On March 12, 901, the Elysian continent, the Leriya Kingdom, and the East District of Yinwu City. This is the extreme east of the entire continent, and is located in the central harbor leading to the New World.

But the remaining memories tell Ed that to describe the slums in the East District, known as the "lightless zone", it is difficult for even the most rigorous gramologists to choose the more appropriate word among "poverty" and "chaotic".

The weather was rare in the afternoon. The gray early spring snow gradually melted, revealing broken newspapers and wood chips buried by ice. The rental carriage heading to the detective office passed through the crowd calmly, with its seats slightly bumpy.

On the ground, the old brick and stone pavement was covered with horse manure, gravel, grass chips, and the brazier beside the road was lit with smoke, newspaper boys, missionaries with red noses, senders with pretty faces, and hawkers - all kinds of goods were packed in blankets or baskets, soap, brooms, copper buttons, clay pipes and tobacco.

"Where are we going?" Ed said as he listened to the wheels turning, put his arms behind his head, closed his eyes.

"Detective House, you will live there tonight until the other two agents come back." Arthur's words were relaxed.

"What about my freedom? Didn't you say that you should protect my freedom?"

“To be precise, it is ‘guaranteeing your personal safety and freedom’ – you must first ensure your own safety before you can have freedom.”

"..." Ed raised his eyebrows and did not continue to argue.

The light in front of him suddenly darkened, and a dreamy and huge shadow in the sky disturbed his vision. Ed couldn't help but open his eyes and looked out of the car window.

A hard airship with a mixed layout slowly flew past the sky. The airbags were the body, the wings were the feathers, and the steam clouds at the tail drew a white track, like a whale soaring in the sky.

To his surprise, the airbag was painted with red and blue background star icons, exactly the same as the trademark on the cookie jar.

"That's... West Coast Trading Company?"

The coachman was very talkative and replied outside: "Yes, who else can the cargo airship with red and blue stars besides the West Coast Company? There are only three types of flying in the sky: cargo, manned, and slaughtering people."

It turns out that the West Coast Trading Company is so powerful, I thought it was a biscuit company. Of course, Ed didn't say this. The coachman opened up the conversation now and kept falling out:

"Ah... the carriage business is becoming more and more difficult to do nowadays. We are grabbing business from the sky to the ground. Alas, let me tell you something, don't spread it. I heard something happened to the pneumatic subway."

"Hmm? What's the matter?" Arthur suddenly inserted into the conversation.

"God knows. I took a guest to tell me this morning, and I guess I will be able to report tomorrow. I want me to say that the bastards of the thieves will die. I will know that they will invent new machines every day to cut off the life of our duty people. Bah! Do you think so?"

Arthur did not reply, but saw his polite and light smile on the corner of his mouth disappear without a trace. Could it be that he is the person in the so-called "Thieves Party"?

"Is the 'thief party' you are talking about..." Ed asked secretly withstood his laughter.

The coachman in front was very enthusiastic: "Why, your accent doesn't look like an outsider? Forget it, I have to start with you..."

The coachman speaks very fast and talks a lot of nonsense. Ed listens for a while before he understands:

Today's Kingdom Parliament is dominated by competition from three parties: the Conservative Party, which represents the interests of traditional aristocrats and priests; the Liberal Party, which represents the interests of some emerging industrial aristocrats and industrial and commercial tycoons; and the Industrial Progressive Party, which is composed of emerging scientific aristocrats, societies, cooperatives, etc.

The three parties often argue in parliament, accusing and attacking each other. The Conservatives are called "bandits riding horses", the Liberals are called "insatiable pirates", and the Industrial Progressives are called "thieves flying airships".

Over time, this slanderous ridicule has become widely circulated and has almost become the official name of the three parties, and has appeared from time to time in some official government documents.

Yinwu City was originally the base camp of the Horse Bandit Party and the traditional fief of the "Bai Oak" Auckland family. However, as it became a transit station for ocean trade, the Pirates and the Pirates Party also reached here.

"As you said, the pneumatic subway has been closed, and your business should be much easier, right?"

Ed was bored and played with coins in his pocket. He found that this could relax his nerves, which was obviously an old habit before his memory loss.

"Oh, look at what you said- we only make a fraction of the money, and it is Mr. Floyd who makes a fortune."

"Oh? What is this Mr. Floyd doing?"

"The big boss of the carriage rental company is a franchise. The government approved only 500 carriage licenses, but Mr. Floyd can always get more. There are no 10,000 carriages in the entire Yinwu City, and there are almost every carriage with his commission."

"—It's not just a double-wheeled bus, but also a double-decker four-wheeled bus. The license fee for each carriage is 8 pounds and the travel expenses of 1 and a half pounds per year - this is not a small amount, don't you think?"

"uh-huh."

Ed covered his hat on his face, rested his eyes and calmed down, and snorted with a nasal to end the chat.

...

