Chapter 39

Shi Jian’s reasoning was actually very simple and blunt. How could a background character possibly have a name? The fact that Xiao Jia had a name already meant something was different.

Xiao Jia looked completely bewildered: ???

She suddenly felt like she’d been caught for such a dumb reason! So Shi Jian had based her judgment on that?

Xiao Jia pressed further, “Then why didn’t you guess that Xiao Lan was Cinderella?”

There were two maids sent by the prince—besides Xiao Jia, there was also Xiao Lan. If Shi Jian was going by that logic, then Xiao Lan could’ve been Cinderella too.

Shi Jian replied, “I did suspect her. But Xiao Lan is dead. You can’t have a dead person be Cinderella, right?”

A dead person can’t be the main character, can they?

After the fish monster bug was removed, Shi Jian had the same suspicion toward both Xiao Lan and Xiao Jia. Then she realized that only Xiao Jia was still around—Xiao Lan had disappeared. So Shi Jian asked around.

A crew member told her, “You’re looking for Xiao Lan? She got eaten by those little fish…”

So Xiao Jia was the only remaining suspect.

Xiao Jia was speechless.

Shi Jian noticed her reaction and asked, “Don’t tell me you didn’t even know Xiao Lan was gone?”

Xiao Jia really didn’t know.

Shi Jian shook her head and sighed in grief, “You don’t even care about your colleague. You only care about yourself!”

【What a line—'You don’t even care about your colleague, you only care about yourself.’ Horror game teammates are always unreliable. Xiao Lan got eaten by the fish monster and only the streamer noticed. LOL.】

【Xiao Lan’s been dead a while, and Xiao Jia had no clue. This isn’t just a lack of humanity—it’s a lack of ghost ethics. A moral collapse.】

【LMAO, leave it to the streamer and the comments to turn everything into a roast.】

【But seriously, figuring it out through who has a name was wild. Ridiculous but somehow so incredibly logical! This streamer’s got real talent.】

【Xiao Jia: Damn it, if I’d known, I wouldn’t have taken a name. Who needs it anyway.】

【Am I the only one who caught what the streamer meant? If the dead can’t be the main character, then what about the prince…】

【The prince, devoured and digested by fish: Did you really have to go there?】

【The prince keeps getting dragged and no one seems to care. (lights candle)】

The other streamers suddenly understood: So that’s it.

Shi Jian’s few comments had completely shaken Xiao Jia—Cinderella herself—making her incredibly guilty. Her eyes darted everywhere. But very quickly, Cinderella came back to her senses.

Why should she feel guilty? She’s a ghost!

Cinderella’s expression turned vicious in an instant. She sneered coldly, “Colleague? That was just an illusion I created. Enough with the nonsense. You all came here for a mission, didn’t you? I overheard it earlier—gown and grand ball?”

Since the moment they entered the instance, the streamers had been making a huge fuss about finding Cinderella. Naturally, Cinderella had learned that they needed something from her.

Shi Jian: You really know too much.

If this were according to the script, Shi Jian, as the protagonist, should’ve immediately subdued Cinderella, making her beg for mercy while the others watched in awe and admiration.

But in reality, Shi Jian looked at Cinderella with wary eyes—just in time to witness her transformation.Cinderella began to transform into a monster. Her skin turned a bluish-green—probably because she had drowned—so her body was soaked. The carpet beneath her feet quickly became drenched, even though the room was warm and dry.

Cinderella’s hair also turned into seaweed.

Shi Jian: “……”

She averted her dangerous gaze and was thankful she was sitting in a chair—otherwise, she wasn’t sure her legs would follow her brain’s orders.

How was she supposed to subdue Cinderella like this?

As Cinderella transformed in front of the streamers, everyone looked visibly horrified. Some were already trying to flee the room. But the ship lurched violently again, and Shi Jian even felt like it had sunk slightly.

That wasn’t an illusion.

One streamer was near the window. He leaned against it and shouted in panic, “The ship… the ship seems to be damaged! I saw the sail tearing apart—is the ship going to sink?”

Hearing this, Shi Jian’s heart also began to race. She quickly got up and rushed to the window. Outside, the storm raged on, but she could still see the general situation. Through the glass, she confirmed that the sail was indeed torn.

And it wasn’t just the sail.

The violent storm and waves were relentlessly battering the cruise ship. Many objects on deck had been swept away by seawater. The once calm and beautiful ocean now showed no trace of its former tranquility—only a terrifying, apocalyptic force. Shi Jian felt that even a royal cruise ship wouldn’t last long.

