Eldritch Horror Theatre

Nighttime always brought the most thrilling entertainment. Unfortunately, the Captain wasn't lucky enough to see it.

The information Clara had just offered was certainly shocking, but interrupting someone was impolite. Fu Qian had no immediate intention of pressing her; he simply maintained his lazy posture and watched the performance.

Clara, on the other hand, seemed slightly thrown off when she received no logical reaction after delivering such a massive revelation.

However, her professionalism quickly reasserted itself. Despite a brief moment of distraction, her stance remained perfectly poised.

It was obvious this wasn't some amateur hobby; she had clearly put in serious, grueling practice over the years.

Then, bathed in starlight and curling mist, she began to move, facing the deep, rippling waters of The Lake.

Silence speaks louder than words at this moment. Although Fu Qian knew little about dance, and the only sound around them was the lapping of the water, with every striking, gorgeous movement, it was as if he could hear a phantom drumbeat keeping time.

Her core strength was quite impressive.

As for her technique, it went without saying. Fu Qian was still certain she wasn't in the Transcendent Tier, but her physique was undeniably excellent.

She was truly an interesting character.

Fu Qian certainly didn't believe her surname was a mere coincidence.

With his alias being Encore Vinland, he had very likely just stumbled across the genuine royal bloodline.

This perfectly explained her astonishing knowledge of history, too.

But a descendant of the ancient royals reduced to a stage Dancer? Wasn't that decline a bit too severe?

Truth be told, while her fundamental skills were far superior, if she actually did this for a living, she probably wouldn't make as much money as the performer he had seen earlier today.

Part of it came down to wardrobe and props—in this line of work, the amount of clothing worn was usually inversely proportional to the income earned.

On the other hand, going too far is as bad as falling short. While her routine shared the same outward form as the daytime performance, its inner spirit was simply too elevated.

It wasn't that the person no longer mattered—the Dancer remained the core focus—but what she expressed went far beyond mere lust.

Watching Clara's movements alternate between soothing grace and fiery passion, Fu Qian felt he finally had a more visceral understanding of the word "faith."

Yet, thinking it over carefully, the situation was even stranger—

No matter how he looked at it, the Vinland Family had let their pride swell out of control, even staging open-air blessings to make the Gods watch their madness. And now their descendant—whether driven by family pressure or personal faith—was dancing the Deity Prayer Dance in a venue that was one hundred percent fake?

Stringing those facts together painted a vivid picture of true black comedy.

Not to mention, there was even an evil god sprawling lazily right here, earnestly enjoying the show.

...

"Thank you for watching."

The performer herself hadn't forgotten her audience. As the "song" ended, Clara finished the performance in the exact same starting pose, immediately thanking the lone viewer who had stayed until the end.

"You're welcome, Clara Vinland?"

Fu Qian accepted the thanks without hesitation and casually threw out the name to confirm.

"No."

Instead of putting her shoes back on, Clara walked straight over barefoot and shook her head.

"Filae Vinland."

Oh? So Clara wasn't even her real name?

Now a few things made even more sense.

Amidst his quiet admiration, Fu Qian could understand why she had done so. Her real name was honestly quite unique.

"You have my deepest sympathies for what you went through growing up. You obviously had an elder with a defective brain."

Dancing was physical labor. Seeing the thin sheen of sweat on Clara's forehead, Fu Qian shifted aside, gesturing for her to lean against the armrest and rest.

"There's no need... Wait, you can imagine my upbringing just from a single name?"

Glancing down at it, Clara ultimately declined the offer, choosing to stand to the side.

"Mostly because I've seen far too many tragedies caused by names, and every single one was soaked in the blood and tears of children."

Fu Qian nodded, completely devoid of modesty.

"Whether they were blindingly ambitious or utterly full of themselves, the people who inflicted that harm all shared one common trait: their brains didn't work right."

This was no exaggeration. Even though his own name was rather unique, it was loud and generous, and had never caused him any trouble growing up.

At the same time, Fu Qian had seen too many of his peers carrying burdens they were never meant to bear.

And the root of all that suffering was usually one or two diseased minds.

"You're right... The greatest tragedy is when that person is your own father."

Seemingly surprised that he possessed such empathy on the matter, Clara had unconsciously been listening closely. She let out a long sigh, finally revealing the root of her pain.

"Although neither of us was born in this city, his absolute favorite pastime was obsessing over our family's past glory and violently cursing the thieves who stole it all away."

Unconsciously accepting his earlier invitation, Clara rested half her weight against the Chair to take a short break.

"This passion was so intense that when his youngest daughter was born, he gave her a very specific name."

...

"And that forced connection gave you a different feeling toward this city?"

Listening to Clara's explanation, Fu Qian easily grasped how she must have felt.

"Yes, that feeling has been there since I was very young. I actually asked my father to bring me here to see it, and he was quite pleased by the gesture."

A hint of a cold sneer touched Clara's lips.

"No wonder you're so familiar with this place."

Offering no judgment on her family matters, Fu Qian simply acknowledged that her earlier behavior now made sense.

"Familiar, yet strange... I've visited many times on my own since then, but my feelings have only gotten harder to describe."

Clara didn't look proud in the slightest.

"Until you suddenly had a new idea—to see how others felt about it for reference?"

Fu Qian didn't think she was making a mountain out of a molehill, nor did he overcomplicate things.

If one just bothered to think, most bizarre behaviors could easily be explained through physics and psychology.

Even when this unique Dancer started moving just now, he hadn't suspected her of being some sort of cultist.

"Exactly. I have to say, your group's reactions were fascinating. It suddenly made me feel like I wasn't so strange after all."

"The dance I just performed was also something my father 'suggested' I learn from a young age.

"In his words, merely sneering at the Gods meant nothing. Turning the Deity Prayer Dance into pure entertainment was the true mark of the Vinland Family's pride..."

Stressing the word 'suggested,' Clara raised her hand in an elegant dance pose, looking up at the starry sky with a self-deprecating smile.

"Perhaps that's why the Gods didn't respond after I finished dancing just now?"

Who said they didn't?

Unfortunately, Fu Qian couldn't agree with her on that point. His gaze shifted from her raised hand down to his own, feeling the subtle changes within it.

Did you really think this seat sat here for so long just because your performance was that thrilling?

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