Eldritch Horror Theatre

'It certainly didn't disappoint!'

'Pretending to hesitate under threat, only to pull a hard one-eighty into pure mockery right when they thought they controlled the situation.'

Sitting in the corner, Fu Qian watched the Clown's maniacal death wish with deep fascination.

Demigod Aike might have understood intimidation, but she clearly knew nothing about lunatics.

Fu Qian was certain the Clown was having the time of his life.

Spouting insolence at an outsider demigod was the absolute pinnacle of ecstasy for a thrill-seeking terrorist like him.

"You think I'm bluffing?"

Aike, on the other hand, was distinctly less amused.

As the Clown's true meaning sank in, her expression darkened drastically, and her words squeezed through gritted teeth.

Pity laced the Clown's voice.

"If the danger is fake, then the fun is also fake. I have never doubted your methods and resolve, otherwise how could it be so exhilarating..."

He burst into uproarious laughter once again.

'Bastard...'

Faced with such a stubbornly incorrigible lunatic, Aike looked like she wanted nothing more than to smash him to death on the spot.

Yet, as decisive and ruthless as she was, she ultimately stayed her hand.

"Thank you for the hospitality."

As Fu Qian pondered this, the Clown seemed to grow bored and picked up his glass of fresh blood.

A moment later, without even removing his mask, he simply used his free hand to pry open its mouth and downed the contents in one gulp.

"Madam, if there's nothing else, I must bid you farewell."

He slowly set down the empty glass, staring right into Aike's face.

"I intend to leave before this place becomes utterly dull, so my joy might suffer color loss a little more slowly."

...

'Is this guy really going to leave?'

Aike narrowed her eyes, instinctively shooting a glance at Stoss.

"There is no need to rush."

The Old Man, who had been quietly drinking by himself this whole time, finally turned his head. He lowered his hood and fixed his gaze on the Clown.

"There are still many interesting things to experience."

As he spoke, a flash of brilliant light surged in his eyes, as though golden flames were burning within them.

At the exact same moment, the Clown—who had been staring back at him—let out a string of garbled, meaningless sounds from his throat.

"Gah..."

The Clown had to grip the table to keep himself from collapsing, his body seizing in violent spasms.

From his corner, Fu Qian could clearly see the same golden flames flashing within the two eyeholes of the man's mask, mirroring Stoss's own.

It was obvious that Old Man Stoss had just unleashed some special technique on him.

And given the massive gap in their Rank, the Clown was left entirely without the power to resist.

"This is the Flame of Frenzy, fueled by willpower. I trust you are not disappointed?"

The strange glow in Stoss's eyes faded away as he stared at the convulsing Clown without a shred of emotion.

"Stay and enjoy yourself a while longer. We still have plenty of time."

"Heh... heh... alright."

Slumped face-down against the table, the Clown seemed to be losing his grip on consciousness, yet he still managed to answer Stoss.

"Thank you... for the hospitality..."

"As expected, having fire around... really does make things much more fun..."

...

"Chaumont was right. Beneath whatever facade they put up, the people in this place are all fundamentally lunatics."

Even Stoss seemed taken aback by the Clown's reaction, muttering the observation to Aike beside him.

Aike, however, remained noncommittal to the assessment.

"He seems to be searching for fire, too..."

She looked at Stoss, a strange expression creeping onto her face.

"Just like that Andiel..."

'Hm...'

Prompted by Aike's words, realization flashed across Stoss's face. He glanced down at the faint marks lingering on his own body.

"So, did that guy really send him? Or was he drawn out because he was disturbed by this?"

"I don't know. While this maniac did cross paths with that Andiel, I highly doubt anyone could actually order him around."

Aike shook her head.

"As for the fire, we'll discuss it once Chaumont gets here."

As she spoke, she unconsciously threw another glance in Fu Qian's direction.

...

'So, is this the Clown's way of paying me back?'

Fu Qian completely ignored Aike's scrutiny, his eyes remaining fixed on the twitching Clown.

'Since I pointed him toward such excellent entertainment, he casually slipped in the question I asked earlier just to help me fish for intel?'

As completely unhinged as the guy was, Fu Qian felt he understood his intentions perfectly.

'Not bad. He actually has some manners.'

Just as he had frankly admitted to using the Clown to scout the way earlier, Fu Qian didn't feel he owed the man anything in return.

'I helped him find a thrill, and he paid me back in kind.'

'Perfectly reasonable.'

Evidently, the Clown agreed.

'Different things hold different values for different people.'

'As for this Chaumont that Aike mentioned... that must be the Divine Emissary from the carriage?'

'So he wandered off somewhere else for some reason?'

'And Aike and Stoss are waiting for me, but also waiting for Chaumont's group to arrive?'

'That part is certainly curious. Did they split up to go hide Logan away?'

Honestly, Fu Qian considered that highly unlikely.

They had just murdered someone. Taking their invalid companion and dumping him off alone somewhere was a terrible idea, no matter how you sliced it.

'Or was it for the sake of a cover-up?'

'They're still so close to the scene of the crime. If the carriage hadn't maintained its "dull" routine—like the Clown had pointed out—someone might have noticed something was wrong?'

'That's certainly a possibility.'

Right as Fu Qian was turning this over in his mind, the tavern doors swung open once more.

An exceptionally hulking silhouette appeared in the doorway.

...

'Talk about perfect timing.'

Fu Qian immediately recognized the arrival as the Demigod he had covertly marked earlier.

His appearance and attire hadn't changed at all. A second later, the burly Demigod respectfully held the door open, allowing another figure to step inside behind him.

Pale-faced and hollow-eyed, it was none other than the second Divine Emissary who had attacked him in the carriage—the one Aike called Chaumont.

The moment he crossed the threshold, a visible frown creased his face in response to the tavern's noisy atmosphere.

The dim room was packed with bodies, but with the burly Demigod carving a path for him, Chaumont quickly arrived at the table where Aike and Stoss were seated.

Space was tight. Once Chaumont sat down opposite the Clown, his massive Demigod escort simply stood beside him like a bodyguard.

Having a Demigod for a bodyguard was, admittedly, a tremendous flex of status.

"Is Logan outside?"

Stoss asked immediately.

"Relax. He is perfectly safe."

Chaumont clearly understood his concerns and answered directly.

"What about your end? Any results?"

"Our main target never showed, but we did find someone suspicious."

Aike shook her head slightly, pointing toward the convulsing Clown.

"He came into close contact with that guy earlier, and now he just happens to show up here. It feels far too coincidental."

"And... he seems to be looking for fire as well."

"That is quite a coincidence."

Chaumont narrowed his eyes, studying the Clown intently as he listened to Aike. After a brief silence, he nodded.

"But are you absolutely sure our main target isn't here?"

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