The Collar's Command
1920 Words
Too Narrow
Too cramped.
Too uncomfortable.
＂I feel like I’m going to die.＂
Dying like this would be so embarrassing.
Vivian had truly reached the end of her rope. This damn tunnel was pitch-black and endless， with no exit in sight.
Her body was covered in bloody scrapes from forcing her way through the tight stone walls. The burns on her back throbbed dully， while the wounds on her arms had gone numb—probably because the nerves were completely dead by now.
What was she supposed to do?
Turn back? Even if that knife-throwing maniac wasn’t still guarding the entrance， she couldn’t even turn around in this cramped space， let alone maneuver her entire body.
Sometimes， there seemed to be two choices， but in reality， only one was viable.
Staying stuck here meant certain death—and a humiliating one at that. Might as well push forward and see what lay ahead. At least she’d die knowing the truth.
The long journey and endless passage of time became a relentless torment. Vivian had long since lost hope. The tunnel grew steeper， sloping downward， making it clear that escape was unlikely.
When her eyes finally detected light again， she wondered if she was hallucinating. How could there be light in this pitch-black underground?
She inched forward a few more steps.
Suddenly， the oppressive stone walls around her vanished， and faint glows illuminated the area.
Squinting， she saw that the source was a strange plant—two green leaves pressed flat against the ground， connected by a thin stem to a round， glowing white fruit.
Vivian cautiously approached one. Her wristband beeped with a notification.
＂Species Log: New plant unlocked—Luminous Fruit. Non-toxic. Danger level: Zero stars.＂
So this thing could also serve as a danger detector? Then why hadn’t it warned her when that mutated mole attacked her earlier?
＂Seriously， what the hell? Is it broken， or does it just enjoy watching me suffer?＂
The Luminous Fruit cast only a dim glow， but Vivian’s head was spinning， her stomach growling violently. She hadn’t had a drop of water in a day and a half—she needed to find food， fast.
Come to think of it… could she eat this fruit?
She plucked one and popped it into her mouth， easily biting through the thin skin. There was no flesh inside， just a thick liquid that instantly flooded her tongue.
It wasn’t sweet or sour. If she had to describe it， it tasted like rusty， gritty water—like the kind used to sharpen blades.
＂Metallic. Gross.＂
Vivian immediately spat it out.＂Definitely not edible.＂
She’d have to look for something else.
The area was sparse， with only a few shrubs growing here and there.
She rummaged through a berry bush.
＂How could such a big bush only have one berry?＂
＂Just one.＂
She nearly cried.＂Who would believe this?＂
Was she just ＂that＂ unlucky?
＂Beep beep.＂
＂Species Log: New plant unlocked—Berry. Edible. Restores 9.75/150 satiety. Roasted berry restores 12.5/150 satiety.＂
At least it was edible. Beggars couldn’t be choosers.
She’d take what she could get.
＂Player stats unlocked. Please check the attribute panel.＂
Oh， right. The berry’s satiety value had a s***h followed by another number.
After fiddling with her wristband for a bit， she pulled up the attribute panel.
The information was surprisingly simple.
＂Player Name: Vivian Grant＂
＂Satiety: 90/150 (You're hungry.)＂
＂Sanity: 120/150 (Your mental state is stable.)＂
＂HP: 50/90 (Please heal immediately.)＂
＂Exclusive Items: Portable Medicine Box， Yellow Pills x10， Blue Pills x100＂
＂Exclusive Effects: Amnesia (You’ve forgotten everything. Maybe that’s for the best.)， Drug Dependency (Lose 1 HP per second if pills are not taken on time.)＂
＂This can’t be right. Who has exclusive effects that are all debuffs?＂
Vivian stared at the panel， frustration gnawing at her.
If she didn’t take her meds， she’d lose HP. But where ＂were＂ the pills? She was certain her pockets had been empty when she woke up.
She patted herself down frantically but found nothing.
Then she looked down—and froze.
On the palm of her left hand was a line of tiny writing:
＂Don’t forget your meds. Yellow pills: 1 pill， twice a day. Blue pills: 4 pills， three times a day.＂
The handwriting was neat， as if someone had carefully written it out for her， even going over the letters multiple times to make sure they were legible.
It looked… familiar.
＂Did… I write this?＂She frowned， tracing the words with her fingertip.
The writing glowed faintly—and suddenly， a small medicine box popped out from her palm.
＂So that’s where it was.＂
Swallowing the pills dry was awful， scraping her throat raw.
But within minutes of taking them， the dizziness and ringing in her ears vanished. Her body felt lighter， as if she could sprint ten kilometers without breaking a sweat.
An unbearable itch spread over her wounds， making her scratch instinctively. Her nails scraped off scabs， revealing fresh pink skin beneath. Though still visibly new， it was a vast improvement.
A glance at her HP confirmed it—fully restored.
But her satiety had dropped to 50 and was still falling.
＂Oh no. My wounds are healed， but now I’m starving to death.＂
She eyed the medicine box suspiciously.＂Were these pills called ＂Ultra-Healing Miracle Drugs＂ or something?＂
Whatever. If she said they were， then they ＂were＂.
After tucking the ＂Ultra-Healing Miracle Drugs＂ away， Vivian focused on finding something to fill her stomach.
＂Fast.＂
The problem was， aside from that one berry bush and the glowing fruit littering the ground， there was nothing remotely edible in sight.
Finally， behind a weird， spiky rock， she spotted a shriveled， glowing blue fruit.
＂This thing looks sketchy as hell.＂
＂Beep beep.＂
＂Species Log: New plant unlocked—Glowing Berry. Edible. Restores 25/150 satiety. Danger level: Three stars.＂
＂Wait， this thing restores that much? Jackpot!＂
Vivian eagerly grabbed it and shoved it into her mouth.
