Alice in the Land of Steam

When Lingge woke up the next day, he found that everyone was looking at him with strange eyes.

When he walked out of the room, Olvera, who was peeking around and moving stealthily in the corridor, was startled, as if she saw a monster suddenly appear, and ran away in a hurry without even saying hello; when he went down the stairs, Leticia, Shemi and the Lamb, who were gathered at the kitchen door, planning to sneak in to eat snacks when the landlady wasn't paying attention, immediately forgot about the snacks when they saw him appear, and lined up at the door, staring at the young man in unison, sighing as they looked at him, making the parties involved wonder if there was something dirty on their faces; and when he finally got rid of the eyes of the three guys and came to the hall, the bartender who was sweeping the floor simply stopped sweeping, supported the broom with both hands, rested her chin on the back of her hands, and looked at the young man who seemed not to understand what was going on with interest.

But Lingge really didn't understand anything.

He couldn't help asking, "What are you looking at, Shelia?"

"It's up to you." The bartender's answer was so matter-of-fact that there was nothing to fault with it.

Linger had to correct his statement and asked again: "I mean, why do you keep looking at me?"

"Because I noticed that you seemed a little different today. I felt like something was missing."

After Xie Liya finished speaking, she thought about it seriously for a while, and then made a regretful expression: "But what is the difference? I can't think of it at all. It would be great if someone could give me a hint."

She sighed deeply and felt depressed about it, although no matter how he looked at it, Ling Ge felt that the expression was fake. Obviously, the bartender must have seized another opportunity and was planning to play a good trick on him. He turned a blind eye and was about to leave, but at this time, a little girl jumped out and shouted excitedly: "I know, I know! Sister Xie Liya, I know what's different about Ling Ge today!"

Whose child is this?

Lingge took a glance and found that it was his own child, so it was okay.

"Oh?"

Shelia turned her gaze towards the pink-haired little girl who suddenly appeared, and asked with interest: "Then can you tell me the answer, Metien?"

"of course can!"

Metien agreed briskly, and then walked to her brother impatiently. She raised her little face, and her clear green eyes blinked, conveying the request from her master: "Lingge, can you squat down a little?"

Squat down?
Linger didn't quite understand what Metien was going to do, but since it was his sister's request, it would not be wrong to agree to it. He half-knelt down on one knee, his eyes just level with the pink-haired little girl's, and asked, "Is this okay?"

"Yeah, don't move yet, Lingge, it will be done soon."

She stretched out her hands, and the young man obediently did not move, allowing his sister to put two little fingers, which still had a bit of baby fat, on the corners of his mouth, and then apply a little force and gently hook them upwards, and the corners of his mouth were also curled up.

"Yes, it is like that."

Metien nodded with satisfaction. Before releasing her fingers, she repeatedly reminded her brother: "You must maintain your current expression, Lingge. You can't just relax. That would be a waste. Ah, and you can't frown. Frowning doesn't look good!"

She hastily reached out and smoothed her brother's eyebrows, which had unconsciously wrinkled when he heard her words. Her cautious movements and meticulous attitude were like a skilled sculptor carefully carving his work. Only when every detail was exactly the same as the smile in her memory did she finally let her innocent brother go, stepped aside, and showed her work to the audience.

"Dang-dang-dang!"

The pink-haired girl put her hands on her hips, with a smug look on her face: "Well, Sister Xie Liya, this is what you wanted to see Ling Ge like, right?"

"It really is!"

Xie Liya clenched her right fist and tapped the palm of her left hand gently. Suddenly she realized, "I was wondering if Lingge was missing something. It turned out to be this smile! As expected, Lingge, you look your best when you smile."

She gave the young man a thumbs-up, showing her snow-white teeth.

At this moment, Lingge finally understood that she, Medien - and everyone who looked at her with strange eyes after waking up in the morning, their reactions were nothing more than directed at the smile she had last night.

The young man shook his head helplessly, stood up, and asked, "Is it really that funny, Shelia?"

