Chapter 136: Expansionist Policy
"... Ha."
Around the time when… what seemed to be an exceptionally prolonged dawn finally ended, and the morning sunlight started to shine down from above with its subtle radiance,
"I couldn''t find him after all."
Jill the Ripper, who had been scouring every corner of the park in search of Isaac Adler, sat down heavily with a deep sigh.
"Has he already escaped with that thieving bitch?"
It was an utterly disappointing situation for her.
"Tsk..."
Despite having revealed her true abilities while in the guise of the royal princess, the noblest identity she possessed in her arsenal, she had failed to achieve her objective.
Of course, if today''s gathering had only consisted of the insignificant lesser monsters, it wouldn''t have mattered much to her.However, there were at least dozens of eyes observing the situation in silence without stepping foot into the park.
Among those watchful eyes, undoubtedly, some had already recognized the connection between her as a princess and the recent hot topic, the serial killer .
"... Can I cover this up this time?"
If she moved quickly enough, she just might be able to manipte the British media to fabricate the information in her favour.
For instance, iming that the princess had awakened her in order to escape the crisis— a crisis she unknowingly got involved in aftering out of the royal castle for a casual walk in the park.
However, that could only fool the gullible public.
The spies from the numerous covert organizations who witnessed today''s incident would report the unaltered information to their leaders without any omission.
<i>... In the end, my range of movement is bound to be limited.</i>
Even if all of them didn’t believe the facts as is, it would be impossible to stop the decline in her reputation and the cirction of bizarre rumours.
Ultimately, it was a lose-lose situation for her.
<i>Did he calcte all this?</i>
As the situation evolved to this extent, it was only natural for her to feel that all of this was part of Isaac Adler''s n.
<i>… All this, just to screw me over?</i>
It wasn''t just baseless paranoia.
No sane individual would send dating invitations to all the monstrosities lurking throughout Britain and then casually go out for a walk, unless...
Could he have used himself as bait to set up the most dangerous trap right here in London?
"........."
Considering everything, it was also suspicious that she was the only one among the many supernatural entities who hadn''t received a letter.
What if, to avoid suspicion, Adler had deliberately set things up so that Jill the Ripper herself would discover the letter ande to the park?
Wouldn’t that mean she had fallen perfectly into his trap?
<i>- Creak...</i>
In silence, Jill the Ripper started grinding her teeth as she sat on the park bench.
"Indeed... you''re good at this battle of wits, Adler..."
After all, just who was Isaac Adler?
Hadn''t he ovee countless crises just with his quick wits and cunning?
No, at this point the word cunning was not fit to describe his exceptional capabilities.
Isaac Adler was a strategist and a master maniptor, hiding a sinister smile behind his innocent and yful face.
"Ah..."
The very fact that he was walking the thin line between the detective and the professor while coercing both of them with his charms indicated he was no ordinary man, but why was she only about to realize it now?
She couldn’t help but have those self-deprecating thoughts, but it was toote for regrets.
Now, she needed to focus on the grave situation at hand.
<i>- Swish...</i>
How could she possibly gain an advantage in this situation, havingpletely fallen into Adler''s trap?
".......?"
As Jill the Ripper stood up from the bench with those thoughts in mind, faint figures began to appear in the distance.
<i>- Grrgrg, grgrgrgrrr...</i>
<i>- Grrrrrrrr...</i>
"Hurry, find...! The sun… rising.....!!"
The identity of those faint silhouettes was the group of monstrosities with Helen Stoner as the lead. She was scouring the park like Jill the Ripper, leading the horde of monsters she hade tomand.
"I''ve been confessed to... Ah~ Today marks day one of our evesting rtionship..."
"... Heh."
Jill the Ripper''s eyes sparkled subtly as she observed the scene with interest.
"Good."
"... Who''s there?"
"... I could use a few more subordinates with supernatural powers."
And then, she started her stride, heading towards them.
"What...?"
<i>- Whoosh...</i>
By then, her mind had already formed the perfect n on how to utilize this situation to recoup her losses.
"It seems the king of monsters has been born."
"I don''t know who you are, but you are a monster too, right? Then kneel..."
"... I''ll make sure to include you among the allies of Great Britain."
"What...?"
It was a grand n based on the principles of Imperial rule, which was in line with the expansionist policies of the British Empire— policies that she had been educated in from her childhood as a member of the royal family of Britain.
"The colonies are also part of the British Empire, after all."
".........!?"
