Steampunk Era: Mad Abield
Chapter 58 - Fifty-three: Applause Should Be Here

Chapter 58: Chapter Fifty-three: Applause Should Be Here

Faye Lina Mowish.

Carterburg, the fourth day of the Harvest Festival, early morning.

The young girl, who had never slept as well as she did today, opened the window and saw someone in the pavilion through the fog. Although she couldn’t see who it was, she figured it mustn’t be a stranger.

With that thought, she changed into clean clothes in front of the floor mirror and felt a little troubled in front of the wardrobe—what should she wear when going out today?

Marin revealed a look of slight confusion and exclamation when he learned of her dilemma—truly the perplexity of the wealthy.

Yes, the perplexity of a rich man’s daughter—how could Marin ever understand?

A guy who didn’t know how to dress himself, whose temper was gentle and considerate, and who had no sense of noble etiquette at all, really, why did she fall for him?

It must have been the manliness radiating from him. Yes, that kind of courage, knowing there was danger but still determined to fulfill a promise.

Also, that natural ease that seemed to come with his being.

To hell with noble etiquette, such outdated rituals should be thrown into the torrent of history.

Faye chose a tea-colored, lightweight leather dress for herself with a row of buttons, a large collar, wide sleeves big enough to hide a dagger, and the black silk stockings with pants that Marin liked the most.

Her class instructor had put it well, a young girl should indulge herself by catching the tail of the season, and the fourth day of the Harvest Festival was still a good time to wear a skirt.

Come on, Faye, your opponents are waiting for you.

Just like Marin said every time he went to the training field.

It was time to crush them.

.........

Marin woke up early, not because he went to bed early last night, but purely because getting up at 6 a.m. had become an instinct from his past life experiences.

Upon arrival at the Church, before he even entered, the Church guards greeted him, "Brother Marin, welcome back."

"Thank you." Marin was a little surprised, and as he walked into the lobby with his sister, he heard Lillim and Maya greeting each other.

The two girls ran to each other; the Leopard Girl had made plans with Lillim yesterday to go play in the square, and Marin, who left his cards with Maya, naturally let his sister go play. Kids should play happily, not follow his footsteps as a brother.

As the two girls left, Marin was just about to go meet Colin when he heard someone greeting him.

It was Jessica, the little wolf girl with the height advantage and very substantial assets, daughter of Marin’s Blessing Spell instructor’s principal apprentice.

"Marin, I heard you took down a zombie bride." She leaned in close, bringing Marin a cup of tea and a pastry, "I made it."

"Thank you." Marin smiled, took the pastry and tea, and started chatting with his classmate in the corner of the lobby.

He also discovered that the daughter of the Carter family who was like a giantess really didn’t have many friends, and he understood why she was unpopular—she had injured quite a few people during competitions in the Church, claiming descent from her lineage.

Unlike Marin, this girl had almost no self-restraint; her reputation and nickname as the powerhouse woman with untamed strength were not flattering.

"But she’s dead now, and I sort of miss her. After all, she never bullied us girls," the wolf girl sighed, "It’s just a pity that she won’t be in our lives anymore."

"Yeah." Marin felt somewhat somber, leaning back in his chair, "Speaking of which, why are you free to come here today? Isn’t everyone resting?"

"My father came for a health check, and I came along for the fun. After all, having heard about this, I wanted to make sure firsthand that you weren’t hurt anywhere," she said, sniffing with her nose, "I don’t smell any wounds or blood. You’re really impressive, Marin."

"I just want to survive." Marin didn’t appreciate such flattery; he never thought about killing anyone, even if she was just an unthinking girl. Sometimes, unintended actions could lead to unanticipated enmity.

To survive, he had no choice but to fight relentlessly.

But because of that, Marin never regretted his actions.

Because of natural selection.

"Marin, you’re really too modest." The wolf girl leaned in closer to Marin, and because of the height difference, she had to bend over, revealing that two buttons of her blouse, which appeared to always be undone at the end of the season, were loose. As she leaned over, before Marin’s eyes, was an overwhelming, beautiful presence, a sacred light that seemed to fill his vision at that moment, and he kept seeing +1 green figures before his eyes.

"Marin." Colin’s arrival interrupted Marin’s healing state and forced the wolf girl to relinquish her seat with a sour expression.

