Eldritch Horror Theatre

At the Masquerade, Brother Honma had been the only male with long hair.

That was no longer the case, of course.

Fu Qian stood quietly, studying the figure seated before him.

As the man at the helm of the Academy's key Laboratory, he considered breaking and entering a private residence an absolute breeze.

Of course, displaying his grandmaster-level lockpicking skills once again had mildly shocked Classmate Liushuang. Standing a short distance away, she was gaining a profound realization that Learning Has No Bounds.

Since parting ways that day, this follow-up visit revealed that Brother Honma had undergone a surprising change in appearance.

Gone was the eccentric wildness he had displayed at the banquet. His flowing hair was cropped into a buzz cut, giving him the look of a man who had completely turned over a new leaf.

He was even tearing into the delicacies before him with immense delight, enjoying his food in a completely normal manner.

In the wake of the incident, both the Academy and the Night Watchers had been obliged to provide at least some assistance to this group of victims.

"Hey, Brother Honma. I hope you've been well."

With that friendly greeting, Fu Qian stepped directly into Honma's line of sight.

...

He hadn't been spouting nonsense. What he had told Classmate Liushuang earlier were the sincere words of a seasoned academic.

Fu Qian had absolutely no doubts regarding the authenticity of Professor Chang's evaluation report; he even considered her underlying logic entirely correct.

The victims of the previous incident definitely had to be utilized.

Aligning perfectly with his own thoughts, Professor Chang had assigned this special case, Brother Honma, a unique tier of importance.

After all, compared to Old Man Qiao Yanchuan and the rest, the man before him was an absolute outlier.

While the others had still been indulging in unbridled pleasure, Honma had already learned to derive a thrill from restraint, demonstrating outstanding talent.

His changes after coming into contact with the Finger Orb would hold a different kind of reference value.

Although, judging by Professor Chang's final report, the results hadn't been entirely satisfactory.

After Old Man Qiao and the other victims received their initial psychological counseling, their restlessness had largely eased, which meant Brother Honma's performance among them no longer seemed quite so special.

During the subsequent tests, he showed a distinct tendency to fade into the crowd.

Even in close contact, or when deliberately imitating the usage methods of the gathering's attendees, Honma's reactions were highly consistent with everyone else's.

It was exactly as Chang Mo had said: a slight improvement upon being hopelessly incurable.

One specific manifestation of this was that he ate with far more appetite.

The scene before him undoubtedly proved the point.

Was the Finger Orb actually a genuine artifact of redemption?

Only, compared to ordinary depravity, it was far more effective on the Ecstasy cauldrons at the Transcendent Tier.

That disappointed father's actions had essentially ended its fate of casting a pearl into darkness.

This was Professor Chang's conclusion. Now, it was time to display the skill of standing on the shoulders of giants.

...

"You are—"

In that instant, faced with the uninvited guest who had suddenly appeared in his vision, Honma was visibly startled.

His brows furrowed; the intruder's overly familiar tone, coupled with that unfamiliar face, threw his thoughts into a chaotic mess, preventing him from reaching a conclusion.

Naturally, Fu Qian felt no displeasure at his reaction.

Due to the mission reset, their previous heated discussion about the nature of true pleasure was already a memory exclusive to himself; not even Lanaya would remember it.

Otherwise, he was certain that the moment Honma saw him, his very first reaction would be to quietly distance himself from the bowl of soup on the table.

"Just call me Fu Qian. Brother Honma might not remember me, but your presence left a deep impression on me."

Fu Qian gestured toward his own hair.

"Also, please rest assured. The matter has already come to a close. We aren't here to ask you to assist with an investigation, but to assist with a test."

"A test... Are you from the Academy?"

Honma's reaction was quite fast. Subconsciously grasping the focal point, he looked around and quickly spotted Ji Liushuang standing off to the side.

This was where the importance of choosing the right partner showed. Even though her illegal entry was no different from Fu Qian's, and she wore almost no expression on her face—

—suddenly seeing such a dignified, elegant, and bare-faced young woman standing there caused Honma's defensive posture to involuntarily soften.

Especially since, according to Lanaya, Ji Liushuang had previously taken the initiative to help check on the victims' conditions. If Brother Honma retained any impression of that, her presence was strong evidence supporting their claim of being from the Academy.

Fu Qian also acted very humanely, deliberately giving the other party a bit of time to gather his thoughts without rushing to speak.

Unfortunately, Brother Honma's originally exceptional psychological fortitude seemed to have shattered the moment his long hair hit the floor. He didn't even look like he knew how to use the Night Watchers to pressure people anymore.

"But someone from your side has already been here..."

Even though he subconsciously no longer doubted their origins, his tone remained somewhat timid.

"Besides, I have long since been freed from that kind of indulgence..."

As if to prove this statement, Honma deliberately lifted the tableware in his hands, showing off his brunch.

...

Gold-rimmed bone china, as smooth as silk. This visibly expensive tableware, holding a small portion of clear, water-like soup, truly whetted the appetite.

Such a delicacy—if it were in the past, Brother Honma would most likely have consumed it with his eyes rather than his mouth.

Judging by how much of the soup he had already consumed, the healing effect Brother Honma claimed for himself was quite genuine.

Fu Qian did a quick assessment; even in the large bowl next to it, the remaining amount was far from enough to smash this guy's face into like last time.

"Don't be nervous. This is exactly what I came for."

Waving a hand, Fu Qian simply smiled and sat down, audibly flipping through the documents in his hands.

"Judging from the effects, you've recovered quite well, so we plan to keep up the good work and strive for further progress."

"If we can resolve the hidden dangers within you in one fell swoop, I'll have plenty to write about for this year's academic achievement reports."

This thing...

While Honma was left speechless, he saw Fu Qian take out the Finger Orb—its texture as fine as the tableware—and place it openly on the table.

Honma's attention was instantly drawn to it; the object had clearly left a deep impression on him.

"Do you remember what you did last time?"

Although he had his doubts, he didn't show much resistance.

Fu Qian looked extremely satisfied with Honma's reaction. After giving him a little more time to digest everything, he continued with a smile.

"...I remember."

"That's good. We'll handle this second course of treatment exactly the same way."

He really was standing on the shoulders of giants...

He watched as Honma, after a few seconds of silence, actually reached out with both hands, enveloping the round orb as much as possible and holding it against his chest.

Classmate Liushuang, who had watched the entire process, suddenly gained a much deeper understanding of Professor Fu's remarks on academic borrowing.

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