“Twelve hours.”

The instigator—Cinderella—spoke behind her. Shi Jian turned around to look at her. Cinderella still wore a wicked smile on her face. “In twelve hours, this ship will sink to the bottom of the sea.”

Twelve hours—that was also the countdown to their deaths.

Everyone had just been rejoicing over finding Cinderella, but now it felt like death was looming right over them.

They had to complete the mission within twelve hours: deliver the most beautiful gown to Cinderella and throw her an unforgettable ball. Otherwise, they would all drown.

“I’ll go find the gown.”

“Take me with you.”

Some streamers quickly left the room to search for the most beautiful dress. The curly-haired girl looked disheartened. “Will just giving her a dress be enough?”

Many streamers—and even the viewers in the live chat—doubted it.

Because the mission called for “the most beautiful gown,” but beauty is subjective. Everyone has different tastes—some may love a certain gown, others may think it’s hideous.

It wasn’t like a test score with a standard answer.

“The most beautiful gown” had no objective criteria—it all depended on Cinderella’s personal judgment.

And would Cinderella, as the boss controlling the entire ship, be the type to let them pass easily? If she were that easy to deal with, she wouldn’t have set a twelve-hour sinking deadline in the first place.

Finding Cinderella seemed like a huge success, but if she refused to cooperate, the mission would hit a dead end right here.

Cinderella was indeed watching everyone scurry around with a leisurely expression. Some of the quicker streamers had already brought several gowns to her.

“Will these do?”

To be fair, the gowns were quite nice—fresh, dreamy, luxurious… they came in all styles, giving Cinderella plenty of options to choose from.

The streamers had raided the prince’s private wardrobe to find them.

But Cinderella just lazily lifted her eyelids. Shi Jian suspected she didn’t even really look before saying, “Ugly. I don’t want them.”That streamer’s smile looked worse than crying. “I picked these out carefully, all the good-looking ones are here… Maybe take another look? You might like one. If not, I’ll go find more.”

Cinderella wasn’t open to negotiation at all.

Shi Jian more or less understood what Cinderella was thinking. She said to the curly-haired girl, “Cinderella is toying with us—watching us waste our time for nothing.”

A sense of helplessness washed over everyone. The path ahead felt hopeless—it all seemed like pointless effort.

“Then what do we do?”

Someone already sounded like they were choking back tears.

Shi Jian stopped the streamer who was about to run off to search for more dresses, not wanting them to waste the trip. She said, “You won’t find the most beautiful dress.”

Cinderella instinctively looked at Shi Jian—so she knew they were being played with.

But knowing didn’t help. After all, they still needed Cinderella to nod and admit the dress was the most beautiful.

Shi Jian spoke up, lifting her delicate chin with conviction. “Because the most beautiful dress is on me.”

Cinderella: ???

Other streamers: ???

……

Shi Jian firmly believed the dress she was wearing was the best. She held her head high, her slender, fair neck graceful like a swan’s.

She began showcasing the little dress on her body. “This dress is entirely handmade, crafted by a master. Every pearl and diamond was stitched on by hand. The fabric is comfortable, light as a cicada’s wings, and highly breathable… Of course, the cut is also fantastic—perfectly hugs the waist.”

As Shi Jian spoke, she even twirled once. The puff skirt spread out with her movement, like a blooming flower, glittering under the lights.

Of course, she quickly noticed a few specks of mud on the hem of the skirt.

Probably splashed on when she stepped on the fish earlier.

This outfit was still the same one from the prince’s ball.

Even after noticing, no matter what was screaming inside her, Shi Jian kept her composure outwardly and casually covered the muddy spots.

Shi Jian: Great. Perfect. Nothing happened at all!

Cinderella: “……” She saw everything.

But regardless of how much Cinderella wanted to scream that she’d never seen anyone so shameless—she had to admit, Shi Jian was extremely convincing.

Even the specks of mud couldn’t hide the fact that she was the most dazzling person in the room wearing that dress. It made the already beautiful gown seem even more radiant, like someone had manually added a glowing filter to it.

“It really is beautiful.”

“Yeah, I think Shi Jian’s dress is the most gorgeous too.”

The other streamers chimed in one after another. Most of the praise was genuine, though a few were clearly scrambling to pile on compliments.

Cinderella’s eyes were completely drawn to the dress on Shi Jian. With everyone around her hyping it up, she clearly started to waver.

Cinderella was already imagining what she’d look like wearing that dress.

