Alice in the Land of Steam

After taking on the psychological counseling work for the two troubled girls, Linger immediately took action. The first person he wanted to find was Bai Ye. As for Alice, he needed to let her calm down alone first. Judging from her state when she left, Linger estimated that even if he went to find her, she would not say anything. It is difficult to open the heart of a genius player. One or two conversations are not enough. As for Bai Ye, although most people think she is cold and aloof and difficult to approach, Linger thinks she is the one who is easier to talk to. It may be a bit strange to describe her as reasonable, but she often mocks your ideas for being too naive, while changing another way to do things she thinks are naive. In short, she is a very awkward person.

Lingge thought he had a very good understanding of the girls on Yunjingkong Island, but sometimes he still felt confused. Maybe this was the difference between the genders.

After searching for a long time, he finally found Bai Ye in a dark and remote forest. She was sitting on a tree stump, muttering something, as if she was talking to herself, but in fact she was just talking to another personality in her mind. Ling Ge was curious and couldn't help but slow down his pace and eavesdrop on a few words, but was discovered by Xiao Bai.

The falcon was very familiar with his scent. Even though the young man had only fed it once or twice, it was already familiar with him second only to its two masters. This was probably because the young man had a special talent that could easily win the favor of animals, such as the falcon raised by Bai Ye and Gloria, Xino's beloved horse Brandi, and the rabbits in the Fairy Deep Sleep Hotel - well, except for Saint Shalia's sheep.

This talent is usually useful, but it can occasionally lead to awkward situations, such as right now.

Bai Ye narrowed her eyes and took a deep look at the young man who walked out of the woods. With her personality, she naturally spoke in a sarcastic tone: "I didn't expect that you have a hobby of eavesdropping on other people's conversations, Mr. Ling."

Linger appropriately displayed his cheeky skills, ignored her taunting, and asked, "Were you talking to Gloria just now?"

This was actually nonsense. After all, there was no one else at the scene, and Ling Ge just wanted to use this nonsense to introduce the next topic. However, Bai Ye seemed to see through his intention and replied casually: "No, I'm actually talking to the stupid bird in your hand."

Gloria in the consciousness space and the gray-feathered falcon on Ling'er's arm cried out at the same time, but the former was dissatisfied, while the latter was probably confused?
"Ok."

Ling Ge said helplessly: "Although I don't understand the language of the gray-feathered falcon very well, I guess you should be talking about what happened in the restaurant just now?"

"Actually, we were talking about the mashed potatoes for dinner tonight. They tasted pretty good, with a salty taste of the sea."

"Because the boss lady added sea salt from the coast of Siegnia. It should taste like home to you, right?"

"Hmph, just give it a try."

Bai Ye replied habitually, then realized something was wrong, turned his head to look at the young man, and found that he was gently stroking the sharp beak of the gray-feathered falcon, which was shaped like a fishhook. This is a major feature of seabirds, and the coast of Siegnia is the largest habitat of gray-feathered falcons in the western continent. Seeing Bai Ye's gaze, the young man said seriously: "Sorry, what did you say just now? I was talking to the bird in my hand, and I didn't hear it clearly."

"..." Veins popped out on the gray-haired girl's forehead, and in her mind she heard the suppressed laughter of another personality.

"just kidding."

Ling Ge looked up, released the gray-feathered falcon, and watched it flutter its wings and land on a branch. Then he turned back and said to the surprised girl, "But you were the one who joked with me first, so I am just returning the favor, right?"

"You sound quite humorous. I didn't know you were such a humorous person." Bai Ye sneered with his arms crossed.

Ling replied sincerely: "It's the same for me."

"Puff!" Another laugh came from the consciousness space. Bai Ye's face turned pale and she told her to shut up, but she still laughed for a long time before stopping. To be honest, Gloria didn't know why Bai Ye was always obsessed with bickering with Ling Ge, even though she had never won in this regard. Ling Ge was the same, looking serious on the surface, but he was so hurtful when he spoke.

Well, just like Bai Ye.

Maybe they're a good match, right?
"Gloria." Bai Ye said sinisterly, "If you dare to have such nonsense again, I will make you pay!"

"Eh!? How do you know what I'm thinking!?"

"Because you said it, idiot!"

“Ugh…”

Gloria closed her mouth from the bottom of her heart, not daring to provoke her again. Bai Ye then pulled his mind away and returned to reality. When he looked up, he found Ling Ge looking at him curiously. After being discovered, he did not panic, but asked: "What did Gloria say?"

"Huh?" Bai Ye asked subconsciously, "What does this have to do with you?"

But I didn't ask him how he knew that.

"Because I noticed that you didn't look very well." Ling Ge didn't care about her bad attitude and just smiled: "She sometimes says some stupid things, but she doesn't mean any harm."

"You speak as if you know her better than I do."

Bai Ye felt a little sour for some reason. You have only known Gloria for more than a year. Although she is indeed a relatively easy-to-understand type, it is not your turn to remind me, right? It is more appropriate for me to say such things. I have been with her since she was born.

Because of her complicated emotions, her tone was naturally not very good: "So you came to me in the middle of the night just to care about a lonely and weak girl? How considerate, Mr. Ling."

Ling Ge shook his head helplessly: "I want to talk about business, but you don't seem to be happy about it."

"Because there is nothing to say in the first place." Bai Ye said with a cold face: "I don't think I did anything wrong. If you must blame me for this, please feel free to do so. After all, it is your business. As for whether you accept it or not, it is my business."

"I don't mean to blame you. In fact, I'm here to thank you, Miss Bai Ye."

"thank?"

