Eldritch Horror Theatre

Things were getting weirder and weirder.

As Fu Qian listened to their conversation, a profound sense of wrongness settled over him.

He had thought Violetta's experience was bizarre enough, but it sounded like all of them suffered from the same problem!

They had to stay constantly vigilant. One wrong step and they could slip into a fairy tale, and if they got lost, they could never leave?

And to avoid that, they didn't even dare to sleep!

It felt like walking through a swamp, where a single misstep meant sinking into the mud.

Looking at the five girls before him, Fu Qian grew increasingly suspicious of one thing—was this place even the real world?

Compared to Violetta's fairy tale journey, everything before his eyes was equally surreal.

Setting aside his current state—he didn't even have a physical body.

[Current task updated: Find a way to escape the cage.]

Right then, a new task prompt appeared.

Escape the cage? Was this really some sort of imprisoned space?

Fu Qian's mind raced. The new prompt undoubtedly corroborated his theory.

But that raised a problem. He didn't even have a physical form right now; how was he supposed to run?

Falling backward into a fairy tale would be easy, but it probably wouldn't count. That was exactly where he had just come from, and the task wouldn't just have him engage in rapid flip-flopping.

Fu Qian looked around at the group and the room drenched in red.

After mulling it over, he figured he needed to go outside and take a look first. Was there any way to control Violetta and make her leave this place?

The moment that thought crossed his mind, Fu Qian felt a sudden weight upon him. Violetta's body unsteadily stood up.

"What's wrong, Violetta?"

The sudden movement instantly drew the others' attention.

"I..."

Fu Qian tried to speak and realized he actually had control over her body.

What was going on? Where was Violetta?

A barrage of questions filled Fu Qian's mind. Based on what had just happened, the little girl shouldn't have fallen back into a dream. If she had, he definitely would have been affected and wouldn't be this lucid.

But she had genuinely gone completely silent.

Dormant?

It seemed that when he projected a strong desire to take control of the body just now, her consciousness had automatically retreated.

Had she been trapped in the fairy tale for so long that her mind had grown this fragile?

"Nothing. Sitting here just makes me worry I'll fall asleep."

Facing their scrutinizing gazes, Fu Qian smoothly offered an excuse while adjusting to his new body.

"That's good."

Soufflé didn't seem overly suspicious. In fact, she looked rather relieved.

"Since Violetta is fine, I'm going to head out."

At that moment, another girl on the side, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

She looked only slightly shorter than Soufflé and appeared to be the second oldest of the group.

Though they looked extremely similar, her temperament was entirely different.

Unlike Soufflé, who carried herself like someone in charge, this girl seemed much more lethargic, her eyes dull and listless.

"Alright, go on. Just remember to be careful."

Soufflé nodded.

"I know."

The girl waved a hand without looking back, pulled the door open, and slipped outside.

Catching a fleeting glimpse, Fu Qian noticed the bright light spilling in from outside.

It was clearly daytime out there, bright and sunny, yet this house didn't have a single window.

"I want to go out for a walk too."

As soon as the door clicked shut, Fu Qian quickly spoke up.

If he wanted to find a way out, holing up in here definitely wasn't going to work.

"You want to go out too?"

His words startled the remaining three girls, and Soufflé gave him a long, penetrating look.

"You just woke up. Shouldn't you rest a bit?"

"I feel pretty good mentally. It's just that a lot of my memories are a bit hazy. Walking around outside might help me remember."

Fu Qian explained calmly.

He deliberately emphasized his blurred memory to cover his tracks, just in case he slipped up and aroused suspicion later.

"Alright."

Faced with his request, Soufflé hesitated for a moment before finally agreeing.

"But for safety's sake, have Hani go with you."

"No problem!"

Before Fu Qian could answer, Hani eagerly agreed, running up to grab his hand.

"Okay."

Fu Qian didn't refuse.

Clearly, to them, his behavior was already somewhat abnormal. Forcing his way out alone right now would draw far too much suspicion.

"Let's go right now! We might even be able to catch up with Bella!"

Hani practically dragged Fu Qian toward the door. The youngest of the four hurriedly stepped aside to make way for them.

"Do you want to come too, Margaret?"

As she passed by the little girl, Hani didn't forget to try and expand their party.

"N-no thanks... I'm fine staying inside."

The little girl named Margaret shook her head instantly, refusing to follow even if it killed her.

This one was clearly a devout believer in playing it safe, refusing to stay anywhere but a secure location.

Fu Qian nodded in silent approval.

He just didn't know what kind of danger Soufflé had been referring to.

"Haha!"

Hani looked completely unsurprised by Margaret's response. She leaned in close to Fu Qian's ear with a giggle.

"Margaret is getting more and more cowardly."

"Uh-huh."

Fu Qian gave a vague response.

These four sisters really had distinct personalities, and Hani was obviously the liveliest of the bunch.

...

With the door clicking shut behind him, Fu Qian finally got his wish and stepped outside.

At a glance, this was a modest Small Town, and the five sisters lived in a house right on the main street.

Just like the interior, the exterior walls were painted a vibrant red.

The Small Town was noticeably deserted; only a few scattered pedestrians could be seen.

Aside from feeling a bit desolate, he couldn't spot any immediate danger.

Fu Qian turned back to Hani, who was stomping her foot in frustration.

"We came out too late. Bella always runs away so fast."

"Oh? Where does she usually go?"

Fu Qian probed.

"I don't know."

Hani shook her head bluntly.

"She never lets me follow her."

That made sense. Older kids generally didn't like playing with the little ones.

"But it's fine this time! It's so great that you were willing to come out. Going by myself is both boring and scary, and Margaret is such a scaredy-cat."

Hani pointed to their left, her face lit up with excitement.

"Come on, I'll take you to Mrs. Torrance's shop! She has a lot of pretty things."

Torrance? That middle-aged couple?

As expected, the numerous elements from the fairy tale had their own projections in this world.

He wondered how those two were getting along in a place like this.

"Sure. But I can't quite remember—what was the danger Soufflé told us to be careful of again?"

Since he was dealing with a girl who was barely ten years old, Fu Qian didn't bother hiding his intentions and asked directly.

"You don't even remember that?"

Hani was visibly surprised, looking Fu Qian up and down.

"Then it's a good thing I came out with you."

"Make sure you remember it next time! Stay away from all kinds of animals, especially the talking rabbits."

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