Alice in the Land of Steam

It was reasonable to discuss this matter with Themis in the heavens. After all, she was the guardian left behind by my mother, and in a sense, she represented my mother's will. If it were her, she would definitely make a decision without hesitation and give a result that would satisfy everyone, right? In comparison, I was too weak and didn't have the ability to unite everyone.

Unfortunately, she had already gone to another world. The magic power consumption of opening the bridge to the heavens was too great, and the time flow rate of the two worlds was different, so even if Saint Shallia wanted to, it would be difficult to ask her for help.

You can only rely on yourself to make decisions.

The blue-haired girl sighed quietly in her heart, then raised her head and looked around, her eyes lingering on the faces of each of her sisters for a long time, taking in their serious or profound, expectant or anxious expressions. Everyone has their own ideas and their own inclinations. Obviously, supporting one side will make the other side sad, and making one's sister sad, is this what a qualified sister should do? Saint Xia Liya felt a little confused, and a heavy feeling that she had not felt for a long time gradually filled her heart, making it difficult for her to make up her mind.

"Sister Xiaoxia..."

Favrona couldn't help but speak, wanting to say something, but Xino stopped her with a look, then she shook her head slowly, indicating that at this time, no one should speak and disturb Saint Shalia's thoughts. Carabosse also remained silent, her expression and eyes were so calm, as if it didn't matter what decision Saint Shalia would make, she only respected the final result.

This is probably what it means to be caught in a dilemma.

At this moment, Saint Shalia suddenly remembered a sentence that Themis said to her before she left. It seemed to correspond to the current scene.

“When you don’t know how to make a decision, use your emotions to make a judgment. I believe that will not be wrong.”

"Because, sincere emotions will never hurt anyone."

……

With these words echoing in her mind, Saint Xia Liya seemed to have found her backbone all of a sudden, and her eyes gradually became brighter: Yes, emotions.

It is the most unique treasure that Mother has bestowed upon all living beings in the world. It is the foundation for their existence and the essence that distinguishes living beings from all matter. If one does not have emotions, life is nothing but a stone and rotten wood, muddled and muddled; and if one has emotions but does not know how to use them, or even deliberately suppresses them, wouldn't that be a failure of Mother's expectations?

When you are confused and undecided, your heart will tell you the answer.

Saint Shallia gently placed her hand on her chest, and through the warm skin, she felt the trembling and the sound, as if it was some kind of trait that had been given to her since the beginning of creation. She couldn't help but wonder, if it was emotion that dominated the rationality of life and allowed them to make choices, then which side did her emotions lean towards?

At this moment, what emerged in her mind were the beautiful and kind fairy tales in every storybook she had read, the reality that mankind suffered in wars and natural disasters as told to her by Tumi, and the lonely figure of the man who came across the vast universe just to find hope... If the meaning of truth, goodness and beauty lies in transmission, then even the young girl Wang Quan, who is far away in the Holy Temple of Heaven, cannot be indifferent to the tragedies that happened tens of millions of light years away.

The girl pursed her lips slowly, and when she spoke again, her voice was soft but firm: "I want..."

"Help them."

It was as if an invisible clock struck the last moment, and all arguments and disagreements were settled, and the story thus took a predetermined path. This story began long ago when a goddess taught a newborn girl what emotions were, and ended with the destruction and end of the old world; until the birth of the new world, it began again with another girl who realized the true meaning of emotions, as if confirming that time never moves forward, but just keeps repeating what has already happened. But how will it end? At least at this moment, the girls don't know yet.

After Saint Chariah quietly stated her decision, the surroundings were very quiet. Xino smiled, but strangely, she didn't look very happy; Carabosse exhaled silently, but strangely, she didn't look very disappointed. This might be because they all knew the character of this eldest sister and had already anticipated what choice she would make, so there was no need to be happy or disappointed about it.

Saint Shalia looked at Carabosse and said softly, "I think if it were Mother, she would definitely do the same. What can limit us is not rigid rules, but the morality in our hearts."

