Alice in the Land of Steam

In order to move all these game consoles into Tianxin Church, Alice spent a lot of time and even dismantled many benches originally placed in the prayer hall. In her words, since no one would come to pray anyway, it would be a waste to leave these chairs here. It would be better to use them as firewood. The freed-up space would be just enough to place a row of game consoles for her own entertainment - I'm wrong, they should be sacred objects dedicated to the goddess.

She also suggested to Sisters Metien and Livia that they change the name of Tianxin Church, which has no distinctiveness, to "Xiaobawang Video Game Hall" and promote it with the slogan "Xiaobawang is Endless Fun". This will surely attract many believers and let everyone come to feel the grace of the goddess, convert to the sacred faith... and so on.

But Sister Livia strongly opposed it, and Metien also felt that this was not a good idea, so she politely declined, which made the genius player regretful. Afterwards, she sneaked into the kitchen when the boss lady was not paying attention, packed some snacks that were easy to preserve, and took away the bedding, pillows, handwritten game guides and other miscellaneous things in the room, and rearranged them in Tianxin Church, as if she was going to use this place as a long-term base, which made the pink-haired girl regret that she easily listened to her ill-intentioned advice. Now it was too late even if she wanted to drive her away.

Besides, is this really a good thing?
Looking at the talented player who had laid out the mattress, set up the game console, and looked around with satisfaction, as if he was inspecting his territory, Metien couldn't help but say, "Isn't this the time to do this, Sister Alice?"

"Hmm?" Alice turned around and blinked innocently: "What did you say just now, Metien?"

"I say, now is not the time to play games, Sister Alice."

The pink-haired girl advised earnestly: "The matter of those bad guys in the Witch Society has not been resolved yet. I heard from Sister Xiaoxia that she is planning to gather everyone for a meeting to discuss what to do next. In such a serious moment, how can you indulge in games? Of course, you should work together with everyone to overcome the difficulties!"

She waved her fist, indicating that this was the atmosphere a good team should have. Alice thought she was going to attack her, so she subconsciously dodged to the side. It was not until she met the helpless eyes of the pink-haired girl that she realized that she seemed to be a little stressed. She coughed awkwardly and said seriously, "Of course I know what you said. But I am not unprepared. In fact, I have already thought about how to deal with the threat of the Witch Society."

"Oh?" Metien looked suspicious: "How to deal with it?"

"I will do it——"

"Hmm, what next?"

"And then beat them up!"

"..."

Metien's expression suddenly became complicated, and there was a feeling that was hard to describe. Alice saw it and waved her hand with a smile: "Don't worry, I am very confident this time. A mere witch association is no problem!"

Of course, the pink-haired girl couldn't be reassured by this, so she asked indirectly, wanting to know where her confidence came from. Alice straightened her chest without hesitation and said loudly: "Because I am a genius player of the universe!"

“……”That’s it?
Metien felt that her expectations were in vain. And did Alice still regard this world as a game? The archive records played by Themis in the celestial world, her past lives, and the alternation between the old world and the new world, were they still just part of the game plot in her eyes, and even the identity of this young queen was no exception? Thinking of this, the pink-haired girl couldn't help but remind her: "This is not a game, Sister Alice?"

"What are you talking about, Metien?" Alice sneered at the words: "This is the game, but the difficulty has become higher. Even so, with a cosmic genius player like me, it is not difficult to pass the level. Even Lingge has admitted this!"

Lingge? Hearing his brother's name suddenly, Metien couldn't help but be surprised: "You mean, Lingge feels the same way?"

"Of course, and he was the one who suggested the title of Universe Genius Player. I said he was a tsundere. He clearly recognized my skills in his heart, but he was so stubborn and refused to admit it - in the end, he still surrendered... no, was he convinced?"

The talented player was complacent, but Metien was at a loss.

No wonder she had always felt that something was wrong with Alice's mood after last night. She cheered up too quickly, and was still the same carefree and optimistic person she used to be - not that this personality was bad, but after experiencing the shock of yesterday's truth, even if Alice was able to cheer up again, she should have changed more or less. How could she remain the same?
But if Linge said something like this to her, it would seem to explain it.

The question is, why did Linger do this? Why did he give Alice a reason to... escape reality?
Mingming, he is the one who hates escaping from reality the most, right?

Or is there some hidden purpose behind this that I am not aware of?

Metien couldn't understand it. She instinctively felt that this was not a good idea, but at least Alice did cheer up, and it was foreseeable that she would maintain this optimistic attitude for a long time to come. In that case, it didn't seem to be a bad thing, right?

But she always had a bad feeling in her heart. The last time she had this feeling was in the city of Lunweiting, when Linge and his party ventured into Professor Heinrich's dinner party, but were hunted down by the combined forces of the cult.

Ringo, Ringo.

What are you thinking about?

The pink-haired little girl sighed softly, and the sigh echoed under the church spire, but was drowned out by the sound of Alice starting the game.

……

After dinner, Alice still wanted to sneak out to play games, but was stopped by Saint Shallia. Of course, she was not the only one who was stopped, and others were also kept by her. Even the boss lady who was supposed to wash the dishes in the kitchen temporarily handed over these chores to the rabbit gentlemen to listen to this important meeting, because this matter was also closely related to her, the Fairy Deep Sleep Hotel, and even everyone on the Cloud Whale Sky Island. Everyone present knew very well what the theme of today's meeting was, and this was also the question they had been thinking about for the past two days.

However, before Saint Shallia spoke, the young man brought them some not-so-good news.

