[Comprehensive British and American] The vest system of the son of hell

Early the next morning, the farmer couple drove a carriage full of timber and took Matthew, who was wearing farmer's clothes, into the urban area of ​​London.

The guards thought Matthew was a farmer's helper, so they let them enter the city after asking a few words. Before leaving, they reminded them because of Matthew's good looks: "Recently, the law and order is not very good. At night, beautiful girls and brothers are often attacked. , you have to be careful."

"Men are also attacked?"

In order to get more information, Matthew deliberately pretended to be stupid.

The guard laughed and said, "What do you think the East End is?"

East London?

Because of this address, Matthew thought of Jack the Ripper, the most famous unsolved horror case in British history and the originator of modern serial murders.

In fact, even in the 21st century, the East End of London, once the hunting ground of Jack the Ripper, is still the worst place in London.

Hundreds of years of poverty have gone deep into the bone marrow, and the crimes derived from it have taken root.

However, the farmer couple went to the city to deliver timber, and the destination was Whitechapel in the East End of London.

In this era when gas lamps illuminated the upper class at night and factories introduced steam power on a large scale, the poor living in the slums near Whitechapel still needed wood for cooking, lighting and heating.

and so--

Even though they knew that the Whitechapel area was not safe at night, the farmer and his wife bid farewell to the guards and drove straight to the carriage.

When he was about to enter the East District, the farmer asked Matthew: "Sir, are you going to the East District too?"

"I have something to go to Whitechapel." Matthew replied calmly.

He didn't know whether Strange and "Moriarty" were also sent to this era, but since the legendary Jack the Ripper was born in the Whitechapel area, there is probably a gate to hell.

Trapped in the past, he needs help, even if it's help from hell.

……

The carriage stopped in front of the White Church, and Matthew got off, separated from the farmer and his wife, and walked towards the White Church.

When he pushed the door, he felt a strong breath of black magic.

This is very abnormal.

Generally speaking, the church is the place where the holy power accumulates. Even in the middle ages and renaissance era when the Holy See was extremely corrupt and depraved, the walls of the church still exude a sacred light.

Could it be that……

Matthew pushed open the door of the church.

Then, he stayed.

What greeted him was the sacred light space, and——

Never should appear in the dark altar of the church.

In front of the dark altar disguised as light, the clergy were presiding over mass, and the teenagers in the choir were singing hymns intoxicatingly, and the hall shrouded in strong light looked extremely sacred.

The church was filled with Mass attendees, each holding a candle and wearing black mourning veils—most of them slum dwellers who could not afford to wear decent clothes.

Infected by the sacred atmosphere, people prayed and chanted devoutly, but no one noticed that the dark mist from the burning candles was gathering towards the height of the auditorium...

The highest part of the altar dedicated to the cross has long been occupied by thick darkness, and the icon is bleeding...

Blood that only angels, demons, and psychics among humans can see.

Matthew raised his head and looked at the bloody icon shrouded in darkness, feeling very bad.

As a hybrid of humans and demons, he can enter and leave the church without restriction, but he is a creation of hell after all. Being in a church full of divine power will inevitably cause psychological discomfort.

However, since stepping into this dark church, Matthew felt very comfortable, as if a baby returned to his mother's arms.

This is a dark mass calling to hell.

The power of darkness is bred here and grows stronger, and one day it will rush out of the church and engulf the East End of London and even the whole of London.

Why is this happening?

Because the extreme gap between rich and poor allows evil to breed?Human nature collapse?

still--

Matthew sighed.

In order not to be noticed, he took the black veil and white candle and walked into the devoutly praying crowd.

……

"Amen!"

End of prayer...

Under the leadership of the priest, people wearing veils and holding candles lined up in a long line, circled the altar engulfed by the invisible darkness, walked out of the brightly lit White Church, and walked into the East End of London, which was gradually entering the night.

Matthew mixed in the team, pretending to be a devout believer, looking around.

This is a land completely kneaded with squalor and poverty.

Narrow alleys, dirty streets, dilapidated houses with no architectural plans at all, poor people live like walking corpses, their tired bodies are dry and weak, there is no blood on their emaciated faces, and their numb eyes have no light.

Occasionally, you will come across a painted woman wearing a gaudy and revealing torn skirt standing at the entrance of the alley to attract customers.

Most of them looked ordinary, with professional smirks on their faces, and the smell of cheap perfume on their bodies. Their rough fingers convinced Matthew that they were a group of poor people who had been deprived of their last dignity by poverty.

The women also noticed Matthew, a beautiful man who looked at them with rare tender eyes.

