“This will be your room from now on. It is fully equipped with basic daily necessities. If you need anything else, you can tell Alice and she will arrange it for you if she hasn’t forgotten.
"Next door is a small utility room, which you are free to use for prayer or meditation. You are a devout believer, so you should have a need for this.
“Don’t go downstairs, and don’t be curious about those locked cabins. Occasionally, there will be strange creaking sounds or the sound of ropes rubbing against the floor from deep inside this ship. Don’t make a fuss. Just leave it alone. If there is really something wrong, I will deal with it personally.
“When living on board, remember the crew rules.
"Anything else you want to ask?"
Vanna stood at the door of the room assigned to her, looking at the simple and normal furniture in the cabin, still feeling a little dazed.
An ordinary bed, ordinary tables and chairs, ordinary cabinets, everything was clean, no suspicious shadows, no blood stains hidden in the corners of the room, and no blasphemous symbols written on the ceiling or floor - if you don't consider that this is inside the Lost Homeland, then this is just an ordinary cabin.
But if you must say, there is something unusual here.
There is a special set of "crew rules" on the ship. There is a "secret place" deep in the cabin that is forbidden to enter. The whole ship is alive, and even the ropes and buckets on the deck often make disturbing noises.
—These unusual details more or less matched her imagination of the Lost Homeland.
But compared to all her imaginations, those strange things were so violent that they were harmless to humans and animals.
"yes."
In the blink of an eye, the church disappeared, the statue disappeared, and the candlesticks disappeared. All that was left in Vanna Alice's vision were countless flames - big or small, far or near, high or low, candlelight filled her surroundings, jumping and burning in the dark and chaotic endless space, like stars.
"You can ask anything you want to ask anytime," Shirley hurried her pace, slightly tilting her head to look at Vanna who was following beside her, "There aren't many rules on this ship, and the most taboo thing when sailing on the ocean is for the crew to hide their thoughts - the anxiety and confusion in your heart will be magnified by the vast ocean, and you never know when you will become an uninvited guest."
Nina stood up and scooped a bowl of steaming soup and placed it in front of the new crew member.
In her sight, the flame finally began to tremble gradually, and the amplitude of the trembling became larger and larger. Then at a certain moment, it suddenly burned violently, the flame rose several times, and a dark green glow surged in the flame. The whole process lasted only two seconds.
"Yes, rumors of... the return of the dead."
"That's one of the reasons why her pope asked her to come to this ship," Vanna said slowly, "I need to know what the real Lost Homeland looks like, and I... also need him as a bridge to rebuild the connection with the civilized world."
Vanna looked at the bowl of soup in front of her. In her previous conversation with Morris, she knew the "truth" about this New Year's food, and also knew the unique symbolic meaning of this dinner. Now, looking at the fish meat swaying slightly in the thick soup, she felt a little dazed in front of her eyes, but the daze disappeared in an instant.
The statue lowered its head, and translucent, spirit-like tentacles condensed from the pale and illusory smoke, winding out from the edge of the veil and slowly falling in front of it.
"Please drink." Miss Doll said politely.
"The Frost City is still very peaceful for now. The authorities seem to have blocked the news about the submersible. In fact, it doesn't matter whether it is blocked or not. Few people know about the Abyss Project half a century ago." He shook his head and said, "Compared to this, another thing seems to have nothing to do with the submersible, but it seems to be worthy of attention."
We have arrived at the restaurant.
Alice raised her head, and the countless flames in her field of vision began to move slowly. A large number of flames floated closer, and only a cluster of dim candlelight came in front of her, burning in the darkness.
"... I remember everything," Vanna nodded slowly and said to Duncan who personally escorted her to the room, "For now.
There are no more problems.”
"Oh, I understand. I can even roughly guess what you imagined the Lost Homeland to be like," Duncan said casually. "The first day was a lively welcome party instead of a dark and bloody sacrificial ceremony. Isn't it incredible?"
"Yes, I will always pay attention to your condition," he said, "but I hope your mental state is really okay... For example, it shows signs of being eroded by the warp. "The spies reported that the Frost authorities moved the submersible to Dagger Island near the city-state. There is an old ocean observation station there, which is now temporarily used as the research facility of the 'Fourth No. 2 Submersible,'" he replied, "They don't seem to have opened the hatch of the submersible yet - perhaps out of caution, or perhaps waiting for orders from a higher level."
