Chapter 30: Fait Accompli
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 30: Fait Accompli
- Whirrr…
“…Excuse me, Professor.”
Adler broke the silence, his voice trembling. He was breaking out in a cold sweat as he watched Moriarty’s grey mana flood his body, a process that had been underway for some time.
“Isn’t this enough…?”
The violet mana belonging to Lady Roylott, which had previously coated his skin in a purplish hue, had been completely extinguished. In its place, Professor Moriarty’s murky grey mana now surged through him.
“Professor?”
Given the sheer volume of mana she was outputting, it was clear that she had long since surpassed the amount needed to simply break his previous bindings. Yet, Professor Moriarty continued to pour her power into Adler’s body without pause.
“Um, shouldn’t we stop now…?”
As his internal mana circuits began to take on the permanent tint of her energy, a chilling sensation washed over him. Adler hurriedly spoke up, trying to convey his growing unease.
“It feels… strange.”
“Adler.”
Professor Moriarty, who was still perched on his lap, tilted her head and looked directly into his eyes. She whispered in a soft, melodic tone.
“Didn’t I tell you to stay still?”
“………”
Adler’s expression went dazed. He felt his resistance crumble, his tense muscles relaxing as he decided to simply obey her for now.
“Well done.”
She smiled gently, stroking Adler’s hair with a tender palm.
“…But what exactly are you doing, Professor?”
Hearing the faint trace of fear in his voice, Moriarty merely tilted her head again.
“Well, what do you think I’m doing?”
“Pardon?”
“Try to guess.”
She leaned in, embracing Adler and whispering into his ear.
“You like riddles, don’t you?”
It was true—he did like riddles—but at this moment, Adler’s cognitive faculties were failing him. He was completely enveloped by the touch, the warmth, and the scent of Jane Moriarty’s silky hair. For a soul with zero experience with women, the sensations triggered by her intoxicating presence were overwhelmingly intense.
“…Are you trying to poison me to death?”
Desperately clinging to the last shreds of his rationality, Adler managed to force a weak smile, even as his ears turned a bright, vivid red.
“You’re good at posing riddles, but terrible at solving them, it seems…”
“So…?”
Adler, his mind hazy, heard Jane Moriarty whisper softly against his skin.
“I’m not trying to kill you. I’m protecting you.”
“…So you’re admitting you’re making me addicted to you?”
Adler let out a light, breathless chuckle.
“Do you intend to dye my entire being in your colors?”
He looked down at his own pale skin, now shimmering with a greyish light, and offered a resigned smile.
“Are you some kind of living love potion?”
“………”
“But if you do this… Charlotte will…”
Adler’s voice trailed off, and his head slumped forward.
“………”
Moriarty gazed down at him as he settled silently into her embrace.
- Whirrr…
A moment later, Jane Moriarty cautiously retracted the mana she had been circulating through Adler’s body. His mana circuits were now thoroughly saturated with her overwhelming grey energy.
It didn’t stop at his circuits; Isaac Adler himself was now practically branded with her essence. Furthermore, the sheer intensity of the process had induced symptoms of Mana Poisoning—a condition that usually only manifested after years of exposure to high-grade mana stones.
To suffer mana poisoning from mere contact with another human’s mana was a phenomenon unprecedented in the history of magic.
“…Adler.”
Having concluded this historical event so casually, she murmured to him in that same soft tone.
“Are you mine now?”
Despite her actions, a hint of doubt still lingered in her voice.
What is this restlessness I feel?
Magically, she had solidified Adler as her possession. She had placed a powerful protection upon him, ensuring that no one would dare harm him. Yet, even as she held him in a smothering embrace, an unsettling feeling continued to creep through her mind.
Why? What was the source of this anxiety?
“………?”
Lost in thought, Professor Moriarty’s gaze shifted toward the basement door, which had been eerily quiet for some time.
- Swish…
In the blink of an eye, the presence she felt watching them through the slightly ajar door vanished without a trace.
“…Ha.”
A moment later, she felt that faint gaze return through the cracks. It was only then that Professor Moriarty finally understood.
So that’s what it was.
She was uneasy because she realized that Adler might still choose to abandon her.
Even if I never grow bored of you…
She recalled the sight of Adler wearing the collar Lady Roylott had given him, lapping up milk from the woman's hand.
…You might get tired of me first.
An image surfaced in her mind: Adler, with cold, disappointed eyes, whispering his disillusionment before walking away from her side forever.
Even without his consent, he could be taken from me.
What is the solution?
After a moment of cold calculation, Professor Moriarty reached a firm conclusion.
…Yes, that would be the best way…
She mused internally. As she caught sight of the eyes appearing once more through the gap in the door, her lips curled into a faint, predatory smile.
