Deep Sea Embers.

Chapter 818 The Journey is Over

The Lost Homeland and the Brilliant Star sailed against a uniform gray-white background.

This long journey to the end of the world seemed to be gradually drawing to a close - even if Duncan did not mention it, everyone on the ship vaguely sensed that the end was approaching.

Now, everyone gathered around the long table in the cabin of the Lost Homeland. Even Lucrecia temporarily handed over her ship to the puppet Luni and the rabbit Rabbi to control.

The "sea witch" sat next to Duncan, while the little doll Nello, who had recently become a formal crew member of the Brilliant Star, sat obediently on the shoulder of her hostess. The latter appeared here for the first time and was carefully holding Lucrecia's hair while curiously observing the surroundings.

Shirley looked at the gorgeous three-pointed doll in an exquisite dress with great interest. When the latter turned her head to look at her, she suddenly raised her hand and made a frightening sound: "Hey ha——"

Nello suddenly cried out in a low voice and grabbed a handful of Lucrecia's hair.

The witch lady was startled and raised her hand to pat the arm of the little doll. Nilu lowered her head aggrievedly and muttered softly: "Mistress, she scared me."

Shirley immediately shrugged and turned her head away, pretending that she was listening carefully to what the captain was saying.

Duncan didn't pay attention to the noise coming from the long table. He just glanced at Shirley casually and continued to talk about the current situation in the Infinite Sea:
"...The undead live together with the living in the city. No one remembers the original purpose of cemeteries and crematoriums. The dead are in a daze, and the living are increasingly in a trance. No one dies anymore, and no new babies are born... In the eyes of bystanders, the distortion of the world is unimaginable, but no one notices these anomalies. All inconsistencies are subconsciously 'explained' or 'ignored', and this is the current 'status quo' of the entire world.

"The situation of the Deep Sea Church is similar to that of the Church of Death today. The core of their respective doctrines has now become an unknowable 'blasphemous archetype'. Although people are still ignorantly maintaining their 'daily lives', this 'world correction' may not last long."

No one spoke on both sides of the long table. Even Shirley, who had just been secretly playing with the little doll, became quiet as she imagined the weird and terrifying scene in the city.

Duncan's eyes fell on Vanna not far away.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

"Cognitive reconstruction... is not that simple," Vanna said with a frown on her face. She frowned slightly, and shook her head with a wry smile after hearing the captain's words. "I was about to forget about the 'waves', but you suddenly called us together and made me remember all of this. It makes me feel... as if the whole world has been 'ripped apart'."

The judge took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, seeming to be still struggling to adjust her state. At the same time, she continued with a complicated expression: "Now two completely different 'cognitive systems' are still fighting fiercely in my mind. I clearly know that a certain 'thing' does exist, but another cognition tells me that it is an incomprehensible thing that has never existed. I know that the former cognition is correct, but I cannot deny the second cognition... They have taken root in my heart, just like..."

She pursed her lips, but in the end seemed to have not found a suitable way to describe it.

"It's like 'hydrophobia', isn't it?" Duncan asked calmly.

"'The water is poisonous'?" Vanna thought for a moment, smiled bitterly and nodded, "Probably. Compared to all kinds of blasphemous things with physical bodies, problems based on the cognitive level are always so difficult to deal with."

"...I also hesitated whether it was necessary to re-strengthen and stabilize your 'cognition'," Duncan said slowly, his eyes swept around, and wherever he looked, the green flame was quietly burning in the entire cabin, the flames reflected on everyone, even as if it was soaking their souls, soaking their minds, and stabilizing their 'cognition' on the side of the 'captain', "but considering the future plans, I must use the flame to 'strengthen' you, because only in this way can you become my most stable 'anchor'."

After hearing Duncan's words, the expression on Lucretia's face changed slightly. She seemed to want to say something, but in the end she didn't open her mouth. She just stared at her father.

"...Next, we will arrive at Bartok's 'node'," Duncan continued calmly, as if ignoring the gazes that were filled with various emotions falling on him, "This will be the last node on the 'outer barrier' formed by the four gods. After completing the final mark, the Lost Homeland will return to the starting point of this 'pilgrimage'... the Leviathan Islands.

