No, maybe I was overthinking it.
Let’s look at the bright side. Perhaps Janus just possessed an incredible level of observation that was difficult for me to understand. That would explain how he knew Lure wasn’t an opera singer the moment he heard her voice.
‘Yes. It’s better to think of it that way.’
“And? What happened after the carriage overtook you?”
“I circled around for about 30 minutes just in case, but no matter how many times I checked the mirrors, it didn’t seem like anyone was following me. That’s why I came to Miss Christine’s house as we agreed.”
“Good. Well done. You’re the best assistant, Lure.”
“Of course I am.”
I explained Christine’s plan to Lure as well. The plan was to hold out in the house for the next 10 days, protect the photograph until the last moment, and then escape on the steamboat.
“I think it’s a good plan too. But isn’t there one problem?”
“A problem?”
“If we hide in this house for nearly 10 days, what do we do about food?”
“Ah.”
Right. Even if there were a carriage-hailing whistle to replace a taxi app, there was nothing to replace a delivery app.
‘Even if such a thing existed, it wouldn’t matter since the culprit could just pretend to be a delivery person, making it meaningless.’
When I turned to Christine, she also looked flustered, as if she hadn’t considered the food situation.
“It would be best to go to a nearby grocery store and buy 10 days’ worth of food.”
“In that case… who will go?”
That was also a problem. Leaving two women alone in the house while I went out by myself made me uneasy. If an attacker arrived in the meantime, the two of them, who lacked combat power, might be intimidated into handing over the photo.
Should I send Lure? The culprit might be furious about being tricked by Lure and wasting his time. What if he took Lure hostage and threatened us to give up the photo?
‘I wonder if a famous detective would actually do such a thing, but still…’
Life was all about being prepared. And sending Christine out was out of the question. Ultimately, I made a decision.
“Let’s all go together.”
“What? You mean leave the house empty?”
“Isn’t this the same house that the Archduke’s men have already searched several times?”
Since they still hadn’t found the photograph, it must be hidden in a place they would never suspect. Of course, a detective like Janus might find the hiding spot with his uncanny observation skills, but he wouldn’t be able to find it that quickly. It would be fine as long as we locked the doors securely and returned from the grocery store as fast as possible.
“If we think positively, it might be better if Janus moves rashly and enters the house. We could catch him in the act, treat him like a thief, and send him to prison.”
At times like this, Detective Baron and Charlie felt very reliable. A detective of Janus’s caliber, hired by the Archduke, would probably get out of prison before long, but it would at least buy us some time.
“Um… then let’s at least change clothes before we go, Detective.”
Lure spoke with a pained expression. Come to think of it, Lure was still wearing Christine’s dress. Moreover, due to the aftermath of riding the hansom cab earlier, the hem of the skirt was caked with mud.
“I can’t go anywhere in these clothes; they’re too uncomfortable.”
“Oh my! I wasn’t being thoughtful enough. I’ll wash your clothes and return them to you, Miss Lure. In the meantime, would you like to borrow some of mine? I have many clothes that are both comfortable and pretty, unlike the one you’re wearing now.”
“…Other clothes of Miss Christine’s?”
Lure followed Christine, seemingly intrigued. A short while later, Lure returned wearing a comfortable-looking yellow dress.
“I feel like I can breathe now. Earlier, I thought I was going to suffocate. That corset… Miss Christine, how can you sing so comfortably while wearing something like that?”
Christine let out an embarrassed laugh.
“The corsets I wear aren’t actually that suffocating. They aren’t meant to make the waist look thin, but rather to shape the silhouette so the skirt can puff out naturally. They don’t have that much whalebone tightening the body, either.”
Wait, whalebone?
At that moment, a brilliant idea struck me.
“Could I borrow the corset Lure was wearing earlier?”
Ah, wait. I should have thought before I spoke. I felt a sense of déjà vu from the stares I was receiving. It was the look one gave a scumbag not worth associating with.
“No, wait! It’s not like that! Please listen to me!”
There’s a reason for this!
“If I have that corset, we can leave the house with peace of mind!”
***
I can’t even describe how much I sweated while explaining the corset. Fortunately, Lure and Christine were convinced after hearing the explanation, and we were able to leave the mansion after taking the necessary measures.
“It’s best to buy foods that are easy to store for a long time.”
Since we had to store the ingredients for 10 days without a refrigerator, we couldn’t prioritize taste. We bought salted meat, smoked sausage, hard biscuits, cheese, pickles, sauerkraut, and several pieces of fruit.
‘This should be enough to maintain a balanced diet.’
We were on our way back to the mansion, carrying grocery bags in both hands. A beggar lingering on the roadside approached us and spoke.
“Kind souls, would you please show some mercy?”
“Mercy?”
“I am so hungry. Could you spare just one of those apples you’re holding?”
He looked suspicious, but I didn’t see a black shadow. Besides, we had bought plenty of food just in case. When I nodded, Lure, who had been looking at the beggar with pity, brightened up and handed him an apple.
But at that moment…
“That’s mine!”
Another beggar who had been watching pushed him aside and lunged.
“Don’t be ridiculous! Why is it yours? I’m the one who received it!”
“You snatched mine last time!”
