Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

NTR?!

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, looking somewhat surprised at Ryuzaki.

Beside him, Ling Ishikawa couldn’t help but speak up, "Mr. Ryuzaki, you should know what NTR means, right?"

Ryuzaki chuckled and nodded, "Of course, I’ve been in the Island Nation for several years now, studying the Island Nation language on my own to understand Island Nation anime and movies. So, I do know the meaning of abbreviations like NTR. However, because my name’s abbreviation happens to be NTR, and us Americans tend to call others by their name’s abbreviation, I’ve grown accustomed to being called NTR over time. Plus, it’s kind of amusing."

After a brief pause, Ryuzaki continued, "By the way, miss, do you have a boyfriend? If not, would you consider me?"

Liu Xing chuckled and said to Alice, "Miss Alice, you should be able to guess Ling Ishikawa’s situation by now. Could you please explain it to Mr. Ryuzaki?"

Alice nodded and smiled, "I was just pondering how Ling Ishikawa could end up like this. But now, with what Mr. Ryuusei just said, I’m more convinced of my initial thoughts. Ling Ishikawa must have undergone a gender transformation due to some magic spells. From male to female. However, from my perception, the magic power within Ling Ishikawa is gradually dissipating. It shouldn’t be long before Ling Ishikawa returns to normal."

"What? Alice, are you saying Ling Ishikawa was male? And turned female because of magic?" Ryuzaki exclaimed, looking shocked.

As the one being approached, Ling Ishikawa nodded helplessly once again and spoke, "Yes, before this, due to being affected by a magic spell, I was forced to take on this appearance. However, in about three days, I should be able to revert to my true self. So, I’m sorry for disappointing you, Mr. Ryuzaki."

Ryuzaki was stunned for a moment, then determinedly said, "To be honest, you should know that we Americans are quite open-minded. So, I don’t really mind your gender, Ling Ishikawa..."

"I mind!" Ling Ishikawa interrupted immediately upon sensing the situation turning unfavorable.

After this little incident, Liu Xing and the others moved to the hotel restaurant, where they had breakfast and chatted.

Firstly, Alice provided the latest information.

As Liu Xing had speculated before, Alice’s master had been invited by the English authorities to investigate the disappearance of foreign tourists this time. Alice and several of her fellow disciples who were still in England were assisting in the investigation.

After some time of investigation, Alice’s master confirmed the mastermind behind the disappearance of foreign tourists to be none other than the Cult of the Cadaver and the Deep Diving Society!

Among them, the so-called Deep Diving Society included Liu Xing and others’ old opponents - the Deep Sea Gospel Society. Because this Deep Diving Society was recently established by merging several secret cults in the Asian region that worshipped the Deep One, the leader was rumored to be a powerful Deep One with over a hundred Deep Ones under him, and the number of hybrids exceeded four digits.

Therefore, the powerful Deep Diving Society quickly absorbed many small secret cults and became a well-known large-scale secret cult in the Asian region and even the entire world. This also qualified them to cooperate with the Cult of the Cadaver.

However, although Alice was considered a mid-level cadre in the Deep Sea Gospel Society before, after the merger into the Deep Diving Society, Alice was demoted to a grassroots level cadre. Hence, she did not have the qualifications to access the content of the cooperation between the Cult of the Cadaver and the Deep Diving Society. Nonetheless, Alice still managed to learn some details through special means.

In simple terms, this time the Deep Diving Society dispatched a senior cadre along with several Deep Ones and over a dozen ordinary members to England. Because the appearance of Deep One hybrids was too distinctive and easily noticeable, they had to be cautious.

This time, Deep Diving Society came to assist the Cult of the Cadaver, and in return, the Cult of the Cadaver helped the Deep One merge the secret cults in the England region that worshipped the Deep One and allowed the Deep Diving Society to establish branches in the England region, dividing England between the two factions.

Upon hearing this, Liu Xing couldn’t help but frown.

Because as a person from the Island Nation, although most recent modules had taken place abroad, Liu Xing was certain that he would return to the Island Nation for modules soon. When that happened, as someone who believed in King Hastur in Yellow Robes, he would surely clash with this Deep Diving Society.

However, from the current situation, Liu Xing knew that the Deep Diving Society was probably the largest secret cult in the Island Nation, as long as nothing unexpected happened. Moreover, the leader of the Deep Diving Society should be an elder, even a leader-level Deep One, whose power might rival that of the Gralki Avatar in Panlong Town.

Therefore, Liu Xing felt that when he returned to the Island Nation for modules, he needed to be mentally prepared for confrontation.

But back to the current module.

It could now be reasonably confirmed that the opposing faction’s players in this module were likely followers of the Cult of the Cadaver or the Deep Diving Society. And the person Shi Zixuan they encountered at the airport earlier, Liu Xing suspected might be a follower of the Deep Diving Society.

Next was the number of mythical creatures in the opposing faction. Considering the context, Liu Xing believed Alice’s mention of "several" likely meant three or more but less than ten. So, the specific number should be around 1d7+2 Deep Ones. Then it depended on the luck of the opposing faction’s players to see how many Deep Ones they could summon.

As for the number of Ghouls dispatched by the Cult of the Cadaver, Liu Xing thought it would be two to three times the number of Deep Ones. After all, as the host, if the Cult of the Cadaver didn’t send out enough Ghouls, they would be looked down upon by the Deep Diving Society and considered insincere, merely using them as cannon fodder.

Therefore, Liu Xing estimated that the number of mythical creatures on the enemy’s side would likely be around twenty...

It’s getting complicated.

At this moment, Ling Ishikawa spoke up, "Miss Alice, do you now know what the Cult of the Cadaver is up to and why they’re specifically kidnapping foreign tourists?"

