Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1017: Is it long or short?

Alice has a hard time making a decision because Nigflam's request is something she has never thought about.

"Can you tell me why?" She showed a puzzled expression, and it was difficult to understand what considerations her friends, including Nigframe, had in mind to make such a request. "The restriction plan proposed by Tiantis is to maintain the stability and balance of the magic circulation system. When it was voted on at the joint meeting, everyone unanimously passed it, and it has been implemented very well in the past thousand years. According to Tiantis, the magic environment of Eden Continent is gradually improving. I believe that in another thousand years, it will be restored to its heyday. It can be seen that it is very effective. Why are you suddenly opposed?"

"Another thousand years?" The dragon's eyes showed deep thought, and then he sighed softly: "It's still too long, Alice. I hope you know that we made this request not to oppose anything, but just to maintain stability and balance."

He looked at Alice deeply and said, "It's not the stability and balance of the magic circulation system, but the stability and balance of mortal civilization."

Alice was even more confused: "The stability and balance of mortal civilization? I think mortal civilization is very stable now. Isn't everyone living in peace?"

Although there are occasional frictions and conflicts, they are just minor ones, unlike a thousand years ago when wars broke out everywhere and the flames of war never stopped. Although it was due to the secret instigation of Tiantis, the contradictions among the various races themselves were also a factor that could not be ignored.

Nigflam shook his head slowly, and the movement was like a mountain shaking, making people feel that the dome of the main hall was about to collapse. "This is just the surface situation. The undercurrent surging behind the scenes is actually turbulent and fierce. It cannot be calmed by ordinary means."

When Alice was thinking about what the so-called undercurrent was, he asked again: "Do you know why mortal civilization has been able to remain stable and without war for the past thousand years, Alice?"

Alice scratched her cheek. She had never thought about such a complicated question, but she subconsciously felt that the answer was very simple: the Eden continent was vast and rich in resources, and she had brought many institutional, economic, cultural and artistic innovations to mortals by forging the ancient heritage. In addition, there were no irreconcilable contradictions between the various races. After the implementation of the magic restriction plan, Tiantis was too lazy to secretly instigate wars among mortals. Everyone's survival and spiritual needs were met, and there were no natural disasters and wars. Isn't stability a matter of course?

As an old friend, Nigframe saw through Alice's extremely simple thoughts at a glance, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart that no matter how long the years have passed, she still maintains this innocence and fantasy, which is incredible. Perhaps only the young queen who has been favored by the goddess and has never worried about strength and life can do this.

but.

"Conflicts always exist, Alice," Nigflam said, "and they won't disappear just because you ignore them. The things of the ancient times are too far away to talk about. However, the most recent time, when Lord Tiantis proposed a plan to restrict the freedom of mortal races to use magic, there was a subtle tendency of vacillation within the various races. At the most intense time, it almost caused a war."

He emphasized, "This is not a small war between countries or tribes, but a war that will affect the entire Eden, sweeping across all mortal civilizations, and even... subverting everything."

Nigflam originally wanted to say that even the young girl's royal power might be implicated, but when the words came to his lips, he still didn't say them. The thoughts were too complicated, and he might not even be able to figure them out.

Even so, this alarmist statement was enough to scare Alice. "How, how is it possible? Nigflam, are you kidding me? I've known you for so long, but this is the first time I've known you to be so humorous, haha."

She tried to use laughter to ease the awkward atmosphere, but Nigframe said nothing and just looked at her silently. After a while, Alice couldn't laugh anymore. The smile on her face gradually faded and finally disappeared completely, replaced by a look of hesitation and worry: "Is this true, Nigframe?"

"I won't lie to you, and there's no need to lie to you, Alice."

"But why is this happening?"

"Because all mortals seek power." Nigflam answered Alice's question with a simple sentence. Seeing that she seemed to understand but not quite, he patiently explained, "I don't want to use this statement to summarize the characteristics of mortals. However, this is actually the nature given to each of us by the great goddess. Since the beginning of time, when He taught the ancestors of the mortal race the secrets of magic and magic in the Temple of Heaven, the worship and pursuit of this power has been deeply engraved in our bones and blood, and it is indelible. We all yearn to master this incredible power, or use it to temper our souls. , discover their own greatness, like the dragon; or use it to change the world and create a brilliant civilization, like the feather elves and mirror elves; or use it to see through the world and glimpse those mysteries that mortals cannot ignore, like the magicians among humans. Without this nature of pursuing power, mortals will be mediocre, unable to go deep into the fog to open up wasteland and create an era for mortals; nor can they drive away darkness, grasp the truth of light, understand why our world came from, why our civilization was born, and even where the future of our race should go... Can you understand this feeling, Alice?"

Alice nodded hesitantly. Although she always felt that there was something strange about what he said, it was indeed very similar to what her mother said, so it should be correct, right?

"In that case, you can understand how heavy a blow the restriction proposed by Lady Tiantis is to mortals like us." Nigflam said in a low voice: "Magic power is the most precious treasure bestowed by the Goddess on mortals like us, but mortals have been deprived of the right to touch it. From now on, they can no longer pursue the supreme power, nor can they master the secrets of magic. The future of life seems to have been shrouded in darkness again. I think you should understand how crazy people who have lost hope will do, Alice."

Alice was speechless, vaguely remembering that there were similar plots in some games she had played. She could not understand the mortals' desire for power and their obsession with controlling their own destiny. Perhaps it was because of her identity. After all, she was the young queen, the heir favored by the goddess. She was born with everything and did not need to pursue it deliberately.

Thinking of this, she felt a little ashamed, and couldn't help but lower her voice a little: "But in the end, it didn't cause a war, right? This shows that although everyone is dissatisfied, it is actually understandable, right?"

