Mr. Death in the Steam World

The sound of metal clashing came from behind, and the White Rabbit's maniacal laughter never stopped from the moment it began.

Phils followed Moen cautiously, though she couldn't help feeling a little worried.

"Hey, Mr. Marcus, do you think Mr. White Rabbit and the others might...?"

"Trust them. The only thing we can do besides trust them is to do our own job well and not waste their efforts."

As it turns out, the White Rabbit and the Cheshire Cat were just as reliable as they themselves claimed.

With the illusion distracting them, the enemy was completely unaware of their departure, and they didn't even send a single playing card soldier.

The road ahead was clear, and an hour later, they arrived at Hearts Castle earlier than expected.

However, the castle gates were guarded by playing card guards, the walls were too high to climb, and they couldn't get around to the back.

With only three hours left before the expulsion from Wonderland, Moen and Phils exchanged a glance and made up their minds.

We have no choice but to force our way in!

"Ignis!"

With a low shout, Phils fired a series of flaming arrows, burning a playing card guard to ashes.

One stone stirs up a thousand waves; the fall of one guard caused a commotion among the guards.

Moen grabbed Phils's hand, activated "Meow Agility" to its fullest extent, and rushed straight into the castle.

The ground is paved with black and white marble tiles arranged in a neat chessboard pattern.

Huge portraits hang on the walls on both sides, all depicting the same woman—the Queen of Hearts.

Although the castle was magnificent, they had no time to appreciate it. Although the guards were not strong, they had the advantage of numbers, so they could only quicken their pace.

Under the overwhelming firepower, the guards in front were quickly wiped out.

The castle stairs were not far away, and they rushed up them without hesitation.

Before they set off, the White Rabbit told them that the Queen of Hearts was in the throne room on the top floor.

......

"Oh, Lily, I've tried so hard to persuade you, why won't you agree?"

"I'm sorry, sister. Although you're very kind to me, all I want is my mother. When can I go back?"

Seeing Lily's resolute attitude, the Queen of Hearts sighed with worry.

She's been so good to this child, but he just won't budge. What a hassle!

No, we can't give up yet. At least she's willing to call me "sister" now, isn't she?

There's nothing she can do about it; she just likes this child so much.

After comforting herself, the Queen of Hearts picked up a plate of fruit, ready to continue her abduction mission, when suddenly her brow furrowed.

"Why is it so noisy downstairs? Could someone have come in? Didn't the Mad Hatter say that all those outsiders..."

"Stop! Let go of that girl!"

Moen kicked open the door to the throne room, raised his revolver to prepare to fire, but the scene that came into view made him pause for a moment.

The person he was trying to rescue, Lily, was sitting solemnly on the throne, dressed in beautiful clothes and playing with pretty toys.

The ruthless queen he had imagined was actually carrying a plate of fruit, seemingly intending to give it to Lily, looking just like a maid.

What happened to the wicked queen who abducted an innocent young girl? This looks more like a spoiled princess bullying a pitiful maid!

Phils peeked out from behind Moen and was stunned by what she saw, completely bewildered.

The scene was very embarrassing.

The Queen of Hearts' face changed from white to red, then from red to white, and finally from white to green.

She took a deep breath: "I'm going to cut..."

She was about to lose her temper as usual, but when she turned to look at Lily, who was clearly frightened on the throne, she took a deep breath and managed to suppress her anger.

"Outsiders are guests from afar. Since you're already here, why not come in and have a seat?"

Moen and Fils exchanged a glance, completely baffled by the Queen of Hearts's tactic.

But now that Lily is in their hands, they have no choice but to comply. If the other party gets angry and tears up the ticket, then everything will be for nothing.

As the two stepped into the throne room, the Queen of Hearts raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, wait a minute, I didn't say you two could both come in. It's too noisy with two people. You can choose one of you to come in."

The two of them immediately stopped in their tracks.

The excuse of "too noisy" was clearly a pretext; she obviously wanted to separate the two of them!

"I'll stay," Moen said in a low voice. "You can set up some traps or something outside."

"If a fight breaks out here, help if you can, but if you can't, don't force it, just run away."

Phils looked at Moen, her heart filled with worry, yet she felt helpless, and finally nodded.

The doors closed automatically, leaving only Morne, the Queen of Hearts, and a bewildered Lily on the throne room.

"Outsider, your methods are quite impressive; you managed to deceive my senses."

"You flatter me."

The Queen of Hearts seemed to be implying something, but Moen's attention was actually focused on Lily.

Why is she sitting on the Queen of Hearts' throne?!

Seeing that Moen was distracted, the Queen of Hearts sneered. Just as she was about to say something, she was interrupted by a crisp voice.

"Sister Empress, who is this brother?"

The Empress?

Moen watched helplessly as the Queen of Hearts, who had been sneering just a moment ago, forced a smile and said in a gentle voice:

"You mean this brother? He's a guest invited by my sister."

"Your sister needs to talk to your brother about something. Why don't you go back to your room and play by yourself for a while?"

"Okay~"

Lily obediently ran off into the distance. The Queen of Hearts sighed and looked at Moen again, but she could no longer put on the cold expression she had before.

"Why? I spent so long getting her to call me 'sister,' why does she call you 'brother' the moment we meet?"

Is it possible that your age...?

As soon as the outspoken Moen opened his mouth, he felt an unprecedented killing intent emanating from the Queen of Hearts, and he wisely shut his mouth.

"Hmph, sit down."

The Queen of Hearts turned and walked toward the throne, pointing to an armchair opposite her.

"Your Majesty, I am not here for tea."

"I know."

The Queen of Hearts picked up the teapot on the table and slowly poured two cups of black tea.

"You're here to take Lily away, right?"

She pushed one of the glasses to the other side, and without waiting for Moen to drink it or not, she picked up the other glass and took a sip.

"But have you ever considered this question—does Lily really want to leave?"

Moen frowned.

"I give her pretty clothes, fun toys, and talk to her and play with her every day."

Her voice lowered, carrying an indescribable sense of grievance.

"In all my years, I've never had to go through so much trouble with anyone."

Moen gave a cold laugh.

"That sounds nice, but let me ask you this: if Lily said she wanted to leave, would you let her go?"

"No matter how nicely you say it, it can't cover up the fact that you've imprisoned her here."

The room was silent for a few seconds.

"Your Majesty," Moen decided to change his approach.

"Since you let so many other children go, what's the point of keeping Lily here?"

"Just to..." the Queen sighed, "...to keep me company."