Doomsday Wonderland c1-855

by N. Heller

  "It depends on your luck and whether you are observant."

  Lin Sanjiu immediately thought of the situation when she found her Pygmalion Choker. At that time, she just thought that she was very lucky. She did not even question why those duoluozhong would even have Special Items.

  Pushing that thought to the back of her head, she turned to Scrooge McDuck once more. Before this encounter, Lin Sanjiu had never met any character in a pocket dimension talking about the laws in the apocalyptic worlds. Well, let alone discuss their role setup. Scrooge McDuck had a clear self-awareness... Perhaps, it was a little too clear for comfort…"

  For some incomprehensible reason, almost as if she was a little afraid, Lin Sanjiu asked the duck softly, "You don't seem like a fictional character… What are you?'

  Scrooge McDuck supported his head with one of his wings, and his smile froze. For a moment, his expression did not change. After quite some time, he finally replied to her, "I think you already guessed what I am. Why do you ask me that question knowing the answer?"

  Lin Sanjiu suddenly felt goosebumps all over her arms.

  "Even after meeting over ten pocket dimension characters, you might not meet someone like me who has consciousness of his or her situation." Scrooge McDuck's voice suddenly turned a little weird, as if he was holding back some emotions, "Even though I am self-aware, I am mostly controlled by my role. Sometimes, I don't know if that is good or bad…"

  For a moment, there was complete silence between both of them.

  "Next time…" Lin Sanjiu mumbled. "When I meet you the next time, how will you be?"

  "Scrooge McDuck, of course," he seemed to be shrugging but, as a duck, he did not have the shoulders to do that, so instead his action looked comical. "If you didn't ask me that question, I wouldn't tell you all these… I might remember you the next time, or perhaps I won't… You don't have to look at me that way. I might be living a life like this but it is bearable. You have also accepted the fate that you have to travel through different apocalyptic worlds, haven't you?"

  Lin Sanjiu hesitated and did not continue the conversation.

  "Alright," she sighed and stood up again. After dusting herself, she stretched her hand out to the duck and pulled him up from the ground. "Everyone has their own lives. In any case, I'll be going."

  Scrooge McDuck nodded.

  "By the way," Lin Sanjiu crooked her head and contemplated for a bit. Suddenly, she laughed, "Since you know that your wealth and power are both granted by the setup in this pocket dimension, why don't you compensate me with some of your Stamina Points—"

  Before she could finish her sentence, she noticed that the large duck had suddenly turned unfriendly. Scrooge McDuck shook his head vehemently. He was visibly angry, reluctantly and very protective of his assets. "No, no, no. No. If everyone tries to get some Stamina Points from me each time, I would be bankrupt after 600 years!"

  "Are you going to hand it over?" Lin Sanjiu narrowed her eyes. Even though she felt a little bad for the duck, she had to think of the cat doctor outside. Besides, her new ability seemed to be a cash-draining ability as well. She couldn't use it without Stamina Points, "Do you cherish your life or your money?"

  Scrooge McDuck certainly cherished his life a little more. He wiped his reluctant tears with his wings, "You can't get it even if I give the Stamina Points to you now. You will need to collect the Stamina Points at the exit.

  As long as she received it, Lin Sanjiu didn't really care when she could collect it. After she forced Scrooge McDuck to nod his head to accept the proposition, she couldn't help feeling excited. After that, she searched around the area but could not find Snow White anywhere. Consequently, she left decisively.

  "Okay, I will go and look for the gold ring now," Lin Sanjiu looked at Scrooge McDuck who was standing at the same spot. As he was in a duck form, he did look a little silly when he was not talking.

  Just as Lin Sanjiu took a few steps, she heard someone's voice, "Be careful. Not every posthuman who dies in a pocket dimension is as lucky as me…"

  Lin Sanjiu did not turn her head around, neither did she answer him. She simply nodded and continued on her way.

  Minnie, Mickey, Snow White, and that prince she killed… She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Even the female boss of the barbecue shop and the ticket sellers...

  They have been posthumans once.

  Now, they were all dead. Some of them still continued living by some force of nature. Perhaps, they no longer looked the same. Some didn't even have a body. Yet, in some way, their consciousness persisted… As long as this pocket dimension existed, they would exist. They could not leave the place or do anything not within their "fixed role".

