Becoming Professor Moriarty's Probability

On that evening when the contracts, each missing just one signature, embroidered the skies of London,

“... Hmm?”

“What is it, Madam?”

“There seem to be an unusual number of beggars on the streets today.”

As a noblewoman strolled the suburbs of London with her maid, she suddenly furrowed her brows and muttered.

“Beggars?”

“Look over there. See how those wretched ones are desperately scrambling for coins on the streets.”

Indeed, as she described, people were bent over, frantically searching for something on the streets.

“... Madam, haven’t you heard the news?”

The maid, smirking at the scene, soon began whispering in a low voice to her mistress.

“The news?”

“Yes, you see, Isaac Adler has...”

“Hmm...”

Upon hearing her maid’s whisper, the noblewoman’s eyebrows began to twitch.

“... A treasure hunt with himself as collateral? How utterly vulgar!”

“Right? And to think he has just recently married too. He really has gone too far, hasn’t he? I assume he thinks being very handsome is everything...”

The noblewoman daintily covered her mouth with her fan, frowning as she murmured. At her murmur, her maid, who belonged to the half of London’s women who could not stand Adler, narrowed her eyes and chimed in agreement.

“... So, are those women desperately trying to secure the fourth signature?”

“It must be. By the way, there are the famous detective, Charlotte Holmes, and Inspector Lestrade’s signatures among the existing ones.”

“I see.”

“The last one is written in strange runes, still unidentified... Anyway, it’s intriguing. I wonder who will find the real contract and add the final signature...”

As the maid continued chattering with an excited look, the noblewoman paused her walk and quietly glanced at her.

“... By the way, have you finished everything I’ve asked you to?”

“Ah.”

“And the dress for tomorrow’s party, have you picked it up from the shop?”

Caught by her mistress’s sharp question, the maid suddenly broke into a cold sweat and hurriedly ran ahead.

“I’ll go right now...!”

And then there was silence...

“How frivolous...”

As the maid dashed off into the distance, the noblewoman watched her through her fan, while frowning at her behaviour. In the end, she only sighed and resumed her walk with elegance and grace, fitting for a noble lady like herself.

“.......?”

But after just a few steps, she suddenly stopped and tilted her head, puzzled.

“That’s...”

Her gaze was directed towards the end of the side alley, where a single sheet of paper was fluttering down.

“... Hmm.”

The noblewoman, having stared at it for a while, glanced around cautiously before quietly clearing her throat and beginning to move into the filthy alley she would never enter in usual circumstances.

- Swish...

Moments later, she picked up the paper from the ground and narrowed her eyes while reading through it.

“... Is this, the contract?”

In her hand was none other than one of the contracts that had adorned the London sky that morning.

“.........”

By chance, the fluttering paper had caught the noblewoman’s eye. There was even the first letter of her surname A written on the contract, coming as a surprise to her. For a long time, she intently stared at the blank space on the contract, where the last signature would go, contemplating in her mind.

“Just... for fun...”

Then, after briefly checking her surroundings, she blushed ever so slightly and pulled out her favourite fountain pen from within her bosom.

- Swish...

Just as her pen was about to touch the paper.

“......!?”

Suddenly, the noblewoman felt chills all over her body.

“E-Elise. Is that you?”

Only then did the noblewoman realise that she was in a back alley where anything could happen at any moment. Trying her utmost to keep her composure, she squeezed out the question.

- Squeeze...!

“Hi-Hiik...”

The unidentified figure who silently grasped her neck leaned forward to stare intently at her, causing the noblewoman’s complexion to turn pale.

“Do I look like that?”

With twisted facial features and exuding a chilling aura, that thing was clearly not human but a monster.

“P-P-Please, someone help...”

The horror of it all made the noblewoman’s legs tremble in terror, her eyes shut tightly as she desperately pleaded for help.

- Swish...

“Ple-Please...”

Yet, the chilling sensation enveloping her body ignored her words, making her shiver and beg.

- Whoosh...!

“... Ah?”

Suddenly, the contract was snatched from her hand.

“.......?”

“Hehehe...”

The noblewoman was left stunned by the action, blinking rapidly as she hazily stared at the monster. The grotesque being had lost interest in the lady, preciously holding onto the contract in its hands as a sinister smile split apart its shadowy form.

“Hey.”

“... Yes, yes?”

“Lend me the pen.”

She had inadvertently handed her pen over to the eerie monster, chilled by the voice that suddenly filled the alley.

“Hehehehe...”

The monster, its sinister smile deepening, approached the contract with the pen.

- Poof...!

But the moment the ink touched the paper, the contract exploded into a single playing card, limply falling to the ground.

“Damn it...”

With a cold glare, the monster cursed and muttered in a sullen voice as it passed the still-dazed noblewoman.

“... It’s another dud.”

Joining its fellow monsters who were scouring the back alleys with a frantic urgency resembling the women outside, the freak spoke out.

“I’ve checked here; let’s move to the next block.”

“... What about that woman? She looks tasty.”

“Then you take that woman, and don’t bother Adler anymore...”

“Tsk...”

