Chapter 281: Side Story: Isaac Adler's Final Farewell
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 281: Side Story: Isaac Adler's Final Farewell
Several years had passed since Isaac Adler vanished from London. The city, which had seemed immutable, was now facing a period of upheaval and gradually beginning to change.
The most conspicuous difference was the disappearance of the mysterious fog that had once blanketed the streets of London every night.
The uninformed citizens simply thought London's smog had cleared up a bit, but the reality was slightly different.
London's smog had always covered the streets, day and night, irrespective of the mysterious fog.
The real reason the fog had vanished was that the influence 'James Moriarty' had quietly woven into the world had temporarily disappeared just before he was sealed away.
However, the residents of London had far more pressing matters to worry about, so they simply dismissed it as something that used to happen and moved on.
[Free Isaac Adler!]
[An individual's extreme possessiveness—will we let it stand?]
[Launch a special investigation into Professor Jane Moriarty!]
But from the perspective of London's citizens, there was a change far more direct than some mysterious fog.
It was the posters that had begun to appear on the streets ever since the London Police Department had issued a special report.
Naturally, this was the work of the same fangirls who had once led the funeral processions that filled the streets when rumors spread that Isaac Adler had fallen to his death at Reichenbach Falls.
“…How much longer must we look at these vulgar posters?”
“I know, right? What on earth is the London Police Department doing?”
It was, of course, a juicy piece of gossip for renowned aristocrats, intellectuals, and noblewomen to tear into.
“In the first place, that Isaac Adler fellow is the problem.”
“Exactly. Why can’t they just banish him from the country?”
However, there was a fact they were unaware of.
For instance, the fact that ninety percent of the daughters of those very intellectuals were participating in this movement.
“…That’s a bit much.”
“……Pardon?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
And the fact that one of the two noblewomen who had just passed by, glaring coldly at a poster, was actually one of the people who had secretly put them up at dawn.
“Anyway, that brat really needs to just die.”
“…Yes, yes.”
“That son of a bitch. He definitely said he’d come back.”
“Pardon?”
And the other noblewoman… well, they’d already gone all the way.
To add another spooky tale to the mix, the removal of the posters from the streets was being delayed due to subtle pressure from Lestrade, the Commissioner of the London Police.
But the most chilling tale of all, one that couldn't even compare to the others, was this:
“…Hmm, Miss Irene.”
“……Yes.”
“You’ve always been quite popular, haven’t you?”
The gentleman with short, grey hair passing by those very noblewomen, and the breathtakingly beautiful girl whose face was half-hidden by the parasol he held.
“That aside, I don’t think this kind of play would be so bad once in a while.”
“Professor, please.”
“……Haha, Adler. No, Miss Irene. You speak as if you ever had a choice. How adorable.”
The fact was that they were none other than the wanted criminal Jane Moriarty and Isaac Adler, cross-dressing as a man and a woman.
*
After walking through London for a long while, holding our breath, the gentleman and the girl—that is, Professor Moriarty and I—suddenly stopped.
“Thankfully, we made it this far without being questioned.”
“……Hmm.”
“I was honestly a bit worried. No matter how much of a master of disguise I am, fooling Charlotte is a little difficult.”
As we began to look around and converse, the towering form of Auguste Academy, unchanged from before, stood before us.
“I was especially on pins and needles since I’ve tricked Charlotte with this disguise once before.”
“……”
“Still, we made it here, so let’s take a breather….”
Just as Adler, who had been gazing at the sight with a deeply moved expression, wiped away his cold sweat and glanced around once more.
“E-excuse me. Sister.”
“…Hm?”
“I, I… well…”
A young boy dressed as a beggar suddenly appeared beside him and spoke with a tearful expression.
“C-could you spare a coin?”
“Uh……”
“I-I haven’t eaten in three days. Please….”
He looked rather pitiful, but we had to avoid drawing attention to ourselves. I was about to quietly turn away when it happened.
“You poor little child.”