"Once you get there, your journey to the border will be over."

Duncan spread his hands and spoke in a low voice, his eyes looked around the long table, moving between familiar faces, and finally, his eyes fell on Nina.

The first "human" he met in this world, his first official "contact" with this civilization trapped in the shelter, his... "anchor of humanity".

Nina sat beside him. This sensible girl always seemed to be able to perceive Uncle Duncan's thoughts one step ahead. Even at this moment, she did not show much surprise. She just raised her head after a moment of silence and said, "Are you going to do the next thing alone?"

Duncan met the girl's gaze: "...Yes."

"Is it dangerous? Is it far?" Nina asked again.

"It's hard to describe it as 'dangerous' or not. It's something...only I can accomplish, but you can't understand the process." Duncan thought for a moment and explained seriously, "I will go to a farther place - farther than the end of the world, so far that even the gods cannot reach it, and no scale in the world can measure it...Yes, very far, very far."

"Are you going home then?" Nina still stared at her Uncle Duncan steadily - she asked a question she had asked before.

This time, Duncan didn't hesitate at all: "Yes, go home."

His response was so sure and quick that even Nina seemed a little surprised.

"You're not lying?" She frowned and asked doubtfully, as if she had not expected such a positive answer.

"Yes, I am sure - but if you asked me earlier, I might have hesitated," Duncan said seriously, "but now, I can be sure that if one day in the future, you are really waiting for me to come home, then I will definitely go home."

Nina frowned, and just as she was lost in thought, Morris' voice came from the side again: "What do you need us to do?"

"After the Lost Homeland leaves, you will return with the Brilliant Star," Duncan looked at the old man across the table and nodded slightly, "Agatha will take the 'reflection' of the Lost Homeland and connect it to the Brilliant Star, and the sailors will go to take the helm - in this way, you will be able to activate the 'route' left by the Sea Song and return to the Infinite Sea from the node of the Storm Goddess.

"After returning to the Infinite Sea, you will go to the city-states of Frost, Plande, and Light Wind Harbor respectively. Together with Lawrence who is currently staying in Phaeren, the western border, I will have the 'eyes' that can observe the entire world. You must wait, wait for my orders. When I have completed my preparations outside the world, something... big will happen."

"A big thing?" Vanna frowned subconsciously.

"...The end of the world," Duncan said calmly, "I will 'end' this world in an orderly manner and recover all its data before this 'mathematical machine' completely collapses."

He knew that no one at the scene would understand what he was saying, not even Morris, who would understand what "information of everything" and "mathematical machine" were, but he still said these words bluntly.

The people present may not have known what a mathematical machine was, but they at least understood what "the end of the world" meant.

After a moment of silence, Shirley was the first to break the silence: "...Mom..."

But apart from her, everyone else's reactions were unexpectedly calm.

"It seems that you all trust me." Duncan looked around and a smile suddenly appeared on his face.

"After going through the events of Plande, Frost and Breeze Harbor together, why should we not trust you?" Vanna suddenly laughed. "You have countless ways to easily bring about destruction, but in the end you always choose to save everything you can. Until now, even if you said you wanted to kill me, I would probably think that the way I live is wrong..."

"Gemona will be sad if she hears what you said," Duncan laughed helplessly, "You jumped over me in one leap when we first met."

Vanna: "...You said you wouldn't mention this matter anymore."

Duncan smiled and shook his head, waved his hand, and looked at others.

"The 'end' of the world is a necessary step to ensure the birth of a new world and to ensure long-term peace after the birth of the new world. I have found a way to preserve everything in this world while ending the old world. You can rest assured about this."

"So... what happens after this?" Shirley finally couldn't help but speak. Although she didn't understand most of the content of the topic, she could still keenly sense that the captain had not finished speaking. "After the world ends... where are we? Where are you? When will the 'new world' you mentioned come?"

Duncan smiled and looked into Shirley's curious eyes.

"Blink your eyes."

Shirley blinked curiously.

"For you, a new world has arrived after that."

Duncan said softly.

(End of this chapter)