Eldritch Horror Theatre

He felt he was being treated rather rudely.

Although Harriet had revealed her true colors and taken him hostage exactly as expected, Fu Qian—the hostage in question—was hardly thrilled.

Theoretically, shouldn't he be the center of attention right about now? Why was he still getting the cold shoulder?

Based on her earlier probing, Harriet had clearly pegged him as an ordinary man with no ability to resist. So, even with a sharp blade pressed against his throat, her attention was entirely fixed on the steadily advancing hunter.

As for the target of her threat, the hunter still looked too lazy to speak. He even layered another coat of metallic flame over his blade as he locked onto his mark and continued to advance.

Whatever, Fu Qian sighed inwardly, deciding not to stoop to their level. He might as well take this opportunity to get a good look at Harriet's true form.

Setting aside her one skeletal arm, she not only seemed to have retained her sanity, but her facial features didn't look entirely inhuman yet, either.

Even the weapon at his neck—with its slender blade and exquisite handle—looked less like a lethal weapon and more like a traditional Vanity Knife meant to preserve a woman's chastity.

Of course, this was only the surface. Since her bathrobe had torn in several places when they smashed through the display window, Fu Qian had a clear view from his angle. The body hidden beneath that robe was truly unusual.

The hunter's initial ambush had clearly been effective.

But the strange part was that these mangled scorch marks only covered half of her back. On the other side of a clear dividing line, her skin looked completely unharmed.

It was as if most of that gunshot's firepower had been blocked by something else—something hugging her.

From Fu Qian's angle, combined with her posture and demeanor, it was easy to deduce that an entity with a bizarre skeletal structure was pressed skin-to-skin against Harriet's back, holding her tightly in its arms.

I've seen a lot in my time, but this look is genuinely a bit grotesque. No wonder she had to wear such a baggy bathrobe.

Fu Qian mused inwardly.

Of course, the most impressive part was that even at this close range, he only had the faintest perception of the invisible entity behind her; he couldn't even outline its specific appearance.

Where did it come from? And how had The Order discovered it? It was certainly intriguing.

Regardless, it must have been this thing that blocked the ambush shot just now, buying Harriet the breathing room to react.

And it went without saying that it was also what had swatted the hunter away earlier.

"I told you to stop!"

While the hostage's thoughts raced, his captor was losing her composure and roared again.

They really do say you should never give up hope—because a moment later, the hunter actually stopped in his tracks.

He still didn't make a sound, of course. His eyes merely stared coldly at Harriet.

He was at the perfect striking distance, and the Lead Flame still burned on his blade. It seemed he had received orders to cooperate, only his acting skills were a bit crude—or perhaps he simply couldn't be bothered to act at all.

Faced with this development, Fu Qian silently offered his critique.

Whether it was luring him over to be an audience member earlier or genuinely holding back the killing blow now, it was obvious the hunter was acting on instructions.

Of course, judging by his demeanor, Fu Qian's safety was likely just an afterthought. There was no way this woman was getting away.

"I admit I was hiding things, but I've never done anything bad... Let me go, and I promise I'll never come back here."

To Harriet, however, this looked like a sliver of hope. Pleasantly surprised, she quickly pleaded her case.

Unfortunately, the figure remained completely silent and unresponsive.

"Mr. Anke, I believe you need to show a little will to survive."

This undoubtedly cast another shadow over Harriet's hopes. She finally turned to glance at Fu Qian, pressing the blade harder against his throat.

"Sure thing. First of all, your look is quite an eye-opener."

As her hostage, Fu Qian immediately accepted the suggestion, looking at Harriet with utmost seriousness.

"Also, judging by what just happened, it doesn't seem like you're completely powerless. Why not just fight this guy to the death?"

This response—so severely lacking in any instinct for survival—clearly left Harriet deeply shocked.

"Do you even know what you're saying? Do you think I actually won't kill you? Or do you think this hunter can save you before I do?"

But they were at a life-or-death juncture, so she forced herself to maintain her sanity and correct his misconception.

"I do know. I don't think that. Hard to say."

Faced with this Three-Stage Questioning, Fu Qian still answered politely.

"So you two can go ahead and try."

...

At that, even the hunter, who had maintained a strict Terminator demeanor this whole time, glanced over for the first time.

"You must be crazy!"

This was the second time Harriet had used that evaluation.

"I think you're the crazy one. It's just a Nightmare; if I die, I die. Being this terrified is simply unreasonable."

Fu Qian scoffed coldly, firing back his own retort.

"Who told you this was a Nightmare...?"

This time, Harriet was truly looking at him like he was a psychopath.

"Didn't you just say that?"

Fu Qian gave her an odd look.

Before his voice could even fade, blood splattered.

The sharp Vanity Knife sliced straight into his neck, leaving a gash.

"Does it hurt? Is it still a Nightmare now?"

After wounding her hostage, Harriet gritted her teeth and asked again.

"Not bad at all..."

Yet a moment later, the hostage looked thoughtful. He even raised a hand to stroke the wound.

"This pain is truly the most beautiful moment I've had all day!"

He stared at Harriet, an indescribable fanaticism burning in his eyes. A second later, Fu Qian slid his index finger down the blade and slowly pushed it right into his own wound.

Although the cut wasn't shallow, he was still very precise, deliberately avoiding his vitals and vocal cords.

Of course, that was mostly because he had cooperated so well.

"Haven't you ever looked forward to it? To die in such a realistic Nightmare, only to start over in some special way? To see what wonderful new things are waiting for you?"

"You really are—"

Harriet looked like she was finally breaking down.

She had finally managed to take a hostage, only for him to turn out to be a completely unhinged lunatic.

Not only did he have zero fear of death, but if she had waited a second longer, he probably would have leaned in and slit his own throat.

"What's your name?"

Yet Fu Qian didn't even care about her reaction anymore. He just turned to the Order Hunter and offered a greeting.

Sigh—

Unfortunately, the man still had absolutely no intention of paying him any mind.

Instead, a sigh suddenly echoed out of thin air. It even sounded a bit familiar.

Along with that sound, a mass of radiant light suddenly blanketed the surroundings, surging with an irresistible power.

Harriet was knocked flying, her body completely out of her control.

Suddenly losing her hostage, she turned pale with fright and tried to lunge back at him, but her body was already rapidly dissipating—taking the boundless silence of the surroundings along with it.

The next moment, Fu Qian found himself back in a normal city night, looking at a face he hadn't seen in a while: Amira.

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