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Chapter 111 - 109: "Miss Lighthouse

Chapter 111: Chapter 109: "Miss Lighthouse

Iris had always been a confident woman.

As the mistress born into an aristocratic noble family, she became everyone’s idea of a "noble" effortlessly thanks to her artistic taste and witty conversation. Even though the monarchy of Yu Country had been abolished, her every word and action still resonated with the old aristocratic elegance, confidence, and an irresistible charm.

To her audience, she seemed accommodating and proper, but her innate sense of superiority was always there. In dealing with Adolf and Eni, her demeanor was natural, yet with those who were insignificant in the real world but soared in the game, that underlying oppressive feeling made her somewhat impatient.

Her respect for surnames, social standing, and titles far outweighed her respect for the "individual" themselves.

...It was just very well hidden.

Including the so-called "Number One Player" before her.

This person was a student from the lowest strata of Dragon Country, whose video clips she had seen. He had won by the skin of his teeth, with tactics of losing limbs and sneak attacks, utterly lacking any basic elegance. Including his overly confident tone, his bizarre remarks, and especially his disrespectful attitude towards Adolf and the others, she found it utterly contemptible.

"Hello, Number One Player," Iris said with a smirk—despite the full disdain and rejection she felt for this man, she wore an expression full of affinity, standing in a square that was the focus of the entire world’s attention, trying her best to display her ultimate charm.

She noticed the young man was staring at her intensely, his gaze naked and unapologetic. She was used to this type of person—merely attracted by her appearance and personality, she had learned how to handle them long ago; it only lowered her opinion of him even further... although it wasn’t high to begin with.

However, it was undeniable that he was very powerful. Perhaps she could use this admiration to propel herself to a higher position, or even...supplant him.

The title of "Number One Player" was coveted by all.

When she spoke, her voice had a devilishly charming quality that caused several strong players nearby to momentarily become disoriented. She kept her attention on the person before her, but he seemed unaffected, his gaze continually fixed on her...hand, with a strong desire.

...Was he that starved? Aroused by just a hand?

Iris felt goosebumps on the back of her hand and couldn’t help but show a trace of disgust in her eyes, but in the next moment, the man "captivated by her" finally spoke.

"Such a shining Lighthouse..."

Iris was still waiting for his request, perhaps to kiss the back of her hand, ask to accompany her, or use his impoverished student vocabulary to compliment her beauty. She was dropping her eyelids, smirking slightly.

"...The pattern mark on your hand is so beautiful." The person before her was indeed praising...

Wait a moment,

She glanced quickly at the back of her own hand, where a white mark representing three Perfect Passes was located, but she had always felt the Organizers’ aesthetic was utterly abhorrent, eager to cover up the ugly mark. But...but this person had come up and stepped right onto her pet peeve, and even said something...beautiful?

...He had come up to her, approached the world’s most beautiful goddess, been given a chance for intimate contact...just to compliment that ugly mark??

"May you succeed, Miss Lighthouse."

Iris was still dazedly waiting for his further compliments and invitation, but Su Ming’an had already turned away, directly approaching Lv Shu, who stood there dumb and foolish, like a block of wood.

She unconsciously touched the back of her hand, her face showing slight astonishment.

Laughter was almost bursting in Su Ming’an’s live streaming:

[To seek charm in front of the Lighthouse of fetishism... This woman from Yu Country is really too silly.]

[Seeing her change from full confidence to astonishment was so funny hhh, I’m dying of laughter.]

[Adorable Yuanyuan, tsundere older sister Yu Ruohuo, mature and cold Mizushima Kawa Sora, sickly sweet Shen Xue, warm-hearted devotee Su style, trophy husband Lv Shu... He disregards all these various types of girls, ready to chop them down when necessary, and yet you, a foreign dame, still want to try something!]

[It seems like something strange sneaked in there...]

[What are you doing! Louder, you can’t command a warship with that soft voice!]

[Ming’an, the ultimate straight man. Honestly, Iris indeed possesses a charm that can influence people’s hearts. As a girl myself, just listening to her voice through the screen nearly made me fall for her.]

[Iris really is charming... unless she meets Su Ming’an hhh]

[The Number One Player’s clone currently has a high spiritual power, preliminarily estimated to be at least sixty points, otherwise he wouldn’t be unaffected at all.]

[No, I think he’s just genuinely not interested...]

[...]

It wasn’t until Su Ming’an was walking back that he noticed the twelfth player.