The professor suddenly blocked my path. A faint smile on her lips, she began to rummage inside her coat.
“…In the past, this would have been unthinkable, but I’ve grown quite fond of children now.”
“……!”
“Consider yourself lucky.”
Sensing something was off, I tried to stop the professor, but she showed no sign of moving out of my way.
“Th-thank you so much.”
“……?”
“…As a reward, I’ll give you a gift.”
Just then, the boy took something out of his pocket and held it out.
“Huhu, I wonder what gift this cute little master will give me….”
“……Haha.”
It was in that very moment.
“Professor.”
“……!”
The pitiful boy’s voice was gone, and in its place, a voice all too familiar rang in my ears.
“It’s not a very good habit to be fiddling with the revolver hidden in the secret compartment of your suit.”
The line that followed was incredibly familiar.
It was what the professor had said to me during our first encounter years ago, and at the same time, the very line Holmes hears in the original story’s final case. I slowly turned my gaze to where the boy had been.
“I didn’t expect you to seal your own mana before coming, but you can’t fool my eyes.”
“……”
“I also sealed my mana, staking my life on it.”
The beggar boy was nowhere to be seen. In his place stood Charlotte Holmes, a cold smile on her face as she pointed a pistol at the professor.
“By the way, does this make us even?”
“……”
“Isaac Adler.”
She glanced at me, then whispered in a low voice.
“The moment I give the signal, detectives stationed within a 200-meter radius will emerge and form a perimeter.”
“……”
“Lestrade will be with them, of course. Even for you and the professor, there’s no escaping this time.”
Hearing her confident words, I took a slow breath and met Charlotte’s eyes.
“Now, what will you do?”
“…Hmm.”
“Can you, after all these years of withering away, show me the same brilliance you did on the day we first met?”
Even as she spoke, her eyes were still tinged with my golden color.
“…Did you know, Miss Holmes?”
Looking into those eyes, the words began to flow out of me for some reason.
“No, Charlotte?”
But I had no intention of stopping. I knew this day would come eventually.
“Ever since I first met you, our story has always flowed plausibly. With grey mysteries and black deductions.”
“……”
“But, I think a little differently.”
Listening to me, Charlotte tilted her head, but her grip on the pistol aimed at the professor tightened.
“The story we’ve been creating until now wasn’t the story of mystery and deduction that should have been abundant in London.”
To her, I continued to speak the words I felt I had to say.
“…It was a story of addiction and love.”
In the very next instant, her gun was no longer aimed at the professor, but at my head.
“What are you doing?”
“…A final, desperate act.”
It was only natural. I had twisted my own body to press the muzzle of her gun against my forehead.
“And as the one and only ‘man’ of London’s greatest detective, this is the most powerful weapon I can wield.”
“……”
“Therefore, in the end, this is a story I am destined to win.”
Charlotte’s eyes remained locked with mine. The hand holding the pistol was steady, pointed straight ahead.
“If you don’t want to hear Isaac Adler’s final farewell, you’d better turn around and stand beside the professor.”
But before long, her pistol slowly lowered.
Even in that moment, Charlotte’s expression didn’t change as she stared at me.
“……The same goes for you, Professor, for the record.”
“Hmm.”
“Because I am the one who must put an end to this curse.”
After watching her for a long moment, I turned to face the professor and spoke.
“Because I… am the probability of this world.”
With those words, I began to walk toward Auguste Academy. No one stood in my way any longer.
“…Right. In the end, I lose to you once again.”
Instead, I could faintly hear the dejected voices of the two women behind me.
“Still, isn’t it a relief?”
“Pardon?”
“I thought I’d never see him again, but that was a truly Adler-like moment, the first in a long time.”
Of course, even that couldn’t stop my steps.
“Professor. Fuck you.”
“……”
“You planned this with me, only to betray me at the end? A criminal scumbag like you really is……”
Well, actually, it almost stopped me, but I solved that by quickening my pace.
“…Put an end to it, Adler.”
Now, it was truly time to bring this story to a close.