"Sebastian, why did you not get up when I told you to?! I could've bloody died!" Ciel reprimanded as he stormed out of East End towards the direction of Scotland Yard's headquarters.
"I apologize, Young Master," Sebastian remarked, "but I knew you would be saved by the other man. He had been following us the whole time."
"And you did not bother to utter even a single word about it?" Ciel commented in a disapproving tone. Sebastian smiled, amused at his young master's flustered attitude and replied, saying, "You never asked me about it."
The look Ciel had when he stopped and shot a glare at Sebastian only made the butler smile even more. It made the young boy a little more appetizing, seeing him so determined to seek even a little bit of vengeance over something as trivial as this. The butler could only guess what the boy was thinking: "I'll get back at you one of these days." I would love to see you try, Sebastian thought to himself.
"Now, now, do not act like a child. It is quite unbecoming, especially for an Earl such as yourself," Sebastian said, reverting back to a serious expression.
Ciel scoffed. "Very well, then," he muttered, then said with a more assertive tone, "We are going to find out all we can about Sir Walter and why he was murdered. We are also going to investigate a little more about that brawl earlier. Send a note of apology to the Funtom associates; I shall be too busy to conduct any business with them today." I'm not going to let that strange man tell me what I can and cannot do, were the Guard Dog's thoughts.
"Yes, my Lord," Sebastian replied. He followed Ciel until the boy stopped to catch his breath. The butler then hailed a carriage to take them the rest of the way to Scotland Yard.
Scotland Yard Headquarters
Ciel Phantomhive walked into the Scotland Yard building and spotted Inspector Fred Abberline. The Inspector was usually partnered with Lord Arthur Randall on many of Scotland Yard's investigations. The Earl walked up to the inspector, hardly not in the mood for games.
Abberline spotted Ciel from a few meters away, and he greeted the boy with a warm and pleasant smile. "Good morning, Earl Phantomhive," Abberline greeted. "How may I-"
"Where's Lord Randall?" Ciel cut in before Abberline even began to finish his sentence.
"If this is about the Sir Walter case, he refuses to give his consent to let you see the body and evidence picked up from the crime scene," Abberline replied.
"Typical," muttered the boy. He looked up at Abberline and stated, "It does not matter what Lord Randall thinks and allows. I have a letter from the Queen herself, giving me consent to investigate this matter." He pulled out the letter from that morning.
Inspector Abberline examined the letter carefully. Lord Randall told him to always make sure that the letter was actually written by the Queen. Abberline was not sure why Lord Randall was so picky and paranoid about these things, especially around the Earl of Phantomhive, but he did not question the Chief Inspector's motives. Inspector Abberline verified that the letter had actually been written by the Queen, and he handed this letter back to Ciel.
"It looks like you're telling the truth. I'll escort you to the autopsy room. Try not to irritate Lord Randall, though. He will not like that I'm permitting you to do this," announced Abberline, muttering the last sentence under his breath. And with that, Ciel and Sebastian were taken to the autopsy room to see Sir Walter Scott.
"ABBERLINE! I thought I told you about this!" Lord Arthur Randall bellowed, gesturing to the side where Ciel and Sebastian stood. The poor inspector took the blows of Lord Randall's words and stood meekly before the Chief Inspector.
"He did have a letter from the Queen, though-" began Abberline, but Lord Randall would not hear another word from the inferior inspector.
"I don't care if he has a bloody invitation! This is my investigation, and I will not have anyone interfering with it!" Lord Randall exclaimed.
"It was Her Majesty's orders for me to conduct further investigation of the case, Lord Randall," Ciel chimed in. "Even you can see that this case is no ordinary homicide case."
"I can see that, little boy, but I don't think this is a case for a child like you to be toying around with," Lord Randall growled.
