༺ The Three Garridebs ༻
Professor Moriarty started showing signs of anxiety once her subordinates didn’t reply no matter how much she tried to contact them. Reaching the limit of her patience, she rose from her armchair… about to head to the pub where Adler was reported to be drowning in alcohol when…
“I’m a bit late, aren’t I?”
“……….”
With a sly voice, someone entered the hideout.
“It seems that you were speaking with my assistant, huh?”
“… Assistant?”
The client, puzzled by his words, couldn’t help but pose the question to the boy. The very same boy who had just picked her up from the pub, now in obvious disguise.
“Aren’t you the assistant and she’s the criminal consultant?”
“Ah, my mischievous assistant tends to be quite playful, you see…”
Adler then answered with a dim smile stretching his lips.
“My beloved assistant likes to indulge in such jokes in my absence.”
“… Mr. Adler?”
“Shh~! Stay still, lest you get into some trouble.”
Soon, he sat beside the befuddled Moriarty, stroking her head while whispering to her ears.
“You have to deal with the client seriously.”
“……..”
“You still lack experience, so observe carefully and learn from my actions.”
The professor, rendered speechless by this sudden treatment, could only stare blankly at Adler.
“So, what task does our client wish to entrust to us?”
“… Is this really alright?”
“If you’re feeling uncomfortable, feel free to leave.”
Despite her concerns, the conversation between Adler and the client began in earnest.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t engage in such a foolish act if I were you.”
“Why is that?”
“If you were to leave now, only we stand to gain by acquiring the identity of a future criminal. Isn’t that right?”
“… Haa.”
Once those words left Adler’s lips, a tired sigh escaped from the client as she muttered with clear weariness in her tone.
“You mean… we’re already in the same boat, right…?”
“We haven’t set sail yet, so whether you want to get off now is ultimately up to you. But, you must be willing to accept some risk.”
“… Well, it can’t be helped. I was planning to entrust this to you anyway.”
“Then, please express your request to us.”
The client straightened her posture and then looked at Adler, his eyes shining with anticipation, and the quietly seating Moriarty for a moment… Soon, she began her tale…
“It’s a simple request.”
With a nervous countenance, the client pulled out a photograph from her pocket and whispered in a dark voice.
“Please kill this person.”
And for a brief moment, silence ushered in the hideout.
“… Who is this person exactly?”
“Do you really need explanations when killing someone? Isn’t knowing the face and address enough?”
In the midst of the silence, Adler posed a question to the client. In response, the client replied in a slightly agitated voice.
“It’s not strictly necessary. However, we do like to hear the details from the client to prevent any mishaps during the job, but if you prefer not to disclose, we can still manage.”
“Then, please proceed with the job.”
With that, the client calmed her breathing and continued, guided by Adler’s composed voice.
“The address is written on the back of the photo, so there shouldn’t be a problem. Now, let’s move on to the matter of compensation…”
“But, I’m getting a bit curious.”
“… About what?”
However, Adler interrupted the client mid-sentence, whispering in a soft tone; a frosty smile curling his lips.
“Why would Nathan Garrideb, a renowned London lawyer who’s been on the rise in recent times, go so far as to crossdress and request us to murder his own younger sister?”
“……..!”
The client’s face was immediately painted with horror at the question.
“What on earth…”
“You seem to be quite a unique lawyer who actively seeks evidence yourself… You also have quite the disguise skill, making full use of that pretty face of yours.”
“Listen here!”
“Well, in an era overflown with foolish detectives indiscriminately bred due to the abundance of bizarre cases, one at least has to be at that level to become London’s most popular lawyer.”
Seeing the client’s face began to turn paler by the second, Adler added in a soft voice,
“But you still have a long way to go if you want to deceive experts of our caliber. Choosing to wear bulky men’s clothing, instead of a woman’s, to hide your physique was a wise decision. However, it was still quite obvious to us.”
“………”
“Even my assistant had already deduced your identity and name.”
Ending his statement, Adler stroked Jane Moriarty’s hair once more.
“That’s why I told you earlier, you’d regret it if you simply left.”
“Uh, huh…”
“Now that you’ve been caught, would you care to explain why you’re trying to kill your own younger sister?”
