Becoming Professor Moriarty's Probability

Chapter 68: The Beginning of the War

"Brother Adler~"

"... Huh?"

A few days after the feigned illness incident involving Charlotte Holmes, thanks to Gia Lestrade's hospitality, we stayed in her slightly shabby house for some days.

"Let's play house today!"

As I blankly gazed out of the living room window, looking at the pouring rain, Lestrade's younger sister ran up to me, tugging at my sleeve.

"Playing house?"

"Yes! Last time, we played hospital. This time, let's play house!"

"Alright, I don't have anything else to do anyway..."

"Yay!"

Having nothing particular to do and enjoying playing with the kids, I smiled and replied to her. She began running around the room with a bright smile when she heard my response.

Though it hadn't been long since I started looking after Lestrade's siblings as a way to repay her hospitality, this little one had taken quite a bit of liking to me.

"You're the best, big brother!"

"... Heh."

By the way, unlike her older sister who always seemed cold and wore the same expression 24/7, this girl looked cheerful and acted lively all the time.

Perhaps, it was like comparing a cat to a dog?

Despite their strikingly similar appearances, watching the younger sister's diametrically opposite behavior often made me imagine Gia Lestrade acting in a similar way, and I'd inadvertently burst into laughter.

"Well, let's first move to a different spot..."

"Sister, what are you doing?"

As I watched her energetically running around and tugging at my sleeve every now and then, a voice echoed from the distance.

"... Huh?"

"Didn't elder sister warn you to keep your distance?"

It was the youngest sibling, a boy, of the Lestrade family, speaking with a sulky expression on his face.

"And sister once clearly said, that big brother is bad."

Perhaps it was because he lost his parents too early(?), he seemed to regard his elder sister, Gia Lestrade, as a motherly figure.

Perhaps the reason he viewed me with such disdain, unlike the second sibling, was because he strictly adhered to Gia Lestrade's advice.

"... So, play house with me."

Or perhaps he felt that I had stolen Gia from him.

Judging by that hostile look in his eyes, it seemed more likely to be the latter.

"But brother Adler is kind, isn't he?"

"What?"

"Think about it. If elder sister thought he was a bad person, she wouldn't have dated brother Adler or left us in his care."

Knowing the situation, the second sibling just scratched her head, then approached the third and youngest of the siblings and began to retort in a cheerful voice.

"Still..."

"Listen, just lend me your ear for a second."

Even so, as the third sibling grumbled, looking displeased, the second sibling smiled slyly and began to whisper something into his ear.

"Hey."

"Um, yes?"

Although I was too far away to hear what they were saying, watching their cute expressions reminded me that they were still kids after all.