The Shadow of Great Britain

54: Chapter 15: Locked Up 54: Chapter 15: Locked Up Arthur was sitting in the district police station office, looking at the investigation report he had just received from the Duke of Sussex.

According to the report, the current known number of missing persons totaled forty-five.

Forty-five people might seem like a lot.

But if you consider the total population of St Giles Church district, it seems quite ordinary.

As per documents from the Home Office, as the most notoriously impoverished slum in bustling West London, St Giles district has between 5,500 and 6,000 houses, with an average of a staggering 12.7 people living in each house.

In the most chaotic Raven’s Nest area of St Giles district, the number of residents per house could even be higher, up to eighteen.

That is to say, in this ancient district known as a paradise for criminals to dispose of stolen goods and a prime hiding place, at least seventy thousand London poor are crammed.

If it were in other districts with good law and order, the disappearance of forty-five people would have definitely made the headlines long ago.

But in St Giles district, such an event wouldn’t even cause a ripple, where people come and go, roads are narrow and crowded, and even the best-lit main roads are nowhere as bright as the alleys near Trafalgar Square.

The moment you enter this district, all you see are illegally extended rooftops everywhere, and at the deepest part of the roads, you never know what kind of creature is waiting for you; hence, even the bravest Scotland Yard police do not dare venture here at night.

In fact, when Scotland Yard was first established, they once carried out a massive clean-up in St Giles district, but the result of increased patrolling was thirteen police assaults within a month, including a police officer who nearly lost his life due to a mob beating.

Since then, the Police Superintendent responsible for St Giles district ordered a relaxation of surveillance in the area, conducting only two routine patrols during the day, and the patrol had to be carried out in groups of at least three police officers.

Arthur, looking at the document in his hands, muttered to himself, “To pull off such a big case without leaking any information, it could only be in St Giles district of West London.

However, this list of the missing looks a bit odd.”

Agares, hearing this, leaned over and took a closer look, “Let me have a look.”

The Red Devil scanned the missing persons data and couldn’t help but smirk.

“Oh!

This is my favorite kind of puzzle.

Tsk tsk tsk, Arthur, this is not an easily solvable question, you need to consider a lot of factors.

If you confuse any point among them, it’s a tiny error leading to a huge mistake.”

Arthur raised an eyebrow and asked, “Have you found the answer?”

“Of course.”

Agares rubbed his hands together with a sly grin, “But if you want to know, we need to make a trade.

One hint in exchange for one of my requests.”

Arthur saw through the Red Devil’s verbal trap at a glance, crossed his hands behind his head, leaned back in his chair, shaking his leg, and then spoke.

“One request?

It’s not just about souls.

Agares, you’re really starting high.

But it doesn’t matter what price you set, I don’t intend to meet your demands anyway.”

The Red Devil, upon hearing this, his left eye instantly bulged like a two-meter-high grandfather clock, his bloodshot pupils almost popping over the desk to touch the tip of Arthur’s nose.

“Hey!

Arthur, you son of a bitch!

I never said you couldn’t bargain.”

“I’m sorry.

Even when doing business with a devil like you, I don’t like to deal on credit.”

Arthur, holding a white porcelain teacup in one hand and the document in the other, scrutinized the information over and over and finally derived some conclusions.

Although the ages of the missing persons ranged from as young as six or seven to as old as forty or fifty, spread across a very wide range, there is absolutely no pattern to be discerned.

However, bizarrely, the gender distribution among the missing is very peculiar, with thirty-six being male and only nine female.

Of these nine missing women, eight had disappeared after being released from prison.

The only woman who really disappeared from the streets was just one.

As for the male missing persons, twenty-four disappeared from prison, and twelve disappeared from the streets, with a relatively even distribution overall.

Of course, the regularity in these statistics might not be entirely reliable.

Because these are only the known missing persons from the Duke of Sussex’s side, and do not represent all missing data.

However, the part about disappearances from prisons should be relatively reliable.

Because these prison disappearance records can be cross-checked with the archives of the Home Office, Scotland Yard, and the Magistrates’ Court in the London area during this period.

As for those who disappeared from the streets, that’s harder to say.

To reach a genuine conclusion, it’s probably necessary to find a few people familiar with St Giles Church to conduct an in-depth investigation.

And the reason he was waiting in the office today was precisely to meet someone familiar with the St Giles area.

Arthur was considering this when he suddenly heard a fierce argument erupt outside the door.

“Damn!

Why are you arresting me?

Wasn’t I just going to the shop to buy some stuff?

I neither stole nor robbed anyone, let me go back now!”

“You still dare to talk back, was that you buying something?

Keep shouting, and watch out, I’ll whip you with my baton!”

The moment Arthur heard the voice, he knew it had to be Tony standing outside.

Just as he opened the door, he saw Officer Tony raising his baton, ready to strike a handcuffed suspect in the face.

Arthur hurriedly stopped him, “Tony, what are you doing?”

The suspect, seeing the Bath star on Arthur’s shoulder, quickly scrambled and hid behind him.

He shouted, “Officer, sir, I want to complain about your subordinate for rudely arresting a good citizen!”

Arthur frowned and asked, “What exactly is going on here?”

Tony, red-faced and thick-necked with anger, gasped for air as he cursed, “Arthur, don’t listen to this fucking nonsense.

This guy is caught red-handed, I was nearby when the crime happened, the victim ran out seeking help, and I responded immediately, there’s no way he can escape this.”

“What crime did he commit?”

Tony struggled for a while, too angry to speak clearly, “Let him tell you himself!”

Arthur turned his head and asked, “What did you do?”

The suspect innocently replied, “Officer, sir, I just went to the store to buy some goods.

I wanted to buy some food for my pet dog, but the female store owner saw my disheveled appearance and suspected me of being a thief or a robber, demanding I bring the dog to her before she would sell to me.”

“So, did you bring it over?”

“Of course, I had to prove I had the means to keep a dog, didn’t I?

But the next day when I went to buy food for my pet cat, she demanded that I bring the cat too.”

“And did you bring it over?”

“Of course!

I am a good-tempered, law-abiding citizen!”

Perplexed, Arthur scratched his head and asked, “Tony, this all sounds quite normal.

Why did you arrest him?”

Upon hearing this, Tony’s eyes bulged with anger, “The first two days were fine, but today this guy was buying toilet paper!”

“Lock him up, lock him up.

First take him in, and later when Tom arrives, come to my office together.”

“Ah!

Officer, sir, sir!

I’m wronged!

Wronged!”

Hearing the suspect still daring to proclaim his innocence, Officer Tony immediately lost his temper and struck him with his stick, “Shut up!

Damn it, who told you to pull down your pants and shit in the store!

Lock you up for three days, cool down a bit!”