Eldritch Horror Theatre

Forbidden knowledge was like chili peppers: the thrill came from the pain, and people often developed a habit of craving it the most when they could handle it the least.

Since you brought Expert Fu in for questioning, you should have been prepared to face a three-question barrage like Harriet's.

After his casual performance, Fu Qian quietly watched the two people opposite him, not even taking a sip of the drink in his hand.

Mainly because this pineapple-flavored beverage was really only fit for rinsing out his mouth.

Meanwhile, the expressions on the other two's faces made it look as though they were the ones who had chugged down onion water.

"Are you saying the elder did it on purpose back then? That Kadon was used?"

Frowning took time, however. Mister Dickens and the woman exchanged a long look before finally breaking their silence. Gritting his teeth, Mister Dickens pressed Fu Qian to confirm what he meant.

"Don't be so eager to verify whether it's true or false. Just use it as a working theory."

Fu Qian didn't even bother trying to persuade them, merely gesturing for them to assume it was true and test the waters.

Fu Qian gestured with the Cross Star in his hand.

"Is it possible that after talking with Kadon, he realized the man was not only a promising talent but also a suitable vessel? So, following in her footsteps, he performed a bold ritual on himself, only this time with just one redeemer?"

Raising a finger to point at the woman in the dental gown, Fu Qian blinked.

"And Kadon never realized it... until years later, when his life was approaching its end, he finally discovered the problem and tried to undo the past?"

It was somewhat gratifying. Despite his cultist attire, Mister Dickens surprisingly didn't show much of a knee-jerk reaction to having his faith offended.

With just a slight prompt from the expert, he followed the train of thought and filled in the rest.

"He hasn't slept for years. Is it possible that was also out of some subconscious fear?"

Fu Qian wasn't stingy either, continuing to lead them astray.

"And after finally learning what was haunting him, Kadon used whether he could truly fall asleep as a test to confirm if his attempts had succeeded..."

Mister Dickens's comprehension skills continued to shine as he easily kept up.

"If he couldn't attain that inner peace, he would absolutely refuse to let go and accept death."

The woman in the dental gown even chimed in for that last sentence.

......

Inside the Dilapidated House, the academic atmosphere was unprecedentedly intense.

Although resistance could still be felt, Mister Dickens and the woman couldn't muster a strong rebuttal.

Ultimately, through their brainstorming, the sequence of events quickly began to make sense.

A righteous one... an interesting concept. It no longer seemed like a mere fool's fantasy.

And the time had come to directly confront certain coincidences.

"I imagine one question has been bothering you for a long time—how could it be such a coincidence?"

Expert Fu's lecture continued as he pointed at Mister Dickens.

"Your wife just happened to pass away, and you needed to bring Kadon to this place. Kadon transformed from a human into a non-human in an instant, for no apparent reason. And that instant just happened to perfectly align with the timing of your ritual... Was it really pure coincidence? Do you think that excuse can convince even yourselves?"

A question only cuts deep when it strikes at the truth.

Given the point Fu Qian just raised, anyone who understood the course of events would inevitably share those doubts—let alone the people directly involved.

From the very beginning, no matter how harmonious the conversation seemed, it never changed the bizarre nature of the situation.

Originally, the elderly Kadon just wanted to fall asleep, and Fu Qian was sitting here looking for a chance to help euthanize him.

But it had suddenly turned into an interrogation and a memorial service rolled into one. Co-hosted by Mister Dickens, who was closely connected to him, and the woman in the dental gown, who wasn't, they were meticulously dissecting Kadon's life. The level of abstraction was, frankly, off the charts.

Although, if one really wanted to make sense of it, there was a precedent to refer to—Reflection.

His penultimate dying wish required Fu Qian to swap identities with him. At the time, it was understood that Kadon wanted to examine himself from a different perspective.

So, could Mister Dickens and the woman before him be understood in a similar vein?

Regardless of the format, in essence, the person he had been talking to all along was simply Kadon.

So it was perfectly normal for them to feel deeply affected by the question of 'coincidences'.

And what Fu Qian was anticipating was how Kadon would react.

"You're right, it couldn't have been a pure coincidence..."

For a moment, it seemed as if a pause button had been pressed on everything before him.

And the one who broke it was Mister Dickens. His face already as stiff as a wooden puppet's, he couldn't help but look at Kadon lying beside him.

"You're right..."

Even the woman in the dental gown mirrored the action, her eyes losing focus.

"You're right."

And the third iteration of that exact phrase came from the prone form of Kadon.

Yet another figure slowly sat up from his body, raising its head to look over.

......

The dead high priest or elder?

It was another unfamiliar face. Slightly effeminate, yet he didn't look particularly old.

Furthermore, he wasn't wearing a dental uniform, but rather the exact same outfit as Kadon.

Even so, Fu Qian still made an educated guess.

The developments unfolding before him seemed quite smooth.

Through continuous contact and conversation, he had finally touched upon the core of that past incident, helping Kadon face it directly and manifest it before him.

"But it's useless. The outcome is predestined."

Although Elder Ji didn't look very friendly, he met Fu Qian's gaze the moment he appeared and indicated that all efforts were in vain.

"'Doing everything in reverse—even if you can't deceive the world, you can at least deceive yourself?'"

He was practically sneering. As he spoke, he pulled a piece of paper from inside his coat.

Lines of handwriting could be seen rapidly sketching themselves out on it, vaguely resembling the contents of the Checklist.

"It's a pity he couldn't even fool himself, because that 'self' is already me... Just like how he will never be able to die in his sleep, because the moment he falls asleep, it means he has completely accepted this truth."

Was this Kadon pouring out his inner despair to him?

Elder Ji's voice was overbearing, while Mister Dickens and the woman sitting nearby remained wooden and silent.

At the same time, as Fu Qian faced this scene, it was as if he was hearing Kadon's own voice.

According to his previous conclusion, everything was merely a projection of will.

So no matter how unfriendly it sounded, it could all still be treated as what Kadon himself wanted to convey.

It wasn't difficult to understand the details. His earlier guess was true: under Elder Ji's clever design, Kadon had been fooled.

Then, after decades of erosion, Kadon's will was powerless to turn the heavens, swallowed up bit by bit.

And this Dying Wish List was nothing more than a death charge made in despair, using a method akin to autosuggestion to try and attain inner peace at the final moment.

What a pity. He could not "go gentle into that good night" after all—not without Professor Fu's help.

Pop!

Another beverage bottle was opened.

At the exact same time, a wisp of golden flame ignited on that piece of paper, spreading to the fingers holding it.

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