They straightened their collars and prepared to—

"what--"

A scream suddenly sounded in the darkness.

The parade prayer team paused for a moment.

The deacon went to check with the lantern, and when he came back, his face was full of fear and anxiety: "Something happened! Something happened! Something happened again!"

"God will punish sin, we only need to abide by piety."

The priest said grimly, as if everything was in his expectation.

The young deacon nodded helplessly, his face pale and his eyes frightened.

The priest raised his hand, stroked the young man's hair, and signaled for the pilgrimage to continue.

So the team moved on.

Matthew asked around in a low voice: "What's going on? Why everyone..."

"God sent Satan to punish evil, we are all tame lambs, we will not be targeted by Satan."

The man who was questioned by Matthew replied with a numb face.

He believed in the priest's words.

Matthew felt something was wrong.

Taking advantage of the fact that the parade team was about to pass through another alley, Matthew blew out the candles, walked quietly into the alley, and walked to—

"Brother, do you want to find a woman to spend the night with?"

Before he could approach, a woman wearing cheap perfume had already approached her, looking tired and pale.

Matthew: "I don't need—"

"But I need..." the woman begged, "I have had no guests for several days, and if this continues, the child and I will starve to death."

Her eyes were extremely humble.

However, Matthew still chose to refuse.

"I don't like women..." he whispered, "I can't..."

"It's okay, as long as you sit in the room with me, it doesn't matter if you don't do anything..."

Tears welled up in the woman's eyes, and her callused hands stubbornly grabbed Matthew's arm.

Matthew couldn't bear it for a while, and nodded.

The woman hurriedly pulled Matthew into a house not far away.

When entering the door, a tall man passed by the woman: "Mary, do you have a guest today?"

"I want you to take care of it! What should be given will not be less than you!"

Mary cursed, and walked into the narrow room with Matthew.

There were no lights in the house, and it was pitch black.

Mary was obviously used to the dark environment. After entering the house, she skillfully found the kerosene lamp, lit it carefully, and smiled obsequiously: "Sir, can you give me a few pennies? My charge will not be more expensive than staying overnight in a hotel."

"you--"

"We have a rule here that a woman without guests cannot go back to her room to sleep..." Mary said nervously, "I haven't had guests for several days in a row, and I can't go back to my room to sleep for several days in a row."

"why?"

"Ok?"

"Who made the rules?"

"Old Charlie."

Mary smiled wryly and said, "His son is the sheriff in this area, and we must all listen to him."

"No one resisted?"

"Resist? How to resist?"

Mary looked at Matthew and couldn't believe there were such idealistic people in the world.

Or--

"The aristocratic gentlemen who live in villas don't care about the lives of us poor people in the Eastern District..." Mary complained, "Even if Her Majesty the Queen illuminates the world with light, we cockroaches living in the Eastern District will never have a chance Bathe in her light.

And although old Charlie's rules are strict, at least they give us a little way out.As long as we abide by his rules, not only will we not starve to death, but we also don't have to worry about meeting customers who don't pay. "

"turn out to be……"

Matthew thought of the tall, burly man who had walked by and talked to Mary when she opened the door.

At this time, there was a sudden sound of wow on the bed.

Mary bent down to pick up the crying baby, and after a while of shaking upside down to comfort and nurse, the baby finally calmed down.

Mary said apologetically to Matthew: "My child he... he is not usually..."

"Why not give the child to his father?"

"Which decent man can accept a child born to a lowly woman like me?"

The woman laughed at herself, her pale face turned a rare color.

Clearly, she is a woman with a story.

Matthew couldn't bear to stab the woman, looked up at the boundless darkness outside the window, and said, "Does homicide often happen here?"

"Are you sent from above to investigate the case?"

Mary, who had long discovered that Matthew was from a world other than the East End, asked back.

Matthew replied cryptically: "The higher-ups have noticed the anomaly that happened in the East End of London."

"But they don't do anything, and that's always been the case."

The woman laughed at herself, and after putting the child to sleep, she raised the kerosene lamp: "Sir, can we turn off the light and go to sleep? You know, kerosene is very expensive for people like us."

"Turn off the lights..."

Matthew understands Mary's stinginess—for her who lived in a slum in the nineteenth century, kerosene lamps are indeed a luxury that can only be lit for a while when receiving guests.

"thanks……"

The woman couldn't wait to turn off the kerosene lamp, and sat on the floor humbly: "Sir, don't you really need me?"

"I--"

With a thought in mind, Matthew asked Mary: "Whitechapel often organizes prayer parades?"

"It used to be once a month, but recently it has changed to once a week..." Mary said, "It is said that it can appease Satan and improve the security of the parish."

