Chapter 1973 U: Beyond Major Events (62)_1

Shiller let out a gentle sigh.

"Hello, Doctor." Peter's voice was filled with panic, but he managed to suppress his emotions, striving for the calmest possible communication.

"Hello, who is this?"

"I am Peter Parker, but that's not important. I have something very important..."

"What is it?"

"Doctor, listen to me, our friend is trapped in an extremely dangerous room and the door is locked. They said you have the passcode. Can you tell me?"

"It's truly very, very dangerous right now." Peter's voice trembled slightly as he said, "If we don't open the door soon, he will die! He will be burned to death! Please, tell me the passcode quickly!"

"How many digits is the passcode?"

"Four! Doctor, it's a four-digit code! Please, hurry!"

"I did receive a sequence of numbers before."

"Please tell me quickly, Doctor. The fire has already begun!!!"

Shiller heard screams from the other end of the line, as if Peter's teammates witnessed a horrific scene from inside a room, causing Peter's voice to almost break into tears.

"The passcode is 3452. Go, Peter."

The receiver was hastily thrown down. Peter's running footsteps grew distant, followed by the slight clicking sounds of the passcode lock being turned.

Suddenly, an intense scream erupted, followed by an eerie silence.

"Why...why is it..." Peter's voice was incredulous. "Why is it wrong?! Why..."

"Because I gave you an incorrect passcode."

A calm voice from Shiller came from the receiver.

The other end grew strangely quiet.

Peter's roar resounded from the other end, "Why did you give me the wrong passcode?! He's been burnt to ashes!!!"

"I did it on purpose."

Peter appeared to be stunned. Shiller continued, "I wanted him to be killed, because he is my enemy."

"He...what grudges do you have with him?"

"I don't want to tell, but I have long anticipated this call, Peter. You cannot save him because no matter what, I wouldn't let you."

"You..."

Suddenly, sounds of a struggle could be heard as if someone hearing the conversation had grabbed the receiver from Peter's hand.

"You damn lunatic! You've killed him!!!"

"Yes, I am the reason he died, and it brings me great joy."

"...why?"

"Wouldn't you feel happy if you killed your enemy?"

"What issues did he have with you?!"

"Not him, his father." Shiller sighed deeply, "Some old grievances, which I will not disclose to you."

"Damn it, he was fooling us, the one who left the note! He lied to us!" The girl shrilly said, "He said we could save David if we get the passcode from a psychologist, but he didn't mention that this psychologist is the enemy of David's father!"

"We shouldn't have believed it so easily." Peter's voice came through, "We were indeed too reckless. To think that a simple call to someone would save us, it's a complete scam! The criminal had planned it all along!"

"Calm down, kids." Shiller spoke again.

"Shut up, you killer!" The girl said furiously, "You're the reason he died!"

"But I was merely avenging."

"No matter what kind of grudges you two held, you shouldn't..."

"Why shouldn't I? Answer me, why can't I kill my enemy's child?"

"Because...because it's illegal."

"But the law didn't punish his father either."

All that was left was the sound of heavy panting on the other end. Meanwhile, Shiller continued in a calm manner, "The person who gave you my number should know my identity very well. He knows what I've been through. He also knows that your companion would die the moment you made this call, it's his opportunity given to me, isn't it?"

"Wait." The girl suddenly reacted, "When we called just now, how did you know our companion was David?"

"That's linked to a prophecy."

"What?!"

"Did you know David's father was a cultist?"

"What? He... he's been dead for a long time."

"When David's father was young, he once went to the city of Ragusa in Italy, where he found a necklace in the ruins of the old city. Later, a sect found him and used the necklace to perform a gruesome and mysterious ritual."

"They killed many people, my sister was one of them. When I arrived at the scene, I saw her burned bones, along with a prophecy she left for me, 'The one born of flame shall be destroyed by flame'."

"So, when you told me someone was about to get burned to death, I knew it must have something to do with that bastard. It's a fire from hell, his deserved punishment."

"There were more victims than just me back then. If you want to know who gave you my number, go find some clues."

The call was hung up, with someone still covering the receiver, but Shiller could still make out their murmurs from the rustling noises.

"It seems like we're dealing with an NPC from a game, introducing us to a backstory. I thought it was going to be an alien story, but it turns out it's about a cult."

"Now we've got a problem. The only witness, David, is dead and we have this nonsensical city of Ragusa and a necklace to consider. What should we do?"