Carabosse was silent for a moment, then nodded after a while: "I understand. I will respect this result - if this is really your wish."

There was a hint of apology in Saint Charia's eyes. Although this was the result of a fair vote, she knew very well that with Caraboss's eloquence, if she was given a little more time, she could convince the sisters who originally held the opposite opinion to change their minds. She had that ability. Although she was strict, serious, and meticulous, she was also gentle and considerate, so she was very majestic in the hearts of the sisters.

But she has always been accommodating me, is it just because of her status as the eldest sister? Saint Xia Liya has always felt guilty about this, and always wanted to find a way to make it up to her. But she hasn't thought of that method yet, and today she was accommodated by her again. Am I a failure as a sister? Saint Xia Liya couldn't help thinking that she always had to be accommodated by her younger sister.

She turned her head and looked at Xinuo. This girl with a long snow-white ponytail and a temperament and demeanor that resembled the protagonist of a knight novel was looking at her with an earnest and passionate gaze, as if she was waiting for her elder sister's instructions so that she could do something without worry. In fact, Xinuo was a very active child, which could be seen from her strong sense of self-confidence and justice that she exuded all the time. However, before she did anything, she still had to consult her elder sister's opinion and would only act after getting her approval.

Is this a kind of dependence, or has my existence actually restrained the free and lively side of her character? Saint Xia Liya always couldn't help thinking so, and comforted her: "Don't worry, Xino, this matter will not be achieved overnight. Moreover, I think what Rolena said makes sense. We should give humans power to help them become independent; but we should also limit this power and tell them what they can and cannot do. Only in this way can we be responsible for them."

"I understand." Xino nodded vigorously, and the ponytail behind her head swayed up and down. Then a thoughtful look appeared on her face: "But how should we limit this power?"

"How about limiting the number?" said Rorona, who first proposed this suggestion. "Giving power to only a few recognized humans may effectively control their behavior?"

"This seems to go against our original intention." Olvera hesitated. "Besides, what are the standards for recognition? Who will set them? How will they be implemented? It may take a long time to consider all these issues."

Judging from the current situation on Mirror Star, humans may not be able to hold on that long.

"Then we should limit it in terms of quality." Pellegrino gently stroked her bangs and said calmly, "We should not grant humans too much power, so as to ensure that their ambitions will not expand as a result."

They quickly started discussing and brainstorming to come up with a perfect plan, even those who were originally against it were no exception, because for them, since this result was chosen by everyone's vote, it must be the fairest. If it doesn't match their original intention, maybe they are wrong, but it is impossible that everyone is wrong. In a sense, they are both stubborn and simple.

Saint Xia Liya did not participate in the discussion, but just watched her sisters quietly, watching them devote themselves wholeheartedly once they set a goal, watching them put themselves in the shoes of some unknown strangers on a distant planet, and watching them sincerely want to make the world left by their mother a better place... A very complicated emotion suddenly emerged in her heart. She felt that she was really a lucky sister to have such a group of sisters who were willing to accommodate her.

She also recalled the complex and profound look of Themis before she left. Was she looking at her now? In another strange world, she was watching her choice from afar. Would she be happy because she strictly abided by the agreement with her and made the decision based on emotion rather than reason? Or would she be disappointed that she did not have the authority and ability to make decisions as the eldest sister, and could only rely on the indulgence of her younger sisters to fulfill her duties? If she thought so, the girl felt that she could not refute it, but anyway——

“True emotions will never hurt anyone.”

The girl murmured in a low voice, as if talking to herself, but also as if she was talking to someone else.

"Xia." Karabos, who was also quietly watching her sisters' discussion, suddenly spoke. Her voice was so soft and thin that only the two people who were close to each other could hear it: "No matter what the final result of this matter is, please remember--"

She looked away awkwardly, as if she was not used to saying such open words: "You have always been our sister."

