Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 253: Heading to Kobe

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and asked, "Unexpected?"

Honekawa Suneo nodded and replied seriously, "Yes, Teacher Honda's exact words at that time were that after they arrived in Kobe, they were allowed free time. However, on the first day of free time, a group of students didn't return for the night. The teachers leading the trip didn't pay too much attention initially, as they thought such incidents occurred every year due to a few troublemaker students in every class. So, no one took it seriously."

"But on the second day, those students were still missing, and other students claimed they hadn't seen them either. That's when the lead teachers realized the seriousness of the situation. They immediately reported it to the police and organized a search. On the third morning, those missing students were mysteriously left at the hotel's doorstep. They had no visible injuries, but they all claimed to have lost their memories of the past two days. Their last memories were of being invited by a foreign man to visit a farm, and several eyewitnesses confirmed seeing all of this."

"Honda-sensei initially thought that the students might be lying, perhaps they got carried away with pranks and were afraid of facing punishment if they returned. So, they pretended to be kidnapped and only revealed themselves when they heard about the police report. They acted as if they knew nothing about it, that they were genuinely kidnapped. They even arranged for witnesses."

"But in the end, Honda-sensei mentioned that after graduation, these students suddenly disappeared without a trace. They lost contact with their families, and to this day, no one has been able to find them. It seems that these students were the ones taken by Mi Ge. However, at the beginning, Mi Ge inexplicably released them temporarily, only to recapture them after their graduation."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and smiled, saying, "It seems like the Mi Ge from back then might have been new to abducting people, showing some flaws in their methods. So, when they heard about the police being alerted, they were worried about being discovered and decided to release those students temporarily. However, by that time, Mi Ge had already abducted them for two days and most likely performed brain surgeries on them. So, Mi Ge had no worries and summoned them back after they graduated."

Ling Ishikawa nodded in agreement and said, "Master, you're absolutely right. I completely agree with your analysis. But if that's the case, could Miguel be Honda Tetsuya himself?"

Liu Xing furrowed his brow, rubbing his chin, and said, "It's hard to say for sure, Suneo. Later on, please ask your friend to investigate the story Honda-sensei mentioned. See what role Honda-sensei played in that student disappearance case. If Honda-sensei also disappeared back then, then Miguel is very likely Honda Tetsuya. However, there's another possibility that Miguel's current artificial body was created using Honda Tetsuya's body as a base."

At this moment, a puzzled Miguel finally snapped out of his daze and asked, "Master, are you saying that someone else is using my face?"

Liu Xing nodded and retrieved a photo of Honda Tetsuya from his phone, then handed the phone to Miguel.

Miguel took the phone but remained motionless.

Liu Xing sighed, sat back in his chair, and closed his eyes to contemplate the current issues.

Firstly, what was the relationship between Honda Tetsuya and Miguel?

Liu Xing currently had three theories. First, Miguel's brain might be Honda Tetsuya's, and he was captured by Mi Ge long ago, his memories erased, becoming Mi Ge's slave. He had been controlled by Mi Ge until players like Ming Hanxing rescued him, and he now acted as the genuine Honda Tetsuya. In reality, this Honda Tetsuya was a construct made by Mi Ge, and for some reason, Mi Ge had him continue to operate in human society.

The second possibility was that Miguel's body was constructed based on Honda Tetsuya's body, and Miguel had a different brain. The current Honda Tetsuya was likely another person modified by Mi Ge.

The third possibility was that Mi Ge used Honda Tetsuya's appearance to create Miguel, but Mi Ge decided to play a prank on Honda Tetsuya by rearranging Miguel's features. However, this theory relied on Mi Ge knowing Honda Tetsuya and Honda Tetsuya not being an ordinary person; otherwise, it wouldn't make sense for Mi Ge, a mythical creature, to engage in such mischief against a regular human.

So, Liu Xing believed that while the third possibility seemed quite fantastical, this was the world of Cthulhu RPG Game, and it was inherently science fiction.

At this point, Miguel put down the phone and said, "I remember now. My name is Honda Tetsuya!"

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and asked seriously, "Is that true?"

Miguel nodded and pointed to his head, saying, "Although my memories haven't fully returned, when I saw this photo, something suddenly clicked. I recall an incident from many years ago when I was walking down a street with a group of people whose faces I couldn't see. We entered a specialty shop, and after they closed the door, I smelled a strange fragrance. Within a few minutes, I lost consciousness... Before losing consciousness, I heard someone call me Tetsuya."

Liu Xing nodded and turned to Honekawa Suneo, saying, "Suneo, find some photos of Honda Tetsuya for Miguel to see. Maybe it will trigger more memories."

Honekawa Suneo nodded and took out his phone, standing next to Miguel and scrolling through the images.

Liu Xing then called Ming Hanxing over and whispered, "Teacher Ming, do you remember the streets you walked on during your previous trip to Kobe? Let's search for pictures of those streets to show Miguel. Maybe we can locate Mi Ge's lair."

Ming Hanxing furrowed his brow, looking puzzled, and asked, "Master, are you suggesting that we go looking for trouble with Mi Ge? I must remind you that back then, Mi Ge only released three artificial beings and nearly wiped out me and the others."