"Today, Themis from the Heaven came to talk to me, and she revealed something to me." Linger's eyes swept over the young royal powers one by one, and finally fixed on the calm face of Saint Shallia, and said concisely: "She said that the curse on you did not come from the Disaster Royal Power. She was just the medium that imposed the curse, and that power had nothing to do with her. Moreover, this power can only be temporarily suppressed within the scope of the Holy Temple of Heaven-"

He paused here and did not continue speaking, but everyone could hear the implication of the young man's words. Xino frowned slightly: "Does this mean that if we leave the Holy Temple of Heaven, the curse will come back?"

The young man nodded silently.

All of a sudden, their faces turned disappointed, and Yieta even sighed in frustration: "Why is this happening..."

She finally walked out of the white cage, thinking that she could get rid of the shackles and live with everyone in the Fairy Sleep Inn. No matter how big the difficulties were, as long as she could face them together, she would not hesitate or be confused. But the young man's words were like a sharp thorn, ruthlessly puncturing those bubble-like fantasies and deeply hurting the girl's heart, making it difficult for her to hide her frustration and loneliness.

The cruelest thing in the world is to grasp a tiny hope and then let it go with your own hands.

But some people don't think so. She breathed a sigh of relief, with a hint of relief or luck between her brows.

In the quiet hall, her voice was particularly harsh and attracted everyone's attention. Everyone looked at her, but no one condemned or complained, because that person also had his own reasons.

"Bai, Bai Ye hasn't woken up all day."

Facing the gazes of the crowd, Gloria seemed a little nervous. She lowered her head slightly and dared not look at them. The white feather on the brim of her hat trembled as she lowered her head. She was still dressed as a pirate captain. Since entering the Holy Temple of Heaven, she has not changed her identity. This may be a manifestation of the suppression of the curse. The girl defended herself in a low voice: "I am very worried that something has happened to her, but knowing that she will come back, I feel much more relieved. Ah——"

She suddenly realized that there was some ambiguity in her words, and quickly looked at Yieta, saying with a guilty tone: "Well, I'm sorry, Miss Yieta, I didn't mean that..."

"It's okay." Yieta pulled the corner of her mouth and forced a smile: "I know that you and Miss Bai Ye have a good relationship, so it's normal to worry about her. In fact, I'm a little envious of her..."

She didn't make any sound when she said the last sentence, and her mouth shape didn't change much. It looked like she just stammered a few times, but the amazing thing was that Lingge seemed to hear and understand it. He looked at Miss Angel deeply and suddenly said, "Don't think too badly about it."

"Although Themis of the Celestial Realm said that the curse will return once you leave the Holy Temple of Heaven, she also admitted that the curse on you is weakening. Whether it is Miss Bai Ye's dream recall or... me, we will do our best to help you alleviate or even completely eliminate this curse."

This was the first time that Lingge admitted to the young queens that he could help them relieve the curse. Before that, he had always kept silent, neither admitting nor denying. What did this change in attitude indicate? No one knew for the time being, and Lingge was unwilling to reveal more. He only advised Yieta and the others: "Keep an optimistic attitude, this is the most important thing for you. Before entering the Holy Temple of Heaven, wasn't your curse already weakened a lot?"

Saint Shalia is not as confused as before, Olvera starts trying to fall asleep, Leticia can gradually remember people other than her grandmother, and Rorona's symptoms are getting milder...Except for Gloria and Xino who joined the team not long ago and don't show much change, only Yieta is still staying in her windmill tower room, yearning for and fearing the outside world. But Lingge thinks that it is not because of the curse, but because the negative side of her character is always affecting her.

"If you don't want to go back, you don't have to. You have that kind of power, Yieta."

The young man said this seriously, but Miss Angel shrank back, then slowly moved her face away, avoiding his gaze, and replied weakly: "I, I will try my best..."

Was it really not that easy to convince her? After all, the reason Lingge had used to persuade her to leave the windmill tower soon ceased to hold water. Without the support of this reason, it was inevitable that she would be timid. However, after the first experience, Lingge believed that the second time would be even easier. When she got used to the wind and sky outside, her heart that yearned for freedom would burst out with a stronger desire than ever before.

What's more, the girl is always surrounded by the care and guidance of others.

The young man glanced at Shesta and Shelia quietly, who were also looking at Lingge. Their eyes met in silence, and they soon understood what each wanted to convey, and then reached a tacit understanding that did not need to be stated. In the past, in the distant sky era, the traveler fairies were once the most trusted allies of the feather elves. The wind and the traveler were an inseparable relationship. Although times have changed, and even the ancient feathered empire has collapsed, the fairies with long lifespans and long traditions still recorded the stories of that time and passed them on to later generations.

Because of the interruption of Ieta and Gloria, everyone seemed to have forgotten to ask Lingge for a while. Did Themis in the heaven ask him to talk? Was it just to convey this bad news? If so, it would be the same if Alice or Saint Shalia conveyed it on their behalf. Why did it have to be someone other than Lingge, the young girl's king? But since they didn't ask, the young man naturally wouldn't go to the trouble of revealing the content of the conversation to them. He had decided to put the mystery of his life experience aside for the time being and get through the current predicament first.

If there is no present, there will naturally be no future.

What the young man didn't notice was that when everyone's attention had shifted away from Gloria, the girl silently lowered her head, and out of sight of everyone, the tension and panic on her face disappeared without a trace, replaced by a calm and indifferent look, as if she was indifferent to everything.

A well-known truth.

The only person who is indifferent is myself. (End of this chapter)