Chapter 220: The Valley of Fear (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 220: The Valley of Fear (3)
“…I must remind you once more that our objective is to dismantle the gang.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“We aren’t arranging blind dates or orgies for you, so please keep that in mind.”
“Got it.”
After repeatedly driving the point home, the Director let out a heavy sigh and began organizing the documents scattered before her.
“I have a bad feeling about this…”
“You’re the one who suggested it in the first place.”
“And now I’m starting to regret it.”
Watching her sullen expression, Adler rose from his seat.
“…By the way, what’s that for?”
“What?”
“The ring on your finger.”
He pointed abruptly to the band on the Director’s hand. She replied with her usual businesslike composure.
“It’s an engagement ring. Since I’ve retired from active duty, I thought it was time to settle down.”
“Ah, I see…”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Adler opened his mouth, a look of regret crossing his face and a faint wistfulness coloring his voice.
“I was hoping we could share a cup of tea once you had some free time…”
As he muttered this, he timidly tapped the ring on the Director’s finger. Her gaze instantly turned icy.
“You’ve already moved on to a younger detective and even married a young inspector, yet here you are flirting with another man’s woman? You’re as vile as ever.”
“That’s…”
“Take your hands off me before I lose my patience. Why are you stroking the back of my hand in the first place?”
As he gently rubbed her skin with his fingers, a stern warning flew from the Director’s lips. Not wanting to truly anger her, Adler pulled his hand back with a deflated expression.
“……Tsk.”
With a weary sigh, he stood up to leave. Meanwhile, the Director glared at him coldly before rummaging through her desk drawer with a long, drawn-out sigh of her own.
“Listen.”
“…Yeeees?”
“Stop slurring your words. It makes me want to bury you six feet under.”
“…Yes, ma'am.”
“Here, take this.”
She eventually pulled a small slip of paper from the drawer and thrust it toward Adler.
“What is this?”
“A business card.”
“A business card…?”
“My contact details are on the back.”
Adler took the card nonchalantly, only to give her a perplexed look at her next words. Seeing his expression, she quickly added in a barely audible whisper:
“…You said you’d treat me to tea, didn’t you?”
Avoiding Adler’s gaze, she spoke with a slight pink tinge dusting her cheeks.
“Contact me after you solve the case.”
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“Hey, don’t get the wrong idea. I really just want to have some tea with you, that’s all……”
—Creak.
It was clear from her tone—still professional but laced with notes of shyness and embarrassment—that the Director was making excuses to hide her desire to spend time with him. Smirking at her words, Adler opened the office door and stepped out in silence.
“What in the world did I just witness?”
“Ah, Miss Lupin.”
Almost immediately, Lupin materialized next to Adler as if stepping out of thin air and linked her arm with his.
“I appreciate your willingness to be kidnapped by me, but why are you flirting with another woman all of a sudden?”
“…I’m simply networking. It’s good to have friends in influential places like the Pinkerton Detective Agency, don’t you think?”
“Then why do you only ever ‘network’ with women?”
Faced with her sharp question, Adler fell momentarily silent.
“…Speaking of which, is it really alright for you to appear so casually in front of the Pinkerton Detective Agency?”
“Are you trying to change the subject?”
“No, I was just worried you might get caught…”
The pause over, Adler desperately tried to pivot the conversation. However, Lupin only smirked, her grip on his arm tightening with every passing second.
“I may look like this, but I’m the world’s greatest thief. I could escape even if you brought an entire army to capture me. A mere detective agency is nothing in my eyes.”
“…I suppose that’s true.”
“Are you mocking me? That’s quite upsetting…”
Abruptly, she tilted her head mid-speech and whispered, “…Do I usually use formal language with you, or informal?”
“Sometimes you use formal, then switch to informal midway, then back again. It’s a bit of a jumble, to be honest.”
“Really…? And did I speak in English or French?”
“When you speak informally, you always use French.”
“…Oh, clever, aren’t we? You know French too.”
“But why are you asking that so suddenly?”
A troubled smile appeared on Lupin’s lips as she responded.
“I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I’ve been going through a severe identity crisis lately. It’s because of all the disguises I’ve had to wear recently…”
“Isn’t your current form as Lupin your true appearance?”
“I’m not quite sure, honestly. I’m not even sure if my real name was Lupin to begin with…”
Her voice trembled ever so slightly as she spoke of her insecurities. But it didn’t take long for her eyes to refocus on Adler.
“…Well, it doesn’t really matter anymore.”
“Huh?”
“Since I now have someone by my side who will always make me shine, no matter what appearance I take…”
Her eyes gleamed ominously in the dark as she spoke.
Warning!
—Probability of being Preserved— 99.9999999...
“Now that we’ve visited the detective agency, shall we head to the Castle of Cagliostro?”
“Ah, uh… that’s…”
Sensing the danger hidden within her words, Adler couldn’t help but stammer, cold sweat dotting his forehead.
“…There is still one more stop we need to make.”
“What?”
