Chapter 116 I Want to Go Home with You
Shortly after Aiwass left the Lloyd's building, Lily quietly reminded Aiwass that someone was following them.
Although the Spider Silk Sutra enhanced her perception, Lily was only at the first level. If the enemy was determined to secretly follow them, it would be difficult for Lily to detect them at this level.
In other words, this is actually "obvious tracking," and the Boca vice president is expressing an attitude to Aiwass:
We at Lloyd's are a big company, but we only sent the trackers you could find to follow you, which shows that our attitude is very friendly now.
This also implies that they do not completely trust Aiwass, and there are always spies following behind them that they cannot detect - tell him that since there are eyes watching you in the dark at all times... you'd better stay calm and don't cause trouble.
But Aiwass got another piece of information from this behavior: Lloyd's is currently under political pressure.
In the past, how could Lloyd's of London, which indirectly controlled two-thirds of the seats in the Round Table and controlled large and small businesses, as well as major newspapers through lending, be afraid of a young man like Aiwass?
They just told a lot of secrets, but they didn't let Aiwas access any evidence or grasp any details.
If Aiwass dared to speak out when he returned, not only would he not pose a threat to Lloyd's, but he would also expose his own intentions. This confidence, without fear of internal traitors, was a testament to Lloyd's strength.
But now, their behavior has become noticeably more cautious. From their perspective, old Moriarty is already dead... Faced with a Moriarty family with a deceased patriarch and no relatives or in-laws, they are so reserved. This suggests that their influence within the Round Table Hall is beginning to stagnate.
"interesting."
The corners of Aiwass' mouth rose slightly.
Who is actually offsetting Lloyd's influence?
He pondered over it in his mind and finally found the answer.
——It’s Headmaster Meg.
The old lady's task of investigating the "alchemical bomb smuggling case" issued by Haina indicates that the great arbitrator may want to take action against Lloyd's.
She couldn't possibly be unaware of the smuggling case's connection to Lloyd's—all smuggling cases originating from the port area were linked to them. Lloyd's had long controlled the entire Lloyd's district. And the high-ranking arbitrator, who controlled the entire arbitration chamber, must have known about this... After all, some of the arbitrators themselves were high-ranking Lloyd's executives, or had family ties or friendships with them.
So what is there to investigate?
Although this is the first time that an alchemical bomb has been smuggled, there have been many large items smuggled in previous years.
When did they investigate Lloyd's?
"She wants to advance..."
Aiwass understood. It turned out that Meg had been wanting to advance since then.
What is the last disciple? This is actually looking for a successor.
It's like making arrangements for your funeral.
She might know that her advancement might fail... or even have a high probability of failure.
So I want to finish all the things that need to be dealt with and resolve all the issues that need to be resolved before the advancement ceremony.
After all, there were only so many transcendents at the peak of the fifth energy level in this era. Everyone knew each other, and it was a purely acquaintance-based situation. If you knew all nine people upon entering, more than half of them would be elderly. Perhaps decades ago, when they were young, they still had grudges and hatreds with each other, or even some kind of kinship.
When there are not enough people, it is very easy to become an actor. This kind of game does not depend on ability at all, but on social skills.
Whether it was being targeted by others during the New Moon Ceremony, or being betrayed by teammates during the Full Moon Ceremony - even if Meg was strong enough, it would be difficult if others didn't want her to advance.
The old lady obviously understood, but she was stubborn and wanted to give it a try.
Of course, there is another possibility.
"...Perhaps she felt that her life was coming to an end."
Not to mention authority, even those who possess the self-healing ability of a dedicated and transcendent path, as long as they are short-lived, will ultimately not live long. The only path that clearly promises longevity, or even immortality, is the Path of Dusk, and Meg is already over ninety years old.
Although she looked healthy and strong... who knows? Sometimes, only the elderly themselves know how they are doing.
Aiwass's heart moved, and he didn't let Lily shake off those followers. But he didn't go directly to the bishop's house to find Sherlock. Instead, he went home to report that he was safe, hugged Yulia who was worried about him, and then went straight back to school.
He let Lily push him to the bottom of the girls' dormitory, stopped a senior from the third department, gave her a polite smile, and asked her to bring Haina down.
