Eldritch Horror Theatre

For these people, the selves existing in the surface world and the Inner World seemed to operate independently, rather than crossing back and forth as he did.

The path ahead was pitch black, but the faint light spilling from behind still allowed him to make a few observations.

At the same time, Fu Qian didn't forget to analyze Brother Peeker's behavior.

If his earlier hypothesis held true—that the dreary town he had seen through the breakfast shop window was an independently existing alternate layer of the world—then the operational relationship between the two realms was a problem he couldn't avoid.

Combined with unknowingly wandering into the "inner" Art Prison, Brother Peeker's behavior helped confirm one point: Jean was not an exception. The people who appeared in the Inner World really did feel as if they had accidentally stumbled into another dimension, just as he did.

But this raised a question: why them and not anyone else?

He didn't know the full situation here in the Art Prison yet, but back at the breakfast shop, Hake and the others had definitely still been present.

Was it because the Inner World was inherently a lifeless dead zone, and their minds were more fragile, their inspiration higher? Did that make them more prone to falling in?

That worked as an explanation, but it brought up another issue: what happened if they left?

In that case, would she immediately disappear from the Inner World too? Would the shop return to its empty state?

Or would an Inner World version of her remain there to continue working?

In Jean's case, neither possibility made much difference, but Brother Peeker was another story. He was carrying a bunch of Keys.

This posed another question: where did the Keys inside Brother Peeker's body come from?

It couldn't be that he possessed a Transcendent Tier form called "Locksmith" in the Inner World and automatically forged them whenever he saw a door.

In Fu Qian's eyes, the far more likely answer was that these Keys were items he had collected from the Inner World.

Brother Peeker had been here before, wandering around and pocketing them.

So if he returned to the Real World, would all those hard-earned collectibles just vanish into thin air?

Or would they act as a save file, loading this form the next time he dropped into the Inner World?

The first possibility was clearly unlikely. Otherwise, his current condition could only mean he had been in the Inner World the entire time and suffered a random bout of amnesia, rather than displaying the bewildered state of someone freshly dropping into the Inner World again.

But honestly, the latter scenario was also a bit abstract.

Connecting this to his earlier hypothesis—that the Hake who arrived early at the shop was actually the Old Hunter, deliberately assuming Hake's appearance to avoid startling Jean—Fu Qian leaned toward a more natural explanation:

Whether it was Jean or Brother Peeker, the reason they could enter the Inner World wasn't due to high inspiration, but because they already had a self within the Inner World serving as an Anchor Point.

Exactly. There was always a version of her and a version of him wandering through this dreary world.

Their minds might not be entirely lucid, but they performed special actions like collecting Keys.

Because of this connection, the consciousness of their surface-world selves would occasionally fall in, transforming them into these bewildered, ignorant forms.

Of course, at this very moment, Brother Peeker had clearly already awakened somewhat.

The footsteps behind him were so chaotic that they sounded like they belonged to more than two legs.

This macabre pacing constantly shadowed him from no more than two meters away, and a ragged, heavy breathing felt as if it were about to blow right onto him.

"Bring the Lantern."

Fu Qian never looked back, only offering a reminder when the other party blocked the light.

...

At one point, the heavy breathing even came from directly overhead.

It was easy to picture the scene: the strange creature behind him with its suspected extra legs had actually climbed up like a gecko, peering down from above and ready to pounce at any moment.

Fu Qian didn't break his stride, showing zero reaction to it. He didn't even have the slightest intention of raising his gun to waste a bullet.

"I... I've been here before."

As another fork in the path appeared ahead, Brother Peeker's voice finally rang out again, recalling more memories.

"So which way?"

With his theory about the Key collector faintly confirmed, Fu Qian finally stopped walking. He turned around to look at those faces and asked his question directly, without a shred of doubt.

That was right—faces, plural.

The Brother Peeker behind him had long since lost his previous appearance, his abstract aura growing even stronger.

Aside from the tiny hand sprouting from his shoulder—which was currently gripping the Lantern—his rapidly healing body seemed to have encountered a few glitches during its reorganization. Looking like a melted candle, he failed to maintain an ideal shape.

For example, an extra leg stretched out from his waist, and his hand was as broad and sharp as a bear claw.

Beneath the torn bodysuit were also several extra faces completely different from his original one.

Though they were as stiff as masks, it was still easy to tell that they belonged to both men and women.

"I... don't remember."

Under the light, Brother Peeker's own face looked somewhat vacant, as if that single question had caused his brain to crash.

"It's fine. Take your time."

Fu Qian remained as magnanimous as ever, though the gaze he fixed on the man was far from friendly. It was as if they were back to the coin-guessing game—one wrong answer and he would immediately dispatch him.

...

What was that? This guy was clearly immune to bullets now, and could easily be the one to dispatch him instead?

Wrong. Holding onto that exact mindset was the fastest way to get yourself dispatched.

Although Brother Peeker's head wasn't clear, he clearly retained an animalistic sense of danger.

In this clash of sheer presence, even the slightest hint of weakness was likely to be sniffed out.

How did that saying go again?

You have to believe it first. You have to treat everything as if you truly possess the power to easily crush your opponent; only then will they believe it too.

Trying to tactfully bluff your way through would only make you lose faster.

"I think... the left. I've been to the left."

After a subtle confrontation, clarity briefly returned to Brother Peeker's eyes. It seemed he finally understood his fate—

The man in front of him had known many things all along. The only reason he'd been allowed to come over was to act as a guide.

And if he lacked even this bit of value, all that awaited him was destruction.

"But... what exactly is going on? What is this..."

He was clearly still confused about his own condition, however.

...

"Very good."

Survival instincts were always so reliable. Even a Transcendent Tier form was no exception.

Fu Qian didn't hold back his praise for Brother Peeker's reaction.

"So, what did you do in here?"

Unfortunately, the other party was clearly not qualified to have his questions answered. Fu Qian stepped into the left corridor without hesitation and continued his questioning.

"I didn't do anything... I smelled a special scent, and I just kept searching for it. And then I just kept—eating."

Yet his words wouldn't be ignored. As Brother Peeker muttered to himself, he suddenly snapped out of his daze, awaking as if from a dream.

"I ate a lot of things."

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