Chapter 61: The Deceiver and the Deceived
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 61: The Deceiver and the Deceived
The morning after I made Rachel Watson submit to me…
“…Miss Holmes?”
It was the weekend, and I was following my usual routine. But when I arrived at Mycrony Holmes’ mansion, I couldn’t help but widen my eyes in surprise.
“Oh my, I wonder which one of us you’re calling for.”
“……..”
Usually, only a few attendants waited in the living room. Today, however, Charlotte Holmes sat perched on the sofa, her metallic-grey eyes fixed intently on me.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Is it so strange for a younger sister to visit her elder sister’s home?”
I stared blankly at her for a moment before realizing her response was perfectly reasonable.
“…Now that you mention it, it does make sense.”
“However,” Charlotte countered, her voice dropping an octave, “it’s a bit strange for Mr. Adler to visit my sister’s secret residence, isn’t it?”
I glanced at Mycrony before answering. “The highest authority in England secretly wished to see my performance. I was simply coordinating schedules with the person who is, for all intents and purposes, the British government itself.”
“I didn’t know Her Majesty the Queen was interested in the theater,” Charlotte said skeptically.
“Surprisingly, it’s true, Charlotte.”
As I calmly met Charlotte’s gaze, Mycrony chuckled and backed my play.
“From this point on, I need to discuss top-secret royal information with Mr. Adler. Shall we conclude our meeting here for today?”
“…Hmm.”
Charlotte rested her chin in her hand, tilting her head to the side. “Mr. Adler must be quite lucky.”
“………”
“An aspiring actor so ambitious he wants to devour the most powerful person in England.” She leaned in, whispering with a mischievous smile.
“…Miss Holmes, you shouldn’t speak like that.”
“Today, I find myself particularly missing my mana stone powder and my trusty pipe,” Charlotte murmured, reaching out for my hair.
“If it weren’t for your genes mixing inside my belly, I would have succumbed to intoxication myself already.”
“…I thought you quit.”
“Why don’t you try some too, Mr. Adler?”
With a practiced flick of her wrist, she plucked a few strands of my hair and dropped them into her mouth. She leaned in close, her voice an eerie murmur. “Perhaps it can cure that chronic condition of yours—lechery.”
“Miss Holmes.”
“Pfft, hahaha!” Suddenly, she burst into a hearty laugh. “You’re adorable, Mr. Adler.”
“……..”
“If you keep making such cute expressions, you might just lure the other half of London’s women into your bed.”
She grabbed my hand and twirled as if dancing, then headed toward the exit with light, rhythmic steps.
Clack—
Suddenly, she whipped a handgun from her pocket.
“Stay still.”
“Oh my…”
I froze, thinking the worst had finally come. Charlotte raised her gun, a cold smile playing on her lips, and shouted, “Bang!”
Silence followed.
“…Miss Mycrony.”
“Yes?”
“Excuse me, but has your sister taken any drugs recently?”
“I don’t believe so,” Mycrony responded with a gentle smile. “That is simply how my sister behaves when she is dying of boredom from a lack of cases.”
“…Is that so?”
“When my sister is on drugs, she actually becomes more clear-headed.” Mycrony’s deep grey irises shimmered with a dark hue. “She has been in that state ever since you appeared in her life.”
“………..”
“But for some reason, she seems to have reverted to the state she was in before she met you.”
That was good news. According to Watson, Charlotte had locked herself in her boarding house in a broken state after the Reigate case. If she had snapped out of it and returned to her original, quirky genius self, it was a massive relief.
“Or,” Mycrony added gloomily, “she might have done a full three-sixty, making it only appear as though she’s back to normal.”
“……..”
As I processed Mycrony’s speculation, a flicker of worry crossed my face.
“…Mr. Adler.”
Charlotte, who had been peering at me through the sights of her pistol, began to smile eerily. “When you’re done talking with my sister, come to the boarding house.”
I tilted my head in confusion. She squinted her eyes.
“I have something to tell you.”
“…Why not just tell me now?”
“I don’t want to.”
“Is there a reason it can’t be done here?”
She shook her head firmly and whispered, “It’s a new riddle.”
In the next heartbeat—
BANG!
Her pistol discharged.
“If you don’t come, something like this might happen.”