As Adler spoke, the professor, who had been about to say something, closed her mouth and quietly accepted his stroking. On the other hand, the client, drenched in cold sweat, started to sigh as if he had already resigned to his fate.
“That child needs to die.”
The man, who had changed his voice to sound like a woman, spoke lethargically in his original male voice.
“A demon, that’s what that child is.”
“Why do you think so?”
“My sister periodically transforms into a monster. A truly horrific one at that.”
“Hmm…”
The already exhausted-looking client’s face grew even more haggard as he explained his circumstances.
“Normally docile, once she transforms into that monster… she goes on a rampage, losing all sense of reason. No doctor or medical specialist has been able to cure that madness of hers.”
“To the extent of being unrecognizable even by family?”
“My father was infected by a wound he got while trying to stop her and soon passed away. My mother, a doctor of medicine, developed paranoia and alcohol addiction soon after.”
“That’s… quite serious.”
“All I am left with is that damned sister and my half-mad mother. Oh, and if I were to be more precise, there’s also the tiny inheritance my father left for me and the crumbling house.”
The client showed them a detached smile amid his harrowing storytelling.
“Fortunately, after much laborious effort, I managed to escape the clutches of dire poverty. But my sister’s seizures only grew worse with each passing day.”
“That wound…”
“It happened just yesterday. Suddenly, my sister started having a severe seizure, and not even all the servants combined were capable of restraining her. When I went to help, I was soon attacked.”
The deep wound on his outstretched arm was reflected in the eyes of Isaac Adler and Professor Moriarty.
“At that moment, her form seemed to have overlapped with the figure that attacked and killed my father.”
“Hmm…”
“It was only then that I realized that if things continued this way, I would end up dead at her hands or wither away. Only those options left for me.”
The client murmured this with a gaze that couldn’t have darkened any further.
“… I don’t want that. I’ve devoted half my life to my sister. Now, I want to be free.”
As he spoke with increasing fervor, Isaac Adler nodded in silence.
“Please, kill the monster that lives in my house.”
“”………””
“I no longer want any association with her. If possible, I’d prefer it if you dealt with her outside the house, luring that monster to a quiet place and finishing it off once and for all. Of course, she’s pathologically obsessed with staying inside, which might be challenging…”
“Do you want it to be treated as a disappearance?”
“The cleaner, the better. Just make sure it doesn’t trace back to me.”
“… Very well.”
Adler nodded quietly in response.
“I will take on your request.”
“Ah…”
At the same time, a sigh mixed with a myriad of emotions burst forth from the client.
“But first, I have a few questions.”
“… Ask away.”
As Adler leaned in and asked, the man nodded with a gesture that showed the weariness he felt.
“When do the seizures usually occur?”
“… It’s unclear. They frequently happen at night, but there have been a few times in the early morning as well.”
“The wound on your arm that you showed me earlier, could you show it to me in more detail?”
“By all means.”
Adler and Professor Moriarty observed the arm he extended from the mist with rapt attention.
“… Last question. What is the composition of the household staff?”
“Mostly strong men hired to subdue my sister. Apart from them, a few maids, a secretary to assist with my legal work, and a personal doctor.”
“I see.”
“Um, but…”
The man, having finished speaking, posed a question to them with a faint sense of anxiety in his voice.
“As for the payment… I’m not quite sure how to proceed…”
“…Well, it shouldn’t be too much of a burden for you.”
Adler replied with a relaxed voice.
“I’ll take just one thing of my choosing from your house as payment for the request. How about that?”
“… What?”
“If you have no objections, then I shall take my leave.”
As he rose to leave, the client’s eyes were instantly flooded with anxiety and apprehension.
“Are you starting already?”
“Why? Do you wish to bid your sister one last farewell?”
However, the client quietly shakes his head at that remark.
“… Then, is it guilt?”
When Garrideb said nothing in response, a brief chuckle escaped Adler as he swiftly left the smoke-drenched room; a quiet muttering leaked out of his lips.
“For a lawyer, that emotion is as good as poison, isn’t it?”
“………”
Hearing the soft mutter, the client simply bowed his head in response. Soon after, he also followed Adler out of the hideout, leaving only silence to fill up the room.
“… Haahh~!“
The only sound in the silence was a faint moan escaping Professor Moriarty, who had been tickled by Adler’s hands, sneaking inside her clothes throughout their conversation with the client and ravaging her body.
