Eldritch Horror Theatre

Cartman moved even faster than anyone expected.

From his first step into the passage, he forged straight ahead without the slightest pause, his pace only accelerating as he went.

Naturally, this could be chalked up to burning anxiety and a desperate rush to find his missing girlfriend.

From another angle, however, he seemed far more concerned with finding an exit as quickly as possible.

He kept his eyes locked straight ahead, his head down, focused only on moving forward.

Unfortunately, the passage was decidedly uncooperative. It stretched on endlessly, sloping steadily downward without an end in sight.

Since he held the only light source, the situation quickly devolved into Cartman jogging ahead with the lantern while the rest of the group sprinted to keep up.

"Wait."

After descending an unknown depth, Fu Qian finally called a halt to the chase.

"Over here."

Fu Qian waved a hand, gesturing for Cartman to step back a little.

Throughout the descent, Fu Qian had stayed at the rear, but that hadn't stopped him from using the lantern's glow to observe their surroundings.

Just a moment ago, he had spotted something different on the monotonous gray walls.

Moving with obvious reluctance, Cartman raised the camping lantern and brought it closer.

A moment later, a passageway angling inward appeared right where Fu Qian was pointing.

It wasn't particularly wide, and since it was built from the same material with no distinguishing marks, it was incredibly easy to miss at a passing glance.

...

"There's a fork in the road here?"

Cartman stared at it, dumbfounded.

"Let's take a look inside."

Fu Qian said directly, seeing that the others were at a loss for words.

They had come down here to find someone, so there was naturally no reason to object to checking such an unusual spot.

Following behind a teeth-gritting Cartman as he led the way, Fu Qian was the second to walk in.

It wasn't a second passage as they had imagined, but rather a small storage room that reached a dead end after just a few steps.

Various items were scattered across several wooden shelves of different sizes. The place was a mess, with some objects having rolled onto the floor.

"She's not here—"

Ray stopped mid-sentence and suddenly gestured for Cartman to bring the light closer.

There were several marks on the wooden shelves that stood out clearly against the surrounding dust. Whatever had been sitting there had just fallen to the floor!

He froze, drawing in a sharp breath.

"Someone was just here. It looks like they were searching for something..."

The air seemed to freeze.

Things were getting increasingly bizarre. Even taking a massive step back and assuming Jessica truly had come down here, it was impossible to imagine what she would be digging around for in a place like this.

"But she is definitely not here. Let's keep moving."

Breaking the silence, Fu Qian agreed with his assessment and signaled for them to leave.

Realizing there was truly nothing else to do, no one objected. They resumed their trek.

Perhaps affected by what they had just seen, Cartman's pace finally slowed down.

Unsurprisingly, the group soon discovered several other similar alcoves. Without exception, every single one had been ransacked.

It was hard to imagine Jessica doing all of this.

Yet, thinking it over, the alternative was undoubtedly far more terrifying.

It meant that in some corner unknown to the vacation group, another person had been lurking in the building above this whole time.

Whoever it was knew the place like the back of their hand and was trying to find something.

Amidst this suffocating silence, a faint glimmer of light suddenly appeared just ahead.

Was that the exit?

It felt like a new lease on life. The sight instantly injected fresh energy into the team, and they picked up their pace once more.

The light grew steadily brighter until a half-open door came into view. They could already smell the muggy air wafting in from outside.

They had actually reached the end...

Cartman glanced back and, without waiting for the others to speak, shoved the door wide open.

...

Moments later, the four of them saw the light of day once again.

Beyond the door lay the lush Dense Forest, which actually looked somewhat familiar.

They seemed to have arrived at the foot of the mountain. Was that really a secret escape tunnel?

Looking back, they saw that the door they had just exited was set into an inconspicuous crevice, its location incredibly well hidden.

"She's not here. Should we go back and check the other spots?"

Ray asked the question after a moment of thought.

...

It was a perfectly reasonable suggestion, but no one uttered a word.

Courage had its limits, and the journey had already taken a heavy toll on theirs. Clearly, no one wanted to go back inside.

"Someone really did come through here."

Fran suddenly broke the silence, pointing ahead.

The group looked in the direction she indicated and instantly understood what she meant.

Thanks to Sheriff Jones's earlier demonstration, they easily spotted the snapped branches and trampled vegetation—clear signs of human passage.

Someone really had come out of that tunnel.

Unfortunately, out here in the Dense Forest, they lacked Sheriff Jones's tracking skills.

"This is getting way too creepy. We should just go find the sheriff."

Fran made the suggestion bluntly. She stared at Fu Qian's face as she spoke, hoping he would agree with her idea.

It seemed his performance along the way had earned his opinion an unprecedented level of respect.

Fu Qian didn't rush to give his thoughts, merely smiling as he looked at the other two.

"All right, but which way do we go from here?"

Ray hesitated slightly, but unable to find a reason to refuse, he thought for a moment and finally agreed.

Finding their bearings in a place like this was no easy task.

"That way."

Without waiting for the group to brainstorm, Fu Qian pointed straight in a specific direction.

"You know the way?"

Ray couldn't hide his shock.

"I don't."

Fu Qian smiled again, looking thoroughly enigmatic.

The answer was obviously exasperating, but at a time like this, someone who still had the capacity to smile naturally carried a certain persuasive weight.

Soon, the group was following right behind Fu Qian.

A short while later, Fu Qian parted a patch of bushes at the front, revealing a black stone road.

They had actually made it out!

The remaining three exchanged bewildered glances.

"How did you know to go this way?"

Even Fran couldn't help but ask.

"Simple."

Fu Qian pointed further up the black stone road.

"I just heard a dog barking."

At that very moment, just a short distance ahead, Sheriff Jones and a few others were turning around to look at them in confusion.

...

"What are you doing out here?"

Jones stared at Fu Qian, who had walked up first, his face full of suspicion.

"Found some new volunteers?"

Rather than answering, Fu Qian smiled and fired back a question of his own.

Beside the sheriff, a young deputy was holding the leash of a sturdy police dog, which was currently panting with its tongue lolling out.

"When it comes to finding people in a place like this, he's much better at it than I am."

Jones answered slowly.

"What about you folks?"

"We're looking for someone too."

Fu Qian replied honestly. A moment later, he noticed a shift in the sheriff's expression.

Hmm?

Fu Qian realized something.

"Any news on Lasik?"

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