Chapter 79. Unexpected travelers
- Eureka! I've solved the riddle! They tricked us again and locked us in here," the male voice cheerfully declared in the darkness, ignoring the banging outside.
The metallic door was being pounded on so hard that it trembled and sparked, as if subjected to an electric shock. Each blow left a dent on it, but the door still held.
"What are you talking about?" the female voice next to him squealed. "What riddle? Who are they? And why are we here?"
The two of them stood in complete darkness, and the girl was on the verge of hysteria. The door was struck again, and a piece of metal flew off. A beam of light, seeping into the room, illuminated the faces of the two young people, but it didn't reveal much.
"Wait... I need to contact our..." the male voice muttered, taking out a small round device with a screen and buttons from his pocket.
"With whom?" the girl whispered. "Who will help you? We're alone! Do you understand? Alone! No one will come to save us!"
The male voice didn't respond. He was too busy with that incomprehensible device. Another blow followed, almost piercing through the door. Nevertheless, it still held on its hinges.
"It was a mistake," said a third girl, who had been silent until then. "We don't know what we're dealing with."
"Wait!" the first girl remembered. "We have a way out!"
She hurried to the other end of the warehouse, where a ventilation shaft could be seen. She moved the crates and lifted the grate.
"Here, come quickly!"
With a loud crash, the door flew off its hinges, and two figures appeared on the threshold. One of them was a tall, fair-haired man with bushy mustaches, wearing glasses and a vintage suit. The other was the dark-haired Death Eater in a mask and cloak.
"Archer!" a voice full of irritation sounded from under the mask. "I expected more from you, Professor Moriarty."
The man in the suit smiled and looked at his Master with contempt.
"Really? I thought you'd already grown accustomed to my little pranks, my young friend. After all, I'm not just some brute, but a humble scientist."
The Death Eater felt his gaze piercing through and lowered his head.
"I apologize, Professor. You did everything you could, but we had to act faster..."
"Faster?" the professor asked mockingly. "Couldn't you have brought that brute who serves as your bodyguard?"
"He was occupied with another assignment, professor."
"What a pity, my boy."
The professor turned away from the Death Eater and surveyed the room. He approached the wall and flicked the light switch.
"So, professor, did you find anything?"
"I found that you are a fool." the professor calmly replied. "We wasted our time on this abandoned warehouse, there's nothing valuable here."
Boxes, barrels, and containers of various sizes and shapes were scattered around them.
"But they couldn't vanish into thin air!" the Death Eater protested. "We were tracking them all the way to this place!"
The professor nonchalantly opened one of the boxes and pulled out a pastry. He brought it to his nose and inhaled the aroma with delight.
"That's because, my dear friend, you let yourself be deceived and didn't listen to me. I told you they turned in another direction, but we were following a false trail."
The Death Eater felt a shiver run through him. He couldn't keep his balance and fell to his knees. The mask slid off his face, and the professor saw the face of a young boy before him. The name "Torfinn Rowley" was engraved on the inner side of the mask.
"How will we find them now?" he asked, barely holding back tears.
"Did you use any spell to track their movements?" the professor asked, taking a bite of the pastry.
Torfinn shook his head in denial.
"Then you just answered your own question." the professor concluded. He finished the pastry, hopped off the crate, and wiped his hands with a handkerchief he pulled from his pocket.
"I've got my part of the deal. And as for you..." the professor looked up at the ceiling. "It all depends on how the master perceives your failure."
Torfinn donned his invisibility mask with a heavy heart and stepped out of the dark warehouse where they were searching for clues about who stole the Holy Grail. He couldn't believe that his Servant, Professor James Moriarty, could be so indifferent to their mission. Was he really the same evil genius as his legendary prototype from Conan Doyle's novels?
"Let's go, professor." he called his Servant, who was still rummaging through some boxes.
"You go ahead, I'll catch up soon." the Servant calmly replied without looking up.
"So, did you actually find something?" Torfinn puzzled, hoping that Moriarty hadn't been wasting time after all.
"Yes, I found these wonderful pastries." Moriarty replied indifferently, immediately embracing the crate as if it were the most precious treasure. "I'm just afraid they won't allow us to bring food made by ordinary people. I won't linger for long, I just need a bit of sustenance."
Torfinn looked at Moriarty in bafflement, then shrugged in bewilderment and left, offering a short parting remark:
"As you wish."
Moriarty made sure Torfinn had walked far enough from the warehouse, then glanced at the slightly open ventilation grille. He smiled cunningly and said to himself:
"Well, it's time to start my little experiment. Let's see how my dear friend Sherlock Holmes reacts when he finds out that I've found a way to enter his room at Hogwarts. And these pastries are just a perfect excuse for the visit."
He leaped out of the warehouse as if he were on fire, performing a series of extraordinary jumps that would be inaccessible even to the finest athlete. His final leap landed him on the sidewalk, where three young men stood frozen in astonishment.
One of them was a tall guy with an unshaven chin and dark hair. He wore a white lab coat, and an embroidered pink line broke the somberness, like a beautiful spot on a canvas.
Standing beside him were two girls, both exuding distinct individuality. The first was a redhead beauty, her long hair tied in a ponytail, and her blue eyes gleamed with determination. In a white shirt, a brown vest, and a skirt, she embodied intelligence and the will to win. The short chestnut haircut of the second girl accentuated her brown eyes. Her gaze sparkled with a fire of determination, and a red hat sat atop her head. In a black jacket and jeans, she exuded fearlessness and energy.
"Good evening, my young friends." he spoke, smiling at them with his sharp smile. "I don't wish you any harm, for I am not a heartless monster. But I must ask for your assistance."
The young people looked at him with bewilderment and fear.
"You're probably not in the mood for conversation." he continued, approaching the guy in the lab coat and adjusting his collar. "I also don't understand why the Dark Lord took such an interest in all of you."
"W-who?" the girl in the vest stammered. "Who are you and what do you want from us?"
"Excellent question, my lovely." he replied, winking at her. "Unfortunately, in this game, they want to use me as a pawn, but I consider myself a king. I'm sure, as scientists, you can appreciate my ambitions."
He looked into the eyes of the guy in the lab coat.
"Don't even think about it!" the guy exclaimed. "If there's going to be a king here, it will only be..."
He was about to make some theatrical gestures, but the girl with the long hair stopped him, grabbing his hand.
"Not now, Okabe. Remember who just broke through the iron door and saved us from death?"
"Sorry." the guy mumbled. "I didn't mean to offend anyone, Kurisu."
Moriarty laughed at them.
"What a comedy! You're all so amusing and naive."
"Not all, just him!" both girls objected.
"Well, well. Fine, you got me. Now go in peace. If I need you, I'll find you."
"Wait!" the guy in the lab coat called out. "Who is this Dark Lord?"
Moriarty pulled a small note from his pocket and handed it to the guy.
"Everything you need to know is written here."
With those words, the professor swiftly turned around and made another giant leap, disappearing from their sight.
"How does he do that?" the girl with the long hair exclaimed.
"I don't know..." the guy in the lab coat replied. "It's just incredible."
"El Psy Kongroo." he added, opening the note.