Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1248 A difficult choice?
Linger felt a little uncomfortable when the countess looked at him with such a meaningful look. He asked, "You mean I should be responsible for taking care of Leticia? Do you think this is appropriate?"

"What's inappropriate?" The Countess took another sip of her tea and said slowly, "Isn't the reason I just gave enough?"

"I just think that you may have some misunderstanding about the relationship between Leticia and me." Linger explained: "Although she remembers me after each reincarnation, it doesn't mean she is willing to listen to me. After all, you have seen how she treats me. If it weren't for you and Metien coordinating in the middle, she might not even bother to pay attention to me, just like-"

Just like a child in his rebellious period.

The young man held back his words. Although this was an accurate assessment, it was not appropriate to mention it in front of the child's parents, especially when the parent was very doting on his or her child.

"Is this how you view Leticia, Mr. Ling? Then I can only say that you don't know that girl well enough." The Countess looked at him deeply again, her lips curled up slightly, and her smile was full of mystery and ease that only mature women can have, which made the young man a little overwhelmed: "She is more stubborn than you think, so naturally she is also more proud than you think. Once she has determined someone, she will never waver easily. So, Mr. Ling, don't always just look at the appearance, pay attention to the inner qualities occasionally."

Don't just look at the surface, pay more attention to the inside.

To be honest, this was the first time that Lingge received such an evaluation, and he felt a little strange. He was certainly not the superficial person who only paid attention to appearances and ignored the inner qualities as the Countess said. So the real meaning of this sentence was, did Lingge care about Leticia's inner world? Could he understand her feelings and consciousness? And did he know every unknown characteristic of her character?

Lingge felt that it might not be possible.

Because Leticia usually plays more with Metien and Shemi, although they are both young girls, she is always classified as a child. In addition, she has a reliable parent, which leads to Lingge subconsciously excluding her from psychological counseling for other young girls. Originally, Leticia's curse had not weakened. During the period of reincarnation every full moon night, young people always confessed to her in the name of the priest, offered a prayer before death, and sought a moment of peace for her soul. But since the curse weakened, Leticia rarely reincarnated, and Lingge was no longer a priest at Tianxin Church, and he lost this habit unknowingly.

Basically, when the two of them communicated the most, it was either Leticia taking the initiative to find fault and bicker with him, or she was absent-minded in class, and the young man, as a teacher, criticized her seriously. This could hardly be considered a spiritual exchange, let alone a so-called in-depth understanding.

However, as the Countess said, Leticia is a very proud person, this kind of pride runs through the soul, it will not be worn away by the passage of time, nor will it pass away with the reincarnation of life. If she identifies a person, she will identify everything about him and will never waver.

And Lingge once drank her blood.

Even the little bat took the initiative to let him drink it. Although she repeatedly insisted that it was for the sake of Metine and she didn't want to see her sad, this reason was obviously a bit clumsy, not to mention that in the end she still achieved her goal in a very tough and embarrassing way. If she didn't really agree, would such a proud little bat take the initiative to do such a thing? Would he be willing to do this? Ling Ge had never thought of that answer, but the Countess had already seen through it.

Of course, she only knew that Leticia gave her blood to Lingge, but she didn't know how she gave it, and the little bat certainly didn't tell her. If she knew, I'm afraid she wouldn't be so calm today.

Linger sincerely hoped that she would never know.

"No matter what, I won't lie to you, and I won't do anything to make Leticia sad." The Countess knew that Ling'er's attitude had begun to waver, so she smiled slightly and said, "If you don't believe it, why don't you go and ask the child yourself? I know she would never lie about this, even if that person is you."

Even if that person is me...what does this mean? The young man felt complicated, but he still agreed.

He stood up and said goodbye, planning to go find Leticia and ask for her opinion. The countess watched him leave until his back disappeared at the end of the shade of the sycamore tree, then she picked up the teacup again, took a sip, and then leaned back in her chair leisurely, continuing to appreciate her favorite world classics, seemingly not worried at all whether there would be any communication problems between the two.

It's all based on understanding.

She understood Lingge and her own granddaughter.

So, there is nothing to worry about.

……

But Lingge had a bad start. He didn't even know where Leticia was. Logically, besides the Countess, Metien and Shemi were the most likely to know her whereabouts. Usually, the three little girls were inseparable, and their relationship was so good that they even stayed together when bathing and sleeping. But now, Metien and Shemi didn't know where their little friend was. Shemi said that when she rushed to the herb garden, she saw Leticia running to the hotel in a hurry. The bartender behind the counter also confirmed this, but Metien, who was packing her belongings on the second floor of the hotel, said that she didn't see her. At the suggestion of the two, Lingge ran to the place where the three little girls often played and looked for her again, but still couldn't find her.

Linger looked for the little bat in the forest, by the stream, in the primrose field, in the alchemy workshop, and even in the school that Leticia hated the most and was unlikely to appear. However, the little bat seemed to have disappeared from this world without leaving any clues. If the fairies living in the forest had not chattered that they had seen her, Linger would have almost asked the great detective Miss Gloria for help. However, the fairies' statements were inconsistent. One moment they said she went east, and the next moment they said she went west. Linger was very troubled and didn't know which statement to believe.

Finally, a possibility occurred to him.

There is another place on Yunjingkong Island that he has not found yet.

A few minutes later, the young man stood in front of the door of Tianxin Church and gently pushed it open.

