Eldritch Horror Theatre

Nightmare. That word carried heavy implications.

As the illusion dissipated, returning him to the secret underground room, Fu Qian reflected deeply on the two lines of explanation Frankie had saved for the very end.

But he wasn't too surprised.

Where this unique organization—one that clearly shared an absolute, unified ideology—had come from was a question he had been pondering since the mission began.

Their subsequent attitude toward the awakened ones revealed even more. The way they looked at them was strikingly similar to how the Celestial Sphere Cult looked at him.

This inevitably brought to mind his conversation with Lady Raven.

Lacking absolute criteria to judge between two nearly synchronized worlds, on what basis could anyone determine which side was the Nightmare and which was reality?

Lady Raven's answer at the time was that it stemmed from an incommunicable experience.

But what if someone's experience in this present world was identical to her experience in the Commandment World?

It wasn't even a hypothetical. It appeared the Fallen Star Clan had genuinely acquired a similar experience in this world.

The only difference was that the source of their boon was no longer the starry sky, but rather beneath their feet.

...

"Are you saying that Lady Raven and the others, who believe they've glimpsed the truth, are nothing more than victims of a Nightmare?"

Not wasting any time beating around the bush, Fu Qian cut straight to the point.

"Perhaps even the same Nightmare you all experienced?"

"...I am growing increasingly curious about your excellency's intentions in coming here."

This ruthless efficiency in communication unsurprisingly stunned the Fallen Star Quartet once again.

Frankie slowly removed the soft Skull and finally opened his eyes, making no effort to hide his astonishment.

"Exactly. That is why I said directly explaining it would be meaningless. The sublime boon of the Stars..."

He let out a string of cold laughter.

"I received it many years ago... as did everyone else here."

Following Frankie's gesture, Fu Qian looked over and saw that Madam Xia and the other two had eyes filled with melancholy and relief, tinged with lingering dread.

"The Order, Hunters, Sanctuary, commandment... please believe me when I say we were once intimately familiar with every single one of those words."

Shaking his head slowly, Frankie wore the weary look of a man recalling a turbulent past.

"Unfortunately, it seems these concepts are now somewhat out of reach for the new batch of 'awakened ones'."

"Even so, I can still understand the allure of transforming from a mortal into a divine recipient overnight. Very few can resist that temptation."

...

"Hunters?"

Nodding slightly to acknowledge that great minds think alike regarding Frankie's lament, Fu Qian offered a single word.

"Yes... In there, I was an Order Hunter."

Frankie confirmed his guess.

"The Stars' boon made me perceptive and powerful, and I never regretted it... I worshipped Them with absolute devotion, purging all corruption that dared to profane Their radiance."

"I did this for a long time—so long I almost forgot who I was."

"But eventually, I faced a crisis. During my purges, more and more corruption began to reflect within my mind, and I finally started having Nightmares."

Frankie pointed at his head, stressing the word Nightmare.

"It made me furious. I felt my faith was being challenged—especially since, within the Nightmare, truly profane things were corrupting me..."

"As I fought against it, I became increasingly extreme, ruthlessly eradicating anyone who was tainted to prove that my faith had never faded."

"But eventually, unease set in. The various forms of corruption and the profane continued to multiply, seemingly without end—until one day, I discovered that the other Hunters were also suffering from Nightmares."

"You discovered this within a Nightmare?"

Frankie was fully immersed in his tale, so Fu Qian chimed in to play along.

"Correct, he ran into me," Xia interjected. "But why are you so certain it couldn't have been discovered during an operation?"

"For one, I have a pretty good grasp of your corporate culture; it's hard to imagine you all casually sharing your troubles on the job. Furthermore, there's a ready-made example right in front of us."

Fu Qian sighed softly. He was undoubtedly referring to Lady Raven and her group.

"When placed in a shared, extraordinary predicament, it becomes much easier to exchange your true feelings."

"You're right, but that alone was far from enough."

Frankie seemed to have already grown accustomed to Fu Qian's efficiency in pushing the conversation forward.

"Even after Xia shared her confusion with me, and even though our bodies were undeniably undergoing changes..."

"Not surprising. Compared to Lady Raven, the boon you received was clearly far more orthodox. It takes much greater courage to begin doubting yourselves."

Fu Qian seemed highly invested in the narrative, offering a solemn analysis.

Order Hunters, the orthodox Law of the Stars—no matter how you sliced it, their abilities were vastly superior to the motley assortment of powers held by Lady Raven's crew. Giving all that up would be incredibly difficult—unless it had started to rot.

"You are correct... A person's preconceptions are very difficult to change."

"It wasn't until the day I just mentioned that the truth of the Stars finally revealed itself before our eyes, and the so-called boon became a curse."

Frankie's voice still carried a heavy sigh as he spoke.

"And the bitter irony is that the very corruption I had been trying so desperately to purge was what ended up protecting me. In the final moments, it stopped me from stepping into that Church."

"Unfortunately, very few were ultimately able to wake up here like I did."

...

"I think I understand. The Stars fabricated that Nightmare, and even the very faith surrounding Them, such as the Law and the Order."

"The boon was actually a form of corruption. As for Their goal... you just have to look at Lady Raven's current situation: to bring that corruption into this place."

Fu Qian nodded slightly, acknowledging the man's feelings as he quickly summarized the situation.

"Exactly. Every single one of us was used as a tool to breach the barrier between the Nightmare and reality. The corruption, disguised as a boon, seeped into this place little by little through us, only revealing its true nature at the very last moment."

Endorsing Fu Qian's deduction once again, Frankie's face twisted into a mocking sneer.

"Unfortunately, the attempt ultimately failed. And now, making Their return after so many years, They seem significantly weakened. They can't even properly disguise Their basic boons anymore."

"Of course, your excellency appears to be an exception. 'Dark Moon' is a title we've never even heard of, which is why we were willing to share all this with you."

Crouching down to return the Skull to the pool, Frankie turned and stared intently at Fu Qian.

"We aren't necessarily trying to convince you of anything; we merely wanted to lay out our experiences. Regarding what you've just heard, what are your excellency's thoughts?"

His thoughts?

This philosophical dilemma—whether he was the man dreaming of the butterfly or the butterfly dreaming of the man—was indeed nearly impossible to resolve. It was difficult for anyone involved to find a definitive answer.

Unsurprised by Frankie's question, Fu Qian even nodded slightly, acknowledging the thorniness of the problem.

But did he have an answer?

He did—the world they were currently in was the Nightmare.

The Containment Conditions had stated it crystal clear.

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