Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1278 Don’t you know how to face it?
The wreckage of the warship gradually sank to the bottom of the river with the whirlpool. Countless blurred corpses floated in the red water. The fish were extremely active, and the ripples they created when they were feeding were like bullets still sweeping the river surface, killing even the innocent souls. The rusted gun barrel was inserted diagonally into the mud on the shore, and half of the broken military flag was still stuck at the muzzle. The emblem of the Crusader Army on the flag looked a little pale under the sunlight.

Shino rode his beloved horse, stepped on the blood-stained reeds on the shore, and watched the scene silently, wondering what he was thinking. The Ice Heart Armor that had been passed down from generation to generation by the Gustaf family was covered with heavy blood stains. The pungent smell of blood made the flies that were used to eating carrion dare not approach, but only buzzed farther away, making people irritated. Not a drop of blood belonged to innocent people. When those soldiers set foot on this place, their identities changed from soldiers defending their country to colonists invading other countries, and they should have anticipated their own fate.

But this does not mean that the young knight can face all this calmly. No matter what, killing is always uncomfortable. Only the most crazy and cruel people can get pleasure from killing, while under normal circumstances, there is only endless emptiness. Especially Xino suddenly remembered her father, the man who was called a paranoid who also boarded a ship to go overseas and sought a way to deviate from the ancestral teachings in a foreign country. Although he could not bear the condemnation of his conscience in the end and fled back to his hometown in embarrassment, the pain in his heart could never be reconciled.

When he charged towards the windmill on the plain with a self-destructive mentality, the chain called atonement was still wrapped around the knight's spear blade until his death. He decided to die with the chain instead of breaking free from it.

So, as I stand here today, helping the people of the Gray Hills to fight against the invaders and liberate their hometown, can it be considered that I have atonemented for some of my father's sins?
In the dark, fate will always make you return all that you owe.

The young knight stood there in silence for a long time until she was awakened by the cries of crows. She saw a dark mass of crows circling in the sky, but they were reluctant to land, as if they were afraid of something, such as the terrifying murderous and bloody smell on the young girl. They gathered like a tide, gradually covering the entire sky, and bringing the river basin into the night ahead of time. Looking at this scene from afar, the rural residents would be surprised, because in their memory, there have never been so many crows in this area, as if they were invited by the god of death to come here from afar to enjoy an endless feast.

"Whirl!"

Brandi snorted, she seemed a little impatient. Whether it was the tragic battlefield in front of her or the flocks of crows in the sky, it made this divine horse from the snowy mountains feel uncomfortable from the bottom of her heart. She urged her master that since the battle was over, it would be better to go home early, where there was a warm and comfortable stable, endless grass, and a group of companions who always cared about her.

Only here is the knight's home.

Going home? I don't know what she remembered, but Xino felt a little heavy, but more relieved. The corners of the girl's mouth hidden under the mask slowly drew a curve. She gently pulled the reins, turned Brandy around, and said softly: "Well, let's go back."

The knight and her beloved horse set out on the journey home. Behind them, a flock of crows covered the sky as if they had received a command and began to fall one after another. The black tide submerged the red river, and everything soon returned to calm.

……

The war was over, but the battle for medical staff had just begun. The makeshift field hospital was filled with the groans of the wounded and the sad sobs. The canvas overhead rustled in the hot wind at noon, and the pale sunlight shone through the holes in the roof, onto the rows of stretchers, like a pale shroud covering the bodies with broken limbs. The smell of disinfectant alcohol mixed with the smell of rotten meat condensed in the air, and even breathing became sticky and heavy. A pair of bloodstained hands were threading the needle and sewing up the abdominal cavities torn by shrapnel. It was even steadier than the hands of the old women in the Western Continent who operated sewing machines all day long, but the owner's teeth were clenched tightly, as if trying to restrain the urge to tremble.

The hemostatic cotton piled up in the corner had formed a small mountain, and the red gauze was still being thrown down from the crude operating table. The nurses who volunteered to help were coming and going in and out of the hospital, always bringing in new wounded and taking out large basins of blood, broken limbs, or even a body. After only a few rounds, someone was so nauseated that he covered his mouth and began to retch. Sister Livia did not blame them because she knew they had behaved well enough. Before they came here, they were just the children of barbers, butchers, tailors, or hunters. Although they were more accustomed to such bloody scenes than ordinary people, there was a limit to their ability.

There were three makeshift field hospitals like this. Including Metien, there were only eight people with real professional medical knowledge. The rest were either self-taught on the battlefield and only mastered simple hemostasis and bandaging techniques, or like these nurses, they had a certain adaptability to bloody scenes, or had some knowledge in suturing, excision and amputation.

For example, the butcher's son knows how to use a meat cleaver to chop off rotten limbs - although they are human, not pigs or any other animals; the tailor's daughter knows how to thread a needle to repair damaged parts - although the feel of cloth and human skin is completely different; as for hunters, it goes without saying that they can tell at a glance which wounds are minor and which are fatal after learning from their surroundings - perhaps in the past, this was a skill to be proud of, but now it only proves from the side that there is actually no difference between humans on the battlefield and prey on the hunting ground. They are all waiting for death in vain.

These few hundred people were responsible for treating tens of thousands of soldiers on the battlefield. However, even this level of medical system was still considered professional in the East Continent. Generally speaking, only regular soldiers could enjoy such treatment. Compared with the other continent across the sea, the medical system in this land was too backward. The number of soldiers who died due to improper treatment after the war actually far exceeded those who died on the battlefield.

