Ch.51Chapter 51 – Karma

“Miss Zia.”

“……..”

“Wake up.”

“…Mmm?”

Zia Lestrade’s eyes snapped open at the sweet whisper in her ear, and she looked around with a dazed expression.

“…Ah.”

Upon discovering Adler sitting on a bench in the empty lot with a slight smile, her expression turned cold.

“Why such a cold expression?”

“…I thought it was a dream.”

“I’m sorry, but this is reality.”

Hearing this, Lestrade slightly lifted her dress and sighed as she saw the golden seal engraved on her stomach.

“…You can’t possess me by doing this.”

“But you already like me.”

“That’s true. But I’m starting to dislike you now.”

She clicked her tongue while looking at Adler.

“Still, wasn’t yesterday quite enjoyable?”

“Not at all.”

“Haha…”

Adler, who had been watching her with satisfaction, quietly leaned on her shoulder and spoke.

“…Still, I meant it when I said I’d be good.”

“Move your head away.”

“After letting me use your shoulder all night, why so formal now?”

She frowned and tried to shake him off, but upon hearing his words, she surrendered with a resigned look and offered her shoulder again.

“I like you.”

“Please shut that mouth…”

“Because you saved my life yesterday.”

“…What?”

To her, Adler began to whisper in a low voice.

“You felt it too, didn’t you? The gazes following us yesterday.”

“As if there were only a few?”

Lestrade was right.

The highest and worst popular child actor, Issac Adler.

And the object of British men’s admiration and wall of tears, as well as the youngest inspector, Zia Lestrade.

News of the romance between these two hot topics had made all of England buzz in just a few hours, twice as much as during the Silver Blaze scandal.

“I’m not talking about those curious gazes, but the ones filled with killing intent.”

“………”

“I’m always exposed to such gazes.”

As Adler sighed deeply and explained in detail, Lestrade muttered in a cold voice.

“You reap what you sow, I suppose.”

“…Do you know about Curses?”

Her eyebrow twitched slightly at his words.

“It seems you know something about it.”

“How do you…”

“I think I’m under one too. A Curse.”

The eyes of the boy and girl quietly crossed.

“In the past month alone, I’ve been officially attacked twice. There were many more attempts that failed.”

“………”

“Surprisingly, all the attackers were women.”

Somehow, Adler’s smile was beginning to look pitiful.

“Now that I’ve become your lover, I’ll probably be threatened by men too.”

“…I’m not popular in that way.”

“Are you joking? How many confessions have you received?”

“That was just to tease me…”

“Haha, somehow it feels like looking in a mirror.”

Laughing heartily, Adler quietly placed his hand on her knee.

“The point is.”

Then, he grabbed Lestrade’s hand as she tried to swat his away in disgust.

“It seems my Curse doesn’t work on you.”

“………”

“That’s why I like you so much.”

Lestrade stared down at Adler, who was subtly nuzzling his cheek against her neck.

“So?”

“I might become obsessed with you.”

“How bland.”

Then, pouting her lips, she finally pushed Adler aside.

“I can be comfortable around you.”

“………”

“Well then, I look forward to…”

As she stood up, Issac Adler smiled with his eyes and bid her farewell.

[Probability of imprisonment: 80% -> 99.99%]

[Probability of being trained: 50% -> 99.99%]

“…….Huh.”

But at that moment, a message appeared before his eyes.

“Um…”

“……?”

Adler, sweating as he stared at the message, urgently grabbed Lestrade’s arm as she was about to walk away.

“What is it?”

“…Let’s go together.”

Then, trembling, he whispered in a low voice.

“I need to report to the police station now.”

“I’ll escort you.”

“Tsk.”

After examining him, Lestrade sighed deeply and linked arms with him.

“…Since I like you, I have no choice.”

“Uh… I didn’t ask you to link arms with me.”

“Shut up.”

Then, showing irritation for no reason, she pulled Adler toward her.

“If you get hurt, it’s my responsibility, so I have no choice.”

Lestrade’s voice, as she quietly turned her gaze away, softened for a moment.

[Probability of imprisonment: 99.99% -> 80%]

[Probability of being trained: 99.99% -> 50%]

“…Then how about a date at the police station too?”

“I refuse.”

But her voice turned cold again at Adler’s somehow pale voice.

– Swish…

Behind them, two shadows were following.

.

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.

A few minutes later.

“The police station is right ahead.”

“Haha… so it is.”

Adler, who had been sweating profusely while sticking close to Lestrade, stopped in his tracks at her words.

“……..”

And then came the silence.

