Chapter 93: “This Is Common Sense”
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Duncan swiftly altered his facial expressions and mental state, blending seamlessly with the surroundings to avoid appearing as an uninformed outsider. Yet beneath his calm facade, his emotions churned, akin to a stormy sea refusing to settle.
This experience highlighted a crucial realization for him: navigating an unfamiliar and bewildering world exposes one to the risk of being blindsided by the locals’ unique perspectives, particularly their concept of “common sense.” While one might delve into their history or dismiss specialized expertise as irrelevant to daily life, it’s often the unexpected elements of “common sense” that catch one off guard.
For instance, in this strange world, the absence of stars in the sky was a basic fact known to all. Even more startling was the common belief that celestial bodies were actually situated deep within the ocean, marking the boundary between a spiritual dimension and the mysterious abyssal zone. This was universally accepted as common knowledge.
Upon hearing this, Duncan could only muster incredulity.
His experiences had never led him to such an understanding. Although he had navigated the “Vanished” through the spirit realm and observed erratic light patterns emerging from the lower deck’s subspace, he had never encountered this supposed “starry sky” at the intersection of the spiritual world and the abyssal depths. This represented a significant gap in his knowledge of this realm.
As he continued his dialogue with Morris, Duncan’s thoughts raced.
What could a star-filled sky deep within the ocean look like? Was Morris’s version of a “starry sky” similar to the night skies Duncan knew? What defined the edge separating the spiritual world from the mysterious abyss? Could it be an even more unfathomable ocean, or perhaps a unique spatial construct misleadingly termed an “ocean”?
Duncan’s thoughts then drifted to a girl named Shirley and her unusual companion and weapon, “Dog.”
In this world’s lexicon, Dog was a “dark hound,” a “demon” summoned from the shadowy abyss. Duncan found it challenging to visualize the biological composition of this skeletal hunting canine, yet its clearly terrestrial appearance led him to speculate that this so-called “deep sea” might not actually be a body of water.
It could be an expansive, otherworldly dimension, possibly enveloped by its own celestial vault of stars.
As Duncan mentally assembled a potential spatial framework to explain this mysterious abyss, he noticed Morris observing him with curiosity. The older man, catching Duncan’s somewhat distracted demeanor, inquired, “Do you have an interest in astrology?”
“I’m intrigued, to say the least,” Duncan responded, a half-smile hinting at his complex emotions. It felt almost surreal to discuss “astrology” after grappling with the realization that the night sky in this world lacked stars. “Navigating to a starry sky deep beneath the ocean’s surface would undoubtedly be a daunting task,” he added thoughtfully.
“Absolutely, it’s a perilous undertaking,” Morris agreed, a hint of mirth in his voice. “Fortunately, technological advancements allow us to study the starry sky indirectly. The development of spiritual realm lenses has significantly reduced the instances of navigators losing their sanity during voyages.” Morris chuckled, delighted to find someone willing to engage in such esoteric subjects. “You might find it interesting that a hundred years ago, being a navigator was considered the most hazardous occupation on any sea-going vessel. I’ve always wanted to acquire an original set of these spirit lenses, but they’re exceedingly rare.”
Duncan blinked, momentarily pulled away from Morris’s final point. A long-standing question was suddenly resolved: How did ships in this world navigate without celestial guides in the sky?
The answer, it seemed, was that they relied on a form of “stargazing.” Using specialized instruments, navigators observed a projection of a “starry sky” emanating from the spiritual realm’s depths.
This brought to mind a historical note: Navigation was indeed a life-or-death gamble before the year 1800 in the New Commonwealth calendar. Unlike the Vanished, which had real-time updated nautical charts and even a goat head first mate, traditional ships were at the mercy of these elusive and potentially maddening star projections.
“You’re incredibly knowledgeable,” Duncan finally said, genuinely admiring after their varied discussion. “Nina is fortunate to have such an erudite teacher.”
“And I’m pleased to know she has an uncle like you,” Morris replied, nodding humbly. “All my concerns have evaporated. You appear to be a capable guardian, and your diverse interests and unquenchable curiosity are commendable. It’s been a while since I’ve had such an intellectually stimulating conversation.”
Morris sighed softly, “My current life is quite pleasant—serene and devoid of the chaos in the busier parts of town. The downside is that meaningful discussions on subjects I find fascinating are rare. Even my fellow educators often struggle to keep up with my thoughts. It’s a rare pleasure to find someone like you, eager to engage in such dialogues.”
“I’m honored to serve as your audience,” Duncan replied, his face lighting up with a genuine smile. “History, among other things, has always been a subject close to my heart.”
“Ah, I see,” Morris said, chuckling. He glanced at the window, surprised by the slowly descending sun’s position. “My goodness, have I spent the entire afternoon here?”
“If it suits you, you’re welcome to stay the night,” Duncan offered warmly. “You could sample some of my culinary experiments.”
“As tempting as that sounds, I should catch the last bus to the Crossroad district,” Morris responded, squinting at the reddening sky. “I appreciate the invitation, but it’s best I head home. The city’s been turbulent lately, and I wouldn’t want my family to worry.”