*
How much time had passed since I was overwhelmed by the Professor’s mana and drifted off?
“…Ouch.”
I was jolted awake by a sharp pain in my neck. When my vision cleared, I froze.
“………”
“Pro… Professor?”
Professor Moriarty, who was still sitting on my lap, was biting my neck, gnawing on the skin with considerable force.
“W-What are you doing?!”
Startled, I gently pushed her back. She pulled her face away slightly and tilted her head in that characteristic, almost cute manner.
“I was asserting my ownership over you.”
“What?”
“I had something else intended, but it would be meaningless unless you were awake for it. Regrettably, I decided to start by asserting my claim first.”
Who was she even asserting ownership to? And since when did biting someone’s neck equate to a property claim?
“Haven’t you bitten the neck of a woman you desired to possess before?”
“………”
“There must be some metaphorical meaning or effect to it. Merely biting a neck wouldn’t make someone fall for you, after all.”
As I stared at her blankly, she leaned back in and whispered.
“When… when did I ever do that?”
“Don’t deny it.”
She nestled back into my embrace.
“Ouch.”
The prickling pain returned to the front of my neck.
“Ow, ow, ow… that hurts…”
Watching me writhe and protest, she widened her eyes in surprise and pulled back.
“…Did you hate that?”
“A little.”
“Then, I apologize.”
She gently caressed the spot she had bitten and whispered my name.
“Adler.”
“…Yes?”
“I have a request.”
The distance between us vanished. I tried to turn my gaze away, but her soft voice held me captive.
“I want you to cooperate with me in creating a Fait Accompli.”
“…What did you just say?”
I doubted my ears, but her answer remained firm.
“I want to create a Fait Accompli that only you and I share.”
“Why… why?”
“It is the conclusion I’ve reached to ensure I don’t repeat my previous mistakes with you.”
By now, even my hair had begun to turn a shade of greyish-white from her influence.
“And also, to clearly define our relationship to the uninvited guests.”
“What does that even mean…”
“Stay still.”
Ignoring my confusion, Jane Moriarty pinned my arms down.
“Regrettably, I have no practical knowledge of these matters. I don’t even fully understand them.”
“What are you—”
“The only thing I am familiar with is the act universally shared among lovers—an act so popular it is even documented in academic papers.”
Only then did I realize what she intended. I hurriedly tried to dissuade her.
“But a Fait Accompli should be enough! It’s already memorable in so many ways…”
“No, we cannot stop there.”
She leaned in until our noses were almost touching. She tilted her head.
“Is there a problem?”
“This… this is something you only do with someone you love,” I whispered, my face flushing a deep red.
Professor Moriarty stared intently at me before asking in a subdued tone, “Don’t you love me?”
“Well… I do love you.”
“Then what is the problem?”
“It’s just my unrequited love, isn’t it?”
Her brows furrowed at that.
“Do you love me, Professor?”
“I…”
She seemed lost in thought for a moment.
“I’m sorry,” she responded, her expression turning slightly gloomy. “I have not yet come to understand the emotion called love.”
“See? In that case, acting on such things so carelessly…”
“But without you, I feel like I would suffer immensely. I might even die.”
She suddenly smiled with an intense light in her eyes and gripped my arms tighter.
“That is how precious you are to me.”
“Excuse me…?”
“To establish a Fait Accompli… to protect such a valuable person… is love even a necessary requirement?”
Her face was so close now that I couldn’t bear to look. I squeezed my eyes shut.
“If it still feels awkward, I will say it just this once.”
In the next moment, hearing her whisper, I realized…
“…I love you, Isaac.”
I realized that my very first kiss would belong to Professor Jane Moriarty, and her alone.
“Now, is there a problem?”
“…It’s my first kiss…”
I blurted out the truth, but it was far too late.
“…Same here.”
As she finished speaking, her soft tongue slipped past my lips and entered my mouth.
*
Only a few minutes passed.
- KOOOOOOMMM!!!
The silent basement was suddenly rocked by a deafening explosion. The door, which had seemed indestructible before, shredded like wet paper. A massive cloud of dust billowed into the room.
“………”
A heavy, suffocating silence followed.
“Oh dear, Holmes.”
From within the dust cloud, a girl shrouded in black smoke staggered forward. Professor Moriarty’s cold voice cut through the air.
“You’ve made a considerable effort, but you are still a step too late.”
Moriarty’s lips were still connected to Adler’s by a thin, silver thread of saliva.
“You are still unfit to be a detective.”
At that instant, a murderous intent unlike anything I had ever felt began to swirl in Charlotte’s eyes.