Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 264: No intention of making enemies?
When Lingge found the traveler from the fertile soil sect, he was in a corner of the exhibition hall, silently staring at the exhibits displayed in the glass display case in front of him. They were several old letters, obviously left over from a long time ago. Even though the museum staff had maintained them very well, and even the wax stains and sealing wax on the envelopes were not worn at all, there was still an air of decay and desolation in the air, which must have been colder than the winter outside the museum.

There was only Rochelle in front of this display case, which seemed sparse and boring compared to the other display cases. Linger subconsciously slowed down his pace, but the walker of the Fertile Earth Sect still keenly sensed the sand and dust trembling from the earth, so he spoke calmly without turning back, with a rock-like heavy tone: "As I said, we meet here, strange believer."

When Lingge heard him address him, he realized belatedly that he seemed to have not yet told his name, which was very impolite in interpersonal communication, so he said, "My name is Lingge, Mr. Rochelle."

He also stopped in front of the display case, standing in the same straight line as Rochelle, but at least one person's distance away. He stared at the letters behind the cold glass like Rochelle, and found that there was a special emblem on the wax of each letter: two interlaced rings with countless splashes of water in the middle, shaped like a flying spring or a waterfall.

"This is the emblem of the Order of the Holy Springs." Rochelle said in a deep voice, "In 1602, the Nimsher City Government, despite opposition from citizens, decided to bury the city's rivers, springs, and ancient wells, including the oldest Sullivan Ancient Spring. She had witnessed the decline of the Kreisov royal family and the rise of the constitutional government, and witnessed the long transformation from Dolucien to Nimsher. But now it seems that she will be buried in earth and stone and die. How sad and foolish it is."

"The excited citizens gathered in front of the Holy Spring Sanctuary, the Diphis Cathedral, and requested the Holy Spring Monastics to stop this irrational act of destruction. As a result, His Holiness Besia, the 52nd Patriarch at the time, wrote many letters to communicate with the city government and finally persuaded them to withdraw the decree, thus retaining the reputation of the 'City of Springs' for the city."

Linger listened to his story and his eyes fell on the letters with a slight touch of emotion. It was hard to imagine how many people’s expectations and deep love for this city had been placed on these old and thin papers.

However, after the promulgation of the "Religious Decree", under pressure from the united religious orders, the city of Nimsher had to forcibly expel the followers of the Order of the Holy Spring, and even the former Holy Spring Sanctuary was converted into today's Lubéon Museum, as if to show its determination to completely cut off ties with the animist branch of the sect. Why is it still on display today for tourists from all over the world to visit?
As if knowing the doubts in the young man's heart, Rochelle's voice became low: "Because the theme of this expo is 'The History and Future of Mankind', and for this city, the traces left by the Holy Spring Monastery have become history."

Since it is past history, it will never affect the present world, so why not exhibit it? The review committee of the Expo probably approved the exhibition application of the Nimscher Municipal Government with this mentality.

But the Holy Spring Monks clearly did not disappear.

They just left.

Renwetin is the capital of the Great Brittany Kingdom, Fontainebleau is the capital of the White City-State Republic, and Zisaia is the capital of the Great Empire of Mindreas. If what he said is true, then this traveler can be regarded as having a rich travel history and a wide range of knowledge.

"I am indeed from Linwell," Ling replied.

Just like... the Fertile Soil Sect where Rochelle is.

Although, except for Rochelle, Linger had never seen any believers of the Fertile Soil Sect, and had never heard anyone mention the deeds of this sect. Perhaps, when the young man was talking about the past history with the traveler, those people were carrying the shrine on their shoulders and pulling the statue in a carriage, wandering around the continent, avoiding the search of the Scales of Order, the so-called "wandering church".

"No." Rochelle shook her head. "It's just some inspiration I got after traveling all over the Westland. Every piece of land has a different temperament and deeply affects the people living there. Mr. Ling, you are calm, rational, and very realistic. This cold temperament is the most typical feature of the Linville land, as obvious as the harshness and arrogance of the Renweting people, the indulgence and decadence of the Fontainebleau people, and the rigidity and seriousness of the Qisaiya people."

Rochelle asked him, "So, have you heard about Han Yue's 'Blood Moon Incident'?"

Lingge did not deny it, but asked him: "How did you know that? Is it your intuition?"

"Are you from Linville, Mr. Ling?" Rochelle asked suddenly.

