In the year 931 of the Ingvergian calendar.
The city fell into a dark sleep. Above the night sky, a huge Zeppelin airship swam slowly like a giant whale. A Cyclops-like light was cast from it, moving and observing in the sleeping city.
Lorenzo stood at a corner of the street, puffing smoke from a cigarette in his mouth. The tobacco was mixed with refreshing herbs, which made him extremely clear-headed even in the middle of the night, and even a little excited.
With this faint excitement, the cane tapped the ground lightly, beating briskly according to the rhythm in the memory.
He is waiting for someone. Normally, he likes to think while waiting for someone. He can think about anything, as long as his brain is not idle.
Looking up at the dim street lights, his thoughts gradually drifted away.
…
According to the concept of parallel universes, all incredible things will happen on a huge scale, or in other words, under this concept, these are destined to happen.
For example, in a certain world, the speed of light can be exceeded, Saturn's rings are a giant donut, Tesla is a great magician who controls thunder, Hawking is a bronze dragon who controls time, and King Arthur is really a girl.
So, everything is possible.
For example, in a modern world, mankind launched the first industrial revolution. The rumbling steam engines slowly pushed the huge steel creations. Railways were laid across every inch of human territory. Productivity was liberated, the economy continued to rise, and the perfect era arrived with blazing steam.
… Logically, the plot should be like this, but just like the concept of parallel universes, there are always things that go beyond common sense.
So what if… the advent of the electrical age was delayed
Just like the countless assumptions about the story, what if the historical line that everyone is familiar with changes slightly
The Second Industrial Revolution began after this, but the strange thing is that the world did not enter the electrical age. It was like Newton lying under a tree, and when the most critical apple in the history of physics was about to fall on his head, the unlucky child turned over, and mankind temporarily lost the formula of universal gravitation.
The same is true for this world. When they realized that boiling water could power everything, this damn era went off the track of normal historical development.
Electrical technology failed to take the lead in this torrent of steam and was not used on a large scale. It only existed in a few places, and the internal combustion engine with higher heat energy conversion efficiency was not discovered by the world.
Bigger and bigger steam engines were built, becoming more and more complex, until they became hubs of cities, hubs of the world.
They are bulky and inefficient, but when the magnificent steel body appears in sight, everyone will be in awe.
Lorenzo lived in such an era, an era where reason and madness coexisted.
Steel and steam, mystery and the unknown.
The sharp sound of a car whistle interrupted his thoughts. Looking to the side, he saw hot white steam erupting from a manhole cover near the street. Then, under the cold evening breeze, they condensed into countless water droplets and drifted away, finally dispersing into a grayish-white mist that covered the entire city.
This is a damned time, and this is a damned city.