Chapter 212: Chapter 216: Hospitality on the Homeloss
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The sea was serene, the breeze pleasant, the gentle waves slowly lapping, the sunlight not too intense. Had it not been for the knowledge of the great terror lurking beneath the deep sea, one could even describe this as a delightful scene.
It was as if, not long ago, the whole City-State being dragged into an apocalypse, ablaze with raging fires, was nothing but a horrific nightmare that never happened.
On the high platform at the stern of the Homeloss, the dark steering wheel was turning angles automatically, uncontrolled by any person, while not far away, the sails were also slowly adjusting their angles.
Nina sat on the deck at the edge of the high platform, her upper body leaning on the railing’s edge with her legs hanging outside, gently swaying back and forth, while Duncan was sitting on a large barrel beside her.
“…It feels very strange. I know you’re my Uncle Duncan, I know you’re someone I can rely on and trust, but at the same time, another ‘fact’ is just so clear…”
She seemed to be speaking to herself, with a voice that was light and slow.
...
“I had an uncle who was a regular person, he used to be a very good man, honest and hard-working, but then he became… not so good. He got sick, started to drink, to gamble, became irritable, and things got worse every day. At that time, I even felt that going home was a terrible thing to do…
“But suddenly, my uncle got better, like in a dream. His health improved, his temper got better, and the atmosphere at home seemed to return to the past… even better than before. In fact, from that time onwards… I often thought how nice it would be if you could always be my uncle.”
Duncan slightly furrowed his brows.
“Did you realize something was amiss back then?”
“Vaguely… but I wasn’t sure. And there’s something I couldn’t understand,” Nina turned her head slightly and looked up, “If it was really like what the books say, a ‘malevolent spirit’ taking over my home, then why would that spirit be so good to me?”
Duncan looked into Nina’s eyes, and after a while, he suddenly laughed.
“I’m much more formidable than any malevolent spirit.”
“Now I can see that, and you are also much friendlier than a malevolent spirit,” Nina laughed as well, resting her head on the railing beside her in a languid manner, “You’re Uncle Duncan, right?”
“Yes, and I can always be.”
“That’s really comforting… I’m much more at ease now,” Nina sighed softly, then fell silent for a while before hesitantly speaking again, “My other uncle… was he at peace when he left?”
Duncan recalled the night he truly entered the Plunder City-State.
A beyond-redemption heretic breathed his last in the cold, damp sewer, his sinister brethren plotting to cast his body into the depths of darkness, while his muddled mind harbored nothing but malicious resentment and twisted fanaticism for the dark sun.
But there remained a sliver of humanity, concern for a relative he depended on.
Let it be for that sliver of humanity.
“He left peacefully, and by now he must be at rest,” Duncan said softly, “He didn’t have many worries left at the end, and you were among them.”
“That’s a relief,” Nina exhaled gently, as if she had let go of the last burden she carried, and then stretched vigorously, laying herself back on the deck. The Homeloss’s translucent Spiritual Body sails were reflected in her pupils, “So much has happened lately, especially today… Can you tell me about it? The things you haven’t told me yet, about this ship, about you, and… about me.”
Duncan got up from the barrel and lay down beside Nina, settling in slowly: “That would take a long time to tell, my dear. Uncle Duncan, you see, has many stories…”
…
“In conclusion, Captain Duncan is just that impressive…”
On the wide deck of the Homeloss, Alice was enthusiastically regaling her “guests” with the captain’s great feats. She had been speaking non-stop for quite some time, and at least two-thirds of these exploits she had heard from the Goat Man, which first were embellished by him and now further scrambled by the doll-like miss, to the point that they were completely warped beyond human comprehension—if Duncan himself heard them, he might be startled, and even Alice herself wouldn’t dare to guarantee that she could repeat the stories accurately on the spot.
But such wild tales were listened to with utmost seriousness by Sherry and Morris on the other side, even Ali the dog had put aside his newspaper and was all ears.
They didn’t find anything unreasonable about the jumbled stories Alice was telling— even when Alice insisted that the Homeloss actually had two large legs hidden underneath it, which allowed it to sprint so quickly across the seabed.
Subspace bigwig, eh? Homeloss, eh? Number one disaster of the Endless Sea, eh?—the more outrageous, the more credible, the more irrational, the better it fit.
The woman before him was “Miss Alice,” who had a place on the Homeloss and followed Mr. Duncan, even daring to pinch Mr. Duncan’s cheeks in the antique shop. Whatever she said must be right.
