Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 940 Are You a Champion Too?

Looking down from the sky, the Alpis Mountains are like a silver dragon, stretching between the North Ashok Mountains and the Belladiya Plateau. The continuous and majestic snow-capped peaks surround the vast and silent fog forest. When the wind carrying the vast snow dust blows, it sets off layers of spectacular green waves. Countless branches sway with it, exposing the human villages and towns hidden in them, as well as the occasional glimpse of miniature cities.

Due to the terrain and topography, the towns in the North Ashok Mountains are generally small. Even the capital of the ancient mountain fortress with the largest territory, the densest population, and the strongest national power in the region, the city of Parades, known as the "City of Rocks", is only one-fifth the size of the city of Sumya. These small towns are distributed in the valleys covering an area of ​​about 9.2 million square kilometers. They seem so small, like ancient shipwrecks stranded in the depths of the sea, silently watching the direction they came from.

Shino rode her horse Brandi around the edge of the sky island a few times. The snow-white mane shone like golden silk in the winter sun. This distance was very dangerous. It was actually like walking on the edge of a cliff. Going down was 10,000 meters in the sky. Even the clouds were underfoot. If you accidentally lost your footing, it would definitely be a disaster.

But the precious divine horse from the highest peak of the Losser Mountains remained calm and continued to stroll leisurely, with a posture and pace as calm as if it was strolling on the horse farm of the Chardouri Manor. The knight on the horse also ignored the danger in front of him, staring at the ancient mountain range passing through the valley fog forest with a focused expression, and admired its magnificence and grandeur in his heart.

"Although I have heard that the Alps are the highest, longest and widest in the western continent, how can I believe that there is such a magnificent wonder in the world unless I see it with my own eyes?"

The girl exclaimed in admiration from the bottom of her heart. Although her hometown, Grindelwald Plains, had beautiful rural scenery and large tracts of grape plantations, the prosperous beauty created by humans was still inferior to the wonders of nature.

Brandi followed up with two barks, seemingly agreeing with her master.

"Hehe." Xino pursed her lips, and two beautiful dimples appeared on her cheeks. She reached out and gently stroked the mane of her beloved horse, and asked: "Do you also remember your hometown, Brandi?"

The hometown of Sun Snow is on the majestic Mount Loser. It is said that the highest and coldest snow peak hides their traces. However, after a long search, only the ancestors of the Gustave family have seen it. Therefore, Sun Snow has become the symbol of the Knight of Whitethorn Flower. Brandy is not a domesticated wild horse. He grew up in the Chardoli Manor and has never returned to the snowy mountains of Loser. But Xino believes that the memories of his hometown are still in his blood and will never be cut off.

"Don't worry." She said to her horse, "I'm afraid we'll have to stay in the mountains for a while this time. You haven't run on a snowy mountain before, have you? You can have fun this time, Brandi."

"Whirl!"

Brandi's voice was filled with joy and excitement, and she was full of anticipation for the scene that Shino described.

"But before that," Xino gently pulled the reins and made it turn its head towards the hotel: "We have to ask Lingge when we can land."

Since leaving Grindelwald Field, Whale Cloud Island has been flying in the sky for more than a month. Now it is the end of the Ice Moon, and the three coldest months of the year are coming. If it weren't for the warm air currents summoned by the angel Ieta surrounding Whale Cloud Island, the streets, forests and flower fields here would have been covered with thick snow and completely frozen by the frost wind.

During the long voyage, Xinuo would occasionally think of her hometown and her relatives and friends there, just like now. However, since she had not been away from home for a long time, this longing had not yet fermented into longing, and the novelty of the journey was still enough to surpass everything else, providing a happy mood for this girl who rarely came into contact with the outside world.

Not to mention that she already knew the next destination from Lingge. Mount Osor near Heidblosburg, the "City of Mountains", was only a temporary stop. The group would use that mountain as a starting point and follow the path that Saint Tumi had taken, once again practicing the feat of mortals exploring the universe.

Traveling in the endless and brilliant starry sky and searching for ancient relics created by gods, this romantic sentiment makes the girl fascinated and unable to restrain herself.

"By then, you will also be the first horse to set foot in the universe. This is an honorable title, Brandi."

