Eldritch Horror Theatre

Casually pulling things out of one's stomach... was this really a Laria Family tradition?

His Excellency Jose's actions at that moment were undeniably a striking sight.

But the barrier of the screen provided a certain confidence. Upon confirming that the man's target wasn't the young stepmother, Expert Fu maintained an extremely calm posture, not forgetting to silently mock the situation.

The sense of déjà vu it triggered was simply too strong. It was impossible not to associate that small, pulsing lump of flesh and blood with new life.

Not to mention that during a previous mission in this very place, he had seen a floor covered with cradles of human flesh.

There was clearly something to be said about the Laria Family bloodline. Had His Excellency Jose been guarding against this all along?

As he continued his internal critique, Fu Qian easily untangled a train of thought, clicking his tongue in marvel.

Furthermore, if this was truly the case, did it prove that "humans are a unity of contradictions"?

He had already judged earlier that His Excellency Jose wouldn't bother lying to the young stepmother beside him, meaning the man genuinely looked forward to a new Offspring.

"Ah—mm!"

As Fu Qian noted down his impressions, the young stepmother's screaming finally came to a halt.

It wasn't because her tolerance had improved in such a short amount of time.

From the corner of his eye, he could see that her plump lips were actually fused together, forcefully stifling the rest of her noise and leaving nothing but a muffled gurgling in her throat.

This was undoubtedly Old Man Jose's doing. For a dignified fighter of at least Tier 2, such a petty trick was far too easy.

"I said to keep quiet in here."

As his young wife struggled, Jose seemed to finally remember her and offered a casual reminder.

Even though the lump of flesh in his hand was still pulsing, he had once again returned to a state like an ancient well without ripples. He even lifted it to examine it closely.

Truth be told, it looked rather healthy. While it couldn't quite be described as rosy and fair, it genuinely possessed a faint humanoid outline, resembling a curled-up newborn.

But it was precisely this trait that triggered an uncanny valley effect in that moment.

A true newborn at that size wouldn't look anything like this.

Not to mention that its "rhythmic heartbeat" was being carried out by its entire body.

Squelch—

And right in the midst of his careful observation, his hand suddenly clenched tight, sending fresh blood splattering.

"Haa... hoo, haa..."

Almost simultaneously, the young stepmother suddenly seemed to recover from Suffocation, letting out heavy pants.

...

She had indeed recovered. Soon after, His Excellency Jose stopped paying attention to the ruined mass in his hand and turned to look at her.

Within his field of vision, it was clear to see that while the young stepmother's hands were still pressed against her throat, the lips that had previously fused together were parted once more.

Moreover, perhaps due to her subconscious attempts to pry her mouth open earlier, a torn wound could be seen. The blood seeping from it made her red lips look even more vividly enticing.

"Calm yourself. Today is an important day, and I expect you to remain present for the entire event."

It was a pity that such beauty, bought with the price of blood, couldn't even earn an extra glance from His Excellency Jose. He merely ordered her not to drop the ball at the critical moment.

He also had absolutely no intention of explaining the terrifying scene that had just unfolded.

"...Okay."

The young stepmother undoubtedly didn't dare to ask either. She simply took desperate, deep breaths in that moment, trying her hardest to calm down.

...

Who could have guessed that His Excellency Jose actually cared so much about worldly etiquette?

The world returned to a state of peace. In the blink of an eye, the Small Prayer Room was once again filled with the image of an elder fussing over his children on a day of great joy.

However, having watched everything up to this point, while Fu Qian had to admit the plot was far from mundane, he couldn't help but feel that the final twist was somewhat forced.

Old Man Jose had clearly acted like a man who couldn't care less about red tape earlier, and his words and actions had been utterly jaw-dropping.

For a man like him, how much he truly cared about the guests' feelings or the royal image—or even how much fatherly love he harbored for Don Juan—seemed highly questionable.

Yet, when faced with his terrified wife, his first order was that she couldn't be absent. His priorities seemed completely out of place—or could there be some special reason behind it?

Today was a very important day...

In essence, it was just a ceremony. Don Juan wasn't going to perform a live demonstration of creating an Offspring with his new wife, so how important could it really be? ...Actually, it really was important. Otherwise, why would Old Man Ji be here?

Although the various scenes had been rather disjointed so far, Fu Qian easily answered his own question in that moment, attempting to string the clues together.

One of the beautiful things about logic was that it could help define the "unknown."

The faint contradictions in His Excellency Jose's behavior, combined with Old Man Ji's appearance, seemed to point toward a single deduction: beyond what could currently be seen, there was an additional reason that made this wedding so monumentally significant to him.

A reason beyond etiquette and familial affection—one sufficient to move a Tier 2 Transcendent.

And while he couldn't determine exactly what that was yet, simply knowing this "unknown" existed was already a harvest.

What was more, he also knew that a certain Old Man Ji could very likely lead him to uncover this unknown, and along the way, he could confirm whether it had anything to do with the thing Jose had just pulled out of his stomach.

"The sun is out. It's a beautiful day today."

Meanwhile, the man himself looked entirely unbothered. Allowing the bloodstains to linger on his hand, he stood with his hands clasped behind his back and chatted with his bedfellow about mundane topics.

...

It truly was a beautiful day. As the young stepmother forced a strained smile onto her face, Fu Qian found himself agreeing with His Excellency Jose's assessment.

Although it hadn't rained earlier, it had been rather gloomy.

Now that the sun was out, it naturally added a bright luster to the festive atmosphere, making everything suddenly clear and open.

But that wasn't what Fu Qian was pleased about. Under the brighter lighting, certain details in the room became much clearer—such as a stone disk resting a short distance away.

Solid black and polished on the surface, it sat dead center on a small wooden table, looking exactly like a Divination Mirror.

Through the reflection on its surface, Fu Qian was finally able to get a view from camera four, catching his first glimpse of His Excellency Jose's true face.

It was actually that face?

The face of that Statue in the Ehm Palace, Little Benjamin's Face of Gods and Men—it even bore a trace of the First Generation Dark Moon's charm.

...

He had to admit, no matter how exquisite a sculpture was, it still couldn't compare to a living person.

If he had merely suspected before that the old Dark Moon had left his mark on the Laria Family, then right now, Fu Qian could confidently say he was over seventy percent sure.

Although it wasn't a perfect resemblance, it was enough to know that it wasn't a coincidence.

The only pity was that he only had time for this single glance before the reflection in the Divination Mirror—and indeed, everything around it—blurred once again in the very next moment.

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