A fistfight broke out between the two. As the fight intensified, other beggars joined in.
“You bastard! I told you I wouldn’t leave you alone if you touched my subordinate!”
“What? A fight? Good timing! I didn’t like that guy anyway!”
“Who do you think you are, begging on my street, you bum!”
“What? A bum? You want to die?!”
In an instant, a violent brawl erupted right in front of us.
“Oh, uh…”
Lure looked flustered, not knowing what to do. To think such a situation occurred just because she gave away one apple. To an outsider, it would look as if that measly apple was the Golden Apple of Discord from Greek mythology.
‘It’s strange. This is too contrived.’
Not only was the massive fight over a single apple suspicious, but the dialogue the beggars exchanged felt awkward. I wouldn’t have noticed it before, but hadn’t I heard raw, bottom-tier insults from Chairman Peterson recently? Compared to that, this conversation was no different from a schoolboy’s spat.
“It’s better to be careful.”
I instructed Lure and Christine to step back behind me. If possible, I wanted to avoid them entirely and pass by, but since they started fighting while surrounding us, even that was impossible. Just as I was contemplating how to overcome this situation…
“Listen here, show some respect to the ladies! Get back at once!”
A frail voice called out. Someone was leaping into the middle of the beggars.
“A priest?”
Lure cried out in surprise.
“What do we do? A frail old man jumping into that mess…”
At that moment, my mind began to race. Now I understood the trickery that Janus must have orchestrated. It was only natural, because to my eyes, the face of the old man who had jumped into the scene appeared pitch black.
‘He intentionally created a fight. He plans to act like he’s protecting Christine, get beaten up, and induce her to take him into her home out of moral obligation.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly. This was quite the malicious plan. For the situation to force Christine to take the old man in, he would have to be beaten until blood flowed, making it a situation requiring immediate first aid.
Once I realized the scheme, defeating it wasn’t difficult. All I had to do was protect the old man from getting hit, right?
“Hey! Stop this!”
“What? Get lost, old man!”
When a beggar threw a punch at the old man’s face, I quickly stepped in and shoved the beggar away.
“You think you can!”
In normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have chosen such a violent method, but this matter was urgent, so I had no choice. I adjusted my grip on my cane as if I were holding a baseball bat. Then, I struck every beggar that lunged at the old man.
— *Clang! Clang! Clack!*
Three hits were enough to make the beggars back off in fear. Although the beggars looked back lingeringly, they quickened their pace as soon as their eyes met mine. Before long, only our party and the old man remained in the alleyway.
Or rather, should I call him the culprit in the guise of an old man?
“Are you alright?”
Of course he was fine, since he hadn’t been hit even once.
“Ah, I’m fine. Thank you for the help.”
The voice that returned was clearly that of an old man, just as I had heard before.
‘…Is this Janus himself? Or an accomplice?’
The beggars from a moment ago were definitely hired by Janus. The key was whether this old man was also someone hired by Janus to steal Christine’s photo, or Janus himself…
‘Janus was acting as a drunken coachman just a moment ago.’
Christine said it was hard to tell his age because his face was flushed, but even so, he must have been somewhere in his 20s or 40s. At the very least, he wouldn’t have been such an elderly man.
‘Is he in disguise?’
I caught a glimpse of Lure’s reaction.
“Father, are you okay? Honestly, how could you jump into something like this so recklessly? What if those thugs had done something terrible to you?”
Lure supported the black shadow with a very pitiful look in her eyes. She didn’t seem to suspect for a moment that the person was not an old man. The disguise was either perfect, or he truly was an old man.
‘Then, what about Christine?’
Christine, who had seen the coachman earlier, was also looking at the old man with nothing but concern. She didn’t seem to suspect him of being Janus.
‘In that case… I’ll play along.’
What would it matter if the opponent was Janus or not? Just as Janus likely did, I also didn’t want to cause a scene. On the surface, this shadow had merely tried to help those in trouble because of the beggars. I couldn’t intimidate him, nor should I.
‘It would only increase the opponent’s vigilance for no reason.’
It would be better to lead him to believe that his plan had simply failed due to bad luck.
“You there! What’s going on?”
Conveniently, a patrolling officer approached us.
“It seems this gentleman was caught up in a fight between beggars and suffered a rough ordeal,” I stepped forward and said. “He seems to be quite disoriented by the sudden incident. Could you please take him to the police station for a while for protection?”
“Well, the police station isn’t a nursing home…”
I didn’t expect much. If they agreed so readily, the police wouldn’t be so disliked. When I glanced at Christine, she stepped forward quickly, catching on.
“Please, handsome officer. That priest was trying to protect us and was greatly shocked. I don’t think I could bear it if we just left him here.”
“Y-you’re Christine?! Well… if Miss Christine says so.”
She truly was a celebrity of the Imperial Capital.
“N-no. I’m fine!”
“Now, now. Don’t be modest. You need rest.”
Ultimately, the old man cloaked in a black shadow had no choice but to be dragged off to the police station.
‘For now, this matter is settled.’
We walked toward Christine’s house with light hearts. When we arrived and turned the key to open the door, it opened smoothly.
‘…I expected as much.’
It was proof that there was an intruder.
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