The portrait of the Queen of England hanging in Mycrony’s room shattered, the frame hitting the floor.
“That’s treason, Charlotte,” Mycrony said flatly.
“It’s fine. The royal family owes me quite a bit. The benevolent Queen, having used my services to avert several national crises, will surely turn a blind eye…”
She twirled the pistol, looking pleased with the chaos she’d caused, and resumed her cheerful stride toward the door.
“Besides, I am a staunch patriot. That’s why I only dropped it to the floor and did nothing else.”
“………”
“We probably just need to replace the glass, right?”
Just as she reached the front door, Charlotte turned back with a mischievous glint in her eye. “…Of course, Mr. Adler, you aren’t Her Majesty the Queen.”
“………..”
“So, don’t forget to come to the boarding house, okay?”
Her eyes remained fixed on me until the door closed. They no longer held the darkness I had seen before.
Clack…
The problem was that through the gap in the closing door, I could see her black pistol gleaming as she reloaded it.
“London’s crazy bitch has returned!” I muttered.
“………”
As I stared at the door in a daze, a languid voice drifted from behind me.
“Now she finally seems like my little sister again.”
Mycrony Holmes rested her chin on her hand, a smile stretching across her lips.
“…And how was she before?”
“She seemed like a teenage girl going through a messy puberty.”
“Hmm.”
I stroked my chin, genuinely curious. “So, what do you think brought Miss Holmes back to her usual self so suddenly?”
“She finally found the answer after being lost in a maze for a long time.”
“That’s rather vague.”
“Would it suffice to say she finally realized and accepted something?” Mycrony replied, her voice laced with suppressed laughter as she covered her mouth.
“So, what exactly—”
“You know very well why, don’t you, Mr. Adler?” She opened her eyes slightly, her smile turning cold.
Charlotte Holmes is in love with you.
“……Hmm.”
The message from yesterday flashed through my mind, feeling like the missing piece of the puzzle.
“The moment you enter that boarding house, you might even receive a proposal,” Mycrony teased.
“You have a wicked sense of humor, Miss Holmes.”
“I’ve also heard rumors that Miss Lestrade is frantically searching for you because of your recent disappearance. I’m truly curious to see how this all turns out.”
Mycrony cleared the papers in front of her, a delicate smile on her lips as she laid out the dizzying scenarios.
“That’s not all. Her Majesty the Queen has been repeatedly requesting a personal meeting with you. You certainly are lucky when it comes to women.”
“Pardon?”
She continued to drop bombshells in a nonchalant tone. “Of course, I dismissed her requests. I fell slightly out of favor with the Queen because of it, but my influence isn’t so easily shaken.”
“Why would you do that?”
A shiver ran down my spine. The lie I’d told to escape a situation had become reality, and I felt a pang of regret. It could have been a golden opportunity to have the Queen herself as my backer.
“There was no need to jeopardize your political standing just to make things difficult for me.”
“You have no idea…”
When I spoke with regret, she opened her eyes fully, whispering in a low, husky voice. “…But it’s more intriguing this way.”
A hint of seduction crept into her tone.
“A younger sister on the verge of a confession, an official lover searching everywhere while drowning in guilt, and a Queen who is secretly eyeing the man in question.”
“……….”
“…Now imagine that very same man, spending the day hiding beneath my desk without anyone’s knowledge.”
Mycrony Holmes pushed her chair back slightly and began to rhythmically tap the desk with her fingers.
“It would feel like dying from the pure thrill and immorality of it all, wouldn’t it?”
Recognizing the familiar signal, I sighed and slid under her desk. Mycrony pulled her chair closer, pressing me against her voluptuous form.
Rustle…
A moment later, the hem of her dress was lifted.
“…Bite me.”
Her pale stomach, already marked here and there by faint bite marks, came into view.
“…Heung—”
After a moment’s hesitation, I nestled between her legs and pressed against her, inhaling the soft scent of her body.
Heup.
“Mmm.”
As I bit into her flesh, I heard Mycrony’s soft moan and felt a quiver wreck through her body.
“”……….””
And so began another familiar session of bloodsucking.
“Look up at me while you’re doing it.”
“………”
“I said, look at me…”
As I drank, Mycrony stroked my hair, her voice eerie and demanding.
“…Yes.”
