After lunch, Duncan watched Nina clean up the dining table. He wanted to help wash the dishes, but she insisted he shouldn’t touch cold water because the doctor said his health was not good. So, he leaned against the stairway, reading the newspaper he bought that morning while watching the girl busily working in the kitchen.
This ordinary scene felt strangely out of place for him.
Just then, Nina’s voice came from the kitchen. “Uncle Duncan, is there any news in the paper?”
Duncan glanced down at the newspaper. The first thing he noticed was the date: “New City-State Year 1900, August 14.” Then he saw the headline about the church’s judge leading the capture of dozens of cultists. This was probably the most significant news on the front page.
“It says here that the judge led a team to catch dozens of sun cultists,” he said casually. “It also mentions this is the largest cult gathering the church has broken up in the last four years. There are some reminders for citizens to be cautious at night and to identify any cult beliefs around them.”
“Ah, I heard about that on my way here!” Nina quickly placed the clean dishes into the cupboard. “It’s really scary. I heard from my teacher that those sun worshippers even do things like sacrificing living people to the sun god… Who would be crazy enough to believe in such a cult?”
Duncan didn’t know how to respond. No matter what he said, it felt too delicate—should he mention that he recently had a hands-on experience with a sacrificial ritual, or that he was one of those crazy cultists?
One thing was clear: from Nina’s reaction, she obviously didn’t know her “uncle” was a sun cultist. She had a normal view of the world, believing that human sacrifice for the sun god was terrifying.
To her, her “uncle” was just someone who was a bit grumpy due to illness, drank too much, and had some “strange friends.”
The body he occupied might have belonged to a terrible person with blood on their hands, but at least he had raised Nina up to this point and had kept her away from the sun god’s beliefs.
Maybe one day, a cultist named “Ron” would drag his last remaining family member into an endless abyss, but at least that hadn’t happened yet.
And it wouldn’t happen in the future either.
“Uncle? Why are you suddenly quiet?” Nina turned to him, curious about his silence, her eyes showing concern. “Are you feeling unwell again?”
“No, I was just lost in thought,” Duncan replied, shaking his head. “What you said is true; it really is a crazy thing… The paper also mentioned that citizens should pay attention to safety and report any cult activities around them. So, you should try not to wander around outside of school and home for a while.”
Nina nodded but then hesitated, her face showing uncertainty. “But… I made plans with my classmates to visit the museum in a couple of days…”
“The museum?” Duncan asked casually. “Which museum?”
“It’s the ocean museum near the school, close to the edge of the upper city,” Nina explained. “I heard they’re showcasing coastal mineral specimens… Is that okay?”
“If you want to go, then go ahead,” Duncan thought for a moment and nodded. “There are church guards and city patrols everywhere now, so those cultists probably won’t be bold enough to show up in the next couple of days.”
Nina happily nodded. “Okay!”
“Are you going to school this afternoon?” Duncan asked again.
“Yeah, I have history class in the afternoon. I don’t want to miss Mr. Morris’s class,” Nina replied. “He’s a well-known expert in history… But it’s strange. Why would someone as famous as him teach at a public school in the lower city instead of a university in the upper city? A lot of kids in class don’t even like history, and they sleep during his lectures…”
Duncan shook his head, not knowing how to answer. “How would I know?”
He chuckled; he barely knew Nina, let alone where her public school was. It would take him hours to dig through his memories to remember that.
Even the original owner of this body probably didn’t know much about his niece’s situation. When Duncan took over this life, it was clear he had been too deep into the sun cult to care about anything else.
Since Nina had classes in the afternoon, she didn’t stay long in the antique shop after lunch. She quickly packed her things, grabbed the textbook she had left at home, and ran out—she had nearly an hour to get from the antique shop to her public school in the lower city, and she needed to make the most of every minute to avoid being late for Mr. Morris’s class.
Of course, there was public transportation in the city. Even in the less developed lower city, steam-powered trams and buses ran through the streets, but they charged four to six pesos for a ticket.
Nina cheerfully told Duncan that running a bit was good for her health.
If she had a bicycle, her commute would be much easier—Duncan had seen people riding them in the lower city.
In a society that had developed steam machinery, bicycles weren’t so expensive that ordinary people couldn’t afford them, but for residents of the lower city, they were still a burden. The cheapest bicycle might cost a family of three half a month to a month’s worth of living expenses.
Duncan didn’t know where this identity he occupied would lead him in the future, but watching Nina run off and disappear around the corner, he felt that… if he had the means, he should treat this girl a bit better.
Even just for the vegetable soup and pancakes from before.
Besides, she was a hardworking student.
Perhaps he should think carefully about ways to make money in this “civilized city-state.”
With all these thoughts swirling in his mind, he put down the newspaper and slowly walked to the end of the second-floor hallway. After opening the narrow window, he stared blankly at the sunlit streets below.
In this world, “anomalies” and “phenomena” had long been intertwined with the progress of civilization. Both the authorities and the church had not hidden matters of the extraordinary from the public. Even a student like Nina could learn about anomalies and phenomena directly from her textbooks.
She even knew about the classification standards for anomalies and phenomena that originated from the ancient Kingdom of Crete, which were still in use today. She was aware of some publicly numbered and named anomalies and phenomena that had been studied.
Yes, this knowledge was even publicly available to society—though not all of it.
The authorities and the church of each city-state recognized a list. On this list, the most famous or dangerous anomalies and phenomena had their own special numbers. These numbers weren’t permanent; under special circumstances, some anomalies and phenomena could disappear or transform for various reasons, and their numbers could be transferred or left vacant. But regardless of how they changed, one thing was certain:
Anomalies and phenomena that had independent numbers and names must possess some unique danger or power.
The authorities publicly shared some of the lists of anomalies and phenomena to ensure that every citizen knew about these specific dangers, promoting public awareness for self-protection. On the other hand… some anomalies and phenomena were simply too close to people's lives to hide.
These things had seeped into every corner of ordinary life and into every aspect of social operation. People could see them at any time; there was no need to hide them.
Duncan looked up, silently gazing at the sky.
Phenomenon 001, the Sun.
The massive light body moving in the sky, the great phenomenon that ruled the sky during the Age of the Deep Sea, was born on the morning after the fall of the ancient Kingdom of Crete.
Influence range—worldwide; influence unit—unlimited; operates and moves on its own, cannot be interfered with by human strength, fitting the definition of a phenomenon.
Historical record: On the day of the ancient kingdom's collapse, the sea roared, the city-state shattered, and all members of the first dynasty met their end in darkness, their blood soaking the sea. Thus, Phenomenon 001 rose from the ocean, and from that day on, the vast sea knew the peace of daylight.
The ancient Kingdom of Crete was the first city-state civilization established by survivors after the Age of the Deep Sea began. It lasted only a hundred years but left countless legacies that still benefit people today.
The word “Crete” in ancient language means “Eternal Night.”
That was a century of darkness.
All of this was written in Nina's history textbook.
(End of Chapter)