Alice in the Land of Steam

Is Chapter 1362 no longer there?

The enemy on the screen exuded power and majesty, assuming a stance ready to unleash some formidable skill. The screen flickered violently, casting a dangerous dark red hue over the entire scene. In contrast, the tiny, almost insignificant game character remained oblivious to the danger, continuing to roll and crawl around at its feet, frantically trimming its nails with its holy sword. Only when the enemy's attack was about to finish did it sense the impending danger and hastily retreat.

But it was too late. The enemy, whose leg had been tortured for so long, roared, unleashing a long-awaited ultimate skill, its raging fury instantly covering half the screen and depleting the game character's health bar. The screen dimmed, gradually freezing on the figure of the one who had failed so miserably…

Alice put down the controller and looked up to meet Ling Ge's complicated gaze. The two looked at each other, not knowing what to say for a moment.

It was a near miss, but the boss still had more than half its health bar left. The young man couldn't understand what the genius player was greedily pursuing. She'd been like this for a long time: if she could get a good hit, she wouldn't back down; if she could tank the damage, she wouldn't dodge. To put it nicely, it's brave; to put it bluntly, isn't it just recklessness?
Alice's gaming skills aren't actually that bad; her reaction time and reaction speed are far beyond what most people possess. Perhaps it's because, as a young princess, her senses and intuition are naturally sharper. However, skill and technique are two different things. If Alice doesn't get rid of her bad habit of greedily taking hits, she won't improve at all, not even after playing hundreds of times, let alone once or twice.

Of course, it's also possible that she didn't think it was a serious problem; otherwise, she would have changed it while still living on Earth. Or perhaps, back then, she was alone, with no one to play with her or point out the problem, so naturally she didn't know how to improve it, and over time it became like this?
So, as a friend, shouldn't I offer some well-intentioned advice?
As Ling hesitated, Alice urged him, "Stop daydreaming, Ling, it's your turn to play."

"Oh."

The young man dismissed the thought, picked up the controller, and started a new game. The controller's weight felt familiar yet slightly strange; the moment his fingertips touched the buttons, he could almost feel the lingering warmth from the intense gameplay of the previous round. But whether it was because he was still thinking about what had just happened, or because he hadn't played games in a while and his skills were a bit rusty, he quickly lost. Coincidentally, he was defeated by the very same boss who had just defeated the genius player.

Unlike Alice, he didn't die from greed, but from overconfidence. Younger players tend to be more conservative, always seeking a safe position before unleashing their attacks. Even when faced with challenges that could be overcome with skillful maneuvering, they prefer tried-and-tested methods, albeit slower. This style is naturally better suited for clearing levels when high concentration is maintained, but any distraction leads to mistakes and ultimately, defeat.

Ling was killed by the BOSS's unavoidable full-screen skill because he failed to reduce the BOSS's health to a certain level within the time limit to meet the conditions for entering the second phase.

Watching the young man's character fall to the ground unwillingly, the two looked at each other for a while. This time, without Ling Ge's prompting, Alice silently picked up the controller and took over the game.

It's the same level, the same boss, and the same player...

But for some reason, today, the two of them took turns fighting, battling relentlessly, using all their skills, only to fall to this guy in the end. From noon to afternoon, and from afternoon to dusk, the light streaming into the room silently followed the western horizon, filtering through the gaps in the curtains and casting long shadows on the floor, illuminating two increasingly silent faces.

After what seemed like the umpteenth death, Alice stopped relinquishing control of the game to Ling. Instead, with a dark expression, she started a new game, only to quickly lose again and restart. This went on and on, the oppressive atmosphere emanating from her growing increasingly heavy, like a hot air balloon overfilled with gas, threatening to explode at any moment. Finally, Ling simply put down the controller and silently sat beside her, watching her perform: repeatedly playing the same levels, repeatedly fighting the same boss, and repeatedly dying in different places…

The prodigy gamer's pounding on the controller became increasingly violent, the sounds growing louder and louder, less like she was playing a game and more like she was venting her anger. Worried that she might continue playing and take her frustration out on him, the young man quickly spoke up to distract her: "Alice, you seem unhappy?"

"what?"

Upon hearing his question, the girl's hand, which was moving the joystick, paused, and the character on the screen stiffened slightly. Although it was only for a moment, it still had serious consequences; she couldn't escape the BOSS's attack range, and her already low health bar was instantly depleted.

Lin Ge: "..."

Okay, no need to worry now. With a genius player's personality, he'll definitely take the blame himself.

Although it was indeed his responsibility.

The young man was prepared to be scolded, but Alice's reaction was unexpectedly calm. She neither blamed him nor intended to start a new game. Instead, she left the game screen on the moment her character died, turned around and raised an eyebrow at Ling Ge: "Is it obvious?"

This indirectly acknowledges the question raised earlier.

“It’s obvious,” Ringer said. “I think even if it wasn’t me, anyone else could tell.”

"That's it..."

Alice seemed thoughtful, then looked away, shrugged indifferently, and said casually, "I am a little unhappy, probably because I've been stuck on this level for too long. I used to be able to beat it so easily, why is it so difficult today..."

