Long-Term Bed Rest Is Bad for the Cervical Spine

The deep sea was something to be feared.

Alice was a doll, yet she still possessed lively eyes capable of expressing emotion, as well as shifts in expression that defied common sense. Duncan could clearly detect in her face a fear and aversion toward the deep sea... or rather, toward certain "things" within it. Recalling the Spirit World he had seen at sea and the so-called border anomalies, he easily realized that the vast ocean surrounding him undoubtedly concealed great terrors.

Yet the Lost Homeland sailed upon this boundless ocean, and the Mechanical Ship they had encountered in the Spirit World sailed upon it as well.

This made him curious about things farther away—what was the land in this world like? Or rather, did normal land even exist in this world?

However, the doll before him could not answer his questions. Most of Alice's memories were hazy and muddled. Based on Duncan's judgment, that was likely the effect of some kind of seal... or "suppression."

He still remembered what he had observed of the ship's cabin through the Lost Homeland's immense perception when they had crossed paths with that Mechanical Ship. The profound and mysterious runes, the heavily religious arrangements, and the symbols engraved upon Alice's "Coffin" all pointed to one thing:

This "Cursed Doll" was surely deeply feared in "civilized society."

Duncan gave the Miss Doll before him a meaningful look, and she returned it with a calm, composed gaze.

"Let me confirm this once more. You completely don't remember where you came from, and you can't recall anything that happened in your past either, correct?"

"I don't remember," Alice answered seriously. "Ever since I could remember, I've been lying in this big box—though I don't know why, there always seemed to be a bunch of nervous people around me. They were terrified that I might come out, so they used all kinds of methods to seal the box. Honestly, thinking back on it now, the ring of nails you hammered into my lid was actually pretty friendly... though you did add eight cannonballs afterward, at least you didn't pour lead inside, right?"

This time, Duncan did not pay attention to Alice's trash talk and continued asking, "Then where did your name come from? Who gave you that name? If you truly never left the box and never came into contact with anyone else, why do you have a name? Did you name yourself?"

Alice suddenly froze.

She seemed genuinely lost, remaining blankly still for more than ten seconds. Just as Duncan began to worry whether this doll had a "crash" setting too, Miss Doll finally started moving again. "I... don't remember. I knew from the very beginning that my name was Alice, but I didn't give myself that name. I..."

She murmured in confusion, unconsciously raising both hands to hold her head. The sight made Duncan's eyelid twitch, and he hurriedly stopped her. "All right, it's fine if you don't remember. You don't need to pull your head off..."

Alice: "..."

After that, Duncan asked the Miss Doll before him many more questions. Unfortunately, most of them yielded no answers.

Just as Miss Doll herself had said, ever since gaining consciousness, she had spent nearly all her time in that "Coffin" in a muddled state, alternating between sleep and half-wakefulness. She knew very little of the outside world. The scant knowledge she possessed came from conversations outside the Coffin that she had overheard in her drowsy state, and those fragmented scraps were almost incapable of helping Duncan piece together an outline of this world.

Even so, Duncan had not come away empty-handed—through his conversations with Alice, he had at least confirmed several things:

A type of power structure known as "city-states" existed in this world. The term had repeatedly appeared in Miss Doll's account and nearly constituted the entirety of her journey. Her original destination this time had been a city-state called Pland.

It seemed to be a prosperous place. The sailors had said in conversation that it "held an important position on many sea routes."

Second, Alice had another designation: "Anomaly 099." This seemed to be some kind of official title used by the civilized world. As for the name "Alice" that she called herself, apparently no third person besides herself and Duncan knew it so far.

Lastly, Alice had continually been transferred from one city-state to another, and she did not seem to be the only "Anomaly" moved in this manner. During certain journeys, she had heard those responsible for "escorting" her mention such phrases as "other Seal Chambers."

Duncan boldly guessed that constantly relocating "Anomalies" might itself be a necessary measure for sealing them, preventing them from "breaking free."

And evidently, the team responsible for transporting Anomaly 099 this time had suffered terrible luck—because of the Lost Homeland's sudden appearance, the "doll" they had been escorting had escaped.

He just did not know what was so frightening about this strange Cursed Doll, or what kind of destruction her escape would cause.

After all... she had seemed rather harmless while staying aboard the Lost Homeland.

To be honest, Duncan was quite disappointed.

He had thought he had finally found a source of information that could help him understand this world, only to discover that the thing lying in that coffin was just as clueless as he was.

But when his gaze swept once more over Alice, who was still quietly sitting atop the wooden box, that disappointment faded somewhat.

At least he now had someone to talk to aboard the Lost Homeland—though she seemed to be a doll, though it was horrifying when her head fell off, though she surely had more secrets, and though she occasionally spouted nonsense.

Still, she was more normal than that noisy Goat Head.

And speaking of strange dangers... this Boundless Sea, this Lost Homeland, the bizarre things aboard this ship—which of them looked safe?

From an outsider's perspective, Captain Duncan himself seemed to be the most dangerous thing on the Boundless Sea.

Duncan let out a breath. Without realizing it, his expression relaxed somewhat, and he asked in a conversational tone, "I want to know, if I threw you off the ship again, what would you do?"

Alice blinked. "Would you stuff cannonballs in this time?"

"No."

"Would you still hammer in nails?"

"Uh... no."

"Pour lead?"

"No... ahem, I mean, if I refused to let you stay aboard..."

"Then I'd row back again." Alice sat primly, speaking with complete composure. "I don't want to be swallowed by this sea. At least your ship gives me somewhere to stand."

Duncan was stunned by the doll's frankness. For a moment, he did not know whether to call her honest or thick-skinned. After pondering for a while, he finally managed, "You could be a little more tactful..."

"But you already know the answer, don't you?" Alice said with a smile. "Still, if I came back again, I might find somewhere in the cabin to hide so you wouldn't discover me. I wouldn't brazenly run onto the deck again. I'd only been awake for a short time, and I hadn't thought things through during my previous returns, but now I have experience..."

Duncan interrupted her. "My perception covers the entire ship. I can even determine where every wave strikes the hull."

The rest of Alice's words immediately caught in her throat. "Ah..."

Duncan continued calmly, "And I could choose to destroy you outright, using a more thorough method to prevent you from continuing to pester me and my Lost Homeland."

Miss Doll truly seemed never to have considered that possibility. Her eyes widened instinctively, then there was a click near her neck...

The headless doll frantically caught her own head and began clumsily pressing it back onto her neck. Duncan could no longer maintain the mood at all. He could only sigh with mixed amusement and exasperation. After Alice had reattached her head, he continued, "However, I suddenly think having one more crew member aboard this ship wouldn't be a bad thing—if you can behave yourself aboard this ship, I can arrange a place for you."

"You should've said so earlier! I got so scared my head fell off!"

In the end, Duncan could not stop his eyelid from twitching. "So what exactly is going on with your neck?"

Alice looked utterly innocent. "I don't know! I usually don't get many chances to 'come out and move around.' How would I know why my body has a problem like this..."

Duncan silently looked at Alice for several seconds, then said with a serious face, "Looks like long-term bed rest is bad for the cervical spine."

Alice: "..."

Seeing the speechless Miss Doll, Duncan's mood suddenly improved a little.

"All right, in any case, the Lost Homeland has gained a new crew member—come with me. I'll arrange a place for you to rest."