In the white mist, the middle-aged detective with a clear face did not speak. Xia De tried to open his mouth, hesitated for a long time, and finally said:
"sorry."
"Shad Hamilton, why are you apologizing to me?"
Many people called the stranger "Shad Hamilton", but when facing the detective in front of him, the stranger felt a little ashamed to hear this name.
He raised his head and said hesitantly:
"You entrusted everything to me, hoping that nothing about your life would be exposed after your death. But I still used your information for my own benefit..."
He was genuinely sorry about it.
"So, has the identity been revealed?"
The middle-aged detective with a transparent body asked, his eyes sharp and his expression serious.
Shade shook his head:
"No."
"So, did your actions cause any damage to the Gray Gloves?"
"No."
Xia De shook his head again, not paying attention to the puzzled expression on the doctor's face.
"Then why apologize?"
The middle-aged detective said calmly.
"Because you showed me kindness, but I violated your wishes."
Sparrow Hamilton looked at Shad:
"Good intentions? You can tell me all this so honestly, but I am the one who brought you into danger. Letting you inherit the Hamilton Detective Agency was dangerous to you. I am not noble either. Yes, no one is noble."
Xia De nodded, but suddenly looked up:
"Also, I'm a member of MI6 now, but I've also connected with the Grey Gloves."
Sparrow Hamilton shook his head slightly:
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because when you were alive..."
"That was before I was alive, and I am dead now. I lived up to my country and the organization, and after I die, my soul is free."
At this moment, he still looked serious:
"Shad Hamilton, I don't know what you went through after I left to bring me back. But remember, Sparrow Hamilton is dead."
Xia De opened his mouth, not expecting the other party to say that.
"Of course I'm not a good person. Yes, I never was. But I'm gone, and you inherited everything. You are now the master of St. Teresa's Square. Sparrow has become history and has fallen asleep forever. You, Shad Hamilton, truly own everything of mine. Young man, you have to choose your own path. Why do you still bother me?"
This question Shade could not answer, Sparrow Hamilton shook his head:
"I led you away from the life of a vagabond, but I am gone after all. I did something wrong when I was alive, and this is the only thing I feel guilty about when I die, which is rare for me. So, everything in St. Teresa's Square belongs to you, and you, don't bother me."
For some reason, after hearing the other party say that everything here belonged to him, Shade suddenly felt relieved. All the pressures of living in St. Teresa's Square in the past seemed to dissipate with Sparrow Hamilton's words.
Of course, he knew that Grey Eagle, as an ace agent, was definitely not a good person in the traditional sense, but he also remembered the scene where Detective Sparrow apologized to him and wished him good luck before he died:
"I remain sorry that I took advantage of your identity and legacy."
He said formally.
"I forgive you."
Sparrow Hamilton said seriously, then sighed:
"I also apologize to you for putting you in danger."
"I forgive you too... I have completed the four commissions you left behind..."
Thinking of the cat in his arms, he added:
“Just the finishing touches.”
That serious face finally showed a little smile:
"That's great. Although being a detective is just a disguised profession, I'm also happy that I didn't affect anyone's life. The detective life over the past few years has also made me feel nostalgic for it. After all, I'm just a mortal."
Shade hesitated:
"Also, I have kept your room, the master bedroom. But now, I want to move in, and the side bedroom is a bit small."
The middle-aged detective gently reminded:
"Young man, you are the master of the house. You don't have to ask for my opinion."
Sparrow Hamilton lowered his hat slightly, turned around and walked towards the thick fog when he came:
"The road ahead belongs to you. Besides, all mortals will die eventually. I just hope that you will not bother me anymore..."
"Yes, then farewell, Sparrow Hamilton."
The detective walked off into the white mist, leaving Shade alone to watch him go.
"Gray gloves?"
The doctor at the side was still surprised by what he heard, and went to see Xia De, hoping to get an answer, but saw Xia De close his eyes and sighed deeply:
"Doctor, it's still raining outside, right? I think I need to go to the cemetery outside the city."
"It's still raining, but we can go together... and talk about your story with Sparrow Hamilton."
It is said that every autumn rain brings more coolness, and the rain in the second half of the Dead Leaves Month really makes the atmosphere of late autumn even more intense.
The sound of rain hitting the roof of the carriage and the wheels rolling on the cobblestone road seemed to have a little more rhythm than usual. Autumn rain always makes people feel bad. Shad in the carriage may have been affected by the rain. While the carriage was carrying the two gentlemen through the Pearl of the North, he told Dr. Schneider the complete story of him and Sparrow Hamilton in a somewhat depressed tone.
Xia De didn't even tell Lecia about all those things. The doctor was the first person to know everything.
Even though the middle-aged psychiatrist had seen many ups and downs and had experienced many adventures that ordinary people, even ordinary ring sorcerers, could not imagine, he was still shocked by Shade's story:
"In other words, you are not only an agent of MI6 now, but if you want, you can also perfectly inherit the identity of the 'Grey Eagle' and become the ace spy of the Gray Gloves?"
