Chapter 560

Chapter 560: Two Questions

Now that mass of once-living “matter” had completely turned into a solid lump of metal.

To render harmless an anomaly that had already been registered for containment required a very complicated process. But for Ted Riel, a Truth Keeper of the Truth Academy, it was just routine work. He quickly brought in the person in charge of the underground archive and made proper arrangements.

Even though he felt a lot of emotion, and even though the past of that “living metal” had deeply moved him, as the Guardian of the City-State he had to handle this matter strictly according to the safety rules. Even if it really had once been a brave soul who tried to save the world, in this Deep Sea era that being had already become an “extraordinary intrusion” that might spread rot and corruption. What waited for this mass of matter was the high temperature of the steam core reactor boiler, followed by a strict series of purification, cutting, grinding, and sealing.

But from another angle, this was also a kind of burial. Ordinary people in this world went through the same thing. “Bodies” always had to be handled properly. The dead always had to make way for the living.

As for the longsword, it was the only material thing left from “that world” in the end. It had somehow returned to the state it was in when it was first forged. It was clearly a research sample of very high value.

Through it, scholars could build a deeper understanding of that world. Everything there had already vanished, but that understanding and memory still had meaning.

Duncan said: “I have no use for it.” He gladly agreed to Ted Riel’s request, handed the longsword to him, and spoke with some emotion: “Let the clever people uncover more of the secrets behind it. If you discover anything, I hope you can share it with me.”

“Of course,” Ted Riel said as he took the sword from Duncan with great solemnity. After a brief hesitation, he went on: “About what happened today and the information we now hold, I will gather the scholars of the Truth Academy to discuss it. If we run into new questions, we may still need your… help.”

“No problem,” Duncan said at once. He had no objection. He nodded, then pointed at Lucretia beside him: “You can contact me through Lucy. If I think of anything or discover something new, I will have her pass it on.”

There were still many things that needed to be explained and discussed. When the “Horizon Limit” of the Great Annihilation suddenly showed a crack before mortals, it would surely bring a huge shock to the academic world. The Four Gods Church would also pay attention and debate this matter. Whether they wanted to accept it or not, the Vanished and the master of the Vanished had already become an inescapable part of it.

As for Duncan, he did not care much about that. From his point of view, among the many pieces of information they had just obtained, there were still some key and unusual issues that Lucretia and Ted Riel had not noticed and, for now, could not even understand.

For example, the position of that “Deep Crimson” and how it behaved against all common sense.

If the information he had seen in the fragments of memory was real, and if that Templar Knight had not been wrong in his explanation of the Warrior, then the “red radiance” that destroyed the world should have been in outer space. It might have been a huge astronomical phenomenon crossing the galaxy, a band of light set against the background of the Starry Sky.

That raised a problem. A planet rotated. At least from the scenes in those memory fragments, the Warrior’s homeland also had normal sunrises and sunsets, with stars turning in the sky.

So in theory, that red band of light in outer space should have moved across the sky and risen and set with the other stars.

But why did that Deep Crimson always stay in one fixed place in the sky?

The Warrior and his companions had always searched for where the Deep Crimson fell, because in their eyes that red light stayed fixed in a certain spot in the sky. This kept them from noticing that the light had not fallen to the ground at all, but was actually set against the background of the Starry Sky.

That Templar Knight had raised this question at the end too. In a way, it was also the last and greatest “astronomical discovery” their civilization made before it perished.

Duncan guessed that that “light” was no longer just some visible physical object. The Deep Crimson was only the form it showed. Its true nature might already involve “destruction” and “distortion” at the level of the universe’s basic order, even its “rules”.

It might be a tear on a dimensional level, or some deeper and more complex phenomenon.

Yet Ted Riel and Lucretia were still unable to even notice this issue, let alone understand it in the short term. They did not even understand the concept of a planet.

This could only be taken slowly. Even if Duncan wanted to explain it now, it would take a very, very long time.

The second question was: what exactly did the “worlds” in the World Aggregation Theory mean?

Was each “world” a different planet within the same universe, or was each a different universe when seen from a broader view?

Duncan raised his head and glanced at Ted Riel, who was still deep in thought, and at the longsword in Ted’s hand.

