Ch.180Chapter 180 – Korean Interpreter (4)

“What does that woman want?”

“…Please wait a moment. My memory is a bit hazy, so my interpretation is slow.”

After secretly passing a message to the woman before me, I made excuses to the men who were impatiently questioning me while keeping an eye on her reaction.

“……..”

The woman who had been in despair just moments ago seemed quite bewildered by my sudden action.

Still, she wasn’t showing any obvious reaction, which suggested she was quick-witted.

“I think I need to ask some additional questions.”

“…Do as you please. However, we will determine what questions you ask.”

In that case, there was no reason to hesitate.

‘What exactly do you want? (Who are you?)’

‘I want nothing. (I am an official of the Korean Empire. You need not know more.)’

‘It would be better to lie to buy time. (Why were you captured and brought here?)’

‘Then first tell them to untie these ropes. (I was captured while returning to my country with documents crucial to national security.)’

As I began to earnestly probe into the situation:

“…This conversation seems to be taking quite long.”

“It’s a characteristic of this language.”

“So, are we still far from hearing her demands?”

“She’s asking to be untied first.”

I answered the man who had interrupted with a displeased expression.

– Slap…!!!

The next moment, a sharp slapping sound echoed through the basement.

“Ugh…”

“Tell her we agreed to hear her demands, not to fulfill unreasonable requests.”

The man whispered coldly while looking at the woman whose face now bore a red handprint.

‘Is there no reasonable compromise? (How many days have you been held captive?)’

‘I have no intention of handing over the documents under any circumstances. (I’m not certain, but it seems like more than two weeks.)’

‘Even if they do terrible things to you? (What is your name?)’

‘My resolve will not break. (My name is Kim Cheongyeon.)’

‘You’ll regret it. (Do you have any companions?)’

‘That won’t happen. (There was an interpreter traveling with me, but they killed him.)’

As the general outline of the incident was becoming clearer:

– Knock knock knock…!

“…!”

Suddenly, knocking sounds began coming from the front door.

“What…?”

“Has our location been discovered?”

“…No, I don’t think that’s it.”

As the men sharply raised their eyes and stood up with weapons, Professor Moriarty, who had been quietly observing the situation, spoke with a smile.

“It seems a bit strange to say we’ve been ‘discovered’ by someone to whom hiding means nothing.”

“…What?”

“My assistant and I will handle this. The rest of you go inside.”

Then, taking my hand, the Professor calmly walked toward the entrance.

“Why, why me…?”

“…I don’t like you talking to that woman for too long.”

“What?”

“And also because you’re the only apparent weakness of our visitor.”

“What does that mean, Professor…”

As I was practically being dragged along by her:

“Do you know who’s outside…”

“My my~”

“….Huh.”

When the door opened, revealing familiar narrowed eyes, I could only stare blankly.

“I thought I smelled something sweet…”

“………”

“And here’s the cute little demon~”

Microny Holmes, with her voluptuous chest pushing through the doorway, was looking at me through narrowed eyes and licking her lips.

“Um, I’m… a Vampire.”

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“What brings you here, Miss Microny?”

“…My, Professor, you’re here too?”

I blurted out nonsense due to extreme nervousness, but Professor Moriarty and Microny Holmes paid no attention and began conversing with smiles.

“You know, if Inspector Lestrade were here, this would be grounds for arrest on the spot?”

“Me? How dare you?”

“Oh my. I forgot that our Professor is quite the big shot in London~”

I was slightly relieved to see a familiar face, but somehow the conversation was becoming more intense than usual.

“Don’t provoke me unnecessarily. If something were to happen to a power player in the British government, London would have quite a headache.”

“The reason I don’t confront you directly isn’t because I’m afraid of fighting you, you know?”

“Ah, of course, it’s because of your extreme lethargy.”

“Still, who knows? With the excess energy from recently consuming vampire blood, I might go lizard hunting.”

Sensing that the atmosphere might become even more hostile, I was sweating nervously and tried to interject:

“Excuse me, everyone…”

“By the way, it’s impressive you recognized us despite the perception-blocking magic.”

“I can see through anything~ Including, of course, the true form you’re hiding so carefully, Professor~”

It seemed impossible to interrupt.

“Aren’t you being a bit too disrespectful? I heard you were properly disciplined by my assistant.”

“No, Professor, what are you saying…”

“Ah, that’s true… but since he hasn’t visited for so long, I’ve reset to default~”

The chill and killing intent emanating from the Professor was considerable, but the aura Microny Holmes was giving off was equally intimidating.