Saint Shallia was stunned for a moment, then her eyebrows and eyes slowly curved into two beautiful crescents:

"kindness!"

……

Thirty days later, in front of the headquarters building of the Game Command Company, Saint Shallia solemnly handed over fourteen holy artifacts to a man named Tumi. They were the golden thread symbolizing destiny, the white thorn spear symbolizing victory, the wordless book symbolizing wisdom, the philosopher's stone symbolizing creation, the pure white tail feathers symbolizing freedom, the invisible mist symbolizing the soul, the ancient moonlight symbolizing eternity, the eternal dark gem symbolizing darkness, the aging needle symbolizing plague, the core of creation symbolizing the end, the crimson sword symbolizing strife, the disordered elegy symbolizing fear, the mourning longbow symbolizing death, and the scepter of heavenly punishment symbolizing disaster.

Tumi knelt on one knee, took the fourteen royal sacred vessels, and bowed his head to show his respect and gratitude. Therefore, the young girls could not see the expression on his face. But this man who could cross the universe and endure the long loneliness even had his hands trembling slightly and could hardly control his emotions. It was obvious that the excitement in his heart could not be expressed in words.

War, disaster, famine, death, loneliness, pain, confusion, melancholy, doubt, guilt, numbness... all the sufferings witnessed or endured in the past countless days and nights suddenly came to mind, and a slightly moving expression appeared on the man's resolute face. Only the person involved knows what it feels like to fulfill a long-cherished wish.

"In the name of the goddess who created the world, we will grant mankind the power of kingship."

Saint Shallia restrained her usual gentleness and kindness. Because she was representing the name of the goddess, her expression and tone showed unusual solemnity and majesty: "This power will be divided into order and chaos. The seven powers of order symbolize the laws of the light side of the universe, which must be controlled with kindness and justice; the seven powers of chaos symbolize the laws of the dark side of the universe, which must be restrained with prudence and vigilance. Humans who possess these fourteen powers will be able to rise up and no longer be bullied and oppressed."

Tumi lowered his head even lower and said respectfully, "We humans from Mirror Star are very grateful."

After he accepted the fourteen holy vessels, Saint Shallia took two steps back and returned to her sisters, while Carabos, who had been watching coldly, stepped forward and spoke in a calm and cold tone. This was the division of labor she had discussed with Saint Shallia early in the morning. Humans needed to be given favors, but they also needed to be warned. Only by receiving the favors and remembering the warnings could humans use this power carefully and not lose their way. Saint Shallia was the one who gave the favors, so it was natural for her to be the one who gave the warnings.

"In the universe, there is a balance between good and evil, and power is not free."

The young girl Wang Quan, who mastered the laws of darkness, looked at the human who was listening with a gaze deeper than the night, and said coldly: "I only warn you humans four words, that is, stop when you are done."

"You should know when to stop using this power. The laws that the young girl's royal power controls are the origin of the universe, and they are not something that ordinary souls can control. If you don't know when to stop using it, you will eventually be eroded and lead to self-destruction. After humans gain power, they should also know when to stop using it, because we give humans power so that you can end the conflicts of this era and restore civilization to harmony, rather than creating the beginning of another conflict. If you don't know when to stop using it—"

She stopped here and didn't say what would happen if she didn't stop in time, but the implication was clear.

"Besides that," Carabosse said, "after you return to Mirror Star, you will be a messenger and spread the glory of the goddess to all living beings in the world, so that all living beings will believe in the teachings and be devout and kind. This is the only requirement for us to grant you power, and I believe it will not be difficult to do."

The man said without hesitation, "Tumi, accept this commandment and never forget it."

"Your Majesty the Goddess grants life to all things and spirituality to all living things. She deserves to be worshipped by all living beings in the world, receive her grace, and sing her praises."

"If I return safely to Mirror Star, I will take this as my teaching and spread the name of the true God."

“Everything that has spirit is a believer.”

"It's for the spiritual prayer meeting!"

……

Destiny is now on the right track. (End of this chapter)