Eldritch Horror Theatre

Gift-giving had always been a profound art. Ideally, one struck directly at a person’s pain points.

And what if they had no pain points?

That was simple too. Just create one.

Take Brother Tattoo, for instance. Regardless of how pleasant their previous exchange had been, it was practically impossible for him to refuse this gift right now.

Otherwise, since he couldn’t even stand steady, the contents of his mouth and large intestine would inevitably make a massive mess of the beach.

Rules were, after all, meant for everyone to use.

The effect was indeed excellent. Despite his rich jianghu experience, the man stood completely still with his jaw clamped shut. Even though he was brimming with so much indignation that his eyes had turned red, he held it in, absolutely preventing anything from spraying out.

Under this intensely vibrant glare, Fu Qian had already left the beach, waving a hand without taking a single Deck Chair with him.

Yes, getting into a massive brawl at his very first stop had certainly been influenced by the vacation atmosphere—a desire to share the joy with the locals.

But more importantly, it was truly due to the rules here in the Archipelago. Not only were cups forbidden from being carelessly tossed away, but chairs were the same.Though it was slightly unreasonable, Fu Qian believed in adapting to local customs and didn’t fuss over it too much.

Since it would be a shame to just throw it in the trash, he simply found a Fated person to give it away to.

And Brother Tattoo, who had been keeping a close eye on him ever since the succubus waitress chatted with Fu Qian, instantly became the prime target.

One could only say that year after year, it wasn’t just the flowers that remained similar; people were quite similar too. Ah, these restless hormones.

...

His sighs weren’t just about the little interlude on the beach. The street Fu Qian stood on right now was an equally restless place—

Heavy red wooden doors, signs so gaudy they were almost tacky—this closest bar actually seemed like the most decent establishment of the bunch.

As for the rest, pretty much every classic vice industry was fully represented. Even in broad daylight, there was no shortage of men and women standing in doorways flaunting their curves.

Things remain while people change, alas. Thinking back to the three-armed guy who used to stand with his arms crossed at the bar’s entrance... he had been quite a beautiful sight in his own right, fully displaying the unique temperament of our Rebirth Club.

With a soft sigh, Fu Qian walked up to the red wooden doors, studying the familiar design.

That was right. This was exactly where he had been invited to attend his very first meeting for the Rebirth Club, a place where Ms. Jenny had even held down the fort.

It was one of the check-in spots he had decided on long ago when he first planned this vacation.

However, there was a minor procedural issue: this place was actually located on the Inner Island.

The entry procedures might not be as strict as before, but it was still far from being a place one could freely wander in and out of.

Just walking straight here might have taken zero effort for Fu Qian.

But it was broad daylight after all, which made it easy to startle people—like Excellency Ebu, for instance...

Glancing up at the sky and realizing there was no lightning storm strike coming for now, Fu Qian shook his head and directly pushed open the unlatched doors.

...

The changes inside were even greater.

Aside from the lingering stench of alcohol, visibility plummeted the moment he passed the doors.

But none of this was an issue for Fu Qian. A single glance was enough, not even delaying him from comparing it to how the place used to look.

Including the counter, the entire layout had evidently been heavily adjusted.

The biggest resulting effect was simply the obstruction of sightlines.

Regarding the new designer the bar owner had hired, it was hard to say whether their skill level was incredibly low or incredibly high.

To sum it up, this design—which had obviously taken a lot of effort—mostly just served to chop the space into disjointed pieces. From certain spots, it wasn’t even easy to see the counter.

Aside from that, another difference was that the people here were all actually alive.

That was right. Even though it was daytime, the place was still open for business, and the seats were actually quite full.

It was just a pity that the heavy stench of booze and their glazed-over eyes made it impossible to associate them with a healthy routine. One could only marvel at how these people apparently no longer needed sleep.

But regardless, they were at least a bunch of living humans. This was vastly different from the pile of strangely posed dried corpses from his first visit here.

Fu Qian still had a deep impression of that ”One Hundred Years of Solitude” aesthetic from back then, to say nothing of the four-legged centaur striking a pose among them—oh?

At that moment, Fu Qian noted that he had actually spotted a familiar figure again, except this time she was behind the counter.

Ms. Jennie Ma actually hadn’t left?

She even seemed to have abandoned the idol route and transitioned into the food and beverage industry?

Behind the dark counter, a familiar face was expertly mixing drinks.

Not only was her technique rather flashy, but the rhythmic sound of her mixing alone inevitably stirred a desire for a taste.

Not to mention that as she moved, her distinctly non-human lower body swayed gracefully along with her.

Even the clothing covering her body was much more revealing compared to before—

”You...”

However, right as Fu Qian was appreciating the view, the sound of the drink mixing came to an abrupt halt.

As a newly arrived patron, being scrutinized for a moment was perfectly normal.

But that seemingly professional bartender’s gaze practically glued itself to him, her facial expression management completely failing her for a moment.

”Is there anything suitable for me to drink?”

Despite clearly having startled her, Fu Qian felt absolutely no embarrassment. Meeting her gaze, he walked right up to the counter and even quoted the succubus waitress’s line.

...

Of course, he wasn’t bored enough to come here just to scare people. It was simply a pity that Jenny’s memory seemed to be quite good.

It took her barely a glance to confirm the identity of the newcomer.

Could it be because that single stomp of his had directly caused the organization she was so proud of to completely collapse?

He didn’t just blame others; in that moment, Fu Qian even searched for the cause within himself.

And after a moment of reflection, he realized his actions truly did seem rather heinous.

Aside from stomping Bai Jinting to death and causing the Rebirth Club to lose the support of the White Tower Company, hadn’t he also personally packaged up and sent off Old Man Lu and Kikuchi, the two backbones of the organization?

Even the organization’s years of collections had been destroyed along with them, stripping The Club of any chance for a comeback.

It was to the point where even Ji Ping, who had been quite close to Jenny, had run off to defect to the Origin Council.

So did Ms. Jenny stay here instead of leaving with him because she disdained the Origin Council’s ideals—or was she disdained by the Origin Council?

Judge actions not intent. Regardless, she suddenly gave off a vibe of stubbornly guarding the shattered remains of The Club.

”...Everything is good.”

It seemed that after the trials of this recent period, even her temperament had grown a bit more resilient.

As the ”Clan Exterminator” stepped closer and closer, Jenny’s emotions actually calmed down imperceptibly.

So much so that when finally facing Fu Qian’s question, her answer wasn’t overly modest.

”Then I’ll have one of everything.”

Fu Qian had never minded letting a shop recommend their signature items. Since she put it that way, he accommodatingly ordered the entire menu.

He even pulled nine large bills from his pocket as he spoke, lining them up on the counter to prove he wasn’t joking.