Eldritch Horror Theatre

"Where are you going next?"

After leaving the hospital, Veil looked at Fu Qian and asked.

"Hard to say. I'll probably just wander around. Might go read."

"Read?"

Veil sounded quite surprised.

"Yeah, there's a bookstore not far from here. You didn't know?"

"The one with the awful owner?"

"Is Manager Bernard that famous?"

"He is. Everyone in town has probably heard of him."

"Word is he has an atrocious personality. He's short-tempered and moody, and he opens and closes his shop whenever he pleases without a single thought for anyone else.

"I haven't dealt with him directly, though, so I can't say if the rumors are exaggerated."

"They aren't. I can guarantee that."

Fu Qian nodded solemnly.

"Since you said this is your hometown, I thought you two were acquaintances!"

"Hardly. Remember, I haven't been back here in almost ten years."

Veil managed a strained smile.

"I came here more often when I was a kid, but this shop wasn't around back then. Bernard must have moved here later."

So that was it.

Fu Qian thought for a moment.

"Got it. I'm off to read, then."

"Alright..."

Veil nodded silently, though she looked entirely unconvinced.

However, Fu Qian really did wander over to Bernard's Bookstore.

His trip to the hospital had actually been somewhat fruitful.

While he couldn't yet determine the cause, the anomaly of the void was definitely worth noting.

That included Sir Goodman, even if no anomalies had been detected on him just yet.

Fu Qian had already made up his mind to mark the man as a priority target for observation.

Goodman was being discharged today, so there was no need to return to the hospital. When the time came, Fu Qian just needed to follow the address on the business card.

There was still some time before then, leaving him free to do as he pleased.

And judging by what Veil had just said, Manager Bernard was indeed quite interesting.

With a business style like that, it was hard to imagine him making any money.

Yet a guy like that had gone out of his way to open a shop in this small town. His motives were truly intriguing.

For the moment, Fu Qian was quite eager to have a chat with him.

It was still a while before noon, and Fu Qian was a bit surprised to find the bookstore already open.

He felt someone with Bernard's temperament wouldn't normally be so diligent.

But after a closer look, Fu Qian realized he might have been overthinking it.

Bernard was currently slumped firmly in his seat, looking as if he hadn't moved at all. The man probably hadn't even closed the shop yesterday!

What an enviable state of existence!

A surge of appreciation for the man welled up in Fu Qian.

There were actually a few scattered customers in the shop right now.

When Fu Qian pushed the door open, Bernard looked up with sleepy eyes. A split second later, he jerked awake, his drowsiness vanishing completely.

The next moment, the man who had seemed glued to his chair bolted upright and snatched the Megaphone beside him.

"The shop is closed! Thank you for your patronage, now everyone get out!"

"It's only ten thirty—"

Unsurprisingly, someone raised a protest.

"We only operate at night! We're already way past closing time!"

Bernard ignored him entirely, grabbing a broom with his other hand to physically shoo people out.

Left with no choice, the few remaining customers put down their books and walked out.

"Sorry, we're closed."

Seeing that everyone else had left, Bernard glared at Fu Qian, the only person who hadn't moved.

It seemed he was very unwelcome here!

Fu Qian chuckled.

"I'm not here to buy books."

...

For a split second, Fu Qian thought he saw the corner of Bernard's eye twitch.

"Then what are you here for?"

His tone was murderously cold.

"I'm here to say thank you."

"Thank you?"

The answer clearly caught Bernard off guard.

"Yeah. Thank you for your advice earlier."

A card spun nimbly between Fu Qian's fingers.

"I took your advice and went to the hospital, and I ended up meeting a very interesting person."

With that, Fu Qian stilled his fingers and flipped the card so the name faced Bernard.

"Guzman."

Bernard clearly saw the name on the business card and let out a snort.

"That old geezer isn't bad. Is he dead?"

"No. He actually looked like he was in pretty good health."

Fu Qian shook his head.

"What makes this Sir Guzman 'not bad'?"

"It's all relative."

Bernard scoffed.

"Among that bunch of old farts, he's one of the more normal ones."

Is that so!

Fu Qian nodded.

"By the way, I also tried following your advice to go get myself killed. Unfortunately, I didn't succeed."

When he had left yesterday, the man had suggested he'd be better off dropping dead over there.

...

Bernard fell silent for a long time, lost in thought.

"I accept your thanks. Can you leave now?"

He finally spoke after a long pause.

But before he could even finish his sentence, he noticed Fu Qian had already wandered off to the side, pulled a book off the shelf, and started reading.

"Since you're closed, I'll just browse. I won't buy anything."

...

Bernard was ultimately powerless against Fu Qian and chose to drown his sorrows in smoke and booze.

After downing two bottles in a row, the man slumped over the counter and fell fast asleep.

Meanwhile, amidst the curling smoke, Fu Qian actually read through an entire book with great relish.

It was about time.

Glancing out the window, he saw it was already afternoon.

Fu Qian snapped the book shut, placed it back on the shelf, and prepared to leave.

"Hey!"

Bernard had lifted his head at some unknown point and shouted at Fu Qian.

"Since you seem somewhat polite, I'll give you a piece of advice. In Baerluk, don't wander around at night."

Don't wander around at night?

Fu Qian silently pondered Bernard's words.

As for being deemed 'somewhat polite,' was it because he'd put the book back in its place?

"Thanks for the tip!"

Fu Qian smiled and thanked him. He didn't try to press for more details, as the man had already buried his head back in his arms.

...

The guy seemed to know something.

Leaving the bookstore, Fu Qian thought as he walked.

Bernard seemed to be hinting that going out at night would be dangerous.

He wondered if the danger the man spoke of was the reason the demigod Helom had fallen.

Lost in thought, Fu Qian followed the address on the business card and found Sir Goodman's residence.

It was quite a beautiful courtyard, and rather spacious.

Perhaps because of the good public order, the security was fairly lax.

Of course, whether it was lax or not was completely meaningless to Fu Qian.

He strolled through the Sir's courtyard like entering an unpopulated realm, easily locating Goodman's presence.

The man had indeed returned from the hospital.

At the moment, Sir Goodman still seemed to be resting. He spent the entire afternoon quietly staying put without exhibiting any anomalies.

Faced with this situation, Fu Qian waited outside with immense patience.

As stated before, Fu Qian was a man of selective patience.

If he felt something was necessary, he would display an unimaginable level of endurance.

This was also related to Bernard. If he hadn't warned him about the danger at night, Fu Qian might have chosen to go check out the hospital first.

Instead, he had decided to wait a little longer.

Time ticked by minute by minute. Then, late into the night, when the crescent moon hung high in the sky, a sudden anomaly occurred—Guzman's presence vanished.

And in his original position, an unperceivable void appeared.

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