I lifted my head. Her face was flushed with exhilaration and glee.
Rustle…
She met my eyes for a moment, then pulled her clothes up to cover my face entirely.
“……Ah.”
She leaned back against the chair, her eyes shut tight in a daze. “…Today, high-ranking government officials are scheduled to visit.”
“…..?”
“An important meeting, you see…” she whispered. “It will likely last until evening.”
“……….!”
“Can you behave until then?”
I thought of shaking my head, worried about being caught, but her legs tightened around me.
“Come in~” Mycrony called out in a clear, steady voice.
Creeeak…
The door opened, and the sound of footsteps resonated through the room.
“It’s okay,” her faint voice reached me from beneath the fabric of her dress. I cast her a resentful look she couldn’t see. “…Your face will likely be pale by the time we’re done, but it will just make you look a bit more frail than usual. Nothing special.”
“……..”
Her voice was dazed and languid. She clearly craved a stronger stimulus.
“It’s more thrilling this way, isn’t it?”
If that was the case, I had no choice but to oblige.
—As Mr. Devil mentioned, all the guards are positioned outside. Should we handle it?
—Hmph, seems like a trap to me.
—Master, the Cat Princess has a point. Please, be careful.
As I bit into her lower belly, the voices of my loyal subordinates echoed in my mind through telepathic magic.
‘…No matter how I look at it, today is the only chance.’
Whether to take the risk and expand the organization or hesitate and be slowly crushed… I was at the most significant crossroads I had faced in recent times.
*
Several hours later…
Outside Mycrony Holmes’ secret residence, the distinguished visitors took a brief break and stepped out of the room.
“…If that’s true, the situation is dire.”
“Yes, it’s an emergency.”
Her loyal retainers, the Hounds, stood guard outside, sweat dripping from their brows.
“They might take advantage of this short break.”
“Should we break down the door and rush in?”
“…It’s too risky. We don’t know how Adler might react.”
In the eyes of the woman standing at the center—the Captain—the situation inside the room was being reflected in real-time.
—Ugh…
—Haven’t you let your guard down a bit too much just because I’ve been obedient?
—S-stop…
—It’s futile. Just surrender and become mine.
Isaac Adler was positioned over a pale-faced Mycrony, gripping her hands fiercely, his eyes glowing red as he drew her blood.
—It hurts…
—That’s why you shouldn’t have naively signed the contract.
To any observer, it looked like a coup.
“Miss Mycrony…”
The Captain, whose ability allowed her to sense any danger threatening her master, grew increasingly uneasy.
“One on the roof, one in the alley… no, two.”
“Considering they were prepared by Isaac Adler, we should expect them to be extremely dangerous.”
“What are our orders?” the agents asked, their composure masking their tension.
“…What to do, huh?” The Captain clenched her teeth. “She was the only one who ever called my curse a blessing.”
The agents nodded, eyeing their adversaries with sharp, lethal intent.
“”………..””
Just as a bloody battle for dominance over London was about to erupt—
“………?”
A look of utter bewilderment washed over the Captain’s face.
“…What is it, Captain?”
“What’s happening?”
The Captain stood frozen, unable to speak for a long moment.
“That’s…”
Just seconds prior, Mycrony Holmes had looked terrified. But the moment Isaac Adler buried his head into her neck, she began to blush and pant heavily.
—Ah, heung… hauuh…
—St-stop now…
She let out faint, quivering moans, her lips moving subtly to convey a silent message:
‘Keep. An. Eye. Out.’
“………”
The Captain’s gaze went dull.
“What the hell is going on?”
“…We need to move now, Captain.”
“While we hold the perimeter, you should hurry inside…”
Ignoring her subordinates’ desperate urges, the Captain watched as Mycrony Holmes gently wrapped her legs around Isaac Adler’s waist.
—You shouldn’t do this…
“……..?”
Mycrony shyly turned her head, avoiding Adler’s puzzled gaze.
“…Now that I think about it, it was a curse after all,” the Captain muttered.
“Huh?”
Seeing the melting expression on her master’s face, the Captain turned and began to walk away with a carefree air.
“Let’s go get some food, shall we?”
“”……..???””
The twisted romantic entanglements between Mycrony Holmes and Isaac Adler persisted throughout the duration of her subordinates’ meal.