Eldritch Horror Theatre

He actually found something!

Under normal circumstances, it was difficult to glean any information from the face of a veteran like Jones.

But that also meant if his expression really had changed, the situation was truly out of the ordinary.

Fu Qian had deliberately spoken vaguely just now. He hadn't expected a definitive result; it was purely a good habit of a task runner.

The moment he noticed the anomaly in the sheriff's expression, Fu Qian immediately seized the opening, striking the snake and climbing up the stick.

Now, based on Jones's subsequent reaction, Fu Qian could basically conclude that the man really had found information about Lasik.

The reason for such a strong reaction was likely because Fu Qian's words had misled him into believing their group of four was making a huge fuss looking for Lasik.

Isn't this efficiency a bit too high?

"Care to share?"

"What's your purpose in looking for him?"

Having been figured out so quickly, Jones didn't bother denying it. He merely narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Fu Qian.

"Nothing much. I was just entrusted by someone to find him."

Fu Qian answered with complete honesty.

"What a coincidence. I'd like to figure out who he is, too."

Jones snorted. He didn't rush to answer, looking past Fu Qian instead.

In the time it took to exchange those few words, Cartman and the other two had caught up.

"What are you doing here?"

Given his understanding of Fu Qian, Sheriff Jones switched targets. He stared at the panting Fran and asked.

Clearly, in his eyes, she was the most innocent of the group.

In fact, even if Fu Qian had answered him just now, the sheriff would have had to carefully weigh the credibility of his words.

Fu Qian didn't mind this blatant distrust in the slightest.

As a reasonable man with self-knowledge, he didn't feel that everyone was obligated to have a good impression of him.

His smile didn't fade. Together with Cartman and Ray, the three of them watched for Fran's reaction.

...

"Jessica is missing. We're looking for her."

Fran instantly felt a mountain of pressure. Taking a deep breath, she quickly shared their discovery.

Someone else had gone missing...

Upon noticing that a fifth person hadn't emerged from the woods, Jones had already felt a faint premonition.

But now that it was confirmed, he couldn't help but furrow his brow.

Being mentally prepared didn't make it easier to accept. Losing two people in his jurisdiction all at once would give anyone a headache.

"So you came down from The Mountain, tracking her the whole way?"

"...Yes."

Fran gritted her teeth and nodded.

"Unfortunately, we haven't found anything yet."

"But we found an underground passage leading all the way from The Mountain down to here."

Cartman added from beside her.

"A passage... that makes sense. I was wondering why you suddenly appeared behind me."

Jones looked thoughtful, his trust in the group seemingly increasing by a fraction.

He gestured toward the Dense Forest.

"Can you take me to see it?"

...

The passage exit wasn't too far from the road, and the group quickly found the spot.

Standing before the exit, Jones and his deputies remained silent for a long time, seemingly unsure of what to say.

"You came all the way down. You didn't find anyone else inside?"

After thinking it over, Jones asked.

"No, but there are some very fresh tracks. It looks like someone went in recently."

Ray described their findings from inside.

Shocked once more, Jones and his deputies ultimately didn't try to go in and explore it right away.

But there was no doubt that the complexity of the situation had increased exponentially.

"Don't keep staying up there. Come straight back to town with me."

After a brief moment of thought, Jones spoke in an indisputable tone.

"Okay."

Although worried about her friend's safety, Fran had been frightened the whole way and naturally couldn't ask for a better arrangement.

And Fu Qian, who had planned on this anyway, had absolutely no objections.

...

"Give me a reason."

Signaling his deputies to take Cartman and the others back up The Mountain to get their car and belongings, Jones kept Fu Qian behind. He lit a cigarette, took a drag, and spoke.

"First, I have absolutely nothing to do with Mrs. Harold's disappearance."

The statement seemed to come out of nowhere, but Fu Qian understood what Jones meant.

"Second—"

Seeing Jones completely unmoved, Fu Qian held up another finger.

"I don't mind staying under your watch until I assist in proving the first point."

"The discovery was quite accidental."

In just a few seconds, Jones accepted Fu Qian's reasoning.

The situation was getting more complex, and his initial judgments were inevitably shaken.

And the reasons Fu Qian gave truly didn't have any major flaws.

"After heading back from here this morning, I just told a colleague to keep an eye out."

"I didn't expect him to come find me shortly after with something."

"It was a traffic ticket, and the name on it was exactly the one you mentioned."

A traffic ticket...

For a moment, Fu Qian's expression turned a bit strange. This development truly challenged the imagination.

"What was the violation?"

"Severe speeding."

"Uh... when?"

"Yesterday."

Yesterday...

"Does your colleague still remember what the person looked like?"

"That's the strange part. The officer who wrote the ticket said he has absolutely no impression of him anymore. He couldn't describe a single thing."

"That's about the gist of it. If you're interested, you can go ask him yourself later."

"Understood."

Despite how bizarre it sounded, Fu Qian was quite satisfied.

Regardless, it was finally a clue.

It really was true that those who embody the Dao find much support.

...

"How could this happen?"

Seeing the guests return, the kind-hearted Mrs. Mary looked extremely worried about Jessica's situation.

And she was clearly just as clueless about the passage the group had used to come down.

In her words, she hadn't spent much time up there for as long as she could remember, and once she grew up, she had moved out completely.

As for there being a secret underground passage beneath the building, she had absolutely no idea.

Fu Qian was inclined to believe her. For one thing, she had no reason to lie; besides, that place really had been abandoned for a long time.

"Are you coming along?"

Jones was clearly in a rush. After settling everyone in, he prepared to head out, looking at Fu Qian right before he left.

"Sure."

Fu Qian was well aware this wasn't a request for his opinion.

Even if he didn't look as suspicious anymore, there was no way Jones would let a dangerous element like him roam freely around the house while he wasn't there.

"Fu Qian, you're..."

Fran, who had calmed down slightly by now, found this a bit strange.

The experiences of the past two days had built her trust in Fu Qian, making her realize he was far more reliable than she had imagined, but she still hadn't expected Jones to let him help.

"Operations advisor, Expert Rank."

Fu Qian casually spouted nonsense in reply, stepping out the door under the complicated gazes of his three companions.

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