Steel steam and flame

It was around 4 a.m. that I returned to my room to rest. When gray light appeared outside, Cassia opened her eyes. The irregular rain became heavier and drifted diagonally on the windows, drawing curved transparent lines.

Seeing that a large green space was exposed behind the glass, Cassia got up and came to the hall, where Delya and Waters were still resting. Without disturbing them, Cassia could feel the tiredness on their bodies. She made food for three people using simple ingredients frozen in the kitchen. After eating, Cassia left a message that she was going back to the military school, took an umbrella, and left the villa base.

It was still early in the morning, there were no pedestrians on the streets in the residential area, and there were relatively few vehicles. Walking all the way to the end of the road, Manoma's weather-proof prosperity really comes to light.

After stopping a limo, Cassia came to the Victory Building in the center, and then took another limo to go to the Blanco Mountains where the military school is located.

The wind and rain became much heavier visible to the naked eye. Cassia was grateful for her decision to bring an umbrella. After getting off the car at an almost deserted stop on the road in front of the school, Cassia held up an umbrella and walked step by step on the sidewalk separated by white lines on the roadside.

The black clouds in the sky were blocked by the high mountains of the Blanco Mountains, almost blocking them there, forming a thick layer. The drizzle also turned into raindrops, and the umbrella made a dull "tick-tick-tick" sound, instantly covering Cassia inside.

He was still thinking about what happened last night, and several proposals from Delya and Waters were very exciting to him. The information about those forces is now kept in his pocket. Cassia is also considering whether to let Sotagang help clean up these forces. After all, letting the people who are most familiar with the rules of the dark world do these things can be extremely efficient and avoid unnecessary trouble. His eyes followed the ground in front of his footsteps. There was a thin layer of rainwater, and the patent leather shoes were already covered with tiny droplets of water.

The footsteps also stopped at this time, and in the sight that was tilted down, another pair of feet, also wearing patent leather shoes, appeared at some point. The two soles of the shoes are very large, and the stretched uppers show this. It was not covered with rain like Cassia. The upper of the shoe shone dimly, and Cassia saw her shadow holding an umbrella from inside.

"Mr. Cassia, I have been waiting for you here for a long time."

"Mr. Hessler, we haven't seen each other for more than a month." Cassia had a brief look of surprise on her face, and then returned to her natural state.

Turning around, the two of them followed the road back and arrived at the small station waiting room not far away. There is no one here, the air circulation system delivers warm air, and the four walls inlaid with glass almost isolate the sound of rain from the outside.

"Are you surprised to meet me? Look at you." Hessler put down his umbrella and found a place to sit down. This time he changed into casual clothes, his hair was cut, and his face looked younger. Only then did Cassia remember that Hessler and herself were probably the same age.

"Think I will go directly to Ye Jielin?" Hessler said with a smile, "After all, when we first met, the conversation between us also revolved around her alliance."

Cassia nodded: "You are also a member of the Webley family. I think it would be much better from all aspects to go directly to Ye Jielin than waiting for me here."

"In all aspects?" Hessler heard what Cassia meant. "There is nothing wrong with Ye Jielin being the leader of your alliance, but you also have similar rights. I think you know this fact very well and will not object. It’s the same with anyone, but I simply think that talking to you is at least much easier than Ye Jielin. Ye Jielin and I are from the same family, so we must know each other. When discussing some things, It is inevitable that there will be unexpected troubles.”

"And..." Hessler's voice became stronger, "I am waiting for you this time with other purposes. Judging from your appearance, Mr. Cassia, you don't seem to know much about the current situation of the Webley family. Or maybe Regarding Ye Jielin, do you care too little about her? Of course, I just mean it literally."

Cassia fell into silence, just listening quietly because she couldn't find anything to refute. Hessler was also right. Thinking about it now, what he knew about Ye Jielin seemed to be limited to what Ye Jielin said.

Hessler did not give Cassia more time to think. He continued what he had not finished: "Ye Jielin's father is the current patriarch of the Webley family. You should know this. It's just that he doesn't have much time as the patriarch. In less than a few years, the deadline is that her father will step down from the position of patriarch before the war. Although the family has become uneasy now, everyone knows that her father will not be able to put this experience behind him. Families with thousands of years of history are stirred up, especially in times like this. Everything must become relatively stable until the war comes. Every family of the four forces makes this choice, and the empire will really start to act in a few years. when."

"Ye Jielin's current situation may have become much better because of Dellin's death. But it is still full of instability. I have no absolute sense of belonging to Webley and do not want to actively participate in such a thing. Of course, you It's perfectly fine to think that I'm scared and actively avoid trouble. I think the same way. My own strength is too small, and my decision to go to the outer reaches of the extreme area left me without a stable life after I returned to the empire. My power is completely zero. In the family network, I am just an inconspicuous figure with a little strength. Compared to Ye Jielin now, I have almost no sense of existence. But this is exactly the result I want, because What we pursue is just personal strength.”

