Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Alice pondered for a moment before speaking, "So, Mr. Chris, do you have any way to transfer Romero to another city at this point? At least this way, Romero won’t be able to continue gathering intelligence for the Cult of the Cadaver."

Chris paused for a moment before responding, "Well... It’s quite difficult to relocate Romero at this time. I would need to coordinate with the police chiefs of other cities, and Romero has cultivated many allies within the police force over the years. Even if we were to move him to another city, he could still access various intelligence sources almost immediately."

At this point, Yis People reached for the phone in Alice’s hand and said earnestly, "Mr. Chris, could you provide us with Romero’s home address?"

Liu Xing furrowed his brows, instantly understanding Yis People’s intentions.

Chris naturally grasped Yis People’s intentions as well. "Mr. Liu Xing, are you suggesting a direct abduction or assassination of Romero?"

Yis People nodded, affirming, "Yes, that’s the best option we have now. We can no longer afford to let Romero, this mole, continue to gather intelligence for the Cult of the Cadaver. It puts us in an increasingly vulnerable position. Moreover, I’m certain Romero is currently probing for the location of our Safe Point, making it easier for the Cult of the Cadaver to wipe us out."

Chris pondered for a moment before speaking, "Indeed, there is a possibility. Just the other day, I heard that Romero privately treated a deputy chief to dinner and presented him with numerous gifts. Initially, I thought Romero did it to further his own career aspirations. However, in light of recent events, Romero is likely trying to turn that deputy chief, making him work for the Cult of the Cadaver. And indeed, that deputy chief is aware of the location of our Safe Point."

"In that case, we have no choice but to act preemptively. So, Mr. Chris, please provide us with Romero’s address. We must deal with this threat as soon as possible," Yis People interjected.

Thus, Chris disclosed Romero’s home address.

"Alright, I need to convene a meeting at the police station regarding the Cult of the Cadaver. I’ll inform you if there are any developments," Chris concluded before hanging up.

Liu Xing glanced at Yis People, surprised to find him advocating for a direct confrontation with Romero.

However, it seemed like a viable option. After all, as the saying goes, "It’s better to cut off one finger than to injure ten." In the confrontational module of the Cthulhu RPG Game, eliminating ten NPCs from the opposing faction pales in comparison to taking down one player from the opposing faction.

"Mr. Liu Xing, are you certain we should go after Romero?" Zhang Jingxu frowned as he voiced his concerns. "I don’t think it’s a good idea. Romero is likely wary of us by now. He might have several Cult of the Cadaver devotees protecting him in secret. So, our attempt might backfire."

Yis People chuckled and shook his head, "Our primary target is still Romero. However, if necessary, we can switch to our secondary target—Romero’s family."

Liu Xing furrowed his brows upon hearing this. It appeared that Yis People was indeed ruthless, willing to involve Romero’s family directly.

Observing the change in the group’s expressions, Yis People explained, "I understand you may be concerned about the consequences of involving innocent family members. However, it’s highly likely that Romero’s family has already aligned themselves with the Cult of the Cadaver. After all, Romero currently uses his family to transmit intelligence to the Cult of the Cadaver. Therefore, there’s no need for us to hesitate in dealing with Romero’s family. Unlike Romero, even if the Cult of the Cadaver is protecting them, we can easily abduct them. Romero’s family are likely just ordinary people, and the cost for us would be lower than dealing with Romero himself."

Typically, the impact of kidnapping a group of ordinary people would be far less significant than kidnapping a high-ranking official from the police force. Hence, even if the Cult of the Cadaver attempted to exploit the kidnapping, it wouldn’t cause much turmoil.

"Alright, I agree with Mr. Liu Xing’s suggestion. I remember reading in the files that Romero has a very close relationship with his family. So, when Romero learns that his family has been kidnapped, he might hesitate in his loyalty to the Cult of the Cadaver," Alice added.

Yis People nodded in agreement, "Exactly my thoughts. However, let me share some information from my conversation with Isabella that I haven’t disclosed yet. In brief, Isabella also knows about a secret passage in the underground of EinsCastle. However, since Isabella has been under Gary’s confinement for a long time, she’s unaware of the current status of the underground passage. Nevertheless, Isabella provided us with a reliable clue."

"At the cliff behind EinsCastle, there’s actually a climbable route. This route was left by the first owner of EinsCastle during the continuous English Civil War. The first owner deliberately arranged for workers to carve some grooves on the cliff behind, facilitating climbing. So, if we climb up that route, it should be much easier. However, we’re unsure about the current condition of these grooves due to the passage of time," Yis People explained while gesturing on Miguel’s projected 3D model.

"So, that’s how the climbable route came about. I thought it was quite suitable for us before, as it offers great concealment and doesn’t require advanced rock climbing skills," Miguel remarked, slightly astonished.

Yis People chuckled and nodded, "Seems like we’re fortunate that the climbable route is still intact. Moreover, it’s our best option. Now, let’s decide who will be involved in kidnapping Romero’s family. According to Chris, Romero’s family in Manchester consists only of his parents and his wife."

Ryuzaki contemplated for a moment before earnestly suggesting, "In kidnapping operations, quality is more important than quantity. Having too many people can raise suspicion and draw attention. Conversely, too few people may lead to an inability to control all targets and could be hindered by external factors. Therefore, I propose deploying six individuals for this operation: two for reconnaissance and lookout while the remaining four handle the operation. Additionally, since we might encounter Cult of the Cadaver devotees, we must have a professional present."