That morning,
The Londoners heading for their daily morning walk in the park were puzzled and had to turn back as they were blocked by a group of profusely sweating royal knights.
"Do you know why the sun never sets on the British Empire? Because even when the sun sets, it rises over the colonies on the other side of the world."
"What utter nonsense!!!"
"It''s not a joke, it''s really true. New Zend has been a colony of ours for decades now..."
"Aaaaaahhhh!!!"
Some citizens reported hearing eerie screams from the inside of the park to the media, but, for reasons unknown, none of them ever made it to the newspapers.
.
.
.
.
.
<i>- Knock, knock, knock...</i>
That evening. At Isaac Adler''s hideout,
""........""
The three subordinates of Isaac Adler, who had their master stolen by the Phantom Thief, silently bowed their heads at the sight of the individual who opened the door of their.
"... Interesting."
Professor Jane Moriarty muttered in a deadpan voice as she looked at their sullen faces and stepped into their.
"You all look terrible."
Walking through the hideout entrance, exuding a chilling aura, she nced sideways and whispered,
"Do you think there''s any point in having hounds that can''t even protect their masters?"
"".......""
"Think about it."
Leaving those words, she began her slow walk stride the firece, her footsteps making no sound.
<i>- Tap, tap...</i>
<i>- Whirrr...</i>
As Professor Moriarty reached the wall and lightly tapped, gears whirred into action to reveal a hidden door beyond the wall.
"H, How did you even know about that ce…?"
"... Hmm."
After observing the mechanism for some time, she ignored the flustered voices resounding behind her and started descending the stairs of the dark basement.
<i>- Creak...</i>
Stopping in her tracks after a while, she touched a thick iron door which, surprisingly, began to slowly open on its own.
"........"
Soon, the view beyond the basement door met Professor Moriarty''s eyes.
"Greetings."
"It''s been a while."
"There''s no time to waste, so I''ll get straight to the point."
Gazing intently at Mycrony Holmes, who looked gaunt with her hands and feet chained, Jane Moriarty began her interrogation with an ominous chill in her eyes.
"What''s your purpose behind orchestrating all of these events?”
"I don''t quite understand what you''re talking about."
Mycrony Holmes, tilting her head slightly, quietly replied,
"As you see, I''ve been kidnapped by Isaac Adler, deprived of my freedom, and confined in this basement."
"........"
"What kind of scheme could I possibly concoct in such a situation?"
She shrugged her shoulders nonchntly as the professor slowly stepped in front of her.
"Indeed, your involvement in the incident was minimal."
"......."
"To be more precise, it was merely a single statement of yours that influenced the whole case from the shadows."
In the silence, their gazes intersected ominously as they pressed their sizeable breasts against each other.
"... Head to the address written on the note, to the Baskerville Estate."
"Hehe."
"That simple and clear statement of yours was the starting point for everything."
A dark chuckle escaped from Mycrony''s lips as she heard the professor’s words.
"Did you calcte all this on your own?"
"......."
"What''s your purpose?"
Finally, as herughter ceased, a soft whisper escaped her lips.
"... Fine delicacies should be shared.”
"How dare..."
"Don''t you think...?"
As Professor Moriarty was about to thrust a de made of her grey mana directly at her neck, Mycrony''s whisper made her halt her action and she fell into silence.
"... You greedy lizard."
It was around that time that a raging thunderstorm began sweeping across the whole of Britain.
.
.
.
.
.
".... Hmm."
Meanwhile, at that time,
"It’s raining all of a sudden..."
In a secluded cottage somewhere in the outskirts of Britain, Isaac Adler, dressed in a bathrobe while holding a ss of wine, muttered with a worried voice as he watched the thunderstorm brewing outside the window.
"... Perhaps the professor is angry again."
"... Haahaaaa."
Meanwhile, lying at his feet while using her stomach to support his feet, Lupin pleaded to Adler,
"C-Could you step a bit harder, please...?"
"... Do temper yourself a bit. You might die from this."
With her body already bruised in several areas, she looked up at Adler, who was leisurely sipping his wine, and requested in a low voice.
"If you don’t press harder, shall I lock you back in the cape?"
"... Sigh."
"Ah~..."
Thus, Lupin''s moans began to echo around the silent vi.
"........"
Just then, a shadowy gaze appeared outside the rain-soaked window, staring down Isaac Adler in silence.
n
<strong>Warning!</strong>n
<b>– Probability of being Devoured —</b> 100%nnn
"... Yeah, let’s just go back /genesisforsaken