Eldritch Horror Theatre

'I knew it!'

Before Veil could even finish her sentence, Fu Qian sighed inwardly.

'Why am I not surprised in the slightest?'

Fu Qian still had some impression of Veil's younger sister, the Beast Claw Woman from the Ring Archipelago.

He remembered how Veil had even been willing to resort to her feminine charms just to get him to deliver something to her.

Of course, even now, Fu Qian had no idea what her actual name was.

It seemed her luck was pretty good to have actually survived the accident in the Laboratory.

To be fooled into chopping off her own hand and attaching a beast claw just to gain supernatural power—that was taking rebellion to an extreme.

Dealing with that kind of brat was exhausting.

The Ring Archipelago went without saying, but Baerluk also hid a certain creeping strangeness.

Veil wore an awkward expression, perhaps having just thought of the same thing.

"Mr. Fu, did you just arrive here?"

Adjusting her emotions, Veil broke the silence.

"Just call me Fu Qian."

Fu Qian looked into the distance. The group that had been with Veil earlier was slowly dispersing, with several people constantly looking back over their shoulders.

"I did just arrive, yes."

"Seeing as you don't seem to have settled in yet, and the hotels around here are all quite shabby, would you consider staying at my place?"

Veil pointed at the Box by Fu Qian's feet.

"Your place?"

"Yes, I have a temporary place here. It's fairly spacious. If you don't mind..."

Veil's tone was incredibly sincere.

"I still haven't had the chance to properly thank you for passing on that message to Lotte last time."

So the Beast Claw Woman was named Lotte.

"It was an effortless favor,"

Fu Qian said nonchalantly.

"It may have been an effortless favor to you, but to me, it was a matter of life and death."

Veil broke into a smile.

"So please, do not decline."

...

About half an hour later, Fu Qian followed Veil to her lodgings—an exquisitely furnished two-story apartment.

"It's very quiet here and the privacy is good. It's perfect for resting, and it was just recently cleaned,"

Veil explained as she led Fu Qian through the door.

"I borrowed it from a distant relative for a temporary stay."

"You have relatives here?"

"Of course. Strictly speaking, this is my hometown."

Veil smiled.

"Even though my parents left this place before I was born, I still came back occasionally when I was little."

'So that's how it is!'

Fu Qian nodded.

He had waited outside the cemetery for Veil earlier because he had seen her attending a local's funeral, figuring she might be familiar with the area. He just hadn't expected her to be this familiar with it.

Considering he still had no real clues regarding his mission, Fu Qian's current strategy was simple: search for anomalies.

After all, a demigod had died here; it was impossible for that not to stir up at least a few ripples.

Having someone familiar with the locals right now would undoubtedly be useful.

This apartment was exceptional in both location and view. Veil's distant relative clearly came from a wealthy background.

The sky had already grown dark. After casually tossing his things into the room Veil had arranged for him, Fu Qian went to the washroom and scrutinized himself in the Mirror.

Wearing a long trench coat and a bowler hat, he looked exactly like an old-school gentleman.

Shortly after, there was a knock at the door. A woman who looked like a maid walked in carrying a massive food container, and she quickly laid out a table full of dishes.

She was clearly here to deliver dinner.

The maid was visibly surprised when she saw Fu Qian, but she kept to the rules and said nothing, retreating immediately after setting everything down.

By this time, Veil had already changed her clothes and politely invited Fu Qian to join her for dinner.

The portions weren't large, but the wide variety of exquisite dishes made up for it. Fu Qian ate with great relish.

"I really never expected to run into you here."

Veil clearly didn't have much of an appetite. She stopped after a few bites and offered a nostalgic smile.

"This place truly is a fine location for a vacation, though. I remember being so reluctant to leave every time I visited as a child."

"Indeed. But logically speaking, it shouldn't be easy for you to get in right now, right?"

"Shh!"

Veil pressed a finger to her lips.

"It did require some maneuvering, but no one here knows I am a transcendent yet."

"Why is there such a strange rule? Has it been like this since you were little?"

"Yes."

Veil nodded.

"It is a tradition that has lasted for many years, established with the consent of the Night Watchers."

"I thought they didn't even welcome the Night Watchers!"

"How could that be? If that were truly the case, this place wouldn't be able to sustain itself at all. After all, if any transcendent wanted to force their way in, ordinary security personnel wouldn't be able to stop them."

"This place needs the protection of the Night Watchers more than anywhere else."

"Understood."

Fu Qian nodded.

It was obvious Veil had forged her identity to sneak in here, just like he had.

"Is it because of this special rule that your sister specifically ran here to hide from you?"

"Perhaps. She really doesn't want to see me..."

Mentioning her sister Lotte, Veil let out a soft sigh.

"When the accident happened over at the Ring Archipelago last time, I found a way to sneak onto the Inner Island and was lucky enough to bump into her."

Veil carefully weighed her words; after all, rumor had it that the accident was caused by the very person sitting in front of her.

"It was only then that I learned about her hand... Anyway, she had just escaped and was terrified, doing nothing but hugging me and crying.

Later, I figured out a way to cure the anomaly on her body and took her away from there."

"Unfortunately, it didn't take long before I came back one day to find her gone again."

Veil looked helpless.

"I asked around through various channels later, only to find out that she had actually run back here.

Then I found a way to sneak in, thinking I could look after her a bit, since her injuries haven't completely healed yet."

'She really has worried herself sick over this!'

"Does she know you're here?"

"Definitely not."

Veil shook her head.

"If she knew, she would have reported me a long time ago. There's no way I would be able to stay."

'Just how much resentment is that!'

Fu Qian sighed inwardly.

However, considering she was willing to cut off her own arm to obtain supernatural power, it wasn't hard to understand why Veil's sister had such an attitude.

Having absolutely no talent herself while her older sister was a cultivation genius—it was perfectly normal to suffer from a psychological imbalance when comparing the two.

Veil undoubtedly cared deeply for this sister, but the more she did, the easier it was to provoke rebellious feelings in an immature mind.

"Have you ever heard of a demigod named Helom?"

Fu Qian clearly didn't care much for other people's gossip. After chatting casually for a bit, he shifted the topic back to his own mission.

"Helom? Of course I know him."

"He is a demigod with a great deal of seniority. He likely ascended decades ago. It's said he is proficient in many strange and eerie methods and possesses formidable strength."

"However..."

Veil hesitated for a moment.

"His reputation isn't particularly good. There are rumors that he is quite cold and cruel."

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