Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 480: Catching Romero

"Alright, shall we try our luck at the Cult of the Cadaver’s stronghold? Romero might be hiding there. After all, he shouldn’t have left the Manchester downtown area yet. Apart from that stronghold, Romero can only head to the north end. But his home is a bit far from there, so I think Romero, to be on the safe side, would probably go to that stronghold," Liu Xing said.

Zhang Jingxu nodded, smiling. "I think it’s worth checking out. There should be fewer than ten Cult of the Cadaver followers at that stronghold. We can easily handle them. Even if we can’t catch Romero, we can still make some noise."

"Agreed."

The others expressed their readiness to give it a try.

So, this time, apart from Juri Sonoda and others who were non-combatants, staying at the Safe Point, Chen Fuping and Yuan Chen were left in charge of watching over Romero’s parents. The rest of them moved out together, preparing to remove that stronghold.

Soon enough, Liu Xing and his group arrived downstairs at the stronghold.

The Cult of the Cadaver’s stronghold was located in the basement of a bar, which used to be Alexander’s property.

"Liu Xing, you all have your police officer badges, right?" Alice said over the radio.

Liu Xing glanced at Ling Ishikawa and the others, who nodded, indicating they had their police officer badges.

Liu Xing also checked his pocket and found his police officer badge. He then said, "Yes, we all have our police officer badges. Are we going in for a routine check?"

"Yes," Alice replied. "You guys, along with Ryuzaki and me, will go in first for the check. Let’s assess the situation inside the bar."

"Okay." Liu Xing chambered a round in his gun because if this was indeed the Cult of the Cadaver’s stronghold, a fight was inevitable.

Liu Xing and the others entered the bar, while Miguel and the rest stayed in the car.

Since bars usually operated at night, even though the bar was open now, there were only a few waitstaff cleaning up. Behind the counter, there was only one person who seemed to be the owner, playing on their mobile phone.

As Liu Xing and his team walked in, the person spoke up, "Sorry, gentlemen and ladies, we haven’t officially started business yet. Please come back after eight o’clock."

Alice chuckled, taking out her police officer badge. "Sorry, we’re not here for drinks. We’re here for an inspection. We suspect you may be harboring a suspect we’re looking for. So, we’d like to search your bar."

Liu Xing and the others also presented their police officer badges.

The person’s expression changed, somewhat angrily saying, "Madam, please refrain from baseless accusations against our bar. Our bar is a legitimate establishment..."

Before the person could finish, Alice interrupted, "Alright, whether your bar is legitimate or not is not our concern. We just want to know if you’re harboring any Wanted Criminals. So, please cooperate with our police investigation."

The person frowned, reluctantly saying, "You may conduct your inspection, but you must present a search warrant. Otherwise, I won’t cooperate."

Ryuzaki, blunt as ever, took out his gun and slammed it on the counter, sneering, "Does this search warrant work for you? I suggest you cooperate with us, as we’re just here for a routine check. We don’t need a warrant. If you keep obstructing us here, we might have to take you back to the police station for a chat."

The person, threatened by Ryuzaki, could only nod darkly, indicating his surrender.

"Liu Xing, Zhang Jingxu, the two of you stay here and watch this guy and the other waitstaff. If they make any suspicious moves, detain them. Don’t give them any leeway. They only understand force," Ryuzaki said, putting away his gun with a smile.

The person now dared not speak out in anger.

Then, Liu Xing and the others split into pairs and began their pretended search in the bar.

Of course, Liu Xing and the others knew where the basement of this bar was—the staff break room.

They intentionally avoided the break room and gathered there at the end.

At this point, Liu Xing also noticed the nervousness on the faces of the nearby waitstaff.

It seemed the staff break room was indeed suspicious.

Just as Liu Xing pushed open the door to the break room, a waiter tried to come closer. Ryuzaki immediately raised his gun and shouted loudly, "What do you think you’re doing? Don’t come any closer!"

The waiter, frightened, raised his hands, crying, "Nothing, I just have some things inside, and I’m afraid you’ll find them."

Alice chuckled and said seriously, "As long as your things aren’t illegal items, it’s okay if we find them. We won’t take your things away arbitrarily. So, please wait outside with peace of mind. If you find that we’ve taken anything of yours secretly, you can file a complaint through the appropriate channels... Alright, Ling Ishikawa, you stay at the door and don’t let anyone in."

Ling Ishikawa nodded and took out his gun, guarding the door.

Entering the break room, Alice contacted Miguel and the others in the car via the radio, "Miguel, you guys get ready now. Be prepared to support us at any time. I can almost confirm that there’s something wrong with this bar."

"OK." Miguel’s response was concise and forceful as always.

After putting down the radio, Alice took out her gun and approached a storage cabinet. According to Romero’s father’s confession, this was the entrance to the Cult of the Cadaver’s stronghold.

Ryuzaki stepped forward and directly moved the storage cabinet aside, revealing a hidden door on the wall.

At the same time, the sound of dice hitting the ground was heard, followed by a commotion outside the door.

"What do you think you’re doing? Now, squat down and put your hands on your head, or I’ll shoot!" Ling Ishikawa’s voice came from outside the door.

Liu Xing frowned, knowing that those waitstaff were all members of the Cult of the Cadaver, and now they were about to act!

Before Liu Xing and the others could leave the break room, gunshots rang out outside, and the sound of dice hitting the ground continued incessantly.

However, when Liu Xing and the others pushed the door open, they found that the battle had already ended. The waitstaff, holding guns, were lying on the ground, blood pooling around them. It seemed unlikely that they would survive.

At this moment, Miguel and the others rushed into the bar.