Upon hearing this, the senior student opened her eyes wide, covered her mouth with her hand subconsciously, and stood there in a daze for a moment.
But she was only stunned for a moment, and then immediately agreed without hesitation.
Aiwass only waited there for less than twenty minutes, and Haina, who was dressed neatly and didn't even have time to comb her hair, was pushed down by the students who were watching the fun with a confused look on her face.
"…What's up, Aiwass?"
Haina touched her hair in embarrassment.
If a girl's hair isn't taken care of, it can easily become frizzy. But Haina's hair is thick, so washing it is a hassle, and it's a bit cold in winter. Since it was the weekend, she simply didn't wash her hair and stayed in her dorm reading a novel.
A novel called Dracula had been quite popular in Avalon recently. She had read it and thought it was quite good, so she went to the library and looked for some of Bram Stoker's previous books, intending to have a peaceful and uneventful weekend.
As a result, she was suddenly dragged down by her roommate in a mysterious manner, saying that someone was looking for her.
When I looked down, it turned out to be Aiwass!
"Senior, you look even better without makeup today."
Aiwass praised casually.
He glanced at her classmates who were leaning against the window to watch the fun, and just smiled and shook his head: "Come with me, senior sister."
"...Hey, hey, hey? Where are you going? If you want to meet someone, I'll go back and wash my hair first..."
Reluctantly and somewhat embarrassedly, Haena smoothed down her tangled hair, trying to smooth it down. However, Aiwass didn't respond immediately, so she just trotted after Lily.
But she didn't really care where the destination was.
Instead, he was somewhat interested in what Aiwass had said before: "Mr. Aiwass, is what you just said true?"
"About the makeup?"
Aiwass turned around and chuckled, "That's true... In my opinion, you look better without makeup."
"...Sure enough, that must be because my makeup skills are too poor."
Haina was a little frustrated: "I just started learning this year... I was too busy when I first came to university. It's only now that I've been admitted to the Supervisory Bureau in advance that I have time to study these things.
"But this subject is so complicated, just like the chemistry taught in the second department, and some of the aesthetics knowledge taught in the sixth department—I have no idea how to apply makeup. Either it's barely noticeable, or I feel like I'd rather not put it on because it's too ugly..."
She followed Aiwass for a while before she realized that they were heading towards Aiwass' dormitory.
So Haina immediately realized that this must be related to Sherlock's matter.
But just as she turned serious, Aiwass didn't even turn around to look at her and said, "Don't be too nervous, senior. It will be better to be more natural."
"Yes, Mr. Aiwass."
Subconsciously, Haena obeyed Aiwas's orders, just like when they were fighting in the Pelican Bar.
After bringing Haina in, Aiwass took her to the reception room and asked Lily to prepare tea and afternoon tea.
Aiwass crossed his fingers and asked, "Didn't you come this morning?"
"Sherlock's funeral?"
Haina nodded: "Yes, I didn't go."
Although the Supervisory Bureau also asked her to attend Sherlock's funeral today, she pretended to be very sad and refused - mainly because Haina knew that Sherlock was not actually dead, and she was not optimistic about her own dramatic talent.
"I was worried that I might accidentally reveal my flaws and affect your and Mr. Sherlock's plans. So I decided not to do anything."
Haena replied.
As an outstanding student in the Department of Individual Tactics, she had studied combat tactics and swordsmanship, and therefore deeply understood the principle of "it is better to do nothing than to make a mistake."
——How many students in the third department have never been accidentally cut by a classmate's sword, bitten by a classmate's uncontrollable griffin, or hit by a classmate's out-of-control horse?
Perhaps only the seniors from the fourth department who were watching the excitement beside the playground, preparing to practice lighting techniques and flirt with their younger classmates could figure it out.
Aiwass praised: "Excellent, otherwise you might be in danger."
“…What’s wrong?”
Haina realized that Aiwas wanted to talk about serious matters. She frowned slightly, straightened her back, and said in a reliable tone: "Do you need my help, Mr. Aiwas?"
“Indeed.”
Aiwass nodded. "I need you to help me find Sherlock and pass the message. I don't know if the phone will be tapped, so it's safest to pass the message through a reliable person."