Usually, when the Professor showed even a hint of seriousness, everyone would freeze in fear.

Was Microny, who was easily withstanding her Dragon Fear, actually a formidable power as well?

If so, London would be in big trouble if I left them be.

“B-both of you, if you don’t calm down…!”

So with a distorted expression, I raised my voice.

“…I’ll, I’ll tell Sharlotte.”

Seeing the cold gazes suddenly directed at me, I finished my sentence timidly.

‘No, in this situation, would such words even work…’

As silence began to fall, I started to lament my poor negotiation skills, but:

“Then let’s stop this meaningless argument and get to the point.”

“I agree.”

“…?”

I tilted my head at the suddenly amicable atmosphere.

‘Am I actually the strongest in London…?’

“Why have you come here?”

“Well, it’s actually quite simple.”

As I was having such frivolous thoughts, Microny Holmes finally revealed her purpose, covering her mouth while smiling with her eyes.

“You need to withdraw from this case.”

“…What?”

“This is not a matter for you to be involved in.”

She suddenly whispered to me with a cold smile.

“What do you mean…”

“Issac Adler. My sister always ends up following you in cases you’re involved in, doesn’t she?”

“That’s true, but…”

“That would be quite inconvenient for this particular case, you see?”

Though she was speaking quite calmly, her voice was very firm.

“I’d like to explain in more detail, but there’s no time to explain international political currents here. Later, when there’s time…”

“…Is it because of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance?”

“My goodness…”

Seeing her reaction, which was different from her usual demeanor, I probed my hypothesis and immediately saw Microny’s expression turn chilling.

“That’s still classified information…”

“…….”

“You really do know quite a lot, don’t you~”

Judging by her reaction, my guess seemed to be correct.

“…So the Japanese Empire is behind this incident.”

“Well, it would be awkward to antagonize a future ally, you know. Russia’s influence in East Asia has been quite aggressive lately…”

“I never imagined the great British Empire would be concerned about the opinions of an Oriental island nation.”

“Your provocations won’t work? International relations are delicate and complex matters.”

And from Microny’s appearance, it seemed she had no intention of backing down.

“Then I apologize for the inconvenience.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Professor and I have already accepted this case. We cannot withdraw now.”

Of course, I had no intention of backing down either.

Setting aside the pain-filled screams still coming from inside, abandoning this case would lead directly to an increase in my erosion rate, since it was an episode from the original work.

“Hmm… this is strange…”

But Microny Holmes seemed to interpret my well-intentioned motivation a bit differently.

“I doubt Mr. Adler from Hell would care so much about British pride…”

“…….”

“…Could it be because of the Oriental woman inside?”

At that moment, the Professor standing beside me gave a chilling look.

“Come to think of it, what nationality is that person…? I should have a report somewhere…”

“Th-that’s not it. It’s a matter of trust with our client.”

“……..”

“A-and even for the Japanese Empire to achieve a satisfactory outcome, my help is needed in this situation, right?”

As I desperately tried to make excuses:

“…Well, if you’re concerned, I’ll make sure Sharlotte doesn’t get involved in this case.”

“Hmm…”

“Let’s just complete the crime request cleanly and leave. How about that?”

“…If you go that far.”

Only after making a statement that could bring unknown consequences was I able to win Microny Holmes’ favor.

“Remember.”

Just as I was sighing with relief at having barely managed the situation, Microny turned around with a warning:

“The moment my sister gets involved, I will also intervene in the case.”

“…..Yes.”

Hearing that characteristically languid voice, I couldn’t help but feel a chill down my spine.

“I’ll… keep that in mind.”

The official troller of the Greek Interpreter episode in the original work, Mycroft Holmes.

In this world, I began to worry about what might happen if she, Microny Holmes, decided to cause trouble in earnest.

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“Avant de nous séparer, je vais me lamenter un moment. (Before we part, let me lament for a moment.)”

“…….?”

As I was lost in worry about how to conduct myself going forward, with a dark expression:

“Ich glaube, mein Assistent lügt. (I think my assistant is lying.)”

“Das ist schade. (That’s too bad.)”

Suddenly, Professor Moriarty and Microny Holmes, who were leaving through the alley, began speaking in alien languages.

“Где универсальный переводчик, который не знает ни французского, ни немецкого, ни русского? (What kind of universal translator doesn’t know French, German, or Russian?)”

“Это немного смешно. (That’s a bit funny.)”

It seemed they had started some kind of magical spell competition to determine who was the strongest in London.