By "professional," Ryuzaki was referring to Zhang Jingxu.

So, Zhang Jingxu stepped forward and said, "OK, then I’ll volunteer for this kidnapping operation..."

Before Zhang Jingxu could finish his sentence, Ryuzaki shook his head and said, "For safety reasons, we need some fresh faces for this kidnapping operation. If our faces are captured by the Cult of the Cadaver, our identities as police officers will become a burden. So, this time, besides me, Zhang Jingxu, it’s better for you not to participate."

Zhang Jingxu shrugged and nodded in agreement.

After some discussion, Ryuzaki took charge of the kidnapping operation, with the team consisting of Chen Fuping, Yuan Chen, Miguel, Buke, and Jack.

Once the kidnapping team left the Safe Point, Liu Xing and the others returned to their rooms without a word.

"Fortunately, Shi Zixuan eventually chose to betray them, bringing us so much intelligence. Otherwise, dealing with Bai Hecheng and his group would have been much more difficult," Ling Ishikawa remarked.

Liu Xing nodded. Without the information provided by Shi Zixuan, they wouldn’t have known that Rayna was Alexander or that Romero was the undercover agent in the police force.

So, Shi Zixuan was indeed a valuable ally. Liu Xing had forgiven Shi Zixuan for her previous actions.

Yis People shrugged, smiling as he said, "It’s quite normal for Shi Zixuan to betray them in the end. After all, she was just hired help. Even if her camp failed this mission, she wouldn’t suffer any losses because Bai Hecheng most likely paid her more than the rewards for successfully completing this module. Besides, she won’t be banned from future modules."

"Most importantly, for Shi Zixuan, the Cult of the Cadaver successfully controlling England isn’t good news. For all non-fanatic believer professions in this parallel world, the Cult of the Cadaver emerging into the open isn’t a good sign. It means that the influence of secret cults in this parallel world is rising, giving fanatic believer professions a greater advantage. Non-fanatic believer professions will face increased difficulty in completing modules when secret cult forces are on the rise," Zhang Jingxu explained seriously.

This was a rule tested and recognized by many players in the USB drive provided by Yin En to Liu Xing.

"Alright, let’s not discuss Shi Zixuan anymore since she should have left this module by now. Let’s talk about how to eliminate Ace. I believe Ace would be willing to cooperate with us, considering that staying in the Cult of the Cadaver any longer will only lead to his downfall," Liu Xing changed the subject.

Zhang Jingxu nodded, saying, "Yes, Ace should realize that this module is his best chance to leave the Cult of the Cadaver. No matter the cost, it’s worth it. It’s better to take a risk than to stay and suffer. So, as long as we create a suitable opportunity for Ace to defect, he will seize it."

"But I think Bai Hecheng might also be aware of this. So, Ace is likely restricted in his movements and can only act within EinsCastle. It won’t be easy for us to reach Ace," Ling Ishikawa expressed his concern.

Liu Xing shrugged, smiling, "Actually, we don’t need to seek Ace’s cooperation deliberately or discuss it with him in advance. When we infiltrate EinsCastle for sabotage, Ace will definitely create an opportunity to escape for himself. So, we don’t need to worry too much. Let’s just focus on our own tasks."

Zhang Jingxu nodded in agreement.

"By the way, what do you think the chances are that Ryuzaki and the others will successfully kidnap Romero’s family? And perhaps, they might even capture Romero himself," Yis People said with a smile.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, saying, "Considering Ryuzaki and their capabilities, as long as there are no major mishaps, they should be able to easily capture Romero’s family. Even if something unexpected happens, they should still be able to retreat safely. However, capturing Romero himself is almost impossible because he’s the last player in Bai Hecheng’s camp. Bai Hecheng should have informed him of Shi Zixuan’s betrayal, so Romero is most likely preparing to escape."

Ling Ishikawa stroked his chin, affirming, "Romero will definitely choose to abandon his family now. After all, he should know that if we capture him, he’ll at least be eliminated from the game. So, unless Romero values his family greatly in his character setup, we won’t be able to threaten him even if we capture his family."

Liu Xing shrugged, chuckling, "It’s better than nothing. Even if we can’t threaten Romero, we can still disgust him. Let him know that we’re not to be trifled with. But what I’m most worried about now is that while we have a high chance of successfully infiltrating EinsCastle, it won’t be easy to escape. Just the first wave of gunfire will be enough to give us a hard time."

After a moment of silence, Ling Ishikawa sighed and said, "We’ll just have to play it by ear. However many of us can escape, that’s how many..."

At that moment, KP Li Shunchan suddenly spoke up, "Because both factions’ players have completed the second stage Mission ahead of schedule, the second stage is now over, officially entering the third stage, which is the final stage of this module — the battle for EinsCastle."

Then, KP Li Shunchan suddenly cut off.

"KP, are you still there? You haven’t told us what our specific Mission is for this third stage," Liu Xing contacted KP Li Shunchan.

After a while, KP Li Shunchan finally responded, "Your final Mission for this third stage hasn’t been issued yet. This is because you lost to Bai Hecheng’s faction in the second stage, so now Bai Hecheng’s faction has the initiative for the third stage. You understand what I mean."

Liu Xing nodded. In simple terms, the third stage was a battle of offense and defense, but Bai Hecheng’s faction was the one setting the questions.

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