Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1157: Did the prank succeed?
There is an extra chair outside the alchemy workshop.

Lingge imitated Lorena, resting his head on his arm, lying on a chair, quietly watching the sunlight shining through the forest, and saw the tiny plankton glittering, floating around like elves in fairy tales, as if they didn't know what sorrow and worry were. The wind blew through the forest, making a soothing sound, and under the warm sunlight, even his bones were softened, and he felt lazy and didn't want to do anything.

There was a sound of even breathing beside him. Ling Ge thought that Lorena had fallen asleep. He turned his head and saw that Princess Haiqi was quietly and attentively staring at the flying dust in the air. Her eyes were shining, not like they were stained by sunlight, but as if they would glow by themselves. At the deepest bottom of the sea, looking up at the light falling on the sea, the sun rising and the moon setting, the stars bright and sparse, all the scenes were so beautiful that she was deeply fascinated. But that was already a vague memory in her mind. She had been away from her hometown for too long. She first lived in the city of Lotdana for six years, and then followed the footsteps of travelers and wandered in the East and West continents and even the outer space for two years. The experiences and scenery she saw during this period far exceeded any fantasy she had when she and her sister sneaked to the sea to watch the meteors fall to the land when she was young.

The price was that she gradually forgot the impression of her hometown. She knew that it was a beautiful and prosperous city, which was blessed by the great sea hero Nereids and was known as the pearl of the land and sea. In the city, there was the magnificent Ice Water Palace, the sad cemetery with Cecilia flowers in full bloom, and the white tower for worshiping the sea and gods in the cemetery. Standing on the white tower and looking into the distance, you can see an ancient huge coral tree swaying and growing with the waves. Its age is almost as long as the city under its feet. In the Ice Water Palace sat the majestic and gentle mother, and beside her were the guard knight Katins and the court priest Andrew. They jointly ruled the 51,324 people in this ancient city. They were all descendants of Crystal Snow, and they all inherited the unrestrained and free and easy, enthusiastic and cheerfulness of the sea. Occasionally, among the soldiers riding seahorses to patrol the city defense, she would see her sister. She winked at her, as if asking, when I have a holiday, let's go to the sea to watch the meteors together?

She knew all this, as clearly as she knew her own feelings, but what happened later? After the city of Nereides moved to the chaotic sea, was it still beautiful and prosperous? Are the Cecilia flowers in the suburban cemetery still blooming as usual, and does the White Sea Tower still hold a ceremony to worship the Stone Crab God every year? Is her mother still as busy as before, always burying her head in official duties without a break? Or has Sister Galene resigned from her position in the City Defense Corps and officially started to help her govern the city as an heir and share the pressure? Lord Katins is already very old, and it is probably time for him to resign and return home to retire. After losing two talented princesses in succession, has Lord Andrew found a student who is worthy of inheriting his mantle?

She didn't know that she had been away from her hometown for so long that she had lost all contact with it, and even rarely saw it in her dreams. What frightened Rorona was that even after coming to the East Continent, this situation had not changed. Did she really still miss home? Did she still want to return to her mother and sister? Or was she already afraid and resisting this?

It's so close to home, yet so far away.

"I'll go back one day, Lorena."

Ling Ge suddenly said, and Princess Haiqi, who was staring at the sunlight, turned her head and fixed her eyes on the young man's face. There was no melancholy or sadness in her quiet and clear eyes, only a faint smile: "You are comforting me again, Ling Ge."

"This is not consolation, it is the inherent truth of the world."

The young man shook his head and said, "Those who walk alone will find companions, and those who travel far away from home will return home."

"Wow." The girl's eyes lit up. "It sounds like a poet's words. Olivia will definitely like it. However, poetry is not reason. There is no evidence to prove that this sentence is definitely correct, right?"

"What do you think counts as evidence?"

"What does Lingge think counts as evidence?"

Princess Haixi threw the question back to Lingge. The young man thought for a moment and said, "How about I promise you?"

"ensure?"

"Well, I promise you'll go back one day."

"Hey, it sounds like a child playing house. It's so insincere. Please be more sincere, Lingge."

