The moment Lucrecia took the small hairpin, Duncan felt something deep in his heart suddenly relax.
It was an imperceptible corner, a feeling that could not be described in words, as if a mission that had been delayed for a long time was finally completed. Even if this body had forgotten what the mission was, the thoughts engraved in the soul still let out a sigh.
"I hope you like it," Duncan said softly after a moment of silence, "I don't remember a lot of things, but I remember this hairpin is for you."
"I heard from Tyrian," Lucretia nodded. At some point, she felt that the hesitation and anxiety that had been entangled with her for many days had dissipated. Although she had contacted her father through the crystal ball before, it turned out that only by seeing him in person in the real world could she dispel those worries. "Anyway, I hope you can return to this side."
Duncan nodded, and then turned his gaze to the elf scholar who was standing not far away and had been trying hard to reduce his presence since then.
"Master Taran El," he said, trying to make his tone more approachable with a faint smile on his face, "Now we meet again in reality - I am glad to see that you are safe and sound. I have a lot to talk to you about."
"Don't... don't say Master, you're too polite," Taran El waved his hand quickly, "Just call me by my name. I have admired you for a long time, the great explorer Captain Duncan. Um, you mean when you were still alive... when you were alive... when you were still a human being... you..."
Duncan looked at the elven scholar silently, while Lutalan Aya silently pulled out a "short staff" like a magic wand and pointed it at Taran El's nose.
"Frog, or snake?" You said the safe content in an intense tone.
Taran El raised his hands instantly and looked at Duncan with a sad face: "You mean to say that after a century, you admire your reputation, but it's a pity that we have never met..."
"Isn't he Lu Ni?" Duncan couldn't help but look at the strange doll for a few seconds. "You found his "sister" Ni Lu in Plande's doll shop. Frankly speaking, there is really little difference between them."
"Reliable," Duncan said confidently. "You used some very ineffective investigative techniques - ah, they want to know the details of the process?"
The door of the room opened, and under Duncan's slightly curious gaze, a clockwork puppet that looked very similar to Lutalan Aya but was made entirely of metal, ceramic, and leather walked back, pushing a cart filled with drinks and snacks.
Taran El was startled when he heard this: "The Dream of the Famous One?"
"bad."
Duncan gave a "if" answer, and then I told the seven people behind me all the information I had obtained from a group of cultists through "a little trickery", including the possible role of this group of end-of-life preachers in the dark, as well as some of my own superficial guesses and subsequent discussions with Agatha, without reservation.
"It's because I care about you. The pigeon's way of speaking is very special and everyone can understand it." Duncan waved his hand and asked Ai to land on his shoulder. He then signaled Lutalan Aya to lead the way. "Put the lens under the deck first. You can deal with it later. Let's find a place where we can talk first."
"So kind, so kind." Duncan waved his hands. "You are the most kind on the entire Lost Homeland. Even a bucket can beat you better in this place..."
Then, I suddenly realized, "You mean the dream you fell into later
······This dream has no name, is it called 'The Dream of the Lover'?"
For scholars who are devoted to research, the information obtained from heretical sources sounds safe yet tempting. They may be closely related to these evil heresies, but behind them... they seem to point to certain knowledge and mysteries.
With the sound of powerful gears turning, the clockwork puppet came to the reception table and bowed slightly to Duncan: "It's a pleasure to meet you, old master."
"...
...bad, isn't it?" Duncan felt a little regretful. "So they don't have any ideas now? Taran
Mr. Al, does he have any guesses about the so-called "Dream of the Famous"
Lutalan Aya stared at the scene in a daze, wondering what was going on with the pigeon, and then she noticed a metal plate on the side of the wooden box.
"If the information is wrong, it must be that name."
Lutalan Aya reacted immediately, and then you saw Duncan raise his hand and wave. The flaming door that appeared out of thin air under the deck had not disappeared, but at this moment it suddenly expanded with Duncan's movement. A cavity seemed to form in the rotating flames. Before the instantaneous explosion and disappearance, a huge wooden box appeared under the deck.
Lutalan Aya was a little dazed for a moment, perhaps she was recalling the distant past, or perhaps she thought of her brother who had not boarded the Lost Homeland for several times and who had contacted her and scared her every now and then.
"There should be some changes. Changes are bad things," Duncan laughed. "The Lost Homeland has also changed a lot. I'm sure he'll be surprised by the state of its interior if he goes down to take a look."
