Chapter 372

Chapter 372: Deeply Off Course

On the way back to the Cathedral, Agatha was weighed down with worries.

Confirming that the “Second Waterway” was the right direction for exploration counted as good news for her. But the identity of that mysterious being was still hidden in fog, and that left her unable to calm down no matter what. Of course, it was now certain that this being’s attitude toward the city-state of Frostholm was friendly. Yet as the leader of the Guardians of this city, she had to think long-term.

Any upper supernatural’s gaze upon the mortal world was never without a reason. In a sense, their gaze itself was a disturbance that had real effects. How much longer would that mysterious “visitor” keep his gaze on this place? What long-term impact would his stay have on Frostholm? Would the people living in the city-state change under that influence? Did that being know about this influence? Or… did He simply not care?

A small steam core let out a low, powerful growl as the gear-driven vehicle rolled along the old streets of the city-state. The scenery on both sides of the road slid back toward the edges of her vision. The car passed yet another intersection, and its speed slowed a little.

Her subordinate’s voice came from the front driver’s seat: “Lord, are we going straight back to the Cathedral?”

Agatha lifted her head and looked through the window toward the Cathedral.

The Silent Cathedral, as always, quietly looked down over the entire city-state.

At the center of Frostholm stood a mountain, roughly cone-shaped, rising high above the city’s heart. Beneath it lay the Boiling Gold mines that brought endless wealth to the city. The Silent Cathedral and City Hall stood together on the mountaintop. The two large buildings shared the highest point in the city-state. No matter where you stood in the city, you could see them.

At least one of them.

The Cathedral was towering and solemn, looking almost holy against the sky. Across from it, City Hall was also an impressive structure. Half a century ago, in the Queen’s era, it had actually been a palace. Official records called it the “Winter Court”, but more people simply called it the Queen’s Palace.

In that age, which people now treated as taboo, the Winter Court and the Silent Cathedral had looked down on the city like a pair of twins. Old stories full of strange charm painted them as two symbolic powers of protection. The Church guarded the city’s veil of night, and the royal family guarded its daylight. The two sides supported and upheld each other.

In truth, things were not so different now. The worldly power represented by City Hall still guarded this city—only the Queen’s era had ended.

Agatha drifted off a little. Without realizing it, she stared at that mountain, the mountain she had already seen countless times, and at the two buildings that sat on it like a crown. To her, they looked like two giant beasts standing on the peak, while the houses and factories scattered along the slopes were like blood spilling from those beasts, winding down the mountain’s sides.

Her eyes started to sting.

“Gatekeeper, are we going back to the Cathedral?”

Her subordinate’s voice came again from the front seat. Agatha snapped out of her daze and blinked. It felt as if a faint buzzing still lingered in her ears, but a second later that lingering buzz vanished, together with the brief memory from just now.

“No, go to the sewage treatment plant first,” Agatha shook her head and said. “That ‘replica’ that vanished in the washroom worries me too much. I have to see it with my own eyes.”

“Yes.”

The steam core roared to life again. The car drew a neat arc at the intersection and turned onto the road leading to the sewage treatment plant.

…

The sky was covered by thick clouds. Dim daylight moved weakly within them, murky and unclear. In the distance stretched endless seawater, with a thin mist drifting over the waves.

Lawrence stood at the bow of the White Oak, frowning as he gazed at the distant view—the same view that had not changed for a very long time.

He turned and looked the other way. That side of the sea was also nothing but endless water. There were no other ships in sight, and not even a hint of any city-state.

Cold wind swept across the deck, tugging at his coat and the white hair at his temples. Lawrence’s frown had not eased for a long time.

“How long have we been away from Frostholm?” he suddenly asked, turning to the first mate beside him.

“A day and a night, Captain,” the first mate answered at once. “We have been at full speed the whole time.”

“Something is wrong… Why do I keep feeling that we’re going in circles…” Lawrence’s face grew solemn as he looked up at the murky light above. Then he seemed to recall something and asked: “Can the wireless telegraph pick up signals from any nearby city-state or the Harbor?”

