Chasing Time

“Next, we have the most noble recipient of the Order of the Garter, the Grand Cross of Saint Michael and Saint George, the Grand Cross of the Bath, the Victoria Cross and the lower grades of Knighthood, the leader of the anti-colonial movement, the bell-ringer of the East India Company, the hero of the Crimean War, a Fellow of the Royal Society, a lifelong dear friend of literary giants such as Dickens and Great Dumas, a steadfast supporter of scientific luminaries like Faraday and Darwin, having served as assistant under-secretary, deputy under-secretary, and permanent under-secretary in departments of the Home Office and the Navy Department of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the inaugural Cabinet Secretary and head of the civil service, the first graduate and most distinguished alumnus of our school. Please welcome Sir Arthur Hastings to deliver a speech on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the University of London.”
Arthur's gaze swept across the crowd before him, looking at the young faces and murmured, “Agares, what do you think I should say?”
The Red Devil's wraith hovered behind him, saliva almost dribbling from the corner of his mouth, “Look at these ignorant souls; they still worship you as a hero. Why not say something they'd like to hear?”
Arthur took a deep breath and let out a deafening roar, “Oxford is a bunch of whores' bastards!”
“Oh!!!!”
The audience erupted into thunderous applause.
“Cambridge is the same!” he added immediately.
The applause grew even more fervent...
(The protagonist, possessed by a devil, travels through 19th-century Britain in a world without magic)

The Shadow of Great Britain

In the Blackpool Detective Agency, Jones was bound tightly to a chair, his eyes bruised purple and blue, his white shirt stained with nosebleed everywhere.


Fred sat across the table from him, one hand holding a knife and the other a fork, patiently cutting the roast meat in front of him.


He tasted a sizzling piece of roast meat, seemingly finding it a bit greasy, so he picked up his teacup and took a sip.


But as soon as the tea touched his mouth, Fred couldn't help but spit it out.


He wiped his lips, opened the lid of the teacup, and took a look inside— the originally greenish tea leaves had faded.


Fred, angry, threw the teapot to the ground, and with a loud bang, he cursed, "Damn! These swindlers dare to trick even me!"


Having said that, Fred lost his appetite, leaned back in his chair, and looked at Jones, whose consciousness was fading from the beating.


"Speak up, what did you come here for today?"


Chapter 53: Fred's Big Business