The Phantom's Deception
"There's still a counterattack left in the jewel room, so let's wait for that moment!"
"What a splendid idea...!!"
Having said that, the pair began moving toward the jewel room as the appointed time drew near.
"You've arrived! Detective Charlotte!!"
Chief Inspector Lestrade greeted her warmly as soon as Charlotte appeared.
"Yes! Chief Inspector Lestrade! How is the security situation?"
"Thorough! As you can see, we've mobilized every available officer, including all shift workers. That's why we've stationed ten men in each corridor, and as you can see in the exhibition hall where the jewel is displayed, we've doubled the usual number to sixty personnel!"
"Oh ho..."
"As you can see, there's barely enough room to set foot, let alone stage an intrusion. The Phantom Thief will never be able to steal the Eye of Delon!!"
Chief Inspector Lestrade boasted about the security measures with complete confidence.
She's just a private detective with a mediocre track record at best. Does he really need to suck up to her like that...?
Seong-il watched Lestrade's behavior—which looked more like a division commander reporting an operation—with utter bewilderment.
Whether she knew what he was thinking or not, Charlotte nodded at the inspector's report and offered praise.
"As expected! This is exactly what we'd expect from Chief Inspector Lestrade of the Windom Metropolitan Police, the pride of the city!!"
"Haha! Thank you!!"
....What gives her the right to be handing out praise? And why the hell are you so happy to hear it, Inspector?
Seong-il felt his common sense crumbling away bit by bit in the world of Magic City and the Great Detective. He let out a quiet internal sigh before silently slipping into a defensive stance.
Luphtesia wouldn't betray me and stab me in the back... right?
Preparing for any possible betrayal from her, Seong-il maximized his Induction and began keeping watch.
As the promised time written on the notice drew closer, not only Seong-il but every officer around him grew visibly tense. They drew their magic wands and began arming themselves.
Oh... So that's a magic-firing wand!!
Unlike the typical magic worlds most people imagined, the world of Magic City and the Great Detective relied far more on mass-produced magical tools than on mages personally chanting spells. It felt like an industrialized magic society.
Looking at the officers' equipment, which perfectly embodied that atmosphere, Seong-il thought to himself.
Hmm.... If I took one of those wands or a protecting robe back to another world later, it would be incredibly useful.
Even if I don't use it myself, putting it on Erisha or Pirina would help defend against surprise attacks.
Just as Seong-il was making plans while examining the items—
"Intruder!!!"
One officer's shout and pointing hand.
The officers all turned to look in the direction he indicated.
Sure enough, on the ceiling in that direction stood a woman wearing a tight leather suit that proudly displayed her voluptuous figure.
"Everyone! Begin firing shock wands!!"
The moment he saw her, Chief Inspector Lestrade gave the order to shoot!
The officers immediately began unleashing a barrage using wands loaded with shock magic.
Bang! Bang! Bang!!
Whoa... It's like watching a helicopter and a wizard's coming-of-age party at the same time...?
The scene unfolding before him looked exactly like a magic battle from a famous fantasy film. Seong-il couldn't help but let out an impressed gasp.
And just as that awe suggested, the magic's power was enough to tear the intruder to pieces.
Surely... she wouldn't actually die so pathetically, right?
Seong-il felt a pang of worry as he watched what might become his woman and partner get blown apart in an instant.
At that moment.
"Oh my...? Do you really think you can catch me like that?"
The owner of a slender yet seductive voice spoke with clear mockery.
"What?!"
The officers panicked as the Phantom Thief stood perfectly fine on the opposite side from where they'd fired their magic.
And then.
"Are you sure that's the real one?"
A voice suddenly rang out from an entirely unrelated location.
"No way? I'm the real one, though?"
Voices popped up from five or six different places in the blink of an eye.
"Wh-what the hell?! Is this clone magic?"
It's automata.
The unique secret technique of automata creation that only Phantom Thief Luphtesia could use.
While raiding the ruins of a magical civilization destroyed during the ancient Magic War, she had coincidentally obtained an artifact mask that allowed the creation of marionettes—a technique now lost to time.
To be precise, it wasn't exactly a manufacturing method. She would create specially infused mana gems using the magic mask, embed them into ordinary wooden dolls, and then activate the spell on the ancient magic mask she wore to transform them into controllable automata.
