Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 241: Large-Scale Biochemical Weapons

"By the way, Liu Xing," Yin En remarked, "I heard from Honda Tetsuya that the headmaster seems to be skilled in magic, so you should be cautious around him."

Liu Xing nodded in acknowledgment. The headmaster's proficiency in magic was within Liu Xing's expectations, given that the headmaster was considered a high-ranking member of the Deep Sea Gospel Society. It made sense that he would have learned some spells.

At that moment, Juri Sonoda looked puzzled and said, "Deep Sea Gospel Society... I think I've heard of that organization."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow and asked, "What? Juri, you know about the Deep Sea Gospel Society? Is it a publicly known organization?"

Juri Sonoda shook her head and, after a moment of contemplation, suddenly snapped her fingers, smiling as she said, "I finally remembered. I heard about this Deep Sea Gospel Society in Ziwu City a few years ago."

According to Juri Sonoda's account, Liu Xing learned that a self-proclaimed Deep Sea Gospel Society had conducted missionary work in Ziwu City several years ago. However, due to a murder case, the local authorities had promptly disbanded the Deep Sea Gospel Society in Ziwu City. Juri Sonoda, who was still an intern journalist at the time, had heard about this incident. However, due to her involvement in another news story at the time, she hadn't paid much attention to the Deep Sea Gospel Society.

"In that case, it seems that the official authorities in Island Nation have already blacklisted the Deep Sea Gospel Society," Liu Xing remarked, stroking his chin.

Juri Sonoda nodded and took out her phone. "Yes, I asked my colleagues in Island Nation to investigate the Deep Sea Gospel Society. They found that the Island Nation authorities have indeed classified it as a cult and arrested over a dozen Deep Sea Gospel Society members from the Shikoku region. However, it seems like a mere show of force; they only arrested some scapegoats and haven't apprehended any high-ranking members of the Deep Sea Gospel Society."

Liu Xing chuckled with a hint of sarcasm in his tone. "Haha, even though the Deep Sea Gospel Society is officially recognized as a cult, the Island Nation authorities dare not take real action against them. After all, there's a mythical creature backing the Deep Sea Gospel Society. The Island Nation authorities can't afford to provoke them. So, they just randomly arrest a couple of scapegoats to appease the public."

Juri Sonoda nodded in agreement and glanced at her phone. "Well then, let's go have dinner. It's already nearly six o'clock."

Liu Xing and Juri Sonoda arrived at the restaurant, finding it unusually lively. It seemed like all the passengers from the Yueshihao cruise had gathered.

"Um, if I remember correctly, there's a dance party tonight, starting at six, so that's probably why there are so many people here," Juri Sonoda explained to Liu Xing.

Liu Xing nodded without saying anything, scanning the crowd for Yin En and the others.

However, he hadn't spotted Yin En yet. Instead, he saw Bai Hecheng and Mo Jin... or rather, he noticed Mo Jin's distinctive Innsmouth Face, which was quite "unique." Bai Hecheng and Mo Jin didn't have anyone else around them, as ordinary tourists tended to keep their distance from Mo Jin. Therefore, Bai Hecheng and Mo Jin stood out.

But at that moment, Liu Xing had a question in his mind. What were Bai Hecheng and Mo Jin doing? Had they already prepared for a ritual and were now enjoying themselves?

Liu Xing and Juri Sonoda found an empty table and sat down. A waiter immediately approached, placing a tray with three red wine glasses filled with a champagne-like liquid.

Liu Xing furrowed his brow, picked up two of the red wine glasses, and asked with a smile, "Is this champagne? It doesn't quite look like it."

The waiter maintained a formulaic smile and replied, "This is a special cocktail from our restaurant. It primarily consists of champagne, so it might resemble regular champagne in appearance. However, the taste is slightly different. We hope you'll enjoy it."

Liu Xing nodded, and after the waiter left, Juri Sonoda asked in a hushed tone, "Is there something wrong with this champagne?"

