Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1123 Will the war always be won?

Snow and wind blew across Mount Osor, and the Saint's Stone House stood alone in the gray and white snow curtain, just as it had been silent for thousands of years. An oil lamp was lit in the stone house, not bright but warm enough to lick every shadow in the house, leaving a layer of smoky-like scorch marks on the stones that had been worn by the wind and snow for a long time.

The grease of the Kalal giant bear is crackling in the rusty quartz lampshade. It is not a very good lighting device, and its effect is far inferior to the pine oil-soaked torches that every Shatoto person can make, but it symbolizes the respect of these simple mountain people for the saint. Just like the chief is qualified to hunt the most powerful beasts, this lamp can only be lit in the stone house where the saint lived, so as not to disgrace the original owner's status as the overlord of the snow mountain. This is both an honor and a heavy responsibility.

Songtaya sat against the wall, quietly staring at the oil lamp on the table that was emitting light and heat, silently counting the time it had been burning, which was also the time the girl had stayed in this stone house: one hour and thirteen minutes.

The snow had been falling for an hour and thirteen minutes, and there was no sign of stopping. It came without warning. Although Elder Aina and the elders in the tribe had already calculated that the snow season would arrive earlier this year, the snow still came earlier than they had expected, as if to echo something. As a result, the mountain tribes that were migrating to the Three Mountains of Vichi had to stop temporarily and camp in a snow valley to rest and wait for the wind and snow to pass before getting back on the road.

But Songtaya suddenly remembered that the tribe had not yet carried out routine maintenance on the Saint's Stone House on the top of Mount Osor this year, and this premature snowstorm might crush it, so she took the initiative to go to the top of the mountain to check the situation. The tribal leader and elders agreed to her request, because Songtaya was already the best hunter in the tribe, and no one else could do this task except her.

When the girl climbed the mountain, she could still distinguish the scenery and the road in the snow; when she reached the top of the mountain, there was only a vast expanse of white between heaven and earth. It was dangerous to return to the tribe without vision, so she chose to rest temporarily in the intact stone house of the saint. If it were before, she would have been anxious and scared, but today, Songtaya was able to be patient and stay in this narrow stone house, even counting how long the snow had been falling in her heart. Many people around her said that Songtaya had grown up and became more mature and stable than before. Only those who had seen this change with their own eyes, such as the tribal leader, Songtaya's father, knew that this change began with the departure of those strangers.

They came and left in a hurry, staying for less than half a month, but revealed a huge secret to Songtaya, letting her know her true identity and the responsibility she shouldered. After watching the stranger riding a whale and embarking on the path that the saint once took, the lively girl seemed to have changed overnight. Her restraint made her lose a lot of happiness, but her deep eyes seemed to have gained a lot. No one knew whether this was a good thing or a bad thing.

The girl even began to pay attention to what was happening in the outside world. She went down the mountain on her own initiative several times and sneaked into Heidblosburg at the foot of the mountain without being discovered by anyone. She heard a lot of news from tourists, businessmen and some people of unknown origin: they talked about colonial wars, and mentioned that the countries in the Western Continent had recently reduced their investment in personnel, weapons and financial resources in the war against the Eastern Continent; they said that the United Churches seemed to have asked the countries to increase their troops in a tough tone, but were rejected by the rulers on the grounds that anti-war sentiment was rising in the country; they said that the internal management of the Crusaders had shown signs of chaos, and that contradictory orders were often issued. Even on the continent across the sea, a legion received an order to return home to "stabilize the situation"; occasionally, some news from unknown sources would be released, saying that the Silver Mad Dogs of the Inquisition and the Black Death of the Night's Habitat seemed to have shrunk their range of activities recently, and were no longer hunting aliens, pagans and magicians as frantically as in the past.