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⦗Mr. Adler.⦘
“Ah, is that you, Professor?”
Several hours later… In the vicinity of the mansion that Garrideb had noted, located in an ancient area…
“When exactly did you implant a telepathic magic circuit in my head? It’s starting to get frightening.”
⦗What is the meaning behind that behavior you just showed?⦘
Arriving at the mansion, Adler strolled down the hallway as he unpacked everything he brought with him. He was utterly unfazed by the abrupt phenomenon of Professor Moriarty’s voice suddenly echoing inside his head, indicating his nonchalance and foreknowledge about this arrangement, and merely replied to her in a sly voice.
“The Professor is like the king in chess. And I’m the queen.”
⦗What are you talking about?⦘
“If I pretend to be a mere advisor while actively moving around like this, I can protect and hide the king – which is you, Professor – to the greatest extent. Isn’t that right?”
Then, after a brief silence, the Professor’s voice resounded in his head once more.
⦗Not that… I’m talking about what you did with your hand inside my clothes.⦘
“Oh, that…?”
Narrowing his eyes, Adler responded in a shaky tone; his body reeking of alcohol.
“Am I not allowed to touch the Professor?”
⦗That’s not…⦘
“I really, reallllyyyy like you, Professor. Why is it that you can freely touch me, yet I can’t touch you?”
Following that, Professor Moriarty became utterly silent.
⦗I never said you couldn’t touch…⦘
“So, there’s no problem then, right?”
⦗But, I have read this in a book. The place you touched…⦘
“Ah, that’s a different matter.”
Ignoring the Professor’s hesitant voice, Adler swiftly changed the subject.
“What do you think about this case?”
⦗It’s quite an interesting yet familiar case.⦘
The Professor’s reply came back swiftly, sharp and astute as ever.
⦗It’s very similar to our very first case, The Red Mana League. ⦘
“What exactly is similar?”
⦗For the case to be solved, we have to bring a sickly girl, who’s cooped up inside a room, out into the open.⦘
“I see. So that’s the commonality you see?”
Adler’s voice carried a hint of intrigue as the Professor continued her explanation.
⦗Miss Diana Wilson was a vampire. Not just any vampire, but the last remaining pureblooded vampire in the entire world.⦘
“… And what about it?”
⦗Think about it. The sudden madness, the superhuman strength that’s difficult to handle even when all the servants cling on, and the abrupt seizures that occur mostly at night.⦘
The more she explained, the broader the smile stretching Adler’s lips became as he conversed with her.
⦗It’s too early to jump to conclusions due to the lack of evidence and information, but there’s one prominent symptom that keeps coming to mind.⦘
“What might that be?”
⦗Lycanthropy Syndrome— a werewolf, so to speak.⦘
The moment the professor finished explaining, Adler quickened his pace with a twinkle in his eye.
“… That’s an interesting conjecture.”
⦗So, what will you do now? Even for you, dealing with a werewolf devoid of reason will be a challenge.⦘
All of a sudden, Adler started scratching his arm with his fingernails.
“To become friends with a wolf, you have to let it taste blood.”
Soon, he was able to confirm the appearance of fresh blood on the spot he had just scratched; his preparations were now complete. At the end of his steps, he stopped in front of a door covered in nail marks, tightly bound with chains and locks.
A bright red warning message appeared before his eyes.
“… If devoured slowly, you won’t die… probably…”
However, he merely muttered calmly and began to slowly unlock the chains with the key he had been given in advance.
“As long as I am not digested whole, it should be fine… right?”
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Just a few dozen minutes later…
“… Gurrrr?”
The girl, crouched forward in her seat as she made low animalistic noises, wiped her damp mouth with her sleeve as she slowly regained her senses.
“……..”
And with that, the room was enveloped in an eerie silence…
“Have you finally started regaining your senses?”
In front of her, there was Adler, lying on the ground while being covered in blood all over. The bloodied boy greeted the girl with a bright smile— a girl bound tightly with heavy chains.
“Could you please stop chewing on my fingers?”
“… Uh.”
“I’d like to reattach them before they get digested.”
The girl, who had pounced on the smiling boy in a frenzy and savored the taste of blood for the first time in a long while, started turning paler by the second at the horrific sight…