"is it?"

"Of course it's not true..." Mary said cursingly, "Satan still takes at least one life every day, but our business has become more difficult than before because of parade prayer!"

"People die every day on the East Side?"

"Eastern District is originally a place where people die every day. In winter, when you get up in the morning, you will always see dead bodies on the road. Sometimes they freeze to death, and sometimes they starve to death."

Mary said: "But Satan is different. It stabbed people to death with a knife, gouged out their stomachs and eyes, and painted devil symbols on their bodies."

The intestines and eyes of the deceased were dug out?

Draw the symbol of the devil under the body?

Matthew felt a familiar taste.

That's exactly what Jack the Ripper did.

Each of the dead had their throats slit and disemboweled, and even parts of their organs were removed, as if they were a psychotic collector or in preparation for some sinister ritual.

"How many dead people have appeared so far? I mean killed by Satan."

"I don't know, I only know that in the past month, people have been killed by Satan almost every day..." Mary said, "We would rather gather in a bright place where it is difficult to attract guests than go to a dark alley where murders have occurred. Not to mention meeting the requirements of customers to provide services at his place.”

"Are you afraid that the guest who made such a request is the incarnation of Satan?"

"Yes..." Mary said, "Although a person like me lives only to live, but for the sake of the child, I can't die yet."

At this point, Mary stopped suddenly.

In the darkness, her eyes sparkled: "Can you give me a few pennies? Just take pity on me, okay?"

"I……"

"It doesn't matter if you don't give it, I'm used to it."

Mary laughed to herself and fell asleep on the floor.

Because he is a hybrid of demons and humans, Matthew, who does not need sleep when he is full of energy, looks at Mary who is tired and asleep under the dim night light. He can't help but raise his hand and use the "dream stone" to give her a sweet dream.

"Good night……"

……

Doctor Strange Stephen Strange feels bad.

When he snatched the gold watch from Matthew, he had already noticed that there was some kind of mysterious and ancient time magic in the gold watch, but he didn't expect——

After a burst of bright light, he was teleported.

Came to London, England in the [-]th century in a parallel world.

There is no sanctuary in London, England in this time and space, and there is no Ancient One mage who has already become the supreme mage of the earth at this point in time.

The air smelled of black magic.

The thick fog that was difficult to disperse made the whole city hazy until the sun rose into the middle of the sky, and it was impossible to see clearly ten meters ahead.

London in this time and space is really bad.

Strange muttered to himself.

The gold watch that caused the teleportation to occur mysteriously disappeared in the middle of the teleportation, and he could not study the essence of this time magic by dismantling the gold watch.

What's more, in this time and space, he cannot contact Vishanti (Vishanti), his power provider, nor can he summon the power of demons such as Dormammu.

The Eye of Agamotto, which he wears with him, does not respond to his calls like ordinary gems.

The magic cloak also lost its effect as if it was dormant.

However, the city is filled with the atmosphere of black magic, which proves that this time and space is not a time and space without magic.

what is the problem?

Why did such a strange thing happen?

I am not the only one who passively travels to this time and space, right?

Strange thought uncertainly.

After all, he is an old and unlucky guy.

Especially in the field of wealth...

The more he thought about it, the more frustrated Strange decided to find a job in London to support himself first, and then consider going back after gaining a firm foothold.

A street magician might be a good choice.

……

【Respected and great master, your humble, loyal and prudent servant Kespler once again travels through the fog of time and space to report to you...】

In the dead of night in the slums of London, on the transparent panel that only Matthew can see, the system stubbornly uses white mist to transform into long sentences, expressing its humility and loyalty to Matthew in a time before it was born.

[As you can observe, this time and space is not the past of your time and space, and this city is shrouded by a strange black magic-like force.

I use the adjective 'similar' because I can tell you with certainty and certainty that -

My respected and great master, in this time and space that traps the master, most of the traditional magic has lost its effectiveness, and what covers this city is not black magic but a kind of black magic that is extremely similar to black magic but is not even possible It is not a strange power of magic...]

What it is?

Matthew asks...

The system did not answer.

Because of the delay in time and space, even for questions with obvious answers, Matthew has to wait at least 5 minutes to get an answer from the system isolated outside this time and space.

Besides—

After waiting for about 6 minutes, the transparent panel finally responded.

【Respected and great master, please allow your humble, loyal and prudent servant Kespler to ask, do you believe that cities are living things? 】

of course……

Thinking of the city will of Los Angeles, Matthew replied without hesitation: "I believe..."

After another 5 minutes, the system asked again.

[Do you believe that cities that are living creatures can also dream? 】

this……

Matthew hesitated.

