Eldritch Horror Theatre

"We didn't manage to save the people here, but we didn't come away empty-handed either."

Fu Qian accepted this so readily that Brooke looked somewhat skeptical.

He exchanged a glance with Kelly. After she gave a slight nod, he pulled a map from behind his back and spread it on the table.

"Based on our final intel and the subsequent search operations..."

He pointed at a spot on the map.

"We can confirm the disturbance spread in a radial pattern. It broke out here first, then expanded outward until it engulfed the entire city."

"That precise?"

Fu Qian looked at the spot Brooke indicated. To his surprise, it appeared to be a public venue.

"Is this—The Monastery?"

"Yes. It's a very ancient building that's been there almost since the founding of Fenghou City."

"Records show that people were still living there right up until the incident."

"So what we need you to do is tell us what happened there."

Brooke's expression was grim, his face hard as iron.

"You went to investigate afterward?"

Fu Qian asked after a moment of thought.

"We found nothing."

Brooke answered with complete honesty.

"Not a single person, nor did we spot anything out of the ordinary."

"That's why we're placing our hopes on you."

Both he and Kelly looked at Fu Qian expectantly.

"Feels like a heavy responsibility!"

Fu Qian looked at the two of them and nodded, his tone meaningful.

"So if I remember correctly, I now need to sink my consciousness back into the crying..."

...

"Well, it looks like your condition has improved significantly after treatment."

Having executed the self-hypnosis with silky smoothness, Fu Qian opened his eyes just as someone spoke beside him.

He turned his head toward the voice. If the surroundings hadn't changed, he would have thought the hypnosis had failed.

The person before him, dressed in a white coat, wore a strikingly familiar face—Kelly!

She really was his Attending Physician!

Seeing Kelly sitting there with such an amicable expression, Fu Qian couldn't help but sigh mentally.

Judging by the layout, this was a fairly typical psychiatrist's office. Through the window, he could see the trees outside; the weather looked quite pleasant.

He was definitely back in the hospital he had visited earlier.

"Doctor Kelly?"

Fu Qian looked at the familiar face across from him and called out with a smile.

"What is it?"

Her reaction confirmed his suspicion: she really was Kelly Landa.

In fact, if his medical records hadn't been damaged earlier, he absolutely would have seen her signature on them.

"Fenghou City will soon be destroyed, as if swept away by a storm."

Fu Qian pointed out the window, his tone entirely flat.

"Huh?!"

In that instant, Kelly looked profoundly shocked, her expression bordering on an existential crisis.

She looked as though she couldn't believe her patient hadn't improved at all and had just been faking it.

"Just kidding."

After staring at Kelly for a few seconds, Fu Qian suddenly flashed a bright smile.

"Thank you for all your hard work lately."

"You..."

Kelly stared at him for a long moment, her expression peculiar.

"Don't make jokes like that, or I'll have to schedule you for more tests."

"Understood. It won't happen again."

Fu Qian answered crisply while recalling Kelly's expression from a moment ago.

He naturally wasn't bored enough to simply play jokes on his doctor; his main goal was to test her reaction to a situation that contradicted her perceived reality.

The test proved her shock was entirely genuine, but it stopped there. Nothing like the anomalies he had encountered before occurred.

She didn't glitch or show any abnormalities over the cognitive conflict.

This didn't seem to be the same world where he had eaten those fried eggs, either.

Even the faint baby's cry in his mind had completely faded away by now.

What was this? Had his mental illness finally been cured?

The Nightmare dispersed, and everyone lived happily ever after?

Fu Qian was at a loss to understand this development.

He could only conclude that this particular assignment was truly bizarre.

Stepping out of the office, Fu Qian once again saw the tidy hospital building and the bustling crowds.

To be honest, given his previous experiences, this perfectly normal scene actually felt somewhat jarring.

Regardless, his objective was still firmly in place. He hadn't failed and been forced to restart, which meant everything was still unfolding.

Moreover, Fu Qian pressed a finger to his palm, confirming that the invisible bug was still nestled there.

The thing was remarkably tenacious.

So it seemed he still needed to track down The Monastery and investigate the situation inside.

Fu Qian naturally remembered the route clearly. Considering Fenghou City wasn't very large, he simply hopped on a public bus and let it slowly rattle its way there.

As the bus drove along in the bright sunshine, the small city presented its quietest, most peaceful side.

It was hard to imagine that such a tranquil place would eventually devolve into a hellscape.

Or had that hellscape actually been a figment of his imagination?

But his objective explicitly mentioned a Nightmare.

Mid-thought, however, something caught his attention.

He really was coming and going like a ghost!

Fu Qian looked at Bernard inside the shop and let out a heartfelt sigh.

Without any hesitation, he hopped off at the very next stop.

"Sorry, we're already—"

Bernard, who had just popped a cigarette into his mouth, nearly swallowed it when he saw Fu Qian walk through the door.

"Manager Bernard."

Feigning ignorance of the heavy repulsion in the man's eyes, Fu Qian offered a familiar greeting.

"It's you!"

Once his initial shock passed, however, Bernard slumped back into his usual mud-like posture. He grabbed the half-empty bottle of liquor beside him and took a swig.

"You spilled your drink on the books."

"Doesn't matter. The author was probably in the same state as me when he wrote it."

Bernard didn't care in the slightest. He picked up the book and thumbed through it, shaking off a thick layer of cigarette ash.

"Fair point."

Fu Qian nodded in agreement.

"Speaking of which, did you ever find your friend?"

Remembering the two cups of coffee sitting in front of this man back at the hospital, Fu Qian probed.

"No. And that person hardly counts as a friend anyway."

Bernard froze for a second before he caught on to what Fu Qian was talking about. He let out a cold snort and refused to say more.

The man really did remember their conversation at the hospital!

Fu Qian's gaze sharpened.

"By the way, how's your condition?"

Bernard asked casually, as if suddenly remembering.

"Great. Ever since I developed delusions, I've felt much more energetic."

"Delusions? Haha!"

Hearing Fu Qian's answer, Bernard blanked for a moment before bursting into uproarious laughter, slamming his hand against the desk.

"Humans always think they're wide awake, but in essence, what difference is there really?"

"Oh? How so?"

Fu Qian's interest was instantly piqued. The man's odd behavior made it glaringly obvious that he knew something.

"Remember the advice I gave you earlier?"

Bernard completely ignored the question, his eyes fixed blankly on the Reflection in the liquor bottle.

"The advice about having no advice?"

"Good!"

The man nodded. Without another word on the subject, he abruptly changed the topic.

"Where are you heading now?"

"The Monastery at the foot of the mountain."

"Huh?"

Bernard was genuinely taken aback for a second.

"What are you going there for?"

"To purify my soul."

Fu Qian spouted absolute nonsense.

"That's nothing but self-consolation."

Bernard looked utterly disdainful.

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