Shino teased with a smile.

Brandi didn't understand the meaning of this title yet. In his mind, it was probably not as important as fresh fodder. When he thought of fodder, he felt a little hungry. It was lunch time, so he carried Shino on his back and trotted along the wooden boardwalk that surrounded the entire Cloud Whale Sky Island to the location of the Fairy Sleep Inn.

The route of the man and horse's walk happened to pass by various important buildings on Yunjingkong Island. Therefore, Xino, who was riding on horseback, saw several familiar figures one after another.

Rorona was working hard on a new tool in the alchemy workshop. She was holding a feather pen and writing on the design on the workbench. There were many discarded manuscripts piled up next to her, making the room look messy. The sea angel dolls, who were responsible for daily chores, were afraid of disturbing their master's thoughts, so they shrank behind the curtains and dared not make a sound to disturb him. But at this time, Brandi's horse hooves stepped on the dead branches and leaves on the ground, making a clattering sound that came from far away. Although Shino deliberately slowed down when he approached the workshop, Princess Haiqi's ears moved slightly and still caught the faint movement. She raised her head and her eyes happened to meet Shino who was riding on horseback through the window glass. The two people's eyes touched and separated in mid-air, and they both nodded slightly and greeted each other with a smile. The primrose fields in winter are still prosperous and brilliant, and much more lively than before. Not only are there warblers singing, deer spirits walking, but even in the swaying primrose waves, there are lively laughter and singing of fairies from time to time: a group of flower fairies who moved from the Forest of Loser settled here and were warmly welcomed by the owner. These small and exquisite elves who are good at cultivating flowers with natural magic are like traveler fairies, and are very popular in fairy tales of aliens and humans. Moreover, they from the Forest of Loser are particularly familiar with the sound of horses' hooves galloping past the edge of the flower field. Whether they are playing or singing, they all stop what they are doing, jump and fly among the flowers, and greet the girl on horseback warmly. This movement awakened the real owner of the flower field. She broke free from the confusion of waking up from her nap, and when she looked up, she happened to see this scene, so she waved to the girl, who also smiled and nodded, and then flew away with dust and grass clippings.

The two-story chapel is shaded by wisteria and autumn chestnuts. Perhaps due to the climate, the plants on this island always grow very fast. In just half a year, creepers and green vines have covered the white walls, covering the stained glass windows that the pink-haired girl asked the proprietress to prepare carefully. The palm-sized leaves are stacked one after another, and they surge like waves when the wind blows. In the rustling sound of the leaves, you can vaguely hear the voice of Saint Shalia lecturing the little girls. She no longer tells fairy tales, but some folk anecdotes and ancient legends, which she wrote down during her wandering journey in the past. Most of the stories she can remember are rich in life philosophy, which is suitable for little girls to learn the spirit of them.

In addition, Sister Livia occasionally tells them some religious stories and teaches them to sing the solemn "Psalms of Consecration". She used to be the leader of the choir at St. Annville Cross Church. Although there are only three little girls now, the singing effect is not inferior to the choir with two hundred devout believers and golden organ instruments. This is a matter of course. Sister Livia often thinks: Who made St. Annville Cross Church without the great Holy Spirit?
When Xino passed by Tianxin Church, it was almost time for the get out of class to end. Except for Metien who could concentrate on the class, the other two little girls were a little absent-minded. Especially when they heard the sound of horse hooves coming from the window, they all looked for help, hoping that the kind-hearted people passing by could interrupt the endless lecture and let them finish the class and eat early. However, Xino just smiled at these looks for help and didn't take them to heart. She also felt that the little girls should study hard, otherwise they would not be able to achieve great things in the future. If she had not just joined Yunjingkong Island and was still getting familiar with the atmosphere and environment here, she might have recommended herself to Saint Xia Liya to teach mathematics to the little girls.

By then, Leticia and Shemi's situation will only become more difficult. After all, compared with the terrifying mathematics, what are some anecdotes and religious allusions?

Fortunately, this has not happened yet, so they can still complain and fish in troubled waters under the deliberate connivance of Saint Xia Liya, and look at Xino riding on horseback, galloping past the church with envy, raising a trail of dust. Before leaving, the girl looked back at the spire of the church. It is said that Lingge used to be the priest of Tianxin Church, and this church was the legacy left to him by his adoptive father, but it was temporarily closed for special reasons. When it was reopened, it was replaced by Metien to manage daily affairs.

