Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 107 Is He Crazy?

Listening to the information coming from the mind link, Zeus nodded secretly and turned his attention back to Chloe in front of him.

Those invited to the dinner were all nobles on the island - basically all of Hughes's men.

For example, Alexi had a title. Civil servants above level eight could receive a title awarded by the royal family.

Of course, they definitely don’t have a fiefdom, but this title allows them to move freely in and out of high society, which many businessmen cannot buy with money.

Therefore, Hughes and Chloe's quiet departure did not cause any ripples. At Connor's signal, Alexi had already diverted the conversation to the unpredictable weather on Castel Island.

"Sister Chloe, nice to see you again. How have you been lately?"

Chloe touched her neck uncomfortably. Ever since Zeus came to her, she felt that the gaze from the dark had suddenly become more intense.

She didn't need any special senses to feel the oppressive atmosphere, as if an invisible force permeated the air, making it difficult for her to breathe. The six-armed basilisks hiding in the shadows seemed particularly concerned about Hughes. Their gazes were like cold blades, piercing her skin painfully.

She bet that if she made a wrong move, a group of six-armed serpent monsters would rush in from the doors and windows and skin her alive.

Chloe took a few steps back, staying away from Hughes.

"what happened to you?"

"Fear"

"."

Hughes' eyelids twitched, and he coughed lightly:
"Then I'll be frank, Sister Chloe, what were you doing yesterday?"

He made up his mind that no matter how Chloe denied it, he would make her reveal some information.

The cooperation with the Fire Moth can be done slowly, but we must first have some basic understanding of this organization. If they are really that kind of crazy cultists, then the cooperation is not suitable.

As long as Castel develops slowly, he will eventually have the power to deal with these extraordinary worlds. There is no need to take extra risks.

This is the first confrontation between the two sides.

"Summon the evil god." Chloe said in a flat tone.

Zeus's expression froze instantly, the air seemed to freeze at this moment, and a trace of shock flashed across his eyes.

He really didn't expect Chloe to say that.

Hughes stared at Chloe, trying to find any trace of a joke or a lie in her expression, but Chloe's expression was extremely serious, even with a hint of sarcasm.

As expected, Chloe thought to herself, he actually didn't know what the Fire Moth meant, and his willingness to contact the Fire Moth was ultimately due to ignorance.

There is nothing to be ashamed of in ignorance, and pursuing knowledge out of ignorance is even more respectable. However, Chloe has seen too many nobles who are greedy and weak, trying to pursue the truth but are unwilling to pay the price.

"Why summon the evil god?" Zeus frowned.

Chloe raised her head, as if meeting the lord for the first time.

This seemed to be the first lord who heard their purpose and did not scream and call for guards. He was actually exploring his own purpose. Oh, that's it.

Chloe suddenly remembered the fluctuations that came from the island not long ago. This Count Zeus had also summoned the evil god.

Haha, what am I thinking about? I don’t even know how many followers of the evil god there are in this room.

Chloe said with some lack of interest: "Summon the Moth Lord and then kill it. This ritual can remove the pollution from us."

"Kill it? Take away the pollution? Isn't the Moth Lord the god you believe in?"

"It's because we believe in it that we must kill it. We can't really let the evil god descend, as that would cause disaster."

I am different from you Poseidon Church, Chloe thought to herself.

Zeus felt like his brain wasn't enough. Why did you have to kill it just because you believed in it? You summoned the evil god, but you don't want it to come. Isn't that a bit crazy?
Are these people truly sane? Are they just pretending to be sane? After some thought, Zeus decided to give up on questioning the evil god. He instead focused on the part he was familiar with, asking, "Are you performing this ritual and making such a fuss just to solve the pollution?"

"Yes, this will save a few lives."

"Can polluting that thing kill people?"

Chloe fell silent. She thought that the Earl was extremely crazy. Wasn't the pollution dangerous enough?

I've heard that the Church of Poseidon has ways to use pollution, but they are still afraid of the polluted sea. Why does he sound like he doesn't care at all?

Come to think of it, how could anyone bring a six-armed basilisk into the manor if he wasn't crazy?

The room fell silent.

I feel like communication is a bit difficult. There is neither consensus nor trust between the two sides... Perhaps more contact and understanding before talking will be more effective.

Xius was thinking about how to break the situation. Maybe he should try cooperation?

"My Lord, Beatrice seems to be in trouble."

The banshee's slightly confused voice came through the mind link.

"What's wrong?"

"She, uh, she didn't find the extraordinary item we left for her."

The so-called extraordinary items are actually clues that the banshees deliberately left for Beatrice.

Zeus knew that the supernatural aura in the manor could not be hidden from the investigator, so he simply gave her some supernatural items to reassure her.

It was a can of "sugar" that Nora left for him. It was something that could clean up pollution. Hughes didn't know what it was exactly, but it should be enough to attract the investigator's attention.

If Beatrice is left alone, she will easily cause trouble, and even explanations may not be effective. But if she is allowed to discover some clues on her own, it will be easy for her to believe.

After all, she found it herself and came to the conclusion herself. How could she not believe in herself?

"You guys hid it too well?"

"No, it's on the table, you can see it as soon as you enter the door."

"She didn't go looking for him?"

"She searched the table for a long time, even checking for any compartments—but she couldn't find the jar on the table."

『.』

"My Lord, what should we do now? She seems to have lost track of time. It's time for the maid to go find her. Should we send her over?"

The corner of Xius's eye twitched. This female investigator is too incompetent. She can't even find this?
No, it shouldn't be like that. She could use her extraordinary abilities to find it, but why couldn't she find it? Was it just bad luck? How could that be possible?

"Cough cough."

Chloe coughed lightly, and Hughes looked over.

"Is that Miss Beatrice in trouble?"

Hughes raised an eyebrow.

"Don't look at me like that. I left a mark on her. She's been in that room up there for quite some time, rummaging around in a hurry."

"She's in some trouble."

"Why don't I go find her? I can probably guess what you're doing. It's hard to hide it from an investigator with so many people. I'll provide you with some help."

(End of this chapter)