“Understandable,” Duncan said, standing to escort Morris to the door. “I’ll call Nina down.”
Before Morris could protest, Duncan called up to the second floor, “Nina! Mr. Morris is leaving; come down to bid your teacher farewell!”
Footsteps filled the air as Nina, now in a comfortable long gown, descended energetically. She greeted Morris with a warm smile, then glanced outside at the darkening sky, eyes widening. “Wow, you two talked for that long?”
“It was a most engaging conversation,” Morris remarked, smiling. “Your uncle has considerable intellectual curiosity and varied interests. We covered much historical ground.”
Duncan managed to keep a straight face, nodding in agreement. In reality, what Morris called a “discussion” had been more of a lecture, with Duncan playing the role of a polite, albeit somewhat baffled, listener. But since Morris seemed pleased, Duncan saw no reason to burst his bubble. He felt he had played his part well, asking questions at the right moments and keeping the flow going—perfect for an elderly scholar seldom finding an eager audience.
Nina looked from her contented teacher to her poker-faced uncle, skepticism in her eyes. She almost asked when her uncle had developed such an interest in intellectual matters but thought better of it. Nervously, she tugged at Duncan’s sleeve and whispered, “Did you talk about me?”
“We touched on some school-related topics,” Morris quickly answered. Despite his age, his hearing was sharp, easily catching Nina’s hushed words. “I’ll let your uncle fill you in. Don’t fret; I haven’t divulged any of your secrets.”
Satisfied, Morris retrieved his cane and patted the antique dagger tucked in his coat. Exchanging final goodbyes with Nina and Duncan, he slowly exited.
After ensuring Morris was on his way, Duncan surveyed the evening sky, deciding it was time to close up shop. He flipped the sign on the door to “Closed” and locked up. Given the hour, he deemed more customers unlikely.
Having closed a lucrative deal, Duncan felt more relaxed about the day’s commerce. The usual urgency to keep the store open late had dissipated, replaced by a comfortable assurance.
Nina watched her uncle move around the store, securing the door and straightening items. Her mind whirled with questions, but as she was about to voice them, Duncan looked up, beaming. “What do you say we buy you a bicycle in the next few days?”
“Uh, what?” Nina stammered, caught off guard. “Why would—”
“I’ve received a bonus from City Hall,” Duncan interrupted, cheerfully brandishing a check. “And I’ve just sealed a substantial business deal. We have extra funds to make our lives more convenient. A bicycle would be handy, don’t you think?”
“A ‘substantial business deal’?” Nina’s eyes widened as realization dawned. “Wait, did you sell that antique dagger to Mr. Morris?”
“I did,” Duncan confirmed, nodding with satisfaction. “For over three thousand soras.”
Nina’s eyes widened, astonished. “Three thousand soras!?”
Fiscally astute for her age, Nina looked at Duncan, questioning his ethics. “So, you invite your niece’s teacher for a home visit, spend an afternoon discussing intellectual matters, and then sell him an artifact for over three thousand soras? What would people say?”
Duncan paused, considering seriously. “That our shop becomes a hit and gains fame?”
Nina rolled her eyes. “Are you serious?”
Duncan shrugged, eyes twinkling with mischief. “What other option did I have? The man was enamored with the piece. It wouldn’t be right to hand it over for nothing, especially since it’s one of the few authentic items in the store.”
Nina stood, hands on hips, disbelief on her face. But after a moment, her incredulity turned into a grin. Despite initial reservations, she felt a sense of quiet pride for her entrepreneurial uncle.
Are they in some kind of Dyson Sphere?
That won’t explain the deep sea and stars there
Also there is no moons or other planets and everything else that might exist in a solar system.
I wonder why Nina is so weird like Morris says ?
Maybe she is also a vision like fragment of sun or that fragment of sun might be influening her somehow
Huh, my take is that yes, all the records are true, however, it’s because of some interdimensional disaster that fragmented their various dimensions and thus planets, which then melded together. The excessive sea could be because of the spacial rifts.
After the land was deposited, along with any connecting ocean,the rifts stayed open for a while after, and the oceans of the various planets where they were intersecting kept pouring into the rifts until they healed or were otherwise closed. Particularly from the giant scar in the sky, which is literally a scar across the fabric of reality.
There might be dozens of other worldshards like this one, with fragments of the same worlds also melded together, albeit with a lot of desert perhaps, if so much water accumulated in just one worldshard.
My guess is the world they inhabit is reversed upside down. They don’t actually live on the surface of the planet, but inside a hollow planet with inverted gravity. The sun (Vision 001) and the sky they see is actually located in the center of the planet, while the deep sea is connected to the actual surface area of ??the planet, hence why they cannot see the stars in the sky but on the other side of the deep sea. Also, what they call ‘subspace’ is actually outer space. Anyone who has watched ‘Patema Inverted’ will understand what I mean.
Hum a nice theory but what about the scar across the sky and the sun going over the horizon for the night and also the 100 years of darkness?
Forgot to leave my email to receive the answer if provided lol