Eldritch Horror Theatre

As mentioned earlier, being in the dark sharpens a person's other senses, hearing included.

Yet this heightened awareness came with a catch: if it went too long without even the slightest visual feedback, it would breed delirium instead.

In Fu Qian's judgment, the other two promising youths were already slipping into that exact state.

Tormented by the absolute darkness, the two of them likely wouldn't even notice if Ais's position and his own didn't perfectly align.

The proof was that despite their leader's unusual loss of composure, the other two's breathing had actually smoothed out a fraction.

It seemed his own chuuni posturing had put them under considerable psychological pressure as well.

Facing this subtle shift, Fu Qian naturally took a moment to reflect on his actions.

Given the circumstances, it was impossible for the three newcomers not to pay attention to one another.

And while they hadn't said a word, it was obvious that his excessively calm demeanor had been making them uneasy.

This change in a fellow companion acted like a shot in the arm, offering them a minor burst of encouragement.

...

In fact, as a strictly practical player, Fu Qian never minded sacrificing a bit of his reputation to offer such help.

The only problem was that even with this help, it was still just a drop in the bucket.

Under the exponential swell of doubt and delirium, the three of them were rapidly losing their grip.

Even Lady Ais was faring no better than the rest.

Amid their heavy, overlapping breaths, Fu Qian could almost feel the negative emotions tangling and churning in the darkness, ready to trigger a complete collapse at any moment.

At the same time, Fu Qian was absolutely certain that the gold coins placed at their feet hadn't yielded a "Weapon" forged by the Vacuum Flower, contrary to what Ais had claimed.

Was it simply not time yet? Was the scrutiny from that special entity still ongoing?

It was a reasonable deduction. At the very least, that belief must have been what was keeping the two youths going—until a sharp click rang out!

The very next moment, accompanied by that soft sound, the darkness—which had grown as crushing as a mountain—was abruptly pierced by a beam of white light.

...

How did the saying go again?

I could have endured the darkness, had I never seen the light.

Though the light wasn't particularly bright, it was hard to imagine anything more impactful than a sudden bloom of radiance in a situation like this.

At that moment, the two youths even forgot to tremble. They stared blankly at the source of the radiance—the center of the square space—their minds completely blank.

Had it succeeded?

Of course, that blankness lasted only a split second. The wild joy welling up in their hearts outpaced even the recovery of their vision.

"You—"

Yet, accompanying their returning sight was a roar of utter disbelief from Lady Ais.

What?

Their attention instantly hijacked, the two youths didn't even have time to check the gold coins at their feet. With their sight slightly recovered, they snapped their heads toward the source of the light.

How could...

And that glance successfully locked them into an even more severe paralysis than before.

This special location, whose true appearance had been hidden from them until now, was revealed to be a perfect square—a space forged entirely from silver-sand metal.

The completely unadorned walls now reflected a strange, distinct luster under the glow.

But the source of that light was far from some unfathomable, extraordinary relic as they had imagined. Instead, it was a figure in a hooded robe.

That brilliant light piercing the darkness was coming right from his hands...

"What are you doing—"

Proving herself worthy of her status as an organization heavyweight, Lady Ais finally roared her question in full the very next moment.

...

Indeed, the person standing there was none other than Fu Qian.

As for the brilliant light piercing the darkness, it naturally came from the Lighting Equipment he had casually bought on the road—the very same tool that had already proven its worth earlier.

The combination of these two actions culminated in this highly shocking scene.

As for why he did it?

Fu Qian's gaze swept over the three of them, all sharing the same bewildered question, before finally landing back on Ais's face. He gave a cold smirk.

"Good question. I'd love to know what I'm doing too. Perhaps Excellency Ais can tell me?"

"...What do you mean?"

Noticing from the corner of her eye that the other two youths were snapping out of it, their faces slack as they listened to the exchange, Ais's gaze smoothed out a fraction. She stared right at Fu Qian's face and fired back the question.

From her tightly knit brows, Fu Qian easily read her regret: "This guy really isn't right in the head. I shouldn't have taken the risk of letting him join."

"The Vacuum Flower..."

Toying with the light source in his hand, Fu Qian naturally felt no embarrassment whatsoever.

"A bunch of rats. I truly underestimated your sheer incompetence."

The very next moment he let out a cold scoff, his eyes flashing with undisguised disgust.

"Gold coins, trials, the Workshop, smelting... I honestly cannot imagine what kind of terror the Night Watchers instilled in you, driving you to relentlessly orchestrate this little clown show every step of the way."

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

Ais's mood was clearly deteriorating. In response to Fu Qian's accusations, her tone turned downright hostile.

One could almost feel that, at any moment, a dark red beam might erupt from behind the visor aimed at him, ready to tear through any obstacle in its path.

"Is there really some Vacuum Flower in this place? Waiting in the dark to forge a 'Weapon' for us?"

It was just a shame that Fu Qian—the only one who knew how lethal she could be—was also the person who completely ignored the threat.

His expression right now carried the distinct disappointment of a pilgrim who had braved untold hardships, only to discover the holy land was populated by petty thieves and charlatans.

"It's nothing but a metal box... Ever since the day you built this, were you just waiting for the Night Watchers to find it so you could jump out, laugh, and claim it was all a joke?"

"Are you saying I'm lying to you... That the so-called power to hunt Gods is just a joke? That your being chosen was a joke as well?"

Seeing that the two youths beside her remained completely silent under Fu Qian's questioning—seemingly caught in some internal struggle—Ais let out a bizarre string of laughter.

"No, you are the joke."

Fu Qian shook his head almost instantly.

"I told you. I was absolutely certain that I had been chosen by fate in that moment. I didn't doubt it for a second..."

"I just never expected that the people meant to guide me toward that destiny had grown this utterly cowardly. You've stooped to using this clownish farce just to cover up true destiny."

"Cannot be perceived, cannot be understood—truly a brilliant description. Even now, I suppose you could excuse it by claiming that entity simply hasn't gazed upon us long enough, which is why the smelting hasn't begun?"

Pausing his impassioned speech, Fu Qian swept his gaze around the room. The very next moment, his demeanor turned to one of absolute disdain.

"But here is the real question. Given how tremendously disrespectful I am being right now, why hasn't Excellency Vacuum Flower jumped out to strike me down?"

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