Eldritch Horror Theatre

Under the watchful eyes of Hao Ke's group of four, Excellency Grimshaw never once looked back before his silhouette completely vanished.

His departure perfectly embodied an effortless, absolute detachment.

As a direct result, the four of them stood rooted to the spot, speechless for a time.

He actually seemed entirely unconcerned about what choice they made next...

That stance left them feeling profoundly relieved, yet faintly at a loss.

Having experienced this for the second time, Hao Ke undoubtedly felt it the most profoundly.

“...Did he really tell you earlier that whether you stayed home or not was entirely up to you?”

But before Hao Ke could share his thoughts, someone else asked first.

Frowning, Downs—who acted as the brains of the group—sought confirmation in disbelief.

Hao Ke sighed. Recalling everything they had gone through over the last half of the night, the sheer volatility of the situation felt almost surreal.

“Do you guys blame me for dragging you into this?”

Burdened by complex emotions, he looked up at his three friends.

“Don't overthink it. We should be thanking you for not leaving us behind.”

Downs shook his head instantly, waving the notion away.

“Besides, as dangerous as this trip has been, Excellency Grimshaw’s perspective is clearly on an entirely different level than ours.”

“As long as we didn't act recklessly, our lives were never actually in danger. Not to mention, we even managed to obtain some crucial information in the end.”

“My only regret is that I didn't consider your perspective sooner...”

Downs looked over at Yuri's mangled remains as he spoke, his tone heavy with sorrow.

“What do we do next?”

Undoubtedly, there was someone present even more grieved than him, but after years of wandering the jianghu, Qiu had managed to rein in her emotions. She looked at the three of them, asking for their input.

While her stance had been resolute earlier, she had clearly treated it strictly as her own decision; she had no intention of forcing the group to stay bound together.

Perhaps that man had merely been using them as tools and never intended to reveal anything more.

Yet just the few fragmented words he did share were enough to expose the hidden dangers surging beneath West Plain's peaceful surface.

If mutations like their own had already spread far and wide, every second they lingered here exposed them to unforeseen dangers.

“I'm staying with you. I'm not leaving until I figure out what exactly is going on.”

Surprisingly, the fastest to respond this time was the messy-haired fellow.

Though he had spoken the least throughout the entire ordeal, and his tone remained nonchalant even now, his stance was visibly resolute.

“Alright... What about you two?”

Qiu nodded unconsciously, shifting her gaze to the remaining two.

“...Me too.”

Downs visibly hesitated for a moment, but he eventually shook his head and made the same choice.

“Whether he's using us as tools or not, one thing is certain: Excellency Grimshaw is fundamentally here for these anomalies.”

“So strictly speaking, even if he's using us, we're actually helping ourselves...”

True to his role, he smoothly rationalized a sliver of an advantage for the team.

“Alright... since I didn't choose to leave back then, there doesn't seem to be any reason to do so now.”

Despite being the initial organizer, the notoriously self-preserving Hao Ke was unsurprisingly the last to speak.

His intense inner struggle was almost palpable, but in the end, he still chose not to walk away alone.

“Good... On behalf of Yuri, thank you.”

Relieved that they had reached an agreement so quickly, Qiu cast one final, complicated look toward Yuri's corpse.

“But we need to carefully plan our next move... Even if we're just being used as tools, we need to make ourselves as valuable as possible.”

...

What an excellent team indeed!

Although he had stepped out of perceptual range halfway through the conversation behind him, that didn't stop Fu Qian from thinking highly of this Transcendent Tier squad that hadn't even reached the Mid Tier. Holding onto his previous thought, he headed straight toward Mid-Mountain Manor.

That was right. During their earlier conversation, he had strictly maintained his honest Virtue—especially regarding his views on the Huang Clan.

By now, the name Grimshaw had formed a rather deep bond with the charlatan profession.

Although it was merely a side gig, how could he possibly act like his peer, Kisaragi Chie, resting on his laurels and settling for second-rate?

Since such an excellent opportunity had presented itself, he naturally had to deepen that bond even further.

While the four of them had already proven their worth to his plan, if they were willing to investigate Mid-Mountain Manor and make an extra contribution, Fu Qian would naturally be more than happy to see it happen.

But that didn't mean his earlier claim that “fate is in your hands” was a lie.

Deception and manipulation, making people believe your words and dance to your tune—those were the tactics of a second-rate charlatan.

A true charlatan always gave their clients a genuine choice, manifesting the concept of “fate” within every option.

Take this situation, for example. Unable to accept their friend's death, the four chose to plunge deeper into this anomaly, which would provide him with even more reference information. This was, of course, a valid path.

But if they had prioritized their own lives after their discussion, decisively choosing survival and fleeing West Plain, that would have been equally meaningful to him—he could observe whether they could successfully escape West Plain at all.

Qiu was, after all, a participant explicitly shielded by the Sacred Law.

Whether she managed to leave entirely unhindered, encountered a specific obstacle along the way, or whether the protection she bore shifted during the process—any of those outcomes would help him deduce the current state and capabilities of that tree.

Now that they were players on the board, how could escaping their fate be that easy? Heh heh heh...

Of course, that sinister laughter was just him dubbing over his own thoughts.

...

Despite the days that had passed, it still bore the weathering marks of time.

It was far from his first visit, so Fu Qian navigated the route with practiced ease. Bathed in the soothing morning light, he soon found himself admiring the verdant, tree-shaded Plaza in front of the Huang Manor.

Naturally, even as he admired the view, his footsteps didn't waver in the slightest. Having already entered his Blood Crusade State, he simply marched straight across.

Meanwhile, in a dimension entirely invisible to others, his figure and facial features were rapidly shifting.

“Feels even more deserted than usual.”

Only a few breaths later, a middle-aged man with slightly graying temples appeared on the smooth stone pathway.

Rapidly recalling the layout of Mid-Mountain Manor in his mind, Fu Qian—impersonating law enforcement officer Captain Qiao once again—gazed in a certain direction and murmured to himself, fine-tuning the pitch of his voice.

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