Chapter 806: Chapter 803: The Astute Agatha

After departing the border curtain and embarking on this prolonged “Journey to the End of the World,” the crew members of Homeloss and the Brilliant Starship have gradually formed a new and tacit connection. Sometimes, people from the two ships visit each other; sometimes they share what they have; in most cases, Ai Yi is the bridge facilitating communication between the two vessels–and these connections, along with the “everyday” built upon them, seem to be quietly becoming an anchor for the “humanity” within every person onboard.

Because they are far away from the civilized world, far from crowds and society, the travelers particularly need human interaction–when the mist at the end of the world envelopes everything, being able to confirm each other’s existence in the fog becomes particularly important.

Nina, Sherry, and the others, who were originally gathered in the dining hall, disappeared in the blink of an eye, each carrying their own knives, forks, and bowls (Sherry firmly brought her large bowl) and a cheerful mood. The scene quickly became quiet, leaving only Duncan sitting at the table, watching helplessly, with a wry smile, at the pot of sticky, bubbling “soup” and a pile of charred items resembling food.

After a while, he shook his head, muttering to himself, “I wonder how Morris dealt with eating during his adventures when he was young… Could it be he just relied on his digestive system to struggle through?”

No sooner had he spoken, than he saw the figure of Agatha reflected on a shiny soup spoon at the edge of the table: “I have heard him talk about this–One third of the time gnawing on dry rations, one third foraging whatever is available, the remaining third transforming himself into his casting form and drinking engine oil and nibbling molten metal, entrusting the physical part to the gods…”

Duncan: “…Sounds like something he would do.”

Agatha shrugged, “I can understand all these, but he once told me that he was stuck in a Profound Rift for weeks, and he came out thinking the taste of a carrion crow was not bad–that kind of credibility, in my opinion, definitely has a question mark.”

Before Agatha could finish speaking, the metaphorical question mark had already transferred to Duncan’s forehead–he was listening in astonishment and couldn’t help blurting out: “Eating Profound Demons raw?! Don’t… Do those things even have flesh?”

Agatha spread her hands and sauntered over to a dining knife: “Who knows? He told me this last time after drinking. As you know, when old men recount their adventures after drinking, only the final period is trustworthy.”

Duncan’s mouth twitched, deciding not to dwell on this topic any longer.

He looked up, gazing towards the porthole not far away–through the open shutters, he could see the uniform expanse of gray still stretching boundlessly beyond Homeloss, as if the entire world had melted into that endless gray.

“What are you thinking about?” Agatha asked, her voice slightly magnetic, coming from beside him. Her reflection appeared on a hanging lantern at some point, her features slightly blurred in the flickering light.

“…We’ve been away for quite some time,” Duncan said after a few seconds of silence, then suddenly spoke in a soft voice, “do you still miss Frost now?”

“Yes,” Agatha responded without hesitation, looking at Duncan, her gaze filled with honesty, “I will not hide my true thoughts from you–I can’t ignore the weight of decades of memories and feelings accumulated in my heart, even though those memories and feelings are but forgeries… I still reminisce about the days in Frost, sometimes waking from a trance, I would even think I am still in that cathedral, waiting to meet with Bishop Ivan.”

She paused here, exhaling softly, and looked into Duncan’s eyes.

“You have other plans for us, don’t you?”

Duncan, somewhat surprised, looked back at the “gatekeeper” reflected in the lantern’s light, “…Why would you think that?”

“I can feel it, you have a plan, you are on a ‘pilgrimage’ along the borders of this world, and at every place Homeloss stops, some kind of… mark is left behind,” Agatha slowly said, “I don’t know what it is, it’s beyond my comprehension, but in the reflected world, I can see clearly that something remains in the wake of Homeloss, from the markers of the Storm Goddess, to the Nodes of the God of Wisdom, and to this current course…

“You are ‘encircling’ the entire world in some way, and in those ‘marks’ that encircle the world, I smell… the scent of the end.

“You’re about to do something big, this ‘pilgrimage’ at the end of the world is just the first step. When you complete the arrangements at the border, that’s when the plan will finally commence, and I can feel that… you don’t seem to intend for us to follow you to the end.”

Duncan fell silent, his gaze fixed quietly on Agatha’s eyes.