Xie Liya also shook her head, the smile on her face still not fading: "It's not a question of whether it's funny or not, Lingge, it's just that it's really strange. I never even dared to imagine that such a thing would happen in reality. You know, last night before I went to bed, I was still thinking, maybe I was actually in a dream, and now closing my eyes will wake me up, that's how it felt."

It was a very exaggerated statement, but the bartender always spoke to her point. She didn't like lying, and there was no point in lying about such things.

Ling Ge sighed deeply: "It sounds like I have always been a cold-blooded and heartless person in your minds, like an emotionless stone monster, so that just a smile can make you so surprised."

"Don't say that, Lingge." Shelia said seriously, "Stone elves are not monsters without emotions. They can also be happy and sad. Sometimes when they are annoyed by the little guys in the herb garden, they will complain to me."

So this is the only thing you want to refute?
Lingge was too tired to complain.

Metien, who had just been cooperating with the bartender to tease her brother, now changed her stance and stood on Ling's side, vowing: "This is where you are wrong, Sister Shelia. I have clearly told you that Ling has a very good smile. When he was in college, many girls secretly wrote him love letters! If - I mean if - if I were not Ling's sister, I would definitely like him!"

When Lingge heard this, he couldn't help but bend his fingers and gently tapped his sister's head, saying unhappily: "Don't always imitate Alice and say weird things."

The pink-haired girl covered her head and did not dare to refute that she did not learn this from Alice. She just stuck out her tongue quietly.

But Xie Liya thought what she said made sense.

"Really." She put her chin on the back of her hand again, and looked up and down at the young man with her sky-blue eyes as transparent as the clear sky. The corners of her mouth raised a hint of playfulness: "Don't you think it's incredible? It's obviously the same face. I have seen it for so long, I should have gotten used to it. But just a simple smile can make the temperament and personality change drastically. Even I am a little moved. If there were not so many competitors entering now, you might have the hope of becoming the first human spouse in the history of the traveler fairy - just like the fairy tale describes, the flawless love between fairies and humans?"

She whistled, her eyes full of teasing and mockery: "We, the Traveler Fairy clan, have very strict standards for choosing a mate. You should be proud of it, Lingge."

"Don't be proud of it," Lingge replied, "but thank you for your kindness, and thank you for not causing me more trouble."

“No trouble, no trouble!” Metien was jumping up and down anxiously beside him: “Sister Xie Liya, if you want to pursue Ling Ge, I can give you some advice! For example, I know exactly what Ling Ge likes to eat, what books he likes to read, and what habits he usually has. I can definitely help you stand out among many competitors and win Ling Ge’s heart!”

That does sound good, but do you really have to say it to my face, Metien?
Ling Ge glanced at his sister. No wonder his personal information was leaked out. No matter where he hid, he could always be found by Saint Shallia and others. It turned out that it was this little spy who tipped them off.

"In that case, I can consider it." Xie Liya said seriously, "If Xiao Xia and others don't object."

"Sister Xiao Xia...ah, and everyone else, wouldn't it be better if they didn't find out?"

Metien came closer and encouraged in a low voice: "If you want to be alone with Lingge, I can help you arrange the time and make sure that Sister Xiaoxia and others will never find out!"

Your words reveal a lot of information, kid.

Xie Liya thought about it seriously for a while, and finally rejected her proposal reluctantly: "Forget it, I don't think this is very safe."

"What's wrong?" Metien opened her eyes wide: "Don't you believe me, Sister Shelia?"

"Of course I believe it, but it's too late now."

"Eh?"

Metien blinked, and it took her a while to realize what was meant. She turned her head tremblingly, and found Saint Shalia standing at the door of the hall, looking at her with a calm look. Her expression was obviously very calm, but for some reason it was very oppressive, making the pink-haired girl tremble. She quietly cast a look to her brother for help, but he naturally ignored her.