Liu Xing nodded and then shook his head, saying, "I can't be certain at the moment, but given the current situation, it's better to be safe than sorry."

Liu Xing then contacted KP Li Shunchan. "KP, can I use an inspiration to determine if this drink is suspicious?"

KP Li Shunchan chuckled and replied, "Hey, Liu Xing, your inspiration is at 90. I can't just let you off that easily. So, if you want to use an inspiration check now, and if it succeeds, you can follow it up with a medical check with a 20% reduced success rate. If the inspiration check fails, you can choose to attempt a challenging medical check. In the end, if you pass both checks, I'll tell you the truth. If you only pass one, I can provide partial information."

Liu Xing nodded and said with a smile, "Okay, my medical skill is quite high, and as long as I can pass the inspiration check, it's enough for me."

Liu Xing, Inspiration Check: 76/90, Success.

Liu Xing, Medical Check: 43/58 (78), Success.

Fortunately, both checks were successful.

"So, when you received this cocktail, you realized that it might be suspicious. After conducting a simple analysis, you found that it likely contains a hypnotic substance. However, the hypnotic effect won't take effect quickly," KP Li Shunchan explained.

Liu Xing nodded, took a sip of the drink, and closed his eyes in contemplation for a moment. He then said to Juri Sonoda, "Don't drink this cocktail. There seems to be a hypnotic component inside, and it appears to be a delayed-effect type. I believe they intend to put us in a deep sleep by tomorrow morning, preventing anyone from stopping their ritual. We would then sink to the bottom of the sea along with the Yueshihao cruise."

Juri Sonoda fully trusted Liu Xing's words and nodded, saying, "I understand. I'll send a message to Shizuka and the others, advising them not to drink these cocktails."

Liu Xing nodded in agreement and also informed Yin En about the cocktail situation, asking him to relay the message to Honda Tetsuya.

Yin En's reply came quickly, confirming that he had also realized the drink was suspicious. However, as Yin En was not a professional, he couldn't pinpoint the specific issue with the cocktail. Nonetheless, Yin En had warned Takayanagi Aoyin and the others not to drink it, and he had also alerted Honda Tetsuya.

"Damn, these fanatics really came up with a sinister plan, trying to use a hypnotic drug to make us fall into a deep sleep and prevent us from interfering with their ritual. Otherwise, I fear we'd end up sleeping with the Yueshihao cruise at the bottom of the sea tomorrow morning," Juri Sonoda expressed her frustration.

Liu Xing smiled and shook his head, saying, "Well, Juri Sonoda, with your intelligence as a renowned journalist, I believe you can find the weaknesses in these fanatics' plans. I might just read news headlines about a famous journalist exposing their conspiracy."

Juri Sonoda playfully scolded Liu Xing, saying, "Hmph, Liu Xing, don't think I can't see through you. You're teasing me, aren't you? I know my limitations. If these fanatics were ordinary people, I might have a chance to find their flaws. But these fanatics have a mythical creature backing them, and that's something I can't mess with."

Liu Xing shrugged with a smile. However, he looked at the ordinary tourists indulging in food and drinks and furrowed his brow. "Sigh, although we can stop Yin En and Shizuka from drinking these doctored cocktails, we can't prevent the other ordinary tourists. We can't just stand up and accuse the cocktails of being tampered with; we have no evidence, and the effects of whatever they put in these drinks won't take effect until tomorrow morning. We can't prove anything right now."

At that moment, Juri Sonoda shook her head, put on a mysterious smile, and said, "I'll go to my room to get something. Liu Xing, stay here and don't move."

After saying that, Juri Sonoda left.

Liu Xing watched Juri Sonoda's departing figure and had a feeling that something was amiss. Did he just get used by Juri Sonoda?

After a while, a smiling Juri Sonoda returned to Liu Xing, holding a can in her hand.

As soon as Liu Xing saw the can, he felt a chill run down his spine and a sense of impending danger. It was as if opening that can would summon a terrible Great Old One! Yes, the name on the can was "Canned Sardines!"

