Chapter 79: The Mad Professor (1)

After Charlotte joined them.

Fortunately, nothing major happened.

At least no incidents occurred on the way to the capital.

The only change was the atmosphere inside the carriage.

“Sis, sis. Do you know how I caught the culprit? So, what happened was—”

“Could you please stop chattering?”

Charlotte kept babbling away, while Aegis wore an annoyed expression and covered her ears, yet she never actually drove her away.

She simply endured the endless chatter like it was a daily ritual.

That’s actually impressive.

Evan inwardly admired her.

He himself was so drained that his soul felt sucked dry and he couldn’t utter a word, yet Aegis still managed to give half-hearted replies.

How incredible was that?

Regardless of whether one was a coward or a tough guy, Evan—who simply preferred silence—could never do it.

Meanwhile, the Sins who had grown closer to each other whispered among themselves.

Evan only had to quietly listen from behind.

He had to pretend to be asleep so they would talk to him less, so he lay on the soft mattress that served as bed, sofa, and chair combined, eyes gently closed.

…Somehow, lying like this makes me feel like a kid secretly eavesdropping from the back seat.

Ugh.

PTSD.

He had tried it a few times in the past, and it really wasn’t something humans should do.

In the end, going home early or immersing himself in personal study or hobbies was the answer.

Ah, I want to do alchemy…

That was probably why he kept craving alchemy.

In the past he had learned it to survive, but now it could almost be called half a hobby.

It was also because there weren’t many things he knew how to do.

They say roasting hardtack over a campfire is supposed to be delicious… maybe I should try it once…

What famous foods are there in the capital?

Evan rummaged through his memories.

He completely failed to notice the occasional glances sneaking toward him.

…Evan Alkart.

Charlotte, chatting comfortably with Aegis, subtly adjusted her hat and observed Evan.

Evan was currently heading to the capital at Professor Moriarty’s invitation.

Perhaps because they were almost there, he often fell into thought.

Was he worrying about how to stop Professor Moriarty?

Or…

Could he be planning to secretly cooperate?

She didn’t want to judge by appearance alone, but honestly, Evan’s looks weren’t exactly on the side of “good.”

He was handsome, but the pitch-black hair, golden eyes, and perpetual blank expression made him look a little like a mastermind.

And Charlotte trusted her instincts.

The reason she could catch criminals and steadily improve her magic was all thanks to her “intuition.”

The Alkart family. 

Right now I have no status, so I barely hear any information…

But she knew the rough outline.

An enormous powerhouse family.

Even the big shots trembled at the mere mention of the name “Alkart.”

There was a reason the Alkart family appeared as villains in fairy tales or were not mentioned at all.

Second son, he said. Seeing how different he is from the rumors, he might have deliberately controlled his public image…

While Charlotte thought that and stared at him for roughly three seconds—

Hm?

By pure coincidence, Evan turned his head while thinking about what to eat, and their eyes met.

“?”

“!”

Charlotte looked genuinely startled, as if she had never expected to be caught.

Stealthy observation was supposed to be her specialty!

How did he notice?

To operate as a “magic detective,” the most important thing after magic was secrecy.

She prided herself on assassin-level stealth, yet she was caught just like that…!

Why is she so shocked?

Evan, on the other hand, had no particular thoughts.

Anyone watching would think she had been caught secretly staring.

He put on an expression that showed it was no big deal and asked,

“Is something the matter?”

“…Hahahat! No! Nothing at all! I just suddenly understood why Aegis sis keeps staying by your side~!”

“What nonsense are you spouting now?!”

“Kyaa!”

Aegis finally snapped and pounced on Charlotte, who was spewing nonsense.

She started wrestling, claiming this was the perfect chance to show her sisterly strength.

Two beautiful women tussling was quite a sight, but Evan turned his head away, feeling somehow that he shouldn’t watch.

“Ah! Reaaally!”

Crash!

