Chapter 156: The Crawling Human (7)"... Why are you here?"


    Entering the room, Charlotte nailed Professor Moriarty with a chilling gaze. After a long while of ring at the woman, she posed a question, her voice ice cold.


    "Answer me."


    "Don’t you think you’re being too hasty with your assumptions? I haven''t even said anything yet."


    "It''s practically written all over your face that you''re up to no good."


    "Hahaha... Do you really think you can read my expression?"


    Hearing her words, a peal of heartyughter escaped Moriarty’s lips while she shook her head in disbelief.


    "Where is Gregory Freud?"


    "I''m sorry, but I don''t quite understand what you''re talking about."


    "Is this how you''re going to y it then?"Charlotte red at the smiling woman, clenching her teeth to stifle her growing anger. In the end, she stepped forward and spluttered in a loud voice.


    "I don''t know what makes you so confident. Do you have something to rely on, or has your arrogance finally started getting the better of you?"


    "What are you talking about?"


    "I’m saying that you can’t slip through our investigative web now, since you’ve directly involved yourself with this case.”


    "Hmm."


    "Do you think I can''t prove the simple fact that you just consulted the criminal on this case, Professor Moriarty?"


    With those words, a brief period of silence settled between them.


    "... Charlotte."


    Amid the silence, Mycrony Holmes called out her sibling’s name with squinted eyes.


    "I''m afraid you won''t be able to prove it..."


    “... Eep!”


    With a surprised gasp, Charlotte finally noticed her elder sister and stared nkly at her.


    "It seems a bit far-fetched to view this case as incitement. The professor wasn''t involved from the beginning, and it''s not like we can use her of aiding and abetting..."


    "..."


    "Maybe concealing the criminal? That might be possible, but this case isn''t that straightforward. Mr Freud hasn''t been confirmed as the perpetrator of the case, and technically, he hasn’t even fled..."


    Mycrony’s eyes twinkled as sheid out her thoughts about the case. However, a frown formed on her face at Charlotte’s next question.


    "Why are you here, sister?"


    "... Didn''t you realize I was here until now? That''s really sad."


    "Why are you here?"


    As her younger sister’s voice grew colder with the following question, Mycrony replied to her query with a thin smile.


    "I decided to walk the path of a criminal consultant too. It''s more fun than I expected."


    "Stop bullshitting. Apart from moving the London government with a single word and being sucked dry by Adler till an inch away from death, you don''t find anything fun."


    "Oh my, that''s a bit harsh..."


    Genuinely hurt, she lowered her eyelids and quietly tilted her head to ask.


    "... By the way, you noticed?"


    "He sucks you dry every weekend, only an idiot wouldn’t notice what both of you were up to."


    "Haa... Just a few years ago, she was a sweet child who would cling to me, calling me <strong>big sister~</strong> Since when did she start using such harsh words…”


    Saying so, Mycrony Holmes pretended to cry, lowering her face. Soon, however, she sneakily lifted her head to gauge Charlotte’s reaction.


    "Enough, just answer the question. It doesn''t seem like the professor will talk, so I''m asking you."


    "What do you want to know? I''ll tell you everything I know, except where Gregory Freud is, of course~"


    "... Why won''t you tell me that?"


    "Because the world is already full of boring things, I don’t want to add more bore to it."


    “Haa…”


    A sigh escaped her lips at those words. Her brows furrowing, Charlotte was about to retort when,


    "... Let''s stop here, Miss Holmes."


    "........"


    "There''s no use dragging this out any longer."


    Holding her by the arm, Lestrade ryed those words to her in a soft voice.


    "You said you roughly grasped the truth of the case while reading the books when we were waiting, right?"


    "... Yes."


    "Then, I will mobilise the police forces to find Gregory Freud''s whereabouts. As you already know, once I identify a suspect, I''ve never lost them."


    Charlotte’s frown tightened at her words, but she eventually nodded with a sigh.


    "You''ve made a good decision. Then..."


    "Before we leave, I need to ask something."


    "Yes?"


    "Something’s been bothering me since earlier."


    Saying so, she red at Professor Moriarty and then Mycrony Holmes, her gaze lingering on them for some time before she spewed out, her voice cold and eerie.


    "What''s with that cat?"


    "... Cat?"


    "I’m referring to the golden-coloured cat that''s desperately swimming and reaching out from the confines of your chest, Professor."


    And with that, a strange tension began permeating the air from that point.


    "Are you talking about this cute little one?"


    "I''ve never heard of you owning a cat."


    "... I picked this little one up from the street. Isn''t it adorable?"


    "So you mean, it doesn''t have an owner?"


    The moment that remark was made, the leisurely Moriarty''s eyes immediately started radiating on an ice-cold chill.


    "Miss Holmes. Usually, when someone picks up a kitten on the street, that person bes its owner."


    "... Who knows really? It might already have an owner."


    "What are you trying to say?"


    "Actually, I''ve also been raising a golden kitten recently."