In any case, automata creation magic was a powerful technique that belonged solely to Luphtesia, and she loved using it for deception tactics.
However, like most techniques of this kind, its effectiveness was halved once the enemy learned of it. That was why she desperately avoided exposing her ability and only used automata magic occasionally for misdirection.
But today, with such heavy security and the additional need to keep her promise to Seong-il, Luphtesia had steeled herself to reveal her magic and deployed the automata openly.
The problem was that the officers, encountering automata for the first time without any prior knowledge, were thrown into complete shock and confusion.
"Damn it!! Just shoot! Shoot everything!! If we kill them all, the problem's solved!!"
Chief Inspector Lestrade completely lost control in the face of this unexpected variable.
At his command, the officers began firing magic indiscriminately.
The shock spells mercilessly bombarded the building.
Finally, Duke Aibek could no longer stand it and shouted.
"You madmen!! Are you trying to destroy the entire building and all the treasures?!"
"Ah!! Cease fire!! Cease fire!!"
Chief Inspector Lestrade looked flustered at Duke Aibek's words.
When he finally regained his senses at the duke's desperate cry and ordered them to stop shooting, the officers gradually lowered their wands.
"Did we get her?!"
And then came that cursed phrase.
Shortly after those words were spoken, the dust from the shock magic began to settle, revealing the shattered remains of Luphtesia's automata.
Thud.
The automata wearing Luphtesia's leather suits began falling one by one from the ceiling once the magic stopped.
"Whew... We got her."
Seeing that phrase pop up, it's definitely a fake.
And then...
Shiiiiiiiii!
"Wh-what is that?!"
"It's gas!! Gas!! Everyone hold your breath!!"
White smoke poured out from the destroyed automata.
Fuck!!
The panicked Seong-il quickly covered his mouth with his sleeve and held his breath. It wasn't long before the entire exhibition hall was filled with smoke.
Crash!
"Protect the jewel!!"
The sound of the glass jewel case in the center of the exhibition hall shattering.
The moment he heard it, Chief Inspector Lestrade began shouting without even caring about inhaling the gas.
"Oh my? You're already too late, I'm afraid?"
A woman's voice rang out, sounding thoroughly pleased with herself.
"Th-this voice...?"
There wasn't a single person in the vast exhibition hall who didn't know who that voice belonged to.
"Damn it! Inspector! Should we open fire?!"
"Are you insane?! If you fire blindly in this zero-visibility situation and Duke Aibek gets hurt, are you going to take responsibility?!"
"Ah..."
"Shut up and grab anything you can reach!! Just catch them first!!"
What followed was pure pandemonium.
Fuck!!
The officers even grabbed Seong-il. The startled man roared.
"I'm not the Phantom Thief, you idiots!!"
Despite that, one particularly persistent officer kept trying to restrain him.
Seong-il, now thoroughly pissed off, maximized his inner energy and slammed his fist into the officer's torso.
Thud!!
No matter how well-trained and sturdy the adult male officer was, Seong-il had spent nearly half a year rapidly accumulating inner energy and training in martial arts. His punch had long since surpassed human limits.
"Guh!"
It must have felt like getting hit full-force by a gorilla's fist. The officer flew backward as if struck by an iron club.
"Ah....!"
In a momentary fit of rage, Seong-il had unconsciously beaten the officer senseless.
Shit, did I fuck up? He's not dead, is he?
Since he rarely used his full strength on ordinary people, Seong-il hadn't expected it to be this powerful.
As he stood there in shock, someone whispered in his ear.
"Shall we start for real now? Partner?"
"Huh?!"
Ignoring the startled Seong-il, one officer charged toward Charlotte.
Thump!
The charging officer rammed straight into Charlotte's body as she stood there in a daze.
"Kyaaang!! It huuurts!!"
Charlotte cried out in pain from within the smoke.
The officer subtly tossed the Eye of Delon into her arms, then fired a wire gun into the ventilation shaft, connected a rope, and flew upward while dispelling the magic on his clothes.
"You damn bitch!! How dare you interfere with me?!"
The Phantom Thief's voice suddenly rang out from the ceiling.
