Becoming Professor Moriarty’s Probability

Chapter 115: The Hound of the Baskervilles (3)

"Once upon a time, there lived a very, very wicked lady named Helena Baskerville."

"... May I consider this an insult to the Baskerville family?"

"Uh, well..."

As Adler lowered his voice and was about to shift into a theatrical tone, he found himself faced with the female butler’s objections from the get-go. Gazing at the interrupting butler, he silently began scratching his head with a soft sigh.

"I apologize, but it is, in fact, a historical fact. It's a truth that has been cross-verified several times by thoroughly analyzing the old manuscripts of the incident that have been left behind."

"For someone who happened to come across our estate as a place of rest, you seem to know quite a lot about our affairs."

"... That I do, yes."

And so, Adler, smoothly manoeuvring his way through the butler's sharp reaction, continued the story.

"Anyway, this lady named Helena Baskerville feared neither God nor man and had a temperament akin to that of a wild beast."

"But one day, this wicked lady fell in love with a farmer's son."

As he blatantly ignored the butler's words and narrowed his eyes, immersing himself in the storytelling, the gazes of three women focused on him.

"Of course, it was nothing but an obscene display of lust… hardly worthy of being called love. And even at that time, the lady's notoriety was widespread, so much so that the poor young man had no choice but to always avoid her while living in fear. All to escape her marriage proposal."

"""..........."""

"Personally, I can relate all too well with this incident. The empathy I feel is quite strong, in fact."

Muttering so, Adler noticed the chilling stares of the three women directed at him and meekly stopped pursuing the meaningless tangent and continued with the story once more.

"One day, the inevitable happened. The wicked lady gathered her friends and kidnapped the young man, imprisoning him inside the Baskerville estate."

"........"

"Imprisoned on the second floor, to be exact, the captive young man could only tremble at the sound of cheers and shouts from the lady and her friends as they celebrated the kidnapping with a feast downstairs."

Adler's expression seemed somewhat disheartened as he murmured those words.

"... If you intend to do such a thing to me, I kindly ask you to be gentle."

"Before I am actually compelled to do such a thing, could you please explain the story properly now?"

"Understood."

However, as Charlotte's threatening voice, signalling that her patience had reached its limit, was blatantly thrown at him, Adler returned to his beaming face as if nothing had happened.

"... Anyway, after overhearing how they intended to treat him from their discussion downstairs, the young man made a very brave decision."

"What was it?"

"He climbed down the ivy branches growing on the southern wall and escaped from the second floor of the estate. Then he began fleeing across the moorlands to his father's house, 14 kilometres away from the estate."

Suddenly, Adler changed his expression to a sombre one as he continued the rest of the story.

"Meanwhile, the wicked lady realized that her had escaped."

""".........."""

"Naturally, in a rage, she soon shouted loudly in the following manner…"

Just moments ago, his voice was full of jest and laughter, but now it had transformed into the sweet voice of the young actor that had charmed half the women in London.

"... If only I could bring that boy back, I'd sell my soul to the devil tonight! She spoke with sincerity in her furious voice."

"... Hmm."

"Then she headed to the stables, saddled a horse, and let the hounds catch the scent of the man who had been imprisoned on the second floor."

"........"

"Not long after, Helena Baskerville and her hounds began to traverse the wilderness under the moonlit night."

At that moment of his remarkable performance, Gia Lestrade and Rachel Watson found themselves swallowing dryly, utterly engrossed in the story. It was at that moment when…

"... Hold on."

All of a sudden, Charlotte Holmes interrupted his immersive storytelling.

"The part about crossing the wilderness under the moonlight, that's not your own addition to this story now, is it, Mr. Adler?"

"... No, it is not. You may ask the butler."

As she shifted her gaze to the side, the female butler, standing beside her with a face that showed no expressions whatsoever, quietly nodded in acknowledgement.

"By the way, why did you ask that all of a sudden?"