Lapis, who had been playing a game with them, finally lost her patience—befitting the Sin of Wrath—and flipped the board after only a few rounds.

Frey cleaned up the board with an “I knew this would happen” look, while Royan yawned lazily and rolled over.

“Ugh! I’d rather spar! Why play this boring game?! Why do we even—”

“This is the game Evan used to play, though?”

“…I lied, it’s actually kinda fun? Wanna play more?!”

“You liar.”

“FREY!!!!”

Lapis grabbed Frey by the collar and shook her violently.

Frey merely brushed the hands away with an utterly annoyed expression and did nothing more.

…

Ah.

Peaceful.

No, forget peace—I just want all of them to get out…

Evan squeezed his eyes shut.

To cool his head for a moment.

“Dolph. Is driving manageable?”

“Yes! I’m thinking of becoming a coachman after I retire!”

“If you ever want to, I’ll fully support you.”

“Y-Young Master…!”

Dolph looked deeply moved.

He almost let go of the reins in excitement and nearly flipped the carriage.

Neeeeigh!

“W-Whoa!”

“Don’t let go of those.”

“S-Sorry!”

Fortunately, they arrived at the capital without major incident.

The capital began to appear in the distance.

The enormous walls surrounding it.

Unbelievably thick and at least 50 meters tall.

There were even jokes that a giant was imprisoned inside.

There was a story related to that, I think.

It was an extremely rare event with somewhat questionable plausibility, so he had been unsure.

How could a giant be inside those walls and still alive?

Probably underground or inside the walls—one of the two.

Anyway, it was all late-game content.

No need to worry about it now.

“Uweek… S-Sis, sorry…”

“Hoo. Keep acting up.”

Aegis, having knocked out the constantly cheeky Charlotte with a single punch, glanced out the window.

She looked at the towering walls in the distance and muttered nostalgically.

“…Been a while.”

“Yeah. We used to come play a few times.”

“Both of you were princesses?”

“Huh? Of course not.”

“Then why did we run away?”

“?”

She stared at him as if to say, What kind of question is that?

They were princesses.

But not imperial princesses—then what did she mean they had visited?

Aegis shrugged.

“We were hostages. More precisely, destined to be sold off.”

…

“Ah.”

“If I had to give my first and my life to that hideous, fat prince, I’d rather run away.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Charlotte nodded at Aegis’s words.

“Otherwise, we might have just assassinated the prince?”

Evan fell silent.

That statement could technically be construed as treason.

I heard nothing…

“We’re at the gate.”

“Look at you changing the subject.”

“Let’s prepare to enter.”

Anyway.

It was time to go meet Professor Moriarty.

***

Passing through the gate was naturally easy.

They released Elric, who had been bound like a prisoner, and Lapis—now much better at control—moved like a puppet and passed right through.

The problem came after.

“Why is the road so… empty?”

Aegis muttered.

Evan also felt uneasy at the unnaturally quiet, wide-open streets for a capital.

No way.

It can’t be.

Did someone contact the imperial family before I arrived?

Surely Father didn’t secretly…

BOOM! BOOM BOOM BOOM!

At that moment, fireworks began exploding overhead.

“WAAAAAAAH!”

“OOOOH!”

“The pillar of the Empire! A direct descendant of the Alkart ducal house has graced us with his presence!”

I’m screwed.

The street instantly turned into a festival, and that was the only thought in Evan’s mind as he watched the people lavishly celebrating his carriage.

“OOOOH!”

“Evan Alkart…! The second son of the Alkart family!”

Aaaaahhh!

The rough welcome twisted Evan’s entire body.

Dolph looked momentarily flustered, then calmly drove forward.

Evan felt the urge to just use alchemy to blow up or block the surroundings.

Please… just let me come and go quietly…

As he had felt before, he was completely incompatible with nobility.

Most might welcome this kind of reception, but to Evan it was worse than being poisoned.

