In the hallway of the Surveillance Bureau, a languid young man with black hair and brown eyes leaned against the wall, intently reading a newspaper.
He also looked very young. Probably only in his early twenties, like a recently graduated university student.
He was slender, with a long, aquiline nose and thin lips that were always pursed, making him appear somewhat harsh.
As he read the newspaper, Haina stood beside him, constantly muttering something.
"...That's it, Mr. Sherlock! I've told you everything I remember, so can you answer that question for me?"
Haina was clearly a little excited.
Not only had she performed a meritorious deed, but she had also been interviewed and made the front page of the Glass Staircase News, and the Queen had probably noticed her this made her feel as if she were floating on clouds, light and airy.
Realizing that she was probably famous, she gritted her teeth and used all her money beyond her essential living expenses to buy every copy of that issue of the Glass Staircase News. She planned to take them all home during her holiday and give them to relatives and friends.
Today, when she came to work, she happened to meet Consultant Sherlock, so with a mix of excitement at seeing a former idol and a desire to show off, she asked him a question
"...What question?"
Sherlock Holmes looked up and said casually, "Are you asking, 'Why did Mr. Aiwass suspect that the bartender was not right?' It's very simple: because he is a very intelligent person.
"He knew the bartender's name, which means he had been here before; Mr. Aiwass's posture was upright, and his sitting posture was very refined, easily indicating that he was not an old man, as an old man's shoulder condition is different from a young man's of course, considering that the bartender might not understand human anatomy, I think a more certain, more direct piece of evidence should be his boots.
"Hand-woven Elf boots, crafted with the mysterious techniques of Alchemy and Blessing. They deodorize, absorb sweat, ventilate, waterproof, and improve grip, preventing falls. A pair of such shoes would cost about one hundred and twenty silver crowns or more. Even ordinary knight families couldn't afford them.
"Bars in the Lloyd District often engage in some illegal activities and are very good at judging people. He absolutely could not have failed to notice such obvious features. Yet, he clearly recognized Mr. Aiwass's identity but deliberately called him 'old sir'... Do you think a bartender from the Lloyd District could say something so polite and cultured?
"Moreover, why wasn't he afraid when he saw you? One of the Surveillance Bureau's jobs is to forcibly collect taxes from people who appear not to have paid them. Digging out their already meager savings from these poor people, it would be strange if they didn't hate you and weren't afraid of you. Business people like him are more afraid of you than ordinary workers because their account books always have some issues.
"So, why wasn't he afraid of you? That means he didn't care if you asked him for money. Or he simply wasn't a local perhaps not even from Avalon, and didn't realize what a Surveillance Inspector suddenly appearing out of nowhere meant in this country.
"And the picture in the newspaper is very clear; the wheelchair further highlights the style of his boots not to mention his elf-style, finely crafted wheelchair. The etched Elf language clearly states Moriarty. See, right here. Didn't you see it?
"I say, Miss Haina... The professor mentioned you graduated with high marks. I assume your Elf language was passable, wasn't it?"
"...Ah, yes. I recognize it."
Haina was a little embarrassed: "I just didn't see it."
Originally, she had been quite excited and proud, but now she was scolded thoroughly. Her excitement faded significantly, and she felt a sense of disappointment, like, "I'm actually this bad."
She actually hadn't mentioned some things for example, on the day Mr. Aiwass was attacked, he had taken a forbidden book to that bar. That was Mr. Aiwass's secret, and she was determined to keep it for him.
Because they were accomplices who read the same forbidden book, like ants on the same string!
As a result, even without this crucial information, Consultant Sherlock still deduced the truth from other details. And Haina truly hadn't noticed these things.
It was as amazing as how Mr. Aiwass deduced from the bartender's actions that the mastermind was hidden in the underground wine cellar!
Haina was very excited, but also a little disappointed.
Because she felt that she seemed to have fallen into the same state as when she first started university she originally thought she was very outstanding, but once she encountered a wider world, she realized she was nothing special after all.
If all these important details and evidence were given to her, Haina believed that although she would be a bit slower, she could certainly deduce the truth. It was just that she simply couldn't see these details that was the biggest difference between them.
The difference seemed small, but in reality, it was like a chasm.
