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 swaying carriage, Arthur held a box containing a phonograph in his arms.


In his hands, he held a circular disc made of tin, wax, and wood that had just been recorded.


This disc was far from as valuable and refined as the collectible vinyl records that would sell for thousands apiece in later times, but its lifespan was shockingly short in an unusual way.


According to Wheatstone's estimate, this makeshift disc he had produced could likely only be played around twenty times before its sound quality was no longer guaranteed.


Although he was confident that he could make a better one, it was certainly too late to show it off at Sunday's dinner party.


Still, even such a crudely made rush job was enough to surprise Arthur. After all, he had originally thought it would be quite an achievement if Wheatstone could even get a rudimentary version of the phonograph working within a single week.


Chapter 120 Unorganized Crime