Alice in the Land of Steam

"Thank you for your support for the Ash Rangers, Mr. Linger. We will definitely make good use of this information."

After Carson Borg collected the intelligence, he thanked the young man solemnly. At the same time, he felt that forming an alliance with these strangers was an extremely correct choice. Not to mention the material assistance, this valuable intelligence alone was enough to be worth thousands of troops. Thinking about the process of contacting other resistance organizations in recent days, perhaps the disastrous defeat of the Ash Guerrillas made them feel a sense of crisis, and they realized that they could never fight against the Axis powers alone, so they all agreed to the request for an alliance without exception. Even organizations with different philosophies are willing to temporarily put aside their conflicts and fight for their common ideals.

This alliance is certainly temporary and fragile, but as long as they can achieve one or two victories and let everyone see hope, the Gray Hill Eagle will be able to rely on their reputation and influence in the Ansus region to turn it into a long-term and stable organization, and even attract more people to join this cause. Those who are wavering will strengthen their determination, those who are hesitant will gain motivation, and those who are struggling will be encouraged.

Everything depended on victory. Carson Borg had planned for this victory with great care and had even made up his mind to win at any cost. But the intelligence sent by Linger reduced the cost to the lowest. He had never felt so close to his ideal as now.

Just like the stars lit up in the darkness and the flames ignited at the bottom of the abyss, he saw the light for the first time in this forest of eternal night that had been dark all year round and shrouded in silence and loneliness for a long time. The significance of this was so great that no words were needed. Carson Borg could not think of any words to describe his current mood, so he could only put gratitude and confidence into this short promise.

"I look forward to your results, Mr. Carson."

Lingge replied that he certainly believed it. If he didn't believe it, he wouldn't have chosen to cooperate with the Ash Guerrillas, let alone entrusted this valuable information to this man. Carson Borg felt that he was blessed by fate to have such a reliable ally, but weren't Lingge and his party lucky? They had met the most determined, persistent and pure soul in the land of Gray Hill. With Carson Borg's love for his hometown, his contempt for the original Night Church and his hatred for the invaders, I'm afraid that even if everyone gave up, he would be the only one who would persist in this difficult cause, right?
Although intelligence is valuable, it can only be useful if it falls into the right hands.

"When are you going to start the action?" Ling asked.

This was undoubtedly confidential, but the other party was a trustworthy ally. Carson Borg did not hesitate and gave a time point. He also told the young man the details of the action: "Three days later, we will launch a surprise attack on the 17th Legion's base on the Hyrule Pass and cut off the connection between the four northern towns and Suare City. The Forest Rangers, Hand of Ash, Pale Knights and Gray Hill Brotherhood will act with us."

Linger recalled briefly that among the intelligence provided by Olvera, there was a strategic topographic map covering most of the area from the Ansas region to the Jossi Beach. Because it was a military map, it was much more detailed than ordinary civilian maps or even maps drawn by travelers. The Four Northern Towns were four small towns located in the northeastern extension of the Ansas Mountains, connected to the city of Suare by the Hailar Mountain Road. Since the airships of the 17th Legion would regularly depart from the city of Suare, crossing the majestic Ansas Mountains to support supplies to the central battlefield, the Four Northern Towns became supply stations and transit stations on this route.

However, the 17th Legion's airships will only temporarily stop in the four northern towns for repairs when they are short of supplies, break down or encounter unexpected accidents, and the probability of this happening is very low. Therefore, although there are enemy strongholds in the four northern towns and the Hailar Mountain Road, they are not taken seriously, and the garrison troops are mainly composed of logistics personnel. As long as combat effectiveness is guaranteed, it is not difficult to capture these strongholds.

Successfully cutting off the connection between the four northern towns and Suare City would not only bring about a much-needed victory and encourage the newly established alliance, but would also be a test. If the 17th Legion reacted too strongly, it would prove that they had not relaxed their vigilance against these resistance organizations, and subsequent actions should be mainly guerrilla warfare and harassment; if the 17th Legion was careless and only regarded it as another attack with much noise but little action, then the next action could be bolder.

From all aspects, it is a relatively safe choice.

The Forest Rangers, the Hand of Ash, the Pale Knights, the Brotherhood of Gray Hills...are all large resistance organizations in the Ansus region. If we combine their forces and make a good plan based on this intelligence, it will not be difficult to win. But at this time, Lingge remembered another thing.

He turned his head and glanced at Tianxin Church, and said thoughtfully: "Will they also participate in this operation?"

The young man did not mention any names, but Carson Borg understood what he meant. He hesitated for a moment before slowly replying, "Do you want Mitch and the others to stay behind, Mr. Ling?"

"Ah."

Linger did not hide his true intentions, nor did he think that he was interfering with the internal decision-making of the Ash Guerrillas. After all, he had sufficient reasons: "With sufficient combat power, intelligence, and supplies, the operation on the Hyrule Pass should be almost certain. In this case, there is no need to let the children go to the battlefield, right? They are the future of this land. Your career is to fight for the present, but if there is no future, the present is meaningless, right?"

Hearing this, Carson Borg fell silent. Perhaps he was thinking of his childhood, or perhaps he was thinking of the children who had played outside the tavern in Suare City. If they had not died in that war, they might have reached the age to face reality. But, could they accept such a reality? Their hometown was invaded, their freedom was taken away, their people were exploited, their soldiers died on the battlefield, their enemies occupied their fortresses, and even the gods they regarded as their spiritual pillars abandoned their believers and fled. As Ling said, if their efforts were not to change such a reality, then it would be meaningless.

