Eldritch Horror Theatre

Buyiren’s attitude was exactly as expected.

After all, the first rule of a practical joke was never to talk about the practical joke.

Once it was openly admitted that the unfolding scenario was a setup, its nature would change completely, pulling the participant entirely out of the act.

Neither the Director nor Servis would be willing to accept a development that further diminished their mystique.

Yes, in Fu Qian’s eyes, the Director was not the only one orchestrating all this. The reason Buyiren was sparring between left and right here was that he was simultaneously taking orders from both sides.

...

If the Director and Servis were not the same person, then what exactly was their goal?

Although this trio act was triggered by him, the intruder, the initiative was clearly in the hands of the other two.

First, as previously noted, the most direct reason the people in the Sanitarium were so obedient and cooperative was Servis’s arrangements.

So no matter how he looked at it, Servis had to be the undisputed controller of this trio act.But here was the interesting part: despite being the controller, the will being executed belonged to someone else—the Director.

The carefully designed encounters prepared for him all along the way...

The two notes from before and after...

From the confinement area to the VIP Area, and then passing by the Head Physician’s Office for the first time...

It could be said that right up until the moment he returned to the doctor’s office from the train, the Director had maintained the effortless posture of having everything completely under control.

Achieving all this felt impossible without Servis’s cooperation, giving the Director the distinct vibe of a hidden overlord pulling the strings of the Sanitarium.

So why was Servis keeping such a low profile?

It was indeed hard to confirm, but in Fu Qian’s view, there were still clues to follow.

The first was Buyiren’s internal conflict outside the office.

To open the door or not to open it—his previous interpretation was that two wills had been clashing.

Given that he had been following the Director’s script the entire way, there was reason to believe that letting Fu Qian enter the office was the Director’s will.

And the reason Buyiren had backed down at the critical moment was that this was Servis’s bottom line, forbidding him from bringing anyone inside.

Yes, whether he was the Director’s exclusive actor or not, Buyiren had always obeyed Servis’s orders.

It was just that those orders were to cooperate with the Director’s actions until certain taboos were crossed.

In Fu Qian’s view, this was the most logical pattern.

And based on this, a certain answer seemed ready to emerge.

Madam Dark Room had said that Servis was only interested in special illnesses, to the point of completely ignoring her.

Could his high tolerance for the Director and his dedicated cooperation stem from a similar reason?

The playground wasn’t actually prepared for Fu Qian, but for the Director.

Did the latter suffer from some complicated condition that interested Servis, meaning he was just playing along to keep him happy?

Just like dealing with a spoiled child: as long as he didn’t go too far, he would be given whatever he wanted.

And what interested the Director most was pulling pranks on intruders, which was the cause of this trio act—

Fu Qian was an unexpected intruder who needed to follow the Warehouse’s instructions to leave this place.

The Director, targeting that intruder, had designed an entire Sanitarium theme park and did not seem to want him to leave.

And the only reason he could pull this off was because Servis was cooperating.

...

It had to be said that setting the pace was useful; the situation seemed to be getting clearer bit by bit.

But this brought up a core question: to Servis, what behavior was considered going too far?

The answer seemed as obvious as could be. The Director wanted to herd him toward the Head Physician’s Office, and that was exactly what Servis could not tolerate.

And it was precisely because of this conclusion that Fu Qian had directly ordered Buyiren to leave.

Given that this place was a truly sensitive spot, it was the key to the entire game.

If Servis and the Director both had no idea what was happening inside, what would their reactions be?

Yes, the purpose of sending Buyiren away was simple. It wasn’t to have him cause any sabotage, but to prevent him from monitoring Fu Qian in real time.

Thus turning this place into a complete Black Box for the Director and Servis.

”...Go where?”

Unfortunately, the person in question clearly couldn’t follow Fu Qian’s line of thought. Realizing the intruder’s actions were so unconstrained, Buyiren was genuinely dumbfounded.

”Anywhere is fine. You don’t mean to tell me you’re just going to stay here, right?”

Fu Qian smiled, not only indicating a high degree of freedom this time, but even imitating the man’s previous wording for his rhetorical question.

”Of course not... I just wanted to confirm if you had any additional requests.”

Gradually confirming that Fu Qian wasn’t joking, Buyiren narrowed his eyes, seeming to realize things weren’t that simple.

But he didn’t refuse to leave, immediately stating he would do as instructed.

”Additional requests? I do actually have one.”

Unfortunately, he had dealt with Professor Fu far too little to know the principle of never saying more than necessary.

Buyiren’s casual remark, meant to cover for himself, had successfully caught the other party’s interest.

”Before you go, clear out this entire floor. Don’t leave a single person behind.”

Fu Qian pointed ahead, specifically toward the room the medical team had just emerged from.

”...It’s still daytime. They all still have work to do.”

He had absolutely never expected such a request. At that moment, Buyiren seemed to faintly regret talking too much, though he didn’t play dumb and claim there was no one around.

”Didn’t you say earlier that they wish they didn’t have to stay here? Consider this me giving them an excuse. You’re welcome.”

Unfortunately, the drawbacks of talking too much continued to manifest, as Fu Qian brought up his earlier statement.

...

When Buyiren led the people away, his figure looked somewhat desolate.

Although theoretically he should have been the most relieved, acting opposite Fu Qian all the way up to this point seemed to have stirred up a bit of competitiveness in him.

Was the Head Physician’s Office really the only taboo?

Fu Qian naturally didn’t care about Buyiren’s minor disappointment. He simply continued to draw conclusions based on the man’s reaction.

His intention in sending the man away was already perfectly clear, yet Buyiren still complied. This proved once again that the office was the core.

As long as this line was not crossed, and because the Director had mentioned that Fu Qian would lead the actions next, Buyiren would still follow through with even the most outrageous requests.

He even executed it thoroughly. Working practically nonstop, Buyiren shuttled through room after room, almost dragging the people inside out by force.

Throughout the entire process, Fu Qian just watched quietly. He made no moves, nor did he give any indication of what he planned to do next.

Someone wanted the intruder to enter the office, and someone else did not want the intruder to enter the office. But if neither side could even confirm whether he had entered the office or not, how would both parties react?

Come on, let the music play and the dancing continue. Don’t let the trio act stop.