Eldritch Horror Theatre

"Excellency Aike."

Perhaps driven by a shared sense of urgency, the group moved noticeably faster than before.

Naturally, in contrast, the atmosphere felt much heavier.

Surprisingly, the one who tried to break the ice was Fu Qian. Even more unexpectedly, his first move was to apologize to the Night Watchers' demigod.

"Apologies for what I had to do just now. Have you recovered a bit?"

"That was my duty in the first place. I should really be the one thanking you."

The gesture clearly took Aike by surprise, but after studying Fu Qian for a moment, she gave a fair assessment of the incident's nature and gestured for him not to worry about it.

"Also, you don't need to worry. While I was being repeatedly whipped, it seemed difficult to suppress a sort of feral frenzy deep within my soul, but my mind is perfectly clear now. I am quite certain I haven't forgotten anything."

Along with this reassurance, Aike provided an incredibly detailed account of her mental state during the ordeal.

After traveling together this long, she wasn't naive enough to think he actually cared about her safety.

Everyone present had heard this guy's earlier exchange with Li He.

Both the old man and the young man were clearly fascinated by that unique mental annihilation technique.

His only reason for approaching her now was to ask about her firsthand experience to use as a basis for his future judgments.

A demigod test subject would naturally provide invaluable reference data.

That didn't matter, though. Her earlier expression of thanks had been entirely sincere.

He had genuinely helped her, and that was enough.

A frenzy deep within the soul.

Naturally recognizing Excellency Aike's sincerity, Fu Qian listened intently while also recalling what it had felt like to lash himself with the whip.

"I did notice some unusual changes to your skin during the process. That must have been the manifestation of the frenzy. I have a small question..."

The next moment, he inquired further with exceptional specificity.

"In your judgment, if you were struck by the whip again, would you have built up a resistance to this mutation, or would the situation be even worse?"

...

This time, Aike's gratitude came much slower.

Fu Qian's question seemed to plunge her into a difficult self-examination.

And her pride as a demigod clearly would not allow her to brush off her promised gratitude with a perfunctory answer.

Fu Qian was remarkably patient. He didn't press her, simply walking quietly by her side.

"I cannot be certain, but intuitively... it seems it would be worse."

She hadn't kept him waiting long. Aike had finally reached a conclusion, looking at him seriously as she answered.

She wouldn't build resistance through adaptation; instead, the barrier restraining her feral nature would only grow weaker.

Her memory might not suffer any gaps, but the erasure of her "self" did not seem so easily recovered.

Or perhaps it should be called her "humanity"?

Rubbing the Dark Red Ring on his finger, Fu Qian naturally thought of the Scarlet Angel, which shared a similar aesthetic, as well as a certain Tier 2 Divine Envoy named Ariel.

Was that the ultimate form of this erasure?

Did the Tyrant's version of destroying the mind not actually turn its victims into lunatics, but simply cause the "person" to cease to exist?

Was this the true meaning behind "souls wither because of you" in the honorific name of the King of the Abandoned Prison?

Truly unique.

And if that truly was the case, then aside from Old Man Stoss, Nepheli—the lady he had once shared tea with—seemed well worth having a chat with too.

After all, it looked like Ariel was probably her handiwork.

Indeed, learning has no bounds!

Feeling profoundly rewarded by these insights, Fu Qian was in a great mood.

Of course, just as the saying went: sharing joy is better than enjoying it alone. Almost at that exact moment, Excellency Ji Ning, who was leading the group, suddenly came to a halt.

...

Whoever designed the long dress clearly hadn't prioritized mobility, forcing Excellency Ji Ning to lightly hold up the fabric in her hand as she walked.

Now, however, she had let her right hand drop and was instead reaching into a cabinet, rummaging around.

Ornate and complex, the wooden cabinet was quite massive in scale.

Combined with its severe state of decay, finding anything inside clearly wasn't an easy task—yet Ji Ning had already withdrawn her hand, bringing out an exquisite silver-and-blue object about the length of a forearm.

From the moment she stopped walking, not even half a minute had passed.

The entire process was so smooth, it was as if she had known the object was there all along.

Thinking back on their route here, they had barely taken a single unnecessary step.

"It seems we've found the second trace."

Amidst their marveling, Excellency Ji Ning had already turned around, presenting her prize.

It was easy to see that the short rod, which bore exceptionally intricate patterns and motifs, was actually a sheathed Dagger.

Judging by its style and proportions, it was easy to imagine that this, too, was an object that "belonged" to Excellency Ji Ning—a Vanity Knife used to injure others or oneself.

"Huh?"

Just as this thought naturally surfaced, Ji Ning didn't hesitate. Gripping both ends, she attempted to unsheathe it.

Yet, under everyone's gaze, the seemingly slender short blade refused to budge even an inch in the hands of a demigod.

"How is this possible..."

Her nimble fingers ran up and down the hilt, confirming that there were no special locking mechanisms. Ji Ning made no attempt to hide her confusion.

"Want to let someone else try?"

Seeing even Old Man Li furrow his brows, Fu Qian proactively offered a suggestion.

Let someone else try...

It was an entirely reasonable suggestion, yet it made Excellency Ji Ning hesitate, as if she didn't want to share an object that belonged to her.

"Let me try for a bit longer. This thing... is truly dangerous. It's best to minimize the number of people touching it."

After a brief moment of consideration, she finally shook her head, looking as if she had made up her mind.

"Alright then."

Sensing the sincerity in her words, Fu Qian did not insist.

"Don't worry, I am confident that this belongs to me. After all, its pattern is a perfect match for my dress, isn't it?"

Perhaps feeling the team's morale had been slightly affected, Ji Ning, turning to resume the journey, playfully toyed with the Dagger in her hand and made a small joke.

...

In that instant, the air seemed to stagnate. More than one pair of eyes stared back and forth between the Dagger and Ji Ning.

They both indeed exuded a fully regal aura, but anyone whose eyes weren't blind could see that they were completely different styles of luxury. Excellency Ji Ning's reasoning...

"The Dagger is silver and blue."

At the same time, verifying a certain suspicion in his heart, Fu Qian sighed and described the basic appearance of this second trace.

...

At those words, Ji Ning froze dead in her tracks.

"Excellency."

Fu Qian didn't stop, quietly studying those lively, spirited eyes.

"Since putting on this dress, have your eyes truly been able to see anything at all?"

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