The last piece of news was the most secretive, but also the most widely circulated. In addition to the Mountain Guards and the Misty Mountain Hermitage, there were many aliens and magicians lurking throughout the Eastern Alps, just like the inland Sossen Mountains. Almost everyone was discussing this matter. They were both somewhat happy and quite uneasy about it. They were worried that the united cults were only showing a shrinking posture to the outside world, but were brewing some terrible conspiracy inside, wanting to wipe out all enemies who did not obey them in one fell swoop - the Void Root Swamp that was burned to ashes was a lesson learned from the past.

All signs indicate that the situation on the mainland has become tense recently. A cloud of dark clouds is hanging over everyone's mind. It is unknown when the snowstorm will fall and bury them. It can be imagined that it must be more violent than the snowstorm that they are experiencing now.

When Songtaya thought of this, she couldn't help but suspect that this change was related to those strangers who had left. She couldn't tell why, but she just felt that way. Then she would diverge to other places, such as what they experienced in the universe, whether there were really horrible disaster beasts and endless storms described by the saints in the book, whether they found what they thought, when would they come back... Of course, there is another possibility, they won't come back?
In the process of interacting with strangers, the girls always clearly feel that they do not belong to this world. For them, this journey to the stars is not a departure, but a return home. Since they have already arrived at their hometown, why should they return to this land full of war, greed, filth and destruction, which even the great father of the mountains cannot completely purify?
The Wushan Hermitage is ready to take this opportunity to try to return to civilized society. To this end, it sent envoys to negotiate with the mountain guards, attempting to unite their forces to plot great things...

The chief and the elders were naturally against this, but the Mountain Guard had more than just these two leaders. Some of the eighteen high-ranking believers had been persuaded by the Fog Mountain Hermitage. They were tired of the monotonous life in this mountain and longed for the prosperity and advancement of civilization...

Recently, the Eastern Alps have been experiencing frequent abnormal weather conditions, and this sudden snowstorm is just one of them. It is said that several snow-capped mountains have even collapsed, and countless lives have been buried in the snow, with no hope of recovery...

Hunting is becoming increasingly difficult. Whether it is snow bears or Caral rabbits, every animal group is migrating deeper into the mountains. According to the elderly in the tribe, this is a sign of disaster. All living things have spirits and seek benefits and avoid harm...

Elder Aina is already very old, and her father seems to be unable to manage tribal affairs alone. Can she become a qualified successor as everyone expects...

Where will the Wusu tribe go in the future?

Many complicated thoughts emerged in the girl's mind, and then extinguished like snowflakes. When Songtaya came to her senses, she realized that she could no longer hear the sound of the snow blowing in the wind. She was slightly startled, then stood up and walked to the door, gently pushed open a small crack and looked out. Sure enough, she saw that the snow curtain outside had become much thinner, and snowflakes swirled down from the sky and merged into the snow that had piled up to her ankles. In the blink of an eye, there was no sound.

The snow gradually stopped.

Sontaya opened the door, walked outside, stood on the top of Mount Osor, and looked toward the majestic snow-capped mountains of the Eastern Alps. It was almost dusk, and through the gray snow curtain, the mountain girl saw a gorgeous band of light mixed with rose red and dark purple, sandwiched between the extremely white earth and the dark night sky, extending endlessly in the distant direction, as if to the end of the world. At this moment, a dazzling light suddenly flashed in her eyes, like tears passing through the girl's eyes in a daze, melting the snow and reappearing the bright and pure sky.

The light disappeared in an instant, leaving only a straight flame tail, like trailing stars, falling from the sky.

Is that... a meteor?
Songtaya subconsciously took a few steps forward, and stopped only when she was close to the edge of the mountain top. The average altitude of the Eastern Alps is over 5,000 meters. At this altitude, the air is dry and clear, and you can often see astronomical beauty that you can't appreciate in the smoggy and polluted cities. As a native of the snowy mountains, Songtaya is no stranger to shooting stars, and she has long passed the age of believing that "making a wish to a shooting star will come true", but she still stared blankly at the direction where the shooting star fell, with a feeling of loss in her heart, as if the shooting star actually had some very important meaning to her.

