Chapter 194: Chapter 198 Alice’s First Day Out in the World
Duncan was a little creeped out by the direct gaze of the doll, but after a few seconds of calm, he couldn’t help frowning and asking, “What are you looking at?”
Alice honestly replied, “Looking at you.”
Duncan had a bewildered look on his face, “What’s so interesting about me?”
“The first time I saw you speak with… this appearance,” Alice said incredulously, “Although you mentioned before that you have another body and identity here, it’s still so incredible to actually see it! Captain, your current appearance is completely different from when you’re on the ship. You’re not as tall or as grim, um… you look more like a good person…”
As soon as Duncan heard this, his eyes widened, but before he could speak, Alice hurriedly added another sentence, “Ah, I shouldn’t speak ill of you, Captain…”
“How many times have I told you not to blindly follow that goat-headed idiot! Complimenting someone as a good person isn’t speaking ill—complimenting me is the same!” Duncan glared at her, feeling his brain shaking, “And did you forget my reminder? Here in the City-State, don’t call me ‘Captain’, call me Mr. Duncan or Manager, got it?”
Alice shivered and retracted her head slightly, “Ah… Right! Remembered it, Manager… I mean Mr. Manager!”
“…You might as well just call me Mr. Duncan,” Duncan sighed with a weary expression, “At least you’re more familiar with that name, there’s a lower chance of messing it up.”
“Oh, okay, Mr. Duncan.” Alice quickly nodded in agreement, but as soon as she lowered her head, she heard Duncan remind her again with resignation, “Don’t lower your head, your head will fall off—if you drop your head in front of everyone, your trip to the City-State would be over.”
Alice let out an “Oh,” and then frowned and thought for a moment, “It seems like I’ve heard Ai Yi mutter a similar sentence to what you just said, but it wasn’t like that… It said, ‘Don’t lower your head, the crown will…’”
“Do you have a crown on your head?!” Duncan glared, “You’ve got nothing but a wig on your head—it’s on there tighter than your actual head!”
Alice pondered for a moment: “Heh heh…”
She was quiet for less than two seconds before suddenly starting to stare at Duncan again, and this time she spoke before he could, “Captain… Can I touch your face?”
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Duncan looked puzzled, “I don’t mind, but why?”
Alice had already reached out as soon as she heard the words “I don’t mind.” It seemed that after leaving the authoritative “main body” of Captain Duncan, the doll’s courage had inflated to unprecedented levels. She stepped forward, pinching the cheeks of Duncan’s current body, eyes filled with amazement, “Incredible! This is real! When I saw you on the ship, I thought your face was carved out of stone!”
Duncan felt extremely awkward, dodging backwards while opening his mouth helplessly, “Have you had enough? That’s about…”
Before he could finish his sentence, he heard two light footsteps coming from the direction of the staircase. Then came Nina’s clear and cheerful voice, “Uncle, Sherry and I have finished eating! What are you busy with down here…?”
Duncan turned his head with a blank expression, and Alice still had her hand outstretched. Nina stood at the second-floor staircase, staring dumbfounded at the scene next to the counter, looking at the elegant and beautiful lady who seemed to be a noblewoman from the Upper City District, who had appeared in the shop at some unspecified time. Sherry almost bumped into Nina, “Hey, why did you suddenly stop?”
Alice briskly withdrew her hand and placed her crossed hands on her lap, sitting straight and dignified in front of the counter.
As prim and proper as a gorgeous doll displayed in the window of the Rose Doll House.
It took Nina a while to come to her senses. She hesitated to walk down the stairs, carefully observing the beautiful lady sitting across from Duncan. Sherry, following her, also saw the situation on the first floor, but her mind was entirely on something else—
“Argo Argo, look, what is that sitting across from Mr. Duncan… Is it a person? Can you beat it?”
Argo’s voice took a long time to respond, sounding extra cautious, “I can’t see too clearly through your eyes, but the more I look, the less it looks like a person… Not sure if I can beat it, but I definitely wouldn’t fight her.”
Sherry was stunned, “Why? You can’t even tell what that is, why are you so scared?”
“Of course! She dared to pinch Mr. Duncan’s face!” Argo’s voice sounded feeble, “Just for that, if she wanted to stew me, I’d volunteer to chop the wood…”
“…Argo, you’re getting more and more embarrassing.”
“This is called judging the situation—do you know how many humans spend their whole lives’ wisdom just to grasp this essence of survival?”
Sherry ignored Argo.
During their conversation, she and Nina had reached the first floor. She saw Nina approach the pretty young lady sitting in front of Duncan and heard their conversation begin.
