyun’s perspective, every gesture was slow, lumbering—he used that lag to slip into the manager’s blind spot.

Bent double, the manager spun around, scanning left and right, but the little guy had vanished. “Damn slippery—where did he go?”

At that moment, Yan Jiyun was clinging to a fraying thread on the manager’s jeans. He dared not move as the manager shifted, knowing one shake could send him flying. It was all so nerve-wracking that even Qi Feng wanted to rush over to catch him if he fell.

Qi Feng had just found out how agile Yan Jiyun was—he climbed anything. Yet it was a solid way to avoid a giant’s line of sight. Despite his worry, he couldn’t help but admire Yan Jiyun’s quick-witted instincts—his climbing skills rivaled Caramel’s.

The manager, spinning in place, still saw no sign of the little fellow. How could he disappear just as the manager bent over?

Seeing that the manager had gone still, Yan Jiyun climbed right into the back pocket of his jeans, finally able to breathe a little as he balanced on a torn thread. Climbing dozens of meters at once is exhausting, but this was no staircase or cliff—it was a human leg.

Unable to find him, the manager rummaged through the lockers beside him. When that turned up nothing, he suddenly realized—could the little guy have made it up his body?

This realization made him smack at his own thighs, determined to shake out any stowaways.

In truth, Yan Jiyun hadn’t made it that far yet—he was still huddled in the cavernous back pocket, waiting for the manager to relax so he could climb further, aiming to hide in the man’s clothing and escape the room along with him.

Half hanging from the pocket, Yan Jiyun signaled to Qi Feng and Wen Ye—let’s all try to climb on the manager and escape together.

It was a good idea, but not easy to pull off. Now that the manager suspected people might be climbing him, he’d be extra careful. For the moment, at least, he’d completely forgotten about Qi Feng and Wen Ye.

The manager was convinced someone was hiding on his body. He took off his jacket, shook it out—nothing. Then he patted his pockets—empty.

Where had that cunning little guy slipped away to?

Meanwhile, Yan Jiyun, breathless, was gripping the manager’s belt—thank goodness he’d hurried and left the pocket in the nick of time, or he might’ve been flattened. He wiped sweat from his brow.

Damn, that was wild.

Qi Feng, watching below, felt his heart leap into his throat—this was even more nerve-wracking than facing the manager himself.

But the manager, befuddled, stood there: just a moment ago, the little person was at his feet—now, nowhere to be seen, not on his clothes. Where could he have gone?

Yan Jiyun did have other choices—like using his invisibility tool.

But as mentioned before, he preferred not to rely on system tools. What if, like when Qi Feng was dragged into a scenario mid-mission, there were no props to use? It would only breed panic, so unless it was a last resort, he’d rather keep fighting.

Not finding him, the manager eventually gave up, turning instead to check on the other two. That didn’t go well, either.

Wen Ye, taking advantage of the distraction, remained hidden among the toys, playing dead.

Qi Feng hadn’t hidden in a box or under a toy, but was still behind the desk leg, ready to risk it all. His plan? Jump onto the manager—leaving the break room was fastest (and simplest) if they could hitch a ride.

It was a gamble, but crucial—especially with the “printer” involved.

After swatting his backside, the manager found nothing and Yan Jiyun slipped back into the pocket—the most dangerous spot, but also the safest. The manager’s jacket had side and chest pockets, not easy for a little guy to get into, and only Qi Feng could help him.

Not finding anyone, the manager squatted in front of the cage, poking at the two robbers. Earlier full of bluster, now they slumped pathetic and limp, unable even to wake.

Was shrinking people really that draining?

Yan Jiyun put his worries aside. With the manager crouched, he was now closer to the ground, close to where Qi Feng hid.

He beckoned to Qi Feng, signaling him to climb up while the coast was clear; the manager wouldn’t suspect a thing.

Yan Jiyun stretched out a hand from the pocket edge: “While he’s crouching—quick, climb up!”

But he couldn’t quite reach.

Even hunched, the manager’s glutes were some distance from the floor.

Qi Feng had an idea. He pointed to the piece of fabric still draped down from the table. He would climb it, then swing across from there.

Yan Jiyun called out softly, “Come, I can catch you!”

Now was their chance—too precious to waste.

Thankfully, the manager was big and wore loose jeans—a single back pocket could easily fit two, even five if they squeezed.

As the manager fiddled with the robbers, Qi Feng quietly snuck out, staying in the shadow under the table, which the manager’s own posture deepened. He made it to the fabric, climbed up, and swung toward Yan Jiyun—just barely missing his grasp.

Yan Jiyun leaned as far as he could, straining to reach. “A little closer!”

Qi Feng, legs wrapped around the strip, gave it one last push. He swung higher—Yan Jiyun was ready—Qi Feng stretched, their fingers met at last! Qi Feng let go; Yan Jiyun pulled him upward, and Qi Feng quickly latched on. Just as his legs hooked the edge of the pocket, their bodies jerked violently!

The manager, unable to wake the robbers, stood up.

Yan Jiyun gripped Qi Feng tightly, and Qi Feng nearly lost his hold when the manager rose suddenly. Fortunately, he reacted in time, bracing his legs at the pocket’s base—the jeans held up, not tearing.

Qi Feng knew Yan Jiyun couldn’t hold him much longer. With a twist of his core, he managed to get his legs into the pocket. With Yan Jiyun’s help, he finally tumbled in.

The pocket wasn’t wide—the legs went in first, Yan Jiyun had to pull up his upper body—and the odd angle resulted in Qi Feng toppling onto Yan Jiyun.

Exhausted and scared, both broke a sweat—fear more than effort.

Yan Jiyun supported the weight of Qi Feng above him, his hands trembling, but he managed a forced, lighthearted smile. “Looks like it’s my turn to have you on top this time.”

Qi Feng quickly shifted aside, worried he was crushing Yan Jiyun, putting a little space between them. “Are you all right? Didn’t expect the manager to stand up so fast.”

Yan Jiyun had just begun to relax when he suddenly threw his arms around Qi Feng’s neck. “Damn! That scared me!”

Qi Feng raised his hand, hesitated, then wrapped it around him, gently patting his back. “…We’re all right now.”

(Narration: The “cat’s owner” almost didn’t make it!)

Wen Ye, hidden among the pile of toys, witnessed the whole scene and thought to himself: Best to stay put. This was way too dangerous.