"What do you think counts as sincerity?"

"What does Lingge think is sincerity?"

The conversation between the two was indeed like that of children playing house, a little childish and calculating, but Princess Haisu was enjoying it. Looking at her high spirits, if the young people cooperated, perhaps such a conversation could continue until the sun sets.

"Well," Ling Ge could only think of himself as the only sincerity, "how about I go back with you?"

Lorena's breathing suddenly hitched.

Ling Ge, however, hadn't noticed anything was wrong yet, and kept talking to himself: "Then I will accompany you to meet Queen Amyra and Miss Galene, and tell them that you have been working hard, whether it is to fight the curse or to purify the magic pollution, as long as it is your dream, you will stick to it. You are our indispensable companion, and someone we deeply trust and rely on..."

From Miss Lorena's melancholy, Ling Ge has vaguely sensed her inner knot. The wanderer misses her hometown and longs for the recognition of her relatives, but she is also deeply afraid of returning home, worried that she will only disappoint her relatives. She is afraid that all her memories are just beautification of her hometown, so she misses her hometown in the place farthest from her hometown, and loses her hometown in the place closest to her hometown. This is human nature and is inevitable.

As a companion, Lingge knew that Lorena had tried her best, and she had done better than she had promised. However, she was often distracted by the things she cared about the most, and became a little unconfident. As a friend, the young man did not want to see a girl indulge in melancholy, self-deprecation and anxiety. She was the pearl of the Lujian Sea, the half-son of Jing Zhixue, and Her Royal Highness the Princess of the Sea, respected by all the sea clans. That beautiful face that looked like it was carved out of coral and pearls was more suitable for showing a smile, right?
That's why he made such a suggestion, wanting to give her more confidence as a companion and friend.

However, as the young man was talking, he suddenly realized that Rorona beside him had stopped moving, and there had been no sound for a long time. He looked back in confusion, and found that Princess Haixi was lying on her back on a chair, staring blankly at the sky reflected between the branches and leaves. She had her hands folded over her chest, and her chest was heaving violently, as if she had just been hit by a violent tsunami. Her breathing and nasal exhalation were rapid and hot, and when she exhaled, it turned into white hot air, and there was a sickly red floating on her cheeks and ears.

Ling Ge felt that her reaction was not right, and asked with concern: "What's wrong with you, Lorena?"

"..."

Rorona stared blankly at the sky. After a while, she turned her head and gave the young man a stiff smile: "Oh, my heart is beating so fast. Maybe it's my old problem again?"

"Has the curse come again? But I remember that you have gotten much better after leaving the Holy Temple of Heaven, right?" Ling Ge asked hurriedly.

"Is it...right? Who knows?"

Princess Haixi looked away rather unnaturally and murmured, "Although there are signs of weakening, the weakening of the curse does not mean that it will not occur again, right?"

Ling Ge thought about it and it was true. Even Gloria changed her identity and became a nun of the Tianxin Church, so it was not so strange for Lorena's curse to break out. He asked again: "What disease is it this time? Is it serious?" "Well, the heart beats so fast, of course it is a heart-related disease. As for the degree, well, if it is not serious, it is very serious. It can easily make people lose their appetite, have trouble sleeping day and night, be distracted, and feel depressed; it can also make people ecstatic, unable to sleep, irritable, and thirsty. But if it is serious, I feel that it is not that serious, at least not so serious now. As long as you don't make surprise attacks, I should be able to hold on... right?"

The more she talked, the more confused Ling Ge became, and in the end he couldn't understand at all: "What does this have to do with me?"

"Of course it is related." Rorona glanced at him, but there was no complaint or blame in her eyes. Instead, she looked soft and gentle, as if she was acting coquettishly to a young man: "Haven't you heard that all diseases have causes, internal injuries to the emotions and external injuries to the nature. And you are the so-called cause of the disease."

"It's not caused by the curse?"

"Some of both." The girl's eyes wandered again, and she stammered, "How about if you each take half? But generally speaking, your responsibility is greater."

