Chapter 73: The Blue Carbuncle (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 73: The Blue Carbuncle (5)
A few days after the Blue Carbuncle incident…
“…Hm.”
Rubbing his sleepy eyes, Isaac Adler stepped into the living room of Lestrade’s house. Immediately, he spotted Charlotte Holmes, lost in thought by the fireplace.
“Miss Holmes.”
“………”
He tried to engage her as he quietly approached the hearth, but Charlotte remained silent, submerged in deep reflection.
“…Are you really going to ignore me like this?”
Observing her rare, pensive state—so reminiscent of her original depiction—a playful smile crept onto Adler’s face. He couldn’t resist the urge to tease her.
Poke, poke…
He reached out and poked her soft cheek with his finger, but she continued to stare blankly at the flickering flames.
“Charlotte…”
Slightly annoyed by her continued disregard, Adler leaned in close to her face, his lips pouting as he murmured her name. However, at that moment…
“…Eh.”
Something soft suddenly entered his mouth.
“………”
Charlotte Holmes had quite naturally slipped her tongue between his lips. She tilted her head, looking up at Adler with an unreadable gaze.
Smooch…
A brief, tangled dance of tongues ensued between the two.
“…There was no need to answer like that.”
“I was just organizing my thoughts.”
“I know, Miss Holmes. I must say, once you start focusing, you wouldn’t notice even if someone carried you away…”
Adler carefully pulled back from their passionate exchange to speak. He looked at her with a curious glint in his eyes.
“So, what were you thinking about so intently?”
“……..”
“Could it be… you’re worried because there’s been no response to the bait we threw out, even after several days?”
Adler sat down in front of her, his eyes meeting hers at the same level.
“Are you perhaps thinking that we might fail to solve the case if things continue like this?”
“…That’s not it.”
Charlotte shook her head. She swallowed the lingering moisture from their exchange before she began to speak.
“I’ve already uncovered the entire truth of the case.”
“Is that so?”
“After the Blue Carbuncle vanished from the hotel where the Countess of Morcar was staying, the attendant who worked there abruptly disappeared as well.”
“Oh.”
“And look at this…”
Quietly unfolding a newspaper, Charlotte pointed to a front-page article.
“It’s a report about the attendant being found tied up in her own home. In other words, for the past few days, someone has been impersonating her.”
“Hmm…”
“It’s similar to what happened with the Inspector Candidate, Linya Baynes. She was found unconscious in her home a few days ago, just like the attendant.”
As she spoke, her eyes began to shine with a sharp, intelligent light.
“With this, everything is confirmed.”
“What do you mean?”
“The reason why the criminals, disguised as Baynes and the attendant respectively, chose to operate in such a fashion.”
As Adler tilted his head in silence, Charlotte continued her explanation with a mischievous expression.
“The criminal who stole the jewel from the hotel while disguised as the attendant must have bumped into Inspector Candidate Baynes.”
“Back then? Seriously?”
“She’s as clever and keen as I am, so she probably saw through the disguise during their brief confrontation.”
She began to rhythmically tap her fingers on the desk.
“Hence, the criminal had to get rid of the jewel immediately. At that very moment, a cart carrying a goose to a nearby grocery store must have caught their eye.”
“Hmm….”
“They managed to toss the jewel into the cart, but what if… the goose mistook it for food and ate it?”
“………..”
“So, they had to get their hands on that particular goose by any means necessary to retrieve the jewel. However, what if Inspector Candidate Baynes, still suspicious, continued to follow them closely?”
Listening quietly, Adler’s expression gradually shifted to one of puzzlement.
“Why did the uninvited guests from France risk posing as Inspector Candidate Baynes, and why were they after the goose? Doesn’t my deduction explain both questions clearly?”
“…I suppose so.”
“What’s wrong? Is there something that doesn’t add up?”
In response to Charlotte’s question, Adler scratched his head.
“It’s just… your style seems a bit different today.”
“How so?”
“Well, there are too many parts of your deduction that feel… uncertain.”
His gaze sharpened.
“Miss Holmes, you usually keep your deductions to yourself until the very last possible moment. You only reveal your thought process once everything is confirmed.”
“Does that really matter between us?”
Charlotte simply smiled softly, deflecting his statement.
“Still…”
“Also, I sent a message to Watson’s hospital, where Inspector Candidate Baynes is recovering, for verification.”
“………”
“So, it’s only a matter of time before my deduction becomes fact—a few minutes at most. It’s all fine, right?”
Adler watched her for a moment, then smiled faintly.
“…I suppose you’re right.”
He propped his chin on his hand, looking at her quietly.
“Most importantly, we have the jewel.”
“That’s true.”