  Lin Sanjiu didn't know if she could consider that lucky. She didn't know if she should be angry. She was just very confused. As countless thoughts clouded her mind and she kept thinking about various questions, she felt only a vague exhaustion and confusion.

  "I wish I had an answer." Lin Sanjiu muttered unconsciously to herself as she walked into a forest. Mrs. Manas was the only "person" who heard her but she didn't reply. Lin Sanjiu's voice disappeared into the silence in the forest. She sighed and gathered herself again before checking her surroundings.

  Sunlight filtered down through the forest canopy, lighting the wooden branches on the forest floor. Amidst the tree and leaves, Lin Sanjiu spot a vague silvery mirage. When she walked closer, she saw ripples cutting through the surface of a lake.

  Scrooge McDuck was right. Lin Sanjiu eyed the edges of the crescent-shaped lake. It wasn't large. Then, she spotted an old wooden hut.

  Lin Sanjiu stopped outside the door immediately. She remained in the same spot observing her surroundings cautiously. When there was silence behind the door once again, she decided to test the situation, "Is there anyone around? I am looking for the golden ring that Minnie Mouse lost. Did anyone see it—"

  Before she could finish her question, the wooden door opened. Lin Sanjiu looked up and found herself speechless.

  "Are you talking about this?"

  Lin Sanjiu saw a golden ring glimmering on a black finger. It looked clean. Pulling her hand back, Minnie flashed a wide grin at Lin Sanjiu, "As expected, you came."

  Chapter 377 - Put Your Learning into Practice

  The wooden hut looked pretty extensive from the outside and covered around a hundred square feet. However, there was not enough room for other furniture inside the cabin after adding a sofa and a table set.

  The couch was huge. Despite that, even with the size comparable to a double bed, Minnie left no space for her guest after she sat on the couch. Clear enough, the couch was specifically made to accommodate her large size. It added no value to the hut. Instead, it made the cabin feel cramped.

  Lin Sanjiu found herself a seat on a chair somewhere around the table. Her feet once again were left dangling in the air.

  Minnie sipped on a hot cup of tea. The steam blurred her vertical irises. The gold ring sat obediently on the hand that held the teacup and shined brightly.

  "I don't understand..." Lin Sanjiu said as Minnie served her a cup of hot tea. However, she left it untouched on a table beside her. She was on her guard. As she was studying Minnie, she hesitantly opened her mouth, "So you didn't lose your ring after all?"

  Minnie remained silent. She narrowed her two eyes into two vertical lines as she took another sip from the teacup, raveling in her blissful moment. Then, she spoke in a sloven demeanor, "Nope, nope at all. I've never lost my ring."

  "So why Mickey—"

  "Let's just say that," Minnie interrupted her, "I told Mickey that I lost my ring. He took it as the gospel truth, and the rest is the history."

  Lin Sanjiu frowned. She couldn't explain the feeling well, but she somehow had a hunch that the Minnie in front of her had changed. She had a different mien from the Minnie that treated her to pie.

  "Guess you must be curious as to what drove me to pull such shenanigans, huh," Minnie raised her hand and swirle
d it slowly in the air while looking at her ring, "It is a long story."

  "It all began at midnight roughly one week ago when I suddenly awoke from my slumber," Minnie's tone was deep, and her voice was hoarse. It did not soothe Lin Sanjiu's nerves but frightened her, "I was feeling kinda groggy lying on my bed. Do you know what was I thinking at that time?"

  Lin Sanjiu gulped, and she inched herself a little bit forward until her feet found the ground. Then, she shook her head.

  "I was thinking where am I now and how I ended up here—I've spent all my red crystal to get a visa to Red Nautilus which left me with practically nothing. I don't even have enough red crystal to pay for a night at a hotel. It has been hell for the past few days. I spent my days and nights, braving through the wind and dew, living on the street and going hungry, so how can I suddenly wake up from a bed?"

  "So she is—" A thought suddenly rammed into Lin Sanjiu's brain, making her blood cold.