Can this be divided equally? It doesn't seem very reliable. As the saying goes, a doctor should not treat himself. Could it be that Lorena made a potion to treat herself and got so confused that she was a little unconscious? The young man sincerely suggested that it would be better to find a doctor who has received formal training to diagnose, such as Metien. Although she is actually practicing medicine without a license, this is not the Western Continent, and the rules set by the Herb Garden and the Red Cross do not apply here. Unfortunately, Lorena firmly rejected this proposal, saying that I know what disease I have and I don't need others to diagnose me.

Just say yes.

Linger gave up treatment faster than she did.

The woods were quiet for a while.

The wind brought the sound of birds and insects. In the bushes in the distance, an elk was leaping through the forest and soon disappeared from their sight. Only the spots on its body shone in the sunlight. In the thin leaf veins, the silhouettes of tens of millions of elks were reflected. Lorena watched this scene quietly. Her expression gradually calmed down. The red on her cheeks and ears had faded. Admiring her profile from this direction, she looked as quiet as an independent fairy in the forest. But the mirror elves are the offspring of the sea. Only the light elves and dust elves are the darlings of the forest. The feather elves are even known as the race closest to the sky. How did she get the favor of beauty from the light from the sun?
"Lingge." The girl suddenly turned her head and stretched out her hand to the young man: "Pull me up."

Ling Ge, who was silently admiring this scene, was stunned for a moment: "Why?"

"Because I need to work." Rorona smiled and said, "If you want to support the Ash Guerrillas, you must have sufficient supplies. Isn't that why you came to me? Now I agree. But I'm a little sleepy after being exposed to the sun. I'm too lazy to move, so I need you to pull me up."

That was indeed my goal, but, "Didn't you say you wanted to bask in the sun all day?"

"That was when you didn't guess correctly. Now that you guessed it right, what else can I do after finally getting a day off? Can't I just be obedient and let you control me?" Princess Haiqi gave the young man a resentful look.

Linger always felt that there was something wrong with this statement, or to be more precise, it was very wrong, and the harm to teenagers was immeasurable. But then again, there were no teenagers nearby who could be harmed, so he pretended that he hadn't heard this and shook his head to reject Rolena's request: "No."

"Hey, why?"

"Because I'm a little sleepy and I'm too lazy to move." The young man said seriously: "Let's continue to bask in the sun."

As for the matter of the Ash Guerrillas, it can be dealt with tomorrow. After all, there is no rush, and there is no use in rushing.

"That won't work. I'm a girl, and you're a boy, Lingge."

"so?"

"So, boys should act more assertive when facing girls. Lingge, you have to be more assertive too. Come on, don't be stingy with a weak and fragile beautiful girl like me. Use your strength to conquer me...ah!"

There was a knock on the head.

Linger stood in front of Rorona's lounge chair with a dark face, blocking most of the sunlight, causing the light to become oppressive. He warned Princess Haiqi righteously that even if there were no teenagers nearby who could be harmed, she still needed to pay attention to her image and not say things that could be easily misunderstood. As for what kind of words are not likely to be misunderstood, you, as a smart person, should know better than me.

Princess Umi stuck out her tongue mischievously, saying that she knew she was wrong and would not dare to do it again next time when you were here (not to mention when you were not here). Then she smiled and extended her hand to the young man again. The young man was completely defeated by her shamelessness. After sighing helplessly, he reached out and held her indeed weak hand. His palm immediately felt warm and delicate, and... it felt like being tickled.

It wasn't a feeling, he just felt tickled.

The young man glared at Princess Haisu, warning her not to do anything small, and then he exerted force to pull the weak and powerless beautiful girl up from the recliner.

Because the other party was a delicate and weak beautiful girl, the young man did not use too much strength, but the force transmitted back made his face change drastically: Wait, you said you are a delicate and weak beautiful girl?

This is not right… Before the alarm bells could even ring, the young man’s body was pulled forward forcefully, causing him to lose his balance.

The next second, she fell into a soft and sweet embrace.

The last thing he saw before his vision was taken over by darkness was the sly and complacent smile on Princess Umisu's face.

Prank, great success.

Give me some meow