Unfortunately, it was too far away. She couldn't possibly touch it, even the point where a shooting star landed was too far away to chase.

That was in the southeast of the Eastern Alps, and beyond that were the Mountain Castle, the Kingdom of Farajo, the White City-State Republic, the largest port city in the Western Continent, Pris Port, and the beginning of the Age of Exploration, the Monsoon City of Mosong... These geographical terms were only concepts in her mind, but not concrete impressions. But if she thought a little more boldly, she would be able to see places farther away.

Sail from Mosong City and head east along the route of Kenpal Island, Cape Storm, Vision Jia, and the ocean city of O'Shea, which has been traveled by famous navigators and adventurers such as Marco Polo, Magellan, Columbus, and Captain Drake. You can cross dangerous storms and oceans and reach the alien continent that has been isolated from the world since the catastrophe of heaven and earth and the loss of civilization.

The Eastern Emperor Vatican Continent.

……

"I am sure that this is an extremely correct choice. The benefits we have gained from this war even exceed the agricultural and industrial output of the entire country in the past ten years. There is no more appropriate and more legitimate economic means in the world than war... Therefore, casting an affirmative vote on whether to maintain or even expand the scale of the war is no longer a question that needs to be debated. What we need to debate is who can participate in this game? Fortunately, the great and sacred Kingdom of Great Britta has obtained a ticket and has obtained the qualification to enter in advance. Then, the future is foreseeable. Ladies and gentlemen, please cheer here, because our country will be reborn from the ocean!"

In 1565, Adam Smith, then Minister of National Finance of the Kingdom of Greater Britta, delivered this speech at the Parliament Palace.

……

"I am well aware that some of you have begun to question the necessity of war. You keep asking yourself what the meaning of all this is, just like people three hundred years ago couldn't help but question: what is the meaning of the steam engine. I won't stop you from thinking, because thinking is the biggest feature that distinguishes humans from beasts, but thinking needs to have a correct direction, otherwise it will be a self-inflicted trouble. Am I the one who guides the direction? Sometimes I am, and sometimes I am not. After all, I am not always right. Now I stand here just to tell you an indisputable fact, that is, we still need to strengthen our strategic strength on the continent across the sea, because it is obvious that in the future, the fate of mankind, civilization, and even the entire world will be ended by this war - or it can be said that it will be created."

In 1857 AD, the leader of the Witch Society, Tiantis, explained his views to the philosophers and apostles at the mid-year meeting.

……

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Adam Smith looked around the Parliament Palace. All 512 seats were occupied. Members of the upper and lower houses gathered here, cheering for one person's speech and shouting "Long live the queen". Did they really believe that the great and sacred Kingdom of Brittany would be reborn from the ashes and become stronger? Or did they just get what they wanted from this speech? Strength, wealth, power, and deep-rooted interests bound people together. Their wills were united into one will, and they were unstoppable.

The war will always be won.

Looking at this scene, Adam Smith told himself in his heart.

……

Tiantis looked around the round table hall. Only half of the 206 seats were occupied. Some philosophers were unable to attend due to work reasons. But were they really too busy to attend, or were they unwilling to attend due to some strange psychology? Even the philosophers who were present no longer had the same firm brilliance in their eyes as in the past. Rumors were bred in the dark, corroding will and faith. Only the most stubborn people could survive, while the others would be tortured by ideals and reality. What do you want? Do you really want it? Do you know the price of getting it? Are you willing to bear such a price? Those who cannot accept it will turn around and find another way, and there are very few who can accept it. As a result, this organization, which has been considered the most indestructible community in the mysterious world since its birth, finally showed a hint of collapse. As we all know, the strongest fortress can only be broken from the inside.

The war will always be won.

Looking at this scene, Tiantis told himself in his heart.

……

The wheel of war rolls forward, while the fate of the world and mankind begins to retreat.

Give me some meow