“Even if the criminals escape, as long as we return the jewel to the Countess of Morcar when she wakes up from her shock, our victory is guaranteed.”
“I didn’t realize Miss Holmes would accept such a paltry, unsatisfactory victory.”
“Well, it is what it is.”
With a sigh, Charlotte looked at Adler, her expression darkening slightly.
“Lately, the back alleys of London have been getting cleaned up at an unusually fast rate.”
“………”
“Numerous organizations are disappearing or merging, and many people have vanished without a trace.”
A chill crept up Adler’s spine.
“…It feels like a war is about to break out.”
Silence filled the room.
“I’ll try to handle it somehow, so don’t worry too much.”
“………”
“But there’s still one thing I’m curious about.”
Adler, trying to reassure her with a smile, tilted his head.
“You still haven’t said what you were pondering so deeply earlier.”
Charlotte grinned from ear to ear.
“I was just thinking about the bet I made with you, Mr. Adler.”
“…The bet?”
“You said there was something wrong with my deduction…”
Adler looked intrigued. “Did you find out what the problem was?”
“…Of course I did.”
Charlotte wore a triumphant smile.
“I was wrong to speculate that the owner of the hat was highly intellectual based solely on its size.”
“Why is that?”
“If having a large head equated to high intelligence, then dolphins or whales would be ruling the world instead of humans.”
A pleased smile appeared on Adler’s face. “You’re correct.”
“The misconceptions regarding phrenology have only recently been debunked. I had to double-check my own thinking several times before I realized that fact.”
“Is that so?”
“Be that as it may, you have to honor your promise now, okay?”
Locking eyes with him, Charlotte whispered in a soft, cooing voice.
“…Since the number of wishes has increased to two, I’m thinking of using one of them right now.”
“……….”
“So, let’s go to the bedroom and…”
She naturally reached out to untie Isaac Adler’s tie, leaning closer until…
Slap!!!
The sound of a sharp slap, echoing with the same intensity as a few days prior, filled the living room.
“…….Huh?”
Charlotte, struck so hard that her nose began to bleed, touched her cheek with a trembling hand.
“What are you doing no—”
She began to speak, her tone lacing with coldness as she glared at him, but…
Slap!!!
“He—”
Smack!!!
Adler’s hand rained down again, cutting her off completely.
“…..Isaac?”
Charlotte’s cheeks were swollen red as she stared at him, stunned.
“If you wanted to imitate Charlotte, you shouldn’t have tried to be so… perfect.”
“Huh?”
“Charlotte is still young. She lacks common sense in many areas.”
A cold smile crept onto Adler’s lips.
“I—I studied. To win the bet…..”
“And…”
Leaning his head close to the frightened girl’s face, he caressed her slightly rough lips and whispered in a dark voice.
“…Charlotte isn’t that good at kissing.”
“……..”
“She always takes the initiative, but when it comes down to the real deal, she’s clumsy and awkward.”
The fear in the girl's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a dull, vacant look.
“So, are you just going to skip the pleasantries and go straight to hitting people?”
“…You like this kind of thing, don’t you?”
Upon hearing those words, Charlotte—or rather, the person impersonating her—began to laugh quietly.
“Pfft~”
“Is that really your fetish?”
“………”
“I don’t think it’s a fetish a thief should have, no matter how I look at it.”
Adler, his hand already tight around her throat, asked in a low voice.
“Shouldn’t people like you hate being caught and beaten more than anything else?”
“…That’s exactly why, actually.”
The girl, choking under his grip, answered with a ragged breath.
“The last time I was caught by you… that was a first for me.”
“……….”
“And it was also the first time in my life that… I had been beaten like that.”
The girl grabbed Adler’s hand—the one strangling her—with her own.
“It was a thrilling experience. I really felt like I would die at your hands.”
Instead of pulling his hand away, she added her own strength to his grip, tightening the hold on her own neck. Tears brimmed in her eyes.
“Thinking that I—who roamed the world unfettered, intimidating the police wherever I went—could die powerlessly in such a shabby place… the thought was so thrilling that my whole body trembled with delight.”
“…Huh?”
“Even being branded like livestock… and thrown away like a mere pawn…”
Seeing the hazy look in her eyes and the convulsions of her body from the lack of oxygen, Adler quickly spoke.
“Quick, get your hands off me.”
“………”
“What?”
For some reason, the golden seal engraved on her stomach gave no response, even as he commanded her.
“Ugh…”
“…How did you escape the magic and control of the contract?”
As Adler frowned, the girl answered in a dying voice, drooling heavily.
“I’m… under a… really… fun curse… hihi~”
“…Curse.”
The moment Adler’s expression turned serious at the mention of a curse…
Squeeak…!
