Chapter 154: The Crawling Human (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 154: The Crawling Human (5)
Not long after Charlotte and her companions departed from the professor’s mansion in the university town of Cambridge...
“………”
Two women quietly watched their retreating figures. Under a gloomy sky, the group of girls boarded a carriage bound for Cambridge University.
“…How unusual for the lizard, so engrossed in her little game of pretend, to show herself here. What business could you possibly have?”
“Personally, I find it far more surprising that the shadow power behind the British government—famous for hiding away in her little burrow like a recluse—has graced us with her presence.”
The two observers were none other than Professor Jane Moriarty and Mycrony Holmes.
“I did faint a few times on the way here due to sudden bouts of anemia. Perhaps my health has begun to deteriorate lately from overwork.”
“…Or perhaps it isn't overwork, but rather someone forgetting about you entirely and leaving you to starve in a basement for weeks?”
“Oh, how mischievous of you, dredging up such unpleasant memories…”
A smile played on Mycrony’s lips—her face several shades paler than usual, likely due to her prolonged lack of sunlight. She glanced sideways at the stoic professor standing beside her before mumbling under her breath.
“…At least I’m less miserable than the poor professor, desperately clinging to a prospective spouse just shy of marriageable age, only to have a young student snatch him away at the very last moment.”
“…Oh, I fully intend to take this matter to court. There is ample proof that the marriage certificate was tampered with. So…”
“Oh dear, making such an unsightly display at your… advanced age.”
Mycrony Holmes’s murmurs were met with Jane Moriarty’s calm retort, her tone flat and emotionless. However, at that final jab, Jane’s words died in her throat. Her lips pursed, and a frown contorted her previously composed face.
“If it really was tampered with, why would Adler remain silent~?”
“………”
“Perhaps a certain lizard is either too naive or too stubborn to admit defeat~”
“…So, what is the reason you’ve appeared before me now to test my patience?”
A sudden crackle of lightning illuminated the sky just as Jane asked the question. She stared at the taunting Mycrony with empty eyes. The elder Holmes sister covered her mouth, hiding the derisive smirk Moriarty knew was there.
- Rumble…!
“Oh my, how terrifying~!”
As the deafening thunder roared around them, Mycrony Holmes stepped forward, no longer bothering to hide her smirk.
“I’m merely here to help a poor little kitten who must be shivering as we speak.”
“…How coincidental. I, too, have come for that very reason.”
As they exchanged those words, their eyes narrowed, simultaneously darting toward the papers in each other’s hands.
「Please, you must come as soon as possible. You MUST…」
“It seems my assistant made a mistake while calling for help.”
“…Indeed. Calling only in times of crisis yet failing to explain the situation… how typical of him.”
As if in sync, both of their voices grew colder by the second.
“It also seems he has completely forgotten the disaster that transpired last time.”
“I suppose Mr. Adler doesn't think locking a frail patient in a dark basement is a crime~”
The two women quickened their pace toward the mansion.
“If we clash now, I have a feeling the entirety of London would be blasted to smithereens. So… shall we achieve our goal first~?”
“…I’m not keen on the idea, but the situation is urgent. I shall endure it.”
A dramatic truce was struck amidst their hurried steps.
“Excellent. You boys heard that, right? Everyone, retreat.”
“………”
“Oh my, why that expression? How could a frail patient like me possibly confront a being straight out of mythology by myself?”
With the agreement finalized, Mycrony immediately dismissed the numerous forces she had kept on standby in the surrounding area. Winking at the silent professor, they soon reached the mansion.
“…Just as I cannot deceive your eyes, you cannot deceive mine.”
“Hehe~”
The tension between them remained high enough to chill the soul. Even as they pushed open the mansion doors, the atmosphere showed no signs of softening.
“I don’t quite understand what you’re saying…”
“……..”
However, the instant they stepped inside and witnessed the scene within, the tension vanished as if it had never existed. A heavy, stunned silence took its place.
“Meow.”
In that prolonged silence, a piercing sound rang out—the cry of a cat.
“…Blackmail.”
The two women stared blankly at the source of the sound, speechless. Sitting demurely on the desk, mimicking the behavior of a feline, was none other than Adler. Their vacant gazes lingered on the absurd scene before shifting to the lengthy message left in front of the "cat-man."
[Your precious Isaac Adler has been replaced with a cat.]
“Meow.”
[If you want to turn him back to normal, reconstruct the case written below into a plausible crime…]
Their expressions grew increasingly hollow as they read through the threatening letter.
“…The deadline is tomorrow.”
“If you fail, Isaac Adler will remain a cat forever… apparently?”
In unison, their gazes snapped back to Adler.
“Me-Meow~”
After a moment of silence, Adler rolled over on the desk, raised his hands like paws, and struck a typical feline pose.
- Lick, lick…
“………..”
As Professor Moriarty and Mycrony watched without reaction, he began licking his hand, grooming himself like a common house cat.
- Swoosh…
“Ah, mrrrow-hiss…!”
Professor Moriarty quietly extended her hand toward him. Seeing her move, Adler bared his teeth and hissed desperately, still committed to the act.
“You are a fine actor, but even the greatest cannot embody a character once they start overacting.”
“Eh?”
“…And it may also make you want to kill yourself again.”
“Ah…”
Adler gazed blankly at Professor Moriarty. She smiled back with an eerie expression, echoing the very words he had monologued to himself not long ago.