Grayhill Eagle whispered, "I have already told Regina and others not to mention this operation in front of Mitch and the others." This was the decision he made after seeing the performance of Mitch, Kadora and the others. No one cared more about the feelings of these boys and girls than this Grayhill Eagle. Because of his concern, he could clearly notice that since going to Tianxin Church and listening to Miss Metien's sermon, their moods have obviously relaxed a lot. The strings in their minds that had been tense finally relaxed, and they had smiles on their faces again.

This laxity is like poison and hidden arrows to a warrior who has been on the battlefield for a long time, and it will easily take their lives at a certain moment. But if the average age of these warriors is only sixteen years old, it will be a different story. It is undoubtedly a failure of adults to let children of this age always be vigilant and only use a hard and indifferent shell to protect themselves. Now, this shell has finally begun to melt. Carson Borg even occasionally hears them discussing games. At that time, he realized that the future of these children will never be on the battlefield, but in a place where they can feel happy from the bottom of their hearts.

It was this mood that prompted him to make such a decision, and this decision was also supported by most people, including Regina. Perhaps everyone had the same idea. Even those who did not support it did not oppose the leader's idea, but felt that although Mitch and Kadora were still young, they were already qualified warriors. For such a major event that determines the direction of their lives, they must be asked in person and let them make their own decision.

This statement is not without reason, but Carson Borg knows that it is not feasible. Those children are warriors, but what warriors learn on the battlefield is never just the skills of killing, but also the stubbornness tempered by swords and flames. So if you ask them this question, you will get only one answer, and there will only be one answer.

Ling Ge breathed a sigh of relief: "I understand."

He said, "Then let them stay in the Heavenly Heart Church. Sisters Metine and Livia will take good care of them. Sister Gloria, too."

When did another nun appear in Tianxin Church?
Carson Borg frowned slightly, but didn't take it to heart, just thinking that he had never seen it before. After finishing this topic, he said goodbye to Lingge and wanted to go back to discuss with Regina and others how to use this information to modify the original plan to make the operation more likely to succeed. Lingge didn't try to keep him, but just watched his back gradually go away, until he disappeared into the depths of the lush forest and merged into the dark background in the distance. Until he could no longer see him, he laughed at himself: "It seems that what Bai Ye said makes sense, I'm still not cold enough."

A truly cold-hearted person might not bring up this matter on his own initiative, but would only consider his own interests. No matter how weak the fighting force is, it should be put to good use, even if they are still children. But Ling Ge asked himself if he could do that, and Saint Shallia also said that she hoped Ling Ge could become more gentle, preferably even gentler than before.

Before Lingge learned to smile again, his calm concern and natural thoughtfulness often made him teased as "tsundere" and "assassin" by genius players. However, his calm and cold tone and attitude that kept people at a distance did not make Bai Ye feel cold. At this point, it was difficult for young people to understand what kind of gentleness Saint Shalia hoped for, and what kind of coldness Bai Ye expected.

As for other people's expectations of him... Rorona's strong, Yieta's selfish, and Xino's strong, they are all too vague. If they had made specific requests, such as how to appear strong, how to appear selfish, then Ling Ge could still work hard. But just giving an empty concept really makes it difficult to find the direction to work hard. As for Olvera's no need to change, it is actually the most difficult request. After all, its metaphorical meaning is not that Ling Ge really never needs to change, but that Ling Ge can always become the ideal person who does not need to change.

Maybe even Ovilla herself didn't realize that there was this meaning in her words. But Lingge did realize it. He found that although he had lost his keen intuition of seeing through people's hearts, he was getting better and better at guessing the hearts of girls. If this continued, I'm afraid the jokes about the emotional disputes between men and women in the White City Republic would come true to him soon, right?
The young man shuddered as this thought came to his mind, and shook his head to get rid of it. It was impossible, absolutely impossible. Even if he really wanted to find a soul mate in life, Ling Ge hoped that he would be absolutely loyal to this relationship. After all, there is such a saying in the Goddess's scriptures: Be loyal to your partner, just like being loyal to your life.

I am a devout believer of the goddess.

Lingge thought to himself.

The young man did not realize that his thoughts had changed unconsciously. He learned to think about some questions that he would never have thought about in the past, just as he learned to face the world with a smile again, instead of treating it coldly, thinking that he could be alone as long as he stayed out of it. However, the world is connected to the world, and people's hearts need to absorb enough nutrients from each other's soil to grow into their ideal appearance. Mr. Yang Ke tried to teach him this truth, but before he could teach him the philosophy of life, he left forever in a heavy snow.

Fortunately, the unexpected death of his adoptive father did not lead Lingge to a wrong path. At every critical moment in his life, there were always people who would use various methods to guide him back to the right track of life, sometimes actively, such as the shepherdess he met in the municipal square; and sometimes passively, such as the alien visitor who fell from the white city sycamore in the yard. He gained a lot from them and began to understand that life is not a barrier set by oneself, but to understand the meaning of coming to this world and work hard for it.

If such a definition exists, then meeting the young girls' royal power and helping them save the world may be the meaning of coming to this world?
It really sounds like a fairy tale. Fortunately, Lingge no longer hates these beautiful and unreal things.

They are more precious than reality.

The young man withdrew his thoughts, smiled silently, and turned to walk towards Tianxin Church. (End of this chapter)