This is revenge! Is it because Sister Shelia and I teamed up to play a little trick on you? When did you become such a stingy person, Lingge!
"Well," Shelia picked up the broom and said seriously, "I should go clean other places too. It's been a few days since I cleaned the door of the hotel, and there are piles of fallen leaves. If this continues, my elder sister will be angry."

You're talking nonsense! I just cleaned the place yesterday at noon! And when did you worry about the boss lady getting angry? Didn't you always put the blame on Xie Mi?
Metien was anxious to expose her rhetoric, but Shelia was quicker, slipping out the back door before anyone could react, not forgetting to bring her broom - it seemed that she really intended to sweep the fallen leaves outside for the whole morning until Xiaoxia was no longer angry. As for breakfast? Let's talk about this later. If it doesn't work, just pick some fruit to eat. After all, she is a travel fairy, and fresh fruit and dew are the most delicious food for fairies.

But Metien couldn't do it. She was a normal person and needed to eat to sustain her daily activities. The hall was also a restaurant. If she escaped from here, she would be hungry until noon. She might even be scolded by Lingge, saying that skipping breakfast was bad for her health.

As a last resort, she could only choose to use the final secret——

"Sister Xiaoxia~" She smiled flatteringly, "Good morning, are you hungry? What do you want to eat? Can I ask Miss Shesta to make it for you?"

It was too... flattering. As the elder brother, Lingge couldn't bear to watch it.

Under the nervous and pitiful gaze of the pink-haired little girl, Saint Shallia said nothing, but walked over and gently touched her hair: "Don't be naughty, Metien, it's time to eat, go and call everyone over."

Is this a bluff?
Metien was overjoyed and nodded in agreement quickly, then quietly slipped away. However, looking at her aggressive back, Lingge thought that she would not really go back to have dinner with anyone. She must have gone to settle the score with the bartender who betrayed her teammates.

The two stood there, quietly watching Metien's back as he ran out of the hall, then they looked away. Saint Charia turned her head to look at Lingge and asked, "Everyone seems to be in good spirits, but where is Alice? Why don't I see her?"

"She?" When Ling Ge mentioned this, his expression became complicated: "She went to look for Themis in the heaven as soon as she got up. She didn't even have time to eat."

Saint Xia Liya was silent for a while after hearing this, and then said, "Does she still want to find out the whereabouts of the golden apple?"

"I don't know." Ling Ge shook his head honestly: "Genius players always have their own ideas, which are not something we can guess."

Saint Xia Liya glanced at Ling Ge and keenly noticed the change in his address to Alice. Young people in the past would not recognize this title. This might be related to what happened last night. Although she did not ask in detail at the table, because the atmosphere was very good at that time, everyone seemed to put aside their current troubles and enjoy the delicious food carefully prepared by the boss lady. Alice's mood was even more excited than before... Saint Xia Liya couldn't bear to destroy that atmosphere, at least it shouldn't have been at that time.

But after one night, they still have to face reality, and the biggest problem facing them is that the goddess is in eternal sleep, Themis in heaven is clearly neutral, and the fleet and constructed mechas of the Witch Society are still eyeing outside the initial star field. If they don't overcome this difficulty, the so-called plan to resist Tiantis will undoubtedly be just a pipe dream.

“It takes a concerted effort,” she said to herself.

"What?" Lingge didn't hear clearly.

"Nothing." Saint Xia Liya shook her head gently, and then said: "Ling Ge, I think, after dinner, should we hold a meeting to discuss what to do next? Although we have decided to move forward, where to move forward, how to move forward, why to move forward... these still need to be determined first, right?"

Ling Ge nodded and said, "Since it is your idea, then it is up to you to decide."

"Won't Linger offer any advice?"

"I only have one suggestion," the young man's deep voice came, "Be prepared, Saint Shalia."

The shepherdess was startled for a moment, then she remembered something and her eyes became deep.

The two of them did not speak again, and the hall fell into silence. (End of this chapter)