Eldritch Horror Theatre

See? I told you everything was negotiable.

Overhead lights spilled down, illuminating the space inside and out.

Inside the Head Physician’s Office, Fu Qian looked at Servis sitting across from him, quite satisfied with how things were developing.

Perhaps the desk between them was simply too large and heavy to easily flip over.

After his sincere invitation, His Excellency Servis had proven remarkably cooperative.

He even brought up the name Lasik on his own initiative, without needing much prompting.

He certainly hadn’t done so just to make idle chat; it was clearly a show of sincerity.

During his previous interactions with others, Fu Qian had repeatedly shown that he was looking for someone.

After getting the name Lasik from Old Man Mosson, he had even told Madam Dark Room point-blank that he and the person in question had once weathered a crisis together.

Under these circumstances, it was perfectly natural for Servis—a man eager to figure out Fu Qian’s true motives—to deliberately steer the conversation toward Lasik.”I’m not surprised,” Fu Qian said. ”I don’t know the specifics, but from what I understand, her past is enough to make anyone feel sorry for her.”

Fu Qian didn’t try to hide anything, openly sighing in sympathy over Lasik’s plight.

”...It sounds like the two of you have quite an unusual relationship?” Servis asked.

The underlying logic was just so glaringly bizarre that Servis couldn’t help but probe further.

”You could say that,” Fu Qian replied. ”Actually, I’ve always been curious about what exactly our relationship is, too.”

Fu Qian showed absolutely zero self-awareness. He wore a distant look, as if lost in memories of the past, completely oblivious to the nonsensical cause and effect.

”So you actually came here to find her? To be honest, it’s been quite a while. It’s been about a year or so.”

Having endured this relentless assault on his own logic, Servis finally seized the opening to ask a critical question.

”No. I didn’t even realize she had been here until recently.”

But Fu Qian instantly shook his head, delivering a despair-inducing response.

...

”Her arrival was actually even more bizarre than yours. It was almost as if she had just been out for a walk and accidentally wandered in.”

The despair stemmed from the fact that one who is unyielding without desires is impossible to manipulate.

For Servis, if he could confirm that this intruder was here to find someone, he could tailor his approach. Whether by offering information or even trading relics, it would simply become a matter of exchanging chips.

Yet, it sounded like this was entirely a coincidence. He had merely stumbled across a familiar name in a peculiar place and asked about it out of passing curiosity.

In an instant, the situation became slippery and impossible to read once more.

But after only a brief silence, Servis carried on as if nothing had happened, continuing to chat about the old acquaintance and selflessly sharing what he knew.

It looked like a compromise, but it was actually a very wise move.

Whether he believed the other party or not, the critical issue here was that there was no time to verify anything.

Even if the other party was secretly bluffing—feigning disinterest to gain a better deal—it was an advantage they deserved to take.

Because time was running out, and the situation could deteriorate further at any moment.

This was an unconventional game of chicken. Whoever could suppress their fear until the very end would win more.

But the game of chicken had one characteristic: it was actually far less friendly to the person with more chips.

If the worst-case scenario was mutual destruction, the latter had to consider whether it was worth it.

So the final choice was very simple. As long as the person with fewer chips kept their composure, the other person’s optimal solution was to stop trying to avoid taking any losses at all, but rather to throw out all the chips they could offer to maximize their final interests.

Because of this, Fu Qian’s stance from earlier until now had been very simple: emphasize a willingness to communicate and a lack of fear regarding the worst-case outcome.

And His Excellency Servis, living up to his reputation as an expert in studying all kinds of bizarre minds, had easily grasped this point—

Whether his opponent was a lunatic or not, he certainly wasn’t an idiot. On the contrary, he was so wildly unhinged in certain aspects that Servis knew better than to harbor any wishful thinking.

”She didn’t take the train here?”

The covert clash remained entirely unspoken; on the surface, they were engaged in perfectly harmonious banter.

Regarding the situation Servis brought up, Fu Qian naturally expressed his curiosity.

”No, by the time we found her, she was already inside the Sanitarium—right in the area where you’ve been locked up these past few days.”

This development seemed to bring Servis some relief as he brought up yet another detail.

...

Even a similar spawn point? Her Excellency Lasik is getting more and more mysterious.

In theory, this wasn’t exactly earth-shattering news. After all, that place wasn’t sealed off too tightly—Mrs. Tracy and her companion had both managed to sneak in.

But from the perspective of a task runner, the implications were somewhat more bizarre, as it involved the concept of an instance entry point.

Similar spawn points inevitably brought to mind switching characters to start a new playthrough.

Of course, it wasn’t enough to overturn his previous conclusion and assume that Madam Lasik was actually an outsider, or perhaps even a predecessor in the role of Warehouse Manager.

After all, there could be a much milder possibility: her appearance here was related to the Warehouse.

During that Containment task named Virtue, he had lamented that Lasik’s plight seemed heavily designed.

It was as if some great power had tossed her into a death trap to be tortured until she broke.

As to exactly which great power had done it, he didn’t have much basis to judge.

Yet hearing about it now, didn’t this encounter sound surprisingly similar?

Combined with the similar spawn point, could it be the handiwork of the very entity that kept giving him tasks?

Besides, it wasn’t the first or second time the latter had used people as cannon fodder.

”Interesting. Did she not even know how she got here herself?”

For a moment, Fu Qian didn’t hide his interest, giving a slight nod as he asked.

”No. Her account was that everything went black, and by the time she could see again, she found herself in an unfamiliar place.

”I believe this account. She didn’t look like she had ever experienced anything similar, and was extremely lost and helpless.”

Sure enough, Servis had interrogated her on this matter, his tone quite certain.

Everything goes black and then you change locations? I’m familiar with that.

His description only gave Fu Qian a stronger sense of déjà vu. He shook his head.

”And it looks like you didn’t offer much help?”

...

”You know, this is a Sanitarium. My duty is to ensure that the people who should stay here don’t run outside.”

Even someone as shrewd as Servis seemed to show a hint of embarrassment for a moment when faced with Fu Qian’s question.

But it was only for a moment; he quickly provided a reason for his refusal.

”Understood. No matter how someone ends up here, they need to prove they aren’t crazy before they can leave.”

Fu Qian didn’t seem to find any issue with what he said, gesturing with his eyes toward the final page of the notebook.

”As everyone knows, that is indeed a very difficult problem.”