Because it was raining outside, Shade left Mia at home, hoping that it would not disturb the two girls who fell asleep again after breakfast. He lowered his head and nodded slightly. The doctor covered his mouth and didn't know what to say for a moment:
"I originally thought that you inherited 6 Saint Teresa's Square, which was already a good thing... I didn't expect that the house was just a bonus..."
"I actually have no intention of becoming a secret agent. When I inherited Uncle Sparrow's legacy, I was really grateful to him and never thought of using his identity to do anything. It's just that every time I encounter something related to this, I seem to make a different choice. To the point that, inexplicably, I actually have the possibility of replacing Sparrow Hamilton as the Grey Eagle."
It was raining heavily outside the car window, and Xia De was in a bad mood:
"Although the former detective had selfish motives in taking the blind and foolish Shad away from homeless life, it was indeed his actions that made me who I am today. I actually feel a little guilty... Especially since he didn't blame me."
The stranger knows from whom he has received the favor, and he is not ungrateful.
"You don't have to blame yourself. After all, you just used that identity to make some money and help your friends, but you didn't bring any stain to the reputation and honor of the Gray Eagle."
The doctor advised:
"Since Sparrow Hamilton said he doesn't mind you using his identity, why don't you use the identity of Gray Eagle to help Gray Gloves do something as a reward for Sparrow Hamilton without violating your moral values."
This is a good idea, but it also seems likely to cause Shad to sink deeper and deeper into the identity of "Grey Eagle".
The carriage soon arrived at the public cemetery outside the city, and Shad did not take advantage of Sunday to stay at home with Lesia and Dorothy, just to visit Sparrow Hamilton's grave again.
He has decided to move from the side bedroom to the master bedroom. Everything in the past has been completed, and he will inherit everything in No. 6 Saint Teresa's Square. Today's visit is to say goodbye and acknowledge that Sparrow Hamilton is gone forever. Everything Shad does from now on will no longer have anything to do with him.
The autumn rain was drizzling, and two men holding black umbrellas, wearing black coats and black rain boots, walked side by side on the path in the cemetery. Detective Sparrow was buried in the No. 2 grave of the East District Public Cemetery in Tobesk. On Sunday morning, he should have been able to meet many people here, but because of the autumn rain, there were only two or three people standing between the tombstones in the hazy rain curtain.
Shade and Dr. Schneider walked and talked. Shade didn't want to talk more about Sparrow, so he talked about what he encountered in Midhill Castle:
"I went there almost every day throughout the fall, helping some people and killing some. And when I was in danger, when I was in the most desperate situation, the souls I had helped came to help me."
He did not say that he was looking for Red Butterfly at that time, but only said that he was also in Xikar Mountain on Wednesday night:
"The corporal who asked me to help deliver the relic pistol, Professor Higgins who mistook me for a gray eagle, the innocent ladies who were murdered by the serial killer, and the earl who came back to life but eventually left after finishing the Rhodes card game... This way."
The two turned left at the sermon in the cemetery, and the doctor listened quietly to Shade's story:
"There is still kindness in this world, especially when you show your kindness. Although you don't have to expect it to be rewarded, sometimes you will get extra rewards. Detective, mortals will die one day, but the kindness that is passed on will never die."
The psychiatrist with a demon in his heart said with a smile. Xia De nodded and smiled as well:
"Yes, all mortals are mortal... That's why I wanted to visit Detective Sparrow again today, as a final farewell."
"That's good. You've gotten rid of all the influence that Sparrow Hamilton left behind. From now on, you're the real Detective Hamilton."
The doctor encouraged, and his expertise in psychology helped him analyze Xia De's thoughts at the moment.
Looking at the tombstones standing in the rain, the doctor kindly removed the wet leaves stuck on the tombstones and continued to walk forward with Shade:
"Everyone will die, but Sparrow Hamilton is lucky. At least he is remembered by you. You inherited everything from him, but you also know everything about him. As long as you are alive, he will not disappear. What a lucky guy..."
The doctor's words sounded a bit like what Marilyn Handel would say when she was about to die.
“Be remembered?”
Shade murmured:
"Doctor, what do you think of resurrecting the dead?"
"Of course this is not right, but people who think this way should have many stories, right?"
The doctor and Shade turned into the path in the cemetery in the rain:
"Like I said just now, everyone is mortal. Even if they are resurrected, it cannot change the fact that they will die one day. But the return of the dead prolongs the meaning of life. Each of us is destined to die, and we can only decide our own process. It's time for the old saying of the psychiatrist again - instead of worrying about the death that is coming, it is better to think about your current life."
Xia De nodded, and the doctor was quite emotional:
"Of course, resurrecting the dead is wrong in itself. After all, those who are gone should not come back."
The boots made a strange sound when they stepped on the relatively flat gravel path in the cemetery. The sound of the rain indicated that the rain would probably continue for a long time. Xia De hoped that the temperature would not drop too much recently.