"So you found me?" Cassia asked, confused.

Hessler made a helpless expression: "I was born in the Webley family, and I am very aware of the gap between an individual and a family, or a powerful group. In an environment like the empire, a single person will not end well. There are too many There are many walls that cannot be overcome by the strength of one person. When you are weak, you should seek help as a matter of course. This is not undignified. We have an agreement. If you and Ye Jielin can If you survive this mission, I will join you. This is my recognition of you and Ye Jielin. In my understanding, the nature of the alliance is mutually beneficial, protecting and being protected, and the exchange of resources and interests. There are no absolute rules. And the future development of the alliance will not be stable. When I look for prey, it will become much simpler, at least for reasons, and I won’t have any more trouble."

"Because of Ye Jielin's own instability, you finally chose me?" Cassia didn't know what kind of expression she should show. If we talk about stability issues alone, he may have many more uncertain factors than Ye Jielin.

"The reason is as simple as this. I don't like complicated things." Hessler was surprisingly serious. "You are a member of Ye Jielin's alliance. Joining your force means directly entering Ye Jielin's alliance. In my opinion, It seems that there is no difference. But in terms of relationship, I want to try not to be directly involved with Ye Jielin. It is a kind of compromise self-protection. If the family really takes action on her father's relationship, at least I can be influenced by it at that time. Less targeted. That’s a better outcome for you and for me.”

"Moreover, you can tell Ye Jielin directly what you said later, and she will agree with this approach. I just said that you are too indifferent to Ye Jielin. However, I think this matter should not be dealt with It is best to let Ye Jielin know, and it is only between the two of us, which is the most ideal result. When all the information about something is known, he will no longer be a threat. I don’t know if you think so too. .”

Hessler moved his body, found the most comfortable sitting position, and waited quietly for Cassia's answer.

"I don't seem to have a reason to refuse." Cassia said, "It's just that the person who originally planned to talk to you and reach an agreement changed from Ye Jielin to me."

The expression on Hessler's face said, "That's it." He nodded and said, "You also have your own power. Your strength is also the strength of the Ye Jielin Alliance in another sense. Everyone will be kneaded into one in the future. Unless a single person can reach the level of the King of Knights, I don’t think he can cross the solid wall built by the four forces."

"So, are we allies now? In other words, you can decide whether I hold a certain position in your power. As long as I don't restrict my freedom too much, just like you did in the Ye Jielin Alliance. "

"As long as we are allies, we are all equal." Cassia said immediately, but Waters' words suddenly appeared in his mind. He looked at Hessler and asked, "I wonder if Mr. Hessler has feelings for the Knights?" interest?"

"Knights?" Hessler waved his hand, "Mr. Cassia, you should understand that it doesn't matter to me what form an alliance will take. What matters is always the cohesion of the alliance."

"As a courtesy, you are welcome to join the Steam Knights as the fourth member."

"I feel honored." Hessler and Cassia stood up at the same time. "I hope that we will be able to establish mutual trust before long."

Entering the metal tunnel, Cassia put away her umbrella and thought about whether the decision she made not long ago was correct. Subconsciously, he touched his pocket, and the information he put in it was no longer there.

"My family asked me to study in the seminary, but it lacked what I wanted. After more than a month, I was finally able to move my body." Hessler's face showed an invisible light, and Cassia then For the first time, I realized that Hessler was actually no different from someone like Ye Jielin or Ovelia. My body has been influenced by my family since I was a child. As long as I find a reason that they recognize, I can immediately accept things that have little to do with me. It's just that Hessler is more persistent in this reason.

As he said at the end: "We are all such people. Even if we are killed a hundred times, there will be nothing wrong. This is the case among surgeons. Sooner or later, we will encounter each other. Maybe there is no right or wrong, even if there is, The biggest effect is just to make you feel more at ease before taking action. We have different opinions and the dead are the easiest people to talk to, and everyone is afraid of trouble."

Shaking away what he was thinking about, Cassia entered the military school and walked to his dormitory. After completing the first school mission, some of the freshmen faces on campus have been reduced. I heard that the attrition rate is very impressive. Compared with my current batch of students, more people can stay in school for a while.

Arriving at the corridor on the seventh floor, Cassia, who was standing in front of the door, looked at the slightly sunken footprints on the steel door. While sighing that Ye Jielin's power was getting stronger, she also thought again, "What do you think about Ye Jie?" Lin is too lacking in care."