Players, Please Board the Train-Chapter 159: Assassination of Players

Tao Chengxin, who had been keeping watch outside, visibly relaxed when she saw them emerge. She gestured that they should exit from another direction.
During that brief time, the Wooden Puppet and the owner of the shop had already moved to a different area.
The three of them left the Building Block Buns shop and quickly found a secluded corner nearby to rest.
Tao Chengxin sent her frog to chase away the menacing stray cats and immediately asked Sun Jirou without pause, "Didn't you say you had a lead? What is it?"
Sun Jirou wiped her face and drank two healing potions before speaking. "I found a list inside."
"The owner of the Building Block Buns shop is a Player-Eater from another district. It seems he's been secretly assassinating the elderly within the Building Block Fairytale City Station."
"Only three people remain from the original list of twenty. One of them is a woman, and she should be the Storytelling Woman we need to find."
"Where is she?" Tao Chengxin asked urgently.
Sun Jirou glanced at Xu Huo. "I don't know. The shop owner is also looking for her."
After a pause, she asked Xu Huo and the other, "Why did you two suddenly come here?"
"Don't even mention it," Tao Chengxin said. "We almost lost our lives at the Bear Claw Restaurant. Luckily, Brother Xu ended up killing the restaurant's owner in the end."
"You killed the restaurant owner?" Sun Jirou said incredulously. "Wasn't the owner of the Bear Claw Restaurant an outside player?"
"Why would you think that?" Xu Huo immediately asked.
"The Building Block Buns shop had contact information for the Bear Claw Restaurant, along with the Fresh Meat Sausage Shop," Sun Jirou explained. "When Shen Tai and I saw it, we concluded they must be working together, using that female tour guide to lure players over and kill them."
Xu Huo, however, shook his head slightly. "That's not necessarily true. It's more likely a case of using others to do the dirty work."
"The list you found is probably a roster of players who survived from the original Building Block Fairytale City. If the owners of these shops are targeting people on that list, then the low-level players coming here aren't that important to them."
As he spoke, he glanced at Tao Chengxin. "The player we killed at the Bear Claw Restaurant wasn't the owner. He followed me to the restaurant, just like you did. He was an E-grade Player-Eater."
Mention of the word "followed" caused brief expressions of discomfort on both Tao Chengxin and Sun Jirou's faces, but the latter quickly said, "Are you suggesting that female tour guide's target was actually us?"
"Could she be the dungeon boss?" Tao Chengxin asked doubtfully.
Xu Huo pondered for a moment. "It's also possible that she is our actual mission target."
"But didn't you say the Storytelling Woman was at least thirty-five or older?" Tao Chengxin's voice rose slightly. "That woman looks to be in her early twenties at most!"
"Not necessarily," Sun Jirou said. "Maybe they are connected. Don't you think it's strange? The Building Block Fairytale City and the Government Hall are completely separate, with almost no interaction. Everyone says the Government Hall is experimenting with anti-contamination potions, but none of the places we passed through on our way here were actually contaminated. What are they researching?"
"And there are outside district Player-Eaters assassinating players from the original Building Block Fairytale City. There are no children here, and no babies are being born. Is the Government Hall behind this?"
Tao Chengxin felt confused and interrupted, "What would be the purpose of that? Making the Fairytale City die out? This place is so prosperous. I heard someone say the Fairytale City's taxes account for the majority of the Government Hall's revenue, far exceeding the commercial output of the Contaminated Zone. What benefit is there in destroying this city?"
Their conversation served as a reminder to Xu Huo. He suddenly realized that the Government Hall building was constructed in the Contaminated Zone not for secret research or to isolate the Fairytale City, but possibly because they were unable to enter here.
The Great Contamination event twenty years ago was fake. So where did all those Mutants come from? Considering how the Building Block Fairytale City's area shrank to one-twentieth of its original size, and that outside forces took over most of the original Fairytale City's territory, it's highly likely that outside forces orchestrated this.
It wasn't that the Building Block Fairytale City lacked players, but most of their players probably died when this world first became gamified. Up to now, outside players are still killing people according to a list, and they are specifically targeting older individuals—their goal isn't to exterminate the Fairytale City itself, but the players of the Fairytale City!
Most locals believe the Great Contamination caused the Fairytale City's disaster, but from a player's perspective, it's clear the appearance of Mutants wasn't due to contamination at all, but rather toxins and evolution. If the Fairytale City were still controlled by its original players and remained separated from the Government Hall, whether due to stance or interests, there would certainly be people who want the players here to disappear completely!
The Breeding Zone... Xu Huo recalled the Skinner who specifically supplied materials to the cannibal restaurants. Different wormhole points, different districts, all have Player-Eaters. They have demand, which is why fresh meat factories and Breeding Zones exist.
"Are you... okay?" Tao Chengxin asked instinctively, seeing his expression suddenly turn grim.
Xu Huo reined in his emotions. "Dawn is approaching. Let's go to True Love Square."
"You still want to look for that tour guide?" Sun Jirou said. "She tricked us; she probably won't show up again."
Since they hadn't seen the person, Xu Huo didn't say much more. Ignoring the two women, he headed straight for True Love Square, forcing Sun and Tao to follow him.
Currently, apart from the female tour guide, they had no other leads.
They waited at True Love Square until daybreak. After tourists gradually began appearing in the square, the White-Dressed Girl soon showed up.
She was wearing a white top and pants today and looked slightly surprised to see Xu Huo.
"Thanks to you, I had a very exciting night last night," Xu Huo said, taking a drag from his cigarette.
The White-Dressed Girl pursed her lips into a smile and, taking advantage of the few people nearby, said softly, "You are truly impressive. In the past, no players ever came out alive from those places."
"So you really were sending us to our deaths!" Sun Jirou said with hatred in her eyes. "What exactly do you want? Are you working with those Player-Eaters!"
The White-Dressed Girl shook her head. "Actually, when I lured you there, I wanted you to kill those Player-Eaters."
Xu Huo raised an eyebrow and looked at her sideways. "You know about our dungeon task. Luring low-level players to kill them isn't very reliable, is it?"
The White-Dressed Girl smiled charmingly, her expression showing not a trace of guilt or unease, but rather a gentle quality. "For the sake of the Fairytale City, we must try every method."
"Stop talking nonsense," Tao Chengxin said, moving closer to her and pressing her frog against the small of the girl's back. "You must know the old players from the original Building Block Fairytale City. Take us to them. If you don't cooperate, it can rip your intestines out with one bite!"
"I'm not planning to run away," the White-Dressed Girl said. "Don't be so tense. I bear you no ill will."
"How can you say that with a straight face!" Sun Jirou said angrily. "My friend died saving me!"
The White-Dressed Girl glanced at her. "Then you made a very good friend."
Sun Jirou clenched her fist tightly. Xu Huo cut them off. "Stop wasting time. We still need to find something after hearing the story."