Sherlock Holmes

Mrs. Joan of Arc Letitia Hudson.

The name was quite long, but she looked at the man squatting in front of her.

I was a little confused for a moment

"Isn't this the stupid passerby from yesterday?"

Sherlock's thoughts at this time were similar to hers:

"Isn't this the stupid woman from yesterday?"

Anyway, the two of them just looked at each other as if they were still, until the calico kitten let out a dissatisfied meow.

"Well, although I can't believe it, the world is really small." Sherlock stood up first and said with a smile.

Mrs. Hudson blinked and seemed to finally realize what was going on. She asked with some surprise: "Are you the tenant who came yesterday?"

"Of course, my landlady."

"Well" he muttered for three seconds: "The world is indeed quite small."

This somewhat awkward encounter took almost five minutes of Sherlock's time;

He briefly introduced himself to the landlady, trying his best to show his kindness and duty as a legal citizen of the empire. At the same time, he also confirmed his speculation yesterday;

That is, this Mrs. Hudson is simply a little girl who is not yet 20 years old, single, and living alone.

Of course, it was impossible for him to expose the other party on the spot. He just said goodbye with a smile, then went to the roadside and hailed a passing carriage.

"Take me to White Thorn Security Company, 36 Zotland Street."

"At your service, sir!"

The coachman waved his whip————

Legend has it that before the gates of hell opened, London belonged to a continental plate called "Europe".

Among the traditional symbols in Europe and China, thorns represent the meaning of "protection", probably because the thorn bushes covering the walls can effectively restrict thieves from climbing up and down.

Under this tradition, any industry related to security, caravans, safes, and safety doors will largely use the word "thorn".

Maybe, there might be a Blackthorn security company somewhere in a certain corner during a certain period of time.

The carriage passed through a noisy open-air antiques fair, and then went down the foggy Thames River. Countless merchant ships emitted heavy and distant flutes outside the carriage.

After a full hour, we finally stopped at a fairly conspicuous church.

Due to people's respect for the Holy Light and the Holy See, as long as there is a church in a neighborhood, it is generally very clean. Early in the morning, some believers even spontaneously clean the entire long street when the first ray of sunlight falls. For them, this is An act of piety.

After walking a few steps along the road paved with gravel and asphalt, Sherlock arrived at his destination.

The surrounding buildings are not old, but a bit dense. Looking along the street, you can see a flower shop, several restaurants and cafes, and the apartment door numbers that can be seen everywhere in London.

The first house on the edge is a somewhat thick wooden door. Of course, the wood is only attached to the surface, and there must be an anti-theft iron plate inside.

The idea of ​​breaking in with an ax was already a delusion of the last century.

Sherlock walked over, confirmed the house number, and then found the logo of [White Thorn Security Company] in a small corner on the wall, and couldn't help but sigh:

It is indeed an official organization jointly established by the government and the Holy See. Although it bears the title of 'company', it does not look like it wants to attract business at all.

While thinking, he pushed the door open and entered.

What caught the eye was a corridor and a piece of paper posted on the wall that read;

[Please do not knock on the first door. To report a crime, please go inside. If there is an emergency, just shout. If you want to discuss business, go to the second floor. 】.

Sherlock raised his eyebrows. He didn't know why, but he felt that these two lines of text conveyed a sense of helplessness.

When passing the first door, I took a special look at the sign on the door. It said [Infirmary], and there was also a note similar to the one posted on the door.

It must be that people often get too anxious and knock on the door closest to them after coming in, which is why the company doctor posted such a conspicuous notice on the wall.

Keep going and come to the second floor.

Although this company has some government investment, almost everything that catches the eye exudes a clear taste of the Holy See, such as the golden sunflower logo on both ends of the handrails, the gas lamps surrounded by golden grids inlaid on the walls, and some embedded yellow lights on the ceiling. Copper pendant.

There is no way, after all, the shroud of holy light is the foundation of human survival, which results in the Holy See always suppressing the imperial government. Even if the imperial emperor changes positions and ascends the throne, he must first get the blessing of the Pope before he can sit on that chair.

In fact, Sherlock dared to bet his one-week smoking rights. Even though the Holy See and the government seemed to be good friends on the surface, secretly, they were definitely engaged in an extremely cruel and bloody power struggle.

And this competition should have been going on for centuries, but the poor are not aware of it.

On the second floor, after walking a few steps along the corridor, I saw the word [Consultation] written on a sign above a door. I walked over and knocked lightly on the door.

"Enter!"

A not very friendly female voice came from inside.

When I opened the door, I saw a large table, which was covered with piles of documents. It was like a small bunker, blocking the people behind it tightly, and I could only hear the bang bang bang. stamping sound.

"Hello, I'm here to report." Sherlock hesitated for a moment, and finally decided to use the word 'report'.

The next second, the sound of stamping stopped, and a middle-aged lady with thick glasses poked her head out from behind a pile of documents. She looked Sherlock up and down. After ten seconds, she finally spoke. :

"Are you the detective who was recommended? Yell."

"Sherlock Holmes."

"Oh, right." The middle-aged woman looked like the type who was stuck in the office all year round. She had a "boring to death" attitude towards anyone who came for consultation; but the letter was signed by the high priest of the Vatican. I couldn’t ignore the letter of recommendation, so I had no choice but to stand up: “Follow me!”

On the way, the woman introduced herself as ‘Evelyn Marie’, which sounded like she was from the countryside.

He was less than Sherlock's shoulders, but he walked vigorously, and his chest and belly trembled at the same frequency. Soon, he led Sherlock to a door, and Miss Mary restrained herself for a moment. With an attitude that the whole world owed her 50 pounds, he knocked lightly on the door: "Priest Thompson, do you remember yesterday's notice that a Mr. Sherlock would come to report? He is already here."

"kindness."

A brief musical note came from inside the door, and Mary slowly pushed the door open, indicating that she could go in, but added in time: "Take off your hat, Priest Thompson pays great attention to etiquette."

"Thank you." Sherlock responded and took off his hat. At this moment, he noticed that Miss Mary frowned when she saw her somewhat messy hairstyle.

"It seems that the staff here are a bit rigid." He muttered to himself, and then walked into the office.

The time now is morning, but the entire office is dark, the curtains are tightly drawn, and there is only a candle burning on the desk, with a unique scent of brown grass. Some market books have mentioned that this is a contract An incense commonly used by practitioners during meditation.

Under the dim light, a man about 40 years old was performing a very common prayer ceremony. He was dressed in a full set of white priest's robes, his hair and beard were meticulously taken care of, and he had a yellow hand in his hand. The copper pendant swayed slightly, while he kept chanting prayers in his mouth.

From any angle, it looks extremely pious.

After five minutes, the prayer finally ended. Only then did Priest Thomson open his gray eyes, stared at Sherlock for a while, and said:

"detective?"

"Yes."

"Contractor?"

"Just accepted the canonization ceremony."

"[Controller] or [Symbiosis]?"

"Huh?" Sherlock was stunned for a moment, these two words were unfamiliar to him.

And his reaction also made Priest Thompson reveal a look of unexplained boredom:

"That's what I guess."

He sighed, sat back in his chair, and snapped his fingers.

The next second, the curtains quickly opened to both sides, and the sun shone into the room. Priest Thompson gently extinguished the candle in front of him with his hand, and said in a deep voice:

"Then what I'm going to say next is, listen. Don't interrupt."