“Uncle, who is this lady?” Nina asked curiously, her eyes surreptitiously sizing up Alice next to her, filled with surprise and speculation—she had never seen such a beautiful woman before, nor had she seen any young lady behave as intimately with her uncle as she had just witnessed. Her intense curiosity made her eyes sparkle slightly.
“Oh, let me introduce you,” Duncan cleared his throat twice to ease the awkwardness from before, then calmly raised his hand to point, “Her name is Alice. Remember I mentioned before about recruiting another pair of hands for the shop? That’s her.”
After finishing his introduction, he immediately pointed towards Nina and Sherry: “This is my niece, Nina, and this is Sherry, who is staying here temporarily for the time being.”
“Hello,” Alice immediately greeted them proactively, this time remembering Duncan’s instructions, sitting up straight with the perfect nod, reining in her previously boisterous demeanor and greeting them in the most polite manner possible.
However, it was perhaps due to some indelible “texture” unique to an android that Alice’s restrained manner seemed to Nina and Sherry as an ineffable elegance and breeding, as well as a certain mysterious and reserved temperament.
The two girls’ first encounter with this simple-minded android culminated in an epic misunderstanding.
“You… hello,” Nina said nervously, swallowing hard as if afraid of leaving a bad impression, and nodded at Alice, “Pleased to meet you.”
Sherry followed suit with her greeting, also a bit nervous, but her anxiety stemmed more from what A Dog had said earlier, “Hello, I’m very… very happy to meet you too.”
Then the room fell into a stalemate, both parties keeping straight faces, neither one speaking.
Sherry and Nina didn’t know what to say next; the beautiful and elegant lady in front of them seemed almost out of place in the Lower City District, making the two girls feel like anything they might say would displease Miss Alice.
As for Alice, it was even simpler—her mind was mostly empty.
And occasionally filled with mush.
Fortunately, Duncan had anticipated such a situation and knew exactly what was happening the moment he saw the awkward silence; he promptly coughed to break the silence: “Ahem, Sherry, how’s your injury?”
“Injury… Oh! It’s completely healed!” Sherry was startled for a moment before realizing and straightened up, responding to Duncan as if giving a report, “And I ate a lot just now, not hungry at all now!”
“I didn’t ask you that… but I’m glad you enjoyed today’s meal,” Duncan said with a smile, “Rest up these next few days, I’ll cook you some nutritious food to restore your Vital Energy. Nina, do you have any plans for today?”
“I was just about to take Sherry to shop in the next street over,” Nina promptly said, “To buy her a couple of new dresses and some shoes—her clothes are pretty old.”
Saying this, she turned her head towards Sherry, emphasizing before the other could speak: “It’s a welcome gift for when you moved in, it’s rude to refuse.”
“I…” Sherry opened her mouth, momentarily unsure of what to say and eventually nodded, “Well then, thank you… and thank you, Mr. Duncan.”
Duncan nodded and a smile spread across his face, “Then don’t wander too far, come back before evening—Sherry, you take good care of Nina.”
Sherry immediately straightened up, her voice so loud it startled Nina: “Yes, Mr. Duncan!”
Afterward, the two girls bid farewell to Duncan and Alice and set off towards the door, with Nina muttering as they walked, “Why did you suddenly shout like that, it startled me… Uncle? My uncle isn’t scary.”
“I… I was being polite, I’ve been learning manners lately…”
Listening to the receding murmurs of the two girls, Duncan couldn’t help but smile to himself, then turned his head, only to see Alice staring straight at him again.
“What are you staring at me for?”
“Mr. Duncan… you’re quite different here than on the ship,” Alice said seriously, looking at Duncan and sizing him up before she spoke, “You’re much more approachable than you were on the ship!”
“That’s enough, don’t dwell on the unnecessary,” Duncan said with a resigned smile, well aware of why Alice felt this way—even he knew that he had always been on edge on the ship, and although he had relaxed a bit recently, it was nothing compared to the freedom he felt in the City-State. He didn’t elaborate on the matter, and quickly steered the conversation elsewhere, “Let’s talk about your situation—without legal documentation, it’s best not to draw attention in the Upper City District. For now, just help out at the antique shop. That will help you adapt to the environment and give me a hand. When I’m out, you stay by the counter. When customers come, just… wait, I’ve just thought of a problem!”
Duncan suddenly paused and looked at the android in front of him with a peculiar expression, taking several seconds before speaking hesitantly, “Do you… know what money is?”
Alice’s face showed curiosity: “What is money?”
Duncan: “…”