Malin’s senior brother settled into his seat and without any further ado, ruffled Malin’s hair. "Good job, kid. I almost died of fright when I heard you took down that zombie bride all by yourself."

"I didn’t realize Carton’s daughter would turn into a zombie bride," Malin remarked, a bit curious. "Speaking of which, I was the only one who witnessed it, yet you all seem to believe what I said about it."

"Of course we didn’t, but a few legends from the Mage Tower came and rewound time, and they saw the entire fight with your bride..." Colin gestured towards the doorway where old Hoffman, their mentor, and the elderly Bishop from the Church of the War God emerged. "He has been staying here since yesterday, arguing all night with our mentor, trying to convert you."

"Is he out of his mind?" Malin rolled his eyes—how could the old man be so pushy?

"You might say that, but they wouldn’t care if they’re insane as long as they could have you, which is why the mentor hopes you can confirm your faith soon. Only then will those guys stop bothering you," Colin explained, causing Malin to fall silent for a moment. "What if I said I was an atheist?"

In this world, the gods didn’t care if a mortal was a believer or not. To them, it was better to have an atheist than a potential Chaotic Believer.

At the very least, atheists couldn’t be easily converted into minions of an Evil God.

"That won’t work. They would drive you crazy trying to make you adopt a faith," Colin said helplessly.

"Then, I guess I’ll believe in the Goddess of Harvest," Malin decided, recalling the terrifying proselytizing he had witnessed firsthand, like the church lady applying Level 997 persuasion techniques on him.

"That’s great. When he comes over to ask, you can just tell him yourself," Colin said, then stood up and headed towards the door. "Margaret, my dear, you look like you didn’t sleep well?"

"Yes, I had a nightmare that I couldn’t find you," Margaret murmured so softly, but Malin, with his good hearing, couldn’t miss it.

Just as he was about to comment on the two lovebirds, the old Bishop approached, "Kid, I think you should join the Church of the War God. There’s no end to the fights."

What? Are you from the Church of the War God so brain-damaged that an endless fight is your way of recruiting people?!

Me, Malin, son of Gaiate, can’t I just coast through life without all this drama?!

"Sorry, I’m with the Church of the Goddess of Harvest," Malin said with a smile, shaking his head.

"It’s okay, you’re young, switching faiths really isn’t a big deal," the Bishop reassured.

"You old bastard, you dare poach a believer from our Church right in front of me! I’m going to slaughter you today!"

"Come on then! You’re only three years older, you old bastard!"

Malin began to feel a headache coming on—couldn’t these two old guys give the younger generation a break for a nice holiday?

Listening to the two old men argue from one end of the hall to the other and then turn around to argue all the way back, almost as if they were performing an opera, the young Malin finally started to zone out. He quietly stood up, looking to make a quick getaway.

As he was about to leave, he saw Faye enter the hall. Malin quickly put his finger to his lips, then swiftly moved to her side. After waving at Colin, he quickly fled the Church with Faye.

.........

Although it had rained the previous day, Carterburg was still bustling with people for the Harvest Festival. Malin and Faye sat in the Gage’s Pastry Shop on Fass Boulevard, ordering pastries as Jessica had come along, making it a three-person table.

Sitting at the table, Malin stirred his coffee with a spoon while observing the two girls. Faye and Jessica didn’t seem to get along, something he learned from his sister Maya—an Apprentice popular among her female classmates, always privy to the girls’ firsthand gossip.

For example, Jessica was known for her carnivorous appetite, tipping into the weight imbalance spectrum.

As for Faye, she held herself to be of a superior Northern stock, even though the Mowish family was originally as Southern as they come before becoming the royal family.

In any case, Malin thought the reports from Maya’s side were often questionable—his sister rarely heard any good news; every bit of gossip was a meticulously planned feast.

"This intelligence gathering astonishes me. I’m curious to see how many more ways they have up their sleeves to slander me," Faye often remarked, treating the situation as if it were a huge joke.

"Exactly, I’ve been eating vegetables and dieting lately. Anyone who calls me ’Fatty’ is going to get their mouth torn open!" Jessica was clearly miffed by the rumors, but the most crucial part of such slander was its sting. If you’re upset, that means you’ve fallen into their trap.

Hearing Jessica speak in this manner, Malin understood why the girl would make such a choice.

"Don’t get too upset," Malin said with a chuckle, shaking his head.

Both girls turned to Malin in sync, "This isn’t over!" they declared, looking very angry.

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