Eldritch Horror Theatre

As if a long-held fear had finally been confirmed, Goto Hi fell silent for a long time.

"A God should also have a name."

When she finally spoke again, her voice was low, but her thoughts remained sharp.

"Hard to say. Why not think about which God you might have offended?"

Fu Qian never liked to limit other people's imaginations, so he opted to let Goto Hi exercise hers first.

"Are you trying to use this as a bargaining chip? You can tell me what you want, but you'd better not expect too much."

Clearly, Goto Hi wasn't particularly fond of thinking as an exercise. She resorted to the trading option in under ten seconds, instinctively lowballing him in the same breath.

"Given my current state, even if I knew the answer, I wouldn't be able to do anything about it. So, this issue doesn't mean much to me."

"I really should have realized it sooner. All gifts come with a price..."

"True enough. In your current state, revenge is a luxury."

Fu Qian fully agreed.

"I admit I lied to you earlier, but aren't you trying to use me too?"

Fu Qian's blunt jab clearly hit a nerve. A second later, Goto Hi's expression turned frosty.

"You want to maximize a former victim's value to help you fight off threats, while refusing to offer any help yourself."

"I'm not being helpful enough?"

Fu Qian listened earnestly, a look of genuine surprise on his face.

"I've been standing here without moving for this long!"

"...I don't quite understand what you mean."

Goto Hi paused, looking baffled.

...

"I can tell you don't mind chatting with me a bit longer."

Her reaction drew a sigh from Fu Qian.

"It's a shame that you clearly don't know much. To drag out the conversation as long as possible, the credibility of whatever you say next will inevitably drop. It's no longer worth wasting my time."

Without waiting for Goto Hi to respond, he turned toward the Poaching Sphere beside him and greeted Captain Lane, who was still breathing inside.

"Captain Lane, how are you holding up?"

There was no response. Although the man was still alive, he already looked deeply dazed.

"Look."

Fu Qian gestured toward him for Goto Hi.

"See? Human nature is highly complex. You shouldn't take things for granted."

"You deliberately left him with a breath of life, keeping him nearby as a reference point to help create the illusion that our conversation was taking place in a quiet, peaceful atmosphere."

"But unfortunately, because the things we just discussed were too terrifying, Captain Lane decisively chose to play dumb, which severely undercut your misdirection."

Fu Qian sighed.

"When utilizing people, one should be applying both grace and might. You were a bit too extreme."

"...Are you saying I'm only communicating on the surface, while secretly preparing to deal with you? Aren't you being a little too paranoid?"

Goto Hi froze for a moment before realizing what he was getting at.

"What point would that serve for me? And if I wanted to deal with you, would I need to sneak around?"

"How is it pointless? You finally stumbled upon such a good vessel, would you give it up so easily?"

"And you didn't convince me before, and now you don't even have the temptation of advancing to Tier 2 to offer. What other bargaining chips can you put on the table? Violence is your only option left."

"There's really no need to be coy. Since I chose to come back, I was already mentally prepared for this."

Fu Qian's tone was easygoing.

"It's just a shame. I was originally looking forward to seeing some refreshing offensive methods from a special entity like you."

"Who would have thought that against an opponent a whole tier beneath you, you wouldn't even dare fight head-on? When you bested Vivian back in the day, did you pull the same stunt?"

"Also, if you're going to keep pointing your ass at me, I'm going to attack you."

...

The remark about her ass was clearly the final blow to her psychological breaking point.

The next instant, the massive face that belonged to Vivian fell completely silent. It took on a trace of something distinctly inhuman, becoming as flat as the pattern on a moth's back.

Soundlessly, the side with the "tail" turned back around.

At a glance, the jagged protrusions on that massive, blue-black back formed a distinct human face.

Setting aside its appearance, the most striking feature was right in the center of the forehead—a rotating hole that seemed to contain nothing but pure void.

When looking into it, a dangerous sensation of being stared at appeared almost simultaneously.

Naturally, as the face closed its mouth to stare at Fu Qian, some kind of channeling seemed to be interrupted. The hole was closing bit by bit.

"How did you know?"

This voice was noticeably different from Vivian's, and she sounded quite frustrated.

"That's more like it."

Seeing this, Fu Qian pointed to his own head in satisfaction.

"Logic and inspiration. These are the basic qualities of a professional."

"In most cases, creatures don't like turning their backs on a threat, especially an unfamiliar one."

"So during my first visit, when the topic of pointing your ass at someone came up, I naturally wondered: what if it wasn't an ass pointing at me?"

"That was purely a habit of thought, but it quickly took off."

"Considering the level of bodily control a Divine Emissary possesses, using a tail to confuse others and facing an opponent head-on shouldn't be hard to do at the same time."

"From that perspective, I had actually never seen your back. The first time, I only saw a tail, and when you reappeared, you were already facing front. It makes it very easy to wonder if there was something on it."

"As for inspiration, that's even simpler. Because yours truly is exceptionally gifted, no small tricks can possibly escape my perception."

"From the moment you admitted your true name, I sensed something brewing."

"Inspiration... Heh. That really is a nostalgic word."

Goto Hi, who had been silent, seemed to have heard something amusing.

"Years ago, if this appeared in the rewards, I would have considered it a commendation."

"Including from Stella's journal, someone favored by luck like her was just as excited about it, treating it as a medal for an arduous task."

"Regardless, your Rank in the Demigod Realm can't be faked, so I am very curious—just how high can your inspiration get?"

'Inspiration is a rare reward? Why haven't I felt that?'

Goto Hi's words left Fu Qian slightly shocked, and he silently recalled the routine plus-five he received after every task.

'A medal? It's tied to the difficulty of the task?'

'Are my working conditions really the worst after all?'

"So, did Stella's diary ever mention what the specific meaning of this medal is?"

"Don't you know her? Why not ask her yourself?"

Unfortunately, the only response Fu Qian received was a long, bright red tongue shooting out like a flexible spear.

"Didn't you want a frontal battle? I'll grant your wish!"

The tongue's speed was inconceivable. Almost the instant it appeared, Fu Qian was solidly entangled.

"When you insisted I turn to face you, did you ever think a tongue might be even harder to deal with than a tail?"

Vivian's quite tasteless laughter came from behind the massive body.

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