"It seems you have understood Mr. Aiwass's extraordinary qualities. That's very good."
The young Mr. Sherlock commented sharply, "It is regrettable to say that you are probably still among the more capable ones in their group. You could be called a smart person among fools. The others, whose muscles are in their heads, are nothing but idiots.
"They always fail to do anything and only mess things up. Even if I tell them the truth, I always have to explain it repeatedly to convince them.
"And this Mr. Aiwass if I may be frank, his observational skills are stronger than half of the Surveillance Bureau combined."
"...You have such a high opinion of Mr. Aiwass?"
Haina was very surprised.
She had mostly only heard Mr. Sherlock say that this person was incompetent or that person was foolish.
"Of course," Sherlock said with a cold expression, "In my opinion, your 'collaboration' in solving this case was entirely due to his observation and judgment.
"If you lacked him, you would absolutely not have solved the case; and he could have solved this incident entirely without you. You were merely the one pushing the wheelchair, and you didn't even fulfill your duty as a protector when he explicitly told you to attack the opponent with full force, why did you hold back? Once you choose to trust someone's command, you must trust it completely. Trusting halfway and having your own ideas is more dangerous than not trusting at all.
"He possesses excellent observational skills, correct reasoning ability, decisive judgment, steady execution, a more mature and composed mindset than yours and accurate marksmanship. Both his talent, character, and abilities are quite remarkable; at only eighteen years old, he far surpasses over ninety-nine percent of the people in this country. He deserves for me to call him 'Mr.'
"I am very interested in him. I heard he is a first-year student? Then I will return to my alma mater to see him I have a premonition that working or conversing with him should be quite enjoyable."
With that, Sherlock precisely folded the newspaper in his hand and handed it back to Haina.
The four corners were perfectly aligned, without any deviation. This revealed Sherlock's perfectionism.
"Ah, he actually took a leave of absence from school for two or three months and hasn't started classes yet..."
Haina took the newspaper, a bit embarrassed.
The black-haired young man was not surprised by this outcome; he simply nodded calmly: "That's normal. Universities don't produce true talents. They are merely nannies of knowledge, trying to break down knowledge into easily digestible mush and force-feed it into the mouths of lazy and foolish people, attempting to make them useful public servants. It is not a place that serves geniuses or specifically teaches intelligent people.
"I guess Mr. Aiwass's knowledge and wisdom must come from the professor's personal teaching. Even within the entire Royal Law University, Professor Moriarty is among the smartest individuals."
"...I see."
Haina said sheepishly.
She felt a bit disappointed... because she thought her resume of being able to enter Royal Law University and serving as the female class monitor since her second year was quite impressive. But she also knew that Sherlock indeed had the right to say such things because he was also the top graduate from Royal Law University.
When Haina was in her first year, Sherlock was her senior in his fourth year. Without much cunning or background, she managed to keep the student council work in perfect order simply by excelling in her studies and being well-liked, entirely relying on the many rules Sherlock had established back then.
He was also the top student, also the student council president, and also graduated with perfect scores. But there was still a huge gap between them.
"Wait a moment, Mr. Sherlock," Haina finally couldn't help but ask, "I have a question:
"Since you believe that the Surveillance Bureau is full of fools, and you even rejected the internship invitations from the Surveillance Bureau and even the Inspectorate when you graduated... why are you now serving as a mere Consultant at the Surveillance Bureau?"
No matter how well a "Consultant" performs, he cannot advance. All achievements belong to Director Kent, and at most, he can only receive one or two books as personal gifts from the Director.
If he had chosen to join the Surveillance Bureau back then, he might already be a Deputy Director now. And he would eventually become the Director at that point, the entire bookshelf would be his.
"... 'Mere'?"
Hearing this, Sherlock turned around, somewhat surprised.
He scrutinized Haina for a few moments, then understood her words and sighed.
The young man shook his head, lowering his voice: "Remember not to say such things to others in the future.
"A follower of The Path of Authority should not be so concerned with 'promotion' and 'future.' An Inspector should not have such clear 'ambition'; this implies you have an Adaptation to the Way of Transcendence.
"In Avalon, those who seek promotion will not be promoted do you understand what I mean?"