Alice and Vanna hide in the shadows around the street, where they will wait for instructions while keeping an eye on the movement around the building.

Duncan and Morris made their way to the building with the black door.

The building is quiet - and rightfully so, after all, the sun has not yet risen, and the night in this world has never been suitable for ordinary people's activities, most normal people have no nightlife after nightfall, and it is the norm to go to bed early and wait for dawn.

But will the "replicas" returned from the deep sea also rest like ordinary people?

Duncan looked up, noticed the prominent button in the corner of the door frame, and reached out and pressed it twice.

Faintly, the shrill and rapid sound of electric bells could be heard from inside the building—especially abrupt in the silence of the night.

"Maybe we shouldn't have come to the door at curfew," Morris touched his head, with a hint of hesitation in his tone, "and alarming the neighbors will raise suspicion." ”

"But that friend of yours probably won't be able to wait long, it would be better if it was sooner," Duncan said lightly, "don't worry about anything else, arousing the suspicion of the church or alarming the city-state authorities is part of life, and you should get used to being a member of the Lost Country." ”

Morris opened his mouth, but said nothing, and Duncan reached out again and rang the bell at the door twice.

Eventually, they heard the sound of hurried footsteps coming from inside the building, accompanied by the sound of footsteps and something knocking down—and then the lights in the living room were turned on, and the soft light poured through the nearby windows onto the street.

The door lock clicked, the black door opened a crack, and a vigilant eye looked out through the crack in the door, and at the same time a young and nervous voice came: "Who is it?" ”

That sounded like a young woman.

Duncan and Morris looked at each other, the former a little surprised, the latter thoughtful and as if he had thought of something.

"Is it Garoni?" Morris asked tentatively, "Is Mr. Brown Scott at home?" I'm a friend of your teacher. ”

As he spoke, he turned to Duncan again, lowered his voice and said quickly, "It could be Brown Scott's student, I've heard him mention it." ”

Duncan nodded knowingly, and at the same time, the owner of the young voice behind the door obviously hesitated for a moment after hearing Morris's words before he hesitated to speak: "Sorry, it's too late, and the teacher is also sleeping, is there anything to talk about tomorrow morning?" ”

Morris frowned, the situation was different from what he had expected at first, he didn't expect that six years after Brown Scott's death, the other party's students would still live in this house, but after a short thought, he organized the language: "We arrived too late, and we haven't found a place to live yet—besides, your teacher wrote me a letter before, and he invited me to come." ”

As he spoke, the old scholar paused and continued, "My name is Maurice Underwood, and your teacher should have mentioned it to you. ”

The voice in the door fell silent, and the "Garoni" seemed to be reminiscing and thinking, and it took a few more seconds for her voice to sound again: "That...... Wait a minute, I'll open the clasp. ”

The sound of metal clashing and chain grinding sounded in the night, and the person in the door opened the safety lock hanging on the inside, and the door finally opened, and in the warm, bright light, Duncan saw a ...... Tall and somewhat eerie figure.

The figure was almost only a few centimeters shorter than Vanna, nearly a meter nine in height, and unlike Vanna, who was tall but still slender, the young lady standing in the doorway could see the outline of strong and powerful muscles all over her body—but it was not just her height that was more noticeable, but her rocky grayish-white skin, and the pale golden lines that loomed on the surface of the skin.

But aside from these striking non-human features, her face is no different from that of a normal young human woman, and even a little ...... Comely.

Waking up in the middle of the night, the stone-like young lady, dressed only in a loose dressing gown and her long brown hair slightly disheveled behind her head, leaned against the doorframe and looked at the two uninvited guests standing in the doorway with a cautious look.

Just as Duncan was looking at her curiously, she was also looking at Duncan, a burly visitor in a black trench coat and a wide-brimmed top hat, with no facial features in the gaps in his clothing, only layers of bandages.

