Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1145: Can’t you understand and can’t learn?

"Eh, knocking down bricks actually results in gold coins and mushrooms falling off?"

"There's a gold coin at the back that you didn't get, jump back quickly!"

"There's another monster ahead, jump up and stomp it to death!"

"Why did you die again? Katara, you're so weak, why don't I take over?"

Amid the booing of his friends, Kadora, who had sent the red-hatted uncle on the screen into the monster's mouth because of his lack of proficiency in the controls, blushed immediately after hearing the last sentence. He tightly grasped the handle of the game console and refused to let go: "Not at all, not at all. It's obviously you who kept disturbing me that's why I died. You, all of you, stop talking, I'm going to get serious!"

"Cut~"

Everyone expressed disdain for this stubborn behavior, and Linger had already walked around the game area, waking up the dormant game consoles one by one. The unique cold light of the electronic screen hit the faces of the boys and girls, reflecting the curiosity and excitement in their eyes: they had never seen this magical machine called a game console. Is it a holy relic? Or some new type of magic guide? Why can it be driven without magic? What is its use? Is it just invented for people to play games, as the name suggests? This sounds too ridiculous, right? But this game is really interesting. Who is the red-hatted uncle on the screen? Why did he appear in a machine? Is he locked up? Must he defeat the mastermind to escape? We have to help him defeat the enemy and escape successfully? But Kadora is too weak. He killed the red-hatted uncle within a few minutes of playing. It's really pitiful.

"Don't gather around, kids."

Linger pointed at the game consoles that had already been turned on and said, "If you want to play games, you can choose other machines. There are different games on each machine. You can always find one that suits you."

The boys and girls looked at each other and communicated with each other with their eyes. They were obviously moved, but no one took action. Even Kadora quietly put down the controller and asked weakly, "Is this really okay, Mr. Ling? I heard from Sister Regina that these game consoles are the holy objects of your sect, right? Letting outsiders like us touch or even use them, isn't it a blasphemy against the grace of Her Majesty the Goddess?"

"Really? I don't think there's anything wrong with it."

The young man raised his eyebrows slightly: "Games are meant to bring happiness to everyone. If you can have some fun from them, I think the goddess will also be pleased. So, don't worry, always believe in the curiosity and desire of mortals--"

He pointed to the flashing gaming consoles and said, "It is a force that creates miracles."

The boys and girls were bewildered, not understanding what the last sentence meant. They were still young, and even though they were more mature than their peers, they were only limited to their personalities. They were still in the stage of ignorance about love, philosophy, and the philosophy of love. But it didn't matter, because all the innocent fantasies of living beings were born when their emotions first sprouted.

To put it in a very cliché way, when they grow up, they will understand the true meaning of this sentence today.

After getting the young man's approval, the boys and girls hesitated for a while, and soon someone couldn't hold back their curiosity and took the initiative to walk to one of the game consoles, clumsily manipulated the handle, and began to explore its use. With the first person's demonstration, the others were unwilling to lag behind. The seemingly weak Kadora directly occupied the machine she had just played the game on, declaring that no one could compete with her until she rescued the red-hatted uncle on the screen. For a while, the game area was crowded, and only the sound of the handle turning, the built-in background music of the game, and the occasional exclamations sounded alternately. Every young and tender soul gradually immersed in that mysterious, unknown, and incredible world.

Fantasy is the most addictive. Even if you have to face the cruelest reality, you can't stop mortals from finding light for themselves in the darkness. The young man watched this scene quietly. He saw someone carefully treating the game console in front of him, even pressing a button with very light movements, as if treating a precious treasure; he also saw someone concentrating on the status of the game character, making an annoyed sound every time he was injured, feeling guilty and unwilling for the mistakes caused by his unskilled operation... The young man couldn't help but think, if fantasy itself is not full of charm, how could it be so addictive if it were just some virtual characters that don't really exist, some fuzzy pixel graphics, and some insignificant numbers?
If Alice saw this scene, her expression must be very complicated, right? The fantasy that she broke, or was broken, was picked up again at this moment. But the world is like this. Mortals are not insects that are born and die in the morning, and emotions are not snowflakes that fall in winter and melt away without a trace once the spring sun comes out. It is diamonds, pearls, and all precious treasures that never disappear and only circulate between life and life. If you drop it, it will be picked up by another person, that's all.

In the empty room, in the crowded church; in her 216 broken silver cubes, in the game consoles that everyone was excited and addicted to...what did you see?
……

Linger saw Mitch standing there alone, not participating in the fun and looking out of place, so he walked over and asked, "Aren't you going to play with them?"

The boy pursed his lips stubbornly and shook his head slowly: "I'm not a child like Kadora. I won't be extremely happy when I see a fairy tale picture book in motion, Mr. Linger."

Because of Carson Borg, he was much more polite to Lingge than to Metien. Maybe in the boy's mind, Lingge was the one who really helped the Ash Guerrillas. Metien was too young and she was not qualified to make decisions.

However, did he describe the game as a fairy tale picture book in action? It is quite vivid. An ordinary man in a red hat can jump higher than a flagpole, the platform will float in the air, gold coins will pop out when a brick is pushed, monsters will die when their heads are stepped on, a new world will appear after drilling into the sewer pipe, and even the princess can be rescued by defeating the devil... Fairy tales are contrary to intuition and common sense, but not offensive.

He reminded Lingge of his past self. When Alice enthusiastically told the young man about the game fantasy from another world, did he also regard it as a naive and fragile fairy tale and disdain it? People are eager to grow up and want to become more mature all the time, but young people have already understood that there may be many signs of maturity, but the rejection and denial of fantasy is not one of them, because growth and innocence are never contradictory.

