Chapter 92: The Battle Intensifies (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 92: The Battle Intensifies (2)
“Adler, look at this.”
“…What is it?”
“The weekly newspaper has published some rather fascinating stories.”
As I walked away from the hospital and headed down the street, Professor Moriarty’s cheerful voice drifted into my ears.
“Is that so…”
“Don’t be like that. Just take a look.”
I was still quite distressed by the incident that had just occurred, but I had no choice but to stop when she thrust the newspaper directly in front of my face.
“There have been many strange occurrences in London lately,” the professor muttered, her eyes darting away from mine.
“Are they as strange as what we’ve experienced over the past few months?”
“They are in a league of their own, but in my opinion, these incidents come infinitely close to that level.”
I shot her a slightly annoyed look. Noticing my mood, she nudged the newspaper even closer to my face and mumbled, “For example, in the eastern part of the city, rainbow-colored rain fell all day yesterday.”
“Rainbow-colored rain?”
“That’s not all. In cemeteries across England, there have been simultaneous reports of howling, and there have even been sightings of humans resembling wolves…”
“Ah…”
Hearing those words, my head began to throb.
It’s beginning, isn’t it?
In this world, the period leading up to the end of the first semester’s summer break was essentially just a tutorial. Starting from the second semester, precursors of bizarre phenomena would begin to appear at random. By the second year, strange cases would erupt almost daily.
And the more you fail to solve them, the faster the world goes to hell.
The problem was that even though it was only the end of summer break, events that should have occurred at the end of the second semester were already happening in real-time.
For instance, the incidents Professor Moriarty just mentioned were original episodes from the game known as Rainbow Rain, Howling Cemetery, and Reconstructed Wolf.
Of course, these incidents were devised by the story department, who had colluded with the design team to shamelessly insert my likeness into the official narrative as the worthless character Isaac Adler. Consequently, the quality and the gimmicks used in these cases were utterly crude.
To be frank, even the incompetent London Metropolitan Police could solve these without Charlotte needing to step in.
However, that wasn't the issue.
Rather than worrying about cases that didn’t require my supervision, I had to focus on the grave fact that the timeline was being rushed. Cases that should have occurred much later were being moved up for some reason.
It must be because of the Erosion Rate…
There was no such thing as an Erosion Rate in the game system I had designed. Certainly, the possibilities of being kidnapped, confined, or subjected to things censored by question marks weren't part of the original mechanics either.
However, those were simply possibilities that could be introduced at any time, given the nature of a system that calculates current probabilities based on one’s karma. But from what I’ve observed so far, this Erosion Rate seemed to be fundamentally different from everything else.
Every time beings that shouldn’t exist in this world appear before me, the Erosion Rate increases…
The first "alien entity"—a deviant to this world’s storyline—to reveal herself was Jill the Ripper. Naturally, I had never established a setting for her.
Then came the Phantom Thief Lupin. The clueless story team had tried to force her into the canon, prompting me to foam at the mouth in anger until they relegated her to a DLC story instead. Honestly, I hated the idea of Lupin popping up in a game based on the Sherlock Holmes series so much that I wanted to scrap her entirely, but it was already too late; the illustrations and modeling were finished.
“Hmm…”
Upon further reflection, the Erosion Rate that often flashed as a red warning before my eyes seemed to be triggered by characters who were not part of the Sherlock Holmes series. The rate increased exponentially with the appearance of fictional characters from other stories, like Lupin, or real-life figures like Jack the Ripper.
…And it also rose slightly whenever the plausibility of the world began to collapse.
What was the reason for these non-existent characters suddenly appearing? And if the Erosion Rate kept rising, what on earth would happen to this world?
Whatever it is, judging by the acceleration of these bizarre incidents, it’s safe to assume it won’t end well for anyone.
Even though I had ended up in this cursed body with these damned eyes that couldn't settle on anything, and despite being ignorant of many things in a world I had designed myself, I couldn’t just sit back. As long as this was a world I created with my own hands, it was my responsibility to protect it.
To accomplish that, I needed to build my Kingdom of Crime at a pace several times faster than the current progression. Only then would I be able to wage an all-out war against those unwelcome invaders.
“……..”
And to do that, the most crucial person was…
“…Isaac Adler.”
