The Shadow of Great Britain

In front of the grand and magnificent Parliament Square, Arthur, dressed in wrinkled clothes, seemed completely out of place among the crowd of finely attired people.

Although Wilcox's attack hadn't hurt him, it had nevertheless slashed a few cuts into his coat.

The surrounding gentlemen and ladies all looked at him with curious eyes.

They didn't know why this young man, who appeared neat and tidy, would wear such a filthy, tattered coat.

But Arthur didn't care about their stares; he just walked as he always did.

He walked through Parliament Square at a pace familiar to him, just as he had once patrolled the narrow lanes of the East End of London.

Agares walked by his side, the Red Devil laughing incessantly, occasionally critiquing the avant-garde attire of the ladies around them.

"Look, what is that on her head? Two feather plumes? Is she trying to pretend she's a peacock?"

"Damn, couldn't she use less perfume? The scent is nearly as overpowering as the Thames River!"

Arthur didn't know if it was the chatterbox of a Red Devil that made him impatient, but he stopped and took a deep breath.

"Agares."

The Red Devil, hearing Arthur call him, widened his eyes and leaned closer.

"What's up?"

"I'm sorry about today," Arthur said, glancing at the policeman's dagger he held in his hand. "I shouldn't have hit him so hard. I should have left him alive to force the souls out of him. Sorry for spoiling your lunch."

Upon hearing this, Agares's grin almost reached his ears.

"Oh! Arthur, my good brother! Why be so polite with me?

I am a Devil; I seek souls to torment them for my pleasure. And what you did today was truly delightful!

You don't know how pleased I felt when I saw you take that shitty police chief's life!

I felt as if it wasn't you standing there but me. And the piece of scum lying on the ground wasn't Wilcox, but Baal!

Damn, I was so happy! Someday I'll do the same, and that bastard Baal will eventually die at my hands!"

Arthur saw the Red Devil so happy that even his tail was erect, which made him believe that he wasn't lying.

He sighed deeply, "I also don't know whether what I did was right. But I've taken a life after all. Fortunately, with Wilcox dead, there can be no internal investigation; the witnesses are gone, so how can they investigate Tom and Tony?"

Agares smiled and raised an eyebrow, "Tom and Tony are saved, but what do you plan to do next?"

Arthur looked up at the sky where grey clouds were parting, and through the gaps, he could faintly see a glint of brilliant sunlight.

He placed his palm over his eyebrows to shield his eyes from the light, squinting as he said, "We'll take it one step at a time. If it doesn't work out, I'll catch a ship to America. Isn't that where people who can't make it here usually go?

Some go to North America, others to South America. I can live in the jungles of the Amazon or herd sheep on the Pampas grasslands.

By the way, I heard those rough colonists in North America are organizing some kind of westward movement; I wonder if they've discovered gold mines there yet.

If they have, maybe I could make a fortune selling water during the gold rush."

Agares looked puzzled, "Arthur, what are you thinking? Everyone rushes to mine gold during a gold rush, why would you sell water?"

Arthur shrugged, "I don't know, but that's what a lesson from my childhood taught me. It said you could become rich and a business tycoon by selling water during a gold rush, and I plan to verify if it lied to me."

Agares scoffed, "You better not verify it. How much can you earn from selling a bucket of water? Besides, isn't staying in Britain good enough?"

Arthur said helplessly, "I have to stick around too. After I meet with Tom and Tony for one last time at Scotland Yard this afternoon, we can start preparing to buy boat tickets to America."

"Is your savings enough to get to America?"

"Tom and Tony are different from me; one has to support a wife and kids, and the other is planning to marry. As for me, I'm a carefree bachelor, and I save money fairly quickly. Truth be told, including the academic scholarship I won in college, I already have a whopping ten pounds saved up."

A playful smile appeared on Agares's face.

"Oh, that is indeed a lot of money! Hopefully, you really can make the trip."

Arthur stared at Agares's face for a long time, and from the expression of the Red Devil, he sensed something was amiss.

"Agares, are you hiding something from me?"

"Am I?"

Agares produced a file and began to polish his little fingernail as he said, "Actually, there are quite a few things I've kept from you. Which one would you like to hear first?"

"Then start from the beginning, oh right, just skip King Solomon."

When Agares heard Arthur forbid mentioning King Solomon, he threw the file on the ground in a rage.

"Arthur! Then I have nothing else to say!"

Arthur looked somewhat surprised, and with an apologetic face, he replied, "Sorry, Agares, my mistake, I thought your devilish career would be fascinating."

Agares was so angry that smoke seemed to rise from his head, and with a whoosh, he vanished into thin air right in front of Arthur.

Arthur sighed and stretched out his hand to rub his face, hoping to appear more spirited, then he walked toward Whitehall.

It wasn't a very long distance to No. 4 Whitehall, and he arrived there shortly after.

Looking at the majestic and imposing headquarters of the London Metropolitan Police, Arthur always felt somewhat alienated.

Although he had been here many times, this was the first time he visited as an ordinary citizen.

He pushed open the door, and inside, as usual, were the busy London police officers.

The former colleagues, sitting at their desks sorting out files, involuntarily looked up at the sound of someone pushing the door.

For the first time, Arthur felt how awkward it was to be observed.

He looked down at his casual clothes, then at the neatly uniformed London police officers, and embarrassedly raised his hand slightly.

"I'm looking for Tom and Tony. I heard they've been detained and are undergoing an investigation?"

His gaze swept over every police officer present, but as soon as his eyes were about to meet theirs, they unanimously lowered their heads, burying their faces in the newspapers in their hands.

In the crowded office hall, not a single person responded to his request, nor did anyone engage with his question.

Everyone just busied themselves, as though he were just a mass of invisible air.

His presence did not make the world better.

His absence would not make it worse.

Arthur's hand on the doorknob trembled slightly, and after a moment of silence, he finally let go of the doorknob, ready to leave this place that no longer belonged to him and to which he no longer belonged.

However, just as he was about to turn around, a gentle and hearty voice softly called out from behind him.

"Excuse me, is this Officer Arthur Hastings?"