Eldritch Horror Theatre

Carlos’s sudden shift to a sharp, aggressive tone was undeniably imposing.

Cutting Fu Qian off so bluntly, combined with his tone and demeanor, made one thing glaringly clear: he was tired of playing riddles and wanted to lay his cards on the table.

Only, the target he chose for this confrontation wasn’t the insidious, cunning scoundrel Fu Qian. It was Su Gao, who had stood silently at his side playing the part of a clueless young girl.

”Ms. Violeta, I apologize for my subordinates’ earlier negligence.”

Not bothering to spare Fu Qian another glance, Carlos stared straight at Su Gao. He dropped her name despite PR Sakura and the others having never met her.

Though phrased politely, it was a blatant show of force—a reminder of Anjing Company’s absolute control over Ye Island.

”Doctor Carlos, harassing my guest is rather rude.”

Fu Qian, who hadn’t batted an eye at all the previous questioning and slander, suddenly let his expression turn icy. He shot a subconscious glance at Su Gao, his tone hardening.

”Don’t forget one thing... this is Ye Island.”

Carlos shot Fu Qian a side-eye, his voice dripping with warning.”No matter what kind of trouble you can cause for Anjing, believe this: if Anjing deems it necessary, no force in the world can help you leave this place alive.”

”Hello, Mr. Carlos.”

In the heavy silence that followed that death threat, Su Gao finally spoke.

Her tone shed its previous cheerful bounce, turning chillingly composed.

”You seem a little nervous.”

”Dancy and I didn’t actually plan on alerting too many people with this visit.”

Beautiful!

Watching this unfold, Fu Qian—despite the deep frown plastered on his face—gave Su Gao a mental thumbs-up.

Telling Su Gao not to hide her aura earlier and deliver a little Half-Step Demigod shock and awe naturally had a purpose.

Running into Anjing Company’s rival picking a fight with them was too good an opportunity to pass up!

During Jiali’s mission, he had managed to maneuver between them, benefiting from all sides to maintain a delicate balance between the Night Watchers and Anjing Company.

But that balance rested on a single premise: the people he dealt with were fundamentally small fry.

They were of low Rank and couldn’t mobilize many resources, which gave him room to maneuver.

However, his goal for this trip—aside from concluding the project—was to rub shoulders with the King of Ye Island.

Replicating that old trick just wasn’t realistic.

In fact, if not for the incident at sea, Fu Qian probably would have chosen a much subtler way to make his entrance.

But at this very moment, Fu Qian firmly decided to forge a new balance between the Night Watchers, Anjing Company, and its competitors.

After all, everyone learned in school that triangles possess stability.

The method was simple. First, make a high-profile entrance. After successfully baiting the hook, face Carlos—a Peak Tier 4 combatant—and deliberately let Su Gao reveal a fraction of her strength.

Combined with the deliberate misdirection of his expressions and tone, Carlos was firmly led down the wrong path of logic.

Su Gao knew his personality well. Taking in his highly theatrical reaction, she clearly heard the melody and grasped the intent, seamlessly slipping into the posture of the true person in charge.

If he remembered correctly, she was even borrowing a page straight out of PR Sakura’s playbook.

The end result? Right now, Carlos looked ninety percent convinced that Fu Qian wasn’t some Child of Destiny, but a man backed by a powerful organization.

Anjing Company had unwittingly stepped into an insidious trap.

...

”I can see that. Very low-profile indeed.”

It was hard to tell how Carlos felt now that Su Gao had stopped playing dumb.

”Who could have guessed that a lamb walking into a trap for slaughter would turn out to be an entity second only to a Demigod Realm powerhouse! I suppose I can’t blame Asao for this one.”

Carlos sneered, offering no comment on Su Gao’s assessment of his nervousness.

It was obvious he didn’t expect her to answer him with any real honesty, either.

”If I hadn’t decided on a whim to come take a look myself, we probably would have neglected Your Excellency for quite a while longer.”

”Judging by your tone just now, Ms. Violeta, are you an old acquaintance of this cannibalism enthusiast?”

He pointed at Fu Qian.

Old acquaintances?

Hearing the question, Su Gao turned her head and studied Fu Qian closely, her tone laden with meaning.

”Yes.”

”Excellent. Then might I ask, since you two didn’t plan on disturbing too many people, what exactly is the goal of this low-profile return?”

Carlos asked, a faint, ambiguous smile playing on his lips.

”Simply seeking the answer to a certain question.”

Su Gao flawlessly carried on with their act without a moment’s hesitation, her vague words inviting endless speculation.

...

Carlos clearly hadn’t expected her to actually answer. He looked visibly unsettled, momentarily hesitant to press any further.

”What a shame!”

After a long pause, he finally sighed and changed the subject.

”I originally thought the Miracle Potion had truly produced a Miracle... Turns out it was just empty joy.”

”Mister Dancy, how do you feel about Writhing-7?”

He looked at Fu Qian.

”No effect at all. To be honest, I seriously doubt you people are actually conducting research with this cocktail of a concoction.”

Fu Qian dropped all pretenses as well, unleashing his mockery at full force.

”You could have a hundred Kisaragi Kanas and it still wouldn’t be enough to sustain this kind of waste!”

”For a grand goal, necessary waste is worth it.”

Carlos smiled coldly, displaying a remarkable degree of restraint.

”What we must ensure is simply that we are not the ones being wasted.”

That was a naked warning. A suggestion not to act as cannon fodder, was it?

Going deep behind enemy lines for the sake of the organization, only to find it impossible to escape after wreaking havoc?

Fu Qian perfectly understood Carlos’s implication.

Combined with his earlier words, Carlos’s threat was incredibly thick: I have my eyes on you two now, and if anything happens, you’re dead.

Therefore, it would be best to consider the consequences before making any moves, and ask yourselves if it’s worth trading your lives for.

Hmm... Thinking about it in reverse, this strongly proved that the man was actually afraid he would pull something.

”Doctor...”

Just then, the door was pushed open from the outside. Sakura Asao, who hadn’t been gone for long, walked back in.

The member of the Public Relations Team greeted Carlos while glancing awkwardly behind her.

Hmm...

Carlos wasn’t particularly surprised that someone had entered, but upon seeing who it was, he visibly frowned.

Two people followed Sakura Asao inside. One was Hayami Suzune, who had been in and out of this place quite a few times already, and the other was a middle-aged man.

He had a burly build, a rugged face, and a completely bald head. The moment Fu Qian laid eyes on him, a certain memory was instantly triggered.

He looks a bit familiar!

After mentally trying to picture a head of hair on the man, Fu Qian finally remembered where he had seen him before.

Back in the Rotten Forest, among the cannon fodder mercenaries, he was one of the only two survivors—Captain Delin’s right-hand man, Brother Archer?