Chapter 47: Chapter 47 In Front of the Icon
Nina was overjoyed because it had been a long time since she had enjoyed a normal meal with Uncle Duncan and talked about the events at school, let alone seen a smile on his face.
It even reminded her of the past, of a time before her uncle had fallen ill—after losing her parents at the age of six, this man, who was like a father to her, became her only relative in this world. But four years ago, that mysterious disease, which even doctors couldn’t diagnose, had transformed her uncle, and those years had been honestly quite unbearable.
Her uncle still provided for her schooling and maintained the basic necessities of life, but Nina could feel that everything about the “future” had gradually faded from this familiar and cozy shop, dissipating amongst the strong alcohol, pills, and those sinister and oppressive gatherings with her uncle’s dubious “friends.”
She no longer hoped for life to return to how it was years ago, but the slightest improvement in the situation was worth celebrating.
Duncan was also pleased because he had finally accessed more information about this world and had touched upon its historical context—even just a part of it gave him the joyful sensation of lifting the fog.
The completely lost prehistoric “Era of Order,” the “Great Extinction” event that reshaped the order of all things, the ongoing Deep Sea Age, anomalies, and phenomena spread across the world… These things he had no knowledge of or only a superficial understanding were now taking on a more defined shape.
After breakfast, Nina stood up to clear the tableware. She was quick and efficient, clearly used to these domestic tasks—without a doubt, she was also the one tidying the bedroom upstairs.
A man who was plagued by severe illness, led a decadent life, and devoted most of his energy and passion to the affairs of a cult clearly wouldn’t do such things.
But watching the young girl bustling about, Duncan eventually couldn’t help himself. He stood up and took the large tray from Nina’s hands, “I’ll carry this for you—looks like you’re struggling to get it upstairs.”
Nina looked at Duncan in surprise. She was about to say something when he had already taken big strides towards the stairs.
The girl hurriedly followed, reminding him from behind, “Uncle, be careful, the doctor said your condition is still unstable…”
“The doctor… Dr. Albert?” Duncan didn’t turn around. As he climbed the stairs, he searched his fragmented memories for a corresponding impression but found only fleeting glimpses, “It’s okay, after all, he’s been unable to diagnose the cause until now, and the most effective medicine he’s prescribed are just painkillers.”
“…Still, you should listen to the doctor’s advice,” Nina followed Duncan to the second floor, muttering as they walked towards the kitchen, “At least he knows how to maintain a healthy lifestyle…”
Nina’s speech cut off mid-sentence as the sound of flapping wings suddenly disrupted her actions.
She and Duncan simultaneously looked towards the source of the noise, only to see a shadow flit past the slightly ajar door of the master bedroom.
“Uncle Duncan, something flashed by in your room!” Nina exclaimed in surprise and then swiftly grabbed the doorknob, “Could it be that cat from next door…”
“Hey, don’t…”
Duncan’s attempt to stop her came too late, as Nina had already pushed open the ajar bedroom door, revealing the pigeon hiding inside.
Ai Yi was perched atop the cabinet, with one claw holding a French fry to its beak, and the sudden opening of the door left the pigeon frozen in place, crane its neck to stuff a French fry with one claw, its two mung-bean eyes staring blankly at Nina and the opposite wall.
Then it saw Duncan, flapped its wings twice, making a loud noise, “Ah… coo?”
Duncan’s eyelid twitched, and he saw the wide-open window nearby, which clearly served as Ai Yi’s escape route—beyond the window and in the distance, he could make out a dock basking in the sunlight.
This pigeon had gone to the dock to snag some fries…
“A pigeon?” At this point, Nina finally caught on, staring at Ai Yi on the cabinet in astonishment, “Uncle Duncan! There’s a pigeon in your room!”
“I see it,” Duncan said expressionlessly, “I don’t know it.”
Ai Yi immediately tossed away the fries and fluttered over, landing on Duncan’s shoulder and shaking his head.
“Well, it flew in this morning,” Duncan sighed, “It’s probably someone else’s tame pigeon, but it’s not very smart. I fed it a bit and now it won’t leave.”