"It's nothing."

"... Please save your questions until after the story. We're approaching the highlight."

Saying so, Adler cleared his throat and resumed his tale.

"The lady's friends, having sobered up from their drunken state, saddled up their horses and followed after her. But soon, they witnessed an astonishing scene."

A sinister smile played upon his lips as he spoke those words.

"The brave hounds, for some reason, had stopped their pursuit near a valley and huddled together, shivering in fright."

"........."

"A shepherd they encountered on their way claimed in terror that he had seen a woman crossing the wilderness with a hellish dog, its eyes aglow with a chilling blue, just minutes before."

That smile, mingled with the ominous atmosphere of the mansion, created a chilling presence that made one’s heart tremble with trepidation.

"... That's where they should have turned their horses."

Adler shook his head sadly as if to lament their decision.

"However, a lingering buzz from the alcohol and the presence of trusty companions spurred them to go further."

""".........."""

"Trembling, they descended into the valley, and soon they witnessed the most horrific sight of their lives."

He then tilted his head and posed a question to the ladies before him.

"What do you think they saw?"

Though the question clearly begged for a response, no one answered.

"A poor young man lying dead of exhaustion in a puddle?"

".........."

"Or was it Helena Baskerville, for some reason collapsed beside him?"

He knew the question wasn't meant to elicit an answer.

"Neither, actually…"

Adler, having engaged in a soul-stirring monologue, leaned toward his audience and whispered with a chilling smile on his face.

"... No, what plunged them into terror was a black, monstrous creature."

"A black... creature."

"The creature was perched atop the fallen Helena Baskerville, tearing at her throat."

Upon hearing his following words, Rachel Watson shuddered involuntarily.

“Shortly after, the beast turned towards the friends with its blue eyes flashing in an ominous glow, blood dripping from its teeth, and they screamed at the top of their lungs as they fled the spot then and there.”

"........."

“Rumor has it that one of them died that day, and the others, although they survived, went mad shortly afterwards.”

"... Why?"

To her question, Adler whispered with a wicked grin stretching his lips.

"... Since the creature from that day would appear every night at their window, glaring at them with its ghastly blue eyes and blood-stained teeth."

"That's not part of the legend."

However, as soon as the female butler objected from the side, with her buzzkill comment that denied his last words, Adler couldn’t help but mutter with a sullen expression.

"Since then, the Baskerville family has experienced a higher rate of mysterious deaths, eventually leading to their downfall."

He soon returned to his usual composed demeanor, finally wrapping up the story regarding the legend of the Baskerville family.

"... Until recently, that is, before Sir Charles Baskerville began raising the family back up to its former glory."

"Hmm..."

"But that curse remains to this day, still threatening the necks of the family members, a rather frightening legend indeed."

With that, Isaac Adler finished his performance, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with a relieved voice.

"I went to great lengths to explain, won't anyone applaud?"

""".........."""

A brief silence drifted through the mansion soon after.

"The Bible says that the son shall not be punished for the sins of the father, nor the father would be condemned for the transgressions of the son."

The silence was broken by none other than the female butler, who had been standing quietly beside them up until that moment.

"Legends are just legends, ladies and gentle."

"... Have you not considered that it might not be a punishment from God, but from the devil instead?"

"Restrain your words, please. The devil was thoroughly eradicated during the Crusades more than 900 years ago."

"Yet, we are in a chaotic era where long-forgotten ancient legends are resurfacing, aren't we? That mysterious hellhound, too, might return to these lands."

"... Tsk."

As the butler and Adler exchanged cold stares, doubt flickered in the eyes of the rest of the three women.

"It's… quite unexpected for Adler to react like that to a woman."

"Indeed."

"... Hmm."

But before they could delve deeper into this scenario, coming up with an answer to this oddity, Isaac Adler was the first to rise from his seat.

"Well, I have no intention of arguing over this matter. Since I'll be staying here for a few more weeks, I don't want to create unnecessary trouble."