Unlike the past, the Tianxin Church today is particularly quiet, perhaps because Metien and Sister Livia are not here, and Mitch, Kadora and other young soldiers have not visited for a while. The unpopular game consoles are like silent guardians, quietly staying in the corner, and the dark screens are completely devoid of the lively scenes of the past. They may not know that as the boys and girls who once laughed here step into the battlefield, and the owner of the church decides to practice the teachings of the goddess and pursue a beautiful and hopeful future, they will usher in a long period of silence. No one will start them anymore, and from the old pixel graphics and simple gameplay stories, they will get the most primitive and purest sense of happiness since the birth of life.

However, this is their fate, and it is also a familiar journey. Just like in the past, they were collected by the goddess using various methods, and since then they have been staying in the museum of the Game Command Company, quietly covered with dust under the protection of the glass display cabinets. The happiness brought by the game is always temporary. Humans cannot be children forever. When they grow up, they realize that it is time for them to leave.

But when the young man stepped into the church, he still heard those innocent laughters in the corners, on the beams, behind the black screens of the game consoles, and even on the glass windows painted with colorful patterns, as if the childhood of mankind was left here, remembering or commemorating something. He was in a trance for a while, and came back to his senses after a long while. He slowly shook his head, drove these irrelevant thoughts out of his mind, and looked into the deepest part of the chapel.

There was a petite figure sitting on the oak bench in the front row, looking up, silently staring at the statue of the goddess. Her short white hair seemed to be covered with a warm golden luster under the sunlight that penetrated the window. There were tiny dust particles dancing in the air, like deep-sea plankton, drifting around her.

Ling Ge breathed a sigh of relief, finally found it. But why did she go to such a place alone?
Full of doubts, the young man walked towards Leticia. He did not deliberately lower his footsteps, but the little bat still stared blankly at the statue of the goddess, as if he wanted to see some kind of emotion he expected from those kind and compassionate eyes, so he was indifferent to Lingge's arrival. In the end, it was the young man who coughed heavily several times beside her that woke her up from her trance.

"Lin, Lingge!?"

Her reaction was just as the young man expected. She was so frightened that she almost flew off the chair. She stammered, "When did you come here? Why didn't you tell me? Did you do this on purpose to scare me?"

What a despicable guy!
She gritted her teeth, as always caught up in her deep prejudice against young people.

Ling Ge was speechless: "I have reminded you several times, but you just didn't hear it."

"Really?" Leticia was still suspicious: "Then can't you shout louder? I can hear you if you shout louder, why are you so scary?"

If I shout too loudly and wake you up, won't you blame me for being scary?

Lingge doesn't think so.

"Forget it." Leticia magnanimously forgave his disrespect: "I'm in a bad mood today, so I won't bother with you."

You don't care about me because you're in a bad mood? What kind of excuse is that? Are you always fussing with me because you're in a good mood? Ling Ge suddenly felt that he was too lenient with Leticia. At least he didn't assign her so much homework. This is not okay. He must correct it in the future.

"I always feel like you're planning something shameless."

Leticia looked at Linge with a strange look. She had to admit that her intuition was sometimes very sharp, although not always in serious situations.

"No." Lingge denied it calmly and also sat down on the bench, keeping a cautious distance between himself and the little bat to avoid being picked on by her.

"Of course there is." Leticia sneered: "But I'm in a bad mood today, so I won't bother with you."

"Oh." Ling Ge thought for a moment and said, "Thank you?"

"You're welcome... I don't think so!" The little bat stared at him intently, his wide red eyes filled with anger and dissatisfaction, and he emphasized word by word: "I said, I'm in a bad mood today!"

"I know, you've said that several times."

"You've heard it several times."

"so?"

"So we shouldn't do something?" The little bat was so angry that his teeth itched: "Don't play dumb, you idiot, be careful or I'll bite you!"

After saying this, she opened her mouth demonstratively, revealing two sharp fangs that flashed with a cold light.

"Then you can just tell me directly, don't play dumb with me." Ling Ge was indifferent to this threat: "If you don't tell me, how would I know? Also, biting people is not something a good child should do. Be careful or I'll tell Miss Nevill."

Leticia's expression froze. She was afraid of the name, and then she felt an emotion of disbelief: I threatened you, and it would have been fine if you didn't admit defeat, but you actually threatened me in return. How dare you, Lingge?
Is it because I am too nice to you that you misunderstood something and thought I am easy to bully?
Yes, I am really afraid of my grandmother, but do you think you are the only one who has found my weakness, Lingge? Little did you know that your weakness is even more obvious!
The little bat smiled wickedly, then deliberately stuck out his tongue and licked his lips, as if recalling something funny that happened a long time ago - or not long ago.

"You're right, Lingge. I really shouldn't threaten you in such a brutal and violent way."

The little vampire said hypocritically, but this attitude made the young man feel uneasy. Sure enough, the next second, she showed her sinister fangs: "Since you don't like being bitten by me, how about a kiss on the mouth? Humph, just like last time. But don't be afraid, I have rinsed my mouth well this time. Then, I will tell everyone on Yunjingkong Island, including grandma, Xiaoxia, and even Xiaoyang and Xiaoyang, that it was you who forced a kiss on me! You shameless pervert, you forced a kiss on a little girl! Wahahahaha!!!"

When she was happy, she put her hands on her hips and laughed loudly, her attitude was extremely arrogant. Although they had not communicated in advance, she and Miss Bai Ye actually reached a consensus. In a sense, these two people might be very similar? It's just that the former was slanderous, and the latter... probably also slanderous.

Lingge couldn't help but remain silent.

Even though it's slander, but... people's words are scary.

After calm analysis, careful thinking, and weighing the pros and cons, he made the most difficult choice in his life.

"Let's have a good chat." The young man said gently, "Why are you in a bad mood, Leticia?"

Give me some meow