Eldritch Horror Theatre

"So, a major incident like this happens, and you come looking for a bookstore owner bright and early just to gossip?"

Seeing Yuan Shan adapting to local customs by leaning back and casually slacking off, Fu Qian could only shake his head.

"So, what's the big news?"

Regardless, any gossip the dignified chief of the Night Watchers delivered in person had to be at least somewhat interesting.

Brewing tea, Fu Qian played along and asked.

"I just received notice. Last night, multiple regional directors for Siren were assassinated. Not a single target survived."

Yuan Shan didn't keep him in suspense, delivering the news bluntly.

"Oh... Anjing?"

Living up to his title as an enthusiastic citizen, Fu Qian immediately made the connection.

Unsurprised by the strategist's sharp intuition, Yuan Shan sighed.

"With things escalating to this scale, Siren can't possibly let it go unanswered, and I doubt Anjing's moves will end here either. Things are going to get chaotic across the board from here on out."

"Agreed."

Fu Qian nodded, though his thoughts drifted to the exchange he had remotely observed the night before—

Gene, a member of the Greed Worms, had struck some sort of deal with the Anjing Company. That transaction was likely connected to this sudden commotion.

Considering Gene had still been hesitating at the time, it was highly unlikely he had participated in this first wave of action.

Whether this led to further assassinations or all-out conflict, the massive machine known as Anjing was clearly shifting into high gear.

...

"So the Night Watchers aren't going to intervene in this?"

Fu Qian continued asking as he pondered.

"Why should we?"

Yuan Shan let out a cold laugh, her answer blunt.

"The Night Watchers' jurisdiction has always been simple and clear. We only intervene in matters between transcendents and ordinary mortals."

"This kind of thing happens every now and then. If they want to beat each other bloody, that's their business. As long as they behave and remember the red line, we don't care."

It was obvious that Chief Yuan didn't harbor much goodwill toward these organizations.

"The Night Watchers' adherence to their principles is admirable."

Fu Qian largely agreed with her statement.

Principles could seem abstract, sometimes even feeling like a form of self-sabotage.

Yet, for an organization like theirs, they were fundamentally one of the core elements maintaining its existence.

They could be strict, but the boundaries had to remain perfectly clear.

For an organization whose violence suppressed the world, blurring those boundaries even slightly would cause the difficulty of its long-term maintenance to grow exponentially.

"It's certainly huge news, but what does it have to do with my shop? My monthly revenue barely hits single digits."

The next moment, he threw the question back at her with some confusion, failing to see why she had rushed all the way over just to share this tidbit.

"...Isn't it because your trip over there with Su Gao last time was just too well-timed?"

Yuan Shan shot him a sidelong glance.

Although his comment about the revenue was incredibly nonsensical, it was surprisingly the truth.

"Of course, I know you were completely engrossed in your divination and tea ceremonies and paid no attention to those trivial matters, so I'm just giving you a friendly warning."

"Besides, while both factions are behemoths, their influence here in Shangjing isn't nearly as large. You can operate in peace and focus on expanding your revenue, but if you head out of town again, just keep an eye out."

Relaxed as expected, Yuan Shan sipped her tea, looking exactly like someone who had just dropped by for a casual gossip session.

"Thanks for the heads-up. Was there anything else?"

As the person involved, however, Fu Qian didn't brush off her goodwill, thanking her seriously.

Anything else...

Glancing up at the sky outside, Yuan Shan hesitated as she pondered.

Fu Qian vaguely deduced the meaning behind it—Meteor.

Yesterday's events had ultimately been too jarring. Compared to a conflict between transcendent organizations, she was far more invested in the anomaly he had suggested might appear on the Prison Archangel.

Unfortunately, less than a day had passed so far, and the waiting process was always a bit agonizing.

"There's also a matter concerning Wen Li. I just heard about it..."

Unsurprisingly, given her concerns over conversation confidentiality, Yuan Shan quietly withdrew her gaze and opted not to chat about that particular topic here.

However, the alternative topic she chose was slightly unexpected.

"When I was chatting with Wen Li today, I heard her bring up something unusual. Just a few days ago, she received an Invitation Letter from the Academy."

...

Such a thing had happened?

The Academy and an Invitation Letter. Putting those two terms together easily brought to mind some rather negative associations.

For Fu Qian, however, it didn't take long to understand the logic behind Wen Li's encounter.

"The Linghui Courtyard?"

Fu Qian blinked, making no effort to hide his familiarity with the Academy.

Given that this particular department—one of the four within the Academy focused on psychic research—had suffered repeated setbacks recently, it wasn't surprising that they were working tirelessly to bounce back.

And with Wen Li possessing such a rare ability, it was perfectly normal for her to draw attention.

"Yes, a highly formal Invitation Letter. They are incredibly interested in Wen Li's abilities and hope she'll have the time to head over for an exchange."

"Furthermore, judging by the specific wording Wen Li relayed, they were being uncharacteristically humble for them."

Yuan Shan let out a cold laugh as she commented, clearly quite familiar with the Linghui Courtyard's arrogant style.

"When I went to see Wen Li today, she brought this up and asked if she should accept. What do you think?"

Having explained the situation, she directly outsourced the consultation request to Fu Qian.

"The Linghui Courtyard has a rich foundation when it comes to Psychic Type transcendents. For a Tier 4 like Wen Li, who lacks real combat experience, it should do her some good to go expand her horizons. What's her own opinion?"

Although he had a terrible reputation over at Linghui, Fu Qian always maintained an objective, factual perspective when it came to academics, so he didn't deliberately belittle them.

"Well... Wen Li feels the same way. In fact, if it hadn't been for everything that's happened recently, she was originally planning to head over within the next couple of days."

It was obvious from Yuan Shan's summary that Wen Li's attitude was also very clear.

"But you're worried that one of her underlying motives is not wanting us to be tied down too much because of her?"

Fu Qian saw a hint of doubt in Yuan Shan.

"Well... It's an easy thought to have, right? After all, it's already happened once before."

"Even theoretically speaking, her leaving for a bit might genuinely be better for safety."

Feeling once again the ease of chatting with a strategist, Yuan Shan sighed and shook her head, clearly quite confident in Wen Li's intellect as well.

"But given the current situation, I still don't feel right letting her go without someone keeping an eye on things. Furthermore, based on our past understanding, the reputation of the folks over at Linghui is very mediocre..."

"You should have faith in the self-correcting ability of an academic Sacred Land."

"A young person having such ambition is equally deserving of respect."

Fu Qian waved a hand, signaling her not to worry too much.

Although this way, things over there seemed like they would become a bit too lively.

At the same time, he sighed inwardly.

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