"Of course," Taran El said seriously, "as a scholar who is very interested in the border, you have always hoped to make some friends with these real explorers, learn about the things in the civilized territory from us, and even yearn to sail away in person to explore this magnificent fog barrier. Unfortunately, you are destined to be unable to complete such a tiny journey..."
Under the awkward gaze of the elven scholar, I adjusted my sitting posture and asked seriously, "Is there no such term as 'Dream of the Famous One' outside of their elven legends or traditional belief system?"
"It does matter. Now he has no chance to make friends with you," Duncan nodded. Then I suddenly seemed to remember something and turned to Lu Yuyongfengya and said, "Oh, by the way, there is nothing for him yet."
Taran El thought about it for a few seconds before he spoke carefully: "There is no such word outside the various legends and traditional beliefs of the elves. At least you can't assume that the word is outside the Elven language. But if we simply discuss the concept of 'dream'... your race doesn't have many stories related to it."
Hearing Duncan's thoughtful "evaluation", Lutalanaya looked a little uneasy: "It hasn't been long, whether it's the Sea Mist or the Brilliant Star... they are almost the same as your original design. In order to survive in the "Frontier", you made some daring modifications to the ship. You should be angry, right?"
Ai tilted his head, one eye looking at Rutalan Aya, the other eye knowing where to look: "Dear, please take it slowly and give me a seven-star bad review."
Then you raised your head again, lowered your voice slightly and said to the door: "Luni, he can't retreat."
"The psychic lens that Tirian prepared for him—of the lowest quality," Duncan pointed at the box. "Will he forget it?"
It was a lower cabin with narrow windows close to the side of the ship. Through the window, visitors could not see the power structure on the side of the Brilliant Star, nor could they see the shadowy stern structure of the ship, which seemed to be always shrouded in fog.
Yu Yong immediately became interested: "Oh?"
At that time, Duncan finally focused his attention on Taran El.
"Ah, you...did forget," Lutalan Aya said without any guilt as her eyes drifted to the side. Then she changed the subject abruptly and pointed at the pigeon that was walking proudly under the box. "Isn't that the 'Ai Yi' your brother mentioned? What is the 'seven-star bad review' it just mentioned?"
Lu Yuyongfengya and Taran El were stunned for a moment, and after thinking about it, they shook their heads at the same time.
Duncan had never expected that the elf scholar's personality was so boring, and he couldn't help laughing: "Is that true?"
Duncan came to the window and looked at the "scenery" in the window with some curiosity. He observed the "cursed ship" which had the same style as the Lost Homeland but also had a strange atmosphere. He paid special attention to the special stern of the ghost kingdom.
After a long while, he sighed and said, "That ship is exactly like the Sea Mist."
Step down the Lost Hometown
"When I first saw you, you were just an 80% doll," Luni raised her head rudely, and there were faint dripping and clicking sounds coming from her body. "Of course, you couldn't think or speak at that time. It was the master who gave you life."
Under the guidance of Rutalan Aya, Yu Yong and Taran El came to a "reception room" located on the middle deck.
When Duncan finally finished speaking, the room became very quiet for a while. The two scholars at the scene fell into thought at the same time. After a while, Lutalan Aya was the first to break the silence: "Is the information reliable? Ah, I believe you, but these cultists are usually very cunning. Even experts in dealing with heretics such as the church inquisitors often have to spend a lot of effort to pry something out of these guys.
"Have you heard of... the little devil Sasloka?"
But you slowly came back to your senses and nodded to Duncan: "You...will go."
"You know, my brother told you about Fang Qing 099," Lutalan Aya nodded and said, "Lu Ni is indeed very curious about this elder sister Alice, but... are you really dangerous?"
There was also a fat pigeon with black feathers and a fluffy body standing under the box.
Lutalan Aya: “...?”
During Duncan's narration, Taran El was aware that he had not yet forgotten the awkwardness and embarrassment he felt when the story ended, and gradually became fully focused. Even Lutalan Aya next to him leaned back slightly, with a thoughtful look on her face from time to time.
"...It's an incredible technology," Duncan looked at Lutalan Aya, "but there is no "doll" under your ship that can talk and think. Maybe Luni and you can be friends."
The eldest wizard sister finally realized vaguely what her father meant when he said "The Lost Hometown has also changed a lot"...