Miss Holmes, the Professor Is Not a Villain

32 – Don’t Bring in the Chinese (8)

There were many who invested for the social change and resultant chaos that Moriarty brought about as a personal hobby.

Of course, as they all sponsored anonymously as ‘M’, they only ever received thank you letters sporadically, but Mr. Marx always showed passionate interest.

He would stubbornly promote himself to the couriers Moriarty used, sending his writings and books, and even a letter requesting some additional sponsorship.

Rumor has it that his friend Mr. Engels was an investor alongside Moriarty, but it seemed that the foreigner from Germany always had a need for capital.

The few lessons learned from Marx were useful. That materialism dominates the mind and capital determines everything.

Still being a simple and young girl, but similar to a wild wolf, Moran proved to be an extremely useful asset.

Moriarty knew that the girl, of course, had her own personal scars. It was common.

Children who were born improperly and abandoned. And always being abused, wandering the streets just surviving.

Appearing to be proud and wild externally, but subtly longing for the warmth of others, or comfort and stability. Holding contradictory attitudes and injuries.

Of course, knowing this, Moriarty did not intend to heal all her mental scars like a permissive uncle. He couldn’t.

He couldn’t in order to create the perfect assistant and useful tool he desired.

Above all, suitable materialistic nutrition was needed to tame a wild wolf, not empathic understanding.

This fact was also proven in history.

It was common for savages and unsettled migrants to lose their identities and integrate into society in the face of prosperity.

Moriarty had no intention of completely turning Moran into a pet. A tamed wolf that does not bite its owner and only acknowledges the owner as its leader, was what he aimed for.

Of course, it was not difficult, but rather necessary. The girl most urgently needed prosperity, and not a struggle for survival on the streets, but the instilling of a desire.

The first place he took the girl, who was confused after tasting a comfortable life at the mansion for the first time since she was brought home, was a famous grocery store in Oxford.

The stone building located at 83 St Aldates Street in Oxford, built in the 15th century, was one of the most famous stores, even among Oxford University students.

To others, Moriarty would’ve looked like an uncle who came out to play with his niece. Moran, who was obstinate but did not refuse Moriarty’s hand, held his hand and entered the store.

Naturally, the place where Moran’s eyes lingered in the grocery store was on the pile of snacks and candies stacked up like a mountain.

The unexpected encounter with Professor Dodgson, who had gone out to play with Alice, the youngest daughter of the Ridell Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, was not a big issue.

“Do you want to eat, Moran?”

“Uh … Uh-huh!”

Her eyes sparkling, Moran fixed her gaze on the candies displayed on the shelf. She barely managed a response but couldn’t shift her gaze away. She seemed like a puppy that had been ordered to wait facing food.

She was so absorbed that I was afraid she might drool enough to soil the floor.

If she had lived in the East End, Moran might have tried to carefully steal. But since Moriarty was watching her, she could not do so rashly. Instinctively, the girl knew this was something she was not allowed to do.

But Moriarty was kinder than she thought. Moran thought so.

He sneaked something into her hand. It was a shining coin, and Moran could not help but open her eyes wide.

It was a one-pound coin.

It was a valuable item that she could not often see even when she was robbing. But Moriarty was a cooler guy than she expected.

“I actually hired you. I don’t usually like prepaying, but this time I’m giving you your first annual salary of 20 pounds now.”

Moriarty then generously pulled out a thick wallet and placed an additional nine gold coins, and one pound of gold coin, in Moran’s hand.

It was too heavy. She couldn’t clasp it with her small hand. Only by using both hands was she barely able to hold everything. She was anxious and puzzled in case she dropped it.

Why is he giving this to her?

But her body responded first to his following words.

“That’s a two-pound gold coin, Moran. Nine two-pound coins and two one-pound coins, so a total of 20 pounds. That’s your annual salary. You can spend that money however you want, no, you should, it’s all yours.”

“Th…Thank you! …Mas…Master…….”

Seemingly shy Moran murmured the last part, then hurried off to the counter manned by the shop owner, depositing all 20 pounds in coins on the counter, and exchanged it all for snacks and candies.

To the others, it was an alarming overspending.

The sum of 20 pounds was in no way a small amount. The typical annual salary of an 18-year-old adult male, a societal novice, working as a bank employee in his first year, was around 20 pounds.