The "detective site" mentioned by Arthur is located in a remote alley on Yuandun Street. It has no signs, as if it is deliberately not to make people discover it. A few pots of snowflake ferns, cherry blacks, and spotted palms are planted next to the green painted wooden door, like a layer of protective color.

The only thing that can prove its existence is a line of small words on the metal plate in front of the door - "Detective Eaton".

Ed walked out of the carriage and wore a coat borrowed from the fat police officer Mans, like a robe. His clothes were burnt to pieces by a whale oil lamp, and he could only use someone else to cover it up.

The sky was already thin and yellow, and the orange sunlight shone on the wooden door. The alley leading to the Detective Center was sparsely populated and there was no stinking in the air. He followed Arthur without saying a word, and as the key turned gently, the door opened.

The first thing that caught my eye was a long curved office desk, with folders placed in an orderly manner on the table stand, and a printed telegraph machine next to it, with wires arranged very regularly. Sofa, blinds, walnut bookcases, candlesticks, stoves, clocks, clothes hangers...is no different from the detective Ed imagined.

Hey, I thought the real detective would be more... more innovative?

The air was left with the smell of aromatic candles, the cold and quiet fragrance like a valley, which was the fragrance of lily of the valley. Ed hung the fat police officer's coat on the hanger, and his cane and hat were buckled aside. Arthur also took off his octagonal leather hat with golden eyepieces tied, raised an exaggerated smile on the corner of his mouth, and stretched out his hand and said:

"Please allow me to re-introduce myself: Arthur Custer, an intern agent of the Divine Mechanism Bureau, a criminal investigation assistant, and a member of the Royal Society. Before the subway massacre case is solved, for your safety, you must be under your own custody."

"Does that mean that as long as the case is solved, you can let me go?"

"I'm afraid I can't make the decision, but in theory it's true. In this way, I'll take you to the room first."

"Okay..." Seeing that Arthur did not give a clear reply, Ed had to follow him to the second floor.

The white sheets in the bedroom are as flat as mirrors, with pens and prepared letter paper on the writing table. The books on the bookshelf are orderly, in accordance with classification and size. The orange setting sun pours in through the clear glass, and even the dust on the window ridge is wiped.

"Things are rushed. Please stay in my room for a few nights. If you have anything to do, you can write it on the list, and I will buy it as soon as possible in the past two days."

"No, no, no, why are you so embarrassed? I'll sleep on the sofa." Ed said politely in a hurry.

Of course, he did this not because he was polite, but because once Arthur slept in the living room, the main entrance would be completely under the surveillance of the other party. Coupled with the sensitive and weird mechanical spider, he definitely had no chance to act alone.

Arthur still had that spring breeze-like smile:

"This is the arrangement of the superior, you don't have to refuse. Oh, by the way, if you don't mind, I have a few sets of clothes that I don't wear often, so why don't you make do with it first?"

"No...uh...then you'll have a hard time."

Ed wanted to refuse politely, but looked down at his broken cuffs, which were like a beggar and were really unconventional.

"Then I'll put it here, you can try it slowly." Arthur took out a few sets of clothes from the closet and brought the door with him.

After hearing Arthur's footsteps gradually moving away, Ed reached out and touched the buttons of the collar. Suddenly he frowned and began to look around: bookshelf, wardrobe, corners, under the bed, outside the window...

After repeatedly confirming that there were no mechanical spiders or other suspicious things, he breathed a sigh of relief and unbuttoned the collar...

"Bang", the button made a slight pain and fell on the bed. The old clothes finally died. Arthur found him three sets of clothes-

The first set is a pretty decent formal outfit: a milk-soft silk black vest and trousers, a milky white stand-collar shirt, a flat and straight, obviously washed, and paired with a good suede dress and a silk scarf. It won't look rude when wearing it to attend a formal occasion.

This set is too formal and must be expensive. Don't stain it. Ed tactfully folded it and put it aside.

The second set is the opposite of the first one, which is even more exaggerated than Arthur’s current dressing—a lot of fashionable elements: contrasting plaid vests, polka dot shirts, brown leather jackets and leather eyepieces, and large leather belts decorated with a large number of gears and parts…

Ed shook his head. It would definitely become the focus of the whole street when wearing it, obviously not his own style.

The third set seemed much more normal to him: gray wide-leg pants, woolen vest, beige lapel shirt, and a loose and comfortable coat.

Just this one. He took off his old shirt and put on a new outfit.

As the day was getting west, the gray-blue dusk slowly poured into the window, with a hint of chill. At this moment, Ed looked at himself who was completely renewed in the mirror, and suddenly felt familiar and unfamiliar.

Edgar Waiklo…My name is Edgar Waiklo.

What was your past like? Where are your family? Where are they? Is the work at the repair shop hard? Can you still return to your former life?

He stretched out his finger and gently touched the mirror. The boy in the mirror did not answer, but just stared at himself, with the same confusion in his eyes.

Tiny dust particles rise and fall in the air, moving silently along the golden red sunset twilight...

【Good evening, my dear good gentleman.】
Chapter completed!