Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1342 Should we be careful?

This is the Fairy's Deep Sleep Inn, a place blessed by the gods, lingering outside of time and fate, unrestrained, yet never approaching.

In the deep, unseen tides, beneath the umbrella-shaped canopy of a sycamore tree, a small lamb with snow-white fur and cloud-like softness was anxiously pawing at the roots of the tree. It wasn't trying to dig out seeds or insects; it was simply venting its frustration. For some reason, it had a bad feeling, but couldn't quite place it.

If only I could know the Moria people's astrology like my master.

Unfortunately, when the old wizard Moria was teaching Saint Charlotte how to glimpse the trajectory of fate from the stars, it was only interested in playing and did not realize that the dirty crystal ball contained a secret that the world had been searching for in vain.

Now, when you look up, you can only see the three-colored canopy of the sycamore tree, like flames burning in three colors, with the streaks of stars hidden within, as ethereal as jellyfish in the deep sea, drifting without a trace.

If there's a next time, I definitely won't be lazy.

The little lamb stared blankly at the withered leaves falling from the branches, thinking, "Alas, there is no other old wizard like Moria in this world..."

Suddenly, it whirled around, staring intently in the direction its master had left. Its clear, obsidian-like eyes were filled with unprecedented terror and anxiety. An invisible needle pierced its heart, and an indescribable feeling of weightlessness enveloped its entire body, making the lamb feel as if it were plummeting into an endless abyss. Darkness surrounded it, with only occasional glimpses of light that quickly vanished. Its simple, innocent mind couldn't yet grasp the concept of "loss," yet it had already instinctively learned the definition of "leaving."

Leaving means never coming back.

Just like when it was first born, too weak and neglected by its original owner, who believed it would die before being nursed, the mother, unable to bear the cruelty of fate upon her young child, sought help from a blue-haired girl who happened to be passing by. Her plaintive and sorrowful voice contained a mother's last hope and plea. Of course, the mother knew the girl wasn't from the village, knew she came from and was going to a very far place, even knew she was hated and called a witch… but what did any of that matter?

Living beings are not afraid of fate; they simply want to survive.

A girl known as the "witch" bought a lamb from a farmer for ten apples. She fed it with apple tree sap and cared for it diligently for three days and three nights. Miraculously, the lamb survived and began following its new owner on a wondrous and incredible journey. But from that day on, neither it nor its owner ever returned to the village, the apple orchard, or to its mother.

Therefore, the little lamb, who is indifferent to everything in the world, is less ignorant and more aloof. Among so many complex emotions and situations, it only knows the meaning of "leaving".

It felt scared...and helpless.

More helpless than when they were first born but couldn't open their eyes, couldn't open their mouths to drink milk, and couldn't feel their limbs when they wanted to stand up... even more helpless than in those times.

Then it let out a short, sharp cry.

The cry was so shrill and painful, a stark contrast to its usual liveliness and gentleness, that it startled the uneasy guests in the inn. They rushed out to see what was happening, only to witness the lamb break free of its leash and run frantically towards the edge of the Cloud Whale Sky Island. Ovira was the first to react; she cried out in alarm and worry, "Lamb? Where are you going? Stop!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Leticia rushed forward. The little girl spread her bat wings, swooped through the air, and landed in front of the lamb. Then, she opened her arms and silently embraced it. The lamb was still struggling and wriggling, but Leticia held it very tightly, as if if she let go, the lamb would disappear in the blink of an eye, like morning dew.

"Okay, okay... calm down, little lamb, calm down..."

Ovira's whisper had a soothing magic. Her slender fingers gently stroked the lamb's fluff, which was slightly ruffled with fear, trying to calm its violent trembling. "What's wrong? Did you have a nightmare? Don't be afraid, I'm here... Everyone's here..."

However, such words could not reassure it. The lamb continued to kick restlessly in Leticia's arms, emitting intermittent, mournful whimpers. For what good was it if the most important person in its life was about to leave and never return? What good was having everyone else by its side if the most important person in its life was about to leave and never come back?
Seeing the lamb's anxious reaction, Ovira's heart sank deeper and deeper. She looked up in the direction of the lamb's desperate struggle, and a cold, sticky sense of foreboding, like a deep-sea current, silently coiled around her heart. Ling, and her sister…

The lamb struggled even more fiercely, making it difficult for Leticia to hold it. The girl pursed her lips tightly, raising her head to look at the crowd with pleading eyes. But neither Ovira's gentle words, nor Rorona's calm analysis, nor Alice's deliberately silly antics in an attempt to distract the lamb, worked. Perhaps it was because they themselves were also insecure; if they were putting on a brave face, how could they comfort others?

At this moment, the proprietress parted the crowd and walked to Leticia and the lamb. She didn't say much, but simply squatted down and placed a ripe apple in front of them.

The ripe fruit, vibrant in color and glossy, like flawless glass, exuded a captivating fragrance that drifted lightly on the breeze, instantly easing the lamb's struggling movements. A bewildered expression appeared on its face, as if in this familiar scent, it recalled something from long ago: an undiscovered apple orchard, where unripe fruit always budded in spring and ripened in the height of summer. As the young lamb licked the sap of the apple trees to quench its thirst, ate the fallen fruit to satisfy its hunger, and grew day by day, a girl with blue hair always watched from the sidelines. Was her gaze then gentle, or expectant? The memory had faded, but recalling it again still stirred a tearful urge within it.

"Eat up, little lamb."

