Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1403 Is that an extra price?

The battle is over.

Pereike stood alone atop the ruins of the Imperial fortress, her feet resting on collapsed walls and charred steel. The wind blew in through the gaps, tossing a few stray strands of hair across her forehead, carrying with it the pungent stench of gunpowder and scorched earth. The twilight light slanted across the sky, bathing the battlefield in two starkly contrasting colors: the heavens a fiery orange-red, so intense it seemed to ignite the clouds; while the earth sank into a deep, almost black, blue hue, like congealed blood, or a bottomless abyss.

The Taikong stood silently behind, amidst the ruins, its massive, humanoid fuselage casting a long, distorted shadow against the sky. The setting sun burned the clouds with its last rays, turning the steel behemoth a dark red, like a statue of a god just pulled from a furnace, or a suffering victim nailed between heaven and earth.

The beginning of a war is a long process, from pre-war mobilization, individual resolve, and troop deployment to strategic planning, logistical operations, and even the distribution of spoils; nothing is ever easily accomplished. Yet, it can end in a very short time. Sometimes, the breaking of a flag, the fall of a fortress, or the death of a general is enough to shatter all will to resist, turning those who wore ferocious faces a moment ago into prisoners of guns and flames in an instant.

Therefore, although preparations for this war had begun long ago, it only lasted for a single day. When the Thai Air Force joined the battle, everything was over.

With the Mikkelsen Corridor now open and no obstacles ahead, the Axis armies will advance unimpeded, marching into the ancient land of Atoliga to plunder the precious treasures buried beneath its surface. Politicians, nobles, and the general public, spurred by the news of victory, will also wave their national bonds and securities to support their governments in continuing to send troops and supplies to their increasingly depleted overseas colonies. Even the Imperials may be hoping for defeat in this war, for although they have lost many, they are destined to gain even more.

Pereira had single-handedly pushed the already mired battle forward a small step, and the resulting chain reaction would be immeasurable. But she had no time to worry about that, because the girl's heart was filled with weariness, loneliness, fear, and a certain emotion called anxiety.

She desperately wanted to find those people, desperately wanted to fight them, desperately wanted to fulfill her mission, regardless of the final outcome, whether it was good or bad, life or death. This was the opposite of her previous behavior of silently observing and remaining indifferent in her teacher's laboratory, but perhaps it was the experience of those days that made her realize that if she didn't act sooner, she would be the one who would be crushed first.

How can we define time?
The man named Metatron is long gone...

The wind swept across the ruins, swirling up ashes and ruffling the girl's bangs. She paid no heed, her gaze sweeping across the distant, mottled horizon. Between the stark contrasts of color, the ruins were outlined like the remains of a colossal beast. Broken steel beams pierced the concrete, twisted at bizarre angles, reflecting the dying brilliance of the sky—blindingly bright, yet utterly cold. In the distance, the steel fortress, once breached, lay silently on the horizon like a giant whose entrails had been ripped out; the dark gaping hole absorbed light and swallowed all sound.

A squad of Axis soldiers marched along the edge of a charred trench. They were ragged, their faces stained with gunpowder and blood. When the leading sergeant first spotted the colossal steel statue standing amidst the ruins, he abruptly raised his arm, and the entire squad immediately halted.

All the soldiers held their breath.

They had witnessed firsthand how this mech swept across the battlefield; every step it took caused the earth to tremble, and each roar of its arm-mounted heavy cannons tore bloody gaps in the enemy ranks. Its fighting style was almost brutally efficient, devoid of any fancy maneuvers, simply crushing everything in its path with precise and unstoppable force. Command had vaguely mentioned that this was support from the cult alliance, but the cult alliance's constructed mechs deployed on the Eastern Continent should have been the naval overlord named Nidhogg; when did this magnificent humanoid machine appear?
No one knew the answer, and everyone who participated in the battle was ordered to keep quiet and not divulge any information about the machine.