Even if the Frost Man was accustomed to "bandages", the visitor's appearance was a little too oppressive.

Her muscles tightened visibly.

"Ah, I forgot to say that," Morris's voice suddenly rang out, breaking the somewhat awkward and somewhat tense atmosphere in time as he turned to Duncan, "Brown's student, Garoni, is a Senjin—it's really not very common in the northern city-states. ”

Then he looked at Garoni standing in the doorway: "This is Mr. Duncan, he is ......"

"Mr. Morris's friend, a traveling explorer, was interested in Mr. Brown Scott's research, and paid a visit," Duncan took the initiative, "and I hope it doesn't bother you." ”

“…… The teacher was resting, and he didn't know when he would wake up, but he did mention that Mr. Morris might come to visit," said Garoni, and in contrast to her tall, muscular figure, her voice was always a little hesitant and unconfident, and she didn't even dare to look at Duncan and Morris when she spoke, but muttered as she stepped aside, "Come in first, it's cold outside." ”

Morris thanked him and stepped into the house with Duncan.

The sound of the doorway turning broke the silence of the night, the black door closed, and the street fell silent again.

The first thing you see when you enter the door is a rather modest living room, which looks like it has been in use for a decade or two, with a kitchen and dining room on one side and a staircase leading to the second floor on the other, and a narrow door under the staircase, which may lead to the basement or wine cellar.

Under the bright light of the electric light, there are no suspicious dark corners in this living room, and everything you see is very warm and ...... Ordinary.

Duncan and Morris showed no undue curiosity, but simply looked around and took a seat in the living room led by Garoni, after which the tall lady Morijin went into the kitchen and began to busily make tea and prepare snacks.

"Would you like some sweet pancakes and sausages? That's all there is to ...... now," Garoni shouted to the two guests in the kitchen, a slight apology in her voice.

"Just have a cup of hot water, don't be so troublesome," Maurice waved his hand, and asked casually when Garoni walked over, "By the way, have you always lived here?" ”

"Well, I've been living here," Garoni nodded, "and the teacher was away for a while, and he gave me the key and asked me to take care of it for him—I just moved from the place I rented before, and I've been there ever since." Recently he came back and I continue to live here to take care of him. ”

"Out of the house for a while?" Morris subconsciously frowned, "When did it happen?" ”

“…… Five or six years," Garoni said after a moment's thought, uncertain, her expression a little ashamed, "I can't always remember the time accurately, and the teacher often talks about me. ”

Morris and Duncan exchanged glances.

"When did Mr. Brown come back?" Duncan asked, as if casually.

"About a month," Garoni didn't seem to think much of it, just gossiping at the guest's questions, "he came back suddenly, saying that he was tired from traveling and needed to rest for a while...... Oh, and that's when he mentioned inviting Mr. Morris to his house. ”

"I was also astonished when I first received his letter," said Morris, "and he had not been in contact with me for many years, and the last time I heard from him many years ago was that he was going to sea...... Ah, it looks like a small cruise ship called the Obsidian? ”

As he spoke, he quietly watched the reaction of the person in front of him.

However, Garoni didn't react at all when she heard the "Obsidian", she just remembered for a moment, and then shook her head: "I don't know about this, he didn't tell me much when he went out......"

There was nothing wrong with the tone and demeanor of the schoolgirl's answer.

However, her answer itself was clearly not quite right.

She didn't know which boat her teacher was on when she went out!

If it were an ordinary master-apprentice relationship, of course, it would be fine, but her relationship with the folklorist was clearly more than ordinary master-apprentice - Brown Scott could have given the keys to his own home to the student, who had lived here for six years and had taken on the responsibility of caring for the teacher after he had "come home", and with such a close and trusting relationship, it was impossible for Brown to leave the house without informing Galoni of his itinerary.

Garoni calmly met the visitor's gaze, the expression on her face calm and calm.

It was as if everything that happened around her was taken for granted.

(End of chapter)