  "The saner I become, the more I remember. When I found a short-term job which required me to search for supplies on the sea, I was exhilarated. I felt hope, and I felt everything is going to get better, so I worked hard. However, life threw me a curveball… I remember that day was an ordinary day. Everything happened in seconds, and the moment I was aware, I was already in this pocket dimension. As a non-growth type who accidentally bumped into a pocket dimension designed especially for Growth type, do you have any idea how hard was it for me to survive? After going through a hard time clearing the first round, I died," Minnie's smile froze, her expression turned flat. Then, she continued, "Now, I am Minnie."

  Heaving a sigh, "Minnie" lifted the teacup again.

  "Let me be honest with you: I don't even have the slightest idea of who Mickey and Minnie are. Course I understand that this is my "role," but there is no Disney where I come from," Minnie spoke feebly and sneered, "Perhaps the reason I become Minnie is that I'm a woman."

  Lin Sanjiu was in the limbo of surprise and doubt. Then, Scrooge McDuck's comment surfaced in her mind, "Of the ten pocket dimension beings, I believe none of them are as compos mentis as me."

  Lin Sanjiu didn't know why there were two sober pocket dimension beings in one attraction. All she knew was that Minnie was the second pocket dimension being that had returned to her senses after Scrooge McDuck.

  "This wasn't my first time hearing this story, to be honest," Lin Sanjiu pondered for a moment before giving out what she knew, "But what does it have to do with your gold ring?"

  A shocked expression dawned on Minnie. After a short pause, she continued, "This wasn't your first time? So you have met with somebody like me already? That's interesting… Well, anyway, let me finish my story first. I couldn't care less about somebody I don't know so long that I can get out from here."

  "You can get out from here?" Lin Sanjiu's eyes bulged.

  "This is all a speculation, don't get so worked up please," Minnie placed down the teacup. She unconsciously rubbed her fingers, and she showed an expression on her face for the first time. "Nothing will remain when a man is dead. From the science perspective, my consciousness should've ceased from my mortal body the moment I died. Hence, it would be impossible for the pocket dimension to turn my consciousness into a pocket dimension being. Unless I'm not dead yet and my brain had merely fallen into a deep sleep. Like a brainwashed puppet, I was just controlled by the pocket dimension."

  Mayhap the conversation Lin Sanjiu had with Scrooge McDuck had made the wondrous effect on her brain and limited her imagination; she had never considered the aspect that all the pocket dimension beings were still alive but merely in a vegetative state. Hence, once Minnie voiced out her conjecture, she suddenly saw the light. She shot up from her seat and yelled, "You might be right!"

  It was just another thought swayed into her mind again right after she yelled. She couldn't help and sneak a peek at Minnie's body.

  "Your thoughts are all written on your face," Minnie chuckled. Her hand found her round face as she said, "The body I have now felt like my own body. It has real flesh and blood, and it's definitely not a costume, so here's the thing. Either my consciousness has been projected into this body while my original body is being kept away somewhere else, or somebody has transplanted my brain into this body. Woe is me."

  Even they were now engaging a rather serious topic, Minnie still had a self-deprecating look on her face.

  "All I d.e.s.i.r.e is to leave this hell. I couldn't care less if that means that I have lost my original body forever and that I have to spend my entire life in this body. Even if I have turned into a duoluozhong, I'll relish my second living chance more than anything. Hence, ever since the "enlightenment," I have been looking for an opportunity."

  "So in the end, have you found it?" Lin Sanjiu looked at the ring, and she thought of Scrooge McDuck.

  "It's easier said than done." Crestfallen, Minnie shook her head, "Most of my actions are affected by my role, and I have no choice but to do a series of stupid things. Frankly speaking, I can kill as many posthumans as I want by just putting poison into all the pies during the first round of game. To my chagrin, I can't do that as I have no control over my body.

  Suddenly, a smile, that kind of smile that make Lin Sanjiu shudder, tugged at the corner of Minnie's lips. "However, as I'm testing the border of the setting, I bumped into something interesting. By the pocket dimension called "Cartoon World," we're programmed. Everything we say and our actions have to follow exactly as Cartoon World wants us to be. We can't breach the rules nor we can attack other cartoon characters. This means that I can't attack Mickey no matter how much I wish I could. However, if a character exhibits frequent instability, then Cartoon World will remove said character from his or her given role. I guess either those removed characters are relocated to another place and take on another role or they are returned to their original body."