Shi Jian maintained her confident demeanor: when it came to selling something, she’d always been top-tier.The products she uses—like lipstick shades featured in her ads—usually become instant bestsellers.

Many viewers in the livestream felt like they wanted that dress for themselves. No doubt about it: the one Shi Jian was wearing was the most beautiful!

Cinderella curled her lip. “...Barely acceptable.”

But it was obvious to everyone that she was just being stubborn. Her love for the dress on Shi Jian was written all over her face.

Shi Jian really wanted to say, Sis, let go of your pride. But she couldn’t confront Cinderella directly—after all, Cinderella held her life in her hands.

So Shi Jian kept a polite, professional smile and moved on to the second step. “Xiao Jia, earlier you said the prince treated you like trash…”

She still called Cinderella by her former name.

When Cinderella heard that, a flicker of recognition passed through her eyes, tinged with contempt.

Here it comes, huh? Trying to pull the sympathy card now?

Cinderella had been waiting for this move. She’d already pictured this scene long before she told her story with the prince.

Late, but it’s here.

Though Cinderella felt she'd accurately predicted Shi Jian’s play and saw her as nothing impressive, she still went along with it. She looked straight at Shi Jian. “You’ve also met scumbags? Been used and dumped?”

Shi Jian looked puzzled. Her brows lifted like she’d just heard the world’s funniest joke. “How could that happen!”

“More like the other way around.”

Shi Jian: Excuse me? With a face like this, who’d even dare dump her? If anything, she’s the heartbreaker.

Not that she’s broken anyone’s heart either. No one was good enough for her—none of them were worth her time. Just a waste of energy.

Cinderella: “……”

This was completely different from what she imagined—Shi Jian wasn’t trying to connect over shared pain at all.

【Sister, please break my heart!】

【Wife, please dump me!】

【I’ve waited a thousand years at Buddha’s feet for a chance to be ghosted by this queen!】

【I hate emotional scammers—unless it’s her. In that case, destroy me. (dog head emoji)】

Cinderella felt herself starting to monsterize again, only now realizing—oh, right, she was already in monster mode.

“Then why’d you ask me about the prince treating me like trash? Were you just trying to laugh at me?”

By the end, Cinderella’s voice had risen sharply. Her entire expression, and even the claws she’d grown, made it clear—Shi Jian better answer carefully. If she was here to gloat, Cinderella would explode.

Shi Jian’s expression turned serious. “Actually, what I wanted to say is—you’ve already gotten away from the prince. Don’t keep living in his shadow. He manipulated you—that was his fault. You didn’t do anything wrong. You can start moving forward again.”

“Why not take this chance, before the ball, to change your look? We’ll help you. That ‘innocent and pure’ vibe is already outdated.”

Cinderella latched onto one part: “innocent and pure” is outdated.

Cinderella was a fashion-forward girl (well, ghost-monster), as was obvious from how annoyed she got when streamers dressed up NPCs in plain, boring styles and even mocked them for it.

Now, hearing that her style was out of date, Cinderella instantly became anxious. How could that be allowed?She hurriedly asked Shi Jian, “Then what’s trendy right now?”

Shi Jian replied, “You can trust me on this—I’ve done some real research in this area. My casual outfits often get analyzed and imitated… trust me.”

Cinderella sensed a strong sense of professional confidence from Shi Jian—mainly because Shi Jian herself was the best advertisement. She nodded.

Let’s hear what she had to say first?

…

So next, the livestream audience watched as Shi Jian gave Cinderella a makeover.

Shi Jian first asked, “Sis, do you want to keep this green skin?”

“Green skin is unique, sure, but it’s hard to match with outfits. If you don’t want it, you’ll need to cover your whole body with foundation—it’ll use up a ton.”

Cinderella shook her head wildly—no green skin, please. But that didn’t mean she wanted to use foundation either.

“That’s easy, I’ll just switch back to how I looked before.”

Cinderella returned to her normal appearance, and Shi Jian found it much easier to communicate with her like this.

It’s not that she couldn’t talk to the monster version, but it definitely wasn’t as relaxing as talking to her in human form.

Shi Jian looked at Cinderella’s hair. “Babe, your hair’s a little dry, the ends are all split—you’ll need a proper treatment.”

“As for your makeup, do you want to try something different? You’re better suited to a more mature look. A change could really make you shine—don’t get stuck in one style.”

Shi Jian wasn’t just making this up. Cinderella had large, defined features, high brow bones and nose bridge—the “innocent and pure” aesthetic actually downplayed her beauty.

