- Trudge, trudge…
Just as Adler had accidentally revealed a third of his na to Charlotte, sowhere on the outskirts of London,1
“… Excuse .”
“Are you sure this is the right place?”
In a notorious area where even an average adult male would hesitate to enter, strangely, two young won could be seen walking.
“… Hmm, it’s indeed inconvenient that we can’t communicate.”
However, the usual gangsters who would have sward the streets like bees, for so unknown reason, were eerily quiet today.
“Wait till the interpreter arrives, why are you in such a hurry…?”
Because one of the won was none other than Inspector Gia Lestrade, who possessed the ability to overturn the entire alley single-handedly.
“… Haaa.”
She quietly sighed while looking at her companion, a girl with the status of a diplomat from the nation known as the Empire of Korea.
“Weren’t we supposed to go to the embassy? This is clearly a back alley…”
“Ah, Ahem. Not speak English…”
“… Hmm.”
After cautiously posing a question, Lestrade only received a very poor level of English in response. A helpless expression overca her and she moved on, resigned.
… Usually, when dispatching a diplomat, don’t they choose soone fluent in the language of the country they would be operating in?
Just as such a question popped into her mind,
“Eh? What is it?”
The diplomat girl stopped in her tracks, a grim expression plastered on her face.
“Did you witness a cri scene or wha…”
Following her gaze, Lestrade turned her head sideways. Imdiately, cold sweat dotted her forehead as she gaped at the scene.
“What the…”
Looking at the collapsed buildings and a multitude of people scattered everywhere, unconscious, she felt that a literal bombing had occurred in this place.
“Ah, no…!”
“Wa-Wait, where are you going?”
Amid the cri-scented scene, just as Lestrade unsheathed her baton, the pale-faced girl dashed forward.
“That way is dangerous…!”
“No, there’s no danger.”
Lestrade, trying desperately to reach out and stop her, paused in her tracks upon hearing the familiar voice drifting toward them from up ahead.
“I’ve already eliminated all dangerous elents.”
“Why are you… here?”
She turned toward Professor Moriarty who approached them while silently brushing away pieces of debris from her clothes.
“I was conducting a personal investigation.”
“Investigation?”
“There was sothing I needed to obtain.”
Professor Moriarty then pulled sothing from her coat and waved it before them.
“That, that…!”
At that mont, the diplomat girl opened her mouth with a horrified expression.
“I am K-Kim C-Cheong-yeon, a d-diplomat of the Empire of Korea! What you are holding is confidential docunts that are to be reported to m-my country!”
“.. Wh-What? You?”
“If you don’t want to cause diplomatic friction, please return it!”
As she spoke fairly fluent British English, an incredulous expression crossed Lestrade’s face.
“Hey, if you knew English, why didn’t you speak it from the beginning?”
“I apologize, but there were circumstances…”
“I’m afraid that’s not going to work.”
anwhile, Professor Moriarty looked at the pale girl with an amused look before responding.
“Wh-Why…”
“Return the docunts, Professor Moriarty. You are clearly committing a cri right now.”
Gia Lestrade, pointing her baton at the professor, threatened her in a frigid tone.
“Look here, Inspector Lestrade. What cri have I allegedly committed?”
“Property destruction, endangernt to human life, theft… you’re even caught red-handed. I could arrest you right now…”
“Arrest? Hahahahaha…!!!”
But the professor, with a look of disbelief, just laughed off her words, almost mockingly.
“… Do you really think you can arrest ?”
“There’s no reason I can’t.”
“No, aside from the question of might… do you think you can legally apprehend ?”
“Eh?”
“This is… the level of Auguste Academy’s top talent, huh… It’s quite interesting to see the academic achievents of students these days.”
However, as the inspector looked ready to pounce at any mont, the professor shook her head sadly before explaining.
“I rely attacked an illegal intelligence gathering group located in a high-risk area.”
“Gathering illegal information in such a dubious place, that can never be considered an embassy, surely they can only be considered a puppet group, right?”
Lestrade’s expression slightly furrowed as she realized the people knocked out by the professor bore a resemblance to the girl standing between her and the professor.
“Then, you should have reported to the London tropolitan Police Departnt. And the casualties you’ve caused here aren’t justified either…”
“What are you talking about, Miss Lestrade? I am a professor at August Academy.”
Despite her effort to articulate her words, Lestrade clearly struggled.
“As you well know, a professor at August Academy has investigative authority. Moreover, we are generally treated on par with an Inspector.”
“… Ugh.”
“And all those people lying around have simply been immobilised. I haven’t injured anyone. There’s absolutely no legal issue here.”
It was impossible to verbally outmanoeuvre Professor Moriarty, who had everything perfectly prepared.
“Then… I request you to share the investigation details.”
