Clara wasnโt planning to poison anyone just yet; it was time for Clara (Moon Rabbit) to take action.
The Moon Rabbit first helped the main body find the coordinates of the headquarters.
The main body, unable to infiltrate, made a ruckus above the headquarters, drawing the attention of the rabbit soldiers.
Then, it created an opportunity for the Moon Rabbit below to act.
The two Claras coordinated seamlessly. The only problem wasโ
Multitasking was still a bit difficult for her, like playing an action game with two controllers at once. Even for a squid with strong multitasking abilities, interference was inevitable.
Nyx, help me fly a little!
Clara, nearly crashing, cried out inwardly.
To keep up the chaos on the surface, the main body couldnโt just retreat; if it triggered an alarm, the rabbit soldiers would immediately return underground.
So, riding her squid broomstick and playing guerrilla games in the sky with the rabbit soldiers was the best choice.
By comparison, Sista showed no mercy. She waited in the sky for her moment, and as soon as a gap appeared, she would dive down, decapitating a rabbit soldier like a falcon hunting, and then dart back into the sky before the other rabbit soldiers could react.
She chose close combat to save energy.
[Sistaโs operation time is limited. If youโre not going to use poison, hurry up and uncover those big rabbitsโ secrets.]
Easier said than doneโhow am I supposed to get there?!
Clara had planned to climb up the big rabbitโs tunnel, but when the chaos started, a fat rabbit was stuck in the passage.
This giant Moon Rabbit was almost as wide as the tunnel itself. Blocking the way, there was no path upward.
Nyx, hurry up and think of something!
Nyx suddenly went silentโwhy play dead at a time like this?
Clara tried to use her little paws to drag the big rabbit out of the tunnel or push it back, but it didnโt budge at all, and even found time to scratch its belly.
Compared to the big rabbitโs weight, Claraโs strength was pitifully small.
She stared dazedly at her claws, now stained red, then looked around the tunnel.
Arenโt Moon Rabbits best at digging?
Since the path was blocked, why not dig a new side tunnel and squeeze through?
Clara finally realized she was a rabbit.
With her mind made up, Clara sharpened her forelimbs on a stone and began digging around the big rabbit.
Digging tunnels was an inborn talent for rabbits.
Even as a โnewbie,โ Clara could rely on instinct to dig a narrow tunnel she could squeeze through in a short time, and so, she managed to bypass the big rabbit blocking her way.
Ha! That was easy!
She wouldโve liked to take the big guy along, but she just didnโt have the strengthโฆ
Sorry, pal, maybe weโll meet again!
For now, the most important thing was to figure out the origins of these big rabbitsโthey were clearly different from ordinary Moon Rabbits, maybe even birthed directly by the Mother.
Come to think of it, when these monsters produce offspring, do they also useโno, no, donโt think any further!!
The slope was steep. Clara followed the narrow tunnel upward, finally arriving at a basement clearly constructed by humans.
The rough concrete walls reminded her of the air-raid shelter Psyยทcho used as a hideout.
There were shelves everywhere, just like the ones in the supply warehouse before, but instead of spare blankets, these were stacked with plump, fluffy rabbits.
Obviously, these big rabbits had been dropped from here, rolling down the tunnels to headquarters, then โprocessedโ by the Moon Rabbits into rabbit soldiers.
Big rabbits naturally couldnโt crawl there on their own, so two rabbit soldiers worked here. Unfortunately, they spotted Clara as she crawled out of the tunnel and immediately rushed to catch her.
After being chased by these muscle rabbits for so long, Clara was getting frazzled just seeing them.
The moment her rabbit tail was about to be grabbed, Clara darted under a shelf.
The rabbit soldiersโ builds couldnโt fit under the shelves; even lying flat, they could only reach in with their paws, but Clara had already used the time to crawl further away.
This was the big rabbit warehouse. The โworkshopโ producing big rabbits must be close by.
Having escaped the rabbit soldiersโ grasp, Clara crouched under the shelves and observed the warehouse.
The space wasnโt very bigโsince it was underground, digging too wide would risk a collapse.
The big rabbits on the shelves seemed brainless and barely sentient. Even with all the commotion above, they didnโt react at all.
This confirmed Nyxโs earlier theory.
These big rabbits looked like they were being pampered by Moon Rabbits, but in fact, they were real โtool rabbitsโโsimply the skins that let Moon Rabbits take on human form.
Thereโs no way rabbit soldiersโ builds could fit through that tunnel, so there must be another door here. Clara hugged the wall, crawling in the shadows and searching. The view under the shelves wasnโt great, but at least she wouldnโt get caught by the rabbit soldiers.
The arrangement of this warehouse was unlikely to be the work of just one person, and these shelves mustโve been taken from the resort. Wouldnโt anyone notice so much missing stuff?
No, this just proves there are Fourth Calamity people in the resort, maybe more than one. They mightโve infiltrated as enemy company spies during the resortโs construction.
So, other companies have infiltrators too, huh?
Found it.
A standard door with a handle.
But it would be tough to open the door and leave with two rabbit soldiers watching. Moon Rabbit forelimbs werenโt good for door handles, and even standing up, she was barely a meter tall. Sheโd have to distract the rabbit-people to get out.
[Maybeโฆ you could try acting cute.]
[From what weโve seen so far, your appearance is quite popular.]
Nyx suggested an idea Clara found hard to accept.
[Youโre already able to charm people on camera as a โhumanโ, so why not charm other rabbits as a rabbit? Thereโs really no difference.]
It wasnโt about whether she could act cuteโthe key was, would it even work?
Would those two rabbit soldiers let her go because she was adorable? No way!
Orโฆ wait.
Forget about being cute. Maybe it would be smart to let herself be caught on purpose?
Unless the two rabbit soldiers decided to finish her off on the spot, wherever they took her, sheโd at least leave the warehouse and learn what was outside.
Of course, once caught, escaping would become the next problem.
But time was running short, and there was no time to hesitate. Clara deliberately let her tail stick out from under the shelf, and sure enough, a rabbit soldier soon spotted her and pulled her out.
โChirp~โ
Clara made a sweet, whimpering sound.
Sure enough, the rabbit soldier didnโt hurt herโhe even patted her back fur in a friendly gesture.
Maybe it was because their species was still primitive and not very intelligent, so relationships were simple. Moon Rabbits didnโt cheat Moon Rabbits, and there were no strict ranks.
The plan worked: the rabbit soldier carried Clara out of the underground warehouse.
But right outside the warehouse door, Clara sawโ
Someone who absolutely shouldnโt be here.
Rabbit charm!