The Lost Home was big, surprisingly big - as a sail-powered ship, its size seemed to Duncan to have exceeded what was necessary.
Such a large size meant bigger cargo holds, more cannons, sturdier construction, and a more stable posture in the face of wind and waves - all of which meant that it was capable of facing the most arduous long-distance challenges.
But Duncan currently had no plans for any so-called long-distance voyages, and this ghost ship, so unusually large, only brought him a sense of loneliness. Therefore, having another "crew member" who could talk on board would not be a bad thing.
After all, there were plenty of unused "guest rooms" on this large ship.
Footsteps broke the silence in the corridor. Duncan walked down the wooden stairs with the gothic doll and entered the cabin on the lower deck at the stern of the ship. This was located directly below the captain's cabin and, in terms of structure, should be considered the "upper-class residential area" of this large ship. Compared to the dark, sinister and slightly eerie areas further down, this place was somewhat bright and clean.
Duncan stopped in front of a crew cabin and then casually pushed open the slightly ajar wooden door.
Inside was a single room with simple furnishings.
There were several such single cabins on board the ship, but they had been unused for a long time and there was no sign of anyone ever having used them.
After exploring the upper area of the Lost Home, Duncan noticed the existence of these empty rooms, but did not think much of them at the time. But now that he was in charge of this ghost ship and knew the secret of its ability to sail alone, a certain doubt arose.
If this ship didn't actually need crew members... then who were these crew cabins on board for?
The single rooms in the upper deck cabins are obviously prepared for the upper level sailors such as the first mate, second mate, and boatswain, while there are also bunk cabins for general crew members in the lower area. In addition, there are obvious dining rooms and chess rooms for multiple people to use, unlike the sails and ropes that do not require manual control, the existence of these facilities itself is for "people".
But this ship doesn't need crew members at all.
Duncan frowned slightly, realizing that at some point in its history, this ghost ship sailing alone at sea should have had crew members.
At least at the beginning of the construction of this ship, reasonable crew facilities were designed for sailors to use.
So what happened to make this ship look like this now? Where did the original crew members of this ship go? Is the true "Captain Duncan" the master of this ship from beginning to end? And what does that eerie goat head know about the inside story?
"Captain?" A puzzled voice suddenly came from behind.
Duncan's thoughts were interrupted in an instant, and he was startled, only then did he realize that it was the voice of the doll Miss Alice - he had forgotten her presence for a moment.
Over the past few days, Duncan has adapted to the fact that he is the only living person on this ship, and he has also become accustomed to the noisy voice of the goat head. As a result, when Alice suddenly appeared, he was a bit uncomfortable.
"My name is Duncan, you can call me Captain Duncan - of course, it's up to you to call me Captain directly," Duncan quickly adjusted his expression and turned to look at the doll Miss Alice following behind him, "This empty room will be yours from now on. Go in and take a look."
"Ah, okay!" Alice nodded, first leaned over and looked at the situation in the room over Duncan's shoulder, and then turned around and grabbed the wooden box that had always been floating behind her, slinging it over her shoulder and carefully carrying it into the room.
Seeing Alice's box, which had always been by her side, Duncan couldn't help but have an urge to twitch his mouth. He watched as the doll Miss Alice carefully placed the "coffin" next to the bed, and then carefully checked the velvet lining inside the coffin before starting to look around the furnishings in the room. Finally, he couldn't help but speak up, "Are you going to carry this box with you all the time?"
"Yes," Alice said matter-of-factly, "Otherwise, where should I put it?"
"This box was once your seal, I thought you would care about this," Duncan frowned, "But now it seems that you can't do without it."
"The people who sealed me were not the fault of the box," Alice sat on the box and patted its lid as she spoke. "Do you want to come in and sit with me?"
Duncan shook his head. "No need, how do you feel about this room?"
"Ah, very good," Alice looked quite pleased as she surveyed the simple furnishings of the room, as if she were in a magnificent palace. "Is that a wardrobe? I don't have much to replace, but a cabinet is nice. Oh, and there's a table, which I can put things on in the future, but I don't seem to have anything to put on it... Maybe I can use it to put my head on when I comb my hair..."
"As long as you're satisfied," Duncan said, watching the gothic doll sitting on a coffin and planning her life, which was a strange sight, especially given the suspicious content of her plans. But Duncan's face slowly revealed a smile, and he took a step back. "You can rest here for a while and get used to the environment.
"Except for the stairs leading to the lower level, you can move freely on this floor and the deck. The structure here is not complicated, and you should be able to master the position of all the rooms soon.
"I'll be in the captain's room. If I'm not there, there's a talking goat head on the navigation table; he's my first mate."
As Alice nodded and listened, her eyes suddenly widened at the last two sentences. "Goat's head?! That black wooden carving?!"
"It seems you have noticed it," Duncan said.
"I noticed... But you said it can talk? And it's your first mate?" Alice looked surprised. "I thought it was just a... It's too incredible!"
"... You're a talking and walking doll," Duncan said with a straight face, looking at Alice. "And you find a talking goat head incredible?"
Alice was stunned for a moment, looked down at her hands, and muttered, as if she had just realized it: "Ah... I guess it is?"
Duncan shook his head and turned to leave. "That's it, rest here. Come to me if you need anything."
"Okay, captain," came Alice's voice from behind him.
After leaving, Duncan didn't go anywhere else, but went straight back to his captain's room. He sat down at the large navigation table, and the wooden goat head on the table immediately came to life, turning its head towards Duncan and squeaking:
"Ah! The captain is back! It looks like you have settled that gentle and harmless lady - just like I said, she's harmless to your sea voyage and can chat with you. Have you decided what to have her do on the ship? The Displaced doesn't really need people. The deck will be cleaned by the sailors, the cannons will be polished by the gunners, and the water hold will be maintained by the crew. Maybe she can manage the kitchen? You've never seemed satisfied with the food on board... Oh, speaking of food, we may need to replenish some supplies. The salted meat and hard cheese in the storeroom may be a bit old. Although rough sailors won't be picky about food at sea, the great Captain Duncan must..."
Duncan felt like his brain was about to boil. He once again confirmed that he really needed a "normal conversation partner" like Alice with this noisy goat head around.
"Shut up," he glared fiercely at the goat head. After it stopped talking, he continued, "Pay attention to the movements of that doll in these few days."
"Ah...what? Keep an eye on the lady? You don't trust her yet? Oh, right, as a captain, necessary caution is needed..."
"She has many secrets, and she hasn't told them all. Maybe it's because she herself doesn't know them, or maybe...she's deliberately hiding them for some purpose. Anyway, she's still a 'cursed doll' with the title of 'Anomaly 099'," Duncan said indifferently, "The people on the previous ship used many seals to prevent Alice from leaving that wooden box. But now, the sealed doll is freely moving around on my ship. I need to take some time to confirm that Alice is really a harmless doll...even if it's just harmless on The Displaced."