Eldritch Horror Theatre

"So why couldn't it be me?"

Patient Number Four's reaction was undoubtedly the strangest one yet.

Given his current mortal body, he couldn't see clearly into the pitch-black room, but judging by the voice, she wasn't very old.

'Does Ms. Nancy know me?'

As a doctor's assistant, it wouldn't be strange for him to be acquainted with the patients.

But her surprise upon seeing him suggested she was expecting someone else.

Besides, her behavior just now was clearly a bit abnormal.

"Where's Kelly? Why didn't she come?"

After a slight adjustment, Ms. Nancy recovered quite quickly. Her tone was completely normal now.

"May I come in?"

...

Nancy didn't speak. A moment later, the space in front of him suddenly lit up as she reached out and turned on a small lamp.

"Close the door."

She stared at the piece of wire in Fu Qian's hand and spoke coldly.

"I had no idea you possessed this kind of talent."

"Skills are never a burden."

Fu Qian took two steps forward and closed the door behind him.

Under the lamplight, Ms. Nancy was wearing loungewear. She looked to be in her thirties or forties, wasn't tall, and appeared slightly haggard.

"Hand the medicine over. Let me see it."

However, facing Fu Qian as he entered, she didn't seem too guarded. She simply pointed at the paper bags in his hand.

"They're all the same."

Fu Qian casually picked a bag and handed it over.

"Sedatives?"

Nancy frowned as she opened it, and her frown instantly deepened.

"Are you crazy? All four of them? Kelly asked you to deliver these?"

"Yes, four of them."

She clearly knew quite a bit, so Fu Qian answered her truthfully right away.

"Who else are you delivering them to besides me?"

"Toshima Shiki, Sam, and Loretta," Fu Qian answered quickly.

"They didn't accept them, right? Or have you not been to their places yet?"

Nancy visibly gritted her teeth, staring intently at the remaining paper bags in Fu Qian's hand.

"I've seen them all. None of them accepted them."

"That's good."

She let out a long breath, but an instant later, her gaze grew stern again.

"Giving this kind of thing to patients—did you not consider the consequences? Were you infected along with her?"

"I made it clear to you: cooperate with her work, and make sure to bring her along when you visit. Did you forget everything?"

'What's going on? Do this woman and I have some kind of secret understanding?'

'And based on what she's saying, why does Kelly seem like the one being set up instead?'

"I forgot."

Fu Qian's tone was incredibly decisive.

"Right now, I only remember working at the Clinic. I just got there today, and Doctor Kelly gave me a list with your name on it."

He even handed the list over to her.

"You..."

Snatching the list away, Nancy scanned it quickly, her body almost trembling.

Without a word, she turned, took a couple of steps back, picked something up, and tossed it to him.

"So you currently believe you're Kelly's assistant?"

"Am I not?" Fu Qian asked as he caught the object, discovering it to be a white ID badge.

He pulled his own badge out of his pocket—they were completely identical.

"No, because I just hired you a week ago."

Nancy laughed out of sheer anger.

"And your main purpose was to assist in Kelly's treatment. So now I have to treat two people?"

'So that's how it is.'

Through his employer's furious outburst, Fu Qian roughly grasped what she meant.

"So Kelly isn't actually the doctor, but the patient?"

"She was, originally."

Seeing that Fu Qian didn't look like he was joking and seemed willing to communicate, Nancy took a deep breath. She suppressed her temper and spoke slowly.

"She's a very close former classmate of mine. Her talent far exceeds my own, and her interest in patients is much greater than anything else."

"However, it was this exact dedication that ended up harming her."

"Not long ago, she came to me, saying she had encountered something difficult to face at work. She was physically and mentally exhausted and wanted to take a break. I immediately had her stay here so I could take good care of her."

"Yet, only a few days later, problems arose."

"After volunteering to help me out, she developed an uncontrollable delusion. She believed she was the doctor and everyone else was her patient... myself included. She then started treating them recklessly."

Nancy's face was filled with sorrow as she spoke.

"I tried everything, but unfortunately, it was hard to get through to her. In the end, I had to come up with a plan to play this doctor-patient game with her, hoping she would discover the contradictions on her own."

"You were the helper I brought in, but it looks like you've completely forgotten your role."

'I see.' Fu Qian quickly recalled Kelly's previous behavior.

He had to admit, Doctor Nancy's explanation was clearly more credible. After all, handing out sedatives to everyone was already highly suspicious.

But there was still a fatal flaw in this.

"So the other three people on the list are all your patients as well?" Fu Qian asked a moment later.

"Then what's the issue with this Loretta?" Fu Qian pointed to a spot on the list.

'Loretta admitted she had only just arrived. Kelly knowing about her was barely justifiable, but what was this woman's excuse?'

"What do you mean?"

Nancy's gaze turned sharp.

"Loretta suffers from severe hallucinations and often loses track of time and space. Do you still not believe me?"

'She actually knows? So Loretta might have been here for a long time without realizing it?'

'Things are getting more and more bizarre!'

"Never overlooking any irrational detail is an important trait for getting the job done."

Fu Qian smiled, not denying his suspicions.

"But I went to Loretta's place, and she said she hasn't seen either you or Kelly."

"So her symptoms have worsened again? But who are you going to believe—two psychiatrists, or a patient?"

Nancy stared at Fu Qian, looking somewhat frantic.

"Or are you a psychiatric patient yourself?"

'I have to say, that makes a lot of sense.'

'Otherwise, there's no way to explain why she and Kelly both know about Loretta at the same time.'

"So in your original plan, how were you going to help treat Kelly?" Fu Qian thought for a moment before asking again.

"I selected a few patients with milder symptoms, deliberately modified their information, and gave them instructions in advance."

"After all, Kelly has a very sharp eye. It would be hard to fool her by just picking random people."

'It also seems like you couldn't find anyone else in this place anyway.'

"Once you brought Kelly over, they would all refuse treatment and make their own demands. While Kelly tried to deal with them, you would guide her into noticing the contradictions."

"And then the final stop would be here with me. I would show her irrefutable evidence to completely shatter her delusion in one fell swoop."

"I think I understand."

Fu Qian nodded.

"Then it seems I did accomplish at least one thing—like making you my final stop."

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!