"No." Nigframe said, "It's not that they don't have dissatisfaction, but all the dissatisfaction has been suppressed." "By whom?" Alice asked subconsciously. She was very sure that she had never done such a thing.

"us."

Nigflam's answer was surprising, but also unsurprising. He stared deeply at Alice below, and the tiny human figure was reflected in his huge dragon pupils, which seemed extremely oppressive. "It was me who used my prestige to intimidate the restless dragons, it was Isabel who staked her reputation as a sage to guarantee you, and it was Ganzel who suppressed all the rebellious intentions in the name of the king... We didn't mention these things to you in the past because we felt it was unnecessary, but I believe you can tell which is true and which is false."

Nigflam's words made Alice fall silent. She could tell that her friend was not deceiving her, but this made it even harder for her to accept. The importance of the magic circulation system is self-evident. The deterioration of Eden's magic environment is also obvious to all. Any knowledgeable person can see that the implementation of the magic restriction plan is not to restrict their freedom, but to save the future of civilization. However, mortals still refused to accept it. In the end, they could only rely on the force, prestige and reputation of the gods to save the situation. Isn't this a very ironic thing?
In the past, when Mother created the various races, she mentioned those wonderful qualities to me. Could it be false? Humans' diligence and tenacity, dragons' nobility and dignity, giants' integrity and fearlessness, dust elves' sincerity and steadfastness, mirror elves' purity and nobility, feather elves' optimism and fraternity, blood race's elegance and piety, werewolves' boldness and reliability, and fairies' free, beautiful, visionary souls.

She had been so convinced that she was surprised and proud of the brilliant civilization created by mortals. But now, after Nigflam's words, the images of other races, except for the fairies, seemed to collapse in Alice's heart.

Nigflam didn't seem to notice Alice's change of mood, and continued to speak: "As gods of the mortal race, we all understand the painstaking efforts of you and Lord Tiantis. We are willing to contribute our own strength to maintain the magical environment of Eden, so we did not hesitate to turn the spearhead against our own people, and temporarily violated our duties as gods."

What is the job of gods? It depends on what the believers want to get. The believers are so pious, hoping that their piety can impress the gods and give them power to protect them. But when faced with this magic restriction plan that is obviously disadvantageous to the mortal race, all the gods, including Nigflam, unanimously chose to acquiesce. Isn't this a betrayal?

During that time, Nigflam still remembers the pressure he endured. Not to mention the ordinary tribesmen, even his trusted followers who held powerful magic and were regarded as his right-hand men were showing signs of wavering. This was a simple truth. The ancient dragons all wanted to become ancient dragons, and the ancient dragons all wanted to become great ancient dragons. Even if they were given the opportunity, Nigflam believed that the great ancient dragons would also be willing to go one step further and covet his status as the most ancient dragon and the dragon god of the virtual world. However, the magic restriction plan locked the number of mortal strongmen, destined them to be unable to go further. How could they calm down?
Unless the cycle of life and death continues, one will naturally rise to the top, however... this involves another more sensitive topic.

Nigflam didn't want to bring this up to Alice yet. He just said in a low voice, "We have already presented our sincerity, but the better future promised by Lord Tiantis seems to have not yet been realized. It has been a thousand years, which is too long. We can no longer wait. Moreover, even if we are willing, I am afraid time will not allow it."

Alice asked in confusion: "What does time not allow... mean?"

"It means exactly what it says, Alice. Perhaps you don't feel this way, but I am too old, with a rotten body and dull claws. I can no longer be as powerful as before and conquer all the dragons. I am afraid this will be true not only for me, but also for Isabel and the others. Once we die one after another, no one will be able to suppress those ambitious people who have long been restless. I am afraid that in order to oppose your plan with Lord Tiantis, they will start more wars and create greater chaos." Having said this, Nigframe sighed, worried about the foreseeable future.

Alice could tell that this was not an exaggeration. Despite this, she was still a little hesitant: "Don't be so pessimistic, Nigflam, you can train an heir, just like the inheritance of the throne in the mortal kingdom. A majestic king can expand the territory and establish unparalleled merits, and an excellent heir can also defend the land and the people for him, and protect the inheritance of the country, right?"

The old dragon shook his head slowly: "I'm afraid I don't have the time or the conditions to do so, Alice."

"Because of the magic restriction plan, there are very few new ancient dragons and great dragons in the dragon clan. They are all as old as me. After succeeding the Dragon King, not only will they not be able to deter the disobedient with their strength, but they may also follow me soon. As the Dragon Kings pass away one after another, the desires of the ambitious will expand further and will eventually become uncontrollable. Therefore, I will not choose an heir from these people." Nigflam's voice was like the snowflakes on the top of Mount Hogarth, ethereal and low: "As for training a new heir, I am not allowed to have that kind of time. Today, I am here to talk to you, but I can clearly feel that my soul is dying, my body is decaying, my heartbeat is as slow as the tide, and my eyes are as turbid as muddy water. Perhaps, in another two hundred years, I will leave this world."

He slowly raised his head, his old and deep eyes seemed to have seen through the dome and the predetermined future: "Two hundred years is too short. It is far from enough for both me and the dragon clan."

Alice opened her mouth, but no words came out.

She originally wanted to say that two hundred years was a lifetime for an ordinary dragon, or even twice the lifetime of humans and elves. How could it be so short? But then she remembered what Nigflam had said just now, that a thousand years was too long and that he couldn't wait, and she suddenly didn't know how to respond.

Two hundred years is too short, and one thousand years is too long. For mortals, what kind of time is most suitable?

A sentence suddenly flashed through the girl's mind.

That's what Tiantis said -

"Mortals are a race that is used to grasping the present. Therefore, they can live the most valuable life in the limited time they have."

Give me some meow