Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 251: Meeting Miguel

Liu Xing wasn't entirely certain at the moment whether this Woman in Red was on their side or not. However, based on Liu Xing's understanding of the Cthulhu RPG Game, there was a high probability that this Woman in Red was connected to the "suicidal" students from before. Still, it couldn't be confirmed whether the Woman in Red possessed independent consciousness.

"Alright, for now, let's go have dinner. After dinner, Suneo, Teacher Ming, Ling Ishikawa, and I will go visit the Shrine nearby. As for the others, they are free to do as they please," Liu Xing suggested.

After finishing their meal, Liu Xing, along with Ling Ishikawa and two others, left the apartment and headed to the Fujiwara Shrine, not far from Morimoto Academy.

"Fujiwara Shrine, it seems this shrine must be owned by Fujiwara-sensei, or rather, it's the property of the school's principal," Liu Xing mused, stroking his chin.

Fujiwara-sensei, the ex-girlfriend of Honda Tetsuya, was the daughter of Morimoto Academy's principal.

Suneo Kotsukawa nodded and sighed, "Truly, the heart of a woman can be the most treacherous. I used to think that Fujiwara-sensei was a gentle and beautiful teacher, but I never imagined she was a fanatic, willing to put us in harm's way. Considering how she treated us in the past, I feel like we were just a bunch of naive little pigs in her eyes, waiting to be slaughtered during a festival. Unfortunately, we managed to escape in the end. I'm sure Fujiwara-sensei must be very disappointed to hear about it."

Liu Xing chuckled and agreed, "You're right. Who would have thought that a group of ordinary students could resist a group of prepared fanatics? But coming to think of it, Honda-sensei is probably the unluckiest one among us. He not only lost his love but also his job, and now his life is also threatened. However, I hope Honda-sensei chooses to leave the school and find a new teaching position. If he stays at the school, he may not escape unscathed, even with our help."

Suneo Kotsukawa nodded thoughtfully, "Indeed, if your identity as the leader hasn't been exposed yet, then Honda-sensei will likely be blamed for the Yueshihao incident. If that happens, the school's actions against him are expected. But I think I can convince my father to offer Honda-sensei a good position, or we could find an opportunity to persuade him to resign."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, finding Suneo Kotsukawa's idea quite appealing. At the moment, Honda Tetsuya stayed at the school to fulfill his remaining contractual obligations before seeking a new teaching job. If Suneo Kotsukawa could secure him a good position, Honda Tetsuya might be able to leave the school sooner.

However, Liu Xing couldn't help but think that saving Honda Tetsuya wouldn't be so easy. After all, Jin Ziyuan and Suzuki Ryu, both from the Plot Encounter, were beyond rescue. Moreover, Honda Tetsuya was the primary target in this module, making his rescue the most challenging.

Nonetheless, Liu Xing believed it was worth a try. After all, what if they succeeded?

As fate would have it, when Liu Xing's group approached the vicinity of the Fujiwara Shrine, they saw Honda Tetsuya in a conversation with a woman. Although the woman had her back to Liu Xing, he could tell, with his intuition, that she was Fujiwara-sensei, Fujiwara Yuko.

Though they were at a distance, Liu Xing could sense that Honda Tetsuya appeared agitated.

"Let's observe for now," Liu Xing whispered.

Ling Ishikawa and the others nodded, and they entered a nearby convenience store. They bought some snacks and sat near the store's window, eating while keeping an eye on Honda Tetsuya and Fujiwara Yuko.

After a while, it seemed that Honda Tetsuya and Fujiwara Yuko parted ways. Fujiwara Yuko pushed him aside and walked directly towards the Fujiwara Shrine.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and led Ling Ishikawa and the others to approach Honda Tetsuya, who looked lost and dejected.

When they reached Honda Tetsuya, he finally snapped out of his thoughts and exclaimed in surprise, "Ryusei students, what are you doing here?"

Liu Xing chuckled and replied, "We're just showing Teacher Ming around. It's his first time in Kyoto. We saw you talking to Fujiwara-sensei earlier, so we didn't want to disturb you."

Upon hearing the mention of Fujiwara Yuko, Honda Tetsuya sighed and said, "I apologize for that. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Fujiwara Yuko here. We were in a relationship for two years, and I never imagined she was just using me..."

Ming Hanxing sighed as well and patted Honda Tetsuya on the shoulder. "Well, Honda-sensei, I've heard about your situation from Ryusei students. I must say, you've had some bad luck."

While Ming Hanxing chatted with Honda Tetsuya, Liu Xing exchanged a glance with Suneo Kotsukawa. Suneo knew what to do. Once the conversation between Ming Hanxing and Honda Tetsuya concluded, Suneo informed Honda Tetsuya that he wanted to offer him a position at his father's company, with better conditions than Morimoto Academy.

As expected, Honda Tetsuya declined the offer. "Suneo, I appreciate your kind offer, but I have to refuse for now. I can't leave Morimoto Academy just yet. The Woman in Red contacted me in a dream last night, asking me to find something very important for her. If I don't find it, I could be in trouble. So, I must stay at Morimoto Academy for the time being."

As Honda Tetsuya spoke, he opened his coat and revealed a black handprint.

Clearly, it was the infamous ghost handprint.

Liu Xing furrowed his brow, finally understanding why Suzuki Ryu had been so determined to help the Woman in Red find something, rather than simply taking a leave or transferring schools. He had been threatened by the Woman in Red.