Ai Yi listened and cooed loudly.
If there were no strangers present and Duncan hadn’t given an order earlier, Ai Yi would certainly have started loudly expressing agreement with ‘Ah, yes, yes’ by now.
But Nina had no doubt about her uncle’s story. Her eyes sparkled as she watched the pigeon and then cautiously approached, watching the pigeon’s reaction while asking Duncan, “So… are you going to keep it? Can I keep it?”
The girl’s thoughts were written all over her face; in her eyes, Ai Yi was just a beautiful and cute white pigeon. Ai Yi tilted its head and looked at Duncan, letting out a questioning coo.
Duncan suddenly felt that this bird was easier to understand when it wasn’t speaking…
After a moment, he pretended to hesitate before nodding, “You can—but only if the pigeon wants to stay. It might fly away at any moment, so don’t complain when it does.”
Nina’s face lit up with joy: “That’s great! I knew Uncle Duncan, you were actually a reasonable person!”
…
Within the central prayer chamber of the Deep Sea Cathedral, the City-State Bishop Valentin, dressed in a black robe trimmed with gold, stood solemnly in front of a statue of the Storm Goddess.
He was tall and thin with sparse white hair, and his eyes were as calm as deep waters.
The prayer chamber’s large candlesticks burned silently, the holy flames brightening the room, and Gomona’s statue stood high upon the altar. This goddess had no face, her head covered with a black veil, and her long dress depicted with wave patterns fell from her body to the edge of the altar. Even as a stone statue, the divine power was clear, and the entire statue radiated a strong presence. Anyone standing around the statue could feel a vague sense of being watched and protected.
This feeling of being watched and protected was real, and it was under this protection that Fanna felt confident enough to discuss with the bishop everything she had seen in the Dreamscape.
“…If what you saw in the Dreamscape is correct, then it is indeed the Homeloss.”
City-State Bishop Valentin turned around to face the young Judge who had come to seek his counsel early in the morning—despite the church hierarchy wherein the Judge, in charge of martial matters, and the City-State Bishop, in charge of liturgical matters, held parallel ranks. It was normal for a Judge to seek the Bishop’s advice or even guidance when dealing with transcendent events.
“So it really is the Homeloss?” Despite already having an inkling in her mind, Fanna couldn’t help but widen her eyes on hearing the bishop’s judgment, “I thought…”
“You thought that ship was now just a legend, like those various ghost ship tales that superstitious sailors bluster about in the taverns?” Valentin knew what Fanna was going to say. The sparse-haired old man shook his head, his tone grave, “The existence of the Homeloss is acknowledged by all City-States and the Church. It isn’t a tale, but something you could find in the church archives.”
“I know, the Homeloss did indeed exist. The archives in the City-State of Prand even have some of its construction blueprints and launch records from over a century ago, but all these verifiable records only go as far as when the Homeloss was still a ship sailing in the real world, only as far as Captain Duncan was still human…”
As Fanna spoke, her tone was serious. She glanced at the statue behind the bishop, her expression becoming increasingly cautious when mentioning certain terms.
“The key point is that the ship was clearly recorded as having sunk into the Subspace… A century ago, thousands of refugees from the Thirteen Isles of Vesseran witnessed their homes and their soil, along with that ship, being devoured by the collapsing border, plummeting into the shadow of the Subspace. In the decades that followed, although there were eyewitness reports claiming the Homeloss reappeared in the real world, none had solid evidence. Many scholars are doubtful of the ship’s ‘return voyage’…”
The young Judge continued, glancing at the elderly man before her.
“Is it really possible for something swallowed by the Subspace to reappear in the real world?”
“…Until now, nothing except the Homeloss has ever returned to reality after falling into the Subspace. Even with the Homeloss, there are only subsequent eyewitness reports, and scholars across fields doubt the ship’s return voyage. That is indeed the case. However, that is not the crux…” The old man said, his gaze suddenly fixed on Fanna, his face assuming an unusual seriousness, “The crux is, Judge, are you afraid of something?”