"I understand," Duncan said with a sigh and lowered his head. "I will try my best to pull you back. If things are irreversible, I will also try my best to let you return to your country with your humanity preserved."
Tirian stood at the bow, looking out at the dark and cold sea in the distance, his brows furrowed.
In the cathedral of the city-state of Plande, Helena stood in front of the statue of the goddess of storms, gazing at the candles burning at the feet of the statue.
"Very good," Duncan said calmly, "Put your luggage away now. Dinner is about to begin. You must be interested in participating in the barbecue on the deck after dinner. This is just Shirley and Nina's fooling around. But you have to attend the dinner. It is a necessary procedure for new members to join."
The mist returned to the goddess' veil, and the statue began to move little by little, returning to its previous appearance of overlooking the world fiercely.
Light and shadow floated slightly on the surface of the statue, and the hard shell carved from rock seemed to have gained elasticity like a living thing. Under the thick veil, a pale and illusory aura dissipated bit by bit.
Duncan came to his empty seat and looked at the table of delicious food in front of him that was emitting bursts of aroma under the cool light.
Fanna put away her luggage silently, and after a little determination, she temporarily left the huge, light two-handed sword in the room.
"We have entered the cold sea, Captain," the first mate's quiet voice came through the night wind, "We will probably be back at home port by this time tomorrow."
Fanna's heart trembled, she firmed herself up for a moment, and finally said: "It's nothing, it's just that the development of things is not what I imagined, and I feel a little... at a loss at the moment."
"Your messenger has not yet boarded the ship, and was completely transformed two minutes ago. She is now part of the Lost Homeland," Valentine said calmly and respectfully, looking at the tentacles. "But like before, she still retains her humanity and reason, and maintains a psychic connection with the group of believers."
Countless candles in the darkness faded away in an instant, and the scenery in the church returned to normal.
Tirian didn't look back. "Any news from Frost?"
"No," Nina shook her head with a simple serious expression on her face, "That's your fish soup."
Two phantom tentacles swung even more vigorously, and the strange rustling sound was mixed with a series of grunts that were impossible for humans to make and recognize.
The tentacles swayed slightly, making a low, strange rustling sound, mixed with the sound of gentle waves.
"Is that my fate?" she couldn't help but mutter.
"Not really... the sacrifice ceremony wasn't that exaggerated, but the scene I imagined at first was indeed not as peaceful as it is now." Duncan seemed to smile. In any case, you'd better relax now.
Under the light of the swinging whale oil lamp, the long table was already filled with dishes, with the steaming fish soup placed in the most conspicuous place on the table. The crew were waiting for their captain on both sides of the long table, and low, gentle creaking sounds came from deep in the cabin, like the ballad hummed by the ancient exploration ship as night fell.
As night falls, the cold light of the creation of the world hangs high in the night sky.
It smells quite good.
She remained silent as she followed Nina to the restaurant.
"another thing?"
Ice floes occupied the sea surface, and dangerous sharp ice fronts lurked in the sparkling waves. The steel battleship with a towering bow was in the night.
We cut through the waves while sailing and head held high in the boundless sea of floating ice.
"Well, these idiots at least have the most basic caution," Tirian exhaled softly, but his brows did not relax at all. "Besides that, is there any new information?"
The large and small pieces of ice seemed to be intimidated by the majesty of the steel battleship. After the Sea Mist approached, they actively dispersed to both sides. Under the cold light of the Creation of the World, the sea surface seemed to have broken open a path, and the steel behemoth was moving through the path.
Each cluster of flames represents a saint and represents the support for the prosperity of the Deep Sea Church to this day.
The Pope stared at the flame and waited patiently.
In any case, it was too strange to bring a two-handed giant sword to a restaurant.
But Duncan could see that she was worried.
But she paused at the last step.
"... It's really completely transformed." Helena couldn't help but murmur softly, and then subconsciously raised her hand, as if she wanted to touch the burning flame of Vanna with her fingertips.
Helena raised her head and looked at the veiled statue of the goddess overlooking the church.
The tentacles curled and expanded, waiting for it to speak.
The flame returned to calm, emitting a faint green color, burning dimly and silently in the darkness.
These candlesticks with intricate and exquisitely decorated patterns were burning, and the flames at their tops gradually rose in Helena's vision, then swayed, united, spread, and diffused.
Then he was silent, and then a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
The tentacles swayed gently, uttering a soothing whisper, and then these illusory limbs once again turned into pale, thin mist, rising slowly into the air.