53: Server-wide manhunt! Is that pervert who stole panties named Tanaka?

The Captain's Cabin.

On the red circular bed, the sheets hadn't been tidied up yet.

The fresh scent of shower gel mingled everywhere with the special aroma of fermented hormones.

Xia Mo stood in front of the full-length mirror, struggling to button up her shirt.

Her hair tips were slightly damp, and the corners of her eyes held a lingering spring haze, making her look like a delicate flower just watered by a heavy downpour.

“I... I'll head out first.”

Xia Mo's voice was eight octaves softer than usual; where was the usual aloofness of an Assassin?

She looked more like a newlywed bride.

Chen Du leaned against the headboard, his bathrobe loosely tied. Hearing her, he smiled, “What are you afraid of? On this ship, who would dare gossip about you?”

As he spoke, he got up, walked to the door, and pulled it open.

Bang!

An Nuonuo, who was eavesdropping right by the door crack, was caught off guard.

She rolled in like a bowling ball, nearly tumbling into Chen Du's arms.

“Waaah! I—I was just passing by! I came to deliver breakfast!” An Nuonuo clutched a tray, her small face bright red, and dark circles under her large eyes.

Clearly, certain R-rated movements last night had kept her from sleeping well.

She subconsciously snuck a peek into the room.

In one glance, she saw the disheveled Xia Mo and the circular bed that looked like it had survived a world war.

Steam seemed to rise from An Nuonuo's head as she mumbled, “It's over, it's over! Sister Xia Mo was really eaten by the Captain! Wuwuwu...”

The little loli was incoherent, covering her eyes and peeking through her fingers.

“Had enough peeking?” Chen Du flicked her forehead, “Go inside and change the sheets.”

“Huh? Change the sheets too?”

An Nuonuo froze for a moment, then imagined the potential 'map' on the sheets, blushing so hard she nearly exploded on the spot:

“Chen Du, are you a devil?! I'm the logistics officer, not a concubine's maid! I won't do this job!!”

“Protest invalid!” Chen Du ignored the flustered loli, wrapped an arm around Xia Mo's slender waist right in front of her, and kissed her.

This kiss was the official seal of approval.

Xia Mo's body stiffened slightly, then softened as she leaned into Chen Du's arms.

When the trio walked down to the living area, the atmosphere on the deck was extremely subtle.

Especially Xia Mo's unnatural walking posture, which was a dead giveaway.

Xia Xin was holding a recurve bow, keeping watch in the lookout tower, and Xia Lai was squatting on the ground dismantling scrap metal;

Li Yaozhi and Ye Qiu were gathered together, studying a nautical chart they couldn't understand.

Seeing the configuration of this trio, the women exchanged knowing glances.

Those who knew, knew.

“Yo, the Captain finally decided to emerge from his lair?”

Xia Lai chuckled, her shifty eyes darting between Xia Mo and Chen Du.

She even leaned in to sniff Xia Mo's scent, wearing a mischievous grin:

“Tsk tsk tsk, Third Sister, that tasted pretty good, didn't it? Looking at how radiant you are, the Captain must have given you plenty of special coaching last night?”

“Second Sister! Shut up!” Xia Mo was blushing furiously and immediately hid behind Chen Du.

“Alright, stop driving that car.”

Chen Du walked to the dining table and sat down grandly.

His gaze swept over the tabletop, and his brows furrowed slightly.

There were only a few bowls of white rice on the table, not even a shred of pickled vegetable was visible.

Seeing Chen Du's displeasure, Zhou Qian's seductive, electrifying eyes were full of panic: “C-Captain... the canned meat and dehydrated vegetables ran out yesterday.”

“All that's left is rice, and a small bag of damp flour...”

Her voice grew softer and softer, afraid that Chen Du would vent his anger on her.

After all, she was the most useless person on this ship.

“Resources are being consumed this quickly?” Li Yaozhi closed the nautical chart, her expression grave: “Although we looted a lot during the battle at Crimson Port, it's not enough to feed this many people.”

“And fuel is the major expense; we must resupply at the next stop.”

Chen Du remained silent, tapping his fingers on the table.

He casually opened the system panel's [Trade Channel].

He had originally intended to exchange the stocked Goblin scimitars for some fresh meat to improve their meals.

But when he checked the market prices, Chen Du nearly had a heart attack.

[Today's Hot Search: Pork Assassin!]

[Buying: One warm assault jacket = 5 catties of pork, no bargaining!]

[Urgent Request: Women's lace pajamas/intimate apparel = 1 box of braised beef noodles, price negotiable!]

