Chapter 243: The Adventure of the Empty House (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 243: The Adventure of the Empty House (2)
“Ugh…?”
My head throbbed. A searing pain radiated through my entire body, sharp enough to make me feel like my skull might split open at any moment.
…Why?
Even after opening my eyes, I stared dully into the void for a long time. The fog clouding my mind refused to lift. Eventually, however, confusion took hold, and I began to take in my surroundings.
“Huh.”
It wasn’t long before I noticed Celestia Moran. She was rummaging through something beside me, her expression utterly vacant.
“Uh… Moran?”
“Quickly, quickly, quickly, quickly…”
“Hey…”
I called out to her cautiously, wondering what on earth she was doing. She didn’t seem to hear me—or rather, she refused to.
…Where exactly am I?
Scratching my head in frustration, I took a proper look around. I was in a dimly lit, desolate alleyway.
I was certain I’d just been on Baker Street…
Judging by the dull throb at the back of my head, Moran must have knocked me out and dragged me here while I was unconscious. I would have followed her willingly; I couldn't understand why she had suddenly resorted to such violence.
“…Found it.”
Just as unease began to settle in, Moran finally pulled something out of the disproportionately large bag she’d been digging through.
“If only I had silver chains…”
“……!?”
What she retrieved was a length of sturdy-looking rope.
Holding it in her hands, Moran fixed her gaze on me. She began to approach, an unreadable expression on her youthful face.
“W-What are you planning to do?”
Sweat beaded on my forehead. I wiped it away nervously, trying to keep my voice steady.
Grip—
“Eh?”
She ignored my question entirely. Instead, she grabbed my arms and began tying my wrists together. Whatever composure I had left quickly crumbled.
“Uh, Moran, listen. I admit it’s my fault for disappearing for two years without a trace, but…”
“……”
“That doesn’t mean… you have to treat me this harshly, right…?”
Despite the chilling situation, I whispered desperately into her ear, putting on the most pitiful face I could muster. But—
Tug!
“Ack!”
Moran didn’t even acknowledge my words. She focused solely on binding me as tightly as possible.
“…I-I’m just an ordinary person now, you know.”
“……?”
“I can’t even use magic anymore… I can’t run away…”
With my circulation cut off, my limbs had already started to go numb. Left with no other choice to stop her rampage, I reluctantly revealed the truth.
“……..”
Finally, Moran paused. She stopped tying the knots and blinked as if coming out of a trance, staring at me with a blank expression.
Wham!
“…Ack.”
Suddenly, with tears brimming in her eyes, Moran threw herself at me, wrapping me in an unexpectedly fierce embrace.
“Hic… Sniff… Ugh…”
“Uh, um…”
“Where… where have you been all this time…?”
As she buried her tear-streaked face into my chest, sobbing uncontrollably, I glanced down at her, feeling slightly suffocated.
…Thank goodness. She’s still just a kid at heart.
Despite her body having grown so much that she was almost unrecognizable, Moran’s mental state was still that of a child. I patted her back gently, letting out a relieved sigh.
I thought she’d become like the other women…
“…Master.”
Suddenly, she lifted her head and asked in a low voice.
“Is it true? Have you really lost your powers?”
“Huh? Oh… I just told you, didn’t I?”
“…Really?”
Answering carelessly, I flashed her a soft smile and wiped away the tears trailing down her cheeks.
“I can’t even run away anymore, even if I wanted to.”
Seeing the unease and fear in her eyes, I leaned in, whispering to give her some sense of reassurance.
“……..”
A long silence stretched between us.
“…I see.”
Moran, who had completely stopped crying, simply stared at me.
“That’s good.”
“…What?”
“I was debating whether to knock you out again and find some silver chains to tie you up properly.”
“Moran? Like I said, there’s really no nee—”
Before I could finish, she began tying the rope again, more thoroughly than before. Panicking, I tried to stop her, my voice flustered.
Thud!
“…Hik?”
Without warning, her fist slammed into my stomach with astonishing force.
“Urgh… Guh…”
Tighten—
I collapsed to the ground, clutching my midsection. I could barely protest as Moran bound me even more firmly, her movements precise and resolute.
“M-Moran… What are you doing…?”
“…Haa.”
Dumbfounded, I asked feebly, my voice shaking.
“…Just rest.”
“Ughk.”
With those words, Moran struck the side of my neck with a sharp blow. My vision blurred, and I slumped forward, completely limp.
“There are too many eyes here.”
“Ugh…”
“I’ll protect you.”
With ridiculous ease, Moran hoisted me onto her shoulder. Then, opening the large bag she had nearby, she shoved me inside without hesitation.
“…Forever.”
As she delivered that final word and zipped the bag shut, I lost consciousness completely.
Moran… Not you too…
A sense of betrayal burned in my chest as my mind went dark.
“Of course, it can only be me, right, Master?”
…Still better than you, though.
I tried to ignore the figure of Poppy, who had appeared out of nowhere, but her image lingered in my fading awareness until everything vanished.