War brings change. It is said that General Franshande was inspired by this battle and is considering advising the old king to learn from the advanced knowledge of the Western Continent to build a battlefield medical system for the Kingdom of Noah. This seems to be a good thing, but considering that it was born in a cruel war and will be used on the battlefield first in the future, it is somewhat ironic. It seems that most of the inventions of mortals are just to hurt others more efficiently.

Outside the field hospital, on a small mound, Mitch, whose face and temperament had become much more resolute, wiped the weapon in his hand silently. The magic sword had been damaged in a series of battles, but he later seized a new one. Compared with the faster and more efficient magic gun, the boy for some reason preferred this cold weapon that was too backward in the eyes of the colonists, perhaps because he was inadvertently imitating the hero's fighting style.

In front of him, there were several stretchers lined up, but the people lying on them were covered with a layer of white cloth, and they were no longer breathing. Kadora held a handkerchief, half-knelt in front of the stretchers, gently lifted the white cloth, and carefully wiped the blood and stains off the faces of the bodies. She did this not out of sympathy or sadness, but simply hoped that her companions could die with dignity.

The smell of sour bean soup wafted from the field stove, mixed with the stench of corpses and the pungent smell of blood evaporated by sunlight, making people want to vomit and even harder to swallow. Kyle held a half bowl of bean soup in his hand, watching the two-colored beans sink and float in the sticky soup, his face uncertain, and no one knew what he was thinking. When another corpse covered with a white cloth was carried out of the hospital, he finally couldn't bear it anymore, put down the bowl, stood up, and walked towards the hospital entrance.

"Where are you going, Kyle?" Mitch asked without raising his head, as if he had anticipated his move.

Kyle's steps paused for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal. There was no special emotion in his tone: "Go find Miss Metien."

"What are you looking for her for?"

"Say a few words." "She is very busy now. If it is just such an insignificant matter, let's talk about it later..."

"It's not insignificant at all!" Kyle seemed to be irritated by his indifferent attitude. He turned his head and glared at Mitch angrily, saying word by word: "It's very important to me!"

Mitch finally turned his attention away from his weapon. He raised his head and glanced at Kyle, indifferent: "So what? Do you want to run over and question her, why didn't you save Maurice first? Why did you give up Enrique? Why did you say they were hopeless when they were still alive? If you just want to question these, I advise you not to go. We all know that Medien just made the right choice. She can't save everyone. It is shameless to vent your anger on someone who tried her best to help us, Kyle..."

“I never thought of that!!!”

Kyle shouted angrily, and his voice made Kadora, who was wiping the blood off the corpse, tremble. Despite this, she still had no intention of turning back to stop the fight, but just silently continued with what she was doing. The same was true for the others, their eyes showed worry and uneasiness, but no one approached.

"Of course I know Miss Metien has tried her best, so I never blame her!"

Kyle grabbed Mitch's collar and forced him to look at him. The anger in his eyes seemed to be about to overflow. He gritted his teeth and said, "So, I just want to go over and tell her that I understand your actions and I am grateful for everything you have done for us. Although the deaths of Maurice and Enrique are sad, please don't take it to heart and don't feel guilty for us... Is this wrong!? You don't understand anything, Mitch——"

"You are the one who really doesn't understand, Kyle." Mitch looked at him with pity. "You really do blame her a little bit, don't you? Otherwise, why would you go over and say these things to her? If you really understand what Metien said, the best thing to do now is to stay here honestly, don't disturb her, and don't talk to her."

"She's already very tired."

She is so tired that she can no longer bear any more blow. Every word you say, even if you think it is out of kindness, understanding, and tolerance, only creates more pressure on her.

This principle is not difficult to understand.

Mitch's knuckles rubbed against the hilt of the sword, making a slight rustling sound. Kyle's hand holding his collar was still shaking, and his lips were trembling, pale and bloodless. Suddenly, the sound of a stretcher falling came from not far away, mixed with the exclamation of a nurse - a seriously injured person accidentally fell during the transfer, and subconsciously squeezed out a painful groan from his throat.

Looking at the nurse's trembling hands as she tried to lift the stretcher, one could imagine how much she had to go through to not even have the strength to lift the stretcher. Mitch pushed Kyle's hand away and rushed over to help with the other companions. The latter hesitated for a moment and followed him. Together, they lifted the seriously injured man back onto the stretcher and took him to an empty bed in the hospital instead of the nurse.

In the busy field hospital, they did not see Metien, but they saw Sister Livia, who told them that Metien would be very busy these days and would not have dinner with them. Also, they would probably break the promise to go shopping with Kadora last time, so they asked them to apologize to her and she would make it up to her next time.

Mitch agreed, and Kyle was silent for a long time. They left the hospital and returned to the small hill. After this little episode, both of them seemed to have calmed down a lot. Kyle sat under a dead tree, looked up at the gray sky, and suddenly said "I'm sorry" in a very low voice.

"Nothing." Mitch picked up his weapon again and continued to wipe it, as if no amount of maintenance was enough, or maybe this was just a way for him to pass the time: "Everyone goes through this stage."

"Have you had that, too?"

"Yeah." Mitch did not deny his immature self in the past. Because of this, he seemed much more mature.

Kyle felt a little better. He murmured, "Actually, I really don't blame Miss Metien. I just feel a little uncomfortable, and a little..."

"Regret it?" Mitch asked.

"No, I have never regretted my decision."

Kyle was very resolute on this point, and then he smiled bitterly: "But I don't know how to face Teacher Ling."

Give me some meow