Bai Ye looked at the young man strangely, and that look seemed to say "Your brain is finally broken", which made people feel that she should be the strange one, because she looked unhappy even though she was thanked. "Yeah." Ling Ge said, looking at the gray-feathered falcon on the branch, he found that it was also looking at him with strange eyes, just like his master, so the young man talked to it as if it were his master: "Although the words you said in the restaurant were not pleasant to hear, they were actually for Alice's sake, and also for my sake, so I should thank you. Of course, if you encounter similar situations in the future, it would be better if you can be more tactful."

"What kind of weird imagination is this?"

Hearing this, Bai Ye snorted coldly, his tone quite disdainful: "You actually said that I am thinking about you, aren't you a little too narcissistic, Mr. Lingge? Or do boys of your age like to fantasize about a beautiful girl with a cold face but a warm heart, who seems to be dismissive of you but is actually just not good at expressing herself, but cares about you very much behind your back?"

"Wow, he said it all in one breath, so impressive." Gloria couldn't help but exclaim.

"So it was my misunderstanding. I'm so sorry." Ling Ge seemed to be thinking about something. "I thought you said that on purpose to cheer Alice up. I also thought you decided to be the villain because you thought that no one else could say such a direct thing. I even thought you were the kind of person who looked cold but was actually warm-hearted and didn't care about your teammates on the surface, but actually just didn't know how to express your feelings frankly, so you used a cold personality, aloof tone, and awkward behavior to cover up yourself."

"Wow, he said it all in one breath, so impressive." Gloria exclaimed again.

Is this guy the only thing he can say?

Bai Ye's eyes twitched again. She always felt that the young man in front of her was deliberately looking for trouble. However, she had no evidence, and she was not very polite in her words. So she was naturally not qualified to blame him.

She curled her lips and said, "Since you already know this is a misunderstanding, can you leave now? If you continue to stay here, I won't become the person you imagine."

"There's no need to be so anxious to send you away." The young man pinched his chin and said, "If it's a misunderstanding, then I really have no reason to thank you. Instead, you should apologize to Alice."

"Huh? Apologize?" Bai Ye gave the young man a look that said "your brain is finally broken". When had she ever apologized, especially to Alice?

"Yes, after all, you said such harsh words to her. At first, I thought you said that on purpose to cheer her up, but since that's not the case, shouldn't you apologize?" Ling Ge had a natural expression, almost making Bai Ye laugh. So I either accept your thanks or apologize to Alice, is there no other option?

Of course there is.

"I refuse." Bai Ye said coldly: "I don't need to be thanked by anyone, nor do I need to apologize to anyone. No matter how nice you say it, it can't change this fact."

"Why?" Ling Ge seemed to remember something: "Because you are a cold person?"

"Yes."

Bai Ye looked at him provocatively and said, "I am indeed very cold, and this kind of coldness is something you will never learn in your lifetime. I originally had high hopes for you, but you only disappoint people. People who are always tolerant and forgiving cannot become qualified leaders. Isn't the process of interacting with the Ash Guerrillas enough to teach you this truth?"

"Wow, Bai Ye, you're exaggerating!"

Gloria couldn't stand what she heard. No matter how good Lingge's temper was, could she really tolerate it?
But the young man actually endured it. Not only did he not show any sign of being angry, but he looked the gray-haired girl in front of him up and down with a very strange look. When Gloria couldn't stand it anymore and couldn't help but ask what she was looking at, he finally spoke and sighed, "You are really childish."

"W-What!?"

Bai Ye was struck by lightning, staggered back two steps, and looked at Ling Ge in disbelief: "Me? Childish? Are you serious?"

For a moment, she even wondered if the young man had some brain problems and mistook her for Gloria. After all, no matter how you look at it, Gloria is more suitable for this evaluation than her, right?
Of course, Ling Ge also had his reasons for saying, "Who made you say that what you just said was really childish? Usually no mature adult would say the words 'I am cold', right?"

Just like only children would try all kinds of suicidal things and then smugly tell their peers "I am brave", these are the most childish behaviors.

"It seems to make sense, Bai Ye."

Gloria agreed very much. She found a sense of identification in Lingge. There was nothing she could do. She had just commented that Bai Ye was "very naive", and Lingge commented that Bai Ye was "childish". This was probably what Alice said, "Great minds think alike", right?

"Shut up!"

Bai Ye looked coldly at the young man in front of him, with an expression that said, "If you don't take back your comment, I'll fight you." However, Ling Ge seemed not to see it. Instead, he pinched his chin and thought, "No wonder, children are the most unwilling to lose face. Is there anything more embarrassing than asking a childish person to apologize to her old rival? So, it's not that I can't understand your feelings, Bai Ye."

Nonsense! I'm not refusing to apologize for such a silly reason! Also, when did Alice become my old rival? Don't talk to yourself like Gloria, you bastard!
"However, it is more important to bravely admit your mistakes than to save face and act stubbornly. So, I still think you should apologize, Bai Ye." Ling Ge sighed, as if he didn't want to force the girl, but he had no other choice: "Otherwise, I can only comply with your expectations and become a little more cruel."

"what?"

Bai Ye couldn't count how many times she had breathed out tonight, but she was very angry, and at the same time a little confused and bewildered: "What does this have to do with an apology?"

Could it be that this guy was so traumatized by what happened tonight that he has lost his ability to organize his language normally?

"Of course it does."

Lingge showed a mysterious smile on his face: "Because, if you are unwilling to apologize to Alice, I can only 'coldly' force you to apologize to her. If it comes to this, it will be embarrassing for everyone, so, Bai Ye——"

The young man suddenly stretched out his hand and pressed it on the gray-haired girl's head before she could react. He then rubbed it vigorously, instantly messing up her long gray hair that was as smooth and soft as silk and as misty as mist. "Don't be childish anymore. Go and apologize to Alice." (End of this chapter)