“There’s something I need to do over in Vermissa Valley… ugh.”
Forcing himself to stay calm, he continued as steadily as he could.
“It seems I’ve been a bit too considerate, haven’t I?”
“Wh-What are you doing?”
“You seem to have forgotten something…”
With her arms crossed and her head resting on Adler’s shoulder, Lupin whispered in his ear in a voice colder than an arctic gale.
“…I’ve kidnapped you.”
“……”
“I have no reason to listen to your demands.”
Her reply made Adler tremble in silence.
“Ah, so cute…”
A smile tugging at her lips, Lupin was just about to caress Adler’s chin with her hand when—
“…I’m not usually like this, but I find myself wanting to torment you.”
“That’s enough.”
“What?”
A bone-chilling voice echoed from behind them.
“…You? From back then?”
“If you don’t want to be torn to shreds here and now… you’d better remove that hand.”
Startled, Lupin turned her head to identify the speaker. Her eyes widened when she spotted the girl with eerie, glowing blue eyes who had seemingly materialized out of thin air.
“W-Where did you pop up from?”
“…As long as Master’s shadow exists, I can appear anywhere at any time.”
“Tch…”
“This is your last warning. Remove your hand.”
Frowning, Lupin eventually lowered her hand and stepped away from Adler.
“Poppy!!!”
Freed, Adler immediately rushed toward the girl in the suit with a joyful smile.
“You came to save me!”
“…….Woof.”
After a brief hesitation, the girl let out a puppy-like sound with a dull expression.
“Good girl, good girl…”
“Haaaah… haaah…”
“…How can you possibly believe that’s a puppy?”
The terrifying entity that could exterminate every supernatural being in London if she so desired—that very entity was now exposing her belly to Adler so he could rub it. The sight was so revolting to Lupin that she immediately walked away, muttering in disgust.
“It seems I’ve been taken advantage of…”
“…….”
“…Being used like that once in a while isn’t too bad, but it’s still a bit sad.”
Trying her best to hide her brimming tears and the quiver in her voice, Lupin attempted to distance herself from the two.
“Hey.”
“…….?”
“If you help me with this job… I’ll go to the Castle of Cagliostro.”
She paused, listening to Adler’s words from behind her.
“H-How can I trust you?”
“I’ll write you a contract.”
“…Really?”
At Adler’s offer, she hesitated for a moment before slowly turning back toward him.
“…Really, really?”
Seeing a tear streaming down her cheek, Adler nodded quickly.
“Of course.”
Seriously, just how many of these empty promises are you going to make?
…Quiet, Miss System.
Ignoring the System’s disdainful commentary, he confirmed his promise.
“So, what do I need to help with?”
Lupin was back at Adler’s side in an instant.
“…Grrr.”
“If you need my help, you must have something you want to steal, right? If that’s the case, just leave it to me. I can steal any target within twenty-four hours…”
She began her rapid pitch, keeping a wary eye on the "hound" lying on the floor.
“Cross-dressing.”
“Eh?”
“Basically, I need to dress as a woman.”
When Adler spoke, Lupin gave him a dumbfounded look and fell silent.
“That’s… What do you mean by that?”
“I need a disguise. I have to infiltrate an all-female gang and cause infighting, but I can’t do that as a man, right?”
Adler calmly explained his plan.
“So, I planned to disguise myself, but… while I am quite skilled at it, I can’t do it as perfectly as Miss Lupin. That’s why I wanted your help…”
“Ah, is that all?”
Lupin exhaled a long breath, looking immensely relieved.
“I thought you had changed sides for a second there…”
“So, will you help me or not?”
“…That is my specialty, after all.”
She smirked and began dragging Adler toward a nearby clothing shop.
“Are you ready to take part in the creation of the world’s most beautiful girl?”
“…No, not to that extent. I don’t want to stand out too much.”
“Let’s go!!!”
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A few days later, in Vermissa Valley, USA.
“Oi, there! Stop!”
At the entrance of a village in the valley, a carriage was forcibly halted by a group of menacing women dressed in rough, rugged outfits.
“Gonna need to check your identities.”
“Only women allowed past here.”
They knocked on the carriage window, demanding identification.
—Creak.
A moment later, the window slid down, revealing the passengers inside.
“Umm…”
“Don’t look like there’s any men in there.”
The guards observed Watson—sitting by the window with a mixed expression of annoyance and amusement—and Lupin, who was grinning ear to ear at something she found hilarious.
“…That woman there. Feels like I’ve seen her somewhere.”
“Really now?”
Their gazes then shifted to a blonde girl sitting at the far end of the carriage.
“Hey… what’s your name?”
“Ah, yes. So… um…”
As one of the guards questioned her, the girl—her face flushed deep red and beaded with sweat—stuttered.
“I, I am…”
But this girl was, in fact, a boy.
“…M-My name is Irene.”
With a trembling voice, the boy disguised as a girl answered and bowed his head deeply in shame. He had just become the very character from the original story whose gender-swapped self he had possessed in this twisted world.