The two pieces of evidence, The Moon and the longsword, might support most of the descriptions in the World Aggregation Theory. But they were not enough to determine what “level” those “world fragments” that made up the Boundless Sea actually belonged to. In a broad sense, every planet could be called a world, and every universe could also be called a world.

For Duncan, the difference mattered.

But it was also a problem that the Truth Keeperand the Sea Witch could not understand or even sense right now. Duncan had no idea how he could explain these concepts to them in a short time.

Besides that, the secret of the Deep Crimson glow itself was even more worth attention. This was not the first time Duncan had “seen” that ominous radiance.

It had appeared in the vision of the New Hope’s crash, and in the oil painting in Alice’s mansion.

What on earth was that thing?

Lucretia noticed Duncan’s long silence and the change in his expression as he thought.

She grew a bit worried and asked: “Father, is there still something wrong?”

“…I have many questions and I need to sort them out when we get back,” Duncan said as he pulled himself from his thoughts and gently shook his head. “Let’s go back first. When I have some ideas, I will come to discuss them with you.”

Lucretia still looked worried, but from Duncan’s attitude she realized that these were probably more “problems that were hard to explain to others”.

In these few short days together, this was the first tacit understanding she had rebuilt with her Father.

So she only nodded and did not ask further.

“We should go,” Duncan said as he let out a soft breath. He glanced at Nina and Shirley, who still looked a bit uneasy, then looked at Ted Riel: “Send us back.”

The Truth Keeper nodded and once again summoned that “door” from his book. Then he walked through it together with Duncan and the others, returning to the academy near the Crown District.

“I will make some arrangements when I go back,” Ted Riel said before they parted. He glanced at Nina and Shirley, who stood beside Duncan. “No one will disturb you or your followers as you move around the city, but in return…”

“Don’t worry, we won’t cause any trouble,” Duncan cut him off with a friendly smile. “We are all law-abiding people who care about the city’s public order.”

The Truth Keeperstanding before him clearly froze for a moment.

Even Lucretia, standing to the side, was stunned.

Clearly, neither of them believed it.

But Ted Riel quickly controlled his expression again. He gave a stiff yet polite smile and said: “That would be… for the best.”

Then he paused and added very sincerely: “We should meet again when there is time. You may not remember me, but I still look forward to talking with you, about that… incredible ‘knowledge’.”

Duncan laughed and said: “Not many people dare talk about ‘knowledge’ with me. There are not many as brave as you. All right, then I’ll look forward to it.”

Lucretia looked at her Father, then at the Truth Keeperopposite them.

The witch suddenly felt a bit emotional.

It seemed that teaching was indeed very hard. This Truth Keeper would rather talk with her Father about Subspace than face a graduating class of students…

After a brief farewell, Duncan left the academy facility with Nina and Shirley, together with Lucretia.

They returned to the Witch’s mansion at 99 Crown Street.

“You can arrange things on your own. I’m going upstairs to rest. Unless it’s something special, don’t disturb me.”

After this simple order, Duncan ruffled Nina and Shirley’s hair, then went up the stairs to the second floor.

After a while, Shirley, who had been staring blankly, turned and whispered to Nina: “The Captain is not in a very good mood…”

“I don’t think you can describe it as just good or bad mood…” Nina hesitated, then whispered back with her own thoughts: “Uncle Duncan just has a lot on his mind. But actually, he’s already much better today than in the past few days. He’s not so gloomy, he just seems to have a lot to think about.”

Shirley thought hard for a moment. She carefully glanced at Lucretia, who seemed lost in her own thoughts, then leaned closer to Nina and whispered: “I don’t think I understood the things the Captain talked about.”

“Honestly, I didn’t understand much either,” Nina said, sounding a bit embarrassed. “Maybe only people at Grand Scholar level can figure those things out…”

As soon as she finished, Lucretia suddenly broke her silence beside them: “Don’t worry about it. Even a Grand Scholar cannot fully understand them.”

Nina and Shirley both jumped in fright and stared blankly at the witch.

Lucretia shook her head at them, her expression very serious and stern.

“All of that ‘knowledge’ comes from Subspace,” she said. “My Father just ‘processed’ it so it is not as harmful. But it still is not something an ordinary person can easily understand.”