Chapter 63: Darkness and Light

Chapter 63 Darkness and Light

Rain pattered outside the window.

It had been raining all night in London, and it still hadn’t stopped until dawn.

The window panes of Arthur’s residence were littered with traces of the clinging rainwater.

Agareth sat by the window, looking at the sun struggling to rise through the cracks in the dark clouds in the sky, and simply took a deep breath.

In his hand he cupped a small slip of paper, the address of the Gas Research Institute that Faraday had given Arthur yesterday.

Faraday’s words seemed to echo in the Red Devil’s ears.

“The Gas Research Institute was originally built in Clifton, and when King’s College was founded in 1828, it was incorporated into St. Thomas’s Hospital, the teaching hospital attached to King’s College. Its address is in the district of Sutherland, on the south bank of the Thames, at 10 Bessemer Road.”

The rain dripped on the window sill, and Agareth’s fingers danced with it, tinkling against the edge of the window frame, the two harmonizing as if playing a symphony whose name he did not know and whose joy he could not hear.

He slowly closed his eyelids, his mouth hummed a restful song, full of magical melodies lingering in every corner of the room, as if he wanted the world to fall into a never-awakening tranquility with this song.

The rain outside the window was getting heavier and heavier, while Agareth’s song was getting smaller and smaller.

He opened his eyes and suddenly realized that Arthur had gotten up at some point, and he was sitting at the table by the window, quietly staring at the rain that was almost turning the city of London into a vast ocean.

“Up so early?” Agareth muttered under his breath, “It shouldn’t be, my tune ……”

“I pressed on to sleep.” Arthur held a cold cup of tea in his hand, “You sang like a mosquito humming there for most of the night, no one else would have been able to sleep.”

“Yeah?” Agareth smiled awkwardly, “I thought you were asleep. You didn’t close your eyes all night, why don’t you go back to bed now and lie down for a while? I’ll wake you up when it’s time, the sun hasn’t even risen yet.”

“No need.”

Arthur rubbed his aching shoulders, “As soon as I got into bed I wondered if that gas institute Mr. Faraday recommended could really cure Robin. Even though it’s probably the best research facility for lung disease in all of Great Britain, I still feel uneasy.

After all, as you said before, Robin’s disease isn’t easy to cure, and even a supernatural devil like you can’t do much about it. Can the Gas Institute really come up with a reasonable treatment plan?”

Agares smiled broadly as he heard this and leaned against the edge of the window.

“Yes, that little girl does have a tricky disease. But it’s not that even the devil doesn’t have a solution, at least I, the devil, originally had a solution. It’s just that because of some special reasons, I wasn’t able to use that method.”

“Special reasons?” Arthur frowned at Agares, “What special reasons? You wouldn’t be trying to take advantage of the opportunity to instigate me to kill people and take their souls again, would you.”

“No, no, no.” Agares shook his finger disdainfully, “Arthur, if I want to instigate you to kill, I don’t need to take such a method.

Those ordinary people’s souls, to me, can’t claim to be much of an irritant. Just like this world, there are three, six, nine classes of people, and there are sweet and sour souls.

You shouldn’t always think so badly of me, if I was really just greedy for that bit of profit in front of me, I wouldn’t have waited for someone like you to appear before concluding the contract.”

Arthur glanced at him, “Putting in a long line to catch a big fish?”

Agares smiled, “That’s right! The bigger the fish, the more experienced it is, the easier it is to hide inside and the harder it is to be caught. The longer the line you put out, the closer to the center of the pool, the more hidden it is, and the easier it is for the big fish to take the bait.”

“But you haven’t told me why you couldn’t save Robin.”

“Why?”

The meaning in Agareth’s words was hard to understand, “Because this is, in the end, the world of people, and if any souls fall into the hands of the devil, it must be because someone made a deal with the devil. If any souls are saved, it’s also because of people.

Arthur, you have to know, want to kill people is very easy, but to save people is very difficult, this is the unchanging theorem, from King Solomon then, this is an iron law.”

Arthur looked at him with his teacup in hand, “So you’re asking me to believe in science? A devil, asking me to believe in science, the dying and struggling dead, but only counting on God. This world is, indeed, a ridiculous place.”

In the past, when Agareth heard such words, he would have jumped up from the edge of the window in anger, but for some reason, today he was uncharacteristically calm. The Red Devil opened the window and let the cold wind from outside pour in, and the cold rain sprinkled on Arthur’s pajamas, freezing him to the point that he cursed.

“Agares, where have I offended you again today? Quickly close the window! Even though it’s June now, it’s still unseasonably cold here when it rains early in the morning. And you know it, this damn weather in London!”

But Agareth acted as if he had not heard Arthur, and he spoke inexplicably.

“Arthur, you know what? Being God isn’t as comfortable as you mortals think. God doesn’t always live in heaven, even he has his own hell.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Nothing, I’m saying how can we go to the Gas Research Institute when it’s raining like this today?

The roads are full of sewage and everywhere is muddy, didn’t you buy a new pair of boots?

Those brand new, beautiful, spotless riding boots.

I guarantee you, if you dare to go out today, those boots of yours will be ruined beyond recognition.

You do as I say and don’t go out today.

Don’t go anywhere today, just sit in the district police office and we’ll have some tea and read the newspaper.

At lunchtime, we’ll meet up with that unctuous friend of yours and that Darwinian, and we’ll have a good talk about monkeys. ……

The Scotland Yard disappearance case, you do not care, safe and smooth through this period, you will soon be promoted again, and after that, we can step by step to climb to a higher place.

There are endless souls there, and there are endless beauties to look at, wealth, status, power, all the things you want are there.”

When Arthur heard this, his brow suddenly furrowed, his back gradually straightened, and his tone of voice became raw.

“Agareth.”

The red devil crossed his fingers, his eyes darting around, “What’s your problem?”

“I ask a question and you don’t even ask for my soul anymore, that really isn’t like you. What is it that you are keeping from me?”

“Arthur!” The Red Devil suddenly said angrily, “As I said, there are things you’re better off not knowing than knowing! You don’t have the ability to know!”

Arthur took a deep breath as he snatched the note from Agareth’s hand, the line of address squeezed so tightly in his hand that it was as if it were etched into the palm of his hand.

Both of Arthur’s eyes stared dead at the red devil, and after a deathly silence, it was as if he already knew something.

He took a deep breath, put on his police uniform and gloves, and after a moment’s hesitation, he gripped the officer’s knife that hung above his bed again.

Seeing this, Agareth rushed out to stop him, “Arthur, you’re not going anywhere today!”

Arthur looked back at the Red Devil, whose face was no longer visible.

“Agareth, the child is afraid of the darkness, it is justifiable and not terrible.

The most frightening thing in this world, you know what it is? It’s that adults are afraid of the light.”

At the end of his sentence, he left the angry-faced red devil behind, opened the door, and ran down the stairs with heavy steps on his riding boots.

Agareth saw this, and the Red Devil flared with rage.

He cursed loudly, “Arthur, you won’t be able to stand it, you fool!”

(End of chapter)