"Oh really, Arthur? As I was conducting my investigation, I was attacked by a group of thugs who so happened to have riflemen stationed on the rooftops, ready to shoot me. I nearly died today, because these fellows were trying to prevent me from investigating the crime scene. I must have been set up today, because I found this on one of the thugs during the little skirmish," Ciel commented, taking out a pocketwatch that, when opened, revealed a red cross-like insignia underneath the lid. Silence. Lord Randall could not speak out against this boy, this child who somehow made it out of that situation alive, if he is indeed telling the truth. This made him all the more enraged and flustered, especially because the boy addressed him by his first name.
"I believe that after all of this went on, I can 'toy around' with this investigation. Now, you will tell me everything you know regarding the case," Ciel commanded with a smirk. Lord Randall, irritably and reluctantly, took Ciel to the table holding the body of Sir Walter Scott.
"Cover your faces. The stench will make you vomit if you take even a small whiff," Lord Randall warned. Ciel and Abberline covered their noses. Sebastian did so as well, only because he would look suspicious if he didn't. Once he saw everyone cover their faces so as not to inhale death's putrid stench, Lord Randall pulled the white sheet covering Sir Walter's body. Sir Walter lay cold on the table, with multiple stab wounds visible on his body.
"According to our pathologists, the murder took place between the hours of 11 o'clock and 1. The stab wounds were inflicted by multiple people at once, because each stab wound was made by various knives or daggers, whatever it is they used. Either way, it ensured his death. It also seemed like the culprits tried to clean up the act, and they also robbed Sir Walter of a few of his belongings, due to his clothes looking out of place in certain areas. He was picked clean, for sure. What I find rather odd, though, is why Sir Walter chose to wear beggar-like clothing if he is of nobility," Lord Randall explained.
"Well, he is in Whitechapel. If he wore anything too conspicuous, he would find himself beat-up in an alley and stripped of money and possibly his fancy suit," Ciel remarked.
"Yes, but why would he even be at Whitechapel anyway? He could have sent one of his servants to complete whatever task he had set to complete last night," stated Lord Randall. "That is the question that I have been pondering for quite some time."
"And still no answer? What a pity," Ciel commented. The young Earl was rather amused at seeing Lord Randall irked by his very presence.
"And you dare to think that you can produce an answer faster than I can with my team of experts?" Lord Randall retorted.
"Yes. In fact, I've been doing that for quite some time already. Now, is there anything else about Sir Walter or the crime scene that was odd?" answered Ciel. It would be rather pointless to argue about who is better at solving cases for the Queen, Ciel thought to himself.
"We took pictures of the blood streaks where the body was dragged from its original position, as you may have already noticed in your little excursion to Whitechapel. The culprits cleaned up fairly well for being in the dark of night, like I said. There was nothing left of the crime scene but the body," Lord Randall irritably explained as he placed the white sheet over Sir Walter again.
"I was not finished looking at Sir Walter-" Ciel spoke out, but Lord Randall interrupted by saying, "I gave you enough information regarding the investigation. Now, since you seem to be so confident about solving this case before me, as if this was some petty race, then you are more than capable of figuring the rest of the details out on your own. Now leave."
"Hmph. Very well. Good day, Lord Randall. Try not to punish Inspector Abberline too harshly; he was only doing his duty as an honorable inspector should," quipped Ciel as he left the autopsy room and Scotland Yard's headquarters. Sebastian followed the boy; they entered a carriage and paid the driver to take them back to the Phantomhive Estate.
"I think he knows more than he's letting on," the young Earl surmised on the way home.
"Indeed, for I spotted something rather unusual on the body of Sir Walter as Lord Randall droned on about his speculations of the case," Sebastian commented.
"Well?"
"I will tell you when we arrive at the manor. It's too dangerous speaking of it here, especially after what happened earlier," Sebastian concluded. The boy nodded, knowing all too well that he would like to avoid these near-death experiences at all costs. The horses pulled the carriage onward, moving along past the outskirts of London and towards the forested area that surrounded the Phantomhive Estate.