As I was lost in thought, that very person—Professor Jane Moriarty—kept poking my cheek with her finger.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Your pinky came loose.”
“…Ah.”
“Please set it right again.”
I asked her with a deliberately cold gaze and an equally frigid tone, but she simply held up her pinky and muttered with a bright smile.
“…There.”
“Thank you.”
It was a truly strange thing. Ever since the recent incident, I found myself avoiding the professor’s gaze every time I saw her.
“Don’t slyly hook two fingers.”
“Was it that obvious?”
I found myself becoming irritable with her without even realizing it.
…I shouldn’t be like this.
I should just smile slyly, as I usually do, and wink at her a few times. All I had to do was occasionally whisper the words she wanted to hear—an exceedingly simple task under normal circumstances.
“……..”
However, just as I could no longer regard Charlotte as merely an object of admiration after the ivory box incident… had I, in the end, fallen for the professor as well?
…I’m such a scumbag.
A sense of guilt began to creep into the depths of my conscience, but it was already far too late to change the situation. If I were to say that I loved both of them now… either London would be wiped off the map of Britain, or I would be physically split in half and distributed between them. It was one or the other.
In other words, I would eventually have to choose.
“…….”
Fortunately, having won the last wager, it seemed I could at least postpone the decision for a while. But I couldn’t run forever. Eventually, judgment day would come—the day I must choose one of them.
…Perhaps at the Reichenbach Falls. That is where it will all end.
I couldn’t foresee exactly when that moment would occur, but I could guess the location. Surely it wouldn’t be a "Bad Ending" where I fall over the waterfall caught between the two of them, right?
…Perhaps I really should just devour London and take them both for myself.
As I pondered such fanciful possibilities, something happened.
Clutch—
Out of the blue, Professor Moriarty grabbed my hand.
“What is it…?”
“…I’ve been thinking about it for a while now.”
An ominous feeling washed over me, and I tried to shake her off. However, Professor Moriarty refused to let go.
“No matter how much I think about it, I truly believe that I love you.”
“What?”
“The fact that my eyes haven't changed color must be due to my constitution, or perhaps because my mana is far too strong to be tainted by you.”
Her grey eyes began to gaze at me with a smothering intensity.
“Despite everything, don’t you think it’s a bit too harsh to deny my love just because my eyes won't turn golden and take on your color?”
“…Then, just love me a bit more, I guess.”
“If you were to die, I would wish to die with you. That is how much I love you, Adler.”
The words blitzed out of her mouth, leaving me momentarily speechless. I fell silent. Seeing my reaction, Professor Moriarty leaned in and whispered in my ear.
“…Even though I want to hold you accountable for turning a naive person like me—someone who knew only mathematics and murder—into this lovestruck fool, I simply can’t prove my feelings.”
“………”
“And after giving it a lot of thought, I’ve come up with a very simple and clear solution.”
Puzzled by her statement, which was filled to the brim with meaningful suggestion, I decided to listen to the rest in silence.
“…Once this case is over, let’s spend the night together, okay?”
“What?”
Registering the words that left Professor Moriarty’s mouth, I stopped in my tracks, my thoughts grinding to a halt from the shock.
.
.
.
.
.
“What did you say…?”
After standing dazed on the quiet street for some time, Adler managed a forced smile and repeated the question. To this, Professor Moriarty responded with a perfectly calm expression.
“I am suggesting that we have intercourse, Adler.”
“……….”
“If I receive your affection directly, perhaps my eyes will eventually turn golden, won’t they?”
Muttering to herself with clear excitement in her eyes, she started bobbing her head from side to side as she looked at Adler, who remained frozen in place.
“Why I didn't think of this from the very beginning truly puzzles me.”
“………”
“I don’t understand why I overlooked the most certain, clear, and rational method that leads directly to victory.”
It seemed Charlotte wasn't the only one who had realized her oversight.
“What do you think, Adler?”
“Well…”
“Since you have tainted my innocence with your ideology, isn’t it time to stain my body with your color as well?”
“Let’s just calm down for a bi—”
His stalled brain quickly began to race. He desperately tried to reject the conclusion she had reached, but…
“…But if I were to become pregnant, would you take responsibility?”