"If you think games are for kids, you're wrong."

Linger walked to a two-player game console, patted the heavy iron shell, and invited Mitch: "In order to make you understand this truth, do you want to play against me and see who is better?"

Battle? Mitch was stunned. He didn't expect that his careless words would lead to such serious consequences. Then he realized that the "battle" that Linger mentioned should be a battle in the game. This bulky machine can not only perform fairy tales, but also let two people duel each other? But how should they duel? How to determine the winner? And, is such a victory or defeat really meaningful?
This time, Mitch did not refuse, but walked to the game console with a skeptical and inquiring mind. He silently watched the young man control the joystick with one hand and click the buttons on the operating platform with the other hand. The dazzling picture on the electronic screen also jumped, and finally stopped at an interface with many character portraits. In order to show respect for the novice, Linger generously gave the boy the right to choose the first person: "Choose a character from here to play against me, Mitch."

“What a strange character.”

Mitch muttered as he manipulated the controller. The appearance and dress of these game characters were all strange and weird, and they didn't look like the style that would appear in this world at all. He couldn't understand the descriptions above. Could it be the language of the Western Continent? After hesitating for a long time, he asked Ling Ge: "Who is the strongest among them?"

Children are always like this, they want to choose the strongest character right away. But after experiencing the baptism of the genius player, Lingge can tell Mitch very clearly: "There is no strongest character, only the strongest player." He said righteously and looked extremely serious. Mitch was skeptical: "Yes, is it?"

Regardless of whether it was true or not, Lingge would not give him a hint. So after looking for a long time, Mitch finally chose the character he wanted to use. Lingge took a look and was surprised to find that it was the character he used when he fought Alice in the headquarters building of the Game Command Company last time. It seems that fate always has synchronicity, making similar things happen again and again.

That being the case.

Ling's fingers quickly tapped the keys, making a snapping sound. Mitch opened his eyes slightly, and looked at the original selection interface suddenly disappeared in astonishment. The new interface only had an avatar representing a question mark. When Ling locked on the mysterious character, a young man with short white hair, bare upper body, and a cold expression appeared on the screen, but unexpectedly gave people a sense of divine sexiness.

"let's start."

Lingge did not explain the meaning of this operation, but just said it seriously.

Mitch: “…”

Although it felt a bit strange, as if I was being plotted against, but I heard from Brother Carson that Mr. Ling was a mature and stable man, so he shouldn't be playing tricks on a child, right?

Mitch, who has been trying to act more mature, did not realize that he had unknowingly put himself in the position of a child.

Thus, the battle began.

Three seconds later, Mitch stared at the character on the screen who had fallen to the ground. Although he didn't understand what KO meant, he could guess what it meant based on the current scene. What made it even harder for him to accept was that he had lost the battle without any resistance. The health bar of the character controlled by Lingge was still full, without any damage.

Is it because the character he controls is too weak? No, he is not weak. He can manipulate fire and release powerful martial arts. Even his physical fitness and reaction ability are incredibly strong. If he appears in the real world, he should be at least a mid-sequence extraordinary person, right? The leader of the Ash Guerrillas, the Eagle of the Ash Hills that he admires, is only at the top of this class, and is still one step away from the real high sequence.

So, is it because I am too weak?
Mitch is horrified to discover the truth.

At this time, Lingge kindly gave him a way out: "It seems that you are not very familiar with the operation of this game. After all, you are a novice. You can improve with a little practice. How about it, do you want to play again?"

The boy felt as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw. Yes, he lost because he was a novice, because he was not skilled enough, and because he was not fully prepared. If he was given another chance, he would definitely... definitely not lose so miserably!
Thinking of this, Mitch gritted his teeth and nodded firmly: "Come on!"

……

"Why did they start playing games?" Gloria stood on the altar and watched the scene, worried: "Is Lingge possessed by Alice? It's fine if he doesn't help Metien preach, but why is he leading everyone to play games? If they are all addicted to games, won't they be even more unwilling to listen to Metien's sermons?"

Oh, I am more likely to cause trouble than to accomplish anything!
"Don't talk nonsense if you don't understand, little fool Gloria." Bai Ye said coldly in her mind: "Although I don't want to say good things about that guy, it is obvious that this is the most correct way to preach."

The most correct way to preach? Gloria thought about it for a moment, and suddenly looked horrified: "Could it be that Ling Ge wanted to make those kids addicted to games, and then take the opportunity to threaten them that they would not be allowed to play games if they did not join the church? This is so despicable!"

This shocked the girl's moral values ​​so much that she even stuttered.

"...I beg you, Gloria, just shut up. No one thinks you're dumb." Even Bai Ye was speechless by this guy's whimsical imagination: "That guy just understands the psychology of children better than you... That's why I say he is a weak guy. He thinks he is very mature, but there is still a child living in his soul, innocent and naive."

As they were talking, the topic returned to the criticism of Lingge. Gloria suddenly discovered that Bai Ye really liked to criticize Lingge, sometimes even finding fault with him. Is this what they call love turning into hate?

The girl didn't dare to say it out loud, so she could only bury the secret deep in her heart, waiting for the day when Bai Ye wouldn't notice it, and then share it with everyone.

As for what Bai Ye said, that Lingge understood children's psychology better than anyone else, she was not surprised at all.

And Gloria believed that others might think the same way.

She turned around and found that Metien was watching the scene carefully. While watching, he made sounds like "hmm, oh, I understand" and so on, as if he had indeed learned some valuable experience from Ling'er's actions.

Why can’t I understand or learn it?
A certain nun who called herself a nun scratched her cheek in confusion.

Give me some meow