"These waitstaff suddenly pulled out their guns and were about to shoot at us, so we decisively retaliated. Luckily, we didn’t make any shooting mistakes this time and took care of them," Ling Ishikawa said, still somewhat shaken.

Liu Xing nodded. Just as he was about to speak, Miguel, who had just arrived, exclaimed, "Oh no, it seems like the people in the basement are preparing to escape!"

Liu Xing frowned, cursing under his breath, "Damn it, these guys suddenly attacked to buy time for the people in the basement. We need to chase them!"n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Alice nodded, saying, "Leave two people to maintain order at the bar entrance and inform Chris of what’s happening here."

Buke and Jack, who were at the outermost position, nodded.

Then, Liu Xing and the others forcibly opened the hidden door and entered the Cult of the Cadaver’s stronghold.

Similar to the one near the villa area subway station earlier, this stronghold was also very crude, with nothing but a table and a few chairs.

On the table, there was a box of steaming pizza, with only a few slices taken, and a carton of milk.

It seemed that Romero had likely just left.

After a brief search, Liu Xing found an exit hidden behind a painting, directly connected to the sewer.

But now the problem arose—where should they chase?

Because the sewer environment was already poor, and Cult of the Cadaver members often operated there, the place was littered with messy footprints, making it impossible to guess where the escaping person might have gone.

So, it was time to take a chance.

"Let’s split into two groups again. Miguel and Hu Li have strong tracking abilities, so they will lead each group," Yis People suggested.

So, Liu Xing, Ling Ishikawa, Alice, Miguel, and Ryuzaki continued to chase to the right.

Fortunately, there were no forked paths in this part of the sewer, so Liu Xing and his team soon heard the footsteps of several people ahead.

"There are five people ahead, four adults and a child," Miguel said succinctly.

It seemed that Romero was among them.

After ensuring their guns were loaded, Liu Xing and the others hurried forward.

After turning a corner, Liu Xing saw Romero and the others running ahead.

"Romero, you’re surrounded now. Stop immediately and surrender for questioning, or we’ll shoot!" Alice shouted loudly.

However, Romero and the others ignored them and continued to run.

"Shoot, but try to avoid Romero’s wife and son. As long as we stop Romero, his wife and son won’t escape," Alice said, raising her gun.

"Understood."

Liu Xing and the others pulled out their guns and began to shoot.

Then, another round of dice hitting the ground was heard.

Because there were too many Judgment data needed, KP Li Shunchan did not provide detailed information this time, but directly provided the results.

Two Cult of the Cadaver followers were directly killed.

Romero was hit by three bullets, but they all hit non-lethal areas like his arms, so there was no life-threatening danger.

Romero’s wife was not shot, but Romero’s son was hit by a ricochet, and judging from the damage of 5 points, it should be considered a serious injury.

Because Romero and his son were shot and fell to the ground, Romero’s wife could only stand there, at a loss.

When Liu Xing and the others reached Romero’s side, Romero’s wife said something in Argentine Spanish.

Fortunately, Hu Li’s Magic Spells effect on Liu Xing still existed, so Liu Xing understood that Romero’s wife hoped they would let Romero go.

Liu Xing shook his head and said to Romero’s wife, "I believe you know what your husband has done. We must take him back to the police station for questioning now. Please cooperate with our actions. Also, your child needs immediate medical attention."

At this moment, Romero suddenly spoke in English, "Please don’t tell my wife about the Cult of the Cadaver. She doesn’t know that I’m involved with them and hasn’t participated in any events related to the Cult of the Cadaver. Right now, she thinks you’re a group of wanted bandits. I’m sure you understand what I mean."

Liu Xing glanced at Alice, and Alice nodded, saying, "Okay, we’ll let your wife take your son to the hospital for treatment. But you have to obediently come with us for questioning, and I hope you can tell us about the Cult of the Cadaver, because you should know that you’ve been abandoned by them."

Romero nodded, smiling bitterly. "Of course, I understand. When Rayna asked me to come here, I knew that the Cult of the Cadaver had already given up on me, because they never treated me as one of their own. So, after I make sure my wife and son arrive at the hospital, I will tell you everything you want to know."

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, not expecting Romero to say that, but it was also possible that Romero intended to defect.

So, after informing Zhang Jingxu and the others to return, Liu Xing and the others escorted Romero back to the bar. However, to fulfill Romero’s request, Ryuzaki found a hood and earplugs for Romero’s wife to wear, ensuring that Romero’s wife would not know her husband’s true identity. After all, Chris should be waiting at the bar by now.

Sure enough, Chris was now in the bar with a team of fully armed police officers. The Cult of the Cadaver followers who had been killed had already been cleared away.

When Chris saw Romero, he sighed and said, "Romero, I never thought you would be part of the Cult of the Cadaver. I had planned to groom you as my successor."

Romero shook his head helplessly and said, "I know, Chief Chris, you’ve always been very good to me, never discriminating against me because of my nationality or disability. But I’ve gotten too deeply involved with the Cult of the Cadaver now, with no chance of turning back. By the way, Chief Chris, my son was just shot. I hope you can arrange for a police car to take my son to the hospital."

Chris nodded and turned to find a police officer to take Romero’s wife and son away. Then, Chris and Liu Xing’s group returned to the Safe Point together, with Romero naturally in tow.

On the way, Chris said somewhat helplessly, "Should I say you guys are bold or undisciplined? You actually dared to kidnap Romero’s parents in downtown Manchester and then shoot several waitstaff in the bar. You should know that the police station’s phone was almost overwhelmed just now because of these two incidents."

Alice quickly smiled and said, "Mr. Chris, I also know that we had to act out of necessity. If we didn’t deal with Romero right away, he would have escaped. So, we had no choice."

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