Free Web NovelChapter 47: Chapter 47 In Front of the Icon
Nina was happy, for she had not had a normal meal with Uncle Duncan like this in a long time, discussing the happenings at school, nor had she seen a smile on Uncle Duncan’s face.
This even made her reminisce about the past, the days before her uncle became ill—ever since she lost her parents at the age of six, this man, akin to a father, had been her only kin in this world. However, for the past four years, an illness that even the doctors couldn’t diagnose had transformed her uncle, and life during that time had been... frankly, quite hard to endure.
Uncle still paid for her schooling, maintaining her most basic life, but Nina could feel that all traces of "future" were gradually fading from this small, familiar, and cozy store, dissipating among the alcohol, pills, and those suspicious "friends" who met with her uncle in oppressively gloomy gatherings.
She no longer yearned for life to revert to what it was years ago, but she would be content with even a slight improvement in their circumstances.
Duncan was also happy, for he had finally accessed more information about the world, finally touched upon part of the history of this world—it was a pleasure to dispel the mists of unawareness.
The utterly lost prehistoric "Order Era," the "Great Annihilation" that reshaped the order of all things, the ongoing Deep Sea Era, anomalies, and apparitions widespread across the world... these things that he had been utterly unaware of or had only a vague understanding of now finally took on a clearer outline.
Breakfast ended, and Nina stood up to tidy away the dishes, her hands and feet moving deftly—it was clear that she often did these chores. There was no doubt that she was also the one cleaning the upstairs bedroom.
A man entangled in serious illness, leading a decadent life, and dedicating most of his energy and passion to the affairs of a cult was, of course, not the one to do these things.
However, watching the busy girl in front of him, Duncan eventually couldn’t help himself; he got up and took the large tray out of Nina’s hands, "Let me help you with that—looks like it’s a struggle for you to go upstairs."
Nina looked at Duncan with surprise, just about to say something more, but he had already started striding toward the stairs.
The girl could only hurry after him, reminding him from behind, "Uncle, be careful. The doctor said your condition is still unstable..."
"The doctor... Doctor Albert?" Duncan didn’t turn around, searching through fragments of memory for the corresponding impression, but finding only a few fleeting snippets, "It doesn’t matter; he hasn’t even figured out the cause of my illness up to now. The most effective medicine he’s prescribed is just painkillers."
"...You should still listen to the doctor’s advice," Nina followed Duncan to the second floor, muttering as they walked toward the kitchen, "At least he knows how to keep you... healthy..."
Nina’s words trailed off mid-sentence when the sound of flapping wings suddenly interrupted her actions.
She and Duncan simultaneously turned toward the source of the noise, only to see a shadow flicker past the slightly ajar door of the master bedroom.
"Uncle Duncan, something flashed in your room!" Nina said in surprise, then reached for the doorknob, "Could it be the neighbor’s cat..."
"Hey, don’t..."
Duncan managed only half a warning before he saw Nina push open the room door, revealing the pigeon hiding inside.
Ai Yi was standing atop the cabinet, stuffing a French fry into its mouth with one claw, utterly still as the door swung open, maintaining the fry-stuffing pose in stunned silence at Nina and the wall on the other side.
Then it spotted Duncan, flapped its wings twice, making a loud noise, "Ah... coo?"
Duncan’s eyelid twitched as he saw the wide-open window nearby—clearly Ai Yi’s escape route—and in the distance, aligned with the window, he could vaguely make out a dock bathed in sunlight. freeweɓnovel.cøm
The pigeon snatched some fries from the dock...
"Pigeon?" Nina finally realized, looking surprised at Ai Yi perched on the cabinet, "Uncle Duncan! There’s a pigeon in your room!"
"I see it," Duncan said expressionlessly, "I don’t know it."
Ai Yi immediately threw away her fries and flapped over, landing on Duncan’s shoulder and shaking her head.
"Alright, it flew in this morning," Duncan sighed, "It might be someone’s tame pigeon, but it’s not very smart. I fed it a bit, and now it won’t leave."
Listening, Ai Yi cooed loudly.
Had there not been strangers present and had Duncan not given an order earlier, she would surely have started loudly exclaiming "Ah, yes, yes, yes."
Nina, however, showed no signs of doubting her uncle’s explanation. She simply gazed at the pigeon with shining eyes before carefully approaching, observing the pigeon’s reaction while she asked Duncan, "Then... 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 merely a beautiful and cute white pigeon. Ai Yi, meanwhile, cocked her head to look at Duncan, making inquisitive cooing noises.
Duncan suddenly felt that the 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, and you mustn’t complain if it does."
Nina’s face broke into a joyful grin, "That’s wonderful! I knew you were a reasonable person, Uncle Duncan!"
...
Inside the central prayer room of the deep-sea cathedral, City-State Bishop Valentin, dressed in a black robe with gold patterns, stood solemnly before the statue of the Storm Goddess.
He was tall and thin, with sparse white hair and eyes as still as deep waters.
The large candelabra in the prayer room burned quietly, the holiness of the flames illuminating the room. The statue of Gomona, the goddess without a face, stood elevated on the platform, her head covered in black veils, and her long dress adorned with many waves flowing down to the edge of the platform. Though it was just a stone statue, the transcendent power was still evident; the entire statue radiated a strong presence. Anyone standing around the statue could feel an indistinct sense of being watched and sheltered.
This feeling of being watched and protected was real, and it was under this gaze that Fenna felt emboldened to share with the bishop the visions she had seen in her dreamscape.
"...If what you’ve seen in your dreamscape is correct, then it indeed was the Homeloss."
City-State Bishop Valentin turned around, looking at the young Judge who had come to consult with him early in the morning. Although in the church hierarchy, the Judge, who wielded power of arms, and the City-State Bishop, who presided over rituals, were of equal status, it was quite normal for a Judge to seek advice or instruction from a Bishop when deliberating transcendental events.
"So, it really is the Homeloss?" Despite already having her answer, Fenna couldn’t help but widen her eyes upon hearing the bishop’s judgment, "I thought..." freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
"You thought that ship was now just a legend, like those tall tales of ghost ships told by skittish sailors in taverns?" Valentin knew what Fenna wanted to say. The old man with sparse white hair shook his head, his voice deep, "The existence of the Homeloss is acknowledged by all City-States and the Church. It is not a legend, but something that can be found in the church archives."
"I know that the Homeloss once indeed existed. The City-State archives in Prand even have partial blueprints of the ship’s construction and logs from over a century ago, but all this tangible evidence is limited to when the Homeloss was still a ship sailing in the real world, limited to when Captain Duncan was still human..."
Fenna said, her tone serious, as she looked at the statue behind the bishop, growing more cautious as she mentioned certain words.
"The key point is, that ship was explicitly recorded to have fallen into subspace... A century ago, thousands of refugees from the Thirteen Isles of Veslan witnessed the ship and their homelands engulfed by a collapsing border, plummeting into the shadows of subspace, and in the subsequent decades, although there were reports of sightings claiming the Homeloss reappeared in the real world, none had solid evidence. Many scholars are skeptical about the ship’s return..."
The young Judge continued, her gaze shifting to the elderly man before her.
"Can something engulfed by subspace really reappear in the real world?"
"...To date, nothing besides the Homeloss has returned to reality after falling into subspace, and even for the Homeloss, there are only post-event sighting reports. Scholars across all fields remain skeptical about the ship’s return—this is true. However, that’s not the point..." The old man said, his gaze suddenly fixating on Fenna, his face bearing a peculiar seriousness, "The key is, Judge, are you afraid of something?"
