Eldritch Horror Theatre

"You can't see?"

Beside the long cabinet, its door still hanging open from the retrieval of the Item, the lady in the Shroud stood holding the Vanity Knife. Strangely enough, the sight possessed a bizarre sense of harmony.

In this setting, Excellency Ji Ning's earlier remarks about her outfit's color matching grew far more chilling on closer thought.

Yet even so, the overly blunt explanation Mr. Anke had just offered was still something they subconsciously refused to believe.

As she led the way here, Excellency Ji Ning's eyes might not have been radiating charm with every glance, but they had certainly been sharp and alert, showing absolutely no sign of abnormality.

Visual impressions aside, she had accurately located yet another Item.

Were they supposed to believe that this level of efficiency—which surpassed even their initial progress—had been spearheaded by a blind woman this entire time?

That bizarre contrast was simply too much for anyone's nerves.

The problem was, if they refused to accept this theory, how else could they explain Excellency Ji Ning's behavior before and after this issue arose?

Fortunately, this shared confusion did not last long. Ji Ning quickly snapped out of her daze and stopped toying with the Dagger.

Was she admitting to it?

Though her tone was light, the question itself was unmistakably shocking.

Even as she spoke, her eyes seemed to grow stagnant, as if she were no longer bothering to keep up the facade.

"I only felt that something was slightly off earlier. I wasn't completely sure."

Logically, they should have been a pair of sightless, useless eyes. Yet, combined with the Reflection mirrored within them and Excellency Ji Ning's profound expression, they radiated a strange, oppressive weight.

But Fu Qian neither shrank back from her gaze nor acted smug that she had all but confirmed his theory. He simply continued explaining his thoughts in a calm voice.

"I fully believed Your Excellency's plan regarding the Imprint, including the part about the tracking being distorted."

"And precisely because of that, being a man with a rich imagination, I naturally tried to picture what that distortion might actually look like."

Fu Qian pointed at the garment draped over Ji Ning, seeming absolutely certain that she could sense the gesture.

"Knowing it is there without possessing any conventional sense of direction is a fascinating state of being. The appearance of this garment elevated that abstraction to another level entirely."

"So much so that a thought suddenly occurred to me: if many things, including direction, no longer have any meaning, wouldn't the eyes also become an obstacle to the search?"

"Then, something fascinating happened. You put on the garment and completely refused to take it off, and at the same time, your search efficiency skyrocketed."

"Of course, that alone didn't prove anything. At first, I thought this garment had perhaps granted you some incredible guidance, transmitting abstract information meant only for you."

"However, your behavior when you found this second Item just now gave me the profound feeling that eyesight wasn't required at all."

"Aside from misjudging the color of the pattern, if the guidance you received hadn't pinpointed a specific section of the cabinet, almost no one with working eyes would have searched through such a massive piece of furniture in that particular order."

Fu Qian took two steps forward and gently pushed the cabinet door shut.

"And if you were receiving that kind of precise guidance, then your vision wouldn't really matter anyway."

"Naturally, these are all just deductions based on my own personal experiences."

...

"Willingly surrendering your sight in a crisis-ridden predicament... Are you saying you have experienced something like this before?"

Ji Ning had undoubtedly listened very carefully to Fu Qian's explanation, but she focused immediately on his final sentence, asking with piqued interest.

"Although it wasn't for very long... yes, I have."

Fu Qian indulged her curiosity with absolute candor.

The experience he was referring to was, naturally, his expedition into the Underground beneath the Astral Clocktower alongside the Sage and the others.

"Excellent. I suddenly feel that you might actually be suited to give it a try."

A faint smile actually surfaced on Ji Ning's face. The elegantly dressed elder did not seem to doubt the truth of Fu Qian's words.

"You are correct. The moment I put on this garment, I realized that I had lost my sight."

"Or rather, my vision was distorted into another form. A different kind of 'sight' replaced my eyes."

It was actually true!

For a split second, Lu Yi looked as though he wanted to turn and flee.

Ji Ning's confirmation of Fu Qian's theory undoubtedly made the scene before them feel even more surreal.

To think that their entire advance earlier had been led by a blind woman.

"But it doesn't allow you to see colors?"

However, the scholarly spirit Fu Qian had previously displayed made itself known once more.

Faced with her validation, his emotions remained completely undisturbed as he continued to delve deeper into the subject.

"It is far from such a clear-cut concept."

Ji Ning's smile did not fade.

"To be precise, you only see a color at the exact moment it is necessary for you to see it. The same applies to shapes, textures, and so forth. You cannot choose what to see; you can only passively receive it."

"And among that multitude of information is the knowledge of how to find the traces. I have already verified that it is accurate."

"Of course, prior to verifying it, I didn't want my lack of eyesight to stir up too many doubts that would impact our efficiency, so I chose to conceal it for the time being."

"But there is no longer any need for that."

...

What a bizarre way to "see."

Even though Excellency Ji Ning mentioned that he was now qualified to try, Fu Qian did not pay much attention to the Dagger.

By comparison, the distorted vision she described sparked much more of his imagination.

As for the reactions of the rest of the team, they did not look particularly strange either.

While Lu Yi and Excellency Aike struggled to conceal their shock, Old Man Li looked thoughtful, seemingly entertaining similar speculations.

To some extent, this reaction validated Fu Qian's previous thoughts.

Li He and Ji Ning were quite familiar with one another. He had likely noticed something amiss early on but simply hadn't pointed it out.

Now, his posture was that of someone who had just had his doubts answered.

"In short, you've convinced me."

Unfortunately, there was rarely enough breathing room to allow for wild imagination.

Excellency Ji Ning, who clearly disliked wasting time, directly offered the Dagger in the next second, gesturing for Fu Qian, who stood before the wooden cabinet, to take it.

"Don't feel pressured, though. I am absolutely certain that this also belongs to me, and I even know it will bring me new information. I just can't understand why I can't unsheathe it, much like I can't understand why the colors were wrong."

"Just give it a try. After you're done, you can even pass it to the others—"

Ji Ning's words came to an abrupt halt as she "stared" at Fu Qian's hands.

With a faint scrape of friction, a slender, icy streak of silver—no wider than a single finger—was effortlessly pulled free.

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