Chapter 197: One Last Chance—For You, and for Me
After Feitan and the others agreed to cooperate with the Cha-R family, the bespectacled young master led the three of them through the door and into the Cha-R family's stronghold.
The bespectacled young master familiarized the Troupe members with the stronghold, explaining: "The monitoring room is over here. It handles real-time surveillance and recording of key areas across five floors. This room is naturally a key area as well."
As he spoke, the bespectacled guy began pulling up the surveillance footage from that time.
"This is the footage of when that man brought the administrator in. He attempted to open the door deep inside the stronghold during the chaos, but gave up immediately upon finding it locked, then fled through the main entrance he came from. Moreover, it's clear he was actively avoiding having his face captured on camera."
Feitan, standing nearby, suddenly asked: "Is there footage from inside the warehouse?"
The Cha-R family's surveillance manager replied: "The warehouse only has cameras at the entrance. Aside from our organization members today, only you three have entered and exited that area."
Feitan considered the possibility of the opponent having spatial-type Hatsu. If they were setting coordinates, they likely would have scouted the location in advance. He was about to speak when the bespectacled guy preempted him.
"Review all footage from yesterday until now and compile a list of all non-members," the bespectacled guy instructed his subordinates.
After giving orders, he turned to look at Feitan and the others.
"All cameras were installed the day before departure, while the luggage had already been loaded onto the ship before that. If he had disguised himself as staff and infiltrated the warehouse, he wouldn't appear in the footage."
Feitan nodded and said: "In that case, I won't hold out much hope for that."
"Anyway, he'll definitely come through that door—to open the innermost one."
The bespectacled guy looked at Feitan, detecting confidence in his words, and showed a curious expression.
"How about taking us to Mord? Hmm... we won't take advantage of you for nothing. How about offering that bastard's head as a greeting gift?" Feitan proposed.
The bespectacled guy readily replied: "Deal!"
These guys might actually be able to assist the Seventh Prince, the bespectacled guy thought to himself. He then called over the responsible subordinate: "From now on, incorporate these three into the surveillance rotation. Show them the ropes properly."
The squad leader responded: "Understood."
After giving instructions, the bespectacled guy turned and left directly.
The squad leader was a buzz-cut young man with pockmarked face who stepped forward to introduce himself: "I'm Caden Kai, the person in charge here."
Shalnark nodded and asked: "How many Cha-R family members are there on the ship total?"
"Including errand runners, about 250 people. I'm not sure about other groups, but they're probably similar in size," Caden replied.
Caden then briefed the Troupe members on some ship details.
"Food is mostly soft-packaged instant meals. Supplies are over there - help yourselves. If you're willing to pay, you can get proper meals at the cafeteria on the fourth floor during break times."
While communicating with the Troupe members, Caden maintained a stern expression that made him seem somewhat unapproachable. In reality, his heart was racing with excitement.
As a devoted fan of the Phantom Troupe, being able to speak face-to-face with his idols was an indescribably thrilling experience for him.
But now, constrained by his status, he could only suppress this excitement.
How I wish I could have a good chat with them! But I can't lose face in front of my underlings!
If I find a chance to talk to them, would they give me their autographs?
Caden thought to himself.
...
Meanwhile, thanks to the efforts of Grant, the royal army began a large-scale search of the passengers on the lower three decks, determined to find the perpetrators of the previous murders and eliminate the danger in its cradle.
First Deck.
The VVIP area where the King of Kakin resided.
"That prince is here again."
"He visits here every morning without fail—truly diligent."
Seeing the familiar figure of the Ninth Prince, several royal soldiers tasked with guard duty thought to themselves.
"Good morning, Your Highness, the Ninth Prince. If it's a letter, please entrust it to us."
The Ninth Prince received the same response as always.
He sighed softly in his heart. This was the last chance he was giving his father, the King of Kakin, and himself.
The Ninth Prince lifted his head and cast a deep glance toward the room at the end of the corridor where the King of Kakin resided. With that, the last trace of nostalgia vanished, and he turned to leave without hesitation.
The moment he turned, his eyes no longer held any hesitation—only an unwavering resolve.
The Ninth Prince, Halkenburg, had skipped grades and entered the world's top institution, the University of Mival, to study physics at the age of 15, while also winning a silver medal in the World Archery Championships.
Despite his exceptional talents, his childhood was not filled with the opulent life befitting a prince but was instead marred by relentless assassination attempts from his elder siblings.
Yet, even so, the Ninth Prince was not broken. Instead, he grew more mature and outstanding, becoming a formidable rival acknowledged by the upper-ranking princes.
He became a guide for many aspiring individuals, aiming to fundamentally reform the royal political system. With supporters both domestically and internationally, his influence gradually grew until he reached a point where he could nearly rival the upper-ranking princes.
The Ninth Prince had made up his mind: he would put an end to all of this before more blood was shed.
The best opportunity would be the next banquet!
...
Inside the Black Whale, within a secret, dark passageway.
Two figures walked side by side, conversing as they moved.
"I heard the royal army's large-scale search yielded no results."
"Is that so? Then the military will likely start suspecting ties with underworld forces."
"We also need to keep an eye on the movements of the Heil-Ly family. If the authorities seriously raid their base, it would be a great help to us, but our own base would also be purged in the process."
"There's no avoiding it."
Then, the two pushed open the door at the end of the passageway. Emerging from the darkness, one of them was the young leader of the Cha-R family, "Glasses," while the other was a middle-aged man wearing a floral shirt.
Behind that door lay the Cha-R family's base on the fifth deck.
The middle-aged man looked at Feitan, Shalnark, and Franklin in the room and remarked, "These faces look quite familiar."
"They are the Troupe members I mentioned to you, wanting to cooperate with us," the bespectacled young master replied.
Feitan, who was sitting on the table, showed an unpleasant expression upon hearing this.
Franklin said in a deep voice, "Don't make it sound like we're groveling to ask for your help."
The bespectacled young master revealed a friendly smile and said, "It's just a manner of speaking. This way we can get straight to the point."