Chapter 72 "Good Person"

Duncan felt a little creeped out by the doll's unwavering gaze. After a few seconds of composure, he finally frowned and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Alice replied honestly, "At you."

Duncan was dumbfounded. "What's so interesting about me?"

"It's the first time I've seen you speak… in this manner," Alice said with disbelief. "Although you said before that you have another body and identity here, seeing it is still so incredible! Captain, you look completely different than on the ship. You're not as tall, and not as gloomy. Hmm… you look like a good person…"

Duncan's eyes widened at this, but before he could speak, Alice quickly added, "Ah, I shouldn't slander you, Captain…"

"How many times have I told you not to learn things from that goat head! Praising someone for being a good person isn't slander—even if it's me!" Duncan glared at the simpleton in front of him, feeling his brain throb. "And have you forgotten what I reminded you? Here in the city-state, you can't call me 'Captain.' You have to call me Mr. Duncan or Shopkeeper, got it?"

Alice quickly shrank back, startled. "Ah… yes! Got it, Cap… Shopkeeper!"

"…Why don't you just call me Mr. Duncan," Duncan sighed wearily. "At least you're more familiar with that name, so there's less chance of you getting it wrong."

"Okay, okay, Mr. Duncan." Alice hurriedly nodded, but halfway through her bow, Duncan reminded her helplessly, "Don't bow your head, or it'll fall off—if your head falls off in public, your city-state trip will be over."

Alice said, "Oh," then frowned and thought for a moment. "I think Ai Yin muttered something similar to what you just said, but not exactly… She said, 'Don't bow your head, or your crown will…'"

"Do you have a crown on your head?!" Duncan exclaimed. "You just have a wig—and it's more securely attached than your head!"

Alice thought for a moment, then said, "Hehe…"

Then, after less than two seconds of silence, she suddenly started staring at Duncan again. This time, before he could say anything, she said, "Captain… can I touch your face?"

Duncan looked puzzled. "I don't mind, but why?"

Alice didn't wait for an answer before reaching out, her courage seemingly boosted after leaving Captain Duncan's imposing "main body." She pinched Duncan's current cheek, her eyes filled with amazement. "Amazing! It's real! When I looked at your face on the ship, I felt like it was carved out of stone!"

Duncan felt incredibly awkward, dodging backward while saying helplessly, "Have you had enough? Almost…"

Before he could finish speaking, two light footsteps came from the direction of the stairs, followed by Nina's clear and cheerful voice, "Uncle, Sherry and I have finished eating! What are you busy with down h—"

Duncan turned his head expressionlessly. Alice's hand was still outstretched. Nina stood at the top of the stairs on the second floor, staring blankly at the scene by the counter, at the elegant and beautiful woman who looked like a noble from the Upper District and had appeared in the shop at some point. Sherry almost bumped into Nina. "Hey, why did you stop so suddenly?"

Alice quickly retracted her hand, placing her hands on her lap, her upper body straight and dignified as she sat in front of the counter.

Perfectly proper, like a gorgeous doll displayed in the Rose Dollhouse window.

Nina was stunned for a long time before reacting. She cautiously walked down the stairs, carefully sizing up the beautiful woman sitting across from Duncan. Sherry, who was behind her, also saw the situation on the first floor, but Sherry was thinking about something else entirely—

"A Gou, A Gou, take a look, what's that sitting across from Mr. Duncan… is that a person? Can you beat it?"

A Gou's voice came after a long hesitation, sounding particularly cautious. "It's hard to see clearly through your eyes, but the more I look, the less it looks like a person… I don't know if I can beat it, but I definitely won't fight it."

Sherry was stunned. "Why? You can't even tell what it is, why are you so scared?"

"Nonsense! She dared to pinch Mr. Duncan's face!" A Gou's voice sounded incredibly weak. "Based on that alone, if she wanted to stew me, I'd take the initiative to chop the firewood…"

"…A Gou, you're getting more and more embarrassing."

"I call it assessing the situation—do you know how many humans exhaust their entire lives' wisdom just to master this survival essence?"

Sherry ignored A Gou.

In the meantime, she and Nina had arrived on the first floor. She saw Nina walk up to Duncan and the beautiful young woman, and heard their conversation.

"Uncle, who is this lady?"