Liu Xing shook his head and smiled, saying, "Did you forget what I just said, Teacher Ming? I've actually met Mi Ge once before. If you think about it, Mi Ge is somewhat affiliated with our side. So, I want to meet Mi Ge and ask about the relationship between Miguel and Honda Tetsuya. That's where the truth lies."

Ming Hanxing nodded but gestured towards Miguel and asked, "What about Miguel? You told him that Mi Ge is friends with those Deep One cultists, and this... won't it..."

Liu Xing continued to shake his head, smiling as he replied, "This is what we call a white lie. There are some things that Miguel and I won't mention, and he won't know. So, Teacher Ming, I hope you can keep this a secret."

Ming Hanxing sighed in resignation and nodded, saying, "I understand, Master. I will definitely keep it a secret from Miguel. As for my trip to Kobe, because of Miguel, I still have vivid memories of what happened there."

Ming Hanxing opened a map app and pointed out the names of several streets.

Ling Ishikawa, on the other hand, took out  phone and began searching for pictures of those streets, then sent them to Liu Xing.

After a while, Honekawa Suneo walked over and said helplessly, "I couldn't make Miguel remember anything else."

Liu Xing nodded and handed his phone to Honekawa Suneo. "Suneo, please show these pictures to Miguel again. See if there's any image of the specialty shop Miguel visited."

Honekawa Suneo nodded and took the phone to Miguel.

"Ling Ishikawa, I have a mission for you now. You need to try to locate Teacher Honda. We need to track Honda now," Liu Xing said seriously.

Ling Ishikawa nodded and left with Honda Tetsuya's address.

Liu Xing stood up and gazed at the Fujiwara Shrine outside.

"What could be inside Fujiwara Shrine?" Liu Xing muttered to himself.

After a while, Miguel suddenly exclaimed, "That's it!"

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, realizing it was time to meet Mi Ge.

Liu Xing walked over to Miguel and asked with a smile, "Are you sure, Miguel?"

Miguel nodded seriously and said, "Yes, I'm certain. This is the specialty shop from my memories."

Liu Xing nodded and turned to Honekawa Suneo, saying, "Suneo, please help me book a flight to Kobe. I want to visit this specialty shop."

Honekawa Suneo agreed and asked, "Are you sure you want to go alone, Master? Shouldn't you take someone with you?"

Liu Xing shook his head and smiled, saying, "Yes, I must go alone this time because I'm going to meet Mi Ge. I can assure you that Mi Ge won't dare to harm me, but I can't guarantee their intentions towards you. So, I can't take anyone else with me this time, and you'll need to handle other matters."

Liu Xing turned to Ming Hanxing and said, "Teacher Ming, as the Vice Master, I'm entrusting the affairs of Kyoto to you once I leave. For routine matters, you can handle them yourselves without consulting me. So, it's up to you now, Teacher Ming, and I hope you and Suneo will cooperate well."

An hour later, Liu Xing boarded a flight to Kobe.

Fortunately, the Island Nation wasn't very large, so he quickly arrived in Kobe. He hailed a taxi and headed straight to the specialty shop.

Upon entering the shop, Liu Xing couldn't help but feel that something was off. It was a specialty shop, but it seemed to be conducting business with the doors closed. If it weren't for the sign that said "specialty shop," Liu Xing might have mistaken it for a nighttime bar.

However, Liu Xing didn't dwell on it and walked in.

Inside the specialty shop, the lighting was dim, and various Kobe specialties were casually displayed. Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and said to the young man behind the cash register, "Boss, your specialty shop has quite a unique atmosphere."

The young man stared at Liu Xing, remaining silent.

While smiling, Liu Xing took out his Yellow Seal Pendant from around his neck. "You should recognize this, right?"

The young man remained silent but nodded.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and casually said, "Well, since you know what this is, you should also know why I'm here. So, I won't waste too much time talking. I'm here today to see Mi Ge."

The young man nodded and used the same electronic synthesized voice as Miguel, saying, "Are you here on behalf of Aaron?"

Liu Xing shook his head, still smiling, and replied, "No, Aaron can't command me. I am merely a servant of King Hastur in Yellow Robes."

The young man nodded expressionlessly and retrieved a notebook from behind the counter. "If you wish to see Mi Ge, today is not the right time. Mi Ge is not in Kobe at the moment. If you have any questions, please write them in this notebook and include your contact information. Mi Ge will get back to you later."

Liu Xing opened the notebook and saw that many people had left messages already. It seemed that Mi Ge was quite popular, with many people coming to seek its assistance.

After writing down his questions in the notebook, Liu Xing left. After all, the young man appeared to be an artificial being without independent consciousness, and conversing with him wouldn't lead anywhere.

However, Liu Xing was curious about where Mi Ge had gone. Did Mi Ge have its own year-end gathering as well?

Liu Xing hadn't taken more than a few steps when a mysterious figure suddenly approached him and said, "Excuse me, sir, can I bother you for a moment?"

Liu Xing was about to refuse when he noticed the gun holstered at the person's waist.

Raising an eyebrow, Liu Xing realized that he was lucky, or perhaps KP Fangs was after him now.

Liu Xing had come to Kobe to investigate Mi Ge, which was considered cheating for this module. So, he had prepared himself for possible retaliation from KP Fangs. However, he hadn't expected them to resort to a gun.

Facing the gun, Liu Xing had no choice but to follow the mysterious figure into a coffee shop and into a private room.

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