Eldritch Horror Theatre

Was it already here? And such a classic setup, too?

Fu Qian was undoubtedly quite satisfied with the sudden prompt.

A straightforward kill, no ability restrictions, and a clear target—always such a pleasing combination.

The requirement to remain untainted by the pollution needed some deliberation, as did the multiple anomalies he had noticed earlier.

But in the face of his uplifting final goal, those were ultimately minor details.

Considering the timing, the husband of the customer sitting before him—Mr. Rick—seemed to have a significant connection to his target.

Of course, his first priority was figuring out exactly what the so-called sin plague was.

Since there was a concept of a 'source,' it stood to reason there was a corresponding 'spread.'

In other words, something had to be spreading through Loss right now.

"Excellency Grimshaw, is there any way you can help him?"

While he pondered, Claire could no longer hold back and pressed the master for a solution.

"So you came to me because your husband's increasingly exaggerated affections make you suspect he's suffered some kind of occult affliction?"

"Yes."

Claire's expression hardened with resolve.

"I'm absolutely certain it isn't normal. Something has polluted his mind and is stealing my husband away."

"But frankly speaking, that sounds like it falls under the jurisdiction of the Night Watchers."

Fu Qian fully leaned into his contrasting persona, first questioning whether this issue actually fell within his line of work.

"Unfortunately, here in Loss, I can't even use this as an excuse to get the police's attention."

In stark contrast, Claire's tone had grown anxious.

"Even if I found a way to make them believe me, they would just brush it off as a harmless quirk."

"And practically speaking, the Night Watchers' Base is just a short distance from our home. My husband and I even visited a friend who works there yesterday."

"If there were truly some outrageous anomaly at work, they should have noticed it by now."

It was clear that after their verbal back-and-forth, Claire's initial distrust had fully transformed into the fear that the master would refuse to help her.

...

"That sounds reasonable, and I would actually be quite happy to help."

Maintaining his profound air, Fu Qian gestured for her not to worry, looking slightly moved by her plea.

"But as I mentioned earlier, I need an object with an intimate connection to your husband to help confirm his condition."

"What should I do, then... is there a general requirement? Like hair, or close-fitting clothes? I still have enough time today to make a trip back home."

Claire's brows furrowed tightly.

"Or should I figure out a way to lure him here? He definitely wouldn't agree if I just asked him directly."

"Heh... there's no need for all that trouble. Aren't you his most intimate connection?"

With a light chuckle, Fu Qian abruptly shifted his tone, sounding as if she had finally passed his test.

The next moment, as Claire stared at him in astonishment, he snapped his fingers and gestured for her to look at him.

...

In theory, the current situation was quite clear.

Given this Mr. Rick's bizarre behavior, the obvious next step was to get his address from his wife and confront him directly at home.

However, as a professional, Fu Qian was in no rush to do so—not with the 'untainted by pollution' prerequisite in his Containment Conditions, and certainly not after hearing Claire's claims about her husband's personal relationship with the Night Watchers.

What he needed to find now was the kind of pollution spreading through this city.

Whether Rick was merely tainted or the actual source of the plague, the Night Watchers' failure to notice anything wrong with him could likely be chalked up to how incredibly well-hidden the pollution was, and the insufficient perception of the agent they visited.

But what if he took that logic a step further?

What if the pollution was even better hidden—so well-hidden that even a Tier 2 professional would struggle to notice it face-to-face?

One of the basic qualities of a professional was to never let their expertise breed arrogance.

Taking things for granted was an undeniable vice in this bizarre, chaotic world.

To avoid falling into that trap, he had another identity beyond his Tier 2 strength that was perfectly suited for deeper insight—the Dream Dominator.

At the exact moment he snapped his fingers, he activated the Lucid Dream in his other hand—

But the activation wasn't entirely successful.

Within the dreamscape enveloping their surroundings, Fu Qian observed Claire standing across from him.

The very second they entered the dream, this customer he had been carefully guiding all along abruptly shot to her feet.

An incredible, logic-defying sense of alertness seemed to make her realize the environment was changing.

In theory, this was a change that any transcendent below the Mid Tier would struggle to detect.

...

"What's going on?"

Even as Fu Qian marveled internally, Claire stood there and voiced her incredulous question.

From the sound of it, she was just as confused as to why she had suddenly stood up.

She was acting abnormally, but was completely unaware of it.

She looked even more like the victim of some invisible pollution.

Silently evaluating her reaction, Fu Qian offered a response.

"Don't be nervous. It's just a basic Spirit Communication Technique. I'm trying to converse with you in your dream."

'Converse with me in my dream...'

Fu Qian's sincere explanation was still a bit difficult for Claire to grasp.

Of course, that didn't stop her expression from shifting into bright joy a moment later.

The man really wasn't a charlatan spouting mystifying nonsense!

Bolstered by this incomprehensible shift in reality, the persona Fu Qian had carefully cultivated through his contrasting behavior finally reached a state of absolute perfection.

"You've gone to great lengths, Excellency. Please, ask whatever you need."

Experiencing this detached, floaty sensation—where she felt in a daze that she could almost see her own sleeping body—she was fully convinced.

Finally believing the man before her was a true master, Claire sat back down as she spoke.

"Regarding your husband, aside from what you mentioned earlier about him licking all sorts of living creatures in his sleep, is there anything else you find strange?"

Still observing this unusual dreamwalker who seemed ready to slip away at any moment, Fu Qian casually asked the question, privately clicking his tongue in wonder.

Claire's dream state was so unstable that he couldn't even lock onto her as the core of the dream.

But precisely because of that instability, the psychological guidance he had been building all along took on much greater significance.

If he hadn't fully committed to his role and instead immediately used a Lucid Dream to force a confession from the customer the moment she walked in, the results likely would have been far inferior to what he had now.

"Rick used to be a doctor. He's always had a great reputation, full of knowledge and compassion. If there's anything else strange about him..."

Claire was clearly trying her best to think.

"In our home, he has a private room all to himself. It is never cleaned, and no one is allowed inside—not even me, and we've been married for over three years."

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