However, this was within Liu Xing's expectations. He immediately asked a question he was more concerned about, "I see. In that case, did the Woman in Red tell you what she's looking for? We might be able to help you find it."

Upon hearing Liu Xing's words, Honda Tetsuya sighed and shook his head, saying with a bitter smile, "I hope you can help me find it too, but what Woman in Red wants me to find is quite peculiar. She only mentioned that I should find something very important to her, related to her memories with another person."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, finding Woman in Red's request indeed strange. She wanted something related to memories with another person. To Liu Xing, many objects could potentially fit this description, with photographs being the most common.

However, beyond photographs, there were countless possibilities, such as gifts exchanged between Woman in Red and someone else. The range was vast.

Liu Xing concluded that they needed to identify Woman in Red's true identity first before they could determine what she wanted.

"In that case, we need to find out Woman in Red's real identity first. I've thought about it, and it's likely that the Red-Clothed Female Ghost refers to one of the female students who met an unfortunate fate earlier. She probably wore red clothes in her life. This should narrow down our search for Woman in Red's identity. You don't need to risk going into locked rooms or the school's archives. Just search online for news related to Morimoto Academy, and we should be able to find something," Ming Hanxing suggested.

Before coming, to avoid revealing Liu Xing's identity, Ming Hanxing was designated as the spokesperson for external communication.

Although Liu Xing had considered recruiting Honda Tetsuya into the Worshipers of the Yellow Sect, it didn't seem like the right time. Liu Xing perceived Honda Tetsuya as somewhat infatuated, still holding some illusions about Fujiwara Yuko, even when it was clear that she was using him as a scapegoat.

Liu Xing was highly skeptical that if Honda Tetsuya learned about the connection between the Worshipers of the Yellow Sect and the Deep Sea Gospel Society, he might betray the sect to gain Fujiwara Yuko's favor.

Therefore, Liu Xing decided not to disclose the Worshipers of the Yellow Sect to Honda Tetsuya at this point.

After listening to Ming Hanxing's suggestion, Honda Tetsuya nodded and smiled reluctantly, "That's a good idea. I'll go home and investigate Woman in Red's identity. If I find anything, I'll contact you."

With that, Honda Tetsuya left.

After bidding farewell to Honda Tetsuya, Ming Hanxing led Liu Xing and the others to find Miguel. Miguel was staying in a hotel with a view of the Fujiwara Shrine, from where he could observe it. However, the lush greenery around the shrine obscured most of the view.

Liu Xing saw Miguel wearing a white mask and standing tall and robustly by the window, overlooking the Fujiwara Shrine. If Liu Xing didn't know that Miguel had an artificial body created by Mi Ge, equipped with eyes possibly capable of infrared vision or thermal imaging, he might have wondered why Miguel was trying to appear so deep.

"Miguel, this is the employer for this mission, Mr. Watanabe Ryusei," Ming Hanxing introduced.

Miguel turned to face them and silently nodded, indicating that he recognized them.

Seeing Miguel's response, Liu Xing shrugged and said with a smile, "It seems Miguel is a straightforward person. I won't waste any time. Miguel, as long as you complete my request, everything else can be negotiated. I hope you can help me monitor these individuals effectively."

Miguel nodded again and spoke with a clearly synthesized electronic voice, "I understand, Mr. Ryusei. I will definitely fulfill your request. Since last night until now, a total of eight people have entered the Fujiwara Shrine. Here are photos of these eight individuals. Mr. Ryusei, please prioritize the tracking targets."

Miguel took out eight photos and laid them out on the table.

Based on Liu Xing's memory, he recognized Morimoto Academy's principal, Fujiwara Hiroshi, as well as the son of the head of discipline, Yamamoto Nihyakugo, and the recently seen Fujiwara Yuko.

As for the other five individuals, Liu Xing found two of them vaguely familiar.

Suneo Kotsukawa stepped forward and pointed to the two photos Liu Xing found familiar, saying, "Ryusei, you might not know these two. They are the grade advisors for the first and second-year students, Takagi Ling and Takagi Ryo. They are biological brothers. As for our third-year grade advisor, who also serves as a grade advisor for the entire high school, we haven't found a replacement yet since the previous advisor was arrested. After all, we're graduating soon."

Graduation.

Liu Xing suddenly realized that his "graduation" was only about a month away. It seemed that this module would likely conclude within a month.

Regarding the remaining three individuals, Suneo Kotsukawa claimed not to know them. They were likely not high-ranking personnel from Morimoto Academy but members of the Deep Sea Gospel Society operating elsewhere in Kyoto.

Liu Xing nodded and told Miguel, "Miguel, please start by investigating the identities of these three individuals."

Miguel nodded once more and said with a smile, "I've already compared their images with my database and identified their identities. First, there's a chubby man in black clothing and a hat named Okabe Kyoichi. Then, there's a middle-aged man with glasses named Kudo Zuo. Lastly, the foreign woman is Alice, the owner of Flame Bar, currently the hottest bar in Kyoto."

Liu Xing couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. He knew the identities of Okabe Kyoichi and Kudo Zuo very well, realizing that the Deep Sea Gospel Society had deep roots in Kyoto. This explained how Morimoto Academy continued to operate without raising suspicions, as they had their people on the inside.

However, Liu Xing found Alice to be the most dangerous of all. Bars had always been excellent places to gather information, making Alice the likely intelligence officer for the Deep Sea Gospel Society's operations in Kyoto.

Typically, intelligence officers were not to be underestimated, considering their importance.

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