Because this player was entirely hidden in the shadows under the eaves and hadn’t even approached the edge of the square, she was not at all conspicuous. As he got closer, he noticed her exposed corner of the cream-laced, puffy skirt, resembling that of Lolita’s style.

"Ahem, alright, travelers from the outside," the mayor, tremblingly leaning on his cane, stepped forward, "First of all, welcome to Terrily Town, you will spend about four days here..."

...are they starting to read the rules?

The few players who were whispering together instantly quieted down. At the same time, everyone heard a system notification ringing in their ears:

[Welcome to the Fourth World: Cursed Terrily Town]

[This world is a competition instance for twelve players split into two factions: a good faction consisting of eight players and a werewolf faction consisting of four players. There is no requirement for a perfect pass in this world, and winning or losing only affects the final points.]

[The only task: Follow your faction to achieve the final victory.]

[Friendly reminder: You may also freely explore the town to take on other side quests and gather clues and information about the opposing faction.]

...

"Please, take a seat, take a seat..." the mayor warmly ushered the dozen people to sit at the long table in the square.

However, they distinctly smelled a strong, dry stench of blood from the table, as if fresh blood had soaked into the wood and merged completely with it.

After the twelve had sat down, many townfolk gradually approached the square. They appeared simple and unsophisticated with slightly darkened skin, wearing patched clothes. Yet, the smiles on their faces were very genuine. They carried bamboo baskets containing dew-covered fruits, all displaying the hardworking demeanor of farmers.

"To welcome the travelers from outside, the townspeople have risen early to pick the freshest fruits for you all, please don’t be shy." The mayor said smilingly, while those burly men and women came forward, presenting stacks of fruits that looked freshly delicious to the players.

"Such a beautiful girl, try these strawberries planted by Aunt Rose." A corpulent woman placed bright red strawberries in front of Iris and a few other female players.

"Welcome, try the apples of Terrily Town, these are the fine ones that are sent to the city!" A few men with honest smiles stacked up apples.

"And my small tomatoes!"

"Travelers, try the freshly picked oranges from Terrily, they’re very sweet!"

"..." A shy girl placed a stack of fruits in front of the most handsome Edward, gave him a suggestive look, and left.

A few dark-skinned young men scratched their heads, their faces red, each squinting at the beautiful female players.

A child, who looked obedient and sensible, tiptoed to give the silent Lv Shu some fruits, calling him "Big Brother" with each gesture.

Su Ming’an was still looking at the system panel when suddenly a stack of the most abundant fruit plate was placed in front of him. As he looked up, he saw the Mayor, who was smiling amicably. He personally took the best-looking, freshest fruits from someone else’s hands and placed them in front of him.

The other players saw his special treatment and exhibited suspicious expressions.

"Dear Number One Traveler, after the gathering is over, you can come to my house. I have some stories to tell you," the Mayor said with a smile.

The favorability bonus was too obvious. The Mayor turned around with a smile, and Su Ming’an felt several glances directed at him.

After delivering the fruits, the townfolk withdrew without staying in the square, only the Mayor stood still.

All those present were big shots who had crawled out from various Underworld instances, each with a considerable amount of vigilance.

The fruits, which should belong to different seasons, were now collectively presented as if they had just been picked, only a fool would believe there were no problems with them.

Even though the townfolk looked simple and kind, none of them moved, except Mizushima Haru who seemed to carelessly eat a cherry tomato.

"All of you are travelers who have come from afar, could you please start with a self-introduction? After the introduction, I will inform you of the specific rules for moving around in the town..." The Mayor eyed the twelve players seated at the long table, his gaze fixing on Number One, Su Ming’an, with a hint of friendliness, then he slowly said:

"Let’s start from the twelfth traveler, in reverse order."

Several people were stunned at once. Logically, it should start from number one, but the Mayor seemed to intentionally favor number twelve, letting that person speak first.

"Then I’ll go first?" said a girl who almost looked identical to Mizushima Kawa Sora, waving her hand cheerfully: "Well, although boring self-introductions are not fun, it’s not like a class team-building. But when I think about it... it’s also very fun to play with everyone! Of course, except for some people who deliberately try to get close to my sister without knowing their boundaries..."

Her gaze lingered on Su Ming’an and then in an instant, she withdrew the gaze specifically targeting him, and resumed speaking cheerfully:

"I am Number Twelve, Mizushima Haru, Zhai XIng’s strongest beauty, Kawa Sora’s best helper, the only one Kawa Sora trusts the most, and also Kawa Sora’s perfect, beautiful, good lover!"