"Not everything he said might be true, but I believe there was something wrong with David's father. Don't you remember? He mentioned his mother's disappearance. Could it have been his father... Do you remember the old house he spoke about?"

"We should check that place out as soon as possible. This psychiatrist is right about one thing - the person who left us that note definitely doesn't have good intentions. If he beats us to it..."

The discussion faded out, and after a while, the phone call was ended.

As soon as Shiller put the phone down, it rang again. This time it was Captain America calling. His voice was somewhat anxious, but not as frantic as Peter's.

"Hello, is this Dr. Rodriguez? This is Steve Rogers, we need medical assistance."

"Go ahead."

"Well, I have a friend, his name is Coulson, he seems to have a mental breakdown. Do you have any advice?"

Shiller listened carefully to his voice and noticed an echo. Besides that, there wasn't any other sound - very empty.

"Could you describe his symptoms?"

"Yes, sure, he suddenly began to convulse all over, frothing at the mouth, then started struggling as if to attack people. He's incredibly strong. We have four people here, and even the three of us combined can barely hold him down."

"Is there a history of hereditary mental illness or any past illnesses?"

"Not sure about hereditary history, but definitely no past illnesses."

"Are you in a small town called Lodersan?"

"Lodersan? We're at a manor called Bellerahuai, probably in Maryland State."

"Yes, but there's a small town called Lodersan nearby. There's a famous church there, but it's only locally well-known. If you're from out of town you might not have heard of it."

"But what does that have to do with my friend's condition?"

"Your friend isn't mentally ill. If you can, go to the church in Lodersan and look for a priest."

Captain America paused before asking, "What exactly do you mean? Aren't you a psychiatrist?"

"Yes, but like I said, this isn't mental illness. You shouldn't have gone there."

"Hold on." Captain America interrupted him, "You know something, don't you? Please tell me right now; it's important."

Shiller sighed, "I don't know how that old guy tricked you into going there, but there's no treasure, just a curse. The ghosts of the tragedy 20 years ago are still wailing..."

"What exactly are you..."

There was a flurry of noise and the phone was grabbed. This time it was Nick's voice on the other end, sounding slightly older than Shiller remembered.

"Doctor, we didn't come here voluntarily, but we're trapped, if you have any useful information, please tell us."

"If you can't get out for now, find a place to confine your crazed companion. Wait until you find an exit, then take him with you. Don't try to treat him."

"I presume somebody gave you my number, but with so many psychiatrists in the world, why me?"

"Doctor, about this manor, the little town, and the tragedy you mentioned, what exactly happened?"

Shiller sighed heavily and said, "There weren't many survivors to begin with, most of them are dead, I might be the only one left, which is probably why your call came to me."

"All I can say is, the case from 20 years ago wasn't as left untouched as the police claimed. You might think I'm crazy, but there were residual traces left behind; traces of souls."

"But we didn't see any town on our way here."

"That's because nothing is left but the souls."

"Alright, doctor, assuming you mean our companion is possessed by a ghost, is there any way to solve this?"

"If there was, the town wouldn't have disappeared without a trace."

"So how did you survive?"

"Because of a necklace. Once, a cultist brought it out from the ruins of the old city of Ragusa. They performed a ceremony in the town, and then it disappeared."

"My sister fell in love with that cultist, but she took his necklace and gave it to me. Hence, I was exempted from the sacrifice and survived."

"I'm very sorry..."

"No need to apologize, they have already paid the price they owe. I can only tell you, the best course of action now is to lock your companion up..."

Just as Shiller was speaking, a loud thud sounded from the other side followed by screams and roars.

"Coulson, Coulson, stop! Damn, Steve, hold him down now!!"

"Tie him up as soon as you get a hold of him!" Shiller yelled into the phone, "Don't worry about hurting him, hesitating could kill him."

After another chaotic flurry of noise, Shiller heard Steve shout, "We don't have any ropes."

"Break his limbs!"

"No, I can't..."

There was a loud bang, followed by several screams. After a few chaotic minutes, Nick's panting voice sounded on the phone, "Thank you, doctor, I've temporarily pinned him under a large cabinet. We'll find a place to lock him up."

"Good, I have another call coming in, I need to hang up."

After saying this, Shiller hung up, but as soon as he did, the phone rang again.

"Hello, how can I help you?"

"Hello? You... Are you Shiller?!!"