Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 243 Is anyone missing from the joyous banquet?
That night, a grand banquet was held in the lobby on the first floor of the hotel. As the landlady said, it was for welcome and celebration, but at the same time, it was also to dispel the sad and gloomy atmosphere caused by Mrs. Shu's departure.

Without the help of his friends, Xie Mi picked a basket of picky carrots, crying mushrooms, fried bile and other magical vegetables in the underground garden alone, and brought them back to the kitchen and handed them to the eldest sister who was cutting tomatoes. The smiling face of the latter and the unknown dark red liquid flowing on the chopping board made the whole environment look very gloomy and terrifying. The fairy maid shuddered uncontrollably and was about to run away, but was stopped.

"Xie Mi, don't leave in such a hurry~" The lady boss ignored the strange cry of the tomato in her hand, pulled off the leaves on its head, and threw it into the trash can next to her. Then she said to the little sister who had walked to the door: "There is something I forgot to tell you."

"What's the matter?" Xie Mi turned around in confusion.

"About the pilgrimage." Because she had solved a huge worry in her heart, the proprietress was in a good mood, her tone was cheerful, and even her words sounded like a country tune, melodious and cheerful: "Xiao Xia and Mr. Linger will soon leave Rostin City and travel to Nimscher City in Leisenburg to look for the next trace of the young queen? Shelia has already made an appointment with them, so you can go with them then. After leaving the hotel, remember to eat and sleep on time, so as not to cause trouble for everyone~"

"Ehhhhh!!?"

Xie Mi was stunned, his eyes were bigger than the tomatoes on the chopping board: "How come I didn't know about this!?"

Could it be that I was sold by my eldest and second sisters without my knowledge?
"Well, actually, we had this idea before. I'm really sorry for keeping it from you." The lady boss frowned slightly, her crescent-shaped eyebrows showing a distressed expression on her face. "But, little Xiemi is already two hundred years old, but he hasn't completed his pilgrimage and officially become an adult. This matter has always made Xie Liya and I very sad. When I think of our little Xiemi, who is so old, but still has only the experience of a child, what if people in the clan know about this in the future, such as father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, great-grandfather, great-grandmother, great-grandfather, second grandfather, third uncle, fourth uncle, sixth uncle, the old lady next door, the electric bug dog raised by the old lady, the jumping flea on the 300th hair on the left ear of the electric bug dog...even the elders think that little Xiemi is a lazy and disobedient bad boy. What if? Alas, the children of the same age as little Xiemi have now completed their pilgrimage and are ready to start a family and career? If this matter spreads, it will be difficult for little Xiemi to find an excellent partner in the future..."

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Xie Mi reluctantly interrupted her sister's rambling. Just listening to the series of generations she recited was enough to give him a headache. What about the electric bug dog and the jumping lice on the dog's ears raised by the old lady next door? Did the electric bug dog and the jumping lice also need to be inspected?
She looked conflicted: "I can understand what Big Sister means, but, but..."

"Of course," after the threat, the bartender changed the subject: "If you really have a reason not to leave, you can tell us. As your sister, we fully respect and understand your opinion. If it really doesn't work, you can continue to stay in the hotel and be your maid..."

"I do not want!"

"This is an opportunity I fought so hard for you." Xie Liya's tone was even colder than that of Xue Lum after it was frozen. "Xiao Xia and Mr. Ling'er's journey is destined to be a dangerous and exciting journey. It is also an adventure that many tribesmen dream of. In order to get you to join, I spent a lot of effort and even gave them my masterpiece before they reluctantly nodded in agreement."

But this is too sudden!

When she was thinking this, a faint voice came from behind her: "So, you don't want to go?"

Xie Mi screamed and turned around to find that his second sister was standing at the door looking at him. There was a dangerous light in her right eye and one hand was already pressed on the bangs covering her left eye, as if as long as she heard the word "yes" from Xie Mi's mouth, she would immediately remove the seal and let this naive little goblin understand what the great terror of the world is.