Since the city is a living creature, it will naturally dream.

but……

If the city can dream, what is its dream like?What will happen after waking up from the dream?

Matthew felt a chill run up his spine.

Fortunately, the sun has already emerged from the head, although it is somewhat lifeless due to the blockage of the fog.

The system also sent a message again.

【Respected and great master, please allow your humble, loyal and prudent servant, Kespler, to report good news to you.There is a rift in your space that connects to hell, and your servants can feel the magic in your environment through your observation.

About a hundred kilometers away from where you are, there lives an ancient and great magician. She has a deep relationship with the lady honored as Mrs. Shangdu. 】

Mrs. Shangdu?

Matthew suddenly felt bad.

As far as he knew, between Mrs. Shangdu and John Constantine...

Fortunately, the system hopes that what he is looking for is a magician who has a relationship with Mrs. Shangdu.

I hope that this nineteenth-century magician in London, England, who lives in another time and space, does not have the ability to penetrate time and space to see the grievances between him and John Constantine, Mrs. Shangdu and John Constantine.

Making up his mind, Matthew left Mary's house.

Before leaving, he gave more than half of the little penny he had to Mary and her daughter.

I hope they can have enough food and clothing for a few days.

……

"Ancient divination hall? This is it? Destination?"

Looking at the fancy-decorated divination hall from a distance, and the gaudy dress at the entrance of the divination hall, which looks like the staff of a certain industry, Matthew couldn't help suspecting that he had found the wrong place.

How can there be a divination hall that is arranged like a female branch for special lovers!

There are more people coming in and out...

Taking a breath, Matthew walked towards the Ancient Divination Hall.

A well-dressed staff member stepped forward and skillfully grabbed his arm: "This handsome guy, are you here to see the girl you like in the divination house, or do you prefer to choose randomly on the spot?"

"I'm here for divination."

"But the whole street knows that the ancient divination hall does not do divination business..."

The woman entangled Matthew like a snake, and her hands with colorful nail polish flitted across Matthew's face: "Or, the handsome guy wants to find a job in the divination house? If it's a handsome guy like you, there must be a lot of gentlemen He and the lady are willing to patronize."

"I'm coming to the divination house—"

Matthew paused and said, "I would like to ask Mrs. Ancient to divination for me."

"The ancient lady?"

Hearing this, the woman's whole body stiffened like a seven-inch snake, and her charming smile was completely gone.

She looked at Matthew sternly: "Who are you? Why do you know this name!"

"The ancient lady is a great and ancient fortune-teller, she already knew about my arrival..." Matthew said, "She doesn't want to see me, and let you pretend to be a daughter-in-law to prevaricate me, right?"

"Brother, you..."

"I want to see Mrs. Ancient."

Matthew reiterated...

The woman smiled reluctantly.

She told Matthew: "Mrs. Ancient is not something you can see if you want to, nor can you see it if you have money."

"Tell me, how can I meet her?"

"When she wants to see you, she will naturally see you."

After finishing speaking, the woman let go of Matthew and returned to the Ancient Divination Hall with her fancy skirt.

Ouch—

The gate of the divination hall is closed.

It turned out to be a complete rejection of Matthew.

Matthew: He suspects that Madam Yuangu rejected him, on the one hand because he didn't want to cause trouble, and on the other hand——

What kind of experience is it to have a biological father whose love history can be written into tens of thousands of articles?

……

Inside the Divination Hall——

The "Ancient Lady" covered in black veil retracted her slender hands hanging above the crystal ball, looked at the handsome figure leaving in the crystal ball, looked up, and said to a certain lady whose back was turned to her: "Jenny, you Are you mad at me?"

"I don't understand why you refuse him, or even want to see him?"

The petite and active woman turned around and pointed at the "Ancient Lady" angrily: "He looks so helpless, but he is so handsome... Oh, I mean, his appearance is good-looking according to the definition of earthlings." ...You are always the sexiest and most charming in my eyes..."

"Thank you for your affirmation, Jenny, I've always thought I was handsome—"

A short, stocky creature with a potato face that looks like an alien creature broke into the garden greenhouse with a plate full of food, and sat down in front of the "Ancient Lady": "Hey, when can we leave this place?" Ghost place?"

"If I don't go back, the editor of "Seaside Magazine" will definitely suspect that I have dragged the manuscript and absconded."

Jenny Flint, who regularly writes detective stories about the trio’s detective experiences and submits them to the Seaside Magazine to earn royalties and subsidize her family, couldn’t help complaining, “Scotland Yard may be worried that we have been killed, so they are considering setting up an investigation. Group."