Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 916 Have you been waiting all this time?

"When I was ten, my mother died of illness. When I was thirteen, my father fought a fierce battle with the beast and sealed it at the cost of his life. It was in this year that I became the only hope of the Gustaf family. My grandfather had high hopes for me. He once taught me martial arts and riding skills himself, but was soon forced to give up due to physical reasons. So he invited an old retired instructor from the army. He was not only my grandfather's comrade-in-arms, but also one of the few people he admired in his life. He taught me how to become a qualified warrior."

"In my impression, the old instructor is a kind and amiable elder. He usually behaves like an ordinary grandfather, talking to us with a smile, and sometimes even teases the children in the town with candies. Chloe's brother, my current family knight, Worzel, was teased by him before. But once he starts training, he becomes very strict, even harsh. He always points out my shortcomings in training and doesn't give me, a young lady, any face. He often says: On the battlefield, a small mistake may lead to death, or even endanger the lives of teammates. Therefore, no matter you are a young lady or anything else, you are not qualified to make mistakes."

The girl's narration portrayed an upright and dignified image of a soldier for the young man: "At that time, I was still very immature. I had not lost my childish impulses, but I still retained my competitive character. I was naturally very dissatisfied with his ruthless accusations. So on the first day of training, I made a bold move, which was to challenge him. He seemed to accept my challenge in order to dampen my enthusiasm."

At this point, she chuckled, as if she found her childish self at that time very funny: "The result was naturally my miserable defeat. He even said before the battle that you don't need to defeat me, as long as you can touch my sword, you will win. But in the battle, he played me like a headless fly, running around everywhere, unable to break through his defense, and in the end he hit me on the wrist with the hilt of his sword. With just one move, I dropped my weapon and refused to admit defeat."

"That battle made me realize the difference in strength between the two sides, and I began to appreciate his teachings. But at the same time, the spirit of not admitting defeat began to surge up again, and I couldn't accept such a humiliating defeat. So I trained desperately afterwards. From the moment I opened my eyes in the morning to the moment I closed my eyes and fell asleep at night, all I thought about was training. The old instructor said that I was a sponge. I would desperately absorb those combat skills and knowledge as long as I had the opportunity. Maybe in less than two years, I will have nothing to teach you."

"But in fact, the time he had was shorter than expected. Just three months later, I defeated him in a head-on duel, and all I used were the moves he taught me." Xino looked up, and the sparse stars in the night sky began to twinkle. "I was naturally very happy, and the old instructor who was defeated by his student was not angry. On the contrary, he was very pleased and told my grandfather that this child has fighting blood in her bones, and one day she will grow to a level that none of us can imagine."

"I have been recognized - an indescribable sense of pride filled my heart, and for the first time, I was resolute in my determination to move forward. I am sure that I can become stronger until I realize the long-cherished wish of my family and make up for the regrets left by my grandfather and father."

Xino clenched her palms gently, and the rose pattern on the white gloves gently rubbed her palms, which made her feel a little stinging, so she slowly loosened her hands and said calmly: "But this feeling did not last too long. About the sixth day after the battle, I learned an unexpected news: After losing to the students and feeling that he had nothing to teach me, the old instructor resigned and returned to his hometown. One afternoon, he took a nap in the rocking chair in the courtyard and never woke up again."

Ling'er's eyes fixed, and he suddenly understood something. Xinuo looked at his expression, and a casual smile appeared on his face, which was illuminated by the cold light in the cemetery: "Just as you thought, Mr. Ling, my curse began to take shape at that time. But the instructor was already old, so both his family and I, a student, thought he just died of old age. Who would associate an old man's long sleep in the afternoon with an absurd curse?"

"So after attending the funeral of the old instructor, I continued to walk on this path with a sad but more determined mood." She raised her hand and pointed to the night ahead, her eyes a little blurred, as if the road was extending in her eyes at this moment, although Ling Ge saw only endless darkness. "My martial arts have been honed and proficient. Grandfather tried to let me participate in actual combat to accumulate experience. As the heir of the Gustaf family, courses such as culture and etiquette are also indispensable. In addition, there are also studies in many fields such as politics, astronomy, geography, etc. Grandfather hopes to train me into a perfect heir. Destroying the synthetic monsters is only a temporary goal. He is sure that I will have greater development in the future."

"For ordinary people, the course is extremely tedious and heavy, but I persevered with tenacity. In the process of studying day after day, the old instructor's evaluation of me at that time was once again realized. He said that I was a sponge, and I could absorb ideals and beliefs as long as I had the opportunity. So, no matter how hard the training was or how obscure the knowledge was, as long as I took it seriously, like facing a serious battle with a never-give-up attitude, then I would often be the final winner; but at the same time, every time I won a victory, there would always be someone around me, like the old instructor, who left me unknowingly."

"The uncle who led me in combat training had served as a knight of the Gustaf family for twenty years. He saw me pierce the throat of the monster that was endangering the countryside with my spear. He taught me how to apply the skills I learned in actual combat, but he died in his hospital bed soon after due to a recurrence of his old injuries. The teacher who taught me cultural courses helped me master the three-year courses of other college students in just six months. He praised my learning and comprehension abilities, but he lost his life in an accident. There are many more examples: the old gardener who was responsible for mowing the lawn in the garden, the coachman who had served the Gustaf family for many years, and even -"

Xino paused and looked back. The old butler Weber had left without knowing when, deliberately avoiding the conversation between the two. He only left a candlelight at the spot. The faint candlelight illuminated the surrounding tombstones, and those bleak gray-white tombstones were thus covered with a layer of warm glow. The girl sighed softly: "Weber's wife, Mrs. Stella, who treated me very well, also passed away one night and left us forever. The day before her death, I just passed the entrance examination of Sumya National University and ranked first among all freshmen. For me, that was a victory."

