Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 1059 Is life unpredictable?
There is a park on the east side of the city, which is similar to the park where Lingge once took a short rest in Rustin City. Both are full of vitality and energy. Perhaps the two worlds have different technological levels and development directions, but they are consistent in aesthetic concepts. When looking down from a high place, its shape easily reminds people of a flower that always grows towards the sun - yes, just like the little sun in the herb garden. The flower disk in the center is a lake that is not too big but not too small. The edge of the lake is surrounded by a circle of iron railings, and there are wooden benches for visitors to rest; and in the petals growing around the flower disk are planted different tree species, from pine and cypress to sycamore, from silver fir to plane tree, as well as small and cute holly trees, which are connected to each other by plank roads, stone slabs or cobblestone paths; its flower stalks lead directly to the lake from the park gate, with canals on both sides, clear water gurgling, and occasionally one or two small fish can be seen under the leaves of calamus, which swirl in the starlight and then swim to the depths of the lush aquatic plants.

The wind brought a comfortable breath. Without the obstruction of buildings, the steel blue and crow blue night sky was also visible. Lingge walked while admiring the quiet scenery, feeling a little surprised that it had not suffered any damage in the past disaster - perhaps it had, but the vitality that followed soon healed those hateful and painful scars: shrubs and flowers climbed up the road, covering the ugly mud with its skin peeled off; the fallen leaves gradually withered and rotted, and together with the flesh and blood falling from the sky, they turned into nutrients that nourished life; under the water, water plants and algae grew like a dense forest, and day after day the water washed away the glass fragments that had been ruthlessly burned by the flames, making them shine again under the light of the stars and the moon; even the circles of rusty and mottled iron railings surrounding the lake were covered with thriving ivy and tiny morning glories, and the flowers they bloomed were small and exuded a faint fragrance, making it impossible to smell the rust and blood that were so close.

Everything in this city remains unchanged. Even if the sun rises and the moon sets, it is just an illusion of the passage of time. Therefore, even if the goddess once restored her sanctuary, the ruins and debris would still return to their original state the moment she fell into a long sleep; only life was particularly favored by her, and could ignore the time that was stuck in the past and grow tenaciously towards the future. Therefore, many years later, travelers could see the giant trees standing in the abandoned buildings, the sunken lake under the clock tower, the hidden parks behind the streets... and the shadows of flying birds, swimming fish, squirrels, otters, butterflies, and the fleeting deer.

Perhaps this scene will continue, even if the outside world is about to become a battlefield, all living beings, all things and their civilizations will be tested by a catastrophe, destroying everything, or leaving nothing; but only this place is unaffected, not only because it is the goddess's sanctuary, but also because it is located in the ruins of an old world. It is a memory that should have been forgotten long ago, so everything in the new world has nothing to do with it.

The only people who intersect with each other in the moment of passing by are a group of travelers from the New World. They will stay here for a while, looking for some kind of seemingly familiar feeling, and then trace back to their past lives and the most important memory in their lives - but I'm afraid it won't be long, they will leave soon, the wind and starlight in the forest know it, because when they whispered, they had already heard the voices of those people.

When Lingge approached the lake in the middle of the park, he heard a conversation in the wind, which came through the dense branches of the golden crown trees. When it fell into the young man's ears, only a vague tail sound remained. But in contrast, the tone of the two parties talking was very familiar, so that he could tell at once that it was the little bat Leticia and her grandmother, Count Nevi.

The latter asked the former: "...Have you really decided...to do this..."

The former replied: "Well, I don't want...Metien...to be so sad..."

Hearing a familiar name, the young man subconsciously stopped. At this distance, he was only separated from the owner of the voice by a lush bush and a tall silver fir tree. The conversation coming from the wind became clearer and no longer intermittent.

"If this is your decision, Leticia, I will not object." The Countess sighed softly: "Although I don't know if this is the right thing to do, there is really no better way. Moreover, because of... his help, your curse has been alleviated. In this case, it is indeed necessary to repay him."

"It has nothing to do with that guy!" The little bat interrupted his grandmother stubbornly, emphasizing word by word: "I did it for Metien!"

"Best really?"

