dmims Chapter 166: The Devil's Foot (4)
Chapter 166: The Devil's Foot (4)
Chapter 166: The Devil's Foot (4)"The innkeeper is running late..."
"That does seem to be the case, yes."
"Now that I think about it, something definitely seems off..."
As suggested by Professor Moriarty, Isaac Adler entered the inn alongside her. Now, they were waiting for the innkeeper in the lobby, who was reportedly away only for a brief period.
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, well..."
Scratching his head, Adler mumbled to himself in an incoherent jumble. However, when asked by the professor, he answered in a whispery voice.
"You know, everything that happened after coming here. None of the events we have faced occurred as I had anticipated.”
"Is that so?"
"Yes, honestly... until now, I was able to predict and respond to the cases and events to some extent. But this case, it’s completely unpredictable..."
"Hmm..."
His response made the professor glance at Adler with narrowed eyes.
"Why do you think such a difference has occurred?"
"... Um. I'm not sure. This is the first time this has happened."
Adler muttered not noticing the suspicious gaze she directed toward him. A frown soon crossed his face and he opted to seek her opinion.
"Could it be that the mysterious entity we encountered is involved?"
"Adler. Didn't I tell you earlier that you don't need to worry about that?"
"But I can't think of anything else..."
Seeing him look so anxious, an amused look momentarily crossed the professor’s face, her facade breaking. However, she immediately adjusted her expression and began speaking, feigning a serious voice.
"Let me be frank, Adler, I came here on a whim after receiving the letter of request. So to me, your claim about being able to predict the flow of events is even more incomprehensible than your ramblings."
"........"
"Adler. I've been considering a hypothesis for some time..."
She paused deliberately for a moment there, only continuing when Adler gazed up at her.
"Can you see the future?"
"... Pardon?"
Eyes wide open, Professor Moriarty leaned in toward Adler, pressing him as he showcased a subtly perplexed look at her claim.
"If not that, perhaps you're from the future?"
"........"
"There must be some means by which you can peek into the future, right?"
"I really don't understand what you're talking about."
"Don't try to squirm your way out of this topic."
Eventually, her head began bobbing rapidly in her usual cute manner, and she looked Adler in the eye before laying out her thoughts.
"I still remember what you said during our monumental first meeting."
"That..."
"You knew what kind of person I would become in the future, and how people would refer to me, didn't you?"
Adler tried to speak, opening his mouth to counter her. However, her sharp questions made him think otherwise and he closed his mouth shut.
"... If that's true, I have one question."
She inched even closer, a cold smile stretched her lips as she asked him the question she had on her mind for the longest time.
"I've done some personal research, and I found out that Reichenbach Falls is a waterfall located in Switzerland. Though I admit I'm not sure why I would end up there..."
"......"
"So, referencing what you said at the time, will I die at the Reichenbach Falls?"
Hearing her, Adler looked at her with a dull gaze before smiling wryly.
"I see, so even Professor fears death, huh...”
"Oh, please. I have put such fear behind me a long time ago.."
To his playful comment, she answered in a subdued voice, her tone grave.
"Then why is your voice trembling?"
"Because I might not see you anymore."
For a brief instant, a heavy silence befell the lobby.
"Honestly, the thought is a bit scary to me."
In that silence, Professor Moriarty quietly whispered, leaning her head on Adler's shoulder. A faint smell of cosmetics and perfume emanated from her, entering Adler’s senses.
Apparently, she had put in the time to brush up on her makeup skills.
"Rest assured, Professor. You won’t be dying there."
"... How can you be so sure about that?"
The realisation sinking in, Adler briefly fell silent. Soon, however, a firm voice rose from the depth of his heart as he replied to Professor Moriarty in a tone filled with endless conviction.
"Because I will ensure that happens."
"......"
"So don't worry too much about all that, Professor."
Hearing his staunch reply, a blush began creeping up her face.
"How about you improve your acting skills while you wait here?"
Immediately, the chattering of the idle residents came to an abrupt stop, as if on sync.
"Well, even if your acting was on the same level as Adler or even me... I would be a total imbecile to be fooled by the acting of guys I met on the train the other day. Not to mention, they are the same guys who take turns to tail me every week. There’s no chance in hell I’ll be deceived.”
Leaving those words laced in frost behind, Charlotte stepped inside the barrier proper and disappeared from the residents’ collective view.
""........""
Total silence ensued in the scene for a while.
"... Yes, she has just entered, Professor."
Amid the eerie silence, the man who had blocked Charlotte first started communicating with someone.
"It seems that she has a grasp over the general situation here. Additionally, she was already aware of our true identity...”
Apart from the communicating man, the other silent residents soon turned into red smoke and dispersed in all directions.
"... But, for some reason, her breathing was ragged, laboured even?”
.
.
.
.
.
"Hmm..."
Lately, every time I wake up, I seem to have a headache and feel so groggy.
Why did I faint this time...
It was not due to insomnia or because of my sleep schedule. The root cause is me getting caught in specific situations that cause me – someone in perfect health – to faint.
"......."
Perhaps that was why I had already become adept at handling it.
To start, whenever something like this happens, it is essential to not open my eyes straight away. Instead, taking deep breaths and mentally preparing myself for any situation takes precedence.
... I remember receiving the room key from the counter and entering with the professor.
Recalling the situation just before the blackout also tended to help to some extent.
What happened after we entered the room...?
Despite trying to recall, nothing specific came to mind.
- Swoosh...
Nevertheless, I managed to calm myself successfully and, curious about my current situation, cautiously opened my eyes.
"........"
The scenario unfolding before me made me start gaping with a blank expression.
"Ad-Adler..."
"Professor?"
For some reason, the professor, missing her top, was straddling me on the bed while mumbling something exceedingly embarrassing for someone like her.
"My body feels hot..."
"Yes, yes?"
"... Help me."
I couldn’t help myself from blinking incredulously at the absurd scenario.
"... Uh."
Soon, a heat started enveloping my entire body, making me shudder. The realisation dawning on me, I hurriedly began glancing at my surroundings in a panic.
"Ah..."
Soon, I found the culprit.
"... Shit."
The incense burner on the desk in the room, emitting suspicious pink smoke and looking almost identical to one from the novel, was the cause.
"This can't be..."
I tried to cover my nose and mouth urgently, but it had already been too late.
"........"
Both the professor and I had been steeped in this smoke in the enclosed space for far too long. The drug was already in our system.
"Professor... we need to get out of here..."
"Adler..."
Even in that situation, I tried to drag the professor outside somehow.
"... Aren't you going to overpower me?"
Registering those words, what little sanity I had left completely vanished.
"Fucking shittttt... I can't take it anymore...."
"... Ahhh!"
I must have been seeing things in my delirium. Why else would I think that the terrified look that contorted the professor's face as I pounced on her like a ravenous beast... had momentarily taken on the form of an eerily bone-chilling expression of triumph...