Chapter 500: The Man Who Sets Sail

This novel is translated and hosted on bcatranslation.com

Annie looked puzzled as she stared at the two unexpected visitors in the cabin. Her wide-eyed, curious gaze moved between Agatha and Duncan, almost like a silent ping-pong match. After what felt like an eternity, the young girl finally managed to regain her composure and cautiously asked, “Uncle Duncan, are you saying you want to become the caretaker of this cemetery?”

“Maybe,” Duncan replied casually, glancing at Agatha, who still looked utterly astonished. “Is it impossible? Does a cemetery caretaker have to be a retired guardian?”

Agatha quickly recovered and countered, “No… It’s true that cemetery caretakers are usually retired guardians. But I’m sure I can get you the position if I vouch for you. The main issue isn’t finding you the job; it’s… Are you sure you want to stay here and take on the role of a caretaker?”

“In Pland, I’m still known as an antique dealer,” Duncan said with a teasing glint in his eyes. “The ghost ship will never settle in one place, but my avatar will stay in the city-state. I need to keep busy. I can’t just sit around all day, drinking tea and reading newspapers in that big house on Oak Street, can I?”

Agatha was caught off guard and stumbled over her words, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink. “I… I never really thought about what your avatar would do daily.”

“That’s typical. Most stories don’t bother with what the main characters do for a living after the main story ends. In reality, you’re stuck handling two people’s responsibilities while Tyrian is swamped with paperwork for the entire month.” Duncan laughed heartily. “As for me, I find it monotonous to pilot a ghost ship that never docks and aimlessly drifts on the Boundless Sea all day. Living a mundane life in the city-state helps me retain some semblance of ‘human’ behavior. It’s my way of…”

Agatha interrupted him, “I’ll sort it out for you immediately. You can start working at the cemetery as early as tomorrow.”

Duncan: “…I wasn’t finished yet.”

“I’ve heard everything that matters,” Agatha retorted, her face serious. “Rest assured, even if the highest cathedral interferes, I’ll make sure you can peacefully perform your duties as a caretaker in this cemetery.”

“Although I think you might have read too much into my words, it’s not a significant issue,” Duncan responded, slightly taken aback. He then shifted the conversation towards the actual “job.”

“So, what are the typical responsibilities of a cemetery caretaker?”

“The job isn’t very demanding,” Agatha explained. “The primary role of the caretaker is to maintain the peace within the cemetery, ensuring supernatural forces remain undisturbed. Additionally, you’ll need to log the entries and exits of both the living and the dead. The maintenance of the cemetery facilities is the responsibility of the nearby church.” She added, “Given the recent tranquility in Frost, I suppose all cemetery caretakers have less work on their hands.”

As Agatha spoke, there was an unusual inflection in her voice, and her eyes intermittently darted towards Duncan. It was evident she had connected the calm nights in Frost to Duncan’s presence. Even if the nights were as perilous as before, would it matter? With Duncan as the caretaker, would there ever be supernatural disturbances again? She surmised that even if an entity from subspace emerged from a coffin, it would likely be promptly thwarted by the new caretaker. Nevertheless, this was a positive development.

Duncan was oblivious to Agatha’s thoughts. He hadn’t anticipated anything too complex. He simply wanted to find something to occupy his physical form. Considering the lingering will within this body and his “connection” with the cemetery, he decided to stay and assume the role of the new cemetery caretaker. He would continue to stand guard over Frost, nurturing and protecting this city-state, much like his life in Pland. The cup of hot tea in his hand had gradually lost its warmth, and Duncan set the cup down on a low table beside him.

Rising to his feet, he silently scanned the humble room. The modest, austere decor bore the imprints of the previous inhabitant. Adjacent to the door, an old hunting rifle, quite the relic, was securely mounted on an iron hook. The bolt gleamed, reflecting the firelight from the side. Duncan observed the aged hunting rifle for a moment, offered a slight nod of approval, and exited the small cabin. The lively tunes from a street bordering the cemetery drifted over…

Interspersed within the music were the echoing pops of fireworks. Annie scampered out of the cabin door behind him, tuned into the distant noise, and joyously tugged at the corner of Duncan’s attire, “The new governor’s convoy is about to traverse the cemetery area.”

“Many people are still apprehensive about the new governor.”

Lowering his gaze, Duncan’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “You don’t seem scared at all.”

“I’m not afraid. Mom said the new governor is a city-state protector, a hero.” Annie tilted her face upward, her eyes squinting in the sunlight. “Like her father, he’s a formidable man.”