Siesta crouched down and gently stroked its head. Her voice strangely overlapped with that of the blue-haired girl from many years ago, as if confirming the truth that time never departs and that everything is always passed down. She reached out and gently stroked its trembling head: "Be good, okay?"

"Don't worry your owner."

……

Saint Charlotte looked at Linger quietly, and Linger looked at her quietly in return.

Both of them could feel that the flame of life within each other was like a candle flickering in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment. If they closed their eyes, they would even feel that there was no one around, no breath or heartbeat, only the deathly silence of the wind blowing through the grass. To put it in the most exaggerated way, perhaps even the moss in the cracks of rocks, the withered leaves falling from the treetops, or even the mayflies that live only a day, were more like being alive than they were.

This is the price. The price of changing fate is borne by both of them. One person plucked the strings of destiny, leading millions of lives and countless substances down a different path, so recklessly stirring up the vortex of fate and reversing the laws of the universe, and it is only natural that they would suffer the backlash in the end; the other person devoted their faith to the utmost, burning their soul like firewood, like the most devout believer, helping the god in their heart to fulfill their wishes, but it seems that it is also a predictable ending that they would eventually dissipate like ashes.

in case.

Sainte-Charlie couldn't help but think that if she could just die with him like this, like the sun and the moon going out together, or like ants and dust being buried together, it would seem like a good ending.

That would be too selfish.

While it's not wrong to be willful, stubborn, or selfish occasionally, Saint Charlotte has already exercised that right, and with the tacit approval of the young people, so she has no right to ask for more.

If a person is too selfish, even the gods will not stand it.

Banishing all thoughts irrelevant to the moment and the matter at hand, she spoke softly, "Ling Ge, I—"

Perhaps it was a coincidence, or perhaps some kind of tacit premonition, but as the girl spoke, the young man also spoke: "Saint Charlotte, I—"

The two stopped talking abruptly, both stunned.

After a long pause, Saint Xialia couldn't help but chuckle, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons. She knew what Ling was going to say, and she also knew that Ling must know what she was going to say, because their emotions were so intense and their souls so similar that there was no distance between their hearts. They were close to each other, and with the slightest touch, they could feel each other's warmth.

What Saint Charlotte wanted to say was: "Ringer, I hope you can live."

What Lin Ge wanted to say was: "Saint Charlotte, I hope you can live."

Even their ideas are exactly the same.

Saint Charlotte wanted to use her last bit of power to change Linger's fate, returning him to a state before he used the power of faith, so that he wouldn't die from the depletion of his faith power. But Linger wanted to burn his last bit of faith power to become a vessel for divine punishment, taking Saint Charlotte's place to bear the backlash of fate, which would naturally help the girl escape the punishment from the laws and her mission.

In theory, both methods are feasible.

In reality, however, one can only choose one of them.

Both Ling and Saint-Charlie understood long ago that fate is essentially a multiple-choice question, but its answers are not distinguished by right or wrong, good or bad, satisfaction or regret. This is because the right cannot last forever, and the wrong cannot be changed; good doesn't guarantee perpetual peace, and bad may not be forgotten; satisfaction only applies to the present, while regret lingers for the rest of one's life. Precisely because it is so contradictory, so complex, so painful and confusing, if you ever face the most important choice of your life, please don't complain about how difficult the question or how cruel the options are. The only thing you can and must do is—

Convince yourself, or convince the other person.

"Leticia drank my blood," Ling said softly, trying to convince the girl before him. "With the protection of the Eternal Kingship, I may not necessarily die."

"The backlash of the law is actually the destruction of the body, the erasure of the spirit, and the banishment of the soul. If it is a young queen, there is still a chance of reincarnation, but if it is just a mortal, losing the body, losing the spirit, and even the soul is lost in eternal silence, how can it be resurrected?" Saint Xialia softly denied Ling's statement. She also wanted to persuade the young man in front of her: "You should live, because everyone still needs you, Ling."

“They need you too.” Lin Ge remained unmoved.

“They need me too, but they need you even more.” Saint Charlotte: “Losing me will make them sad, they will cry, they will be in pain, but these are things that can be overcome and will eventually become just a part of their memories; but if they lose you, they will be lost and unable to find their way home. Ling, do you think it is more painful to be temporarily sad, or to be lost and unable to accept it?”

Linge was speechless.

Saint Charles looked at the young man, who was trying to appear strong, with pity, knowing that his heart was actually wavering. He had always been a man who was easily swayed, but this was not because of weakness. On the contrary, it was because he deeply loved everyone in this world, yet he had to pretend to be indifferent, which made him always caught in the gap between ideals and loneliness, suffering terribly.

This won't happen again.

Stop doing this.

Before the young man could say anything more, the girl gently pressed her fingers to his lips. The touch was cool, yet carried an undeniable tenderness.

“Without you,” she finally felt a pang of sadness, but more so a deep longing, as she mentioned those familiar names: “Who will tell Medion how to be a proper adult? Who can play games with Alice and bring a smile back to her face? Who will stay up all night with Ovira, writing her fairy tale that will never end? When Ieta feels lonely, in whose arms will she snuggle and fall asleep? When Rorona feels bored, whose attention will she get with her pranks? Leticia is a stubborn child, but she depends on you no less than she depends on her grandmother; White Night and Gloria are twins who care for each other but also keep secrets from each other, only you can get them to open up and face their true selves; and Shino, I know she is actually the most vulnerable of them all, please take good care of her, care for her, and don't make her sad; and Siesta, Celia, Shemi, Little Lamb, Miss Neville, Sister Livia, everyone on Cloud Whale Sky Island…”

"For their sake, you must live on, Ling."

Give me some cats