In the case of an apprentice maid like Moran, the average annual starting salary was often around 6 pounds. It was certainly not an amount that could be spent all at once on sweets and snacks at a grocery store.

As a decent individual and a long-time store owner who dealt with students and citizens in Oxford, he diverted his gaze to Professor Moriarty, whom he was already familiar with, and questioned him with a look.

Silently accepting Moriarty’s unspoken approval, the shopkeeper started packing candies and snacks equivalent to 20 pounds for Moran. Naturally, this covered almost all the stock in the store, and Moran, wearing an ear-splitting grin, was soon able to return to Moriarty, carrying a pile of candies like a laborer lugging a bag full of grain.

Of course, the weight was incredibly light for the girl. The girl was perhaps experiencing pure joy for the first time in her life.

Even while refusing Moriarty’s offer to help carry the load lest it be taken away from her, her action of peeling a few candies with his help and sucking on them looked more like a squirrel’s than a wolf’s.

But only Moriarty, who was walking next to her, could properly see this. Moriarty noticed that Moran was subtly uncomfortable carrying the load full of candies. She was walking with the mound of candies raised as if to block her view, and he soon understood the reason.

Nobody defied her inside the shop because she was out in the open with Moriarty. However, it was clear that behind her back, people were discussing her ears and tail discreetly.

“Looking back, she was even wearing a hat when she first attempted to pickpocket.”

It was not unusual. Everywhere, there are those who conceal the unusual aspects about themselves that incite fear in others and cause them to whisper.

However, his future secretary shouldn’t have behaved that way.

“Moran.”

“…I can’t give you any candy, professor.”

“I don’t need it. I can fill my room with candies if I want to, kid. Walk straight, and don’t think of covering your ears in vain.”

Now that Mrs. Bans’ education had begun, Moran hesitated before finally standing straight. The ears of the beast were now subtly exposed. She couldn’t hide her emotions as they moved slightly, possibly due to the candy rolling in her mouth.

Unnecessary words were not needed. Moriarty added shortly.

“Don’t hide unless it’s necessary. If you’re to become my secretary, you need to be confident. I don’t like fools; however, I dislike cowardly fools even more. Be confident, you should be ashamed of your foolish head, not your ears.”

“…..Okay.”

“By the way, you’ve spent your entire annual salary on candies, so you won’t be able to do anything for a year.”

“…What? What do you mean, professor?”

As a young girl, she couldn’t understand his words fully yet. However, Moriarty kindly explained her extravagance to her in terms she could comprehend.

Naturally, Moran’s face turned somber, and she couldn’t help but resent the pile of candies in her arms that she was now clutching a bit too tightly.

Of course, Moriarty didn’t stop there. There were plenty of other ways if it was just about teasing her.

“But this time, I’ll make it special and buy this for you.”

“Um… really?”

“Yes. But you’ll have to use your next salary more responsibly. Isn’t that right?”

“Uh…Yes! I’ll do that! Th…thanks, pro…prof一I mean, master. You’re a kind person!”

“I wonder…….”

It wasn’t a critical issue. However, it was now necessary to educate the girl, the wolf, that would be trained.

“In order to live like this, money is important, Moran. You might only earn up to 20 pounds, but I earn 400 pounds. That’s a difference of 20 times. Ah, you still don’t know how to calculate.”

“It’s…a lot…!”

Of course, this was limited to the salary he received as a professor. However, even this fact alone made the professor suddenly turn into a wealthy man in front of the young girl.

He was frail, but had a lot of money, proved to be kind and impressive. Unknowingly, her opinion of the professor had to change. And Moriarty added to the girl, a lesson on becoming a person.

“If you work hard under me, you’ll be able to earn even more money in the future. Then you’ll be able to own not just ordinary candies, but anything you want. What do you think, isn’t it a little interesting?”

The girl turned away without a response. However, that was enough.

An individual worrying every day for survival on the streets couldn’t have desires. Only the instinct to stay alive was firmly entrenched in place. Desire was a privilege that only those with leisure could have.

So Moriarty taught Moran about desire. He gradually started teaching that if she followed him and acknowledged him as the alpha of her pack, she could fulfill her desires.

The girl was gradually tamed. And that desire, of course, made Moran anxious.