What was even more astonishing was that Liu Xing could see the attributes of the canned sardines.

Canned Sardines: Large-scale biochemical weapon. When opened, it will cause a temporary sanity hit to living creatures within a certain range. They will lose 1d2 sanity points within an hour and automatically recover the lost sanity points after an hour. When used on certain mythical creatures, it will have special effects, with the specific range and duration depending on the situation. The temporary sanity hit effect is cumulative.

Liu Xing had no words. The fact that Cthulhu Role-Playing Game Hall had classified canned sardines as an item, with the ability to affect mythical creatures, left him stunned. He was even considering buying a few canned sardines for backup... but then again, maybe not, as canned sardines were indiscriminate, and the cumulative sanity hit effect was concerning.

Liu Xing then looked at Juri Sonoda with a shocked expression and asked, his voice trembling, "Juri, why do you carry around this large-scale biochemical weapon? Are you also one of the fanatics?"

Juri Sonoda chuckled and said, "Liu Xing, you really know your stuff. You even understand the power of these canned sardines. When I was traveling to the Nordic countries last year, I came across these canned sardines. At the time, I didn't know their true power, so I opened one to try it. The taste left a lasting impression on me, so I bought a few cans and have been carrying them with me ever since. I intended to use them in case of danger, and now, it's the perfect time for these canned sardines to shine."

Liu Xing nodded in agreement. Opening that can of sardines could effectively end the dance party tonight, and the restaurant would remain closed until tomorrow. However, out of humanitarian considerations, Liu Xing and Juri Sonoda each sent a text message to Yin En and Shizuka.

Liu Xing's message to Yin En contained only four words: "Canned Sardines."

Yin En's immediate reply consisted of just two words: "Oh no!"

Then, Liu Xing told Juri Sonoda, "Juri, you go ahead."

Knowing the power of the canned sardines, Juri Sonoda didn't hesitate and patted Liu Xing's shoulder before saying, "I'll wait for you outside."

Juri Sonoda left quietly.

Liu Xing took a deep breath, surveyed his surroundings, and made sure no one was watching him. When he was certain he had some privacy, Liu Xing decisively said to KP Li Shunchan, "KP, I want to use the canned sardines. Do I need to make any checks?"

KP Li Shunchan sighed, sounding exasperated, and said, "Liu Xing, oh Liu Xing, I never expected you to be the kind of person who would do anything to achieve your goals, even resorting to using canned sardines, a cruel and inhumane large-scale biochemical weapon. You're quite ruthless. Alright, you can make a luck check now. If you fail, you'll also be affected by the canned sardines, and others will find out that you opened it!"

Liu Xing nodded; he had expected this.

Liu Xing, Luck Check: 56/80, Success.

KP Li Shunchan sighed once more, expressing resignation, and said, "Fine, you've successfully used the canned sardines. I hope you won't feel guilty."

With that, Liu Xing placed the canned sardines on the ground, quickly pulled the tab, and then unhesitatingly kicked it towards the center of the restaurant. Finally, he left the restaurant decisively.

One second later, the previously bustling restaurant fell silent, followed by a chorus of screams. Tourists rushed out of the restaurant, and some of those with low "Toxin Resistance" began vomiting over the cruise ship's railings.

As the initiator of the chaos, Liu Xing could only console himself that he had done it for the good of these tourists, preventing them from unknowingly falling into a deep sleep. Although the tourists were currently suffering, they would be safe from harm. At least, that's what he told himself.

Liu Xing also noticed a pale-faced Bai Hecheng and Mo Jin coming out of the restaurant. They knew that their first plan had failed.

Bai Hecheng, upon seeing Liu Xing, guessed that he was responsible for opening the canned sardines. He approached with a cold smile and said, "Liu Xing, you really live up to expectations."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, chuckled, and remained silent.

Seeing Liu Xing's reaction, Bai Hecheng could only sigh and turn away.

This round, Liu Xing had won.

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