Bathed in the crimson sunset, the silent presence of the Thai Air Force was all the more unsettling. A young soldier unconsciously took a half-step back, his fingers tightly gripping the tattered amulet hanging on his chest. The veteran beside him slowly removed his helmet, revealing a sweat-soaked face, his eyes filled with a mixture of awe and unspeakable fear.

They noticed a slender figure hidden in the shadow of the mech.

The girl in simple clothes formed a striking contrast with the steel behemoth—she seemed fragile, as if she could be blown away by the wind at any moment, yet she also shared an inseparable connection with the destructive mech. She tilted her head back, as if silently communicating with the Skywarp, or perhaps mourning the battlefield that had just fallen silent.

The sergeant gestured for the squad to take a detour. No one objected. They preferred to walk two extra kilometers through the wrecked battlefield rather than approach the killing machine standing silently in the setting sun, fearing its wrath would bring further sacrifices. Although a mech without a pilot couldn't function, years of fighting on this primitive and wild continent had inevitably tainted these men with a touch of superstition, making them believe that the animistic beliefs of the Eastern Continent might not be entirely unfounded.

As they quietly retreated, Pereike seemed to sense the movement in the distance. She slightly turned her head, her gaze sweeping over the scorched earth. The soldiers froze instantly, as if nailed to the spot by an invisible force. But she only glanced at it briefly before turning back, her gaze returning to the Skywarp.

The squad quickly disappeared into the shadows of the ruins, fleeing back to their nest like a startled swarm of ants.

The footsteps faded into the distance, quickly swallowed by the wind.

Pereira slowly closed her eyes. The twilight light pierced her eyelids, turning her vision blood red. She could smell the death permeating the air, hear the groans of wounded soldiers in the distance, and feel the countless souls that had perished beneath her feet. The shadow of the Titanic continued to stretch out, like a curtain of fate, separating her from this cruel world, yet imprisoning her within it forever.

She couldn't help but think that she seemed to be on the path her teacher had hoped for.

War, epidemics, famines, and everything else that mortals cannot resist are essentially about elimination and evolution.

The faint sighs gradually faded into the distance, swallowed by the wind at the edge of the battlefield.

As the last rays of the setting sun sank below the horizon, the outline of the Taikong gradually blurred in the twilight, leaving only the steel armor on its head glowing with a ghostly red light, like eyes watching over a girl in the darkness.

……

Just as the battle in the Mikkelsen Corridor came to a close—or rather, temporarily concluded—Ling and his group, far away in the Dark Cloud Abyss, arrived at the last unexplored location marked on the map: the arc-shaped corridor connecting the inner and outer areas of the Abyss. Unlike the rugged, acid-corroded rock walls outside, the stone inside the corridor possessed a meticulously polished smooth texture, seemingly not entirely natural. The air was filled with old dust and an indescribable odor; the pungent smell of sulfur and acidity from before was almost completely absent here. As their exploration deepened, the group discovered traces of man-made objects around them: spiral reliefs, ancient and bizarre in style, depicting scenes that defied description.

It is worth mentioning that wherever there are reliefs, there must have been mineral veins passing through, and there are traces of mining. However, most of them have been depleted, leaving only some remnants; the slightly intact parts seem to have grown back over the years.

Arnor, a man who had spent years honed by the lights of the Feather Mine and the sandstorms of Atoliga, witnessed this scene. A look of realization and awe flashed in his eyes. He crouched down, picked up a piece of unknown ore that had fallen to the ground, and said in a deep voice, "It's Gray Fungus. I didn't expect to find traces of them in the Dark Cloud Abyss."

"Grey Fungus?" Medion repeated curiously, his eyes gleaming with curiosity.

The bard Edwin continued, his tone serious: "In the legends and some historical records of the Eastern Continent, the mushroom people are among the oldest inhabitants of the deep earth, perhaps even earlier than the dwarves in their interaction with underground minerals. However, their method of dealing with minerals is not forging and hammering, but rather through a sophisticated network of mycelium. They extract the energy contained within the minerals to sustain their lives. Perhaps because the underground mineral deposits of Atorica are even richer, the mushroom people living underground have even evolved the ability to use mineral energy to alter their environment. Different mineral energies prompt them to cultivate fungi with different functions—some as tough as iron, used to build dwellings; some that emit light and heat, providing illumination and warmth; some that can even filter air or decompose rocks. Such a special group of mushroom people is the Grey Mushroom People."