“The gatekeeper’s pair of eyes, can see many things invisible to ordinary people, and after becoming a reflection, I began to see even more… You can consider it a glimpse into destiny,” Agatha said with a gentle laugh, then slowly shook her head, “I’ve awoken from nightmares in the darkness, to see this ship sailing in an endless void, and the ship completely empty, with only you at the stern steering–I converse with you, call your name, ask about the whereabouts of others, but you can’t see me, nor hear my voice. It was then I began to faintly guess… that in your next journey, there doesn’t seem to be a place reserved for us.”

Agatha took a brief pause before continuing, “And now, you suddenly ask me if I still miss Frost… that makes me even more certain of my judgment.”

Listening to her, Duncan didn’t speak for a long time, just quietly contemplating until eventually breaking the silence, “Indeed, as you say, Homeloss is undertaking an ‘encirclement pilgrimage’ of the world, and after this pilgrimage is over… I need to do something that will be enough to restart this ‘world.’ Before that happens, you all need to leave.”

Agatha didn’t speak either, just quietly looking over–she knew the captain had more to say.

“This is not an expulsion,” after a moment of contemplation, Duncan indeed continued, “You are my crew, you always have been, and I have always arranged a place for you in my journey. It’s just that when I execute the final step, you will have other tasks to undertake.”

“Can you tell me what exactly you are planning to do?” Agatha asked softly.

“…The first step, I will destroy this world,” after a long bout of thought, Duncan calmly said, “And during this process, you shall serve as my ‘anchor,’ witnessing for me because at that stage, I may no longer be able to observe everything with my own eyes…”

Agatha listened quietly to the captain’s plan, and for quite a while after he finished, she did not speak, until at last, hesitantly, she broke the silence: “No wonder you brought the Brilliant Starship, instead of simply having Miss Lucy board the Homeloss directly…”

“There must always be a ship responsible for returning home,” Duncan said, “Lucy is a very smart girl; she must have also realized my subsequent arrangements.”

“She might realize it, but you will have to personally tell the others the full scope of the plan,” Agatha looked very seriously at her captain, “You’ve always been able to trust us.”

“I trust you, but it also took me a long time to roughly organize the thoughts of this plan,” Duncan confessed, facing the gaze of the Gatekeeper Lady, “In fact, it was not until I left Gomona’s domain that I finally understood the underlying order of this world and ensured that the ‘shutdown’ process of the entire Shelter must be executed to resolve the troubles left by the great annihilation–and before that, taking the Brilliant Starship was just a cautious ‘backup plan’.”

Hearing Duncan’s explanation, Agatha breathed a sigh of relief, then suddenly smiled: “Then I’m much more at ease.”

She jumped down from the glass lampshade of the lantern, her silhouette leaping among the shiny dishes and cups on the dining table, finally stopping in the water glass next to Duncan.

“Since you have a meticulous arrangement, then we can carry out our duties boldly and confidently. A captain’s order is always better than no order at any time.”

Duncan smiled, looking down at Agatha’s reflection in the cup and tapped the glass, shattering the Gatekeeper Lady inside into pieces.

“That’s perfect, as I have an order now.”

Agatha’s figure appeared on a porcelain plate nearby: “Please command.”

“Call the sailor over to clean this place up,” Duncan gestured as he stood up, “That fellow, since he’s no longer needed at the helm, has simply been out of sight, really thinking that he’s obtained a permanent ticket on the Homeloss and doesn’t have to do a thing.”

Agatha’s voice carried a hint of laughter: “Alright, Captain!”

Duncan nodded and turned to leave the dining room.

He planned to return to his own captain’s quarters and get some sleep before reaching the next “node,” and on the way there, he could also stop by the bridge to check on the doll lady–although in theory, Alice was now nothing more than an “empty shell” bound to the wheel, aside from pretending to steer, everything else was left to her instincts as “Helmsman No. 3,” but it was still unsettling to leave that trusting figure alone on the bridge for too long.

With these thoughts in mind, Duncan walked unhurriedly towards the stern deck, but just as he was about to step onto the staircase leading to the bridge, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Bang, bang, bang.

There was a sound of knocking on the window suddenly reaching his ears.

Duncan was startled for a moment and instinctively looked for the direction from which the sound came, but the next second he realized there were no windows around him–the knocking on the glass continued, as though it was coming directly from inside his own mind.

Duncan frowned, then finally it dawned on him.

That sound was coming straight from his own “cognition”!

He looked up abruptly, to see not far ahead the “Door of the Displaced” standing there quietly…