Eldritch Horror Theatre

Red Moon? Like the moon.

Though he recognized numerous signature details at first glance, when it came time to draw a final conclusion, even someone as experienced as Professor Fu had to hold back a little.

It wasn't that her face was obscured, making final confirmation impossible.

In all his previous encounters with the Red Moon's human form, her features had been shrouded in a conceptual blur. This time, however, they were exceptionally clear.

Delicate and tender, bearing absolutely no resemblance to the supposed visage of an ancient god.

But that was exactly the problem. Fu Qian was intimately familiar with these delicate, timid features—Yuan Shan?

That's right. Fu Qian could attest that he had seen this auntie before; she was none other than the Shangjing regional director of the Night Watchers.

Even if her eyes and brows carried a rare gentleness that completely contradicted that director's usual style.

But he hadn't forgotten that during her first appearance, Yuan Shan had crafted this exact same illusion to mislead people.

Even acknowledging her as a fashionista, Fu Qian flatly refused to believe that Yuan Shan had simply run off to dig up such an outfit.

The Red Moon's attire paired with Yuan Shan's face—combining these two elements was absurd even to think about.

A higher entity descending to the mortal realm to play games? Had she really even passed the Night Watchers' background check?

Or had her schizophrenia gone too far, cultivating an alternate personality she wasn't even aware of?

And even if she were unaware, had she still orchestrated the entire storm in Shangjing, playing all factions in the palm of her hand and making her handpicked "child" actively establish a connection with the moon?

Blessed with a rich imagination, Fu Qian pondered for a moment and concluded that all past events in Shangjing were now shrouded in every possible shadow of conspiracy.

And Chief Yuan, who could normally be called straightforward, suddenly took on the air of a mastermind pulling the strings from behind the scenes.

"Welcome. Apologies for the humble space."

None of this delayed his duties as host, however, as he casually offered a greeting.

His tone carried no trace of disrespect; he still treated her as the patron of the Blood Clan.

Overthinking without making a decision was always a cardinal mistake of strategists. True professionals didn't think just for the sake of thinking; they were bold enough to make a judgment.

Why did linking two elements together necessarily mean they were one and the same? Wasn't there a simpler explanation?

Of course there was.

Theoretically, among the women he knew, Chief Yuan was the one who had stayed in Shangjing the longest, and the one he interacted with the most here.

If the Red Moon couldn't show her true face due to her unique state, then what image would she assume during her Descent?

Keep that conceptual blur over her face?

She certainly could, but it simply wouldn't feel low-key enough.

In contrast, was it possible that, just like her current Rank, her appearance had also collapsed into a mortal guise?

Considering she was meeting with him, collapsing into the shape of an acquaintance would even make logical sense.

In short, the situation probably wasn't that complicated. It was just a technical adjustment.

"It's quite nice..."

The very next moment proved that things really weren't that complicated.

Facing Fu Qian's greeting, the barefoot, seated figure actually smiled and nodded, offering high praise for this humble room.

...

He was ninety-nine percent sure this wasn't Chief Yuan.

Although she looked slightly stiff and carried a hint of inhumanity, her demeanor was clearly on point, just like during their past conversation in the Half-Step Moon.

Fu Qian internally cemented his judgment: this face was merely a random collapse. Aside from a violation of portrait rights, this had very little to do with Yuan Shan.

Given this gentle posture, his previous judgment—that the Red Moon hadn't shown up aggressively demanding accountability, but rather because she was stimulated by Excellency Blazing Rainbow's actions—also seemed confirmed.

Regardless of how much the Red Moon had sensed of his actions, she clearly wasn't angry. She was simply concerned for his safety.

It was touching, even if that concern felt a bit too heavy.

Even after he had taken off his mask and walked away in the Ash Sea, she held no anger and had even followed him here out of concern.

To be honest, this wasn't entirely outside Fu Qian's expectations. He had considered similar scenarios.

After all, Shangjing was a territory the Red Moon had operated in for a long time. It wasn't strange that she could maneuver more freely here.

But his main reason for running here had been to leverage this fact against Excellency Blazing Rainbow.

Whether that entity had completely left or not, and regardless of the Red Moon's current mental state, he had wanted to buy the latter a little home-field advantage.

But now, the situation was getting a little out of control.

Ever since she swallowed a newly advanced Tier 1, her condition seemed to visibly improve as her digestion progressed.

She could do more and more things. Not only had she delivered items earlier, but this time she could directly undergo Transformation.

At the same time, her mental state was still quite unstable. The fact that she actually initiated a Transformation proved it.

This was exactly the behavior Excellency Blazing Rainbow had always tried desperately to avoid.

After his scientific expedition in the Ash Sea, Fu Qian could somewhat understand the risks of such exposure.

If everything before him was merely a Lie, then wouldn't the Gods—already fighting a bitter battle against the crystal curse—be polluting themselves the moment they actively waded into it?

He wasn't sure exactly how high the risk was, but it seemed best to quickly persuade the Red Moon to go back.

Even if it wasn't that dangerous, accidentally bumping into the real person while wearing this face wouldn't be a good thing either.

It wasn't a huge risk for the Red Moon; even if she drew the attention of a few Night Watchers, he wouldn't have to expend much effort to smooth things over.

The danger here specifically applied to Chief Yuan.

As mentioned earlier, the Red Moon's mental state was rather unstable. It was hard to guarantee she wouldn't casually commit some extreme act if she ran into her doppelganger.

Even if she was the knockoff version.

And Chief Yuan's frail frame obviously couldn't withstand the torment.

"Yeah, I actually think it's pretty nice too, which is why I frequently kick customers out to enjoy it alone."

Faced with the Red Moon's praise, Fu Qian's reaction was entirely devoid of modesty.

"Do you need me to help you kick them out?"

Such a business philosophy was undoubtedly a bit capricious, but not only did the Red Moon refrain from reprimanding him with a straight face, her smile didn't fade at all. She even offered to help chase them away.

"No need. Even if there are a few stubborn ones, I can handle them perfectly fine."

A Mother who wasn't a buzzkill was a rare find, but Fu Qian still shook his head and declined her offer.

From the Red Moon's act of initiating a Descent without a second thought, one could tell she didn't care much about the pros and cons. She acted quite willfully.

And the customers' frames were clearly even more fragile than Chief Yuan's. The scene of her 'kicking' people out was simply too beautiful to imagine.

"Of course, considering my brain has been a bit sluggish lately, I won't force myself if it becomes necessary. I'll definitely ask for your help then."

Not wanting to completely dismiss her good intentions, Fu Qian pointed to his head and added that caveat.

"So that's how it is..."

The slightly stiff atmosphere relaxed once more. The Red Moon echoed his words, finally looking a bit relieved.

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