Eldritch Horror Theatre

Priorities must always be clear, as Classmate Liushuang had already demonstrated perfectly.

For tonight, team building was undoubtedly the main priority.

But alongside that, casually reviewing their previous arrangements had also factored into his choice of venue.

So far, everything seemed to be progressing ideally—save for a slight flaw in the head of the Disciplinary Department's grasp of the primary issue.

This flaw had even extended to the wine glass in her hand.

Clear drops of wine trailed down its sides, yet Professor Lanaya seemed completely oblivious.

The intense glare she shot his way betrayed her misunderstanding: she clearly thought Sunny was his main objective.

Fortunately, knowing Professor Lanaya's character, Fu Qian wasn't too worried she would withdraw her earlier funding sponsorship over something like this.

"A very unusual state. I'd bet she's here for the Academy."

At that moment, the blonde Sunny visibly faltered in her steps.

Following Fu Qian's earlier signal, Ji Liushuang hadn't made any effort to hide her identity as a student.

With Sunny's hearing, it was absolutely no problem for her to figure out that everyone at this table was an esteemed guest from the Academy.

Under these circumstances, for the conversation to suddenly shift to her—and with such blunt wording—was truly jarring.

Even if that actually was her reason for being here...

Of course, she wasn't the only one caught off guard.

"What's so unusual?"

The moment he claimed Sunny was "here for the Academy," Lanaya's expression instantly turned serious.

That was the good thing about the head of the Disciplinary Department: she never let personal gripes or interests get in the way of business.

"She's incomplete."

Fu Qian didn't keep her in suspense, pointing straight to the core of the issue.

Crash!

The novice waitress had finally managed to dump a steak onto a customer.

...

"How is she incomplete?"

The sudden commotion naturally drew everyone's attention.

But given her excellent service thus far, no one had any intention of harshly criticizing the newly hired Sunny.

Even the victim just laughed it off. He picked the crispy fried food off his clothes, dropped it into his bowl, and insisted the ruined portion was on him.

Having witnessed the entire exchange and watched Sunny clean up the mess with a flushed face, Lanaya turned back around to continue their wild conversation.

The Disciplinary Department's top general was sitting right here. If a lack of tact really provoked an incident, she'd at least get her money's worth for the drinks she was buying.

"Although her limbs look perfectly intact, she gives me the distinct feeling that it's a stretch to even call her human."

Fu Qian delivered his critique without any hesitation, the slight furrow of his brows fully capturing the demeanor of a deeply learned scholar.

"Non-human... Why didn't I notice anything?"

Unfortunately, Lanaya, who dealt with the posturing of professors on a daily basis, clearly wasn't buying his act.

Upon hearing this, she looked Sunny up and down again and immediately voiced her doubts.

Though she regretted it the moment the words left her mouth.

Sure enough, he didn't even speak. He merely pointed his right index and middle fingers at his own eyes.

Flashing a proud smile, he exuded the utter confidence of the Demigod Realm.

...

"If she isn't human, then what is she?"

Although her blood was boiling with annoyance, as the head of the Disciplinary Department, Lanaya had her own persistence. After calming down slightly, she pressed on relentlessly.

She could even tell that Sunny, who had similarly composed herself by now, was pricking up her ears to listen in.

"That's hard to say. A fragment? A puppet? A Doll?"

However, Fu Qian adopted a rare posture of humility, his tone even carrying a hint of marvel.

"The only thing I can be certain of is that if she really is a Doll, the one controlling her from behind the scenes is anything but simple."

"Even I likely wouldn't have spotted anything unusual if I hadn't encountered a similar situation before."

"...And yet you say she's here for the Academy?"

The drawback of a department employee having a higher Rank became entirely apparent at this moment.

Unable to discern whether his claim was true or false, Lanaya had no choice but to bite the bullet and follow his line of reasoning.

"What else? Give me another reason for her to be here."

Fu Qian opted for a proof by contradiction, blinking as he asked.

"A fugitive Doll regains her freedom, finds an honest job at a small shop, and lives an ordinary life incognito forever after?"

...

Looking at the blonde Sunny, who was barely maintaining her smile as she greeted customers, Lanaya fell silent for a moment.

Although her perception wasn't sharp enough to detect anything abnormal, the woman's appearance combined with her outfit really did give off a slight Doll-like vibe.

And it was obvious Lanaya found it very hard to believe the fairy-tale version of the story Fu Qian had just mocked.

She frequented this tavern; as long as someone was paying attention, it wouldn't be hard to gather that information.

But that was exactly where the problem lay. If the Doll really came because of this, knowing full well that her anomaly could be seen through at a glance, what was the point of this disguise?

"So the trouble you mentioned earlier was just because you discovered this?"

Finding the situation bizarre, Lanaya frowned while recalling Fu Qian's previous remarks.

"What else would it be?"

Unfortunately, Fu Qian frowned even harder than she did, seemingly baffled as to why she would ask such an obvious question.

...

Logically, she couldn't pick out any flaws, but...

"So you think it's necessary to bring her in for questioning?"

Casually setting her cracked glass aside, Lanaya's posture took on a calculating edge as she sought Fu Qian's advice on how to handle it.

Don't even think about using me as free labor again. No matter how clean you try to wash your hands of this, I'm dragging you down with me!

"There's no need."

Yet against Professor Lanaya's steely determination, she watched as that awful employee—who caused trouble for his superiors every single day—simply shook his head.

"Aren't we already asking her now?"

Before Lanaya could say another word, Fu Qian pointed at Sunny, who was wiping down tables nearby.

"Or do you think you'd get more out of her by hauling her back and torturing her?"

...Is this why you were being so blunt?

You weren't just unafraid of the subject overhearing; you explicitly wanted her to hear it, so we could just sit back and watch how she reacts?

Lanaya immediately grasped his intent and had to admit the brilliance of his method.

After all, the Doll's behavior was only a bit weird; she hadn't actually done anything out of line, and the Academy wasn't the Night Watchers—

"And our excuse would be that she watered down your wine?"

Lanaya's thoughts hadn't even finished turning when Fu Qian tacked on that extra remark.

"The wine is watered down?!"

At this, Lanaya could no longer maintain her thoughtful facade. She immediately grabbed the nearby wine bottle, took a sniff, and her expression changed drastically.

"Yeah, though I'm the one who watered it down. But we have so many people here, so when the time comes to pin it on her, she won't have a leg to stand on."

Fu Qian gave a cold chuckle, the very picture of a mastermind strategizing within the command tent.

"You watered it down?"

Lanaya nearly crushed the bottle again, her eyes going wide at this news.

"Yeah. I figured if the wine looked a bit fuller, it would minimize your resistance to footing the bill."

Fu Qian wore an expression of absolute self-righteousness.

"But don't worry, the two of us didn't drink much to begin with."

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