Alice in the Land of Steam

Is Chapter 542 becoming more and more mysterious?
"It sounds like Miss Rolena is a very special person." Lingge ignored the old man's ridicule and asked, "Can you tell me more about her?"

The old man glanced at him and said: "You look like a Great Brittany, but I didn't expect your tone to be so much like a White City person."

Lingge was stunned at first, but then he realized that the old man had misunderstood what he meant: as a romantic country that had given birth to many writers and philosophers, the people of the White City Republic have always been famous for their romantic affairs. From royal nobles to ordinary people, men all regard it as a virtue to please women with their charm, and regard trysts in the middle of the night as a solemn pilgrimage of knights; women are proud to be pursued by men, and regard every man who bows down to them as a jewel in the crown.

But another opposite of romance is "decadence", so there is a saying circulating in the White City Republic: every White City person has the most loyal soul in the world, because they may not be loyal to their partners, but they are absolutely loyal to their lovers.

The old man saw that Lingge was clearly accompanied by a female companion, but he still asked him about Lorena, and he mistakenly thought that the young man had some improper thoughts, so he made sarcastic remarks. It was not surprising that he thought so, after all, Lorena was indeed a young and beautiful girl, not to mention that she had a melancholy temperament like a sickly beauty, which easily aroused the desire of men to love and protect her.

He had to explain that he had no intention of doing so: "I think you may have misunderstood. This has nothing to do with me being from Great Brittany or the White City. It's just that I ordered some goods from Miss Lorena and I want to know if she is a reliable person."

In order to convince the old man of this explanation, he also deliberately emphasized the price: "I don't want to waste my 10 pounds on her empty promises."

10 pounds is indeed a high price. If you spend it frugally, it is enough for a family of three to live for two months. Therefore, it is normal for Linger to have doubts in this regard. The old man heard this and his expression eased a little: "You don't have to worry about this. I don't know much about the child's other aspects, but her craftsmanship is absolutely trustworthy. If you think my guarantee is not enough, you can ask other residents around. I'm afraid they will give you the same answer."

"So," Ling Ge keenly noticed the other implication in his words, "Is Miss Rorona very popular in the streets around here?"

"If you had asked me this question six years ago, I would have told you that I had never heard of this name," the old man said as he rolled tobacco leaves. "But if you ask me now, I will tell you that there is no doubt that almost all the residents of this street have been helped by Lorena, and therefore, they all care about her like I do, just like they care about their own children."

As he spoke, he suddenly raised his crippled left leg, gently kicked the counter, making a muffled sound, and said, "When I was young, I was a seaman. I followed the great Santa Matica and traveled across the five oceans. At my highest position, I served as the ship's boatswain. But the ship ran aground due to a shipwreck in the summer of 1834. From then on, it could no longer ride the waves and travel the four seas. In the end, it became an exhibit in the Timida Maritime Museum, and my maritime career also ended at that time. But what forced me to give up was not my own heart, but the half leg that was bitten off by a crazy beast, the butcher on the seabed, when I unfortunately fell into the sea in that terrible disaster. How can a cripple walk freely on the bumpy deck, and how can he deal with the challenges of other ambitious young men? I saw the darkness in my life, so I decided to give up and returned to my hometown, Lothana, to run a small hotel here. I thought that the rest of my life would just be a struggle, and no one would give a disabled person a caring and comforting look."

"But Rorona helped me regain my confidence in life. I don't know how she did it, but she made a prosthetic leg out of wood, brass and gears, and installed it on me. When I put on the prosthetic leg, it felt no different from my original leg, except that I was used to walking with crutches, so I still limped a little. But it was enough. I never thought I would have a second chance to walk with my legs in this life. It is no exaggeration to say that it was the child who gave me a second life. You should understand the meaning of this."

At the end of his words, he glanced at Lingge indifferently, and the young man sat in front of the counter and fell silent.

No wonder the old man's kicking sounded dull just now, it turned out that the leg was made of wood. If he hadn't said it himself, Ling Ge really wouldn't have noticed it. Of course, it was because of the dim light and the unclear view, but it was also true that the leg made by Rolena was too realistic and confusing.

As the old man told the story, Linger gradually learned more about the girl. For example, she came to Lotterdana six years ago, alone, with unknown origins. At that time, the nearby residents were still worried about the terrifying, rapid and unprovoked changes in the city. No one noticed her appearance, let alone a shop called "Lorena's Magical Workshop" appeared in a remote alley. But soon, Lorena got closer to the residents with her enthusiasm, kindness and some strange abilities.

No one knows what "Lorena's Magical Workshop" sells, because it seems that everything can be found in that shop, and those magical products all seem to be made by the girl. She not only made a lifelike artificial leg for the lonely old man in Seabird's Rest, but also made a toy cat that can act coquettishly, play and accompany the widowed old lady in Maria Street to bask in the sun, made coal lamps for residents in difficult circumstances that only need a small amount of kerosene to light up the whole night, made storybooks for children on the street that can be opened to see three-dimensional pictures and music accompaniment, and provided people who were sick and had no money for treatment with medicines they had never seen before but were indeed effective... She seemed to be omnipotent, and everything seemed to be found in that workshop. No matter what kind of difficulties you have, she can help you solve them with her ingenuity and extensive knowledge, and the cost is often very low, sometimes even free.

When Lingge heard this, he couldn't help but think of the ordinary goods he had seen in the workshop before. At that time, they were all placed on the shelves, no different from ordinary objects, but the girl said that these goods "are unique in the world and can never be found anywhere else." He thought it was a boast by the merchant to promote the goods. But now it seems to be true?

The young man couldn't help but ask: "Since she can make so many amazing and cheap products, why is this store not famous at all?"

Hidden in a remote alley, usually no one passes by, there is no sign about it on the street signs, and its name is never heard from passers-by. Only specific people, at specific times, by chance can enter this workshop and get the girl's approval, allowing him to buy those magical goods in her shop... This sounds like a plot that only appears in a fantasy story.

"That girl doesn't mind us telling others her name and the location of her shop, but we all know that she doesn't like dealing with strangers. She herself said that she hopes to have a stable environment to conduct her research, so of course we won't do that." The old man's tone was serious, tapping Ling Ge like hitting iron felt: "If you want to do business with her, you have to abide by her rules, young man."

"I see." A thoughtful look appeared in the young man's eyes. He replied, "I won't do anything unnecessary."

The old man nodded with satisfaction, withdrew his gaze, and continued to pass the time with dried silver pine leaves and tobacco.

He didn't seem to want to talk further, and Linger was no longer in the mood to chat. After listening to the story, he roughly understood Lorena's origins, but he still had some questions in his mind: The old man didn't mention Lorena's illness, was it because he didn't know? Since Lorena could make medicine for other patients, why didn't she cure her own illness? And what was Lorena's "research" about?
That girl is becoming more and more of a mystery.

"Hey, Lingge!" A arrogant voice suddenly came from the stairs: "When are we going to eat?"

"..."

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)