The moment Lucretia took the tiny hairpin, Duncan felt a part of 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 had finally been completely completed, even if the body had forgotten what that mission was, the thoughts engraved in the soul still let out a soft 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 that this hairpin was for you." ”

"I heard Tirian," Lucretia nodded, and at some point, she felt that the hesitation and anxiety that had haunted her for so many days had dissipated - although she had contacted her father through the crystal ball before, it turned out that only seeing her in the real world could dispel those fears, "Anyway, you can go back to 'this side'." ”

Duncan nodded, and then turned his gaze to the elven scholar who was standing not far away, and had been trying to reduce his presence since just now.

"Master Taran El," he said with a faint smile on his face, trying to make his tone more approachable, "now that we're meeting again in reality—it's nice to see you're safe and sound, and I have a lot to talk to you about." ”

"Don't ...... Don't say anything about the master, you're too polite," Taran El quickly waved his hand, "Just call me by name." I've admired you for a long time, the great explorer Captain Duncan, uh, I mean you're still alive...... When you died...... When you were still an individual...... I'll just ......"

Duncan silently watched the elven scholar, while Lucrecia silently drew a "short staff" like a magic wand and pointed it at Taran El's nose.

"Frog, or snake?" She spoke dangerously in a calm tone.

Taran El instantly raised his hands and looked at Duncan with a sad face: "I mean to say that I admired your prestige a century ago, but unfortunately I have never had the opportunity to meet you......"

Duncan didn't expect this elven scholar's personality to be so interesting, and couldn't help but laugh: "Is this true? ”

"Of course," said Taran Eyre, with a serious face, "as a scholar with an interest in frontiers, I have always wanted to make more acquaintances with true explorers, learn more about things beyond the borders of civilization, and even yearn to sail for myself to explore the magnificent barrier of fog - unfortunately I am not destined to complete such a great journey......"

"It's okay, now you have a chance to 'make friends' with me," Duncan nodded, and then as if he suddenly remembered something, he turned to Lucrecia and said, "Ah, by the way, there's one more thing for you." ”

Lucrecia didn't react for a moment, and then, she saw Duncan raise his hand and wave—the flame door that appeared on the deck out of thin air had not disappeared, and now it suddenly expanded with Duncan's movements, and a cavity seemed to be formed in the swirling flames, and after an instant deflagration and subsidence, a huge wooden box appeared on the deck.

There was also a fat pigeon with white feathers and a fluffy body standing on the box.

Ay tilted her head, looked at Lucrecia with one eye, and didn't know where she was looking: "Dear, take it by courier and give it a five-star review." ”

Lucrecia looked at the scene for a moment, wondering what was going on with the pigeon, and then noticed a metal nameplate on the side of the wooden box.

"The Spirit Lens that Tiriam gave you—the highest quality," Duncan pointed to the box, "You won't forget, will you?" ”

"Ah, I...... I haven't forgotten," Lucretia said with a little weakness in her eyes, then changed the subject stiffly, and pointed to the pigeon strutting on the box, "This is the 'Ae' my brother mentioned?" What is the 'five-star review' it just said? ”

"Don't worry, this pigeon doesn't understand the way it speaks," Duncan waved his hand and beckoned Ay to land on his shoulder, and motioned for Lucrecia to lead the way, "Put the lens on the deck first, and you can look at it yourself, and let's find a place to talk about things first." ”

"Okay."

Led by Lucrecia, Duncan and Taran El arrived somewhere in the "Reception Room" on the middle deck.

It is an upper cabin with a large window near the side of the ship, through which visitors can see the power structure on the side of the Bright Star, as well as the stern structure of the ship, which seems to be shrouded in a fog forever.

Duncan came to the window and looked at the "scenery" outside the window with some curiosity, observing the "cursed ship" with the same strange atmosphere although it was different from the painting style of the Lost Country, especially paying attention to its ghostly kingdom-like stern, and sighed for a long time: "This ship is completely different from the Sea Mist." ”

Hearing Duncan's unintentional "evaluation", Lucrecia's expression was a little uneasy: "It's been a long time, whether it's the Sea Mist or the Bright Star...... It's all very different from your original design. I've made a lot of bold modifications to this ship in order to survive at the 'border', you shouldn't be angry, right? ”

"It's time for some changes, change is a good thing," Duncan laughed, "the Lost has changed a lot, and if you go up and look at it, you'll be amazed at its inner state." ”

Embark on the Lost Land?

