Eldritch Horror Theatre

Was this the unique sense of relaxation found only in dreams?

Actually, he had just told the Persuader he wanted to find the escapee for execution, and the Inner Persuader’s voice was still echoing right there.

Yet when the Witch asked which door it was, the Persuader had immediately run down to the next floor without finding it the least bit strange.

Their subsequent discovery proved there was indeed nothing strange about it—the Inner Persuader really did appear directly on this lower floor.

Obviously, when the Witch asked that question, she had envisioned the scene behind the door much like he had. The Prisoners most likely wouldn’t allow that door to serve as an entrance deeper into the nightmare; instead, they intended to keep the group running in circles here.

Under these circumstances, opening the door to find the Inner Persuader again was completely to be expected.

Through her resonance with the Corridor Moonlight, the Witch’s perception of this place might have even gone a step further. Beyond those logical deductions, she had likely already sensed much more.

Regardless, the Witch was clearly prepared for the welcoming party behind the door.

So much so that there wasn’t a single moment of hesitation between her stepping through the door and the Luminous Darkness condensing in her hands.

Although up until now, it was still unclear what exactly the numerous lightless stars splitting off from it actually did—”You are adapting very well. I’m looking forward more and more to your performance once you take up permanent residence.”

In contrast, His Excellency the Inner Persuader was much more eager for attention.

Just as the cluster of primordial darkness in the Witch’s hands splashed out into numerous stars once again, his commentary flowed without end.

”Homeland, The Corridor, nightmares, honorific names... they are merely shackles that bind. Even the act of escaping is...”

”Join this unique Sublimation. Discard those meaningless eyes...”

Accompanied by these increasingly cryptic lines, the scene—almost a direct copy of the floor above—suddenly began to change.

Behind the numerous rusted weapons, the insectoid limbs that had initially been only faintly visible rapidly came into sharp focus, as if they had truly stepped through a hanging curtain.

Their appearance wasn’t exactly something to look forward to. In all honesty, classifying them as insects was already an act of mercy on Expert Fu’s part.

With tangled flesh, oozing bodily fluids, and a structure that defied biology from every angle, their visual impact was quite considerable.

Fortunately, they were much more polite in comparison. The murder weapons in their grasp did not continue to attack.

Instead, they all simultaneously plunged those weapons straight into the bodies around them.

”Ooooh—”

The sheer force and depth of the strikes immediately drew out wails from the numerous Inner Persuaders.

Indeed, just like before, he had transformed into countless iterations during this motion, attaching himself to every single insect.

Considering the bizarre pitch shift at the end of the wails, Fu Qian could even hear a certain pleasure from him.

It was as if he had made this move just to experience the sensation of his body being pierced thousands of times over, using this echoing chorus to vent it.

He even demonstrated what it meant to discard one’s eyes—although the weapons had pierced their bodies, bizarre matter really did seem to ooze from the wounds, looking as if a giant eye had been punctured beneath a shell.

...

His Excellency the Inner Persuader’s mental state seemed to be in an overly euphoric place.

These changes happened in the blink of an eye, so much so that the overly melodious and drawn-out wails still hadn’t ended by the time Fu Qian finished his observation.

The first conclusion he drew was entirely related to the entity himself.

Honestly, right from the way he made his entrance, one could already sense how unconventional this entity was.

And as things developed up to this point, his infectiousness was undeniably strong.

Even his refusal to bother introducing himself now had a somewhat logical explanation—honorific names were meaningless.

In short, this somewhat conflicted with the mindset he imagined The Prisoners to have.

Listening to his lines from start to finish, he actually didn’t seem all that opposed to the idea of being imprisoned and assimilated.

So this was why he had been chosen to step forward.

At that moment, Fu Qian shook his head inwardly.

He had commented earlier that no matter how easily they shattered upon contact, merely stepping up to take a hit was already a display of courage from The Prisoners.

Looking at it now, that might have been a bit too flattering.

After a fierce struggle of interests, the one finally pushed forward was actually the contestant who cared least about the outcome.

Given the subtle implications, their supposed courage had to be taken with a grain of salt.

Though His Excellency the Inner Persuader still couldn’t be underestimated.

He had previously guessed the entity might be a combatant leaning toward the mental spectrum, and the sheer abnormality of his mental state seemed to corroborate that.

Lacking the insensitivity needed to cope with being locked up for so long, developing some bizarre Wisdom of the Deity wasn’t entirely unimaginable.

Amid this empathy, His Excellency the Inner Persuader’s joyous moans finally came to a close, and Fu Qian’s gaze naturally fell upon those insects.

Visibility was still terrible, but he could still see that the weapons plunged into the bodies were beginning to change.

He had just described one of them as resembling a biological limb. Now, all those blades bridging the different limbs were transforming into that exact same style.

Ultimately, it seemed that through this method, all these bodies were truly fusing into one.

...

Was this the physical manifestation of ”joining the Sublimation”?

This expression could certainly be described as vivid and impassioned.

As a nervous-system combatant fairly close to the Psychic Type, Fu Qian felt it wasn’t too difficult to grasp some of its underlying meaning.

He had to admit, His Excellency the Inner Persuader’s lines and actions coordinated quite well. It even made one naturally think of The Prisoners’ current state.

Of course, dramatic flair was one thing; Fu Qian wasn’t naive enough to think this lacked lethal power.

Abstract as His Excellency the Inner Persuader was, just as he knew to run when facing danger earlier, a hit-and-run tactic ultimately still required a ’hit.’ He should still possess that basic common sense.

The joyous wails had barely ended when the rust covering those numerous fused bodies rapidly began to evaporate, drifting upward in wispy threads.

It merged with the existing fog, dyeing it the color of putrid blood, yet miraculously maintained a clear boundary.

The resulting sight looked as though an entire Blood Sea had been inverted over their heads, steadily pressing downward.

”It’s only an illusion for now. If it completely covers this space, it will have a massive impact on our condition.”

The Witch spoke up almost instantly to warn him, indicating that this wasn’t mere air pollution but rather some sort of ultimate attack that required charging up, clearly delivering a conceptual strike.

”Ooooh!”

”Ooooh!”

...

As if to corroborate her claim, the Inner Persuader’s joyous wails started up again, ringing out one after another like a countdown marking the arrival of that final moment.

”Ooooh—”

However, that final wail was abruptly drawn out, as if he had just witnessed something terrifying.

Dark arc after dark arc—tipped with the lightless stars flowing from the Witch’s hands—tore through the sea and fog in that instant, uniformly locking onto a single position.