Eldritch Horror Theatre

"Could he have run off to Siren's ship?"

Hearing the sudden bad news, Fu Qian didn't question Brother Shulan's claim. Seeing Laurie remain silent, he even casually offered a guess of his own.

Gathering a huge crowd to search for someone only to turn up empty-handed was practically a classic trope. Moreover, in this high-risk line of work, a few accidents wouldn't be strange.

This was exactly why Fu Qian had previously commented that hiding here was only a "theoretically reasonable" choice.

Everything looked fine on the surface, but one couldn't forget that Excellency Serana had even run off to Siren's ship to search for someone earlier.

She had tracked them down by locking onto the name Gene, and no matter how one looked at it, the area around the docks would be her primary search zone.

The ship beneath their feet seemed crowded and ideal for hiding, but that only applied under normal circumstances.

With a Demigod deliberately searching for him, it was hard to imagine such a petty trick being of much use.

And yet, just last night, Serana had seemingly searched long and hard without yielding any results.

This astonishing achievement was the core reason behind their surprise just now.

Even if the man was truly gone right now, the time Dislocation still didn't resolve the absurdity of the situation.

"Impossible. I warned him repeatedly that he must absolutely not act on his own."

As Fu Qian pondered, Old Man Laurie sternly denied the idea that Gene had run off to the target ship.

"Understood. So when was the last time you established contact?"

Still without questioning them, Fu Qian nodded. His gaze fell on the item in Brother Shulan's hands as he asked casually.

Hmm...

The latter frowned deeply, but his gaze turned toward the person in charge.

"Before noon."

It seemed their operational rules really were strict. As Laurie spoke, he pulled a bead out into his hand, making it obvious that he served as the communication hub for everyone.

"Gene is only responsible for one thing on this end, and that is to confirm with me immediately the moment he discovers any abnormal movements from that ship."

And sure enough, his previous guess was confirmed. Gene was lurking here on the front lines specifically to monitor Solondil's movements.

"Not bad. So what constitutes abnormal movements?"

Fu Qian expressed his approval of this clear division of labor, while also being quite curious about one of Laurie's statements.

"Hmm... if they don't leave after a storm appears, or if they don't return after the storm stops."

It seemed to touch upon sensitive information. Laurie pondered for a brief moment but still chose to answer.

Oh? Although it sounded a bit absurd, it actually fit perfectly with Siren's habits.

Excellency Serana had mentioned it before. In order to seek opportunities for advancement, Solondil's ship always did the opposite of everyone else—setting sail in severe weather and returning when the weather cleared.

Even just now when they boarded the ship, they could see that familiar Trident Emblem not far away.

It seemed that even if they encountered an accident the last time they went out to sea, they still returned according to this pattern.

Gene stayed here just to monitor this? That was truly highly targeted. No matter how one looked at it, this was definitely related to Solondil's advancement.

Though as for how exactly they planned to throw a wrench in the works, the Old Man was still keeping it to himself for now—

"Shall we go take a look at his room first?"

Meeting Fu Qian's gaze, Laurie asked.

Readily accepting good advice, Fu Qian didn't mind letting him take the lead.

...

"To be honest, it doesn't look like he was still here before noon."

The three of them soon found themselves standing in a fairly large room, which, unsurprisingly, was completely empty.

But that wasn't the main point. With a single glance, Fu Qian could tell that the man had likely been gone for quite some time.

"Hmm... for safety reasons, Gene brought other items with him that allow him to disguise himself as someone else and hide in various places."

Old Man Laurie didn't deny it, but he was quick to explain, indicating that this was a normal situation.

So that was it. It was a reasonable approach, and it even seemed to explain why he was able to evade a Demigod's pursuit.

Though if that were the case, his own initial experience on the ship suddenly felt especially dramatic...

At that moment, Fu Qian recalled the scene of his first meeting with Excellency Serana.

Her suspicion was actually correct, and the target she was looking for really had disguised himself as someone else? She just searched the wrong ship?

"There's nothing here..."

By now, Brother Shulan had also finished checking the area and shook his head at Laurie.

Clearly, Gene hadn't left behind a single word to explain his potential situation or whereabouts.

"It seems so. Something isn't right here, Excellency..."

Taking a deep breath, Laurie still appeared to trust his team member's judgment as he looked toward Fu Qian in the next moment.

It was obvious he hadn't forgotten why the three of them had come here. This mysterious member of the Rebirth Club had just stated that Gene was already being watched by someone.

"It shouldn't be Solondil."

Fu Qian knew what he meant and shook his head.

His earlier actions were certainly a major provocation to that Siren bigshot.

But the gap in strength was obvious. Theoretically, the troublemaker's display would actually cause the Greed Worms, who lacked sufficient Rank, to be more easily overlooked.

"Understood. I can think of a place. Would Your Excellency be interested in going to take a look?"

Though he didn't even offer a reason, his tone was at least fairly certain.

Laurie clearly didn't expect anything more; after a brief moment of thought, he prepared to disembark.

...

"You want to tell me Gene came here?"

There was no doubt Laurie received an affirmative answer. Not long after, having arrived at another corner of Moore with the two Greed Worms, Fu Qian frowned slightly as he surveyed the scene before him.

He couldn't be blamed for such a reaction. For one thing, this place was quite a distance from the docks. For another, the buildings generally exceeded ten stories, giving the area the distinct feel of a central business district. It really didn't match the Greed Worms' vibe.

"I hope that's the case, though it's highly unlikely..."

Old Man Laurie sighed. It looked like he didn't hold much hope himself. At the same time, his gaze landed on a figure approaching from not too far away.

"We meet again."

The newcomer was someone Fu Qian even found familiar. It was Laywoman Tooth-Throat, who had once chatted merrily with him about Moore's slaughter culture. He greeted her with a smile.

Hmm...

It was a pity that the latter pursed her lips, no longer displaying her previous ease.

"We've reached an agreement with this Excellency, and then Gene disappeared."

Meeting Laywoman Tooth-Throat's inquiring gaze, Laurie kept things concise, summarizing their current situation in just two sentences.

"How could that be... he hasn't come here, either."

It was hard to tell which piece of news was more difficult to believe. However, Laywoman Tooth-Throat quickly collected herself, shaking her head to indicate that she hadn't seen any trace of Gene.

"Alright. What about the people from The Company upstairs?"

Even though he had said he didn't hold much hope, Laurie still looked somewhat disappointed.

Then, suddenly changing the subject, he asked a bizarre question, not forgetting to turn his head to explain to Fu Qian.

"There is a secret Siren stronghold here."

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