After a brief exchange, the monsters dispersed in every direction, leaving the defenceless noblewoman behind.

“What did I just see?”

“Ma-Madam! What are you doing here?”

As evident from this brief scenario,

“... Let’s just go home.”

“But, Madam.”

London had already seeped into a collective cacophony of madness. Be it human or the supernatural, no one was spared.

“I’m in a bit of a hurry, my lady. Do you happen to have a pen I could borrow...?”

“... Someone already borrowed it.”

“What?”

.

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.

.

As time flowed along without a stop, the next day had already dawned before anyone could tell.

“... I suppose every one must have given up by now?”

Stealthily entering the secluded forest along the downstream of the Thames River, which divided London from west to east, was none other than Lupin.

“It was quite a struggle to shake them all off...”

A smile of victory emerged on her lips as she thought of the ensuing completion of her plan.

“The best way to find the treasure first is to become the person who hides it...”

Muttering to herself, she gazed at the full moon that had already risen high above in the sky for some time. Silently, she soon glanced at the contract lying next to her.

“It’s a bit underhanded, but the world of competition is cold and rotten.”

Eventually, her hand slowly reached towards the piece of paper.

- Swoosh...

Just as the owner of the fourth signature was about to be determined,

- Bang...!

“........!”

With the familiar sound of an explosion, a murderous intent barrelled onto her from afar.

“Haaa...”

The next moment, as the ground she was about to reach out to exploded with dirt, Lupin’s expression turned icy.

“As long as you are within London, you can’t escape my sight...”

“Little rascal, don’t make me angry.”

An irritated expression flitted across Lupin’s face at the cold voice leaking out of the device in her ear. Her head slowly turned toward the top of London Bridge in the distance, pinning down Moran.

“It’s too late to do anything from that distance anyway...”

It did not take long for Lupin’s expression to harden, however.

“... Found it.”

Because above her, Princess Clay was hanging down like a bat with a chilling expression.

“Argh...!”

In the next moment,

- Booooooooommm...!

With a loud noise, Princess Clay and Lupin were thrown in opposite directions due to the impact of their simultaneous attacks.

“I had a hunch it was somewhere around here but... I never thought you’d hide it in such a despicable place.”

“... You, Yo-You’ve been a nuisance from the start.”

“As expected of a petty thief. Always driven by their base instincts.”

As they began a tense standoff with the contract between them,

“... You’re just as baseless.”

“”.......!””

Abruptly, a dark force started wriggling out beneath their shadows.

“Miserable vampire, prattling about royal blood when you are just a distant relative of the true royalty...”

“You...”

“... This is why I didn’t want to drag this farce into the night.”

Sensing the all-encompassing murderous intent in the air, Lupin and Princess Clay started sweating coldly and started guarding their surroundings.

- Swish...

“Ah.”

“A pity, but there’s no one who can beat me at night.”

Despite their caution, however, Jill the Ripper sprang out of their shadows and immediately snatched the contract that was lying in the middle.

“Even if all the monsters from beyond were to swarm in droves.”

- Bang...!

“... That tickles.”

Suddenly, from afar, another air bullet from Moran struck her hand without delay, but still, Jill the Ripper restored her exploded hand to its original state with a relaxed smile.

“Now then...”

“”........””

Displaying her overwhelming power, she reached out again towards the contract that had fallen to the ground due to the aftermath of the sniper attack.

“It’s time to end this childish farce...”

- Pop...!

“... What?”

But just before her hand could touch the contract again, suddenly a blurry figure brushed past Jill the Ripper and snatched it with unbelievable speed.

MasterMasterMasterMasterMasterMaster.....

And in the blink of an eye, she became a dot in the distance.

“Silver Blaze...?”

“That furry bitch...”

As mentioned, the blurry figure was none other than Silver Blaze herself. Using her superhuman smell and speed, along with the network of the demi-human that was spread throughout the black alleys, she had managed to successfully infiltrate at the perfect moment and snatch the contract from under everyone’s nose.

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“... Huh?”

A few minutes later, at a pub near London Bridge,

“What the...?”

Gazing at the night view and drowning her stress in alcohol inside the pub, Rachel Watson suddenly witnessed a bizarre scene unfolding in the distance with tired eyes.

“You’re mineeeeeee!!!”

Far off, on the London Bridge, enhancing the picturesque night scenery, was a demihuman girl sprinting with all her might.

“Stooppp!!! You bitch!!! I’ll kill you!!!!”

“Honestly, aren’t you the most rootless of all!!!”

“... Shit, how can a person be faster than a jet engine?”

And behind that girl, three women were chasing her at full speed.

- Bang...! Bang...! Bang...!

Moreover, from somewhere, air bullets were continuously flying at a deadly speed, damaging the historic bridge.

- Rumble...

Unusually, even monsters from the back alleys started pouring out toward London Bridge.

“Hmm...”

Watson watched this event that would be recorded in the history books while sipping from her bottle, then staggered to her feet and left the pub.

“... Horses and races, hehe.”

“Excuse me, ma’am?”

Utterly drunk out of her mind.

“Charge!!!”

“Hey, hey! Pay before you leave!!!”