“…If you have some time to spare, maybe coffee nearby.”

– Rumble…

Just as Adler was about to casually bring up the conversation in that silence, dust suddenly began to rise from behind.

“What…?”

Lestrade’s eyes widened at the strange phenomenon, and she turned to see dirty little girls entering her field of vision.

“Wait, you kids!!”

Lestrade’s instincts began to shine at the suspicious gold coins and food in the hands of these apparent vagrants.

“Stop right there!”

“Hmph.”

“Blehhh-“

As she shouted loudly, they stuck out their tongues and began to scatter into various alleys, as if they had been waiting for this.

“Tch…”

Seeing their obviously suspicious behavior, Zia Lestrade grabbed her long skirt and began running at a terrifying speed.

“Um, excuse me…”

“I’m on duty right now!”

And then came the silence.

“You didn’t take your police uniform…”

Adler, who had been holding her police uniform that he had picked up from the clothing store yesterday, scratched his head and muttered.

“…It’s okay.”

At that moment, a chilling voice came from behind.

“I’ll deliver it to her.”

Adler turned around with the hair on his body standing on end, and then froze quietly.

“By the way, Miss Lestrade still doesn’t have good instincts.”

“…Miss Holmes.”

“But she’s better at making arrests than anyone. I’ll have to give the Baker Street Special Forces extra compensation later.”

Meanwhile, Sharlotte Holmes quietly walked forward, looking at him.

“So those children earlier…”

“By the way, Mr. Adler, I really didn’t know.”

Her eyes were shining darkly, out of focus.

“I didn’t realize your ‘moment’ would last all day.”

“………”

“Not knowing that, I sat in the coffee house until evening.”

Adler swallowed dryly and stepped back at that terrifying sight.

“I was so worried about you that I came out as soon as my lecture ended.”

But this time, someone’s familiar monotone voice came from the opposite direction.

“And now, London is buzzing with news of your girlfriend, isn’t it?”

“Professor, please stay out of this.”

Professor Jane Moriarty, who had been smiling coldly, was asking a question while ignoring Sharlotte Holmes, who was warning her in a dark voice.

“How does it feel to have your ‘first official romance’?”

“…Ah, that’s not it.”

In that desperate situation, Issac Adler was frantically racking his brain.

“We’re not dating…”

His brain overloaded, and an implausible excuse came out of his mouth.

“Ha, romance during school years is just child’s play…”

“”………..””

“…So it doesn’t count.”

At that, the two women approached Adler one step at a time, smiling wryly.

“You need to be at least a college student for it to be considered romance…”

With his escape routes blocked front and back, Adler trailed off and lowered his gaze.

“It’s a train ticket.”

Sharlotte Holmes placed a freshly issued train ticket in his hand.

“Remember when I said I was going on a retreat?”

“……….”

“Today is that day.”

She grabbed Adler’s hand as he received the train ticket without knowing what was happening.

“I’ve bought one for you too, so let’s go together.”

“……….”

“It will surely be an interesting experience.”

At that moment, Professor Moriarty’s pale hand suddenly appeared from behind.

“Hmm, this is truly surprising.”

“……..?”

“Actually, I took a vacation today too. I wanted to spend some time alone.”

In her hand was a train ticket identical to the one Adler was holding.

“So I bought a train ticket for a suitable time. I chose a seat where there wouldn’t be many people because I didn’t want to be disturbed by anyone.”

“……..”

“But now I see that it’s right next to yours? Even the boarding time and destination are the same.”

A sinister smile appeared on Moriarty’s lips as she said this.

“What a coincidence.”

“That is indeed a remarkable coincidence, Professor.”

The two gray eyes began to cross fiercely.

[Probability of imprisonment: 80% -> 99.99%]

[Probability of being trained: 50% -> 99.99%]

“Excuse me…”

Meanwhile, trembling between them, Issac Adler asked in a shrinking voice.

“…Can’t we take Miss Lestrade with us?”

The cold gazes that had been crossing now turned toward Adler.

“No.”

“No.”

“Save me.”

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.

.

Meanwhile, at the same time.

“Hiing…”

“….But, this is strange.”

Lestrade, who had arrested all of Sharlotte’s Baker Street Special Forces in an instant and was making them kneel while giving them light punches on the head, suddenly tilted her head and began to mutter to herself.

“The Curse of Adler that Microny told me about certainly shouldn’t be related to women…”

Then, crossing her arms and putting on a cold expression, she continued.

“…Well, it’s not my business.”

Despite her indifferent tone and expression, a faint blush had appeared on her cheeks.