Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1180 Will you stay and play games with me?
"Why," Alice suddenly asked in the silence, "Why do you have to go?"

This sentence focused everyone's attention on her, but the blonde girl seemed unaware, or she deliberately avoided their gazes. She just stared at the empty wine glass in her hand, playing with it carelessly, rotating it from left to right, and then from right to left. She said casually: "Since that man named Carson Borg doesn't want you to participate in this operation, why don't you just listen to him obediently? There is no need to go to this extent, right?"

This sentence sounds fine, but it seems a bit inappropriate to say it in the current situation, as if Alice didn't pay attention to the content of the conversation between the two.

Linger couldn't help but look at her, and Mitch replied calmly: "I've already said that Brother Carson has his reasons, but we also have ours. This is not a battle that has nothing to do with us."

"There are many battles in this world that are related to you, but you don't have to participate in every one of them in person, right?" Alice still didn't look up, just talking to herself. It felt like she was talking to herself instead of Mitch: "Just like you Ash Guerrillas fighting against invaders to liberate the Ansus region, such a battle can be said to be closely related to everyone in this land, right? But not everyone will join you, can you say that those people are wrong?"

This question was a little more profound, and Mitch thought for a while before slowly answering: "They are not wrong. It is true that not everyone has to fight for themselves. But at least, my companions and I are not that kind of people."

"Even if you join the battle, you may not be able to change the situation. The victory or defeat of this battle does not depend on your strength." Alice said. This is something that everyone knows. The main force of the Ash Guerrillas led by the Eagle of the Gray Hill and other resistance organizations that have formed a temporary alliance are the backbone of this operation. Moreover, Ling Ge also knows that when he handed over the confidential information of the 17th Legion to Carson Borg, the situation of the war was completely controlled by that man. In this case, whether Mitch and his companions join the battle or not really has little impact on the situation.

But the young man still respected the choices of these children because he understood their intentions, which Alice didn't seem to understand.

“It has nothing to do with winning or losing.”

The person who answered was not Mitch, but Kadora. Her weak tone revealed an extremely firm determination that was inconsistent with her appearance: "Some battles are not participated in for the sake of victory or defeat, but simply because we have reasons to fight."

If you have a reason to fight, do you have to fight?

Alice didn't quite understand. She finally raised her head and her confused eyes fell on the girl. Seeing her staring at her quietly, there was no doubt in her light green pupils, only clear curiosity and thinking. She couldn't help but ask: "But, aren't you afraid?"

"What are you afraid of?" Kadora asked, tilting his head.

"die."

Alice used one word to convey the heaviest feeling. For some reason, the girl who was not sad when she was asked about the game console and cartridges just now suddenly felt a little lost: "I have a friend, she...she is a very powerful person, no matter what she does, she can do it to the end, and she will definitely win the battle she wants to win. But she once said that she is a person who is very afraid of death. She is afraid of seeing others die in front of her and she is powerless, so she has always resisted fighting. You are the same, right? Even if you have the courage to sacrifice yourself and are not afraid of your own death, if you see your companions die in front of you, won’t you be afraid and painful? There will definitely be deaths in war. No matter who dies, there will be another person who is sad for him, so I think, can you not fight?"

She asked carefully, "Why don't you just stay in Tianxin Church? Metien and I will accompany you. You can listen to the teachings of the goddess like you are doing now, and rest and play as much as you want. Don't you think games are fun? They will make you happy, and fighting will only bring you sacrifice. Oh, yes! As long as you are willing to stay, I will fix the cassette immediately, so that you can play the games I made by myself. They are very special, and there is absolutely no other like them!"

She looked at the girl expectantly, but after a moment's thought, Katara simply asked, "So, Miss Alice, what happened to your friend?"

Alice was stunned.

But everyone else, including Lingge, had heard that the friend she was talking about was Shino, a knight who had achieved victory but also sacrificed herself. Her life had been chased by death countless times, and her brilliant ideals were buried with the tombstone, like armor gathering dust in a secret room. She was eventually revived by the death of an old man, and by then she had realized that although victory is always accompanied by sacrifice, sacrifice is by no means simply for victory, but for what comes after victory.

When the celestial Themis fought the dark witch Carabosse, it was Alice who stopped Shino from fighting because she didn't want to see anyone die. However, her stop had no effect. Even if it wasn't because of Shino, someone would have died in the battle. This fact made the genius player feel extremely painful. Now she used Shino as an example to try to convince Kadora, but she also meant to convince herself again. Maybe her mind told her that she made a wrong decision, but subconsciously she still felt that what she did at the time was right, right?
Fate is always contradictory and conflicting. Everyone is caught in the gap of choices and suffers greatly. Only a few people can, like the emperors in ancient legends, directly swing their swords to cut the tangled ball of threads without being troubled by all kinds of distracting thoughts.

It remains to be seen whether Alice can become such a person, but at least, Shino has done it.

“She picked up the gun again.”

Lingge answered the question on Alice's behalf: "She defeated her destined enemy, ended her family's feud, and upheld the honor of the knight. Then she set out on the journey again, vowing to fight for more people who were suffering. I think she is no longer afraid of death, but just a little sad."

"Then so do I."

Kadora raised his face and smiled widely, "Miss Alice, what she said makes sense. In battle, there will be sacrifices, right? Even if it's not today, who can predict what will happen in the future? But I have Mitch, Brother Carson, Sister Regina, and everyone to accompany me. So, even if I die one day, or watch someone die, I won't be very scared. It's just possible that -"

She smiled and said, "It's just a little sad."