Nina asked curiously, subconsciously stealing glances at Alice, her heart filled with surprise and speculation—she had never seen such a beautiful woman, let alone a young woman who seemed to have such an intimate relationship with her uncle. The strong curiosity made her eyes light up slightly.

"Oh, it's a good time to introduce you," Duncan coughed lightly, easing the previous awkwardness, then calmly pointed, "Her name is Alice. Remember when I said I was going to hire someone else for the shop? It's her."

Then he immediately pointed to Nina and Sherry. "This is my niece, Nina, and this is Sherry, who's temporarily staying here."

"Hello," Alice immediately greeted them proactively. This time, she remembered Duncan's instructions, sitting straight, nodding just right, restraining her playful demeanor, and greeting them in the most polite manner.

But perhaps due to a certain unique "texture" that was difficult to erase, Alice's restrained posture, in Nina and Sherry's eyes, became an unspeakable elegance and upbringing, as well as a certain mysterious and restrained temperament.

The two girls' first meeting with a certain simple-minded doll resulted in an epic misunderstanding.

"Y-you… hello," Nina swallowed nervously, nodding to Alice as if afraid of making a bad impression. "It's nice to meet you."

Sherry also greeted her, a little nervous, but her nervousness came more from what A Gou had just said. "Hello, I'm also very… very happy."

Then the scene froze. Both sides were stiff, and no one spoke.

Sherry and Nina didn't know how to continue the conversation. The beautiful and elegant woman in front of them hardly seemed like someone who would appear in the Lower District, so much so that the two girls felt that anything they said would displease Miss Alice.

Alice was even simpler—most of the time, her mind was empty.

A small part of the time, it was filled with brain sludge.

Fortunately, Duncan had anticipated this situation. Seeing both sides suddenly fall silent, he knew what was going on, and immediately coughed to break the silence. "Ahem, Sherry, how is your injury?"

"Injury… oh! The injury is completely healed!" Sherry was stunned for a moment before reacting, quickly standing straight and answering Duncan's question as if giving a report. "And I ate a lot just now, so I'm not hungry at all!"

"I didn't ask you that… but I'm glad you liked today's food," Duncan nodded with a smile. "Rest up these next few days, I'll make some nutritious things for you to restore your energy. Nina, do you have any plans for today?"

"I was just planning to take Sherry to the shops in the next district," Nina said immediately. "To buy her some new clothes and new shoes—her clothes are all old."

As she said this, she turned to look at Sherry, emphasizing before the other could speak, "This is a welcome gift for you moving in. It would be impolite to refuse."

"I…" Sherry opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say for a moment. In the end, she could only nod. "Okay, thank you… and Mr. Duncan."

Duncan nodded, a smile on his face. "Then don't go too far, and come back before evening—Sherry, you have to protect Nina."

Sherry immediately straightened her body, her voice so loud that it startled Nina. "Yes, Mr. Duncan!"

Afterward, the two girls said goodbye to Duncan and Alice, and walked toward the door together. As they walked, Nina muttered, "Why were you suddenly so loud just now? You scared me… Uncle? My uncle isn't scary."

"I… I'm being polite. I've been learning manners lately…"

Listening to the two girls' fading murmurs, Duncan couldn't help but smile. Then he turned around, only to see Alice staring at him again.

"What are you staring at me for again?"

"Mr. Duncan… you're very different here than on the ship," Alice said seriously, looking at Duncan carefully. After looking him up and down, she finally said, "You're much friendlier than on the ship!"

"Alright, stop with these pointless comments," Duncan smiled helplessly. Of course, he knew why Alice felt this way—even he himself knew that he was always tense on the ship. Even though he had relaxed somewhat recently, it was still nothing like how carefree he was in the city-state. But he didn't dwell on this matter, and quickly changed the subject. "Let's talk about your situation—you don't have legal identification, so it's best not to attract attention in the Upper District. For the time being, help out in the antique shop. On one hand, it's to adapt to the environment, and on the other hand, it can help me with some things. Usually, when I go out, you can stay here at the counter. When customers come…"

Duncan suddenly stopped, staring at the doll in front of him with a strange expression. After several seconds, he said hesitantly, "Do you… know about money?"

Alice looked curious. "What's money?"

Duncan: "…"