Deep Sea Embers

Chapter 230 “Warm Daily Life in the Subspace Lair”

The large, colorful-tailed parrot flapped its wings and left the Sea Mist at astonishing speed, flying towards the middle of the city.

“First mate, what should we do? Should we wait here?” a sailor on the bridge of the Sea Mist asked after Perley disappeared from sight.

“…We have no choice but to wait,” Aiden said, lowering his head and glancing at the ground under his feet. He quickly weighed his options and said, “We can’t reduce the number of sailors on the ship, especially after sensing the strange situation in Pland. The touch of the crew coming into contact with the city-state could awaken the ship’s soul and drive it to madness. Similarly, we cannot let the Sea Mist send a direct signal to the city or contact the city-state authorities by telegram, as it may alarm the hidden factors hiding within the island.”

Letting Perley the parrot pass on the message posed the least risk in this case. However, Aiden hoped that the captain would return soon and wouldn’t be trapped or taken by something else. In the worst-case scenario, he would wait a day before sending a crew team ashore.

……

While sitting at the shop counter and flipping through the newspaper, Duncan suddenly stopped and looked up at the window.

“Mr. Duncan, what are you looking at?” Alice noticed the gesture and stopped flipping through her own paper.

“…I thought I sensed something looking in this direction,” Duncan said, frowning unsurely. “But it’s gone now.”

“Oh, I know. This is called the ‘senses of the strong’! Mr. Goathead told me about this before!” Alice said, excitedly. “He said that strong people are instinctively aware of their surroundings. Even a gaze will alarm their instincts if directed at them, so a powerful person like you will constantly get this…”

Duncan put the newspaper down and looked at Alice blandly. “Did he really say that?”

The smile on Alice’s face instantly stiffened. “…The last sentence was deduced by me.”

“Don’t make useless deductions,” Duncan said, then concentrated to begin his search for the source of the “stirring.”

He didn’t take that fleeting sensation as an illusion – having spent so much time in this weird world, he had gotten into the habit of paying attention to any “sudden intuition” and digging into the bottom of it.

Among the many details he obtained was one important piece of information: the southeast port.

“…Tyrian’s ship?” Duncan was a little surprised after recognizing the source of that aura. “Why is he here?”

He then recalled his previous encounter with the steel battleship, the ship’s position at that time, and the intentions shown in the battle. After a short thought, the expression on his face became slightly weird.

The Sea Mist appeared near Pland and took the initiative to attack the Vanished. Could it be the “reinforcements” called by the authorities? Are they here to intercept him?

Vaguely guessing the cause and effect of the matter in his mind, Duncan only wanted to laugh and cry simultaneously. He didn’t know whether he should first lament the relationship between father and son or Tyrian’s professionalism as a reinforcement. Despite almost being sunk in the fight, Tyrian still steered the steel behemoth over.

What kind of unwavering spirit does he have? This can’t be the reason for the Sea Mist’s unsinkable nature, right? Or does he have a superhero tendency to maintain world peace?

“You’re in a daze again Mr. Duncan. Do you want to go outside?” Alice asked.

“No,” Duncan shook his head while maintaining his perception of the Sea Mist. Since it had not yet become his “collection” like the Vanished and Pland, he could not perceive the details of its contents. But considering his “connection” with the Sea Mist and Tyrian, he had begun to search for the location of his “eldest son.” Alice wouldn’t understand these complicated things, so he kept his mouth shut. Instead, he frowned at the doll that was tilting her head. “Don’t tilt your head. Your head will fall off.”

Alice quickly nodded: “Oh, okay.”

A rustling noise suddenly sounded from the storage room as a petite figure strolled out.

“Mr. Duncan,” Shirley patted the dust off her skirt and greeted Duncan with an inviting look, “the storeroom has been cleaned! All the clutter you pointed to has been packed and organized on the shelf!”

“Mmm, well done,” Duncan kept some of his attention on the other side of the harbor while turning back and nodding at Shirley. “You have a little ash on your shoulder.”

“Oh,” Shirley turned her head and patted the dust away before making a slightly nervous face again. “Mr. Duncan, wh-what should I do next?”

When talking to Duncan here, the expression on her face was obviously not as apprehensive as on the Vanished, but there was still some obvious nervousness. It seemed that this tension could not be entirely eliminated despite knowing the truth. Nevertheless, it was far better than when they first met.

Obviously, from an intellectual level, Shirley knew Duncan treated her kindly and didn’t warrant such behavior from herself. The main issue was resolving Dog’s nervousness that was bleeding over to Shirley.

Duncan nodded and then swept his gaze over to Alice, who was rummaging through the newspaper but didn’t actually know a word.

Illiterate.

He then glanced back at Shirley on the other side.

Also illiterate.

There was also Dog hidden in the shadows next to her. Although the dark hound had never appeared in the open right now, his aura was becoming more and more impossible to hide.

Still illiterate.

Sighing inside, Duncan really wondered how fate could be so cruel. He got himself three helpers, yet not a single one could read, write, or do the account books. But then, an idea struck him. Specifically, he just remembered his old profession as a teacher.

“Come on, all of you sit here. Shirley, you sit to Alice’s right.” Duncan casually pulled a chair from the side and placed it next to the counter. “Dog, you squat behind the counter. Quit hiding, I can see you behind the shadow. Come here, I have an arrangement for all of you.”

Shirley quickly sat down on the chair obediently, and Alice on the side finally put down the newspaper she couldn’t understand. “Ah, what arrangement?”

“Well, since Nina hasn’t come back from going out to buy things, and I’m free, I’ll teach all of you to read,” Duncan said, then got up to pat his chest. “You can’t be illiterate forever.”

Corrected: Shirley never expected Captain Duncan’s “serious arrangement” to be like this. She was immediately stunned on the spot, while Alice was curious to the point of brightening her purple eyes. As for Dog, he was squatting behind the counter, honestly looking back and forth between Duncan and Shirley, with question marks clearly visible in his skull: “But I’m just a dog…”

Duncan glanced down when he heard this, and before he could say anything, the dark hound had straightened up: “But I can try to be a cultured dog. I have the enthusiasm and confidence…”

“That’s good,” Duncan said in a pleasant tone. Then, while keeping an eye on the port, he reached under the counter and pulled out a few blank notebooks, which he distributed to his “students”. “This will be your alphabet book. Let’s start with the most basic letters…”

Shirley took the book that Duncan handed over with a confused look.

Then, she became even more confused.

Letters, spelling, a completely incomprehensible new world.

After only a few minutes, Shirley confirmed one thing: it’s easier to fight Dog and cultists than to learn!

But Duncan didn’t seem to pay much attention to Shirley’s distressed expression, or rather, he was already accustomed to it.

On the contrary, he felt only happiness, the joy of suddenly encountering something familiar while wandering in a foreign land.

However, this happiness did not last long. Just as Shirley was struggling with the fourth letter, a crisp bell rang, followed by brisk footsteps coming from the front door.

“Uncle Duncan! I’m back!” Nina’s cheerful voice sounded at the door.

Duncan looked up from his pleasant teaching and saw Nina rushing in, but then he noticed something flying in behind her.

“I saw Ai on my way back,” Nina said cheerfully, “and it seems like Ai brought a friend!”

“Friend?” Duncan frowned slightly and saw Ai flying into the store after Nina, followed by a large parrot with colorful tail feathers…

Duncan: “…”