The officers stopped hitting each other and instinctively looked up.
"You! Over there! You stupid blonde with the roll-bun hair! Who the hell are you!!"
Luphtesia pointed at Charlotte with sharp hostility.
"Huh...? Me...?"
"Yes, you! You dare hit me and steal the jewel? I will never forget this grudge! My name is Phantom Thief Luphtesia! Who are you!"
"Uhh...? I-I'm Charlotte Moriaty...."
"Moriaty? The descendant of that famous detective?! I see!! I won't forget today's humiliation! Just you wait!!"
Having said that, Luphtesia quickly disappeared through the ventilation shaft.
From Seong-il's perspective, who knew the entire plan, the scene looked incredibly sloppy and full of holes. Still, he decided to help clean up the chaotic situation and loudly shouted to assist Luphtesia's escape.
"Detective Charlotte Moriaty has successfully prevented Phantom Thief Luphtesia from stealing the Eye of Delon!!!!!!!"
"What?!"
"Is that true?!"
"It's not a fake, right?!"
The murmuring spread from every direction.
Pushing through the noise, Duke Aibek rushed over to Charlotte.
"Quickly! Hand over that Eye of Delon to me!!"
At the duke's urgent shout, Charlotte was overwhelmed by his presence. Without even verifying whether he was the real Duke Aibek, she unconsciously handed over the jewel.
"I-it's real!! It's the real one!! We've stopped the jewel from being stolen!!!"
Duke Aibek, having confirmed the jewel was genuine, shouted in excitement.
"Wow!!!!"
"Thank you! Lady Moriaty!! Just as your father was incomparably brilliant...!! You've protected our family heirloom!! Truly, like father, like daughter!!!"
By then, Chief Inspector Lestrade had approached them.
"Thank you! My lady... No, Great Detective!! Thanks to you, we've successfully completed our mission. Hey! What are you all doing?! Shout the Great Detective's name!!"
Fuck, look at that bastard Lestrade playing politics like a pro.
Seong-il was stunned by Lestrade's shameless flattery, which came out as if he'd been waiting for this exact moment.
Ignoring Seong-il's disbelief, cheers erupted from all around.
"Charlotte! Charlotte! Charlotte! Charlotte! Charlotte! Charlotte!"
"Waaaaaaaah!!"
Charlotte stood there in a daze at their cheers. Her face quickly flushed red, and she made an expression like she was having an orgasm before letting out a strange cry.
"Ohhohohohohohohohohohohohohoh!!!!!!! Justice always wins! Don't you agree, everyone? Ohhohohohohohohoh!!!!"
"Waaaaaaaaah!!!!"
Seong-il stared at them in utter disbelief.
These crazy bastards.....
Regardless of the truth, Phantom Thief Luphtesia's announced heist had been stopped.
And the protagonist of the day was Detective Charlotte Moriaty.
The next day.
After receiving the most lavish hospitality from the Aibek ducal family, Charlotte and Seong-il returned to the detective agency.
She was so excited that she spent the entire day repeating the story of how she'd taken the jewel back from Luphtesia like a parrot.
"And so!!! I noticed this suspicious officer moving strangely!! So I went bam!!!! with my whole body in a body slam, knocked him down, and then snatched the jewel—pop pop pop!!!"
Aaaargh... Please, just stop already....
Charlotte kept repeating the exact same story all day long.
Growing tired of her endless tale of heroism, Seong-il started reading a newspaper he'd bought outside to avoid talking to her.
"Huh...?"
And then he saw the interesting articles written in the paper.
What the? There's a fun article in The Guardian of the Sun newspaper?
Yesterday, at the Aibek ducal exhibition, the notorious Phantom Thief Luphtesia's announced heist was spectacularly foiled. The hero of the hour was none other than the young detective Charlotte Moriaty, who bravely confronted the thief and protected the family heirloom, the Eye of Delon.
Duke Aibek praised her highly, saying, "She is truly her father's daughter." The Metropolitan Police Department also expressed their deep gratitude, with Chief Inspector Lestrade declaring, "This victory belongs entirely to the Great Detective."
"Detective Charlotte! Could you come over here and read this?"
"Hmm...? What is it, Seong-il?"