“Yes,” the first mate nodded, his face also serious now. “But Frostholm is the only one.”

Lawrence drew a slow breath: “What does it say?”

“A welcome message,” the first mate said slowly. “‘The Harbor is open, welcome to Frostholm.’ We keep receiving that same message again and again.”

Lawrence’s brow furrowed even tighter. He said nothing. After a brief silence, the first mate muttered: “It’s like… we’re still circling Frostholm.”

“It’s obvious we’re trapped in this stretch of sea,” Lawrence said in a low voice. “How is the mood on board?”

“Everyone has realized something is wrong, but they’re all staying calm,” the first mate said. He glanced back toward the deck, where sailors were busy at their posts. “They’re good people—we’ve seen ‘strange things’ on the Boundless Sea before. They all believe you can get us out of this, so no one is bothering you.”

Lawrence did not answer. He only lifted his head and looked again at the murky sky.

The first mate noticed this strange action and could not help asking: “What are you looking at?”

“I…” Lawrence rubbed his temples. For some reason he felt a bit dazed, as if he had forgotten something very important. “I’m thinking about our course.”

“Our course?”

“Yes, our course.” Lawrence squeezed his eyes shut and opened them again, trying to recall what he had forgotten while he spoke almost to himself. “Don’t you think… we’ve forgotten something? Our current course… shouldn’t we be checking it somehow?”

The first mate froze for a second, then spoke without thinking: “Check the course? You mean the Stargazing Room? The navigator…”

“Wait, no, not the Stargazing Room,” Lawrence cut him off, as if slowly waking from a long dream. “The Stargazing Room is for checking the route in special cases. It carries corruption and can’t be used too often. There should be an easier, more common, safer method—something you can use in the daytime to confirm the ship’s direction. There should be such a method…”

His words came faster and faster. Then something seemed to occur to him, and he suddenly turned and ran toward the captain’s cabin.

The first mate, completely confused, instinctively followed. He went with Lawrence back to the captain’s cabin and then watched as the older man started rummaging through the room. At last he could not help asking: “What are you looking for?”

“Some kind of instrument. Used in the daytime. To check our course…” Lawrence dug through his things as he spoke quickly. A strong impression slowly resurfaced in his mind. He felt he was about to remember it, about to know what he was looking for… Suddenly his eyes fell on the desk not far away.

A small instrument sat there. It was made of a short telescope tube and several strange marked rulers.

Lawrence slowly walked over and picked up the little device, puzzled, trying hard to recall what it was for.

A moment later, holding the instrument in thought, he left the cabin and stepped out onto the deck. Under the first mate’s baffled gaze, he raised the instrument to his eye and aimed it at the sky.

“Captain, what are you doing?” the first mate asked, curious.

Lawrence slowly lowered the device.

A faint green light seemed to flicker deep in his eyes, but neither he nor the first mate standing opposite noticed it.

The old captain’s face showed only confusion and shock. He locked eyes with the first mate for a few seconds before speaking in a hoarse voice, slowly: “Do you remember… that in the sky there was something that shone with light and heat? It moved above us on time and on schedule, and ships could use it to check their course during the day…”

The first mate’s eyes slowly widened, as if some memory or impression was also waking up inside his mind.

Lawrence turned his head again, staring at the chaotic clouds and the hazy, dim light behind them. Its source could not be seen. The daylight seemed to spread out evenly, with no sign of a clear, intense glowing orb anywhere in the clouds.

He drew back his gaze and stared straight at his first mate: “Where did the Sun go?”

The first mate could only repeat the captain’s words in a daze: “…Where did the Sun go?”

“This isn’t just getting lost, not a navigation lock, not looping Visions…” Lawrence murmured. “The White Oak has entered an Anomaly space as a whole…”

The first mate slowly lifted his head and looked at the vast sea beyond the rail, his eyes filled with confusion and fear.

But suddenly he seemed to notice something.

A stretch of land had appeared on the sea.

It was a small island.