Chapter 85
Edward’s Unveiling
The instant Sherlock’s words fell, the cramped room was plunged into complete silence. Only the rhythmic, slow chewing of Edward’s sandwich could be heard.
After a few seconds, Sherlock smiled and said, “Of course, that’s impossible.”
“Because if Professor Moriarty were the mastermind, he wouldn’t use such a simple, flawed method. He’s already familiar with Minister Dross and has connections within the kingdom. He could easily achieve his goal without revealing himself.”
As he spoke, under Edward’s silent gaze, Sherlock pulled out a box of matches and a cigar, and began to warm it evenly by twirling it.
While tending to the cigar, he casually remarked, “The person doing this now has incomplete motives. The plan itself is also very elaborate. First, assassinating Secretary Raph, then attacking Princess Isabel. This move very naturally exposes Minister Dross’s close involvement with the alchemy smuggling case. It amplifies the social impact of this matter to the point where even Old Dross’s influence can’t suppress it.”
“But conversely, if she could devise such a plan, why not use a more direct approach? Her purpose seems to be neither to overthrow Dross nor to cause trouble for the Dross Family. She’s not stealing data, nor is she trying to stop smuggling. She’s not trying to throw Avalon into chaos, nor to uphold justice and truth.”
“It’s as if the person’s sole purpose was to ‘expose Minister Dross’s actions,’ and that’s where her involvement ends. To be able to devise such a plan and have such a level of action, yet have such a conservative objective. Therefore, I deduce that the person executing this plan must be taking orders from someone—and that person has poor influence in Avalon’s upper society, which is why they need to resort to public opinion to achieve their goals.”
“—For instance, spies from other countries. Considering the hostile relationship between the Iris people and Star Antinomy, perhaps it’s spies sent by the Iris people.”
Sherlock said, placing the smoldering cigar in his mouth and exhaling deeply. He then looked up at Edward, his gaze clear. “Since you didn’t attack me just now… I guess I’m right?”
Edward remained silent, still slowly chewing his food.
“You’ve been chewing that sandwich for almost a minute, my dear friend,” Sherlock said lazily, crossing his legs. He proudly blew a puff of smoke into Edward’s face, his eyes devoid of fear. “It seems my previous speculation was correct. The Moriarty family’s business… seems rather improper.”
“—You’d best not continue investigating, Sherlock.”
The food in his mouth was swallowed silently. Edward, who had been silent for a long time, spoke with a somber expression. “Consider this my request to you.”
“…I’m very pleased, Edward. That you consider me a true friend.” Sherlock’s lips curved upward, smoke lazily enveloping him. “Trusting you, I will temporarily abandon my investigation into ‘Moriarty.’ All my investigative findings thus far are in the ‘M’ folder on the bookshelf to your left. There’s a blue envelope labeled ‘Moriarty’.”
Hearing Sherlock’s words, Edward rose without hesitation and walked to the bookshelf, reaching into the folder and finding the envelope.
“Are there copies, Sherlock?” Edward asked.
“You know I never keep such things, my dear friend. But I strongly urge you not to destroy it directly; you should open it and take a look now.” Sherlock said leisurely. “Aren’t you curious as to when I started suspecting the Professor? And why I dare to say these things to you here?”
Edward was not a fool. His rugged face, with its slight angularity, now bore a steely, silent expression.
“…Was it because Father suddenly left Glass Island?”
“Partly. But mainly because of the warehouse explosion case.” Sherlock replied. “You were too invested in that case that day. But after that, you didn’t continue investigating it. You didn’t report it to the media, nor did you mention it to me again. I thought you were afraid I’d pay too much attention to it. But precisely because you didn’t say anything, I noticed something unusual.”
“I could easily find out that you visited Dr. William Wynn Westcott at the university the next day, under the pretense of seeing Eivass off to school. He happened to be the analyst for the ‘Fire Spirit’ component in that case…”
“What does that prove?” Edward countered. “Did Dr. Westcott say anything to you?”
He didn’t sit down but stood directly by the bookshelf, slowly opening the blue envelope. To Edward’s surprise, the blue envelope contained only a blank piece of paper.
“Yes, I have no proof. But your reaction tells me… I’m right.” Sherlock got up from his rocking chair and poured himself a glass of cold water. With the cigar in his left hand and the glass in his right, he drank the cool water down in large gulps. It was clear Sherlock had been somewhat nervous as well.
“Actually, it was precisely because I couldn’t find any evidence linking Professor Moriarty to crime… that I vaguely sensed something was amiss. A founding family at the heart of the capital’s social circle, truly has it been possible for them to remain completely spotless over the years? I don’t believe it. Whether it’s you, Eivass, or Yulia… your adoption records are all so clean.”
“And the Professor has no relatives, no wife, and no records of his parents—just as you yourself said earlier, you have been married. You’re also urging me to get married soon. So, hasn’t anyone urged Professor James?”
“Only adopted children and friends, but no closer social connections. Not at all, not even a death record can be found.” Sherlock exhaled and re-lit his cigar, speaking calmly. “Don’t be nervous, my dear friend. When I saw that Eivass genuinely wanted to protect Princess Isabel, none of this mattered anymore.”
“Her Majesty saved my father’s life, and I must repay her. This is why I work for Mr. Kent. I don’t work for Avalon, nor do I obey the Round Table Hall. I only work for the Royal Family—or rather, I am only loyal to Queen Sophia.”
“I am not a pedantic person, Edward. You know me. What I pursue is neither justice nor order; I am simply curious about the truth. As long as it’s not a heinous job, I can even assist you. So, what is it that you must keep hidden in your heart, unable to tell me?”