“…Huh?”
She lifted her legs with considerable difficulty, revealing her undergarments. An unidentified liquid sprayed out from a hidden device in her clothes.
“Ugh… Cough…”
Adler hastily released her and covered his nose and mouth, but it was too late.
“This time it’s a bit different. A spray mixed with garlic juice—no alcohol, of course.”
“Urk…”
“It’s like a miracle potion for dealing with vampires, right?”
The girl gently touched the red fingerprints on her neck. She began to rummage through Adler’s belongings as he knelt before her, gasping for air.
“…Found it.”
Her eyes shone as she pulled out a small box.
“I was worried because I couldn’t find it after searching the entire house, but you had it on you after all.”
“Ugh…”
“I’m really sorry, but I really, really need this, okay?”
Carefully sliding the box into her bosom, the mysterious girl stroked Adler’s chin.
“A battle of wits with you was quite fun, you know… much more enjoyable than a confrontation with that obsessed Ganimard.”
“………”
“It’s a shame to end it like this, but it’s time for us to part ways.”
Then…
Smash…!
“…Gaah.”
The girl punched Adler straight in the stomach.
“…Being deprived of freedom, being trampled helplessly with no way to fight back—it was a fucking awesome experience.”
She hovered next to Adler’s ear as he doubled over, trembling. She whispered in her natural voice for the first time.
“But you know, I can’t live being the only one on the receiving end.”
“……….”
“It’s in my nature to repay any harm done to me in kind. My temperament won’t allow me to endure otherwise.”
She gently spread her fingers and began to softly rub his lower abdomen.
Smashhh…!
“…Uhighhu.”
At that very moment, Adler used the last of his strength to deliver a punch to the girl’s stomach.
Brrr…
“Stop hitting me now…”
Momentarily drained of strength by the sudden violence, she clutched onto him for support, her body quivering. She mumbled through gritted teeth.
“Whenever I get hit by you, a desire to be dominated springs up from within. Isn’t that strange?”
“……….”
“If you keep this up, I might just kidnap you and make you my master before I know it.”
After finishing her contradictory words, which made his skin crawl, she stood up.
“…There’s something I need to tell you before I go.”
The girl stopped at the entrance and added in a quiet tone.
“That was my first kiss.”
“…What?”
“So, I’m not sure what was so great about it.”
Her voice sounded almost shy. By the time Adler came to his senses, she had disappeared without a trace.
“…………”
Silence returned to the room.
“…Brother Adler!”
The voice of the second sibling, who had been hiding in the other room, resounded.
“Should I tell Sister Holmes to return from the hospital now?”
“…I don’t understand.”
Adler ignored the question, his mind elsewhere. He mumbled in a disillusioned voice.
“The girl who made me grit my teeth in anger, the girl I personally shoved into the DLC content… why is she tormenting me in the main storyline now?”
In front of Adler’s eyes, a system message appeared for the first time in a long while.
Pha%%# Thi%^>> Lup%*>^} is %>>~^ you!
“…Is this karma?”
.
.
.
.
.
This is my gift to you.
“……..”
Meanwhile…
I have already taken ownership of the jewel from the Countess of Morcar. It seems the Countess values hiring me for a week far more than the jewel itself.
The girl walking away from Lestrade’s house stared blankly at the letter that had been inside the box along with the jewel.
I’m sorry for everything, Miss Thief.
“…Ha.”
She started to chuckle to herself.
“I was completely played from start to finish.”
The girl, once again donning her mysterious aura and her usual cloak and monocle, bit her lip and continued walking.
“…I can’t stand being fooled like this.”
Just as her gaze began to turn eerie…
Thud…!
“Oops.”
She bumped into a passerby with considerable force.
“…Ugh.”
As her lower belly began to glow with a golden hue and twitch on its own, she grumbled, looking miserable as she sat on the street.
“It’s become a habit, after all…”
Brrr…
“…I still want it, though.”
After a moment, she stood up, looking exhausted.
“…Oh.”
She realized something was wrong.
“Huh?”
Instead of the jewel and the letter, she was holding a single card.
“This…”
It was Tarot Card XVI—The Tower.
Leave London.
“……….”
She turned around after reading the straightforward message on the front of the card—the most ominous card in the deck.
Trudge, trudge…
A woman in a professor’s outfit was walking through the snow-covered street, her grey hair fluttering slightly in the wind.
“Is this London, or a den of monsters?”
As she stared at the receding woman’s back, she could sense gazes filled with hostility and killing intent pulsating from the surroundings. She couldn’t help but chuckle again.
“…It only makes me want it more.”
The world’s greatest thief had just set her sights on her next target.
Warning!
Erosion Rate — 20% → 25%