"Alas!?"

Without even giving me time to react, he made the decision for me.

After all, Xie Mi is so dependent on her sisters and loves this hotel so much, so it is inevitable that she would show resistance.

"..."

As she spoke, she sighed in her heart.

At least let me think about it carefully first!

Indeed, the words Shelia used to convince the two were not even as many as the words she used to introduce her "masterpiece".

Xie Mi interrupted her without thinking, and then, as if he was afraid that Xie Liya would change her mind, he slipped past her, leaving only a sentence that spread farther and farther to the two sisters: "I promise you! I will definitely embark on the journey with everyone! I will go and tell Metien the good news..."

If he was a little moved at the beginning, when he heard his second sister say that she used all her "masterpieces" to convince others, Xie Mi was sure that she was talking nonsense and trying to scare him.

The sound gradually died down.

"..." Xie Liya, who had originally prepared a lot of words to persuade the other party with both emotion and reason, now had a cold expression and mood.

"Okay, okay, don't be sad~" Shesta smiled and comforted: "It's a good thing that the child can accept it, because isn't this what we have always wanted to do? Let her be free from worries and embark on the journey without worries. Only in this way can she become a qualified travel fairy." Xie Liya still had a blank expression on her face, looking at the direction where Xie Mi left: "I'm not sad, big sister."

"Oh? Not sad? Then you are angry, because little Xie Mi doesn't seem to be very reluctant to part with his second sister, so you are angry?"

"...Neither."

"really not?"

"really not."

"Shelia."

"What's the matter, eldest sister?"

"Have I ever told you that you blush when you lie?"

"Ah! Stop pinching me, sis!"

……

Shaymi trotted to the hall, wanting to find Metien to share the good news, but he only saw Alice eating and drinking at the table. There was a lamb next to her competing with her in endurance, as if whoever ate first would lose. She was so hungry that people kept a distance from her.

Olvera sat by the window holding her book, curiously watching the two rabbits poking each other with wine bottles, making clinking sounds like a duel between experienced swordsmen; Saint Charity quietly listened to the potted plants in the corner playing the violin and the piano that came from nowhere, playing Beethoven's "Ode to Joy". They looked really happy as they shook their heads.

Lingge is not here, and neither is Metien.

Xie Mi grabbed a rabbit and asked him. He was an acquaintance - or rather, a familiar rabbit: "Are you Bill? Aren't you supposed to be helping in the kitchen? Why are you here? By the way, have you seen Metien?"

Bill the rabbit shook his head, danced, and communicated with mysterious gestures. Shemi racked his brains to figure out what it was saying: "You mean, Metien is upstairs with Lingge?"

Bill Rabbit nodded.

"Okay, thank you. Also," she raised her eyebrows and took the wine glass that Bill was holding in his arms, "Don't always treat your second sister's wine glass as your water bottle, or you'll be scolded by her again."

After saying that, he threw it towards the kitchen: "Go, help your elder sister, the party is not over yet."

Bill Rabbit landed lightly on the floor, stretched out his short paws, saluted her in a formal manner, then turned around and hopped towards the kitchen.

On the other side, Xie Mi walked towards the counter with the wine glass, intending to put it back in the cupboard. At the same time, he kept looking upstairs, wondering what Metien was doing now, why didn't he even come to the party? However, since he was with Ling Ge, it meant that it was a family matter between brothers and sisters, and it was not good for him to interfere.

It’s better to wait for her to finish and come downstairs before sharing your good news with her.

……

At the same time, in Ling'er's room, Medien sat on the edge of the bed, quietly watching his brother working at the desk with a piece of white letter paper spread out in front of him. The fountain pen he had specially borrowed from the landlady, Shesta, kept moving in his hand, passing through the paper and falling on the table, making a rustling sound.

Yes.

Ling is writing a letter.

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)