*
A few hours later, in a small, secluded mansion nestled deep within a lonely forest just outside of London.
Creak—
Moran opened the door, casting a quick glance around before stepping inside. For a moment, a heavy silence hung in the air.
“…It’s you, I see.”
“At least knock before you come in.”
A few moments later, the chilly voices of two women cut through the stillness.
Tap, tap—
Moran walked past Princess Clay, who looked as if she had lost interest in the entire world, and Silver Blaze, who sat curled up by the fireplace, looking haggard and drained. Without sparing them a glance, Moran sat on the sofa and placed the bag on the table.
“What’s that?”
“Did you bring back another body you couldn’t dispose of properly?”
The two women eyed the bag with total disinterest.
“I’ve brought a slightly belated Christmas gift.”
“A gift? From you?”
“……?”
Moran’s calm reply immediately caught their attention. Their bewildered gazes shifted to the bag as she began to unzip it.
Click—
The bag opened with a resounding snap.
“”………!?””
In the brief silence that followed, the two women tilted their heads in confusion. But soon, their eyes widened in disbelief.
Rustle—
From the bag, a few golden strands of hair peeked out and began to sway slightly, as if surveying the surroundings.
“What the hell is…”
“…That hair… It looks familiar, doesn’t it?”
Princess Clay and Silver Blaze stared, momentarily stunned.
“…Stop hiding and come out.”
The next moment, their expressions froze completely.
“…Peekaboo.”
Gripping the edges of the bag with both hands, a face emerged—a face that looked bashfully awkward yet undeniably familiar.
“Ta-da…!”
It was the face of the very person who had plunged them into two years of guilt-ridden nightmares.
“…Just kidding.”
Adler, attempting to diffuse the atmosphere with forced cheerfulness, faltered as he saw their ghostly expressions. His voice trailed off, his confidence evaporating.
“”……..””
A suffocating silence enveloped the mansion.
“Ah, ahaha…”
Scoot—
“Haha… ha…..”
In the oppressive silence, Adler let out an awkward laugh. But as the two women rose from their seats and began approaching him, his body flinched involuntarily, as if a trauma had been triggered.
“”……….””
Standing directly in front of him, both women loomed over him with expressions like people possessed by spirits.
Swoosh—
The first to reach out was Princess Clay.
“Ugh.”
As Princess Clay reached out and gently caressed Adler’s cheek, he let out a quiet groan, likely due to the signature chill of a vampire’s touch.
Sssss—
“…Ah, um.”
At the same time, Silver Blaze silently leaned in, burying her face into the crook of his neck.
“No, it’s just that… well, you see…”
With Princess Clay stroking his cheek wordlessly and Blaze inhaling his scent deeply, Adler, visibly flustered, attempted to stammer out an explanation.
“I’ve just been… busy with a few things lately…”
Drip—
“…Huh?”
A droplet of water fell right before his eyes.
“Wait…”
Looking up cautiously to find the source, Adler froze stiff.
“You… idiot.”
The ever-proud Princess Clay wasn’t just on the verge of tears—she was crying openly, her gaze locked on him as tears streamed down her face.
“No matter how hard… how hard we searched…”
“…….”
“We thought… we thought you were dead…”
As she lowered her head, tears dripping from her chin, cold sweat began to bead on Adler’s forehead once again.
“…Master’s scent.”
“What?”
And now, he felt something wet against his shoulder.
“Master’s scent… Master’s scent… Master’s scent… Master’s scent… Master’s scent…”
Still pressed against his neck, Silver Blaze had also begun to cry, her tears dampening his skin as she muttered the words over and over like a mantra.
“Day by day… it kept fading from my memory…”
“……..”
“…I was terrified I wouldn’t recognize you if we ever met again.”
Hearing this, Adler’s expression softened. A tender smile formed on his lips as he reached out his arms to embrace them.
“I’m so sor—”
Tug!
“…Ah.”
It was only then that he remembered his arms were still tightly bound with rope. His expression turned sheepish.
“Everyone, this is no time to be basking in the joy of reunion.”
At that moment, Moran, who had been silently observing the scene, finally spoke.
“…Then what?”
“Let’s not forget that the Professor and the Detective are only a few hours away from here.”
At her words, the tear-streaked faces of the two women instantly hardened. Their expressions turned cold and resolute.
“…Pack up. And, of course, bring Master too.”
“”………””
“He’s ours now.”
Their gazes, fixed on Adler, grew strangely dark and clouded.
“…Now that I think about it, you seem much weaker than before.”
“…There’s an air of fragility about Master now.”
“Someone, please save me.”
Adler was already beginning to regret returning here for the third time today, but of course, regret wouldn’t change a thing.
*
Meanwhile.
“…..As I thought.”
Charlotte, who had spent hours meticulously investigating the building Moran had fled from with Adler, narrowed her eyes and murmured in a low voice.
“There was someone else… besides Moran.”
It was the moment when her primal instincts, dormant for so long, stirred back to life once more.