Steel Steam and Flame

　　 So, the whole night was hardly used to sleep. In the middle of the night, Cassia got up, lit the gas lamp on the table, and took out the book he brought back from the military school to read.　But the confusion in my head was so bad that I couldn't see a line of words, there were only countless ghosts in my eyes. But he couldn't sleep anymore. He saw the black box lying quietly next to the bed. After he was sure that his mother and sister would not wake up, he opened the box gently and took out a handful of it inside. The short machine gun came out, and it was disassembled a dozen times with the slight sound of the light of the gas lamp. Then I got bored, put it in the gift box, changed other guns and repeated the meaningless things. Now it seemed that only the cold feeling on these objects could cool his hot head. Only when it was about to dawn did he reluctantly take a break.

　　 The head has not been properly rested for such a long period of time, and the surgeon's body also reacted badly. He was dizzy, his temples seemed to have been hit by a hammer, and followed the beating of the heart with pain. But still getting up early, Cassia couldn't sleep at all.

　　 The dark sky can be seen from outside the window. The heating pipe has not been repaired for a long time. After the bronze bell was replaced with a new one, it became the only sound in the house.

　　 Mother has gotten up and is making breakfast in the crowded kitchen with almost no extra space. The younger sister Lilia was still curled up in the quilt by the fire, leaving only a small head exposed, her eyes closed tightly, and she had not woken up yet.

　　 "We can eat in a minute." When her mother heard the movement of Cassia after getting up, her voice came from the kitchen.

　　 Cassia gave a "hmm" and walked to the door to remove several good locks, opening a gap.

　　 It seems that snow is beginning to float outside again, and the endless cold wind is desperately trying to get into the house. The road has also turned white, and in the whistling wind, the crashing sound of the large forging machine can be heard intermittently. The iconic black smoke pillars also became curved, almost sticking to the corroded iron roof of the factory building.

　　 After breakfast, the snow outside still didn't stop, and it seemed that it would last a few days.

　　 "The snow stopped, just leave here." Cassia said suddenly, and her mother didn't respond, because where she lived didn't seem to matter to her anymore. You can feel the changes in Cassia, but they are all good. Years and months of fatigue accumulated on the body, most of the perception was paralyzed, and he hardly noticed the transformation of Cassia's body core.

　　 Only Lilia can feel Cassia as if living far away from them. Even in her eyes, Cassia in front of her is a real existence that can be captured.

　　 The toys that Cassia brought from Manoma made her happy for a long time, but during the snowy days, Lilia would still show a confused look for some time. Looking at Cassia's eyes as if looking at a painting, there was a feeling of reading a textbook in it. She feels that her brother is clearly by her side, but sometimes she feels that she will be separated from her in the next moment.

　　 The temperature can be clearly felt with the palm of the hand, and the breathing can be heard with the ears, but Lilia just feels that her brother beside her does not seem to be living with her. It seems that there are two parallel Lilias in the world, and now this elder brother belongs to another Lilia. His elder brother has left by train and has not returned yet. When she thought of going out to play in the past, she often looked at the direction of the station, looking forward to the shadow of Cassia on the corner.

　　 Of course, there is no detailed concept of parallelism in Lilia's head. She just felt that this "toy" like her brother seemed to have been replaced with another one before she knew it.

　　 A few days later, the snow that had lasted for a few days finally stopped, the sky was clear again, and new cumulus clouds were still brewing in the Lilac Mountains. When he picked up the dusty shovel in the corner and went out to shovel snow, Cassia found out that the neighbors had changed several houses. Most of the life in the past has not changed. When a family settles down, most of them plan to live here until they are buried in the grave. But it seems that all the changes have been concentrated in one year, familiar people have left a lot, and the new neighbors are surprised when they see Cassia who is shoveling snow.

　　 There are also many old neighbors who have worked in the same steam factory. They were surprised that Cassia came back so early and greeted each other. From them, Cassia also learned a little bit of recent news, whether it was human or just about the town.

　　 Most of the dozens of people who took the rearrangement to schools across the empire did not return. Of course, those who were born in more than twenty little nobles are no longer willing to return to this small city. Comparing the small towns in the border areas of the empire with the cities outside, the difference is not even a bit to describe it correctly. While enjoying a more convenient and far more luxurious life than in a small town, when facing them, it is also a gap that makes them feel desperate, like the difference between above and below a cliff. The outside world is very vast~www.readwn.com~ The new things that appeared in front of them made them feel that they were eliminated. The most important thing is that the status of aristocracy in the small city is no longer important in front of other students in the big city. They have become the lowest level, which is the most unbearable thing for them. They began to miss life in a small city, where the use of electric lights is something that can be proudly discussed, and they can also accept the envy and jealous eyes of others.

　　 But I am also afraid to go back. Things that have been eliminated, when they return to the small town again, they are afraid that they no longer have the courage to leave there.

　　 And like Rowe and Irene, who had the same identity as Cassia and were civilians, they also informed their family through letters that they would not be back for the holiday. Whether it is summer vacation or winter vacation, I stayed in the city where the school is located.

　　 Of course, it’s not that they don’t want to come back. Like those noble children, they also felt how huge the gap between regions is. They knew that there was a higher status than the noble children in the small town. There is no money if they don’t come back. The cost of the relisted ticket is not a small amount. They were born civilians, and living there has dragged down the whole family. The tuition and other expenses for each year are not exactly where they are. Returning to the small town is still something to be planned in the next year or two. Not everyone is in Cassia's situation.

　　 After shoveling the snow, Cassia looked at the bright sky and sighed.

　　 In the afternoon, on the empty street, Cassia dragged the suitcase, and her mother took her sister Lilia's hand, and she glanced at the small house behind her that hadn't been painted with the new paint for a long time. Then they walked to the only dilapidated railway station in the town. 8