“But they rarely interact with outsiders,” Arnor said. “It is said that the giant pit of the Feather Mine leads directly to the earth’s core. When the miners are digging for ore, they occasionally encounter the Gray Fungus. In such cases, the latter will immediately migrate their tribe, preferring to abandon the resources of this area rather than communicate with the people on the surface.”

He looked around: "This corridor is very likely the Gray Fungus's mine, or at least it used to be. Perhaps the environment of the Dark Cloud Abyss is too harsh and sparsely populated, so they have gone against the grain and come to the surface to mine ore."

There were no signs of fighting or violent destruction. All indications suggested that the mushroom people had evacuated in an orderly manner. Perhaps over the long years, the mineral resources they depended on gradually depleted, forcing the mushroom people to abandon this place and migrate to deeper, more unknown underground areas in search of new mineral veins.

Upon hearing this, Lin Ge raised an eyebrow slightly: "Is that really so?"

Arnor cautiously replied, "At least that's what we've heard."

“I don’t mean to question you, Mr. Arnor. After all, your understanding of the Gray Fungus is certainly far greater than that of us outsiders. I’m just making a reasonable conjecture based on logic: even without interference from people on the surface, would the Gray Fungus be willing to abandon their underground home and come to the surface to mine for minerals? Racial habits are hard to change. People who are used to underground life will definitely resist sunlight. Even though the Dark Cloud Abyss is shrouded in corrosive acid mist all year round and never sees the sun, this instinct engraved in their souls will not change.”

Lin Ge said, "Therefore, there are two plausible possibilities. One is that the underground mineral resources have been depleted, forcing these gray fungus people who live off mining to go against their nature and come to the surface to seek a way out for their race..."

“That’s impossible.” Before he could finish speaking, Yanor subconsciously denied it: “The surface minerals of Atoliga are essentially formed by the gradual upwelling and accumulation of underground mineral deposits under the influence of geological activities. If the underground mineral deposits are depleted, then the surface cannot remain unaffected.”

"So we can rule out that possibility," Lin Ge said softly. "Another possibility is that although there are mineral resources in their habitat, they cannot be mined. As for the reason, it is not clear yet. Perhaps the mining is too difficult? Perhaps it has been occupied by powerful monsters? Or perhaps... they dare not mine it?"

Everyone was stunned for a moment before realizing what the young man really meant.

“You mean…” Arnor’s breathing quickened, “The Nibelungen…is buried near the habitat of these gray fungus people, Mr. Ring?”

“I’m just suggesting a possibility,” Ling said slowly. “Whether it’s true or not remains to be seen.”

How can we verify this?
Naturally, I had to go and see for myself.

Arnor almost blurted out a suggestion to continue exploring, but the words wouldn't come out. He suddenly remembered that before leaving, Lady Cheryl had made a deal with these outsiders: to explore all the suspicious locations on the map and search for the Nibelungen, the Heavenly Battleship. Whether they found it or not, it wouldn't affect the outcome of the deal.

The curved corridor is the last location on the map.

In other words, Ling and his team have actually fulfilled the requirements of this transaction.

As for finding the Gray Fungus's habitat, that seemed to be an extra charge, but unfortunately, Arnor couldn't think of a price he could offer to persuade these people to continue exploring. The Dark Cloud Abyss was far too dangerous. Even with Miss Ieta's cloud whale assistance, the exploration over the past few days had left them exhausted and weary. Moreover, the Gray Fungus's habitat was mostly located more than two thousand meters underground, and might even extend deeper into the abyss—a truly isolated place, a place never before visited by anyone.

No one knows what awaits them ahead.

Should we really make them take on such a huge risk based on just a few words from us?
Yanor couldn't bring herself to say it.

Give me some cats