Shi Jian explained things clearly and confidently, and Cinderella went from hesitant to nodding like a pecking chick.

Shi Jian showed off some generous flair. “If you think this style suits you, shall we go with it for the makeover? Special deal today—only a 1% discount off everything!”

The other streamers: ???

You're charging her? Are you sure you want to charge the dungeon boss?

They had just been feeling excited, realizing that control of the situation had subtly shifted—from Cinderella leading everything to Shi Jian taking over.

The reins had been handed over. Shi Jian was steering the show, and Cinderella had practically walked right into the plan.

Cinderella was already preparing for the upcoming ball. The signs were excellent.

The other streamers didn’t sit around either—they held back their excitement and tried to find whatever useful things they could do.

As a livestream platform without job restrictions, it turned out one of them actually was a professional hairstylist and could do a treatment for Cinderella, while another volunteered to give her a manicure.

But no one expected Shi Jian to suddenly say they’d charge her.

“Isn’t that a bit bold?” the hairstylist whispered to Shi Jian.

Shi Jian thought it was perfectly reasonable. “Why not? Our labor costs something.”

If there’s no payment, are they just here to entertain Cinderella for free?

Cinderella wasn’t angry at all. She responded generously, “I’ve got money—do it up!”

If Shi Jian and the others had just started giving her a makeover on their own, Cinderella might’ve had some reservations. But now that she was the customer, Cinderella got really into it.Who could resist a discount? Not even a dungeon boss! Cinderella was completely won over.

Shi Jian said, “Everyone contributed, so everyone gets a share—don’t worry.”

The streamers: “…”

Originally, they had really planned to tiptoe around Cinderella, trying to cheer her up just enough to get themselves released. They hadn’t expected to actually earn money from this—it felt unreal.

Awesome!

Getting paid to do the job felt so much better. Was this the joy of having a boss-level teammate carry the whole game?

The streamers worked more comfortably with pay, and the results turned out even better—Cinderella was also extremely pleased.

For a moment, the whole room was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

【I just accidentally clicked into this public stream—uh, can I ask… is there no monster in this dungeon? Why is everyone doing hair and nails?】

【There is a monster—that one being dressed up is the monster.】

【??? Something feels off about this monster—and the whole scene looks so weird!】

【But I kinda love it lol. Cinderella’s berserk moment just now scared me to death, but this makeover scene is so fun.】

Cinderella’s makeover was quickly completed. She had always been pretty, but the “innocent and pure” look hadn’t suited her. Now, she looked like a cool, glamorous beauty—her visual appeal had skyrocketed.

Wearing the same puffy gown Shi Jian had worn earlier, her gaze was cold. She no longer looked like a princess, but a queen.

Shi Jian, having nothing else to do, gave herself a manicure. When she saw Cinderella’s makeover was complete, she walked over and asked while watching her in the mirror, “Do you like it?”

Cinderella found it hard to say she didn’t. She handed Shi Jian a generous amount of money, which Shi Jian then split with the other streamers.

…

Cinderella was satisfied, and the fairy godmothers had fulfilled their mission. Next up was the grand ball.

There was no need for a prince at this ball. Shi Jian wore a sparkling little dress she had bought herself and danced with Cinderella.

Shi Jian not only knew how to dance the women’s steps—she could lead the men’s steps too.

Although the deck was a mess, thankfully the ballroom they had used earlier was still intact. It would’ve been hard to dance in a pile of rubble.

Cinderella’s expression had been stiff at first, looking even more imposing. But as the music played and the dance went on, she gradually relaxed, and a pure, gentle look appeared on her face.

It was as if she were sleep-talking. Even though Shi Jian was very close, she had to hold her breath to hear her clearly.

Cinderella said, “It’s really nice.”

“It would’ve been even better if I’d never met the prince.”

“To just dance like this in a golden ballroom, then end the night…”

After the ball, she would go back to being Cinderella. Life would still be bitter, but it was better than thinking she had found happiness, only to discover it was just a sugar-coated hell.

The streamers had still been on edge, worried there would be another fire pit or trap at the final ball… but unexpectedly, everything went smoothly. Not a single trap appeared.

After the dance, Shi Jian heard the familiar beeping of a successful mission.

The task was complete—the dungeon was finally cleared.Cinderella still had something to say to Shi Jian. With a proud expression, she asked, “Am I the most beautiful woman at this ball?”

“You’re very beautiful…”

Shi Jian silently counted down in her heart. Two seconds before she could leave, she endured the dizziness and shouted, “But the most beautiful one is me!”