Several people looked towards the quiet and head-bowed Mizushima Kawa Sora, surprised that she had such a lively and offbeat sister.

"...Anyone who dares to approach my sister casually, I will not let them go! In this game, I will definitely help my sister and together, achieve the ultimate perfect victory! That’s all!"

Mizushima Kawa Sora covered her face, sighing through the gaps between her fingers.

"Is, is it my turn now..." Number Eleven, Lin Jiang, shrank her body, her thick bangs almost covering half of her face, and her rustic clothes along with an extremely low self-esteem air made her look like an outsider among the twelve.

"I, I am Number Eleven, Lin Jiang..."

As soon as the words left her mouth, she suddenly let out a cry of "Ah."

At the same time, the live comments exploded:

[Oh my God, what is that!]

[The Underworld is dead, the Underworld is dead, oh man, why am I watching this in broad daylight!]

[As expected, this isn’t just any normal town, without some bizarre quirks they wouldn’t dare make it an instance!]

The twelve simultaneously shifted their gaze towards the edge of the square, and saw a few rugged townfolk, dressed in tattered clothes, carrying a bloody, corpse-like "person" from the edge of the square. That person seemed not yet dead, barely visible flesh, yet still able to utter faint moans.

"Banish him! Banish this bastard—!"

"Damn it, he’s definitely that vile monster, it was him who killed my White at night..."

The originally amiable townfolk had changed drastically, their eyes seeming to blaze with frenzied flames. The burly men and women followed behind, forming a long line marching toward the center pole, much like a parade.

They looked at the bloodied man being carried by several men with eyes full of hatred, as if the miserable sight of him wasn’t enough; they seemed determined to flay him a thousand times over.

"What is... happening?" Noel asked.

"Ah, did it scare you? Sorry, travelers," the mayor, facing this terrifying, religious procession-like scene, still managed a kind smile. "You must have been told by your guide at night, right? Terrily is a cursed town... Among us, some are metamorphosed into monsters. They seem no different from ordinary townfolk during the day, but at night, they start to act, choosing a household to kill... So, every day, we hold a meeting in the square to find out who is the most suspicious and hang that person..."

"But, on what grounds do you decide who is the most suspicious?" Andre asked. "I remember that it’s forbidden to go out at night, so how do you find out who the attacker is?"

"That... leads to a dilemma," the mayor sighed softly. "...because of the curse, we can’t go out at night to see who the metamorphosed monster really is. So, we can only guess based on intuition..."

"How can you do this!" Adolf slammed the table, standing up suddenly, this player of mercenary origin still retained some sense of justice that didn’t match his occupation, "If you just hang people based on intuition, aren’t many of the townfolk innocent?"

"We have no other choice..." The mayor tapped the ground with his cane, his wrinkled face showing reluctance. "...but it seems effective, at least it has greatly reduced the townfolks’ panic."

The players looked toward the square.

The townfolk, held aloft like a blood-stained banner, let out faint sobs, while the zealot townfolk cheered loudly as if finding a beacon, seeming to believe that hanging this person would restore peace to their lives.

"Hang him, hang him!"

With such repeated chants, the shabbily dressed people seemed to see hope for a moment. After hanging the man on the gallows, they looked upward with immense anticipation, and then, a woman volunteered to kick away the stool.

"Whoosh!"

"Ahh—!" Lin Jiang trembled with fear, burying her head completely between her hands, not daring to look up.

Eni and the others frowned, clenching their fists slightly.

Su Ming’an lifted his eyelids.

The forlorn townfolk, now hanging, his neck snapped violently by the noose, his head tilted sideways, his whole body paralyzed, yet he still dangled at the end of the hanging rope, struggling unconsciously, like a dying beast.

And the moment he was hung, the townfolk erupted into explosive cheers; their fervent emotions set the entire square ablaze, people raising their hands and cheering, embracing each other as if they had conducted some grand ritual.

[*You have gained Clue One: Terrily’s Carnival]

[(Terrily’s Carnival): The central square’s festivity, where the townfolk hold a relative justice known as "minority obeys the majority."]

[Gained 10 Exploration Points]

[The clue has been recorded in the clue column, available for viewing at any time.]

"Well, outside travelers. Sorry for the interruption due to our town’s unique ritual," the mayor’s hollow voice brought their attention back, his cloudy eyes staring at the mahogany tabletop, his shrunken body leaning on the short dragon head staff, his voice low:

"...Now, you can continue with your introductions."