When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist

Passing through the gates of the exhibition area guarded by the Lion-bodied Hogo Statue, Angleroque entered the glass-domed commercial street with a thumping heart.

With every few steps forward, they could see the entrance of the exhibition area.

Angleroque nodded slightly; the architecture of this exhibition area entrance was indeed somewhat worth a look.

It was a semi-arched porch, about seven or eight meters high.

The framework was all polished bright golden brass, inlaid with pieces of geometric glass.

Around the top of the porch ran a circle of gear-driven devices, with the largest gear having a diameter as high as two people.

In the teeth of the gears, a few polished copper leaves were stuck, which would spin with the wind, driving several smaller gears nearby to click.

Eventually, this could make a row of small bells in the center of the porch automatically play a tune.

Travelers passing by for the first time were always attracted, unable to resist stopping to watch, and some even sat down to enjoy the music.

However, Angleroque was indifferent, as it merely utilized wind power for rotation.

Any engineer in Falan could build this; it’s just that the creativity deserved some acknowledgment.

"Novel, isn’t it?"

"Barely."

Seeing Angleroque being stubborn, Baleri didn’t expose him but instead continued to lead the two forward.

Following behind the crowd queuing at the fast entrance, the trio gradually entered the so-called exhibition area.

Amidst the long queue reeking of sweat, with their steps on the extremely smooth sandbrick and stone pavement, Angleroque couldn’t help but sigh at the sensation beneath his feet.

Though he often said that the Holy Alliance was inferior to Falan, he had to admit one thing: the Holy Alliance’s attitude towards the common folk.

Being a nation built by commoners, along with its overall national ideology, Holy Alliance particularly catered to the middle class and commoners.

Take the road beneath their feet as an example, constructed from a layer of sand, a layer of gravel, and a layer of pavement bricks, all consolidated with mortar.

If it were Falan, they had the capability too, but the problem was they would rather use it to build gardens for the Dowager Empress.

A bunch of commoners, why do they need such good roads?

In terms of treating common folks, Holy Alliance indeed won.

But treating them too well is somewhat excessive.

In this regard, Angleroque agreed with a certain "missing" Duke.

Do not need such widespread excellent public facilities, instead, make distinctions based on social class.

Only those wealthy and capable should enjoy better services; those without wealth, talent, or effort, might as well perish.

Only then can the best and most excellent be chosen, akin to breeding superior horses, leaving the finest, strongest bloodline for a stronger nation.

Rather than squeezing together without distinction as it is now!

Upon entering through the crowded entrance, Baleri turned around, spreading his arms to the other two: "Gentlemen, here is the main exhibition area of the Holy Alliance Universal Expo, the Crystal Palace!"

Raising his head from the mix of sweat and perfumed robes, Angleroque strained to widen his eyes, observing the Crystal Palace before him.

It was now September of 1457, past the first wave of the most bustling period, yet some lingering festive atmosphere remained.

Even though it was merely early morning, the Crystal Palace was still the first place to bustle in the Holy Mechanism Court.

The crowd surged, shoulders bumped, with store booths under the eaves filled with machines hiding among shadows.

Sunlight streamed through glass, somehow appearing brighter than ordinary daylight.

The street that was somewhat dim initially was now brightly lit, resembling noon’s sunlight.

With this sunlight, Angleroque could clearly see the scene on the street ahead.

Civilians and travelers clad in Sharpren, new aristocrats in knightly attire, silk-clad monks in black robes, and many amateur inventors in engineer-stereotype suspenders...

Of course, there were also the latest popular outfits among Holy Alliance university students.

A few girls in hoop skirts walked by Angleroque. They were hired models, tall and leggy, looking good in anything.

This is why Holy Alliance clothing stores hire them as live advertisements.

The skirts of those girls were interesting, with black embroidered hems layered with colored patterns, worn over knee-length black stockings.

Small metal rings were sewn onto the hem, jingling as they walked.

As for the collar, small gear buttons were fastened, securing the shoulder-draping cashmere scarf below the collarbones.

Merely attracting the gaze of a group of vulgar people, Angleroque walked past without looking sideways, only to notice that Alexei and Baleri were staring at the models with unblinking eyes.

"Are you coming or not?"

"Coming, coming."

Continuing forward, they could see even denser crowds.

No matter where they came from, regardless of their background, they were whispering on the streets, looking around.

Most of them carried briefcases filled with banknotes and drafts pre-exchanged in Holy Alliance, walking back and forth on the street.

Many would sip a cup of steaming Holy Alliance coffee, stopping at stalls to pick and haggle.

Before those stalls were countless new unseen machines.

Looking further into the distance, one saw the largest building in the whole exhibition area.

It was a gigantic mechanical clock, its face pieced together with colored glass, with a circle of rotating figurines around its edge.

There were artisans, knights, and scholars holding books.

When Angleroque and the others arrived, they caught the clock striking eight.

They saw the figurines suddenly move.

They advanced along fixed tracks across the clock face, soon stopping with a click.

The artisan’s arms raised segment by segment, the small hammer in hand swinging towards the clock’s face.

The knight raised a lance in a charging stance, while the scholar flipped open the book in his hand, its pages made of thin copper sheets that could automatically turn.

The surrounding people murmured in amazement, while those who missed it could only ask around: "What happened? What went on?"

Alexei patted Angleroque on the shoulder, "How is it? This is crafted by the Holy Alliance’s finest clockmaker; even the Pope praised it!"

Angleroque stood still, coughing lightly before saying after a few seconds, "It just uses cams and linkage transmission."

"Hmm?"

Angleroque pointed to the base of the figurines: "Under each figurine, there’s a hidden gear set, moving the cams when the clock movement rotates, making them move through linkages.

As for the book, it merely uses a spring-loaded device, no different from the automatic page-turning toy sold on Falan’s streets."

Hearing this, several amazed people nearby turned to look.

Alexei’s cheeks rarely reddened, pulling at Angleroque’s arm: "Keep it down! It’s not easy for them to make..."

"What’s not easy? If it’s mediocre, one can’t say anything?" Grasping the chance, Angleroque sought to attack.

But just after speaking, Baleri nodded in agreement: "Actually, this grand clock really doesn’t have much gold content; it could’ve been made years ago, mainly for public entertainment."

"Oh?" Angleroque chuckled, "Then, Brother Baleri, tell us what counts as a valuable invention of the Holy Alliance?"

"Haven’t you been watching?" Baleri nodded his chin upward, "Look up."

Glancing at the suspended glass, Angleroque instinctively started to move under the commercial street eaves.

But with just one step, he realized, and the smile on his face stiffened slightly: "What do you mean, Brother Baleri?"

"What?" Baleri seemed unaware of Angleroque’s awkwardness, "The glass dome with a steel framework, now that is what you call truly valuable!"