"Of course!" Lingge couldn't see Leticia, but he could already imagine her folding her arms and speaking with such determination: "Metien is my good friend. Of course I have to help my friend. Just like Alice said, stick your back to him! As for that guy, it's just because of Metien that I gave him a little, insignificant, fingernail-sized care!"

I feel so embarrassed that I am just a small person relying on my sister's influence.

Lingge in the shadows thought silently.

The Countess seemed to be amused by her granddaughter's words, and her tone was filled with an irrepressible smile: "Haha, do you mean to take Lingge as your dependent, and your first dependent?"

“Who, who said that!” Leticia was furious and denied it again and again: “That guy is not qualified to be my dependent!”

"But, for those whom they like but do not really value, the vampires usually take them as their followers. And this tiny, insignificant favor, as small as a fingernail, which slips through their fingers, is already a huge reward for mortals, just like the Valenhild family in the Port of Sad Rain."

They were not the real Valenhild family, but those who used the Bloodfang clan's name to cheat after its decline, but were still respected and worshipped by ignorant mortals as ancient nobles. They were only servants and soldiers of the Bloodfang clan in the past, or in other words, dependents. Of course, the countess thought that if her granddaughter really regarded the young man as a dependent, she would definitely not ask him to serve her like a servant or soldier. It was more likely that she would use his status in Saint Shallia's heart to help her exempt herself from the heavy and boring homework - even if she couldn't exempt it all, a little reduction would be acceptable.

Maybe he would even impose the part he exempted on some poor little goblin?
Based on this understanding, she could not help but repeat Leticia's original words with a teasing tone. However, Leticia did not get angry as grandma thought, but calmed down and thought very seriously for a while. After a while, she shook her head gently: "It may be okay to treat mortals like this, but grandma, Lingge is definitely not a mortal, right?"

"In what sense do you mean? Identity? Power? Or—"

Or is it the fate that is entangled with him?

The young man felt that if he didn't show up, the topic would inevitably turn to an area he didn't want to touch, so he clenched his fist and put it to his mouth, coughed twice, and suddenly interrupted the conversation between the grandfather and grandson: "Although it may be a bit disrespectful to the great Bloodfang clan Valenhild, I have never thought of becoming a vampire's family - of course, the same goes for werewolves or harpy men."

The countess and the little bat, who were sitting on a bench, raised their heads at the same time and looked towards the end of the starlight that was scattered all over the vermilion bricks and dark green grass. The next moment, they saw the familiar young man slowly walking out from behind a silver fir tree. His eyes stayed on the countess's face for a moment, and he nodded slightly as a greeting, then fell on Leticia. The words just now were directed to her. In response, the little bat rolled her eyes and made a face at her - just like the face she often made to Shaymi.

Normally, the goblin would respond and retaliate with a grimace, but Lingge couldn't do such a childish thing, so he could only pretend not to see it and ignore it. The countess reached out and gently pinched her granddaughter's cheek, suggesting that she should be polite and not forget the elegance and reserve that she should have as a noble blood with the surname of Valenhild - but in fact, these two words would never have a better relationship with the little bat than her relationship with Shemi.

"It is not the proper thing for a gentleman to eavesdrop on a conversation between ladies."

Nevile made a slight sarcastic remark. She knew that this level of sarcasm would not move the young man. On the contrary, he would only fight back in a more reasonable way. She even guessed how he would fight back.

"I'm not a gentleman." The young man said meaningfully, "Coincidentally, some people are not ladies either." "What do you mean!?"

Leticia stood up directly from the chair, glaring at Linge fiercely like an irritated squirrel. If Nevile had not been right next to her, Linge had no doubt that she would spread her bat wings and pounce on him in the next second, and then bite him hard - just like she was forced by her grandmother to bite off those annoying green peppers and onions.

Would he be more delicious than green peppers and onions in her eyes? Or would he be more annoying? Linger couldn't help wondering, and he thought it was probably the latter.

"You insulted me!" Leticia gritted her teeth and almost squeezed out these words from between her teeth: "I want to duel with you!"

Linger did not respond, but looked at Nevile, his eyes undoubtedly conveying the meaning of "Are you not going to take care of it?" Under normal circumstances, the Countess would indeed discipline her. After all, her ideal granddaughter should be a well-mannered and polite lady, not a wild child who always talks about duels and "I will kill you". But today is an exception. Facing the young man's inquiring gaze, the Countess just stood up, stretched her slender waist lazily, and said casually: "Then I will go back first."