“Homeloss is really something…” Morris applauded in admiration. He had studied his whole life and only realized his ignorance upon meeting Alice. “I’ve seen numerous articles about this ship in books. Those authors sit in their rooms and write entire books based on imagination, but now it seems more than ninety percent of that content is simply preposterous…”
No sooner had the old gentleman finished speaking than a commanding voice suddenly came from the side, “I strongly advise against taking Alice’s words seriously—her wild tales are far more exaggerated than those fabricated books.”
The moment the voice emerged, A-Dog scurried behind Sherry, and Morris quickly got up to look at the large figure striding down the nearby staircase, “Ah, Duncan… Captain, are you done with your duties?”
Duncan nodded and continued down the staircase, followed by a petite figure also descending behind him.
“Nina!” Sherry exclaimed joyfully upon seeing the figure and sprang up to meet her, “You’re all right! You’ve returned!”
As she got up to greet her, the black chains on Sherry’s arms instantly became taut. A-Dog, who had been pretending to be nonexistent with its head down, was dragged forward, tumbling and exclaiming, “Hey, slow down… damn it, you’re still dragging me… oh my goodness…”
“Sherry,” Nina greeted, smiling brightly as she grabbed Sherry’s arm and gave it a vigorous shake, then bent down to look at A-Dog, who had just crashed headfirst into the staircase, patting the creature’s skeletal head, “And Mr. A-Dog, I’m back.”
Morris also stepped forward to greet his student, then turned to look at Alice, “Miss Alice, what you just mentioned… was all that made up?”
“I didn’t make it up! Mr. Goat Head said so!” Alice immediately retorted with wide eyes, “It said it has served on the Homeloss for a century and knows more about this ship than anyone!”
Morris was bewildered, “Goat Head?”
“My first mate—you wouldn’t enjoy dealing with it,” Duncan remarked offhand, then glanced around at those standing before him.
Morris, Sherry, A-Dog—unexpected boarders, long-absent visitors of the Homeloss.
During the emergency in the Plunder City-State, although Duncan already had a plan to exploit the Homeloss’s unique properties to strip away the historical contamination, as a precaution, he had urgently transported the “guests” seeking refuge in the antique shop to the ship. But now that things in the City-State had settled, it was time to consider the future.
At least Morris, an old man with family in the City-State, was unlikely to wish to stay forever on this Ghost Ship.
After a brief contemplation, Duncan withdrew his gaze.
“I suppose you are already aware of your current location and know my identity—as you can see, this is the Homeloss, and I am the captain of this ship. In the last century, at least half of the horror tales in the Endless Sea… are somewhat related to me.
“As for the veracity and exaggerations of these tales, I express no opinion. However, one thing is certain, as the tales say: once you’ve boarded the Homeloss, it’s very hard to sever the connection with this ship. In some sense, having gone through Ai Yi’s transfer and the Homeloss’s ‘Spiritual Body’ transformation, you are now part of the crew.
“Unfortunately, this process is neither reversible nor avoidable.”
Duncan bluntly delivered this truth—a realization he had come to based on his recent experiences with the Homeloss and his own powers.
Those who encountered the Homeloss, those who encountered the Ghost Flame, would inevitably establish a connection with Duncan, even if he himself knew nothing of it—the earliest case was with the Oak Ship, and the most recent was with Fenna.
The reactions from Morris and Sherry were calmer than Duncan expected, only A-Dog muttered something indistinct with a droopy head.
It seemed they had already foreseen this situation and were prepared for it.
Duncan paused deliberately for two or three seconds before suddenly shaking his head with a smile.
“However, there is one aspect where it differs from the legends,” he said more relaxedly, “this ship doesn’t just have one-way tickets, and as you can see, I, the captain, am not the uncontrollable natural disaster depicted in the tales.
“You boarded the ship because of the emergency at the time, so I do not restrict your freedom.”
This time, Sherry and Morris finally widened their eyes a bit, especially Morris, who had just been wondering how he could return to the City-State and obtain the qualifications to return to the mortal world from a Subspace Shadow. He was surprised to find it so simple: “Does that mean… we can go back?”
“Of course you can,” Duncan smiled, “The crisis in Plunder has ended. You’re free to come and go as you please, but…”
Morris tensed up again.
“However, please eat before you leave,” Duncan suggested casually, “Hospitality dictates I offer you a meal. The food on the Homeloss is simple, but it has its specialties, especially the seafood, which is unlike anything you can find in the City-State…”