  "Well, that sounds pretty reasonable, but there is a loophole in your theory. You can't omit the possibility that they were killed," Lin Sanjiu said. Her eyebrows were brought together tightly.

  "Certainly. What you suggested might be true," Minnie shrugged, "But it still worth a shot. You cannot make an omelet without breaking an egg. If I was determined to claim back my own life, then I'll have to prepare for any eventualities."

  When Minnie reached this point, Lin Sanjiu somewhat realized instead of carrying on her marionette-life, Minnie would rather die.

  "The following part is the real deal," Minnie placed her arm on her knee and tilted her body forward. She peered straight into Lin Sanjiu's eyes, "If I can't attack the other character, and I am not allowed to do anything beyond my role, how can I show the Cartoon World that I'm unstable?

  "Thanks to Goddess of Luck, I finally found the way after many trial and error," Minnie said while opening her mouth slowly, revealing Lin Sanjiu her row of human-like teeth. "I told Mickey that I had lost my gold ring, and I demand the help from posthumans. Since Mickey issued the mission in the first round, no doubt the mission "searching for gold ring" has become the main mission of whoever joined the game.

  "But you can never find the gold ring as I have the ring all the time. In the meantime, as long as I refuse to give you the ring, you can't clear the mission," said Minnie. Her grin grew larger and grimmer as she spoke, "Phew, giving a lengthy speech is indeed exhausting. Okay, for now, all I want you to do is stay in this attraction and kill every character until I'm "eliminated." As I'm the mission issuer, I'm responsible for everything you do. I know it's troublesome, but this is the only way. Hmm, why don't we start with Mickey first?"

  Lin Sanjiu slowly rose to her feet. Her gaze became colder.

  The sun had declined towards the west, and since there was no light in the hut, half of the hut was thrust into darkness. Her pair of skeletal wings were high in the air, and her amber eyes glowed with a faint light. A sardonic smile found its way to her lips as she moved her shoulders.

  "While I'm sorry for what you have been through," Every word that came out from
her lips seemed to dip in cold water. It chilled Minnie to her core, "And you indeed are a poor fellow, however that doesn't give you the right to be an asshole!"

  Minnie was dumbfounded. She never expected this sudden turn of event. "You don't want to clear the game? If you refuse to help me, you can't get out from here."

  Crooking her neck, Lin Sanjiu glared at Minnie. She said, "Have you ever thought that like you, those characters you want me to kill are human, too?"

  "So?" Minnie laughed, "You've grown compassion for them? What a joke! They have no self-consciousness! They are just a bunch of mindless puppets! You shouldn't be sorry about killing a puppet that has no feeling! Besides, you too came from an apocalyptic world, so I believe—"

  Before Minnie could finish blabbering, she had lost sight of Lin Sanjiu

  While Minnie was frantically looking for Lin Sanjiu's whereabouts, the deadly skeletal wings came out of nowhere. It sliced through the air and fall onto her with the force that could topple the mountain and overturn the sea. She even could hear Lin Sanjiu's sneer brushed past her ear, "Since I'm going to kill someone, I might as well kill you first."

  Minnie was tall and massive, but she was agile. She did a quick somersault and used the couch as her shield. While the sharp bones missed its target and instead stabbed into the couch, Minnie darted behind. She rammed through the wooden wall and went outside.

  She didn't have to fight Lin Sanjiu at all. She laughed, turned her body over, and ran towards the forest.

  Lin Sanjiu knew that once she lost Minnie, she would have to play her game. Hence, she quickly went after her. Both of them zigzagged from bushes to bushes in the forest like shadows. In a blink of an eye, they left the wooden hut far behind, and it soon vanished from their sight.

  Lin Sanjiu trailed roughly ten meters behind Minnie, not daring to change direction or lose focus.

  "Have I ever told you?" Minnie sounded rather chill although they were traveling at sonic speed, "I'm not particularly strong, but since I have the guts to set you up, I must have my ace in the hole. Ever since I have evolved, nobody could catch up to my speed."