“Um, well… You see…”
“Mr. Adler, cats do not speak the human tongue.”
His complexion paled at the revelation. He tried to speak, desperately searching for an excuse, but Professor Moriarty gently stroked his head and whispered, shutting him down before he could utter a word.
“If you speak normally now, I just might kill you.”
“…….”
“So please, act like a cat instead of the bloody scoundrel who proposed to one woman, beat her up, and then proceeded to marry someone else. At least keep up the act for a while, won't you, dear?”
Adler could only manage a silent nod. His entire body shivered at the pleasant lilt in Professor Moriarty’s voice, which carried a bone-chilling threat.
“…Cats don’t nod when humans talk to them, either.”
“Meow, meow.”
“Nor do they cry out in response.”
Jane Moriarty leaned close to his face, her whisper colder than glacial ice.
“Do you want to die? Or would you rather I make you beg for a swift death, hmm?”
“………”
“If you’re going to do something, you might as well do it right, don’t you think?”
Trembling, Adler began to whimper like a pathetic, frightened kitten.
“Don’t push him too hard.”
“……..”
“You can’t deny that Adler looks adorable right now, can you?”
Watching from the side, Mycrony finally spoke up in a subdued voice.
“But isn’t it too dangerous to keep Adler, who has turned into a cat, in such a large mansion?”
“……..!?”
“I happen to know a good magic spell…”
At Mycrony’s interjection, Professor Moriarty directed a sharp look at the meddlesome woman. However, upon hearing her words, Jane’s stern face broke into a faint smile.
“Is it perhaps a shrinking magic?”
“Oh my, do you also possess mind-reading abilities, Professor?”
“I know a rather decent magic spell myself.”
“Really? May I ask what it is?”
“…Eh?”
Realizing the situation was taking a turn for the bizarre, Adler tried to push himself up. However, he found his body oddly devoid of all strength.
“It’s a type of magic that turns humans into animals.”
“Hmm…”
Before losing consciousness, the last thing Adler saw were the identical, ominous smiles plastered on the faces of Jane Moriarty and Mycrony Holmes.
“Meow.”
“Now, even if you want to speak like a human, only cat noises will leave your lips.”
“…Oh my, let’s pretend I didn’t hear that. Hehe~”
.
.
.
Several hours passed.
“So, why have you come here?”
“…Do I really need to share my information with you?”
Poised to knock on the door of a small research lab in the university town, Professor Jane Moriarty glanced at the smiling Mycrony.
“It’s not necessary, but I’m having trouble understanding the purpose of your visit, especially when we should be busy manipulating the scenario.”
“…I’m here to meet someone essential. Someone who will bring a sense of balance and diversity to this mundane case.”
“In this shabby, unremarkable lab?”
At her reply, a smirk formed on Moriarty’s face.
“It seems you don’t know everything after all.”
“I’m quite a lazy woman, you see. Apart from what I read in the newspapers, I find it bothersome to acquire information. In fact, I hardly know what’s happening in the world.”
“A woman who holds the world in her palms claims to be ignorant of it… That is as ironic as it gets.”
Chuckling to herself, Professor Moriarty stepped forward.
“The crux of this case lies in the cause of the professor’s absurd behavior. For some reason, our dear kitten is adamant about blaming something other than Dr. Frankenstein’s magic potion.”
“…The potion doesn’t have such effects, does it?”
“Exactly. And that suggests there is a hidden mastermind behind this strange case.”
An imperceptible gleam radiated in Professor Moriarty’s eyes as she continued.
“…I’ve recently read a rather interesting book containing unheard-of terms like psychoanalysis, as well as intriguing concepts such as dream analysis.”
“Oh, is that so? Strangely, there is a book even I don’t know about.”
“Well, it only came out a few days ago.”
Mycrony looked intrigued.
“In my personal opinion, it is a book of immense academic value. It may take the world by storm very soon.”
“But what does that have to do with the case?”
“The poor professor who ended up crawling around like a vulgar dog in the dead of night has a young fiancée, remember? That very fiancée just so happens to be the son of the author who wrote that book.”
“Aha~”
“I believe these two facts are closely related to the case.”
The eyes of both women gleamed with a frigid light.
“Indeed… that might be the case.”
“Well, since I have been forced to consult on this case—despite my reluctance—due to certain irresistible circumstances, I have no choice but to do my best to solve it. That is why I am here.”
“You believe the person inside is the key, then?”
“If not, I’ll just have to make it so.”
With those words, Professor Moriarty knocked on the door with a composed expression.
“…Of course, it seems highly unlikely that there is no connection.”
—Who is it?
“I’ve come looking for a researcher named Gregory.”
—Could you please repeat that?
As she sensed the thick scent of crime wafting from beyond the door, her lips curled into a sinister smile.
“Would you understand if I were to say Gregory Freud instead?”
—…Please, come in.
.
.
.
“…Meow!?”
“Hush.”
As they heard the man’s reply, a small cat with golden eyes peered out from between Mycrony’s breasts, its eyes comically wide.
“…Do you perhaps want to go lower?”
“……”
“If not, then just shut up and keep sucking my blood.”
As soon as those chilling words were whispered, the cat met Mycrony’s gaze and hastily buried its head back inside. A sullen expression was etched on the small cat’s face—an expression no normal cat should be able to make.
“…Mmmm.”
“It’s going to be my turn soon.”
“There is still one minute left.”