“I’m afraid I must decline. If you are so fond of principles, shouldn’t you officially request for a collaboration?”
“Ha, you expect to delay while knowing you could tamper with the docunts in the anti…”
“Do not make unfounded accusations. The only reason I haven’t completely socially buried you is because I know Adler would dislike it.”
Completely outplayed in logic, Lestrade trembled and bowed her head.
“Please return it. Since it’s written in our country’s language, you won’t be able to read it anyway.”
“… Do you really think that’s the case?”
At that mont, the girl who had been silent until now clenched her teeth and bravely spoke up.
“Unfortunately for you, I know many useful magic… or should I say, sorcery in your language? Anyway, I know a lot of sorcery.”
“What do you an…”
“What I an is that, I’ve already read all the docunts and know that you are futilely trying to realize a hopeless dream.”
However, the professor’s calm response unsettled her.
“How can you possibly know that…”
“A lot of magic has disappeared from this world. It’s truly regrettable.”
“In my personal opinion, your holand might also disappear before long.”
“Don’t speak carelessly!”
However, the professor’s provocative statent reignited the fire in the girl’s eyes.
“… Well, it’s not really my place to ddle.”
- Whoosh…!
“Ah.”
Surprisingly, Professor Moriarty casually tossed the docunts to her in the next mont.
“I’ve already morized all the contents inside, so it doesn’t matter.”
“Thanks to that, I’ve caught the weakness of an annoying person, and I’ve realized what I need to do to increase my power and influence. I suppose I owe you a small favour.”
She then pulled an old coin purse from her bosom and threw it to the girl.
“That should be enough for you to quit your useless operation and seek asylum in Britain for a few years without worry.”
“Think of it as paynt for the information. My vault… has thousands more of these.”
The purse she threw was filled with gold and expensive jewels.
I want to throw it away right now… but if I can get more information with this…
“… That being said, this is just personal curiosity.”
As the girl quietly stared at the purse for a long ti, muttering inwardly with tightly closed eyes, the professor’s voice resounded from the distance.
“You didn’t happen to develop affection for that blond-haired boy, or made so promises for the future now, did you?”
“Hmm? Why the face?”
Upon hearing those words, the girl showed a montary blank look, and the professor, b0bbing her head from side to side, questioned her again.
“… Just speak the truth.”
“Wha, whawhawha… what…”
- Gooooo…
“Eeek…”
Startled by the sudden question and the murderous intent it carried, the girl stuttered. However, when even Lestrade began emitting a frigid chill, the girl stumbled back with an even paler face than before.
“Ah, there’s nothing…”
“Re-Really, I swear. It’s just that I had a strange mark branded on my lower belly…”
Hearing her words, a sneer appeared on the faces of both the professor and the inspector.
“That too disappeared after a few hours. That’s all there was.”
“… Another breach of contract.”
“It seems I will need to lift another one of those insufferable seals from soone’s stomach…”
The two won then began to murmur, each casting a dark glance toward the girl.
…What in hell is up with Britain?
Diplomat Kim Cheongyeon from the Empire of Korea, observing this bizarre spectacle, muttered to herself.
In due course, she would retract the thought later after being selected as a special envoy to The Hague.
I’m not sure, but it must certainly be the most bizarre country in the world…
Because a very small butterfly effect that occurred in England would, by that ti, create worldwide chaos.
“… But where is Adler now?”
“What even is the point of having you if you don’t even know that?”
So did claim that a British Professor had amplified the butterfly’s wingbeat into a storm, but such a conspiracy theory was so absurd that it was soon forgotten.
.
.
.
.
.
- Fizzle…
At that mont, when the Korean Interpreter case was about to be wrapped up,
Both Detective Lestrade, intent on accompanying Kim Cheong-yeon and her associates to the embassy, and Professor Moriarty, determined to track down the enigmatic Adler, found themselves receiving the sa golden ssage simultaneously on their hands.
｢Save
｢Hol… is
For a few seconds, as they stared at the ssage, a terrifying killing intent began emanating once again from both the professor and the inspector.
1. Korean nas are traditionally three parts:
Surna (성, seong): This cos first and is typically one syllable. Common examples include Kim (김), Lee (이), Park (박), Choi (최), and Jung (정).
Generational Na (항렬자, hangnyeolja - sotis omitted in modern tis): Traditionally, one of the two syllables in the given na was shared by all siblings of the sa gender and generation within a family. This practice is less common now, especially in South Korea.
Individual Na (돌림자, dollimja): This is the unique part of the given na, usually one or two syllables.
So, while the full traditional structure is three parts (surna generational na individual na), in modern usage, especially in South Korea, it often appears as two parts (surna given na), where the given na may or may not contain a generational component.
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