Eldritch Horror Theatre

”You don’t need to tell me. I’ll just have Wen Li stay here for a few days.”

Seeing Fu Qian bring up Wen Li first, Yuan Shan’s response was sharp and decisive.

”After an incident like this, keeping her around won’t look unnatural at all.”

”She’ll have to go home eventually, though, or it’ll start to look suspicious. But I’ll make sure to invite her over for tea whenever she’s free.”

As for the public catalyst of this incident, Yuan Shan had clearly already planned Wen Li’s next steps.

”Honestly, I don’t think we need to worry too much about her safety. If Kelin is really the one behind this, you’re the one she’ll keep her eyes on.”

”If it isn’t her, things are even simpler. That Angel only has the two of us in its sights.”

”Frankly, no matter which of them it is, if they were dead set on killing Wen Li, even keeping her here wouldn’t guarantee her safety.”

Slumped ungracefully in her chair, Yuan Shan sounded exceedingly pragmatic.

”I completely understand. It’s just like your organization’s mission: preventing all evil is impossible, but you can definitely make everyone realize that crossing the line comes with a brutal price.”Fu Qian clearly had no objections to her reasoning.

”I’m sure the stance you took earlier is enough to serve as a Death Mark for Wen Li.”

”You actually know about that?”

The term clearly jogged Yuan Shan’s memory, and she shook her head in amusement.

”To tolerate a service like that... calling Gin Kazuhiro an idiot is no exaggeration.”

”Speaking of which, I wonder if Yasui Tokiyuki purchased that service as the head of Anjing. He’s been missing for quite a while now.”

...

Perhaps proximity to bad influences really did corrupt character; Chief Yuan’s sarcasm was clearly growing sharper.

It was also apparent that she had done some digging into the incident on Ye Island.

The Death Mark was a service offered by the Anjing Company, one that Mister Dancy had previously purchased. In the event of an unnatural death, a Death Rattle would automatically trigger, guaranteeing that the Anjing Group would execute the killer within a month.

Fu Qian didn’t think the service was entirely useless, but it definitely should have been tiered based on the buyer’s identity.

Just like insurance premiums.

Under normal circumstances, executing whoever killed Dancy versus whoever killed Yasui Tokiyuki would entail a completely different level of difficulty—even if, in this particular instance, they turned out to be the exact same person.

”Alright, is there anything else I need to keep an eye on?”

Relaxing slightly, Yuan Shan didn’t let the conversation drift any further and returned to business.

”Yes, though you could call it a positive development.”

When a boss wanted things done, there were always endless tasks to assign. Anticipating this was a basic requirement for any strategist, so Fu Qian answered without hesitation.

”For the next three days, keep an eye out for any unusual astronomical phenomena.”

”...A Meteor? What exactly does that thing do?”

Though she wore a look that plainly said, there really is something else, Yuan Shan clearly remembered Fu Qian’s bizarre Statue.

”You can think of it as a genuine Aging Curse.”

Fu Qian even brought the Statue out again and set it on the desk. He aimed its deathly, lifeless eyes right at Yuan Shan and intentionally dropped his voice.

”If anyone tries to defy the heavens and interfere, a fateful Meteor will appear to show them that destiny cannot be violated.”

”...And if they don’t try to stop it?”

Regardless of his theatrical delivery, Yuan Shan didn’t doubt his honesty on matters like this, which only made her more curious about this peculiar curse.

”Then it will just be a false alarm.”

Fu Qian casually shared the core secret of the Typhoid Terror, smiling wickedly.

”But don’t worry. Why would entities like them ever just accept their fate?”

”Not to mention, they have countless ways to fight back.”

...

The more they struggled, the more they suffered.

In a sense, the Typhoid Terror’s effects truly seemed to mirror mankind’s psychological struggle against death.

And its description explicitly emphasized that it could not be evaded or dispelled by any means.

All in all, it was perfectly tailored to target certain overly confident High-Tier Transcendents.

First, the chances of them being under fifty-nine were incredibly slim. Second, of those who had reached such heights, how many would willingly surrender to fate?

If they went all out, stretching the countdown to fifty-nine hours would be a breeze.

Unless they understood the mechanics and deliberately chose to do nothing.

But Huo’s existence was practically unknown; the chances of them having that kind of insight were incredibly low.

The most brilliant part was that its delayed onset—normally a drawback—actually became an advantage here. It was the perfect way to track a target and observe their movements.

If it caused a massive commotion, it might even help Chief Yuan track down some useful intelligence.

”Why do I feel like you have even more tricks up your sleeve?”

As she listened to his explanation, Yuan Shan was clearly astounded by the rogue nature of the curse’s effects, staring at Fu Qian with an odd expression.

The curse’s bizarre mechanics were one thing, but for this enthusiastic citizen to actually think of exploiting it to leave a tracker in that situation... he was almost too reliable.

”Regardless, this is crucial information. I’ll make sure to keep a close eye out for it... By the way, you also mentioned a meteor shower earlier. Does that mean the curses stack due to the time cage?”

”I can’t be sure.”

Fu Qian simply shook his head and offered an optimistic theory.

”But since it’s an Angel, having an affinity for heavenly stones is perfectly reasonable, isn’t it?”

...

”The trouble this time was truly severe, but still... what kind of reward do you want? Allow me to express my gratitude on behalf of the Night Watchers.”

Unable to evaluate Fu Qian’s logic for a moment, Chief Yuan magnanimously gave up and pivoted to a far more welcome topic.

She certainly knew her priorities. Even if the suspicion of an internal mole was ultimately proven false, his performance today alone was undeniably a massive contribution.

And even though, at his current Rank, he would likely scoff at ordinary items, a simple verbal thank-you wasn’t her style—

”I do. Two things.”

His immediate response caught her off guard yet again.

Holding up two fingers, Fu Qian looked as though he hadn’t just thought this through already, but was practically itching to hand her an itemized list.

”First, I need you to use your clearance to find me a set of documents, as detailed as possible.”

”...What kind of documents?”

His overly prepared demeanor, combined with that specific phrasing, made Yuan Shan a bit nervous. She worried he was going to ask her to investigate something highly treasonous.

”The Laria Royal Family, and one of the assets belonging to that ancient bloodline—the Ehm Palace.”

Fu Qian’s answer was unexpected, but it still let her breathe a massive sigh of relief.

”That’s easy enough. But what made you interested in them?”

Agreeing without a second thought, Yuan Shan asked out of sheer curiosity.

”I acquired a collectible that seems related to them.”

Fu Qian casually explained, naturally referring to the Bronze Circlet.

”Understood. Leave that to me. And the second thing?”

Nodding, Yuan Shan directly prompted him to continue.

”That’s simple. I’m almost out of the ammunition from last time, so I need a restock.”

Fu Qian pulled out Mercy and gave it a stylish spin.

”Hmm...”

Surprisingly, faced with this far simpler request, Yuan Shan hesitated.

”What is it?”

Fu Qian looked at her curiously.

”I can see that you genuinely need bullets... but using them to reward a contribution of this magnitude is just too shabby.”

After hesitating for a few seconds, Yuan Shan finally seemed to make up her mind.

”I just thought of something that might be perfect for you, but the process will be dangerous, and painful... Would you be interested?”

Process? Painful?

At that peculiar phrasing, Fu Qian’s gaze drifted to the object Yuan Shan had just placed on the desk. It was a sphere formed from petal-like blades that unfurled into a flexible whip. He began to understand.

You aren’t planning to put me through a Passion Play, are you?