"Eavesdropped?"
Haina was stunned for a moment: "Is it an enemy that even the Moriarty family can't solve?"
This was unimaginable to her - the Moriarty family had become a nearly "eternal" behemoth to her. Moriarty's annual income was more than she could ever earn in her entire life.
Not to mention, Edward is also the Inspector General of the Glass Island Inspectorate!
How terrifying would it be to be an enemy that cannot even be defeated?
"It's not a big problem. I can solve it myself."
Aiwass said in a deep voice, "You should mainly tell him that I've been forced to join Lloyd's and may have to fake my own death later... Don't let it get out of your head."
“—You’re coming too?!”
Haina didn't even bother to be polite and blurted out the answer.
She almost immediately realized the other person's problem: "What about Princess Isabel?"
"See what Sherlock says."
Aiwass narrowed his eyes, lost in thought. "I'm also worried that Isabel won't be able to handle this. So I'd prefer to explain it to her in person beforehand, but you know... with things like this, the more people know, the more holes there are. Though, strictly speaking, I'm not really going to die, but I'm just going to be kidnapped or disappear. Maybe I can tell her in advance."
"What's the specific time?" Haina asked.
"Maybe the week after next."
Aiwass answered without hesitation.
No matter what, he had to extract the phantom demon from Yulia before he could do this. Otherwise, she would definitely lose control.
"The beginning of next month?"
Haina's focus was a bit strange: "Isn't the final exam coming up?"
"My fake death is different from Sherlock's... I'll only be missing for two or three days at most. It won't affect my exams."
Aiwass is not nervous about this.
Besides, even if his test scores weren't good, so what? He was just here to read the banned books in the library. He wasn't like Haena, who needed to get the title of chief to change his fate.
Besides, the knowledge this year wasn't difficult at all. Aiwass felt he wouldn't do badly even without preparing for the exam.
"How about I help you with your studies?"
Haina was eager to try.
She never knew how she could help Aiwass.
She had previously delegated Headmaster Meg's troublesome assignment to Aiwass and Sherlock, but during their rapid discussion, she felt completely lost – their logic leaped too quickly, even omitting a lot of processes. Her brain was burning just listening to them.
I've always been smart and have good grades, but why do I still look so stupid in front of them?
Haina sometimes also has such self-doubt.
Now, she felt like she finally had a way to give back—to delegate all her important tasks to others while she watched from the sidelines... Although this sounded very authoritarian, she couldn't quite bring herself to do it. At least, she felt a little embarrassed to do it right now.
"Although I may not be very good at handling complex events, or planning and strategizing, I'm still pretty good at this final exam!"
Haina was eager to try: "I'm really good at taking exams!"
"That's fine," Aiwass agreed readily, "Then I'll trouble you, senior.
"-Oh, by the way. After the final exams are over, can I go back to my hometown with you?"
“…Huh?”
Upon hearing this, Haina's eyes widened and she froze in place, not moving at all.
Ai Hua suddenly chuckled with some evil intentions, and Hai Na realized that she had misunderstood.
The fox-like young man waved his hand gently, squinting his eyes and smiling, "Just kidding, actually, I have to go to Eagle Point Village for something. Sherlock will also be there. As the host, you have to show us the way."
“—Ah, that’s no problem!”
Haina responded readily, "You can come anytime, I'll treat you well! Although Eagle Cape is a small village, there are still many delicious and fun things to do!"
"Come to think of it," Aiwass asked indirectly, "I only recently found out that before I was adopted by my father... my biological grandfather was from Eagle Point Village."
"Huh?"
Hearing this, Haina's eyes lit up: "Really?"
"Yes, his name was Jacob Alexander. He died of typhoid fever fourteen years ago. Did you know him?"
Aiwass asked seriously.
Haina thought for a long time before suddenly opening her eyes wide: "You mean...Grandpa Jacob? The Grandpa Jacob who writes novels and poems?
"Grandpa Jacob was the one who taught me to read when I was very young!"
Today is an update of over 7,000 words!
I went to bed at 8:30 yesterday and got up at 3:30 today. It feels like I'm following the human routine.
(End of this chapter)
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