Hey, what does this mean?
Are you going to leave me alone to face the angry little bats?

The young man cast an inquiring look at the Countess, but the latter just pretended not to see it and said seriously: "Staying up late is the natural enemy of ladies and the culprit of all ugliness and evil. Smart girls should know how to stay away from it. By the way, loss of appetite is mostly caused by staying up late. I never stay up late, so my appetite is particularly good. I hope that there will be the dishes I like on the table tonight. Of course, as long as I can drink a cup of hot black tea after dinner, the rest doesn’t matter. Dear Mr. Ling, what do you think?"

I'm not asking you that, and what qualifications do you have to call yourself a girl?
Linger nodded numbly. Nevill was very satisfied with the young man's attitude, so she patted his shoulder as they passed by to show her appreciation. Of course, she would not stop because staying up late is the natural enemy of ladies. So the silver-haired Blood Moon Countess walked past the young man, spread her bat wings and flew away. As an aristocrat in the dark night, her speed was naturally unimaginable for those species accustomed to living in the daylight. If she looked back at this time, she could only see the last trace of her dark bat wings gradually disappearing in the depths of the glass-blue starlight, just like the moonlight submerged by the tide.

Linger looked away and wanted to ask something, such as what the Countess had just talked about with the little bat, or why she left early. It was impossible that she deliberately created a space for the two of them to be alone for some ridiculous reason like "staying up late is the enemy of ladies". If it was someone else, Linger would believe it, but when did the Countess care about appearance? She only cared about her granddaughter...

Uh.

Something seems wrong.

Linger was unable to ask because he turned around and saw Leticia standing on the bench with her hands raised to her shoulders, clenched into claws, like the witches in fairy tales who like to catch disobedient bad children in the village, of course, a more lovely one. The bat wings behind her spread out, blocking out a piece of starlight, and an evil grin quietly emerged on her face, with a pair of fangs tightly attached to her lower lip, cold and dangerously tempting. It is said that in the distant ancient times, when everything was in the wilderness, the vampires' hunting method was to inject the venom in their fangs into the bodies of their prey, stimulating their brains and nerves, and making them fall into a lucid dream. How many victims knew that they were heading towards death, but were still unwilling to give up this feeling of paralysis, and became the vampires' meals?

Of course, after entering the modern era, the Dark Night Vampires, who claim to be noble, have long since given up this barbaric way of hunting, and even their eating habits have begun to converge with those of humans, but no one doubts that they have lost their instincts, and the charming venom still flows in their sharp fangs, waiting for the next sacrifice at any time - Lingge does not want to be the first human to be hunted by the vampires in a primitive way after the new era, even if that vampire is a very cute girl, because the badness of her character is inversely proportional to her appearance.

"and many more--"

"Stupid Lingge, prepare to die!"

It was too late. A dark shadow passed through the young man's eyes, just like a shadow flickering and reappearing, making it impossible to react. The next moment, the little bat was already riding on the young man, with its two legs tightly wrapped around his waist, its two claws grabbing his shoulders, and it showed its fangs and bit him. The distance was so close that the young man could even see the tender red tonsils shaking gently in the depths of her open throat.

Seriously?

Just a disagreement?
At least, the young man, who was no longer able to stop himself, had one last thought in his mind, and he said it subconsciously: "At least rinse your mouth first?"

angry!
A vein suddenly popped up on the little bat's forehead: I wanted to be gentle with you, but you ended up seeking your own death, stupid Lingge!

She changed her mind instantly and moved the target of her fangs from the young man's neck upwards to the lips that had spoken rudely - they were a little thin, and formed a straight line when pursed, with a warm blood color with a hint of snow, so they should be suitable for kissing?

Somehow, this thought suddenly popped up in Leticia's mind, and the next thought that emerged was: Metien, and Xiaoxia, I'm sorry...

Then, she couldn't sense her next thought because she had already bitten down hard.

"Well!?"

Ling's eyes suddenly widened.

In the night, under the starlight, surrounded by the silent forest, the boy and the girl - unfortunately, there is no such option, there are only young men and little girls here - in short, on this memorable night, Lingge felt for the first time in his life what the impermanence of life is.

Give me some meow