Alice sighed, somewhat helplessly, "We’re still investigating this because we’re not entirely sure why the Cult of the Cadaver is doing this. But one thing we can confirm is that the Cult of the Cadaver’s influence has infiltrated high levels in England, not only in the government but also in the royal family. So, it’s safe to say that our every move is probably under the control of the Cult of the Cadaver."

Liu Xing frowned, speaking up, "If that’s the case, then we’re too passive. Not only do we have fewer people than them, but we’re also under their surveillance. We’re basically at a disadvantage and can’t fight back."

Alice nodded, shrugging, "That’s right, the situation is very bad for us now. We’re inferior to the Cult of the Cadaver in every aspect. And those Cult of the Cadaver followers who are now embedded in high positions in England have been obstructing foreign professionals from entering England. So, for now, we don’t have any external support."

"Then what about the police and the military in England? Will they assist us?" Zhang Jingxu asked.

Alice thought for a moment, uncertainly saying, "I can’t be sure if the military will help us because they haven’t made any statement on this matter yet. But the police have confirmed that they’ll provide as much assistance as possible because the Cult of the Cadaver’s infiltration into the English police force isn’t severe. After all, the Cult of the Cadaver takes an upper-class route."

Liu Xing sighed, speaking, "If only the police are providing assistance, then the situation is still not optimistic. After all, the police’s firepower is very limited. Dealing with mythical creatures would require rifles."

At this point, Ryuzaki, sitting beside them, chuckled, "Great minds think alike. Although I haven’t seen those so-called mythical creatures you mentioned with my own eyes, Alice also briefed me on the characteristics of those mythical creatures. I realized that relying solely on the weapons of the police definitely won’t be enough to deal with mythical creatures. So, I’ve asked someone to bring me an automatic rifle. That way, I can provide you with some firepower support when the time comes."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, surprised to find that despite Ryuzaki’s unreliable name, he was quite competent in action. Having an automatic rifle as firepower would definitely be advantageous in small-scale battles against mythical creatures.

Yes, Liu Xing could tell that Ryuzaki was an NPC, probably a character card that hadn’t resurrected after a player’s demise, as Liu Xing noticed a faded mark on Ryuzaki’s hand. This faded mark indicated that this NPC used to be a player’s character card.

Apparently, Ryuzaki’s abbreviation as "NTR" was a result of that player’s peculiar sense of humor.

But this was actually a good thing because when a player’s character card is discarded, the items they carried wouldn’t disappear. So, Liu Xing believed Ryuzaki probably had some decent items that could assist them in this module.

Just then, Liu Xing saw Yis People coming down with Juri Sonoda and Nan Xiaoniao.

Yis People looked puzzled as he saw Liu Xing and the others sitting with Alice and Ryuzaki.

Liu Xing signaled Ling Ishikawa, who got up and walked towards Yis People, calling them over.

After a brief introduction, everyone sat down together and continued discussing the Cult of the Cadaver.

Of course, Liu Xing noticed Alice’s gaze constantly focusing on Yis People, indicating that Alice had sensed something unusual about Yis People’s situation.

After breakfast, Juri Sonoda and Lu Tianya took Nan Xiaoniao to the city center for sightseeing and shopping.

Because Juri Sonoda and Nan Xiaoniao had minimal roles in this module and would only hinder during combat encounters, it wasn’t feasible for them to accompany Liu Xing and the others.

But because this was a confrontational module, Liu Xing and the others felt that the opposing players might employ unconventional tactics, such as sending people to kidnap the three women. So, as a precaution, Lu Tianya was assigned to protect Juri Sonoda and Nan Xiaoniao.

After seeing off the three women, everyone drove to QuarryBank in the south of Manchester.

As the world’s first modern industrial city, Manchester remained England’s second-largest economic city, having successfully transitioned into a service-oriented city.

Therefore, many factories in Manchester still operated but had become tourist attractions, open for visitors. Among these, QuarryBank Textile Factory was the most famous.

Located in the outskirts, QuarryBank Textile Factory was somewhat remote, surrounded by a small residential area and vast fields, offering a picturesque view.

In the alley behind the small pub next to QuarryBank Textile Factory, Liu Xing and the others saw claw marks on the wall.

"This is the site of the first case of foreign tourists disappearing in the Manchester area. At that time, after visiting QuarryBank Textile Factory, the foreign tourist group came to this small pub to drink and rest. According to the surveillance footage in the pub, these foreign tourists left after drinking, and everything seemed normal at the time. However, for some reason, after leaving the pub, they all gathered in the alley behind the pub and then disappeared without a trace," Alice explained.

Liu Xing frowned, expressing doubt, "Without a trace? That’s not possible. I saw quite a few cameras nearby. The Cult of the Cadaver probably wouldn’t be able to avoid those cameras while kidnapping so many people."

Alice shook her head, saying helplessly, "At the time of the disappearance, there was a problem with the transformer nearby, causing a power outage, which resulted in all the cameras stopping working."

"It seems the people of the Cult of the Cadaver are quite cautious," Zhang Jingxu said, examining the claw marks on the wall. "Judging from these claw marks, they were probably made by Ghouls. But the position of these claw marks feels a bit off to me."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, carefully observing the claw marks and indeed finding something unusual about them.

Under normal circumstances, the height of a Ghoul should be similar to that of an ordinary human. But the height of these claw marks was over two meters.

Yis People stroked his chin, saying, "If the goal was to threaten those foreign tourists, the height at which the Ghouls swung their claws should be similar to their own height. So, the height of this Ghoul should be around two meters. A Ghoul that tall shouldn’t be underestimated in terms of strength."

Liu Xing nodded, realizing that for mythical creatures like Ghouls, which mainly relied on melee combat, their height essentially determined their combat prowess.

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