Eldritch Horror Theatre

Drained of blood, the corpse on the stone slab was blindingly white.

Fu Qian stepped forward and turned the body over.

It was a lifeless yet familiar face.

It was undeniably Kisaragi Kana; he had seen her photos in Brother Takagi’s secret room.

But the problem was that his task was not complete. Why?

There wasn’t much time left until six o’clock.

”Are you interested in any particular part?”

Seeing Fu Qian lost in thought, Dancy stepped up and stroked the naked body.

”If you fancy anything, just let me know. I’d be happy to prepare it for you.”

”I’ll need to take a closer look first.”Fu Qian nodded, ignoring him to inspect the wounds on the corpse.

The flesh still held residual warmth. It must have happened recently, and judging by the incisions, the organs had been harvested while she was still alive.

As he pondered, a sudden rush of wind tore at his ear.

A Kitchen Knife—neither fast nor accurate, lacking both steadiness and power, yet brimming with sheer murderous intent—slashed straight toward Fu Qian’s bent neck.

Driven by the desperate urge to survive, Dancy had clearly pushed himself to his absolute limits.

Unfortunately for him, this determined strike missed in a way that defied all logic.

The target was clearly right there, yet the Kitchen Knife seemed to slice through empty space, plunging deeply into the corpse on the stone slab instead.

At this logic-defying sight, Dancy’s pupils dilated. He instantly abandoned his weapon and scrambled back two quick steps.

A barely audible click of machinery echoed from the ceiling. A cluster of cold, gleaming needles shot out from every angle, raining down on the dangerous figure by the slab.

Without even glancing back to check the results of his ambush, Dancy bolted straight for the exit.

To his horror, the moment he turned around, he found Fu Qian—who should have been lying by the stone slab—standing right behind him, still wearing that same thoughtful expression.

”A transcendent?”

The shock was overwhelming. Finally losing his composure, Dancy cried out, though he somehow managed to keep from collapsing to the floor.

He had already suspected as much the moment his knife strike failed, which was why he had instantly turned and fled.

The other man’s impossible movement just now only confirmed his suspicion.

”Are the needles coated in poison or anesthetic?”

Fu Qian didn’t bother answering, his gaze still fixed on the corpse lying on the slab.

Aside from the Kitchen Knife sticking out of her, at least half of the lethal needles raining from the ceiling had struck Kisaragi Kana.

”Anesthetic. Otherwise, it affects the quality of the flesh.”

Fully aware of his precarious situation, Dancy rapidly explained, clearly having no intention of defying Fu Qian.

”I don’t know why you’ve come here, but if you leave right now, I won’t report this to the Night Watchers. I won’t even investigate whoever sent you. We can pretend none of this ever happened.”

Having offered his explanation, he quickly pressed on.

”You can even hand me over to the police for her murder.”

”But if you kill me, you will undoubtedly trigger the Night Watchers’ ban. It will be incredibly troublesome for you—a kind of trouble no transcendent ever wants to invite.”

”That makes sense. Anything else?”

Faced with such an earnest analysis of the pros and cons, Fu Qian nodded in amusement, gesturing for him to continue.

”And... I’ve also purchased a special service from the Anjing Group.”

Seeing that Fu Qian didn’t look particularly moved, Dancy grew visibly frantic.

”Oh? What special service?”

Fu Qian’s curiosity was genuinely piqued.

”A Death Mark.”

Dancy took a deep breath as he answered.

”If I die an unnatural death, regardless of the reason, they will respond immediately. Within a month, they guarantee the execution of my killer with absolute certainty.”

That service was quite an interesting idea.

Listening to Dancy’s explanation, Fu Qian couldn’t help but feel a twinge of appreciation.

He had to admit, the Anjing Group was quite innovative when it came to their services.

When he had entered the house earlier, he was absolutely certain there were no transcendent guards stationed nearby.

That wasn’t surprising. Security in this affluent neighborhood was already excellent, and an overly exaggerated guard detail would only ruin the prestige.

Furthermore, even the wealthy couldn’t necessarily afford the exorbitant price of twenty-four-hour transcendent bodyguards.

The Anjing Group had clearly realized this. This system—functioning like a dead man’s switch—catered perfectly to their needs.

First, it required no active guarding, meaning the price wouldn’t be astronomically high.

At the same time, its deterrence factor was absolute.

Anyone intending to make a move on a target protected by a Death Mark would have to carefully weigh the price they would pay.

A behemoth like the Anjing Group would undoubtedly prioritize its reputation, and more importantly, they possessed the power to guarantee it.

So, while it couldn’t completely prevent murder, it was still an excellent service for elites who weren’t quite at the very pinnacle of power.

Whoever came up with this idea undeniably possessed a brilliant business mind.

”I am reminding you out of absolute goodwill. I hope you think carefully before you act.”

Seeing that Fu Qian appeared to be listening, Dancy regained a fraction of his composure, attempting to softly guide the conversation.

”Thank you for your goodwill. Would you mind standing still, Mr. Crawford?”

Fu Qian smiled, gesturing for the man to stay exactly where he was.

”I just need a little time to recall the exact locations. It’s been a while, after all.”

Faced with this demand, Dancy didn’t dare to disobey, standing rigidly in place.

Though he had always despised the vast majority of his fellow humans, it was impossible not to feel fear when facing an entity capable of crushing him at any given moment.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t quite comprehend the meaning behind the dangerous man’s muttered words.

A moment later, however, Dancy noticed the look in the other man’s eyes. It was not a gaze meant for a fellow human being; rather, he was being inspected like a raw material.

Dancy himself often looked at others with that exact same gaze—but never with such absolute detachment.

”Please, don’t kill—”

A palpable fear of death instantly shattered his psychological defenses, but his plea was cut short halfway through.

With the effortless ease of tearing a sheet of paper, the man’s hand plunged into Dancy’s abdomen and carefully withdrew a fully intact organ—his liver!

The last thing Dancy saw was the man carefully inserting the freshly harvested liver into the corpse on the stone slab.

At the same time, the crisp crack of shattering bone echoed from his own chest.

...

”I wonder if non-original parts will do the trick. If this doesn’t work, I’ll have to go fetch the ones from the kitchen.”

Fu Qian muttered to himself as he carefully nestled the heart inside.

After pondering why his task had not completed, he guessed that perhaps the corpse was not intact enough. He decided to try repairing her, and sourcing the replacement parts locally was undoubtedly the most convenient option.

”There’s still enough time. I just don’t know if her original liver being sliced and marinated would affect the outcome.”

Recalling the scene in the kitchen, Fu Qian swiftly finished his work.

With deliberate control, he had managed to harvest three entire organs without getting a single drop of blood on his clothes.

To ordinary people, Dancy might have been a formidable figure, and to the average transcendent, Anjing’s Death Mark might have indeed served as a credible threat.

What a pity. The man would never understand the highest realm of a dimensional strike.

[Current task has been updated: Ensure Kisaragi Kana successfully completes the HAP0032-667 Project Test.]

After Fu Qian finished restoring the corpse and waited patiently for half a minute, the task prompt finally appeared.