“…I’m not telling you for your own good.” Edward said after a long silence, shaking his head sincerely. “All I can tell you is that Father has no hostility towards the Royal Family. That’s the limit. You really must stop investigating.”
Sherlock still pressed on. “So we are not opposing each other…”
“—This is not a warning, Sherlock. It’s advice.” Edward, still clad in his black suit that resembled mourning attire, stood straight, his voice low and magnetic. “A moth is caught by a spider; the best choice it can make is to stay away from the web. The less you know, the safer you are.”
“…Alright. I believe you, my dear friend. I will not proactively investigate this matter further without your permission.” Sherlock shook his head and sighed. He still couldn’t find out what worried his old friend so much. However, there had been some results. At least both sides had engaged in an initial unveiling and compromise. In this rather risky exchange, their friendship had not only not been destroyed but had seemingly grown even stronger.
Sherlock said with a mixture of relief and regret, “I originally thought you were also one of the manipulated, like Eivass… wanting to break free from the constraints of your adoptive father. But now it seems you are on the other side.”
“Wait… you said, Eivass?” Edward paused, repeating softly.
“Yes, he was previously recognized by Master Janis and chosen as a companion for Princess Isabel. And since he rescued the princess this time, Her Majesty will likely summon him personally. This should be his planned path to break free from the shackles of fate… If, as you say, the Professor has no hostility towards the Royal Family, then he probably won’t bother with Eivass anymore.”
Sherlock shook his head. “If my previous judgment was correct and the killer is related to the Iris spies, I don’t think the killer’s target would have been Princess Isabel. Because for the Iris people, Isabel is the best ruler for Avalon. They would never want to kill her.”
“Reasoning from this point, the assassin entering Princess Isabel’s shadow was clearly to avoid Director Gordon’s perception. And she overheard Director Gordon speaking, knowing you were also arriving soon… With multiple high-level Extraordinary beings present, an Extraordinary of Path Adaptation would certainly tend to hide or flee.”
“And she was clearly skilled in shadow stealth, thus she would choose someone among those who ‘absolutely would leave the venue’ whose shadow was the most stable.”
That was Eivass, who was in a wheelchair—this was why Eivass’s first shot landed on his own shadow. Although, for some reason, Eivass understood shadow stealth knowledge… his intentions were clear. This could be seen from the second shot.
“Eivass fired two shots because he actually didn’t know where the culprit was. Firing the second bullet into Princess Isabel’s shadow was a very dangerous move. If this shot missed, and Princess Isabel met with misfortune afterward, Eivass would most likely be held responsible.”
“A malicious person would try their best to maintain their innocence, not take meaningless yet risky actions. Especially since he is an intelligent person who had not been in anyone’s spotlight before.”
“—It was from this shot that I concluded Eivass genuinely wanted to protect Isabel.”
“Further reasoning leads us to conclude that Eivass had Director Gordon and his men search the second floor thoroughly before your arrival, with the purpose of ‘forcing the killer back to the first floor, where there were no other high-level Extraordinary beings.’ The second floor of the club is too large, and without high-level Extraordinary beings searching meticulously, most supervisors would not notice her presence.”
“And by then, you were about to arrive. Once you arrived at the scene, the first floor would have people present, and she would be unable to move. She must have heard this statement.”
“So from that moment on, she had to make a decision immediately—whether to abandon the second floor, which might be densely searched, and move to the less guarded and safer first floor.”
“The time left for her to think was very limited, and Director Gordon’s slow search would continuously put pressure on her.”
“As soon as that assassin came down from the second floor, the places she could hide would be extremely limited. The first likely spot would be under Eivass, and the second likely spot would be beside Eivass, with Isabel. Only these two would not run, and no one would question them.”
“The ‘deductions’ in the newspapers are all nonsense. Or rather, Eivass wasn’t deducing at all—more precisely, he was committing fraud. He didn’t deduce the past truth, but personally guided the future. He had no idea where the assassin was, but like a spider weaving its web, he invisibly manipulated the ignorant assassin, making her step by step into the trap he had long prepared.”
“—I believe this is the whole truth.”
Eivass was only nineteen years old, and had never been exposed to these things before, nor had he any record of using this skill. No matter how intelligent he was, he couldn’t have comprehended this knowledge out of thin air. Where did he learn this skill? It could only be from the Professor.
“The only time he was not in the public eye was from the time he graduated from middle school until mid-November. I believe it was during this period that Eivass learned the Professor’s techniques, understood the Professor’s plans, and began to oppose his ideas… In a sense, Eivass might be even closer to the Professor than you are.”
Sherlock still had some affection for the Professor. Therefore, he chose not to use the word “conspiracy” but opted for “planning.” He stated with certainty, “Precisely because of this, I have confirmed Eivass’s intelligence, reliability, and innocence, and that the Professor is problematic.”
“That’s why I’m confessing to you now, before I’ve truly started investigating. Just as I concluded that this matter was not Professor Moriarty’s work because it was too simple. If Eivass were involved, the truth of the case would not be so easily seen through by me. And because of this, I deduced that Eivass must be at odds with the Professor’s stance.”
“If there is anything you cannot tell me, or your father, then perhaps you should talk to your younger brother, Eivass. Eivass is much more intelligent than you think.”
“Or rather, he is much more intelligent than you are.” Sherlock offered a ruthless yet friendly suggestion.
Over seven thousand words! Seeking votes at the end of the month. It feels like there’s a chance to enter the top 100 in monthly votes in the first month of publication!
