Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord
Chapter 218: Chloe, You Screwed Me Over!

You lost my body?!

Hughes looked at Chloe, feeling a headache coming on.

Aside from his Lord Hughes body, he only had that one usable body, and now she had lost it?

That was way too unreliable!

If he had known earlier, he would have made sure to keep that body.

And now, who knew where it had ended up?

Wait a minute.

Hughes suddenly realized—he could descend!

He could descend directly and check where that body was, and that would solve everything!

Moreover, Worker Hughes’ body could still listen to the prayers of believers, which might allow him to communicate with the outside world.

After all, Isaac and the others were still in the North.

Damn, how could he have forgotten about this?

"Where exactly was the lost box?"

"Uh, about here."

Chloe tapped the ground with her toe.

"It was in the former base of the Moths Chasing Fire."

Hughes recalled the place.

It was right under the trapdoor in the old church.

That was where they had hidden.

"Speaking of which, I haven’t seen the church after its renovation. Where did you place the door?"

"Remember how the Guardian Inscription was modified before?"

"I placed the door within the inscription."

Hughes’ eyes widened.

"You guys need to go to the Guardian Inscription to return to the hideout now?"

"Wait a second, wasn’t the Guardian Inscription completely sealed off?"

As the core of all Castel, the Guardian Inscription was of utmost importance.

Hughes had built a six-meter-thick reinforced concrete wall around it, using up all the steel ingots the steel plant had been stockpiling for ages.

"That’s only when the Guardian Inscription is inactive."

"When it’s not running, we do need to go to its physical location to enter."

Chloe blinked.

"But when it’s active, anywhere covered by the Guardian Inscription is a door."

Hughes took a deep breath.

"So what you’re saying is…"

"Exactly."

Chloe casually tore open the air, revealing a passage.

"In most of the main cathedral, you can enter directly."

"Wait, that’s impressive and all, but didn’t the Guardian Inscription cover most of Castel?"

"Why is it that only the main cathedral allows access?"

"Because our hideout isn’t that big."

"What do you mean?"

"You can think of the hideout as a space within the walls."

"We can open the door anywhere at any time."

"But I can only choose a location on the walls to enter from."

"The hideout itself is real space."

"We’ve only hidden its entrance, not linked it to another world."

"So basically, it’s more like an illusion—just a very advanced one?"

"Exactly."

Chloe nodded firmly.

"I designed the cathedral myself, so I placed the hideout underneath it."

"If you were to hollow out the entire cathedral, you’d still be able to enter the hideout even if you didn’t know where the door was."

Hughes rubbed his chin, pondering for a moment.

Then he suddenly asked, "So, the box you lost was left inside the hideout?"

"Yes."

"But you don’t know exactly where it is?"

"We know where it was originally."

"But for some reason, it must have triggered the hideout’s door."

"And where that door leads is unknown."

"In theory, it could be anywhere in the entire main cathedral."

Hughes nodded.

So, the box was still somewhere inside the cathedral.

He could just descend and sense it directly.

"Chloe, you head back first."

"I’ll have Connor help you look for the box."

"Draw a picture of it."

"By the way, was the box locked?"

"It was."

Chloe hesitated.

"But the lock is mainly for containing what’s inside."

"The box itself is more of a seal."

"It’s actually quite easy to open from the outside."

Oh, great.

That meant even if he descended, he might not be able to open the box.

Hughes felt a headache coming on.

Chloe, feeling guilty, returned to continue the search with her team.

The disappearance of the box was strange.

She was worried that whatever was inside might have gotten out.

That was an Outer God, after all.

Once Hughes confirmed that Chloe had left, he closed the door.

Then he found a comfortable position and lay back in the armchair.

He planned to check things out first.

If he was trapped inside the box and couldn’t get out, then there would be nothing he could do.

But if he could move freely…

Hughes slowly lowered his head.

His eyes gradually became vacant.

When he regained awareness, he was already seated upon the Golden Throne.

『￥%……#&%*（……！#』

A burst of static rang out in his mind.

Hughes instinctively covered his ears.

But then he realized—he wasn’t "hearing" the sound.

He was perceiving it.

This sensation felt very familiar—

A Mind Link.

Wait a minute.

Wasn’t the Mind Link something that came with the Symbiotic Contract?

Only Lord Hughes could use it, even Worker Hughes couldn’t.

The static vanished in an instant, as if it had been an illusion.

『Hello?』

『Is anyone there?』

『Are you talking to me?』

Hughes tentatively asked a few times.

There was no response.

He thought about it but couldn’t come to any conclusions.

So he turned his attention to Worker Hughes.

Worker Hughes slowly raised his head.

His blank expression quickly became vivid.

Then his consciousness sank.

When he awoke, he found himself lying on a… shelf?

The surroundings were dark.

Hughes took a moment to adjust.

It seemed he was in a room.

The room was a bit messy, but Hughes didn’t bother to look around.

He was too thrilled by the realization—

He could move!

He had descended into this Worker Hughes body countless times before.

And every time, he was trapped—either in complete darkness or completely immobile.

But now, he could actually move.

This was the first time.

"Looks like someone broke the seal on my box."

"Where am I? The main cathedral?"

Hughes moved his limbs.

Despite being bound for so long, his body wasn’t stiff.

He examined himself in the darkness.

Nothing seemed too different from before.

There was still a massive wound piercing through his chest.

And not a single drop of blood flowed from it.

Hughes touched his heart.

It seemed like only half of it remained.

It wasn’t beating.

He held his breath.

Even after counting to 200, he felt no discomfort.

The sensation was strange.

It was as if he had transcended the constraints of life.

Suddenly, Hughes’ body froze.

He slowly lowered his head and looked at his feet.

Why did it feel like the wooden floor beneath him was swaying?

He listened carefully.

The night was silent.

But occasionally, he could hear the sound of waves.

The salty sea breeze also felt oddly familiar.

"Why does this place feel like it’s on the ocean?"

Hughes’ eye twitched as he felt the faint rocking beneath his feet.

And soon, he realized where he was.

"Chloe, you screwed me over!"

"Didn’t you say the door would only open inside the main cathedral?!"

"Why the hell is the main cathedral in the middle of the ocean?!"