Eldritch Horror Theatre

One had to learn to hand their worries over to the opponent.

Obviously, when it came to throwing caution to the wind, Su Gao was still far behind Fu Qian.

Her earlier movements had pushed her Hunter talent to its absolute limit.

Within a reasonable speed, her chosen routes and reactions had been practically flawless. Even Fu Qian didn’t think he could have done better.

However, while they weren’t in a commercial district, the foot traffic was still fairly heavy. Su Gao clearly had reservations about going all out.

”All right.”

Out of trust in Fu Qian, she hesitated only a moment before changing her strategy.

The next moment, she took a step forward, darting into an alley at inconceivable speed.

A child worthy of teaching.

Fu Qian was quite satisfied with her reaction. Roughly confirming the direction, he followed her from a distance.As for the person hiding in the dark, two things were now certain.

First, he was alone and hadn’t brought any backup.

This made perfect sense. With this special survival-focused talent, bringing lackeys along would only expose his position—truly putting a price tag on one’s head.

Second, he didn’t seem to want a frontal confrontation. In fact, Fu Qian suspected he didn’t possess any direct combat capabilities at all.

His constant petty tricks along the way were merely attempts to mess with their heads, taking advantage of ”Lady Violet’s” reluctance to cause a scene.

But that raised a question: did he dare cause a scene?

It was hard to imagine Anjing Company offering much support for this kind of behavior, driven purely by personal preference with almost no visible benefit.

Anjing Company had just lost a ship; they probably didn’t want the Night Watchers knocking on their door again.

So, as Fu Qian saw it, if Su Gao simply went ”all out,” the only one panicking would be their tail.

His judgment was proven correct.

Almost the instant Su Gao made her move, Fu Qian’s perception picked up a stress response from their target.

The presence remained erratic and elusive, but not only had its movements quickened, it also started fleeing toward less populated areas.

Too bad it was all meaningless now!

You have no idea what kind of opponent you’re facing.

Sighing to himself, Fu Qian strolled over to a semi-open food stall.

”What would you like?”

A kindly-looking, gray-haired woman smiled at him, without a trace of panic on her face.

The reason was simple: she was just a regular vendor running a legitimate business.

The probability of a guy who only dared hide and curse from the shadows having the guts to play tricks like luring the tiger away from the mountain or pulling chestnuts from the fire was infinitely close to zero.

...

Carrying a piping-hot serving of roasted rice cakes, he caught up to Su Gao. The professional Hunter was standing by a fountain, admiring the setting sun reflected in the water.

Just across the pool of water, an older man with even whiter hair and a deeply wrinkled profile was hunched over, sweeping up scraps of debris.

”Here.”

Fu Qian stepped up next to Su Gao and handed her the unopened portion.

Taking her dietary preferences into account, Fu Qian had specifically asked the vendor to add extra brown sugar.

”...Thank you.”

The shift in atmosphere was jarring. Su Gao hesitated briefly, then thanked him in a low voice and took the food.

Fu Qian didn’t say anything else. He just stood beside her, watching the old man sweep until the ground at his feet was spotless.

”Heh...”

The old man’s movements stiffened for a few seconds. The next moment, he tossed his broom aside, smiled, and began to clap.

”Truly a formidable youth. In all these years, this is the first time someone has found me so quickly!”

It was obvious it had been quite a few years.

Taking in the man’s fully exposed face, Fu Qian nodded silently.

Strictly speaking, based on appearance alone, the man only looked to be in his seventies or eighties. But at a single glance, the sheer sense of age radiating from his soul was a hundred times more potent than aged liquor.

Though his posture was still relatively straight, his flesh was utterly withered.

”What do we call you?”

Since Su Gao wasn’t fond of talking, Fu Qian decisively took over the interrogation.

”Takahashi Yae, Doctor at Anjing Company.”

Faced with Fu Qian’s less-than-polite tone, the old man’s expression cooled as he scoffed and introduced himself.

”A pleasure. Dancy Crawford, Otaku Fiend.”

Fu Qian introduced himself with complete seriousness, though his chosen title was downright painful to hear.

Judging by Old Man Takahashi’s reaction, he was clearly disdainful of it.

”Would you mind explaining what your earlier actions were about, old man?”

”Just helping out a young man troubled by love, that’s all.”

Having been boxed in by Su Gao, Takahashi Yae obviously knew there was no point in playing dumb. He magnanimously admitted to his little tricks.

”And could you explain what you two were doing at Wushe Temple earlier?”

As an elder with abundant life experience, he naturally wasn’t content to just passively answer questions.

”If I remember correctly, that’s a public area. Anyone can go there, right?”

Fu Qian frowned and countered.

”And then you stayed in that public area for a long time, did absolutely nothing, and left empty-handed.”

Takahashi Yae wasn’t so easily fooled.

”Who says?”

Fu Qian pulled out Kisaragi Kana’s Badge and flashed it.

...

”That woman really is somewhat different.”

The badge in Fu Qian’s hand clearly provoked a reaction from Takahashi Yae. A moment later, he spoke with a darkened expression.

”That kind of charm exceeds the bounds of an ordinary human.”

”Takagi would definitely agree with you.”

Fu Qian nodded.

Gold always shines eventually. The anomalies surrounding Kisaragi Kana were destined not to stay hidden for long.

”So you’re the one in charge of that little game?”

The next moment, he toyed with the badge and asked casually.

Little game...

Takahashi Yae scoffed, but as he glanced at the silent Su Gao, he still felt an immense pressure weighing on him.

This unfamiliar face exuded a terrifyingly oppressive aura. In just a few minutes, she had made him feel as if there was nowhere left to run.

It had gotten to the point where he’d had to abandon fleeing into the distance, choosing instead to throw on a simple disguise and gamble on his luck.

Unfortunately... it hadn’t worked.

Most importantly, her merely standing there in silence was enough to make him too afraid to bet against her actually making a move.

”First, I’m not. Second, you just called it a little game yourself—why do you care so much?”

”Because it’s interesting. Even purely as a reality show, it’s a pretty good setup.”

Fu Qian didn’t skimp on his praise.

”You didn’t design it? Makes sense, you don’t look like you have much imagination.”

”It seems you haven’t learned the slightest bit about how to respect the aged and honor the wise...”

Fu Qian’s talent for mockery was unquestionable. The veins on Takahashi Yae’s forehead were beginning to bulge.

Respect the aged and honor the wise...

Fu Qian frowned slightly.

”How old are you?”

”Far older than you can imagine.”

Takahashi Yae snorted, looking up at the sky.

”As of now, I have lived through more than three hundred springs and autumns.”

Three hundred?

For a moment, Fu Qian thought back to the numerous transcendent figures he had tormented.

Forget three hundred, he’d beaten up several who were five hundred.

”Over three hundred years old and you’re still not a demigod?”