Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1169 New Students (Second Update)

"I will be your teacher from now on." The Venerable One gently patted the Emperor's shoulder, then spoke to the deeply shaken Sherlock Holmes, "In your future training and studies, you will understand your talents and the responsibilities you bear. You will see the world from a different perspective. Don't presume to think you can understand everything, Sherlock Holmes. The other world is different from our reality. Only a madman can truly understand the other world."

"And they are extremely dangerous lunatics. To ensure safety, we usually kill such people in advance," Emperor Latvinia added. "So don't let your curiosity kill you. In the real world, Mycroft will protect you, but once you embark on this path, you can only rely on your own will."

"Wait a minute, no one has ever told me about any future training! I thought this was just a talk!"

"Do you think magic doesn't require learning, and can be cast using frog legs, bat claws, and lizard droppings?" Emperor Latvinia said with a laugh. "You need to study mathematics, physics, and chemistry, as well as theology, history, and many languages. Most magic books are written in code or pronouns, and without a wealth of knowledge, you simply cannot understand their meaning."

"I've always been averse to unreliable things, but since magic exists, it proves there's still much I don't understand. I'm willing to learn, but you'll have to tell me roughly how long it will take." Sherlock Holmes leaned forward, his attitude quite serious. Clearly, he also considered this a puzzle he needed to solve. "There are still many secrets in this world waiting for me to unravel, and my office on Baker Street needs to be managed. If it takes too much time, please allow me to decline… I remember what you said to me on Vampire Night, but compared to the arduous task of saving the world, I prefer to stay in a small place. Besides, Watson and Mrs. Hudson can't do without me; they must be getting restless while I'm gone."

"I assure you, they are very happy." The Emperor handed him a civilian data panel. "Mycroft Holmes has gone to 221B Baker Street to explain why you left. Mrs. Hudson is very understanding of your need to go away to study, and so is Watson. He's glad you won't be bothering his newlywed life for the time being. Your next flight will carry some cookies made by Mrs. Hudson; I think you'll like them. As for how much time you'll spend studying, that's not up to you..."

The Emperor looked at the Supreme Master. The Supreme Master nodded, "As you wish."

"Given your intelligence-gathering abilities, I imagine you must have seen on Latvian television or in the newspapers about the Latvian regent's trip to the Romanian provinces to investigate the children found in the sewers, right?"

The "sewer children" phenomenon is an international scandal in Romania, specifically the fact that many Romanian children grow up living in sewers, and that drug addicts and criminals have even formed communities in these sewers. No one knows exactly how many people live in Romania's sewers, but Latvia's social welfare system prevents this from happening.

Even if it wasn't entirely the responsibility of the Salvation Front that overthrew the Ceaușescu government, the Ministry of the Interior used this incident as a pretext to expand accountability as a comprehensive purge of the Romanian government, which had completely aligned itself with the West after the collapse of the Roman Empire. Regent Viktor von Dom was in charge of this extremely bloody purge, which followed the Hungarian purges. Preliminary estimates by Stephanie Malik's State Council coordinating group within the Ministry of the Interior indicated that at least 20,000 people involved, including former government officials and businessmen, would die in this purge.

This was an outright atrocity, but it was the kind of atrocity that the vastly unequal rich and poor Romanian people were eager to witness. Latvinia, wielding the butcher's knife, would be seen as the embodiment of justice by these fanatical Romanians. This was the emperor's reverse application of Lenin's assessment of the Third Reich's working-class orientation, used to mitigate the consequences of extreme secularization policies. Similar events had occurred during the Romanian coup under the leadership of the far-right National Salvation Front, except that under Victor von Doum, there was no expulsion of other ethnic groups. Once the fanaticism subsided, Romanians would yearn for past peace as they did for Ceausescu, whom they had overthrown and executed. At that time, Latvinia's order would naturally emerge, bringing peace to the common people.

After confirming that Sherlock Holmes knew about this, Emperor Latvian continued.

"In 1989, a coup d'état in Romania, fueled by lies, caused the locals to lose everything. Even though Latvian military crackdowns on the black market, arrests of wealthy individuals and officials involved in collusion between government and business, impeachment of the current president, dissolution of both houses of parliament, purges of Hungarian pastor László Toks and former President Ián Iliescu who were bribed by Western intelligence agencies, and nationalization of industrial assets, the past turmoil still displaced many people. Among them were many Romanian children who were trafficked abroad. This human trafficking continued until Latvian annexed Romania, and we finally resolved this problem by force."

"I only have the most basic understanding of this history. I don't recognize any of the names you mentioned. Identifying cigarette ash is much easier than identifying national leaders," Sherlock Holmes replied truthfully. "I abhor human trafficking, but it's beyond my expertise."

"If you agree to study under my teacher, I will appoint you as the head of the investigation into the Romanian sewer children. No matter where those children are, how old they are now, or what they are doing, I will bring them back. They are my people, and the suffering they endured was not theirs to bear, but was imposed upon them by the selfish desires of others."

The Emperor looked into her eyes, his intense gaze making Sherlock Holmes extremely uncomfortable. He felt as if he were once again facing that man standing in the living room of 221B Baker Street, rifle in hand, covered in blood and mud, as if he had crawled out of hell. All NATO garrisons reeked of decay—Saigon, Seoul, Tokyo, and so on. Thieves, drug dealers, robbers, prostitutes, pimps, and even policemen had formed gangs. Latveria had to use blood to reverse this social climate. For Sherlock Holmes, who had only encountered petty crimes, the evil the Immortal City was dealing with was far too heavy a burden, to the point that most people, upon learning even a little about the situation, would immediately fall into depression.

"I promise to bring justice to the Romanians. The Regent's investigation into the children in the sewers is just the beginning. All violations of the Latvian Code are subject to life imprisonment, and even if the culprits flee abroad, they will not escape punishment. I will give you enough information to investigate those long-standing, enigmatic cases. I want you to uncover enough crimes to forge a sword of justice that no one can escape, not even the CIA." The Emperor paused, seemingly hesitant to continue. Under Sherlock Holmes's questioning gaze, he spoke again, "Only by joining Kamar-Taj will you be qualified to understand the ins and outs of that contraband smuggling case and the Hedonistic Cult. Without proper mental safeguards, seeing that information will only drive one mad."

"I agree," Sherlock Holmes said immediately, "but I need the latest intelligence and on-site investigation authorization."

The Emperor of Latvia smiled at the Sorcerer Supreme, his expression clearly saying "as expected." He knew exactly how to catch a disobedient fish, and he also knew what conditions no one could refuse. Stephen Strange was like that, and so was Sherlock Holmes.

"In that case, are you prepared to face the unknown world?" The Sorcerer Supreme stood up, leaning on the back of Sherlock Holmes's armchair. "Five seconds to go. You may experience vomiting, nausea, hallucinations of scenes, people, or sounds, but don't worry, these aftereffects are temporary as long as you rest well. The first lesson at Kamar-Taj has extremely safe protective measures in place, ensuring your soul won't be directly exposed to the etheric waves."

"What does this mean? I don't understand!" Sherlock Holmes struggled to stand up, but lost control of his body. The Venerable One laughed, and in Sherlock Holmes' eyes, the Venerable One's smile was as malevolent as the Emperor's. He was right as always, and this time was no exception.

"one!"

Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)