Eldritch Horror Theatre

Honestly, judging purely by its facade, the location Kadon had chosen for his Dying Wish List was unexpected, yet made perfect sense.

Generally speaking, the closer a person draws to death, the more likely their lingering regrets stem from their youth.

It was common for people in their final days to want to visit their hometowns or places that felt like a second home.

But the place Kadon had come to sounded like nothing more than a brief stopover from his past.

Fortunately, the power of adolescent sentiment and youthful infatuation was strong enough to explain it to some extent.

Add to that the fact that after so many years, even though Lucy had completely changed, she had remained in the exact same place. That kind of coincidence could only be called destiny.

All in all, if they had simply left after that, it might have made for a beautiful story.

But the resting place the old man chose clearly tainted the whole affair.

True, the car was low on gas and couldn't travel much farther. Sitting in the back, Kadon was undoubtedly aware of this.

So what if it was closed? Kadon clearly hadn't minded him drawing a gun right in front of Lucy's family. What was a little armed robbery in comparison?

Taking all this into account, Fu Qian was more inclined to interpret the old man's current behavior as the start of the second item on the Checklist.

This was also why he guessed that this place might be where Kadon and his father had stayed all those years ago.

He could only conclude that this particular journey had left a profound mark on Kadon's life—but what kind of mark was it?

The old man had been lying down for a while now. He remained completely motionless, reminiscent of the very first time they had met.

Fu Qian followed the old man's instructions to the letter, watching the scene unfold with no rush to step out of the car.

The most gratifying part was that, intentionally or not, Kadon hadn't closed the curtains.

Click!

Fu Qian killed the engine, plunging the world into total silence.

Kadon showed no reaction to this.

...

Technically speaking, the feng shui layout of this place was actually decent. To run a business into the ground with a setup like this—was there some special reason?

Minutes ticked by. Faced with this rare moment of downtime during a mission, Fu Qian didn't waste it, simply sitting back and silently enjoying the peace.

He even spent the time stargazing while casually taking the metaphysical pulse of this abandoned motel called Far View.

That was right. Although he was no expert, during his years without supervision, Fu Qian had dabbled in feng shui and geomancy.

Not out of a desire to learn a trade, but purely out of curiosity about its logical framework.

His conclusion was that the place scored quite well. Even if it hadn't raked in wealth, it shouldn't have fallen into such ruin. Could it be that the clock had broken down and gone unfixed, stagnating its momentum and blocking the flow of fortune?

Fu Qian's gaze finally locked onto the roof of the building.

There was a rather crude clock face up there, though one that clearly possessed a real timekeeping function.

Broken neon lights framed its edges, and a weather vane sat perched directly above it.

A proper Clock Tower was a bit too extravagant for a motel. This thing was obviously meant to serve as a visual landmark, making its accuracy highly questionable.

Perhaps lacking a master's guidance, it had been left alone after its first breakdown. Now, even the hour hand had fallen off.

But it didn't matter. He had just checked the time at Lucy's house.

Fu Qian was highly confident that even if this large clock weren't broken, its accuracy couldn't compare to his own internal sense of time.

And right now, it was approaching midnight—no, midnight had just arrived.

Fu Qian reckoned that if that big clock were still running, the midnight bell would be chiming right now.

Of course, if the motel management had any sense, they would have found a way to mute it.

Yet in this absolute silence, Kadon seemed to hear the chime anyway.

The body lying rigidly in the shadows opened its eyes.

Then, he sat straight up.

...

So it really wasn't just a simple overnight stay?

He had to admit, this sudden shift fit the setting perfectly.

Watching Kadon's movements, Fu Qian still didn't rush out of the car for a closer look; he merely applauded the performance in silence.

A dying man and a dead building. Amidst the profound decay, everything seemed to spring to life for a brief moment—all because a guest had gotten out of bed.

Showing none of the sluggishness of a sleepwalker, Kadon seemed to be reenacting a scene that had once taken place in this very building.

Not only did he rise to the phantom bell toll, but he also solemnly grabbed his coat, slipping it on before opening the door and stepping outside.

Click!

A few breaths later, the door to the adjacent room on the left slowly swung open.

Although half the curtains were drawn over this room's window, the angle was more direct, making the interior just as visible.

It was a bit neater than the room next door. The mattress was even resting in its proper place, though it was covered in the same mold as the exterior walls.

Kadon clearly didn't mind. He quickly approached the bed and scooped a pillow off the floor, looking as if he intended to lie down in this slightly cozier spot—but he didn't.

Instead, he just stood by the bed, staring down in absolute silence, as if someone were already lying there.

Thump!

In the very next moment, he slammed the pillow down onto the mattress.

...

What a classic move.

To Fu Qian, the shift might have been sudden, but it carried all the dramatic flair of a silent film.

If someone had actually been lying there, the pillow would have landed squarely over their head.

The old man was pressing down with remarkable strength, enough to pin anyone in place and leave them completely immobilized.

"What's wrong?"

And that was only the beginning. Kadon's one-man show was incredibly vivid.

After holding the pillow down for quite a while, he leaned over and asked softly.

His voice was as calm and flat as ever, yet one could still feel his concern for the person on the bed.

"You look terrible. Did something happen... or did you eat something?"

He didn't seem to get an answer. After a moment of silence, he spoke again, guessing at what the other person had gone through.

"I know you told me to stay in my room and not move, but I still heard strange noises..."

Ignored once more, Kadon seemed to sense the person's displeasure and began defending his actions.

"You were right. I did make some friends. This place is more interesting than I imagined... except for the food they eat.

"You really look sick, like something is trying to crawl out of your body. Are you sure you don't need a doctor—"

At that moment, the pillow in Kadon's hands finally seemed to loosen, and he stood up a little straighter.

"I almost forgot. You are a doctor."

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