Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 235: Deep Thoughts

It was quite obvious that this so-called "Archangel" was a Deep One of Elder level, and most likely the final boss of this module.

"If the strength of this Deep One is on par with that of Ghoul Elders, we're in serious trouble," Liu Xing expressed his concern.

After all, this was the Deep One's territory, and Liu Xing felt that if a fight were to break out, they would be utterly defenseless against the Deep Ones.

At that moment, Liu Xing heard voices coming from outside his room.

"Shizuka, can you believe our school chose our class for a graduation trip to Cosmic Country? Dekisuki must be so jealous of our class," a young man's voice said.

"You're asking me? But Nobita, don't you think Honda-sensei has been acting strangely these past few days?" a melodious female voice replied.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow. The voices outside his door belonged to a young man named Nobita and a girl named Shizuka. Liu Xing wondered if their friends were named Suneo and Gian.

"You're right," Nobita continued, "Ever since Honda-sensei boarded the cruise ship, he's been completely different, quiet and reserved. He spends most of his time standing at the bow, gazing at the sea."

Shizuka sighed, "Well, maybe Fujiwara-sensei broke up with Honda-sensei. I always thought they were a perfect match."

Nobita chuckled, "I don't think that's the case. I saw Honda-sensei propose to Fujiwara-sensei in the school's woods a few days ago. Although I was far away and couldn't hear what they were saying, it looked like Fujiwara-sensei agreed. Honda-sensei was so happy he jumped for joy. But later, Fujiwara-sensei must have said something to make Honda-sensei feel troubled. I think it might be because of their family backgrounds. Fujiwara-sensei's father is the chairman of our school's board of directors, and her mother is the CEO of a major seafood company in Hokkaido. Our poor Honda-sensei is just an ordinary teacher with a modest family background. I heard he's worried about this, but I hope he can win his lady's heart. He's really a great teacher."

"Ah, I see. That explains why Honda-sensei is feeling down. The difference in their family backgrounds is quite significant. I also heard that Fujiwara-sensei is religious; she goes to that temple on the western side of the city every Sunday for worship. It's strange, though, that the temple isn't open to the public," Shizuka remarked with frustration.

Nobita laughed again, "Well, let's not meddle in their affairs. Let's go find Suneo and the others. I can't believe Suneo's family is one of the shareholders of this cruise ship. We got a luxurious cabin, much better than the ones our school arranged for us."

Their voices faded away.

Liu Xing furrowed his brow. He knew that the conversation between these two Island Nation students outside his door was likely information provided by the module, and these two students were probably important NPCs in the current module.

More importantly, based on Nobita and Shizuka's conversation, Liu Xing had a bold idea. He suspected that the students from the Island Nation who were participating in the graduation trip were the sacrificial offerings for Bai Hecheng and Mo Jin's ritual.

Firstly, Island Nation high school graduation trips usually took place domestically. Based on Shizuka and Nobita's conversation, it seemed that previous graduating classes had traveled within the country. So, suddenly sending their class to Cosmic Country for the trip seemed suspicious.

Secondly, there was the strange case of Honda-sensei and his girlfriend, Fujiwara-sensei. According to Liu Xing's speculation, Fujiwara-sensei might be a devout follower of the Deep Ones, and her family likely had some connection to them, given that Deep Ones often traded with humans using seafood. This explained why her family had a seafood company.

Most importantly, the temple that Fujiwara-sensei visited on Sundays was likely a secret church dedicated to the Deep Ones. That's why it wasn't open to the public.

After Honda-sensei's proposal, while Fujiwara-sensei initially agreed, she probably made a demand: that Honda-sensei offer their class of students, Shizuka, Nobita, and others, as sacrifices to the Deep Ones she worshipped.

Shizuka and Nobita's school had likely been completely infiltrated by these fanatics, allowing them to offer a whole class of students as sacrifices on this cruise ship.

Liu Xing remembered the real-life Sewol ferry disaster, where students had followed the captain's false instructions, believing they would be rescued, only to meet their tragic end. In this module, if the sacrificial offerings were limited to these students, it would require someone as respected as Honda-sensei to convince them to meet their doom.

Thinking about it, Liu Xing's brow furrowed even more deeply. He was now certain that the depths of this module's secrets were far more chilling than he had ever imagined. It involved two secret cults, both worshipping the Deep Ones, one in Cosmic Country and the other in the Island Nation. The cult in Cosmic Country had even infiltrated a major shipping company and possibly high-ranking government officials. Meanwhile, the Island Nation's cult had established a school to groom fresh "sacrifices."

Though this was just a game world, Liu Xing couldn't help but shiver. These cults, devoted to mythical creatures, wielded immense influence, sacrificing countless lives to their "gods" and shifting the blame onto unsuspecting "temporary workers."

This was just the tip of the iceberg in this Cthulhu world.

"Damn, this world is truly terrifying," Liu Xing murmured as he gazed out at the sea. For the first time in the Cthulhu RPG Game, he felt genuine fear.

