I'll also work hard to conquer the dungeon today.

Chapter 86, page 1.7, section 3: Lias's Voyage
“I’ve heard some very interesting rumors here. It seems there was a murder in cabin 0302. Sister Fernana, shall we go take a look?” Lias tugged at the maid’s skirt, gazing at her with his big, watery eyes, and pleaded.

"But that area is off-limits. What if the young master encounters danger?" The girl in the maid's uniform smiled gently, her smile as soft as clear water, making one feel an irresistible liking for her.

"We'll stay out of sight if we do it quietly!" Lias grinned adorably, and his prince-like attire further stirred the maternal instincts of the women nearby.

Just then, a large hand slammed down on his head and began to roughly squeeze it. A stylishly dressed, short-haired woman squatted down and said through gritted teeth, "Are you pretending I don't exist?!"

"Sister Moya!" Lias threw himself into Moya's arms and rubbed against her twice, sweetly saying, "I missed you so much~"

"Tch, Lias, how old are you? Are you still breastfeeding?" a little boy about the same age as Lias said disdainfully.

"You're just jealous of me~" Lias poked his head out and looked at O'Neal, making a face at him.

O'Neal was furious and wanted to hit him, so the two kids started chasing each other.

"What do you want to do, Moya?" Fernana's smile was gentle and bright, but her amber eyes held a hint of warning.

"It's just to prevent young master Lias from being deceived by some treacherous woman." Moa's expression instantly turned cold as young master Lias was playing around with others, showing a clear dislike for Felna.

“It’s better than some irrational tomboy,” Felna snorted, not to be outdone.

The two women exchanged barbs and sarcasm, but on the surface they appeared to be on good terms and neither could find fault with the other.

The four bodyguards took several steps back, all saying that being around these two women any longer would give them a psychological trauma. They had never imagined that the struggle between women could be so terrifying, yet even though they disliked each other, they still acted as if they had a good relationship, which was chilling to watch.

The two smiled and said goodbye, but in their hearts they were cursing each other for not dying sooner.

Shu Ming sat on a chair not far away, listening to the dramatic scene. Finally, he wrote a tally mark on the table. He rested his chin on one hand, a faint smile on his lips, his eyes slightly narrowed. His aura was gentle, yet he gave off an unfathomable feeling, shrewd and mysterious.

"What mischief are you up to now, Shu Ming?" The man leaning against the railing gently removed his sunglasses, revealing his handsome face. His dark, tousled hair shimmered with a faint blue light under the sunlight. He raised his long, narrow blue eyes and said teasingly.

"Shui Qi, do you think I'll let you off the hook like this?" Shu Ming squinted and chuckled, his tone slightly somber. You want to run away? Then he'll make sure you don't. You deserve to be punished for your mistakes.

Shui Qi waved the sunglasses in her hand, rolled up her sleeves, leaned against the railing with one hand, and said casually, "Do you have any evidence to prove that I did it? Why do you think I can still stand openly in front of you?"

"Shu Ming, I've invited you to join our Strategist Association before, but you refused. Since we're enemies, we shouldn't concern ourselves with the means; any method that achieves the goal is a good method. It's pathetic that you don't understand my principles at all." Shui Qi smiled sarcastically, her blue eyes filled with a hint of pity and sympathy, but there was no doubt that the two had completely broken off relations. If it weren't for the rules, they probably would have already started fighting.

"I can scheme against people, but at least I have a bottom line. You... you're not even human..." Although Detective Flaro was an NPC, at least he treated Shui Qi very well, genuinely nurturing him as his disciple. But Shui Qi, because of his deal with the wealthy merchant, betrayed Detective Flaro without hesitation, even hitting him on the back of the head three times.

What a terrifying person! In Shui Qi's eyes, so-called humanity is probably less than a piece of paper.

"I've said it before, any method that achieves the goal is a good method." Shui Qi said nonchalantly, her narrow blue eyes gazing at the shimmering sea. "It's disappointing that you care about this kind of thing. I clearly sense that you and I are the same kind of people..."

Actually, Shui Qi was still somewhat frustrated. I always felt that Shu Ming should be the same kind of person as him. Why did my usually good intuition suddenly stop working?
What went wrong?
Shui Qi turned to face the sea, flicked his wrist, and a small card was tucked between his fingers, on which the word 'traitor' was faintly written. He glanced at it with his narrow blue eyes, sneered, and casually tore it to pieces and threw it into the sea.
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Title: Traitor Role: Always present at the scene, waiting for an opportunity to cause trouble.

Duty: To prevent the player from finding the truth.

Restriction: Only valid in the 'Lias's Voyages' copy.

How to obtain: Special
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Wouldn't that be more interesting?

Concealing the truth and passing on false clues is much more interesting than seriously navigating through dungeons.

This dungeon...

It's described as a cooperative dungeon, but the role-playing mechanics mean that everyone is an enemy; the difference lies in whether or not you're willing to break off all pretense of hostility.

However, mutual suspicion is probably part of the game. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a Crown Prince-level game, especially since only one Crown Prince will appear in a Crown Prince game, and one of them will always be the winner.

That's why role-playing mechanics exist, allowing players to exploit loopholes in the rules by hiding their identities. In principle, only the tasks themselves require attention; the rules are merely a reference point, not mandatory.

Shui Qi had always suspected that only players with special identities were the true Crown Prince players, while the others were probably the victims of this instance.

But what does all this have to do with him? He has no obligation to remind them.

Shu Ming stared intently at Shui Qi's back for several seconds with his jade-like, clear eyes. Then, he narrowed his eyes again, a slight smile playing on his lips, and tapped his fingers lightly on the table with a unique rhythm.

His platinum blonde hair, ruffled by the sea breeze, slightly obscured his smooth, full forehead. His handsome face, as always, held a gentle smile, exuding a warm yet shrewd aura, like an old fox about to plot against someone.

"Shui Qi, how about we work together again? Although I don't quite trust your character, I still admire your intelligence."

All I can say is that all the players who are qualified and participate in the Crown Prince route are smart people; none of them will be cannon fodder.

When designing this instance, I believe the most exciting part is definitely the scheming and probing between each player, and only then comes the storyline.

If you dig pits for each other to fall into, how can you become the crown prince if you can't even beat your competitors?

•
Mu Yin left the group chat, cursing under his breath.

There's one more chapter coming out around 8 PM tonight.

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(End of this chapter)