Eldritch Horror Theatre

”I noticed them the first time I came here.”

Fu Qian was admiring the room full of graffiti when Zhao Ran followed him inside to add this cold remark.

”So these things have been sitting here for at least a few months?”

Knowing perfectly well that the other man was closely watching his reaction to the strange symbols, Fu Qian didn’t shy away.

”A few months—but not necessarily sitting right there.”

To his surprise, Zhao Ran shook his head.

”Oh?”

It sounded like there was more to the story, so Fu Qian played along and feigned curiosity.

”They’re moving.”

Although he tried hard to suppress it, a certain discomfort bled into Zhao Ran’s voice.”They haven’t moved. I’m certain their positions haven’t changed since we walked in, at least.”

He understood what the assassin meant—that these things seemed alive. Unfortunately for Zhao Ran, Fu Qian had never been one to be swayed by an exaggerated facial expression. He immediately shook his head and pointed to a few spots.

’You really are paying attention...’

”That doesn’t contradict what I said. They don’t move constantly. The changes only happen at specific points in time, and so far, there doesn’t seem to be any pattern.”

Zhao Ran’s gaze grew somewhat complicated, but a moment later, he still offered a patient explanation.

”I see. So we’re just going to wait here and watch for the next time they move?”

Sadly, that explanation was somewhat unconvincing; Fu Qian gave a highly perfunctory nod.

”No need. There are other things for you to see.”

Faced with his doubt, Zhao Ran remained unbothered. He snorted and walked right past Fu Qian.

...

”What’s this?”

Zhao Ran didn’t stop until he reached a corner of the room, turning his head to look at Fu Qian.

”A window.”

Fu Qian didn’t mind the suspenseful question, and his answer wasn’t nonsense.

It was a window that looked remarkably similar to the one they had just entered through. Because the entire building had tilted, it lay almost completely horizontal.

”What else?”

Upon hearing the answer, the assassin smiled, a rather peculiar look on his face.

”It’s also a door.”

But that smile froze on his face a second later as Fu Qian delivered his follow-up.

’Is it really that surprising? I already saw this kind of layout during my first visit to the Dark Moon Church, alright?’

Casually shattering another person’s sense of superiority brought Fu Qian absolutely no guilt.

Exactly. As previously established, this window was merely ”similar” to the one from earlier.

As for the differences between them, it didn’t take much thought to deduce what compromises had been made in its design, and for what purpose.

Fu Qian was fairly confident that a structure lay beneath it, much like the hidden studio in the Dark Moon Church.

And it was obvious that Brother Zhao Ran had been inside.

”I’m starting to suspect you’ve been here before... Yes, it’s a hidden door.”

Still reeling from the shock, Zhao Ran sized him up, but he accepted Fu Qian’s judgment and even bent down to feel around the edges.

Click—

Under his careful manipulation, the window was slowly pulled up, revealing an entirely different space underneath.

”Come on down. I promise the things inside will leave you stunned.”

Foregoing any further pleasantries, Zhao Ran jumped right in.

...

’Stunning indeed. How the hell did they cram something this big in here?’

Gladly accepting the invitation, Fu Qian felt his eyes widen the moment he dropped down.

It was indeed a hidden space. Perhaps for the sake of secrecy, the trapdoor they just used served as both the only exit and the sole source of light.

And sitting right in the middle of this enclosed space was a massive... alchemy furnace?

Its shape certainly resembled one, although it was carved from stone.

Its size wasn’t overly exaggerated—just a bit taller than a grown man—and a small portion of its base was sunken into the floor.

Given its bulging belly, however, it was more than spacious enough to toss a few people inside to smelt.

At the moment, its lid was sealed tight, hiding whatever lay within.

”Look at the words on it.”

Before Fu Qian could say anything, Zhao Ran pointed them out.

Sure enough, it was engraved with an inscription, though the contents seemed terribly pessimistic—

[Loser, Mien]

Following Zhao Ran’s finger, Fu Qian easily picked out a name, along with something that resembled a posthumous title.

[Second Loser, Falcon]

[Third Loser, Calder]

...

Reading further down, he realized an entire sequence of names ringed the bizarre furnace.

Their posthumous titles followed the exact same pattern. The ninth and tenth losers were even crammed together on the same line.

’This... if these are epitaphs, they’re a little too hostile.’

The origins of these engravings certainly sparked some thought.

In comparison, the assassin’s perspective was actually far more reasonable—this was a pillar of shame.

The names of all those who failed had been carved into it, one by one.

As for what they failed at... did it have something to do with the ”gladiator arena” mentioned earlier?

”What are your thoughts?”

While Fu Qian was pondering, Zhao Ran impatiently urged him for his impressions.

”First, I don’t know any of them. Second, these names span a very long period of time.”

Fu Qian didn’t bother hiding his deductions.

”I feel the same.”

Hearing this, Zhao Ran chuckled aloud, tracing his finger along the surface of the furnace.

”The first time I saw this, I knew these had been carved sequentially over an incredibly long span of time, like some never-ending slaughter... Do you believe what I said earlier now?”

Hmm—

Although the man was brimming with confidence, making it difficult to shoot him down, Fu Qian—as a scientific researcher who valued facts above all else—refused to blindly agree.

”Not necessarily. These ’losers’ might just be people who ended up trapped here like you. Unable to find a way out no matter what they tried, they finally gave up and etched their own names into this pillar of shame... Just look at the craftsmanship. Some carvings are elegant, others are sloppy. It obviously wasn’t all done by one person.”

Fu Qian even started analyzing the typography, his argument sounding quite well-founded, though he was cut off a second later.

Zhao Ran flashed a cold smile, looking as if he had anticipated that exact response. He forcefully yanked off the tightly fitted lid, tossing it aside before staring silently at Fu Qian. Hundreds of gazes simultaneously landed on Fu Qian’s face—

The assassin hadn’t evolved compound eyes. The majority of those stares came from inside the open furnace.

Packed tightly together, a blanket composed entirely of massive eyeballs spread evenly across the inner walls.

They were clearly still alive. Under the sudden influx of light, their pupils visibly constricted.

Yet they showed no sign of flinching, swiveling in unison to stare right at him.

”And now?”

Only after deliberately giving Fu Qian enough time to make eye contact with them did Zhao Ran slowly ask his question.

”Hmm... There are all sorts of colors here. The contestants were certainly a diverse bunch of species.”

Not one to let a good gesture go to waste, Fu Qian studied them intently—especially the colors of their pupils—before finally delivering his verdict.