Why did the young man resist again and again? What did he want to inherit, and what did he not want to inherit? It was a deep mystery, just like this sky island. Even after more than a month of exploration, many places were still shrouded in mystery, waiting for her to explore.

"Whirl!"

Just as she was lost in thought, Brandi suddenly neighed, and then stopped on her own without the control of her owner. The girl on the horse subconsciously pulled the reins, and when she looked up, she saw the sign of the Fairy Inn. The ivy patterns outlined elegant lines along the edge, and the ancient Aldean characters on it were as beautiful as an artist's meticulous painting, revealing a hint of history in the vicissitudes of life.

The air was filled with the aroma of food. It was noon, and the proprietress must have prepared a sumptuous meal for everyone in the kitchen. With a light sniff, Xinuo guessed that the main dishes for lunch today should be wine-roasted steak and pan-fried silver trout. It was not because her nose was so sensitive, but because these two dishes happened to be the specialties of Grindelwald Wilderness. The proprietress, Shesta, was a gentle person. She took good care of this newcomer who had just arrived on the island and specially prepared hometown delicacies to help her ease the unfamiliarity of traveling far away from home.

However, after eating Grindelwald's food for more than a month, Xino didn't know whether others were tired of it, but she, a native, was a little fed up. She was just looking for an opportunity to tell the proprietress that she didn't need to take her feelings into consideration and just prepare food according to everyone's preferences.

But it might be too late today.

Xino got off the horse, patted his good partner's neck, and asked, "I'm going to have lunch first, Brandi, what about you? Do you want to go for a walk by yourself, or go back to the stable to rest?"

It's funny to say that there was no stable on the Cloud Whale Sky Island originally, but after Xino arrived on the island, Alice asked her if she also wanted to build a wonder on the island? Xino was confused at the time and didn't understand what this meant. Then Alice gave her a few examples, such as Countess Nevile and her lovely granddaughter built a church and school on the island after they arrived on the island; Rorona built an alchemy workshop on the island after she arrived on the island, so you must have some wonders you want to build, right?
Xino thought this was some kind of custom, and as a newcomer she couldn't escape the convention, so she thought about it carefully. She didn't have any special needs, but she couldn't let her good partner Brandi live with her in the Fairy Sleep Inn, nor could she let her sleep in the wilderness. So she suggested building a stable. It didn't need to be too big, but it could allow Brandi to have a good rest.

However, this reasonable request made Alice very dissatisfied, because she felt that Shino was too unambitious. There was such a large area on the Sky Island where you could build wonders, but you only wanted a small stable? Is this appropriate?

She proposed on the spot to build a new stadium on the Whale Sky Island, and the specifications must be aligned with the Willyard Stadium in Sumiya City, and it would be best if it could accommodate two million spectators at the same time to enjoy the wonderful performance of the Scarlet End Demon King. As for whether the Sky Island could gather two million spectators...it was not important. Alice said that if it really couldn't, ants and grasshoppers would be used instead.

As expected, this huge and costly project was rejected on the spot by Lingge, who also gave Alice a warning look, indicating that she was not looking for trouble and that if she wanted to play ball, she could just play against the wall by herself.

However, the golden-haired maid finally succeeded, because she bypassed the young man who was unyielding and quietly found Saint Xia Liya, rolling on the ground for half an hour, seriously affecting the teaching order of Tianxin Church. In front of the children, the shepherdess was not convenient to use her absolute iron fist, so she nodded and agreed to her request. In this way, a small stadium was quietly built on the open space behind the hotel. Although the specifications were not as luxurious as she expected, it was better than nothing, right?

On the night when the stadium was completed, Alice forced all creatures with hands and feet on Sky Island to play a game. After a fierce battle, the Scarlet End Demon King defeated the Grey Queen with a score of minus 30 points and won the first Sky Island Wind Flower Ball Championship. As for why you can win with a negative score, you don't need to understand this too much.

Who says the champion of the Sky Island Championship is not a champion?

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)