The flame in the mirror faded away, and the majestic figure gradually disappeared into the darkness, but the mysterious symbol that Captain Duncan showed him remained clear in his mind.

Morris left the utility room, glanced at his sleeping wife, and came to the desk under the window. He took out a pen and paper, and in the cool night light outside the window, while his memory was still clear, he drew the mysterious and strange symbol.

Then, the knowledgeable old scholar frowned and looked at the pattern on the paper and fell into a brief thought.

Even scholars who could pass the most rigorous examinations of the Academy of Truth were confused when they saw this symbol - the only thing he was sure of was that this thing was definitely not a mark used by any city gang, church or official organization, and it did not conform to the rune norms of mystical symbolism.

According to the captain, this was the emblem carried by several ascetics who visited the Losttown a hundred years ago, and he suddenly became interested in this emblem.

As the captain's "dependent", Morris had no intention of prying into the captain's secrets, but he became extremely curious about those mysterious ascetics - what kind of "people" would carry such strange amulets and suddenly attract Captain Duncan's attention a hundred years later?

After thinking for a long time, Morris breathed a sigh of relief, folded the paper properly, put it in the drawer of the desk and locked it carefully.

He planned to wait until the sun rose tomorrow before going to the study to look through the classics about ancient city-states and secret societies. Although the God of Wisdom had endowed his believers with excellent memory, even the best memory could have flaws. Perhaps there were records of this symbol in his own collection of books?

If you can't find any clues in your own collection of books... then you can go to the archives of several large libraries in the city-state and the university in the upper city to investigate. Although you have left the university position for many years, your original connections and influence are still there, so it should not be a problem for you to borrow some precious books.

If no records of this kind can be found in the entire Pland, then one can only write letters or send telegrams to old friends in places like Lunsa - there are a few old buddies who are well-versed in history and mysticism who may be able to help. Even if they can't help, the universities and research institutions behind them can help.

In any case, this is the first task assigned to me by the captain - he has granted me the miracle of resurrection from the dead, and now I finally have the opportunity to help.

Morris thought about this silently in his heart, and his irritable mood caused by insomnia calmed down unconsciously. He seemed to have found the vigorous feeling when he first entered the academy, full of fighting spirit for a certain goal, and along with this fighting spirit...

There is also a long-lost feeling of sleepiness.

※※※

Tirian had been tossing and turning in his bed for hours, and still could not sleep.

He couldn't remember how many years it had been since he had suffered from such severe insomnia. As the commander of the Sea Mist Fleet and the captain of the Sea Mist, he always had strong self-control and a good schedule. He could fall asleep and wake up as precisely controlled as a machine - except today.

Various thoughts and images kept rising and falling in his mind, mixed with countless yellowed and trivial memories, the flames emerging in the mirror, the gloomy and majestic father, the exploration ship that once set sail amid cheers and praises, and the shadow of the ship returning from the subspace...

There was even the encounter with the Lost Homeland near the Frost Sea, and what the Frost Queen said to him at the beginning of the "Abyss Plan" -

[“There are terrifying things under the deep sea, but there must also be answers to all the questions under the deep sea.”]

Tirian rolled over and sat up in his bed.

He looked at the wall not far away. The mirror that was originally hanging on the wall had been taken down and was still quietly upside down on the table next to it. A slightly lighter oval mark was left on the wall. The suitcase containing the crystal ball and the lens set was placed at the end of the bed and locked again. Other places in the room with mirrors or smooth mirror surfaces were also covered with cloth.

But the white cloth covering the mirror made the room look even more eerie and strange. Under the cold glow of the Creation of the World, the room seemed like a place where ghosts gathered.

But Tyrian was not afraid of ghosts. He had a ship of undead sailors, a cursed living warship, and several secret bases where strange and terrifying phantoms would emerge all year round. Compared with his father, ghosts were nothing scary.

After pacing back and forth in the quiet and gloomy room for a few minutes, Tirian's eyes fell on the suitcase at the end of the bed. After a slight hesitation, he picked up the box.

Perri had already flown back to the ship to report safety. As the captain, he couldn't run to the next room to wake up his subordinates to play cards with him to relieve his boredom. Instead, he decided to see what Lucrecia was doing.

Maybe the other person is suffering from insomnia just like you.

