Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Chapter 20: Can You Even Do That?

Liu Xing gazed at the scroll of parchment, almost certain that it contained magical incantations, or perhaps a method to summon an Eldritch God. It seemed likely that this was the very scroll obtained by the lord of the Castle three centuries ago, acquired from a Secret Society.

However, Liu Xing was now faced with a dilemma: to take the parchment or not. It was almost guaranteed to be an essential item in this Cthulhu RPG Game, possibly a key prop that could significantly alter the course of the narrative.

But there was something ominously unsettling about the parchment—it practically only lacked a sign next to it saying, "Take at the cost of SAN," such was the foreboding aura it exuded.

Consequently, Liu Xing felt a pang of apprehension. With zero knowledge of the Cthulhu Mythos, meddling with such an artifact would undoubtedly result in the loss of SAN points. The fear was that the scroll might also inflict additional maladies, such as blindness, skin lesions, or loss of speech. After all, acquiring power beyond the mundane often demanded a hefty toll, and Liu Xing had no desire to become a blind monk on the spot.

Yet, the campaign was clearly progressing into its middle to late stages, and it wouldn't be long before Liu Xing and the other players confronted the BOSS, likely a Wizard.

The scroll could well be part of the BOSS's equipment, as the difference in a Wizard's spellcasting with or without a spellbook was stark in the context of the Cthulhu Mythos.

Hence, by taking the scroll, Liu Xing would effectively weaken the BOSS's combat abilities.

With that thought, Liu Xing gritted his teeth and resolved to take the parchment in hand.

The moment Liu Xing lifted the scroll, a chilling cold invaded his body, causing an involuntary shudder.

At this juncture, the somewhat schadenfreude-fueled KP004 spoke up, "As you grasp the parchment, a bone-chilling cold emanates from it, sweeping through your entire being. You are paralyzed with an indescribable numbness, reducing all your attributes by 10 points temporarily for 1d10 hours. Furthermore, this utterly unforeseen event has dealt a severe blow to your psyche, thus a SAN check is in order. Success will cost you two points of SAN, but failure will result in a loss of 1d6+2 SAN points! Let us proceed with the delightful SAN check—I am quite looking forward to the possibility of your insanity!"

A loss of more than five SAN points at once could plunge a player into temporary madness, choosing randomly from among ten symptoms including hysteria, amnesia, or a catatonic state.

Clearly, Liu Xing was going to lose at least two SAN points, and at most eight.

"So, let us begin," Liu Xing said with a resigned tone.

The familiar sound of rolling dice ensued, and Liu Xing anxiously awaited the outcome.

Time check, 1d10, 3.

The first roll determined the duration of Liu Xing's temporary attribute reduction; the outcome was relatively favorable—just three hours. Given that the time was around half-past one, Liu Xing would regain his full capabilities before the Castle lord's return and the evening banquet.

But now came the critical part.

Willpower, 69/70 (temporarily reduced by 10 points), success.

I offer my gratitude to the Dice Goddess for her favor (certainly not any furtive manipulation by the author!).

Liu Xing let out a long sigh of relief, nearly having tasted defeat.

KP004 spoke with a tone of frustration bordering on disappointment, "What kind of lousy dice are these? Once this session is over, I'm getting a new set, maybe even lead-weighted ones."

Liu Xing felt as though he had overheard something monumental.

KP004 realized the slip of the tongue and quickly followed up with a smile, "Ah, you're quite lucky, despite being caught off-guard by the supernatural occurrence. Your extensive reading of supernatural novels has paid off, allowing you to quickly come to terms with the situation. You only lost two SAN points but gained two points in Cthulhu Mythos knowledge (which is usually not directly obtainable but rather acquired through encounters with mythic creatures, artifacts, or events, with the loss of SAN points equal to the knowledge gained — though there are exceptions, which I won't detail here). However, you also experienced an auditory hallucination, leading you to suspect that the chill you felt was perhaps nothing more than a figment of your overstressed mind. Therefore, please proceed with a psychoanalysis check. If successful, you could recover 1d2 SAN points."

Raising an eyebrow, Liu Xing was intrigued by KP004's approach. To divert attention from those explosive remarks, a psychoanalysis check was offered to recover SAN points. Normally, success in psychoanalysis would suggest that there was no hallucination and that the chills were not illusions, thus no SAN points would be restored. However, Liu Xing's psychoanalysis skill was at 70 points, suggesting a higher probability of success than failure. KP004 must be making this unusual check to seal Liu Xing's lips.

This, nonetheless, was a favorable turn for Liu Xing; after all, the fewer SAN points lost, the better.

Seeing no objection from Liu Xing, KP004 promptly proceeded with the check.

Psychoanalysis, 29/70, success.

Recovery of SAN points, 1d2, resulted in 2.

Liu Xing's luck was as good as ever; not only did he secure the parchment, but he also managed to avoid losing any SAN points.

"You analyze your mental state and conclude that sneaking into this study room has strained your nerves. You've come to believe that the recent experiences were mere hallucinations. But because your SAN has been restored, you have not gained any Cthulhu knowledge," KP004 said in an almost threatening tone towards the end.

Liu Xing clearly understood the subtext in KP004's words, nodding with a chuckle to acknowledge the unspoken agreement they had reached.

Carefully, Liu Xing placed the parchment in his pocket and looked around the study room once more. Finding nothing else worth investigating, he left the room.

Of course, Liu Xing did not forget to restore the door to its original state as much as possible, ensuring that the returning Castle lord would not immediately notice anything amiss.

Now, with time to spare, Liu Xing decided to visit the room of the Castle lord's daughter. He had a hunch that the Castle lord's daughter might be an important NPC, and considering the lord had gone to visit a friend, it stood to reason he would have taken his daughter with him.

Thus, Liu Xing found himself standing outside the room of the Castle lord's daughter.

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