This fear seemed like fine, transparent threads that, once discovered, had already enveloped and ensnared him. When they bound him completely, his sanity would likely reach zero.

Stepping into the Warm Water

A sweaty Liu Xing sighed and patted his face to clear his mind of unrealistic thoughts. He was about to leave to find Shizuka and Nobita or investigate Honda-sensei when he received a message from Juri Sonoda, inquiring about his current location.

Clearly, Juri Sonoda had finished her investigation of Bai Hecheng.

Liu Xing shared his room number with Juri Sonoda, and moments later, she entered his room.

"It seems your old friend wants to make a big news story," Juri Sonoda said, handing her phone to Liu Xing.

Liu Xing nodded and took the phone, finding a video. He pressed play and watched as Bai Hecheng and a crew member entered a room. After a while, they both left the room, each carrying a large bag. They then entered another room next door, marked "No Entry," and closed the door behind them.

The first video ended, and the second one began. It showed a small room filled with numerous black bags of various sizes. Some of the bags were open, revealing strange items like beautiful feathers, green unidentified liquid, and black scales.

Clearly, this room belonged to Bai Hecheng, and these peculiar items were likely needed for the ritual.

"I filmed this in the four-person passenger cabin area where Yueshihao's regular passengers stay. The room Bai Hecheng and the crew member entered afterward seemed to be the crew's rest area, but the door required a crew key to open, so I couldn't access it. Fortunately, they didn't close the door, probably planning to return, so I hurried in to capture the video," Juri Sonoda explained with a smile.

Liu Xing nodded and said, "Thank you, Juri. If everything goes as expected, these items should be for the ritual, and judging by the quantity, Bai Hecheng and his group are indeed planning a major news story."

"They?" Juri Sonoda detected the change in Liu Xing's tone.

Liu Xing nodded and shared Mo Jin's story and the information he found online with Juri Sonoda.

"As for the cults in Cosmic Country, there are quite a few, more than ten that I can confirm. Of course, there are also many cults in the Island Nation. However, these cults have now changed their names to something like 'societies' or 'research groups' and operate openly," Juri Sonoda commented, revealing her extensive knowledge of Cosmic Country.

"I see. By the way, Juri, I overheard a conversation between two high school students outside my door. It seems that their class is very likely the intended sacrificial offering for this ritual." Liu Xing nodded and shared the conversation he had heard, along with his speculations, with Juri Sonoda.

Juri Sonoda furrowed her brow and said, "High school graduation trips typically involve the entire grade going to the same destination. Besides, except for some prestigious private schools, most other schools choose domestic destinations for graduation trips. They are cost-effective and convenient. Arranging a separate trip for this class is definitely abnormal. Oh, Liu Xing, can you ask Yin En to investigate which school this class is from?"

Liu Xing nodded and contacted Yin En.

Since Takayanagi Aoyin had obtained a passenger list for Yueshihao cruise ship during the investigation of Mo Jin's identity, Yin En quickly replied with a text message.

"It's Kyoto Morimoto Academy," Liu Xing said.

Upon hearing Liu Xing's response, Juri Sonoda sighed in resignation and explained, "It appears that your idea is likely correct because Morimoto Academy is a well-known private high school in Kyoto. However, the school's notoriety isn't for its academics but for the numerous accidents that occur there."

"According to incomplete investigations, in the sixty years since its founding, Morimoto Academy has experienced eight major accidents. These include a bus crash that claimed the lives of twenty-three students, an incident where five armed fugitives entered Morimoto Academy during a school festival and killed sixteen students, and the most recent one, eight years ago during a graduation trip, where over forty students died in a hotel fire."

"Despite these frequent accidents resulting in hundreds of student deaths, most of them occurred off-campus and were considered force majeure events unrelated to Morimoto Academy itself. Additionally, Morimoto Academy is backed by numerous financial conglomerates, so it has never faced any penalties. The school boasts a strong teaching staff, excellent facilities, and extremely low tuition fees, which is why, despite being known as 'the death high school' in Kyoto, it never faces a shortage of students."

Liu Xing furrowed his brow. In the world of the Cthulhu RPG Game, there were no such things as accidents. He was now certain that Morimoto Academy was under the control of some fanatics as the "sacrificial offering school."

"Here's the plan: I'll go and contact those Morimoto Academy students as a journalist, trying to gather some information from them. I should be able to learn more about the situation," Juri Sonoda said as she stood up.

Liu Xing nodded, knowing that Juri Sonoda, as an internet-famous journalist, would likely gather more information from the high school students.

Juri Sonoda, full of energy, left in a hurry to find Morimoto Academy students.

Liu Xing made a phone call to Yin En and updated him on the current situation.

"I understand. I'll go and find this Honda-sensei now. If things don't go as planned, and if he's indeed a good person, I should be able to persuade him to change his ways. But if that fails, I'll resort to force," Yin En said with a smile.

In exceptional circumstances, if persuasion doesn't work, there's always the option of persuasive (physical) measures!

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