He turned on the light, placed the box on the table, and opened the lid. A crystal ball surrounded by a complex lens group and curved connecting arms appeared before his eyes. Tirian stretched out his hand, but before he could activate the lens, the device began to buzz, and the crystal ball in the center was quickly lit up.

In just a moment, Lucrecia's figure appeared in the crystal ball.

The "sea witch" who was wearing a gauze skirt, a black hair shawl and had a mysterious temperament was looking at her brother with a tired look on her face.

"Brother, I can't sleep."

"If you have insomnia, you can find your puppets to entertain you, or do your magic experiments," Tirian said with a straight face, "I am formulating the subsequent development plan of the Sea Mist Fleet..."

"But your hair is as messy as if you've been tossing on your pillow for four hours," Lucrecia said flatly. "Is this a new posture when making development plans?"

“…”

Tirian was silent for a few seconds, looking exhausted. "Do you have any good suggestions for curing insomnia? Use your wisdom as a 'witch'... Forget it, just pretend I didn't ask."

The brother and sister fell into an awkward silence for a moment, and then chatted for a few minutes, but they were intentionally or unintentionally avoiding some key points. However, gradually, the topic inevitably began to move in a certain direction.

"...I just made some 'changes' to Luni," Lucrecia said, "I strengthened the protection of her joints, and added a small container for storing holy oil and a protective rune next to the sphere that stores the 'soul'."

"Do you think this can prevent your father from contacting you through 'Nilu' next time?"

"No, but maybe it will prevent Luni from getting stuck next time," Lucrecia said with a hint of helplessness, "She is actually still scared of the last time she got stuck. We just had a serious discussion about this."

Tirian was curious: "Communication? What did you communicate with your puppet?"

"She advised me not to be nervous, and I advised her to be more positive."

Tirian: "..."

There was silence again, but this time it didn't last long. Tirian suddenly said, "I was just thinking about something."

"What are you thinking about?"

"Do you remember the last words father said today?" Tirian said slowly, "He said he found Lunye's sister 'Nilu', and mentioned that the doll had never been sold..."

Lucrecia's eyes changed slightly: "You mean..."

"That means the store is still there - do you remember where the puppet shop is?" Tirian's expression became serious. "I only remember that it is in the city of Plunder."

Lucrecia frowned slightly and fell into reminiscence, while Tirian continued slowly, "If my father really 'bought' Nilu from that puppet shop, then this reveals a very crucial information: he had already set foot in this city-state in some way before Plender was polluted by history, and even had activities here openly..."

"Have you ever thought that this was a clue that Father deliberately revealed to us?" Lucrecia suddenly said, "Now that you think of this, maybe this is what Father deliberately wanted you to investigate."

Tirian was silent for a few seconds before he spoke: "I have considered this possibility - but even so, you know I will not let this clue go."

"...I only vaguely remember the location of the store," Lucrecia said, "It should be on the edge of the upper city, near a certain intersection in the southern lower city. The owner is an elf lady...I saw her a century ago and she seemed very old. But considering the lifespan of elves, she should still be the owner of the store now."

Tirian nodded slightly and silently took note of the information provided by Lucrecia.

※※※

There were some slight waves on the sea, and the Lost Homeland was shaking slightly in the wind and waves. Duncan sat at the navigation table, studying the foggy nautical chart in front of him with some boredom.

His body in the city-state of Plande had already gone to sleep, but his "real body" on the Lost Homeland needed little rest. As a result, the night voyage became a rather boring time, especially due to the double restrictions of not reading at night and not reading at sea. He could not bring the recreational books he bought in Plande here to relieve his boredom, which made him even more bored.

After all, he couldn't just explore this ship for fun every day - no matter how big the Lost Homeland was, there was a limit to its exploration.

"I kind of want to walk around the spirit world and knock on glass, and call Vanna, Tirian and the others to play cards." Duncan sighed in boredom, raised his eyelids and looked at the goat head, "It's hard to say about Vanna, and Tirian probably won't be able to sleep tonight..."

"If you really do this, he will also be unable to sleep tomorrow night," the goat-headed man said immediately, "But to be honest, your idea is really attractive and has a great thrilling and entertaining effect. Who do you plan to knock first?"

"That's all I'm saying," Duncan glanced at the goat's head and scanned the chart again, but suddenly, he seemed to remember something and raised his head abruptly, "How long until sunrise?"

"... Three more hours," Goat Head roughly estimated, "If it rises on time today."