Chapter 243: Chapter 247 Revisiting the Old Place
The clear ring of a bell accompanied the opening of the door, and the afternoon sun streamed into this old shop, almost filled with various dolls. The elf shopkeeper, busy adjusting a doll skeleton behind the counter, heard the noise and looked up to see a tall man with black hair and an eyepatch entering the shop.
The elderly elf woman looked puzzlingly at this “guest,” who didn’t seem to be here to buy dolls, but after a moment of confusion, she still smiled and greeted him—she did not recognize that this tall, one-eyed man was the same child who had bought something from her shop with his sister a century ago, “Ah, welcome to the Rose Doll House, feel free to look around.”
She paused, then casually added, “We don’t see customers like you very often.”
Tirian’s gaze slowly swept around.
The various dolls, the antique racks, the carved staircase, the warm and calm atmosphere, and the smiling old woman.
Fragments of yellowed memories gradually pieced together into a familiar scene that began to overlap with the scenery before him.
...
It indeed was the place; Lukrecia had given the right directions.
It was normal that the elf shopkeeper didn’t recognize him—his appearance had changed too much compared to a century ago.
Tirian slightly adjusted his expression, trying to make his face appear softer—half a century of roaming and plundering on the Chill Sea had turned him into a stern man. He knew he always carried an uncomfortable aura, which apparently affected the kind shopkeeper. Though she was smiling in greeting, her eyes could not hide the confusion and a hint of wariness.
“I want to inquire about something,” Tirian wasn’t sure if his facial adjustment was adequate, as he struggled to recall what kind of expression and tone ordinary people would use when entering a store, “Do you sell a doll named ‘Niru’ here?”
He pondered for a moment, then added, “A one-third scale doll, about this tall—classical court style with a lavish skirt.”
The elf shopkeeper hesitated for a moment before responding, “Indeed… there was such a doll here. It had been in the store for many years and was bought by someone a while ago. But why do you ask?”
“Who bought it?” Tirian felt his heartbeat quicken, he had not expected to find a clue so easily; his father had actually bought the doll from the store outright, “Approximately when?”
The shopkeeper was visibly startled by Tirian’s overly excited reaction, becoming even more wary, “I’m sorry, I can’t disclose customer information. That’s the rule for us in business.”
Tirian was taken aback, caught off guard by her response. He quickly thought it over and hesitated for a few seconds, as if making a decision, “…You don’t recognize me?”
“Recognize…?” The shopkeeper frowned, examining the stranger before her suspiciously. “I don’t recall serving a customer like you—most who buy dolls from my shop are women, young men selecting gifts for their lovers, or fathers picking out gifts for their daughters.”
“That’s because the last time I was here was a very long time ago,” Tirian revealed a strange smile, “Do you remember a hundred years ago, a brother and sister took a doll named ‘Luny’ from this shop?”
The old lady paused, then her eyes gradually widened in disbelief as she looked at Tirian, “Ah, are you…”
“I know you might not believe it, but I have something to prove my identity,” Tirian was quick-witted, and while speaking, he pulled out something from his chest, “Being an elf as you are, you must be well-informed. You should have heard about me… Please take a look at this.”
The elf lady, while listening, took the paper handed to her with a puzzled look, opening it to see a large portrait printed on it, followed by a wanted notice, a bounty, and the official seal of Frost City-State…
“I should still have some renown,” Tirian said seriously, “Strictly speaking, our family is fairly well-known… even if it might not be for reasons that bring pleasure.”
The old lady was at a loss for words.
After a long while, the elderly elf woman regained control of her emotions, looked up at Tirian, and with an odd tone forced out, “It really is you.”
Tirian seemed to have realized that something was amiss too, and awkwardly smiled, “It’s me.”
The old lady thought for a moment and then said, “So many years have passed… Your bounty digits have increased quite a lot…”
Tirian tugged at the corner of his mouth, “The bounty… indeed, has grown a bit. But it’s just a formality, they just add a zero every four or five years, no one actually goes to claim it.”
Follow current novℯls on ƒгeewёbnovel.com.
“I’ve never seen someone use their own wanted poster as identification, and a notorious pirate at that,” finally, the expression of the Elf old lady normalized a bit. While folding the wanted poster and handing it back, she murmured, “I did hear that the ‘Sea Mist’ docked, and thought about visiting the port to see the excitement. I didn’t expect you to come here first. How is your sister doing?”
“She… lives even more freely than I do,” replied Tirian, and then, with a strange expression, glanced at the elderly woman opposite him, “I thought you might get scared for a moment. Most ordinary people react that way upon seeing me— even if we’re outside the Chill Sea.”
“I’ve seen plenty of strange things, more than just one big pirate like you, and the City-State has made it clear, ‘Sea Mist’ is a guest invited by Prand, the northern sea affairs have nothing to do with us,” the old lady mumbled as she walked to the counter, then the muttering turned into a lecture, “However, I still have to tell you, always being a pirate isn’t proper work; it’s not a sustainable business. Look at your sister, at least she has a lifetime honorary title at the Explorers’ Association. Of course, I also heard… it seems your relations with the northern City-States are quite complicated…”
At this, Tirian’s head began to buzz. He felt he was now experiencing the calm composure of the long-lived races and had to quickly interrupt the old lady’s ramble, “The Mist Fleet is already changing. Acts of revenge and pillage against the northern City-States are a thing of the past; now, we mainly rely on protection fees…”
Before the old lady could react, he briskly ended the topic and forcefully pulled it back, “Can you now tell me, who bought that doll?”
“Oh, it was a middle-aged man who looked a bit like you… maybe even shorter, skinny, seemed not very healthy,” the old lady didn’t hesitate this time and blurted out, “But I think you won’t be able to find him, with so many people in Prand. Were you planning to bring back the other doll you couldn’t buy before for your sister? Ah, that’s too bad, it would’ve been better if you had come earlier… Wait, I just realized, how did you know someone bought ‘Niru’?”
But Tirian didn’t answer her question, instead inadvertently furrowing his brow.
A man shorter than himself, skinny, with poor health… That couldn’t be his father.
Could it be… his father’s subordinates?!
After regaining his humanity and rationale, was he already recruiting new subordinates? What was he planning to do? Was it to rebuild the Exiled Fleet?!
Tirian thought of many things at once until the Elf old lady had to call his name twice to snap him back to reality. Then he quickly asked, “Besides buying the doll, did that guest say anything else? Did he take anything else?”
“He just had a normal chat,” the store owner recalled, “Seemed like a guest who really likes dolls, very concerned about the repair and maintenance of the dolls, learned quite a bit from me. Oh, right, he also bought a wig and matching hair accessories, apparently for his own doll.”
Tirian blanked, “… A wig? What kind of wig?”
“Blonde long straight hair, one-to-one scale, I remember it clearly,” said the store owner, suddenly recalling something else, “Oh, right, I have another one similar here; you can take a look.”
While saying this, she had already turned around and crawled into the storage room under the stairs.
Tirian meant to say it wasn’t necessary to go through the trouble, but didn’t manage to, and just at that moment, a strange knocking sound suddenly came from nearby, drawing his attention.
It sounded like someone was tapping on the window outside.
Tirian turned his head in surprise toward the sound.
He saw a beautiful lady with golden hair down to her waist standing outside the window, gently tapping on the glass.
At first, Tirian didn’t recognize her, but upon seeing the lady’s face clearly, he was struck as if by lightning, frozen on the spot.
The lady’s appearance… was exactly like that of the Frost Queen Lei Nora from half a century ago!