Eldritch Horror Theatre

They said the edge of youth lay in unconventional creativity—or destructiveness.

Something similar seemed to be happening inside this ordinary roadside shop.

It wasn't just his facial features that had been drastically altered; Fu Qian was certain his frame had shrunk a bit, too.

Coupled with hands clearly unaccustomed to manual labor, he didn't project much of a physical advantage compared to the man behind the counter. Anyone with a normal brain wouldn't try to rely on violence for intimidation—

So, did that conversely prove that anyone who did try it wasn't entirely sane?

As a man with more life experience, the store manager was clearly struggling with a fierce internal debate.

The core of his hesitation lay in whether the young man standing before him would actually dare to lash out if provoked.

Normally, a young man dressed like this wouldn't do such a thing. And even if he did, he wouldn't be able to intimidate anyone.

However, just like before, that rigid stereotype only made his current behavior feel exceptionally jarring...

The final result wasn't too surprising.

The manager in the plaid shirt chose the middle ground, avoiding risk while maintaining a shred of dignity.

"Then I'll just come back after you close."

Faced with this eviction notice, Fu Qian's reaction was incredibly easygoing as he mimicked a classic line of dialogue.

"...Why would you come back then?"

His eyes went wide before narrowing sharply. The manager's tone grew rather hostile.

"Because by then, you might be willing to remember a bit more... I took a look around just now. You sleep in the shop, don't you?"

Fu Qian explained patiently, casually pointing in a certain direction.

...

The deterrent effect of knowing where a man lived materialized in that very moment.

The manager's gaze drifted to a handsaw for the third time. It looked as if he might grab it at any second.

There was no helping it. Having someone target where you lived had been a massive taboo since ancient times.

Of course, this reaction seemed to prove to a certain extent that the current mission was taking place in the Bookstore World.

After all, if the Night Watchers didn't strictly restrict civilian weapons, the boss looked like he would have pulled out a heavy firearm instead.

It was a pity. The mission objective still hadn't appeared. He could only inconvenience this small business owner a bit to help him understand more about his current situation.

"What exactly... do you want?"

After a final internal struggle, the manager didn't shift into a combat stance. Instead, he repeated his initial question.

His tone, of course, was completely different now.

The cold hardness hadn't entirely vanished, but there was much more of that classic customer service warmth.

"Exactly... Think about it again. What might I want?"

Fu Qian was naturally quite satisfied with this, so much so that he obligingly repeated his answer.

...

"You're wet... I think you might need a towel? Or some clothes to sleep in?"

They had gone in circles and returned to the starting point, but the man had finally shown some growth.

After a long silence, the manager in the plaid shirt was finally starting to proactively consider his customer's needs instead of just mechanically asking.

Not bad.

Fu Qian nodded. He brushed a hand over his dark coat, feeling the dampness clinging to the fabric.

The manager hadn't disappointed him. As someone accustomed to the streets, he possessed at least some observational skills.

A moment later, he actually took his own advice, reaching over to grab a towel.

"You guys must have come around from the foot of the mountain to the north... That's the only place it rained all day..."

Unfortunately, even with the customer obliging his business, his silence still seemed to put the manager under immense pressure.

Fortunately, they had gotten off to a good start. Encouraged, he pushed on and offered a new deduction.

...

Hmm... That actually sounded pretty reasonable.

The manager was clearly familiar with the surrounding area. Fu Qian decided his time spent asking for guidance hadn't been wasted.

Besides, those few short sentences had already offered a wealth of information—such as a specific pronoun.

"We?"

He didn't hide his curiosity, asking the question aloud.

"...I saw your car. It drove past on the road outside earlier... You, and that old man."

Unfortunately, this thirst for knowledge seemed to cause a slight misunderstanding.

The manager's breath hitched, clearly regretting saying too much.

But then he realized that trying to cover it up was pointless. He took a breath and carefully explained.

Not bad. His eyes were quite sharp, too.

Listening to the explanation, Fu Qian felt even more satisfied.

He had already observed the outside earlier. Setting aside the fact that it was getting late but still too early to close the shop, he could confirm the manager was right—there really was a straight road out there.

Taking the mission description and the shop before him into account, the situation did fit the scenario of taking a drive and stopping for temporary supplies.

But the biggest problem was that, at a glance, there was no car parked out there.

This glaring inconsistency was actually one of the reasons Fu Qian had decided to hold this on-the-spot consultation.

"But there's no car outside. And there's no old man, either."

Fu Qian smiled and turned back to him, bluntly pointing out the problem.

...

"If you keep driving down that road, there's nowhere to stay... Or rather, there used to be, but it closed down a long time ago."

It was gratifying to see. Although the manager's eyes were darting nervously, his deductive reasoning was only getting sharper.

"If you were heading to that old spot to rest and resupply, I figured you might have broken down on the road because you ran out of fuel. So... you could take some gas back with you."

Well, wasn't that nice? The situation was suddenly a lot clearer.

Fu Qian followed the manager's gesture, eyeing a row of metal canisters sitting nearby.

At least from his perspective, there was nothing wrong with the manager's logic.

So this bizarre situation was the result of a flaw in itinerary planning?

And if he walked down the road outside, into the middle of nowhere, there would be a car carrying an old man waiting for him to save them?

"Thanks."

Expressing his thanks, Fu Qian pulled some money from his pocket to settle the bill, and actually walked over to pick up a canister of gas.

"You're welcome."

Had the transaction really gone that smoothly?

The manager visibly breathed a sigh of relief, though he still didn't dare rashly offer the gas for free.

And even as he counted out the change and handed it over, he never quite worked up the courage to offer to help carry it.

"Have a wonderful morning tomorrow."

Fu Qian naturally wouldn't demand extra service. He accepted the change without a fuss and even offered a pleasant blessing.

It would have just been a lot more harmonious if he hadn't flashed the gun tucked under his coat while offering it.

...

It wasn't just unwarranted malice, scaring the man like that right at the end.

It was mostly because the manager seemed to have average courage. He needed a little help steeling his resolve, just to ensure he didn't call the police the second Fu Qian left and turn the situation into a chaotic mess.

In this strictly governed world, a handgun was the hallmark of a truly heinous criminal.

And anyone thinking about reporting that kind of person would be wise to think it over very carefully.

Seeing the manager give a visible shudder, Fu Qian offered a slight nod and finally took his leave.

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