Eldritch Horror Theatre

"You—"

"They say smart people only need a single hint."

At that moment, Mrs. Tracy finally lost her composure and shot to her feet.

"Let me in. That shouldn't scare it..."

There had actually been someone else in the room all along...

Just stringing certain facts together was terrifying. Mrs. Tracy's expression looked practically shattered.

"Urgh—"

Unfortunately, before she could even voice a question, her standing figure slumped right back down.

Having finished scaring her, Fu Qian clearly had no interest in chatting further. He delivered a sharp chop to her neck.

The illicit couple who had been the first to show up had now both met the exact same fate.

"Time is running out."

Not quite done yet, Fu Qian offered a reminder.

He even pointed at the clock as he spoke to prove his claim.

That was right—he was talking to the potential watcher.

After realizing earlier that the situation was urgent, he hadn't rushed to leave for two reasons.

First, as the person who had directly wiped out an entire day of his time, Mrs. Tracy should still be relatively safe in the short term.

This wasn't because a detonated landmine wouldn't explode twice, but because a certain critical time node hadn't arrived for her yet.

Until she reached the exact one-year mark and the mystery of whether someone was secretly observing her was revealed, the probability of time shifting again seemed quite low.

It was worth using this opportunity to try and gather more information.

As for the second reason, Fu Qian was equally curious about this watcher.

Mrs. Tracy had once stated with absolute certainty that she had ruled out everyone in the Sanitarium.

If such a character truly existed, their somewhat transcendent abilities might provide some inspiration for his own escape.

But staying was one thing; it didn't mean Fu Qian was ready to play hide-and-seek and tear the place apart to find a potential hider.

He didn't underestimate the strength Mrs. Tracy had tapped into under her psychological torment.

If someone like her had spent a full year searching for this target without success, why would he fare any better?

Even if he could eventually pull it off, it would likely be an incredibly time-consuming process.

He might as well borrow Mrs. Tracy's head for a moment.

"Half a minute left. At six-fifteen, I will snap her neck right on the dot."

And he meant her head quite literally.

The dark night was unusually quiet, offering no response to his warning.

Fu Qian wasn't surprised. He simply clamped his hand over Mrs. Tracy's head.

"I don't know what your goal is, but clearly, at the exact one-year mark, she will no longer be available for observation... or ever again after that."

After gently analyzing the current situation, Fu Qian offered a suggestion.

"If this doesn't affect you, please ignore this warning. But if you'd rather not see that happen, you might as well show yourself so we can chat."

...

Yes, as an academic, Fu Qian had always understood the importance of volunteers.

And that was exactly what he intended to exploit.

If there really was something tirelessly watching Mrs. Tracy for a year, he firmly believed she held extraordinary significance to it.

Especially with the one-year anniversary fast approaching.

This was his bargaining chip.

In short, one had to make good use of available resources.

Searching for someone was never as efficient as making them pop out on their own.

Not to mention, he had already taken the blame in advance by telling Mrs. Tracy that he was the person she had been looking for.

10, 9, 8, 7...

The darkness still offered no response, but Fu Qian remained patient.

Watching the second hand's final sweep, he didn't even bother counting out loud to apply pressure.

Instead, his fingers tapped rhythmically against Mrs. Tracy's head, as if testing a melon for ripeness.

5, 4—

"Please, wait—"

As it turned out, politeness was indeed mutual.

By not being overly aggressive, Fu Qian not only got a genuine response at the last possible moment, but the other party had even used honorifics.

...

"A pleasure to meet you."

The voice came from behind, but Fu Qian didn't turn to look. He casually let go of Mrs. Tracy's head and settled back into his seat.

He had to keep distinct matters separate; he had only offered to chat.

The current situation was already quite astonishing.

The feelings Mrs. Tracy had voiced, which anyone else would have dismissed as insanity, had actually proven true?

There really was someone watching her from every angle, remaining completely undetected for an entire year.

Frankly, in Fu Qian's eyes, it was probably a good thing the victim had passed out given this revelation.

Otherwise, not only would she likely faint all over again, but the mental shock would be quite substantial.

Furthermore, the voice sounded distinctly unique—old and dry, as if its owner hadn't spoken to anyone in a very long time.

It was far from conclusive proof, but it seemed to hint that Mrs. Tracy's other claim was also correct: this person wasn't anyone in the Sanitarium.

"I actually harbor no ill intent. I am merely a recorder in the Shadow."

Sure enough, the person spoke again a moment later, conveying exactly that sentiment.

A recorder? That was an interesting term.

But Fu Qian was clearly more intrigued by the other word—it sounded like they knew quite a bit.

"I believe you. After all, if you meant any harm, she would have been completely defenseless... So, you've been hiding in corners where no one else can see?"

Thoroughly satisfied with this development, Fu Qian's tone turned quite friendly.

"Yes. No one is more familiar with this place than I am."

The recorder sounded relieved, speaking with a fair amount of confidence.

"Why is that?"

"My son used to live here. I only donated the property after he died."

...

So this Sanitarium had some history to it? And this hidden observer was its former owner?

The person's statement held a lot of information. Fu Qian felt he could instantly picture the heartbreaking scenes that must have unfolded.

It even provided a reasonable explanation for why this person was capable of coming and going like a ghost.

"Who else here knows about this?"

Nodding slightly, Fu Qian continued his inquiry.

"Servis knows."

The other party sounded quite honest, directly dropping the Attending Physician's name.

"Understood. So why did you choose her as your target?"

Having heard so much about him without ever meeting him, Fu Qian pictured the person in charge of Demon Mountain and gestured toward Mrs. Tracy.

"That is a complicated question... I can only tell you that she isn't the only one I record, and I haven't been watching her the entire time."

This time, the recorder finally hesitated.

"Besides, I only mentioned these things as a gesture of goodwill. You may now ask what you wish to know."

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