"As soon as the lady inherits the estate, she will throw you out."

"... I apologize, but I've taken that into account as well in the agreement I have signed with the current owner. I will leave on my own in a few weeks."

Adler responded smoothly to the female butler's frigid voice, giving her shoulder a light pat and whispering quietly into her ear as he passed her by.

"Until then, I will be in your care."

Were they imagining things, perhaps?

"""..........."""

Not only the female butler who had been patted on the shoulder by Adler but also all the servants of the mansion who bowed their heads to Adler as he stepped through the door, were silently staring at him with pale and chilling eyes at the moment.

"Well, then... we should be going..."

"... Since it's getting late, why not stay for the night?"

As Watson rose from her seat, attempting to bid farewell amid the somewhat awkward and tense atmosphere, the female butler, with an emotionless voice that seemed to have lost any sense of humanity it previously had, made the suggestion without shifting her gaze.

"The Baskerville estate is dangerous at night."

"..... Pardon?"

"If you happen to enter the moorlands by mistake, it would be quite troublesome."

At the mention, Watson found herself at a loss for words, hesitating on what to do.

"... Then, we would be grateful for your hospitality."

Charlotte quietly rose from her seat and bowed her head in assent.

"Holmes, are you serious?"

"........."

"Can't we just go? Being here gives me a really ominous feeling."

The corners of her mouth were quietly lifted.

"... That's exactly why it's good, Watson."

Watson, seeing Charlotte's expression, exhaled a deep sigh – as if wishing the ground would swallow her up – and shook her head. It was an expression that she hadn’t seen on her partner’s face for a long time– an expression that was brimming with vitality. It was the kind of look that Charlotte would make only when she was on the precipice of sniffing out an interesting case.

"Inspector Lestrade, would it be too much to ask if we could share a room with you?"

"... Pardon?"

"It's not that I'm scared or anything... I just have a bad feeling..."

Watson then clung to Inspector Lestrade, who was beside her, and began to murmur in a subdued voice.

"........"

Charlotte watched the scene in silence, before turning her gaze forward.

"Interesting."

It was only for a fleeting moment, but she still realized that the female butler and servants who had been sending those spine-chilling stares at Adler had also directed that gaze toward her.

.

.

.

.

.

Dawn the next day…

"... Holmes."

Rachel Watson, who had finally managed to bring Gia Lestrade to her room, turned to her side after tossing and turning in bed and called out to her partner.

"What is it?"

"No, just... wondering if you're still up."

Charlotte, who had been sitting quietly in the armchair, lost in thought, glanced at her with a bored expression.

"I didn't realize that my assistant, who even received a medal in war, would be so frightened by mere horror stories."

"I, I'm... not scared of people, but ghosts do scare me..."

"... Sigh."

"You and Inspector Lestrade are the abnormal ones, you know?"

Then, Charlotte sighed at Watson's whining and shifted her gaze away from her pathetic friend.

"... Holmes, tell me a funny story, will you?"

"Sure. The curtains in this mansion, aren’t they quite funny?”

"... What?"

Charlotte, prompted by Watson's apprehensive voice, suddenly smiled and extended her hand forward.

"They hang these high-quality blackout curtains by the window. However, during the day they pull them back yet draw them fully at night. Opposite of their intended use. Quite amusing, isn't it?"

Charlotte whispered in a low voice as she gently caressed the curtains.

"... Why is that?"

"This is just my speculation, but..."

It was right at that moment, as she was about to reveal the thoughts that had been brewing in her mind when being directed by Watson’s puzzled look and subsequent inquiry that…

"Someone, please... help me!!!"

""........!!!"

From below the mansion, a terrified scream echoed.

"Ba, Baskerville... Lord Baskerville...!!!"

"Wh-What's happening?"

"... So, it inevitably came to this, huh.”

It was only the prelude to the nightmare of the Baskerville /genesisforsaken