Chen Du's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot as he looked at the ridiculous exchange rates.

“What's going on? Clothing prices increased tenfold? Are these profiteers trading crypto?”

Ye Qiu explained from the side, “Captain, didn't you see the regional announcement?”

“The sea surface temperature has dropped sharply, and some experts analyzed that the Night's Murmurs can spread through skin contact.

“Wearing clothing imbued with a maiden's aura can reduce the speed at which Sanity drops.”

“So now the entire server is scrambling for clothes. Whether they are for cold weather or 'colorful' ones, as long as it's clothing, it's hard currency.”

Chen Du's mouth twitched violently.

Good heavens! Clothes were originally the core of his Sacrifice stream.

Now, the cost of Sacrificing one piece of clothing is enough to trade for a whole pig! Inflation!

“Just a price bubble.”

Chen Du sneered, closed the trading interface, “We won't be the leeks. These profiteers will sooner or later lose everything, down to their underwear.”

“Eat plain rice for now. No one will die from skipping a meal.”

He casually swiped over to the [World/Regional Channel].

He wanted to see how many survivors were left at Crimson Port.

As soon as he entered, the overwhelming barrage of insults nearly froze the screen.

[Tanaka Koji! May your ancestors be damned! Give back my silk panties!!]

[Bounty! The head of Tanaka Koji, leader of the Yamato Construction Group! That beast used a harpoon to hook away my sister's skirt while fleeing! It caused her to be dragged away by a Sea Monster!]

[That's too perverted! I saw it too! On the Port Avenue, that Tanaka Koji was running naked while waving two black lace items, shouting 'For the Yamato Spirit'! He's utterly insane!!]

[Warning! The entire Yamato Group is perverted! That Tanaka-kun even steals Goblin fur skirts!!]

Chen Du stared at these accusations, stunned for two seconds.

He recalled that he had only casually pocketed a few Sacrificial Items and shouted Tanaka's name a few times to divert the hatred.

How did the story evolve into this updated version?

Just then, a voice message with a golden border popped up.

The ID was [Soul of Sakura Tanaka-kun].

Chen Du clicked on the voice message.

“Baka yarou—!!”

The voice was hoarse and accompanied by a whistling sound of air leaking, suggesting his mouth had probably been gnawed by a monster:

“That is a frame-up! It is blatant slander!! I am a noble Samurai! My Tanaka family has been incorruptible for three generations! How could I possibly steal underwear!!”

“That damned Huaxia person! I know it was you! Chen Du! You despicable and shameless bandit! I challenge you to a duel!!”

Before Tanaka Koji's sorrowful and indignant accusation was finished, hundreds of mocking replies followed below:

[Oh, someone's getting agitated? Did the Underwear Maniac get triggered?]

[Who is Chen Du? Never heard of him. Don't try to divert attention and clear your name, Tanaka-kun!]

[Confirmed, this is just lashing out in shame. Thousands of monsters chased you while shouting 'Pervert,' how could that be fake?]

[Tanaka-san, the cherry blossoms are blooming back home, can you take me with you?]

Chen Du couldn't help but laugh at these self-confirmed 'facts'.

This is cyberbullying... oh wait, this is group psychology.

In this extremely oppressive apocalypse, people desperately needed an outlet for frustration.

A foreign clown labeled as perverted, idiotic, and villainous was simply the perfect target for collective focus.

“Tanaka-kun, you won big this time! Being infamous is still being famous!”

The guilt in Chen Du's heart instantly vanished into thin air.

He even felt that this alias was incredibly useful.

Whenever he commits mischief in the future, it must be Tanaka-kun!

“Captain, your smile is so cunning...”

An Nuonuo approached, holding a bowl of white rice, “Are you plotting against someone again?”

“Nothing much. I saw an old friend become famous, and I'm happy for him.”

Chen Du closed the panel and turned his attention to Xia Lai.

“Xia Lai, stop dismantling that scrap metal. Make me a fishing set.”

Xia Lai looked up, two streaks of oil smudged across her face: “Fishing gear? I do have some.”

“I found a bundle of nylon rope in the bottom hold. Combined with the steel hooks cut out by thug one, making a few fishing rods won't be a problem.”

“But Captain, the things in the Sea of Despair... are they really edible? They all look like alien creatures.”

Chen Du glanced at the sea surface, which was thick and black like ink.

“Whether they're edible or not, we'll know once we catch one.”

“If you want to live decently, just looting isn't enough. We also have to learn how to squeeze resources out of this ghost sea.”