She stared at the screen, muttering to herself. After listening for a while, Lin Ge realized she was complaining that the boss's skills were too hard to dodge and dealt high damage, suspecting that the data had been secretly tampered with... But you clearly made the game, who else could do or would do such a thing besides you?
The young man thought for a moment and said, "I think it's different." The twilight light slanted further, casting long shadows on everything in the room, as if time itself had slowed down and thickened. In the shadows, Alice's mutterings faded away, seemingly touched by the words, but she didn't turn to look at the young man.

Lin Ge didn't seem to care and continued, "If it were the old you, constantly losing at games would indeed make you very unhappy, but that feeling wasn't directed at the game or anyone in particular. It was more of a competitive spirit, a determination to prove yourself and show everyone your strength. That was probably the mindset. But today is different. You didn't feel any joy while playing the game. Constantly repeating the challenge wasn't so much about being unwilling to give up, but rather about numbing yourself. More importantly, Alice—"

After a slight hesitation, Lin Ge said, "From the very beginning, from the moment you suddenly asked me to play games, I felt that you seemed to be in a bad mood today. It wasn't because you kept losing at games that you became like this, right?"

After he finished speaking, he stared intently at Alice, waiting for a clear answer rather than a perfunctory one.

Alice didn't intend to brush him off; instead, she thought about it seriously for a moment before nodding gently: "Perhaps, it's just as you said, which is why I came to play games with you. When you're in a good mood, you play games because it makes you feel even better; and when you're in a bad mood, you play games too, because it makes you feel better."

She held up the game controller, gesturing to the young man, but in truth, she had long forgotten those words. If Ovira hadn't brought them up again that morning to persuade her, she probably wouldn't have remembered them for a long time. That would have been a long time later, long enough for Alice to finally rediscover the joy of games…

“But you don’t seem happy at all.” Lin Ge stared at her intently, the black and white game screen reflecting the afterglow of dusk, a crimson light that was almost blinding. “Is this what you really think, Alice?”

The prodigy gamer remained silent, her fingers unconsciously tracing the edge of the controller, the cool metallic texture tingling against her fingertips. Her profile was obscured by the dim light of dusk streaming into the room, making her expression unreadable. Was she disappointed? Or was she trying to escape? But Lin Ge had never intended to force an answer; he was merely offering a hint. Therefore, seeing her lack of response, he didn't press further but instead spoke, intending to change the subject.

"And what about you?" Alice asked abruptly.

Lin Ge paused slightly, seemingly not having heard clearly: "What?"

“I asked, ‘And what about you?’ Alice said, enunciating each word clearly, ‘You’re not in a good mood either, are you, Ling? Why are you pretending you’re fine?’

"When did I..."

"When? Hasn't it always been like this?" Alice interrupted the young man's explanation forcefully, displaying such an aggressive attitude for the first time. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was like a sharp knife, gently slicing through the heavy atmosphere in the room: "You say I'm different from before, that I used to play games this way and that way, and now I play games this way and that way. You think you can conclude that I'm in a bad mood, sad, heartbroken, or confused just by comparing the two? But aren't you the same way? Or do you think that as long as you imitate your past self, no one will notice? Your past self cared about everyone, so you care about everyone now, even though you know you're the one who needs care the most; your past self was always calm no matter what happened, so you try to be calm now, even though you know..." So-called calmness is merely suppressing the impulses of emotion within; the past self was willing to play games with Alice, so the present self is willing to play games with Alice, even if you don't feel any enjoyment in the process… Even if doing these things isn't your own intention, it doesn't matter, as long as you remain the same. The world and humanity are fixed, unchanging; the past Ling is the present Ling is the same, the two are seamlessly integrated and inseparable. Therefore, you could naturally say that neither the past nor the present Ling has ever been sad, distressed, or confused about anything. Is this the solution you came up with, or is it just instinct?

Alice rarely, if ever, spoke so vehemently, but for some reason, today she felt an urge to pour out all the things she had been holding back. Perhaps the successive deaths of Themis and Saint Charlotte in the Celestial Realm had deeply affected her; perhaps Ling's self-righteous cover-up made her feel distrusted; or perhaps these emotions had been present ever since she learned the truth about the two worlds and the Witches' Society in the Celestial Sanctuary, only to erupt today, with the young woman unfortunately becoming the first outlet…

But that's what Alice wanted to say anyway, because she had discovered that the problem was more serious than Ovira had described.

Lin Ge leaned back slightly, looking at the genius player with surprise as she suddenly became agitated. For a moment, he didn't know what to say to comfort her. As for Alice's words, the young man didn't really care. On one hand, he thought it was just a momentary outburst from the genius player; on the other hand, he never considered himself the kind of person Alice described, forcing himself, pretending, and concealing his true feelings just to avoid worrying his companions…

See, that's where the problem lies.

Alice saw right through the young man's thoughts and sighed inwardly. Everyone knew he was putting on a brave front, even the little lamb probably knew, but he himself didn't see it that way. He had always lacked awareness of this; his past personality had been rather cold, and he didn't care about anything except himself and his sister, so everyone thought that was normal. But with this journey, he seemed to be gradually rediscovering the emotions he had as a mortal: sadness, guilt, helplessness, fear, and the tears he shed in his most painful moments…

But things that have been lost for a long time and are suddenly found now must have an adjustment period, right?

Young people are in this period of adjustment.

He became a mortal for the first time, but he had not yet learned how to face his own emotions, so he was caught in the gap of loneliness and confusion, suffering terribly.

The only person who taught him how to "love" is no longer here.

Give me some cats