    Charlotte''s eyes mimicked Moriarty’s as her chilling gaze locked on Moriarty and the cat.


    "It came to me first, wagging its tail for my affection, so I gave the adorable cat what it wanted and even put on a cor to mark my ownership. However, one day I realised with horror that it had run away from home."


    "... Perhaps it was because your love wascking?"


    "Not really, no. It’s just the little furball began wagging its tail whenever it saw a woman."


    "I see. But what''s your point?"


    "This kitten, who is currently making such a pitiful expression, might just be the cat I was raising, actually."


    Her words elicited a hollow chuckle from Professor Moriarty.


    "What an exaggeration."


    "I think it''s very much possible."


    Charlotte ignored the professor’s words and began tickling the cat’s cheek, its head still peeking out of the professor’s clothes.


    "Pr, purrrr..."


    "Look, if I were a stranger, it wouldn’t nuzzle my cheek so obediently."


    "The kitten just loves to interact with females, that’s all.”


    "Didn’t you just pick it up? You seem to know quite a bit about it."


    "One does not need to observe for long to recognize certain things, especially things that can be determined at a nce."


    Caught between the quarrelling pair, the cat’s brain ceased functioning as it was unable to decide just who to cling to among the pair of women.


    "By the way, I don’t know since when you both have had cats... but isn’t there a very simple way to determine its owner?"


    "........?"


    Up until now, Gia Lestrade had been watching their catfight with curious eyes. But when she suddenly voiced her opinion, it immediately caught everyone’s attention.


    "Police stations often get many reports of missing animals, so I’m well aware that there is something called <strong>Owner Identification Magic</strong>.”


    ".........."


    "Of course, the police station is short-staffed on mana users so they usually turn those requests away, but you guys could easily use it, couldn’t you?"


    Those words evoked an eerie silence settled in the room.


    <em>- Swoosh...</em>


    "... Meow?"


    Amidst the eerie stillness, the golden cat was picked up by the scruff of its neck by Moriarty. Manhandled out of the blue, the kitty started kicking its legs with an anxious look uncharacteristic of a traditional cat.


    "I had forgotten about that. It''s a magic that was frequently used to quel the ownership disputes over ves in the old days..."


    "... Why does it sound like you’ve experienced the ve era yourself?"


    "Don’t try so hard to agitate me that it bes unbing of you, Detective. The realm of knowledge extends far beyond the limits of one''s direct observation, with a wealth of insights awaiting discovery in the annals of written history and documentation."


    "Well, back to the matter at hand, if it was used to determine the ownership of ves, I figure it should be enough to end this dispute."


    Carefully cing the cat on the desk, the two women began shing gazes with such intensity that it felt like sparks were about to set off at any second.


    "Just wait a moment. I’ll find a magic circle from the nearby library."


    "You just said that there was no time to waste, didn’t you? Fortunately, I know the magic circle, so there’s no need for that."


    "No, I don’t think I can trust you to perform the ritual properly."


    "What do you propose then?"


    Charlotte quietly shifted her gaze to the side at the professor’s irritable question.


    "It might be fairer to ask someone who is at least a third party."


    "... That makes sense."


    "Huh? Are you talking about me~?"


    A smile filled with unrestrained interest graced Mycrony Holmes’ lips.


    "The magic circle goes as follows. If you don’t understand..."


    "I got it~ It seems structurally sound too~"


    "That’s good to hear. Then, I’ll leave it to you."


    Saying so, Professor Moriarty – arms crossed and leaning back in her chair – looked at Charlotte with a haughty gaze and whispered.


    "When the resultse out, I hope you''ll graciously concede."


    "I agree. It would be nice if there weren’t more dark clouds flooding the already gloomy skies, dampening the spirits of London’s citizens further, or an unexpected hail of snow in the middle of summer.”


    Just as their argument was about to reignite with a cat shivering curled up like a bread loaf,


    "Hup!"


    The quietly observing Mycrony mmed the desk and activated the magic circle drawn there with a loud yelp.


    "... Haak!?"


    "The researchers are starting to take notice, so let''s wrap this up~"


    With that said, the golden cat began floating in the air all of a sudden, an utterly bewildered expression on its face.


    "I don''t know how the professor caught you, but it''s time toe back, okay?"


    "... If I see any more deviations, there might be some problems for you down the line.”


    Professor Moriarty and Charlotte murmured in a low voice as they looked at the floating feline, their eyes simultaneously shading in an ominous hue.


    .


    .


    .


    .


    .


    <em>- Poof...</em>


    An unexpected scenario soon took ce.


    "....... !?"


    The cat, resembling Adler, floated in the air, propelled by an unknown force, heading neither towards Charlotte''s embrace nor Moriarty''s.


    "Huh?"


    Instead, the cat was heading towards Gia Lestrade, who had been watching the situation unfold with a disinterested look.


    "Me-Meow~"


    "Why, why me...?"


    With nk looks Professor Moriarty and Charlotte Holmes gazed at her, unable toprehend the whole fiasco. Soon, however, they nailed her with vicious res in unison.