Lucrecia was in a trance for a while, perhaps remembering the distant past, or perhaps thinking of the fact that she had boarded the Lost Country several times, and had contacted her every now and then to scare her brother.

But she quickly came to her senses and nodded to Duncan, "I...... Will go. ”

Then she raised her head again, raised her voice slightly and said to the door, "Luni, you can come in." ”

The door to the room opened, and under Duncan's slightly curious gaze, a clockwork figure with a look six or seven points like Lucrecia, but a whole body of metal, ceramic, and leather, pushed a cart with drinks and snacks inside.

With the faint sound of gears turning, the clockwork figure came to the reception table and bowed slightly to Duncan: "It's a pleasure to meet you, old master." ”

"You're Luni?" Duncan couldn't help but look at the marvelous doll twice, "I found your 'sister' Nilou at Prand's doll shop - frankly, you're very different. ”

"When you first met me, I was just a three-point doll," Lunny politely lowered her head, and a slight ticking and clicking sound kept coming from her body, "Of course, I couldn't think or speak at that time, it was the mistress who gave me life. ”

“…… Incredible technology," Duncan looked at Lucrecia, "but I also have a talking and thinking 'doll' on my ship, and maybe Luni and her can be friends." ”

"I know, my brother told me about Anomaly 099," Lucrecia nodded, "Luni is indeed curious about Miss Alice, but ...... Is she really safe? ”

"It's safe," Duncan waved his hand, "the whole ship of the Lost Country is the safest for her, and there is not even a bucket in that place that can ...... a bucket than she."

Lucrecia: "......? ”

Miss Witch finally began to vaguely realize what her father meant when he said that "the Lost Country has changed a lot......

Duncan finally turned his attention to Taran Eyre.

Under the elven scholar's restless gaze, he adjusted his sitting posture and asked with a serious expression, "Is there a term 'dream of the nameless' in your elven legends or traditional belief systems?" ”

Taran El was stunned when he heard this: "The dream of the nameless? ”

Immediately after, he suddenly reacted: "You mean that dream I fell into earlier?" You mean...... That dream has a name, it's 'The Dream of the Nameless'? ”

"If the intelligence is correct, that's the name."

Duncan replied in the affirmative, and then he informed the two men of all the information he had "resorted to" from a group of cultists, including the possible role of the Missionaries of the Last Dead in the shadows, as well as some of his own superficial conjectures and previous discussions with Agatha.

In the process of Duncan's narration, Taran El unconsciously forgot his initial nervousness and crampedness, and gradually became engrossed, and even Lucretia next to him leaned forward slightly, with a pensive look on her face from time to time.

To the obsessed scholar, the information obtained from heresy may sound dangerous and tempting, and it may have a lot to do with the evil heresy, but there is ...... behind it But it seems to faintly point to some knowledge and mysteries.

When Duncan's voice finally fell, the room became very quiet for a while, and the two scholars on the scene fell into thought in unison, and it didn't take long for Lucrecia to break the silence: "Is this information reliable?" Ah, I don't doubt you, but those cultists are usually cunning, and even experts in dealing with heresies, such as church inquisitors, often have a lot of trouble trying to pry things out of the mouths of those guys......"

"Reliable," Duncan said confidently, "I've used some very effective investigative techniques — ah, do you want to know the process?" ”

Lucrecia and Taran El were stunned for a moment, and shook their heads at the same time without thinking about it.

“…… Well," Duncan felt a little regretful, "so what do you guys have now?" Mr. Taran Ayer, do you have any speculations about this so-called 'Dream of the Nameless'? ”

Taran El pondered for a few seconds before he spoke: "There is no such word in the legends and traditions of the elves, at least I am sure that it is not in the elven language family, but if we simply discuss the concept of 'dream'...... There are quite a few stories about our race. ”

Duncan was immediately intrigued: "Oh? ”

"You've heard of ...... The Great Demon God Sasloca? ”

(End of chapter)