Eldritch Horror Theatre

Truly, where in life do paths not cross?

To think he would see his old friend's striking figure again in this Land of Illusion.

Recalling their deep friendship and the hardships they had overcome together, Fu Qian let out a long sigh.

He wasn't mistaken. He had seen plenty of bizarre forms since taking on the role of administrator, but compared to Brother Persuader, they were mere fireflies beneath a brilliant moon.

Arthropod limbs, a carapace, bristles, long wings... and abdominal muscles dragging all the way to the ground.

That flea-like body, paired with that wretched face, didn't need any exaggeration to deliver a massive visual shock.

Of course, his appearance in this particular place was equally shocking.

Did the Persuader actually have a hand in the corruption of the Doll Workshop?

Earlier, while observing the mutated prize in the box, he had actually made the connection.

And this current anomaly already seemed inextricably linked to the Nightmare Corridor.

So much so that the honorific name of His Excellency Arakiel had naturally surfaced in Fu Qian's mind, though he was still far from proving it.

Now, the Persuader's appearance provided strong evidence for his previous theory.

The probability that the situation here was connected to Arakiel and the Nightmare Corridor had vastly increased.

But this wasn't the only takeaway. His Excellency Arakiel had manifested in various insect forms—so why did it have to be the Persuader?

"What is the exact meaning of this retracing?"

The illusory image eventually dissipated, and Fu Qian turned to the Witch for confirmation.

"If the surface appearance of this place stems from a story, as we suspected, then my actions are equivalent to adding a footnote to that story."

The Witch explained with great patience.

"There might not necessarily be important information, but it matches to some extent... Did you discover something?"

Since Fu Qian made no effort to hide his reaction, she had clearly noticed.

"I did. That creature with the human head and insect body is an old friend."

Pointing to where the illusion had appeared, Fu Qian was certain the Witch had been deeply struck by it as well.

"He is trapped inside the passage I travel through every time I cross over. There's also a higher entity inside whose power manifests as various insects."

...

Clearly grasping the implications of Fu Qian's words, the Witch seemed slightly surprised by such rapid progress.

They had previously suspected that the strange changes might be related to their crossing back and forth, and now a solid piece of evidence had seemingly presented itself.

"Describe this old friend of yours."

After a brief moment of thought, the Witch prompted him directly.

"That old friend calls himself the Persuader. He claimed to be a victim as well, trapped in there for a long time with no way to escape, leading to physical and mental mutations."

Fu Qian naturally shared the details generously. His old friend's experience was truly a tearjerker.

While taking the opportunity to explain the five different doors, Fu Qian refrained from jumping to conclusions about the Persuader's exact nature.

"According to his own words, his ability is called Divine Corrosion. It can distort anything, even a Nightmare constructed by a Deity.

"From what I observed during our contact, that claim wasn't necessarily a boast. Even rules of a very high Rank would still be affected by him. He even tried to possess me to seize a chance to escape."

Fu Qian was naturally referring to his first entry into the Nightmare Corridor.

Though the Persuader had repeatedly failed, one had to admit his abilities were formidable. He had influenced both the Nightmare and the Warehouse in succession—an astonishing track record.

"That does sound like an ability suited for this sort of thing. So, do you think it's the same situation this time? He used your power to escape from inside?"

...

This was clearly the Witch's first time hearing the details of the Nightmare Corridor. Nodding slightly, she gestured to the side.

As for her guess, her line of thought was undoubtedly clear.

She had mentioned earlier that due to the nature of this place, even if corruption occurred, it didn't necessarily mean the fundamental rules of the world had been altered.

Now that there was someone who specialized in exactly this kind of thing, pinning it directly on an individual seemed to make the situation much simpler and clearer.

Of course, it was obvious that the Witch was merely exploring this possibility. As of now, there were still far too many unknowns.

"We can't rule it out, but there are two problems. First, I have fairly reliable intelligence that it's extremely difficult for that old friend to escape from there. I also don't believe he could easily possess me again now."

Fu Qian's response was grounded in facts as he tapped his head.

The reliable intelligence naturally came from the Warehouse. The last time he escaped the Nightmare Corridor, he had played the role of an evil god corrupting reality.

And the Warehouse, which had provided him with that convenience, had specifically mentioned something in the final mission summary: Arakiel and the others in the corridor had essentially been sentenced to death and could absolutely never escape.

As for the Persuader, who had been trapped inside for far too long and deeply affected by it all, it was hard to imagine his situation was any better.

Furthermore, this time he had used the Extreme Hunger Infection at the level of the true King of the Abandoned Prison. It was hard to imagine the Persuader being capable enough to seize such an opportunity.

"Second, if this was solely the Persuader's doing, it doesn't seem enough to explain why I can travel back and forth so freely."

Ultimately, he himself was the main factor. Even if the Persuader had pulled off some god-tier maneuvers to complete that extreme operation, in Fu Qian's view, unless he had also dismantled the Nightmare Corridor along the way, it would be very difficult to provide Fu Qian with such convenience.

"That's what I find strange as well. Before and after you crossed over just now, I didn't notice anything particularly unusual about you.

"Aside from this scenario, do you lean toward any other possibilities?"

Nodding slightly, the Witch added the question.

"I do. I know that old friend well. He's rather naive and easily used by villains. Since this is clearly connected to him but beyond his capabilities, I'm inclined to believe it was the work of those prisoners locked up in there."

Fu Qian pointed the finger directly at Arakiel and the others, standing up for his old friend's honor.

"That's reasonable, but then the question becomes why the Persuader had any value to be used. After all, it was his image that appeared."

Quickly grasping the core of the issue, the Witch's thoughts were as clear as ever.

Being a bit dim-witted certainly made one easy to manipulate, but that alone wasn't a reason to be used.

"I was just considering that question myself. There seem to be two possibilities. First, his type of ability is indeed well-suited for this kind of work. Second, could it have something to do with the Persuader's origins?"

As he spoke, Fu Qian looked around.

"Are there any Imprints related to him here, like his hometown or something?"

One shouldn't let their thinking stagnate. Since they had already brought up the issue of the short window of opportunity, was it possible that this wasn't that specific window at all?

His Excellency Arakiel had constantly been trying to execute a Descent into reality. That was something he had known for a long time.

But if heading toward the Bookstore World was a Descent, wouldn't heading this way be one too?

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