"Cadora..." Mitch looked at his long-time partner and pursed his lips slightly. Even he didn't know that the girl had such a complicated mind. However, Cadora has always been like that, only showing a quiet and well-behaved side in front of everyone. Maybe she doesn't want her mood to affect the mood of those around her.

It was not until today that the friend that Alice and Ling'er mentioned resonated with her and she was finally willing to express her true feelings.

"If possible," the girl whispered, "I hope that one day I can meet that knight."

"Of course." Lingge replied: "She will definitely be very happy."

At this point, his expression was a little strange. Thinking carefully, Shino had a quality that easily attracted little girls to admire her. Chloe from the town of Regrum had admired "Sister" since she was a child, and had been working hard to achieve her goal, and even formed the so-called Saint Guard. And Katara in front of him had developed a liking for Shino without having seen her in person and only hearing about her deeds. What a sinful girl.

The young man, who was also deeply sinful, thought without any self-awareness.

"In that case!" Metien suddenly patted his cheek, cheered up, clenched his fists and said, "Then I won't preach today! Let's have fun together!"

The words shocked the whole audience. As die-hard fans, Leticia and Shemy naturally raised their hands in support without hesitation. Of course, it could also be because they were just playful. Mitch, Kadora and others were quite tempted, but a little embarrassed, thinking that it would be too unfair to the goddess. As for Sister Livia, she looked at Lingge first, after all, he was the head of the family. Medien's action was no different from Leticia shouting in front of the countess that she would not eat vegetables, or Shemy shouting in front of the proprietress that she would not work for the hotel anymore. I'm afraid the final outcome would not be good.

But this time, she miscalculated.

Lingge did not criticize his sister's actions, and even expressed his approval: "Indeed, since you can't come to Tianxin Church for the next period of time, take this opportunity to have some fun. As for preaching, well, I think there will be many opportunities in the future."

"Great!"

After getting his brother's permission, Metien cheered and couldn't wait to drag his two friends to the game area. As for the others, after looking at each other, they quickly let go of their reserve and followed noisily, starting to enjoy the fun of the game. For a moment, Tianxin Church returned to the lively atmosphere when Lingge first entered the door. As for Alice's question, it seemed to be forgotten by the children. After all, a question that may be very tangled for some people, but for them, there is only one answer from beginning to end.

"What about you, Alice?"

Ling Ge withdrew his gaze from them, looked at the genius player who was still in a daze, and asked, "Do you want to play together? Or, how about we play the battle game we played before? Speaking of which, we haven't played games together for a long time since leaving Tianxin Church, right? Do you remember your promise?"

promise?

Alice was startled for a moment, but then she quickly reacted. It was in a dark and silent hall, surrounded by countless steel and glass machines. The genius player made a promise to the young man. She said that she would definitely become the best genius player in the universe, and then let the whole story come to a happy and perfect ending.

However, with the passing of the girl, the ending was not perfect from the beginning, and the so-called promise naturally became a joke.

As for the memory of playing games together, Alice had thrown them into some unknown corner a long time ago. In the past, games were always a happy thing for her. She could immerse herself in them and enjoy them without worries. Even if there were any troubles, she would soon forget them. But when games were no longer games and reality began to replace the dreams in people's hearts, she found that only regrets and pain were left. It was like she didn't understand why those children could still enjoy the game happily when they knew they were about to step onto the battlefield and their lives were unpredictable. She wanted to say that it was wrong. The joy of games should not be mixed with realistic factors, which would only make people sad.

But judging from everyone’s reactions, maybe I’m the one who’s wrong?
Have talented gamers lost the ability to get joy from games?

I have to say, this is really the most ironic thing in the world.

She was not interested anymore. She sighed, shook her head slowly, and rejected Ling's invitation: "Sorry, I'm not in the mood right now. I want to go back to the hotel and rest. Goodbye."

After saying that, she stood up and walked out of Tianxin Church.

“Well, well, well—” Gloria, who had been eyeing the game eagerly, raised her hand quickly, like a good student eager to answer a question in class: “I can play games with you, Lingge!”

"Can't you learn to shut up at a time like this, you little fool Gloria?" Bai Ye in the consciousness space couldn't help but scold her, but there was not much anger in her expression. After all, as she said, Gloria was a little fool, and fools couldn't learn to read the atmosphere.

Lingge didn't care about Gloria's interruption, but quietly watched Alice's back as she left, and suddenly felt that she was a little lonely. But this loneliness was not because she was not understood, on the contrary, it was because she could not understand others. The lost memories were too long ago. For Alice, life started when she came into contact with the game. Now, without the game, she has nothing.

And what can I do for her?

"That won't do, Ling."

Suddenly, a voice sounded in his ear, saying to him in a teasing tone: "You should be more assertive when dealing with girls, okay? Especially for someone like you who usually accommodates others too much, if you suddenly become assertive, most girls will not be able to resist."

So, the genius player can also be considered a girl, right?
Linger made a decision and walked towards Alice without hesitation. When she was about to step out of the church door, he suddenly reached out, grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. Then, under the stunned gaze of the blonde girl, he slightly raised the corners of his mouth, revealing a smile that young people had never had before. He looked somewhat similar to a certain alchemist lady: "You said that you wanted to become a genius player of the universe."

"In that case, don't leave in such a hurry."

"Stay and play games with me."

Give me some meow