Duncan mulled over her words for a moment and gently patted the fluffy hat perched atop the young girl’s head. Indeed, he would make an exceptional governor.

Back on the Boundless Sea, Duncan strolled across the stern deck, returning to the navigation room where the goat head was attentively steering the ship. On the navigation table, the mist cloaking the surface of the sea map was slowly dissipating. Duncan stationed himself in front of the sea map for a while, his eyes sweeping over the routes close to Frost that were gradually coming into focus. Then he ambled to a corner of the room, where the antique, elegantly shaped oval mirror of the captain’s room hung in silence on the wall.

The mirror reflected the scene inside the room, and under the intricate dance of sunlight and shadows, the scene appeared somewhat blurry. Duncan advanced, curled his finger, and lightly tapped the surface of the mirror. In an instant, the otherwise ordinary mirror surface began to undulate with waves of fuzzy light and shadow.

It was as though a myriad of mist and dust were rising and diffusing from the world within the mirror. Then, a figure materialized from the obscure light and shadows… Agatha – the sentry within the mirror, emerged before Duncan. Her slightly husky voice emanated from the item.

“I’m glad to see you,” Duncan responded with a nod and nonchalantly inquired, “How are you finding it? Have you adjusted?”

“It’s quite comfortable,” Agatha slowly admitted. “When I initially moved onto the ship, the immense, desolate world within the mirror instilled a sense of unease in me. But as I began to acclimate to this place, the encompassing darkness has progressively receded… I also attempted to interact with the woman named ‘Martha’. She imparted a wealth of useful skills and knowledge about life as a mirror image.”

Upon hearing this, Duncan’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Oh? You can directly communicate with Martha from here?”

“The Black Oak ship is adrift in the reflective waters nearby. In the world of mirror images, Martha and I are neighbors.” Agatha laughed. “It’s a remarkable experience. The world in the mirror is disconnected yet interlinked everywhere. I can leap from one mirror to another, materialize in multiple mirrors simultaneously, or retreat into the vast abyss behind the mirror… It might take many years for me to fully comprehend all of this.”

Duncan listened with fascination as this “mirror image” explained the “laws of the mirror world” beyond common folk’s grasp and hard to visualize.

When she concluded, he nodded subtly. “It sounds like you’re enjoying this journey. That’s good.”

Agatha paused, her voice a soft whisper as she shared her feelings. “Yeah, it’s better than I had anticipated.”

The room then succumbed to silence for a spell. After an indeterminable length of time, Duncan unexpectedly shattered the quiet. “I’m curious, what prompted you to leave Frost to undertake this journey? This will likely be your most unhurried journey in this lifetime. This ship might navigate to countless places, to far-flung city-states, concealed secrets, spiritual realms, and even subspace…”

Agatha plunged into deep thought within the mirror, taking this question to heart. After several moments, she began to speak slowly. “I believe it was when ‘we’ dove collectively into that dark, unfathomable sea…”

Duncan remained silent, merely observing the figure in the mirror, awaiting her continuation. The voice from the mirror resumed, “I carry Agatha’s memories and emotions. Within those recollections, I was born in Frost, surrounded by family and friends. I studied and underwent training, endured the church’s trials, as well as the familiarity of those streets, those old bell towers, those long-forgotten objects… everything feels so intimate. All these elements reside in my mind, clear and profound, like experiences I’ve personally lived through.”

“But what we all understand is that until the day of the mirror invasion, the life truly pertinent to ‘me’ spanned merely three days. Thus, when my consciousness was revived, and I returned to this world in the guise of a mirror image, I’ve found myself constantly pondering this question – am I Gatekeeper Agatha or a ‘person’ who merely inherited someone else’s memories and was reborn into this world?”

She paused, letting those words brew. As a ‘mirror image’, her eyes were luminous, and at that moment, they were fixed intensely on the captain outside the mirror.

“You’re correct, one cannot perpetually exist as the shadow of another. Almost all of my life memories are derived from a different individual, but even so, there are three days within that memory that are distinctly mine.”

“Yet, if I were to remain in Frost, that fleeting three-day ‘life’ would inevitably be engulfed by more substantial and profound memories. I can’t sever my ties with that city. I can’t evade my human frailties as a mortal. I’m fated to be a shadow, a regret-filled shadow ensnared within memories. And as time passes, this regret will invariably morph into resentment and bitterness…”

“I can’t accept this potential outcome. However, during that ‘deep dive’ journey with you, your words… They allowed me to glimpse new possibilities!”

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