Before she could even taste it， the stem trembled violently—and a massive， tooth-lined worm head burst from the ground， snapping at her.
＂What the—is this thing mimicking an anglerfish?!＂
She leapt back in panic， slamming into the rock behind her.
But the rock ＂also＂ shuddered， revealing a creature that looked like a cross between a snail and a turtle， its mouth full of jagged teeth， crawling toward her with ＂very＂ unfriendly intentions.
＂Beep beep.＂
＂Species Log: New species discovered—Cave Worm. Danger level: Three stars.＂
＂Species Log: New species discovered—Snail-Turtle. Danger level: Two stars.＂
＂What’s the point of telling me their names NOW?! I’m about to DIE!＂
Hands shaking， Vivian pulled out her knife. She managed to stab the Cave Worm， but not before it tore a chunk of flesh from her side， blood instantly soaking her clothes.
＂Bad news. I can’t win this fight.＂
If she couldn’t fight， she had to run.
Problem was… she probably couldn’t outrun them either.
She sprinted as fast as she could， but the Cave Worm burrowed underground， its massive body undulating like a dragon before erupting beneath her feet， jaws wide.
Vivian jumped with surprising agility， using the worm’s head as a springboard to launch herself away.
Glancing around the barren terrain， she realized—there were no Luminous Fruits here.
Then where was the light coming from?
Unless…
She looked down at herself.
Yep.＂She＂ was the one glowing.
＂GODDAMMIT， I TOLD MYSELF NOT TO EAT RANDOM BERRIES! Now I’m a walking flashlight!＂
A boomerang suddenly whizzed through the air， diverting the Cave Worm’s attention. While it tunneled furiously in search of the attacker， a hand clamped over Vivian’s mouth and yanked her backward.
＂Mmph—＂
Before she could make another sound， she was dragged into hiding.
Forced to crouch in a dark berry bush， pressed flush against someone’s chest， she listened to their steady heartbeat.
＂Huh. This person smells nice.＂
＂It’s gone. We can come out now.＂
The stranger stood， and the surrounding bushes rapidly shrank， morphing into a ridiculous shrub-shaped hat perched on his head.
＂Pfft—＂She couldn’t help it. Even the most beautiful person would look ridiculous wearing that.
His face flushed red， and he hastily removed the hat， stammering，＂S-Sorry， Miss. I must look foolish， but it was the only way—I， uh…＂
＂Oh， another person who knows me.＂ The last one tried to kill her， but this guy had saved her. And his attitude seemed decent.
＂Excuse me…＂ She wiped the dirt off her face and asked bluntly，＂＂Who are you?＂＂
His smile froze. His expression crumpled， eyes downcast as if he might burst into tears at any second.
＂He looks like a puppy.＂
＂Y-You don’t remember me? Then the rumors were true… They did something to you…＂His voice grew quieter， making it hard for her to hear.
＂Oh! My name is Kitty Grant. You’re the one who gave it to me.＂He quickly changed the subject.＂Kitty… Grant?＂
＂That’s a name?＂ Past her had ＂terrible＂ naming sense.
So not a puppy—a kitten.
Vivian studied the man. He still looked pitiful， as if his imaginary ears had drooped.
＂Black fur， heterochromatic eyes… A rare black cat， huh?＂
＂Hello， Kitty.＂ She grinned， reaching out to pat his head.
Kitty Grant immediately ducked， eagerly pressing his head into her palm.
＂So obedient. Past me trained my pet well.＂
＂Kitty， since you know me， what did I used to do?＂
He was practically melting under her touch， ears (real ones， apparently) twitching.
＂Miss was the sole heir of Grant Pharmaceuticals. But the company went bankrupt recently， and the family head passed away. Now， you’ve been forced into the arena， fighting alongside lowly slaves like us for the entertainment of the upper class.＂
His eyes reddened.
＂My poor lady. You should be sitting in a VIP box， watching comfortably. Instead， you’re down here with the rest of us.＂
He nuzzled against her leg， sinking lower until he was practically curled at her feet.
Vivian， amused by his clinginess， suddenly noticed the pair of cat ears twitching on his head.
＂No wonder he’s so affectionate. He’s literally a cat.＂
＂Kitty， you know so much about me. Were we friends?＂
＂N-No! Someone like me could never be Miss’s friend! I’m just… your kitten. If I had to say， I’m your pet.＂ He looked like he might start meowing in distress.
＂Wow. Past me was wild.＂
＂Kitty， I’d love to trust you， but words alone aren’t proof. What if I trust you， and you betray me?＂She feigned hesitation.
＂I—how could I ever betray you? I have proof!＂
He unfastened his high collar， revealing a tight leather band around his neck， complete with a small bell.
Vivian inspected it. The exterior was soft leather， but the inner layer seemed to be made of something unbreakable.
Engraved on the outside were the words:
＂Kitty Grant belongs to Vivian.＂
The moment her fingers brushed the engraving， Kitty Grant convulsed in pain， collapsing with a whimper.
＂Wh-Why are you punishing me? What did I do wrong?＂ He looked up at her with teary eyes.
＂Sorry， Kitty. I didn’t know that would happen.＂ She pretended to be remorseful， though inwardly pleased.＂So controlling him is that easy. No worries about a feral cat biting me now. Though touching his neck every time seems tedious.＂
＂Can you tell me how to stop the pain?＂ She played the kind， concerned owner.
＂P-Press the tattoo button on your chest to deactivate the command… and then pet me， please.＂ He nuzzled against her again.
＂Wow.＂
＂So obedient.＂
- Writer