He just wanted to be quiet.

Wasn’t the very first button already sewn completely wrong?

“Evan. You okay?”

“Yes, Lapis. Just in case, please make sure no one can open the doors.”

“Got it! Leave it to me!”

Lapis raised her hand playfully, but her preparations were thorough.

Transparent mana threads tightly bound the windows and doors. 

No one could open them secretly now.

Rattle rattle!

Right after she did that, the doors rattled violently.

Through the window, someone could be seen trying to open the door secretly and getting caught.

“You even predicted this?”

“No.”

He firmly denied it to Charlotte, who was making a ridiculous misunderstanding.

Charlotte smiled brightly as if to say “understood,” but she clearly wasn’t satisfied.

Evan tried to calm his throbbing head.

After the soul-draining welcome finally passed and the noise gradually died down,

They arrived at a building surrounded by knights.

A mansion mainly used by nobles from other regions when visiting the imperial capital.

“Stop.”

Screech—

The carriage halted.

Footsteps that sounded slightly clumsy.

Thud thud thud! Imperial knights swarmed like an encirclement.

Knights in thick golden armor and wielding heavy swords surrounded the carriage.

Aegis narrowed her eyes.

“…Something’s off.”

“Ah— no way.”

Charlotte made a face as if the thought alone disgusted her.

“It can’t be that fat pig, right?”

Knock knock!

An imperial knight knocked on the carriage door.

His face still had a youthful air, but it overflowed with confidence.

“Is Evan Alkart inside?”

“Yes, that’s me.”

“I’m not asking you, servant.”

“…What?”

Dolph retorted, dumbfounded.

The imperial knight glared at Dolph with an intimidating attitude.

Evan couldn’t see exactly how they were facing off through the small window, but he got the gist.

What the hell. 

Picking a fight?

Why all of a sudden?

He honestly had no idea why this was happening.

Not every member of the imperial family was sane.

Far from it.

Trash existed everywhere.

With so many children, there were bound to be many failures.

Could this be an imperial knight sent by one of those failures?

But I’m from the Alkart family?

No way.

No matter how brain-dead…

“Servant, step aside. Do you think being a ducal house servant makes you something?”

…They really are that brain-dead.

“Lord Alkart. We need to verify your identity. Please disembark.”

Knock knock knock!

The hand knocked roughly again.

Aegis laughed in disbelief.

“Have these guys lost their minds? Treating the Alkart family like this?”

“It really is that fat pig, isn’t it? Only someone from that side would do something this stupid…”

“Yeah, sounds about right.”

Before their words finished, footsteps approached from afar.

Jiggling belly fat.

Blond hair that didn’t match it at all.

Which prince was he again?

Seventh?

A prince who couldn’t even properly join the succession race.

His name… was it Pig or something?

He appeared, belly fat jiggling.

“Evan.”

“What do you want to do?”

Aegis and Charlotte asked.

Evan did not answer.

His somehow cold gaze was fixed not on the window, but on the little Sin children.

For some reason, the two former princesses swallowed dryly.

A gaze so cold it erased even the thought of “this is ridiculous.”

He’s not… planning to use those two kids, is he?

…Lapis looks kinda angry.

Meanwhile, Evan was simply watching the Sins’ moods.

“Frey. To my eyes, that pig over there seems to be the one who created this shitty situation. Am I right?”

“Yes. Shall I just blow him up?”

No.

Stop.

They’ll explode.

They’ll blow everything up…!!

A horrific imagination flashed through Evan’s mind.

He shot up.

“Huh?”

“I’ll go out myself.”

“W-Wait, do you have to go that far?”

“No. I’ll go.”

It’s faster to settle it myself than to let the Sins awaken.

Right?

Evan grabbed the handle and opened the door.

Praying that nothing would happen.

The moment the door opened, the faces he saw…

For some reason, they were all wearing expressions of shock as they looked at Evan.

Why are they like that?