chapter 11

A sharp Dagger was held up by a snow-white palm, its cold gleam revealing its deadly edge.

Tu Nan reached out and picked up the Dagger. The moment she gripped it tightly, the System’s voice rang out in her mind.

[Congratulations, Player, you have obtained a key plot item: the magical Dagger that can kill the Prince.

Description: Produced in the Instance ‘The Little Mermaid’, it can only be used within the ‘The Little Mermaid’ Instance. Taking it out is invalid.

As the name suggests, this is a magical Dagger that can kill the Prince. If you want to use it to peel an apple, I can only remind you to be careful not to get hurt.]

It seemed this method was correct.

“My dear sister, surely you won’t be blinded by foolish so-called love again and let us down once more?”

One of the Mermaids asked, her voice ethereal and melodious, her beautiful eyes fixed intently on her.

Tu Nan couldn’t speak, so she shook her head vigorously, her gaze resolute.

Several Mermaids circled around her, singing the Mermaid’s Song. As they sang, pure white pearls rolled down from the corners of their eyes.

Legend has it that when Mermaids cry, their tears turn into pearls with magical powers. Tu Nan watched this scene, existing only in fantasy, and her heart stirred slightly.

She gripped the rope tightly and climbed down along the side of the ship, inching lower until her lower body was completely submerged in the Sea.

The Mermaids immediately swam forward to embrace her.

Tu Nan took the opportunity to grab the pearls formed from their tears.

They seemed to still carry a trace of warmth.

At the same time, the System’s voice rang out again.

[Congratulations, Player, you have obtained: Mermaid’s Tears.

Description: Produced in the Instance ‘The Little Mermaid’, Mermaid’s Tears contain the sincere emotions of Mermaids. Consuming them can lower Pollution Value, and they can also serve as beautiful ornaments.]

Tu Nan was slightly stunned, feeling as if the tiny pearls in her hand were almost burning.

No wonder the Mermaids’ appearance didn’t change at night-turns out their tears could suppress Pollution Value.

Each Mermaid kissed her cheek in turn, offering their blessings and wishing her to kill the Prince soon and return to the embrace of the Sea.

Tu Nan stuffed the pearls into her sleeve, grabbed the rope, climbed back onto the ship, and leapt inside. When her feet hit the ground, even someone as stoic as Tu Nan couldn’t help but grimace in pain.

At night, the Sea looked even vaster. The dark, surging waves rolled before her, and the Mermaids floating within waved goodbye to her reluctantly.

She opened her palm; several pearls glowed with a lustrous sheen under the moonlight. She took one and swallowed it, and immediately received a System notification that her Pollution Value had decreased.

One pearl could lower Pollution Value by ten points. Once Pollution Value dropped to ten percent, it would no longer change.

She carefully stored the remaining pearls.

The danger of Pollution Value was temporarily resolved. Next, she needed to check the Storage Room on the first deck.

Tu Nan guessed that there must be clues she was looking for there.

When she passed by during the day, she noticed a huge Lock hanging on the door leading to the lower deck. It was still there, but fortunately, she was prepared.

She placed the Candle she had just taken from the wall on the ground, took out the Pearl Hairpin Lily had given her, and carefully inserted its tip into the keyhole, fiddling a few times. Amazingly, the Lock actually opened.

Tu Nan had lost her parents at a young age and was raised by her Grandmother and Grandfather in the countryside. She was wild and unruly as a child, always running around. Her lock-picking skills were learned for fun from a Lock-picking Master in the village, and she hadn’t expected them to come in handy here.

She carefully removed the Lock, set it gently aside, picked up the Candle, and shone it into the pitch-black depths below, unable to suppress a sigh of relief.
Just standing at the entrance of the Storage Room, Tu Nan could feel wisps of cold air seeping out from within. She held the Candle and carefully made her way down the stairs.

So cold.

That was her first impression.

The further she went, the colder it became.

After walking for a while, she finally felt her feet touch solid ground. She raised the Candle to illuminate the room before her, and was so shocked by the scene that she almost forgot to move.

This was no Storage Room-it was clearly a slaughterhouse.

In the center of the room stood a huge table, stained with blood and scattered with unidentifiable chunks of meat.

In the corners of the room, piles of ice blocks emitted a chilly aura. The floor was covered in puddles of water from the melting ice, mixed with blood, forming filthy pools of dirty water.

Strips of dried meat from unknown animals hung on the walls, giving off a greasy smell that made the scene even more bizarre.

The thought that what they had eaten today might have been made from these things made Tu Nan’s stomach twist in knots.

Fortunately, to be safe, she hadn’t eaten any meat.

Pinching her nose, she raised the Candle and began to search the surroundings.

As she passed a massive Stone Vat, she suddenly heard a faint sound coming from the entrance of the Storeroom.

The sound was already at the door. There was no time to escape through it now. Tu Nan’s body reacted faster than her mind-she immediately blew out the Candle, lifted the lid of the Stone Vat, climbed inside, and closed the lid over herself.

The moment she got in, Tu Nan regretted it.

She crouched down and clearly felt herself pressed against something soft. She couldn’t see anything in the darkness, but her ears became even more sensitive.

Behind her, there was an extremely faint sound of breathing.

It was as if a cold breeze brushed past her ear. Goosebumps erupted all over Tu Nan’s body in an instant. Her hair stood on end as she stiffly turned her head.

She couldn’t see-she couldn’t see anything.

But she knew clearly: there was someone else in the vat.

She couldn’t speak, and the other person didn’t say a word either. The two of them sat in silence in the darkness, listening together to the sounds coming from outside.

A rough voice spoke up first.

“Why is the Lock open? Zack, did you forget to lock the door?”

“Bullshit! You think I’m you?” The man called Zack spat and cursed, “It must’ve been those people who came to pick up the goods and weren’t careful. Just wait, I’ll teach them a lesson tomorrow.”

“Enough, keep your voice down. Don’t wake anyone up,” the other man grunted. “Nothing can go wrong before the Wedding. Move these goods inside quickly-these are all top-quality, handpicked by the Prince for the Wedding.”

“What’s there to be afraid of? They’re probably sleeping like logs right now,” Zack said, but he still got to work.

Tu Nan frowned, keeping an ear on the voices outside while also staying alert to the mysterious person beside her.

Since she’d entered the Stone Vat, the person next to her hadn’t made a sound or taken any action toward her. Other than the faint breathing, it was almost as if they weren’t alive.

She could only wait and see.

The two men outside fell silent, probably busy moving goods. Tu Nan heard the sound of something heavy being dragged across the floor.

Suddenly, there was a loud “thud” outside the Stone Vat. She jumped, instinctively held her breath, and pressed her ear to the side of the vat, listening intently for any movement outside.