Blood Moon Mutation? Ling Ge was stunned for a moment, then realized that he was referring to the muted incident that should have occurred on the day of the negotiation between the Linville Parish Council and the Religious Mutual Aid Association. The young man nodded slightly: "I experienced it myself."

It may even change your future destiny.

"That was a ceremony held by the pseudo-evil god Celestial Feast, believed in by the cult organization Blood Red Feast, in an attempt to advance himself from a Sequence 3 Immortal of the Monster Path to a Sequence 2 Dragon Blood Descendant." Rochelle's words allowed Linger to come into contact with the truth of the mutation for the first time: "The Celestial Feast colluded with the original ancestor of the blood race, Night Mother, to establish Blood Red Feast, absorbed a group of evil vampires and magicians of the Monster Path, and disguised themselves in the name of the Crimson Prayer Society, painstakingly creating a situation, but unfortunately failed in the end. This is not a failure at the last moment. In fact, all his plans have been closely watched by the people of the cult from the beginning, and there is no possibility of success." Linger frowned when he heard this: "Closely watched by the people of the cult from the beginning? But the mutation was not stopped. Do you want to say that the cult deliberately indulged?"

"Yes." Rochelle said in a deep voice: "This is their style of doing things. In order to achieve a certain goal, it doesn't matter how many innocent lives are sacrificed."

"So, what did these cultists who indulged in blood-red feasts and planned a change in Linweier City achieve in the end?"

"The Celestial Feastman is dead."

Rochelle's calm tone made Lingge fall silent for a moment: "They were careless in their planning and exposed the location of their lair. They were blocked from retreating by the Constructed Mecha [Earth Witch - Scarlet Night Gate] of the Inquisition and were tried. The false evil god Celestial Feaster tried to confront the Judgment Cannon head-on, but was eventually killed. If Night Mother had not already fled to the East Continent, she would have met the same fate. Once Celestial Feaster died, the Blood Red Banquet fell apart. Although some believers still put up a strong resistance, it was only a matter of time before they were destroyed."

In other words, a cult organization backed by an evil god was destroyed so easily? Even the gods they believed in could not escape, just because they accidentally exposed their location?
As a person who had personally experienced the blood moon incident and had experienced the filth and evil up close, the young man found it hard to believe what he had heard. However, Rochelle had no reason to deceive himself, so this could only mean that the combined power of the cult was indeed very strong, stronger than the information that the young man could understand.

"Constructed mecha, Earth Witch - Feiyemente?" The young man repeated the unfamiliar term in a low voice, and then asked: "What is this? It sounds like some kind of...machine?"

"Yes, the so-called constructed mecha is a giant war weapon built by the cult union based on magic and steam technology. Their existence is the greatest military support for the cult union, and it is an extremely magnificent force that humans cannot imagine."

Rochelle paused for a moment, then said to him in a tone that sounded almost like a warning, "At any time, anyone—whether a magician or a mortal, an alien or a human, even a Sequence 1 True God—do not dream of being able to compete with the Construct Mechas of the Order. Countless people have paid the price for this in the past, and the Celestial Feast is the closest example."

Lingge was silent for a moment, and then replied: "I never do anything irrational."

It is obviously not rational to seek death.

"Besides," the young man added, "I have never thought of joining forces with the cult to fight against it."

This is the truth.

On the one hand, the goal of finding the royal power of the young girl does not conflict with the position of the united cult. At most, it is because the identities of magicians and aliens need to be carefully avoided. On the other hand, the strength comparison between the two sides cannot be described as "confrontation" at all. In fact, it should be "crushing".

The wheels of this magnificent chariot were rolling past, pushing an era forward. Anyone who tried to resist was like an ant standing in front of the wheel, destined to be crushed into dust under the mud and rocks. Linger didn't want to be one of them. So, even though Alice had set the Church Alliance as an imaginary enemy countless times, he never showed any hostility.

"Rational judgment."

Rochelle said: "But sometimes, you have to choose to be an enemy."

Have to be enemies?
The young man was puzzled, and the traveler from the Fertile Soil Sect uttered a sentence gently. It was something that the young man had long forgotten. Every time he was about to recall it, he would intentionally or unintentionally ignore it until now, when Rochelle revealed it again: "Two days later, January 1856, 1."

“The supplementary regulations of the Religious Decree will be formally implemented.”

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)