Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 454: Did I finally meet the real person?

The situation is terrible.

In other words, it can't be worse than it is now.

They were being surrounded by the Balance of Order troops. Every cold and empty gun barrel was ready to fire. The air was filled with a heavy atmosphere that was enough to make one's breathing stop. There were still artillery fire in the distance, but the roaring and falling magic beams made the night here even darker and more solitude.

There was no doubt that they had stepped into a trap set by the cult. Perhaps from the beginning, their actions had never left the enemy's sight and they were always under their surveillance. Linger was a little annoyed that he had not discovered it in time, but he remained calm and composed as usual. He kept thinking about ways to escape. Ideas emerged one by one, and were rejected one by one.

On the hillside not far away, the magic knights in tight formation suddenly opened a passage to let the two people enter the encirclement, and then quickly closed it. As they moved, their silver-white armor collided with each other, making a rustling sound, which gathered together like a tide, crisp and pleasant, making people feel as if they were in an elegant concert hall, rather than a remote and dark corner of the wilderness.

Ling'er's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of armor colliding and rubbing. He raised his head and his eyes fell on the two people. One of them was a middle-aged man with black hair, beard, brown eyes, and a walnut cane. He was dignified and majestic, but the corners of his mouth were always slightly raised, as if he was smiling, giving people a gentle and humorous feeling; the other was a young woman with golden hair and blue eyes. Her hairstyle was meticulously groomed, and the ends of her hair were tied tightly with red ribbons, without even a single strand of hair falling loose. She folded her hands in front of her and her expression was solemn and dignified, giving people a cold and unapproachable feeling.

Both of them wore the iconic silver-white uniforms of the Balance of Order, but the patterns and decorations were different. The former wore swords and golden ears, with a medal on his chest, while the latter wore a scale, with a dark blue cloak on his shoulders that swayed gently in the night breeze.

The voice I just heard came from this man's mouth.

"Nice to meet you all." He nodded gracefully, as if he were entertaining guests at a banquet, although his guests were not very happy to accept such a warm welcome.

Looking at the aura of superiors emanating from these two guys, one can tell that they are undoubtedly high-ranking officials of the Inquisition.

Nevile's eyes fixed, and she recognized the origins of the two men. "Chief Political Officer Charles Dickens and Chief Secretary Chrystiaan Huygens? I didn't expect that small characters like us could alarm the left and right arms of the Scale of Order to come out in person. I am really honored."

She said it was an honor, but in the end she snorted coldly, feeling quite unhappy. Obviously, she had walked into the trap set by the enemy without any preparation, which made the countess feel extremely humiliated.

With his long-term vision and skillful political skills, Chief Political Officer Charles Dickens enabled the Inquisition, a huge organization independent of the secular administrative agencies, to obtain the same power as the law enforcement, judicial and detention agencies of various countries, and also provided a solid support for the legal basis of the balance of order. This made him highly praised and vilified, but no matter those who praised him or those who slandered him, they could not deny that this middle-aged gentleman was the most powerful "left arm" of the power monster of the Inquisition.

Chief Secretary Christian Huygens relied on his calm judgment and extremely sensitive digital logic processing ability to manage the internal affairs of the Balance of Order in an orderly manner for six years after taking office. Under her support and guidance, the Silver Mad Dogs, which were already feared by aliens and magicians, expanded their influence even more, almost to the point of fearing the mysterious world. Although this achievement is not known to mortals in the secular world, those who deeply hate the Silver Mad Dogs should also have the same hatred for her, and unwillingly admit that she is the most stable "right arm" supporting the dark giant of the Inquisition.

The "left arm" of the power monster and the "right arm" of the dark giant now appeared in front of her. This seemed to be more honorable than the Archbishop of St. Victoria Cathedral in the Rainy Harbor, but not everyone can enjoy this honor.

"Do you know us?" Dickens asked with interest. Neville replied coldly: "When you live long enough, you will always know a lot of people you didn't know before."

"Oh?" Dickens looked her up and down, a thoughtful expression on his face. After a while, he said thoughtfully, "So, you are the immortal witch who has been rumored for a long time on the peninsula and once became a strange story. Or should I call you: the silver-eyed countess?"

"How you address me is your business, and has nothing to do with me."

Nevi'er sneered, revealing her sharp fangs, which glowed coldly. "I never thought you mad dogs were so polite. When you're not killing people, are you always thinking about how to address your enemies, young lady, madam, or honorable lord? To be honest, I got tired of this five hundred years ago."

Her sarcasm was so sharp that Lingge and the others were a little worried that the other party might be angry. But Dickens maintained his good manners, smiled and nodded, and said, "It is indeed my negligence to care about words in front of an elder. Please forgive me."

This open attitude made it difficult for Nevile to continue to ridicule, otherwise she would appear too petty, like a shrew who only knows how to curse in public. The aesthetics that the Countess has always favored is: attack your enemy with words to make him lose his mind, rather than attack yourself.

She stopped talking, but suddenly a surprised voice came from the side: "Wait, wait, wait, wait!"

Alice didn't know what was wrong with her, and took a step forward. This made the surrounding Magic Knights and Constructed Robots subconsciously tighten their triggers. There was a sound of metal friction, and it seemed that a conflict might break out at any time. But she didn't care at all, and pointed at the left arm of the Inquisition, dumbfounded: "You said, your name is Charles Dickens!?"

"Yes." The middle-aged gentleman smiled and nodded: "If there is no second Dickens."

Then, the girl moved her trembling fingers to the right arm of the Vatican, who was frowning beside him and seemed very dissatisfied with this rash behavior: "And you said, your name is Christian Huygens!?"

The chief clerk, with a serious and stern expression, did not answer, but just nodded slightly.

After receiving affirmative responses from the two, Alice was finally sure that what she had just heard was not an illusion. She exhaled deeply, as if to expel all the surprise and suspicion accumulated in her chest, like a factory chimney expelling a large cloud of dirty gray smoke, and then turned her head and said to Lingge:

“I finally saw the real person.”

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)