Eldritch Horror Theatre

”Impossible!”

The moment Fu Qian finished speaking, Souffle let out a stern, low growl.

However, the resolute look in his eyes made it hard for her to meet his gaze.

It was true. Even if Violetta had insisted on tagging along tonight, she still would have had plenty of ways to handle it.

To have brought the girl here so easily... was it because she herself was shouldering too much alone and wanted someone to confide in, or was it—

For a moment, Souffle didn’t dare think any further.

The crucial point was that Violetta had actually realized it.

Ever since waking up this time, she seemed different.

”Don’t worry. I forgot the Scarecrow’s guidance before, but didn’t I still make it back all the same?”

Fu Qian patted her somewhat stiff shoulder and cracked a joke.At those words, mist instantly gathered in the young woman’s eyes.

”So no matter how you look at it, it’s more appropriate for me to do this. This is also my wish.”

Pushing aside Souffle’s reaching hand, Fu Qian stepped directly through the door.

Darkness instantly surged forward, making it feel as if even his senses were being obscured.

Looking back from here, Souffle’s face had already become a blur.

She was clearly quite stubborn. Convincing her completely would have been difficult, so he had been forced to strike at her heart with his words.

And while she was still trapped in a state of self-doubt, he needed to end this quickly.

”Take care.”

Waving at the still-crouching Souffle, Fu Qian headed straight into the depths of the darkness without waiting for a response.

It was exactly as Souffle had said. There was absolutely no sense of direction in here.

Front, back, left, right—apart from the churning mist, nothing else could be seen.

Under these circumstances, his vision was actually an interference. Fu Qian simply closed his eyes and tried to walk in a straight line on intuition.

However, before he had even taken two steps, he noticed something strange.

A growing repulsive force was pushing against him.

To be exact, it was pushing him out of Violetta’s body.

In just a few short seconds, he completely lost control of Violetta’s body.

This was...

When he opened his eyes again, Fu Qian found a short figure standing blankly in front of him, her back turned to him.

Violetta?

He was already extremely familiar with her attire and recognized her at a glance. He couldn’t help but look down at himself.

It was his own body. He had actually changed back?

This place really was miraculous!

”Violetta.”

Fu Qian walked over and patted the little girl’s shoulder, noticing that she seemed to be trembling.

It made sense. Waking up to find herself dumped in a place like this would terrify anyone, let alone a little girl not even ten years old.

”Mister Doctor?”

The sudden voice in the darkness clearly startled Violetta.

But a moment later, she reacted and whipped around.

After getting a clear look at Fu Qian, she let out a visible sigh of relief.

”It really is you! Why are you here? What is this place? Did I fall asleep again?”

Having recovered her wits, Violetta fired off the questions in almost a single breath.

It was probably worse than falling asleep.

Fu Qian looked at the little girl.

He had only brought her inside because he hadn’t been able to leave her body to move freely.

At the same time, even though Souffle had been worried sick, the way Fu Qian saw it, if this world was merely an illusory mental cage, entering this place to find an exit wouldn’t actually put Violetta in too much danger.

But that had been a forced choice in the end. Now that he could move freely, there was truly no reason to let Violetta stay in a place like this.

”No, you didn’t, so we don’t need to look for the Scarecrow.”

Fu Qian crouched down just as Souffle had done, letting Violetta see his face clearly.

”And don’t worry, I’ll guide you out right now.”

”Really? That’s great!”

Fu Qian’s words left Violetta pleasantly surprised.

”Yes. Now, close your eyes, and don’t open them until I tell you to.”

”Okay.”

Faced with Fu Qian’s instructions, Violetta nodded obediently.

”Good!”

Fu Qian wasted no time, taking her hand and heading back in the direction they had come from.

In this kind of darkness, it was easy to stray off course, but fortunately, they hadn’t traveled far inside.

It didn’t take long for Fu Qian to once again spot the blurry doorway.

”You can open them now.”

Patting Violetta, Fu Qian pointed her toward the doorway.

”That’s the exit right there. Keep walking in that direction and you’ll see Souffle very soon. I won’t escort you over.”

”What about you? Aren’t you coming out?”

Violetta asked instinctively.

”No, because I don’t belong out there.”

”...Okay.”

Violetta didn’t pester him. She obediently let go of Fu Qian’s hand.

”Thank you, Mister Doctor.”

”You’re welcome.”

Fu Qian didn’t say anything more. He watched Violetta quickly walk toward the doorway, then turned and headed in the opposite direction.

...

”Violetta!”

Outside the door, Souffle stood in a daze, worried out of her mind.

But the very next moment, she saw the person walking out from inside. She couldn’t hold back a scream as she rushed forward and pulled her into a tight embrace.

”I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have let you go inside!”

After Violetta had left just moments ago, the more Souffle thought about it, the more wrong it had felt. She had already been on the verge of rushing inside to look for her, never expecting her little sister to come back out on her own.

”It’s okay. Even though it was really dark inside, I met Mister Doctor, and he quickly brought me back out.”

Violetta was clearly somewhat confused about the situation, but she still instinctively comforted her older sister.

Mister Doctor?

Souffle blanked upon hearing this.

”Who is that?”

”The dwarf who helped Snow White. Mother talked about him. He’s already helped me twice now. Plus, he isn’t short at all—he’s really tall.”

A dwarf...

Violetta’s explanation clearly left Souffle even more confused. She looked through the doorway with a complicated expression.

...

It seemed he had arrived.

After sending Violetta back to the doorway, Fu Qian once again felt his way into the depths using his previous method.

Now that he was back in his own body, he moved far faster than before. It wasn’t long before he spotted a light in the darkness.

As he drew closer, Fu Qian discovered it was in the shape of a door.

And although it was just as blurry, it was definitely different from the entrance.

Fu Qian tentatively reached out a hand, passing it through the patch of light, and didn’t find anything unusual.

The next moment, he hesitated no longer and stepped directly through the door.

Su Gao?

The instant the surrounding light brightened, Fu Qian spotted a figure not far away.

Black clothes, a narrow hat, and a long, slender Curved Sword.

Skin whiter than snow, as smooth and fine as White Porcelain.

Right... that actually was White Porcelain.

This wasn’t just a resemblance; it was absolutely her.

Looking at Su Gao sitting there, Fu Qian wasn’t in a hurry to speak.

However, she seemed to sense something and looked straight up at him.

Something seemed a bit off!

As their eyes met, Fu Qian furrowed his brow.

Compared to last time, her attire and weapon hadn’t changed, but the area covered by the White Porcelain had grown to an exaggerated extent—it had practically spread over her entire face.