But at the same time, it is also a sacrifice.

Lingge remained silent, listening to Xinuo's sad voice echoing in the cemetery: "During that time, the Xiaduoli Manor seemed to be shrouded in the shadow of death, but the reputation of the Whitethorn Flower was here, and no one suspected that this matter was related to me. They just lamented the impermanence of the world. A person who was originally fine would leave us in a flash."

This is the cruelty of fate, but what is even crueler is, what if these deaths were not accidents, but were inadvertently caused by a girl who was desperately pursuing victory?

"The only person who felt something was wrong was me, who was at the center of the vortex. When the girl who tried her best to do everything for the best suddenly found herself caught in a huge conspiracy of fate, and that many lives might be lost in her hands and become an inch of dust under the vast dust, she began to feel fear. Although every deceased person was not killed by her own hands, the person who caused the tragedy was undoubtedly the most cruel murderer in the world, because many people had sacrificed for her victory, but she was unaware of it, and was complacent and self-satisfied." "The girl who understood this, her emotional breakdown and drastic change in personality happened overnight. The next day, she found her grandfather, told him all the truth, and then told him: I don’t want to continue fighting, because I don’t want to see more sacrifices."

"I thought that such a weak decision would lead to Grandfather's failure to me. I could even imagine his harsh words of rebuke. How could a knight who was afraid of seeing sacrifices become the banner bearer of the white thorn emblem and not bring shame to the reputation of our ancestors? But the fact is the opposite. After listening to my request, Grandfather did sigh, but that sigh did not mean disappointment, but only a sense of relief. Then he said to me: In this case, you don't have to fight."

"Live like a normal girl."

The girl raised her head and looked into the night sky. The thick night sky blocked her sight like a fog, making it difficult to see the road ahead. The bright road that had been spread out in front of the girl was buried deep in the memory of time along with the heavy decision she made after crying and suffering. "So I laid down my weapon and entered Sumya State University for further studies. Because of my interest in the wind flower ball, I met good friends such as Phyllis, George, Vincent and Leila, including Claire."

When Lingge mentioned this name, he was in a trance for a moment, because if he remembered correctly, the girl named Claire died of lung disease after she and Shino participated in the college championship and won the championship. Could it be that it was not an accident, but...

"Just as you thought." Xinuo's calm voice came: "I failed to keep the promise with my grandfather and become an ordinary girl living in the world. That failure also made me lose the best friend in my life."

Because he was looking up, Ling Ge did not see that the wine-red eyes were gradually emptying. Under the cold light of the cemetery, they were swaying with a vague shadow, like a huge shadow in the heart, always shrouding the girl's memories: "Claire is a very special girl. She is optimistic, cheerful, strong, and always has a smile on her face. Every time I see her, it always reminds me of my past self. Perhaps this is why we can become good friends. Claire's talent and passion for wind flower balls are so surging that no one can match them. It is probably hard for you to imagine that a freshman who just enrolled in school has won the recognition of everyone in the club in less than half a school year, and even attracted the attention of some professional clubs. Her dream is dazzling, shining like the sun on the club at that time, making everyone follow and admire her."

"As someone who loves polo so much, she was naturally extremely excited when she heard that the college championship was about to be held. Although many people invited her to form a team to participate in the competition, the person she finally chose was me. At that time, I had long forgotten my competitive past and became a person who was unwilling to give my all even in training, because I knew that once I devoted myself, both the victory and the sacrifice that followed would be unimaginably painful."

Xino was no longer talking to Lingge, but was completely immersed in her own memories, muttering to herself: "This attitude inevitably caused criticism. Some people thought that I was just a show-off and had tarnished my mother's reputation. Vincent was one of them, but he was straightforward, so in the end we became friends, but more people spread rumors in dark corners, such as the cold arrows that were difficult to guard against on the battlefield. Faced with these criticisms, I was always unable to refute them and could only acquiesce in their thinking. But Claire said to me, you have to prove to them that you are not only the daughter of the legendary player Mistian, but also Xino Qin Gustaf. All the glory you have comes from your strength, not from having a good mother or a background that ordinary people can hardly reach."

"I wanted to say that such proof was unnecessary. I was no longer the knight who regarded honor and disgrace as life and death. I was just an ordinary girl. But Claire was too persistent. Not only did she pester me at school, she even ran to the Chardoly Manor once to talk to my grandfather, hoping to persuade me to change my mind. Perhaps to help me get rid of my inner demons, although my grandfather did not agree, he remained silent. In the end, I really couldn't stand her enthusiasm, so I agreed to accompany her to the competition. At that time, I thought to myself, as long as I didn't take it too seriously, it would be fine."

However, this idea is often just wishful thinking.

Xino smiled bitterly. "At the beginning, I was able to maintain a relaxed attitude and participate in the competition as if it were a leisurely outing in the countryside. However, the consequence of doing so was that Claire took on the pressure that should have belonged to me. She had to challenge the two opponents alone, and we actually won the first few games with her personal strength. I feel guilty about this because I know that this is only temporary. Once she encounters a truly powerful opponent, she may not be able to continue. This is all caused by me. I am an immature companion. If I could not take responsibility, I should have decisively refused at the beginning."

"However, Claire did not blame me. All I heard from her were praises for the opponent and expectations for the next game. Even when the game was at a disadvantage, she would smile at me and pat her chest to assure me: There will be no problem because I am here."

The voice faded like the night, and the look between the girl's eyebrows gradually revealed a heavy melancholy: "Only once, she fell asleep in the lounge because she was too tired after the game. I was sitting next to her, and for the first time I heard her whisper the truth in her sleep. She said - Xinuo, when will you recognize me?"

"It turns out that she was not unaware, she was just waiting for me the whole time."

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)