Simulating Again

But before leaving, there are many things that need to be taken care of.

For example, Talulah has already returned to normal.

The Black Snake's influence on her seemed to go beyond simply possessing her body; she also knew what she had done in the past period of time.

So after regaining her senses, her state could be described as utterly dejected.

As for someone with such a special identity, the Detective Girl did not want her to be detained by Lungmen, and Rhodes Island, after careful consideration, also did not intend to take in such a dangerous person.

On the contrary, the Doll felt that the other party had great potential, so it took the initiative to suggest exiling him to the edge of Yharnam.

Maria never refuses the suggestion of using Doll.

As for the Shieldguards Yeti Squad, they seemed to have had some internal discussions, and in the end, Patriot was persuaded to accompany the Yeti Squad to settle in northern New Yharnam.

The Yeti Squad is considered the Doll's pre- Hunter training group, and FrostNova, who is already considered half a member of Maria's Familia, was naturally chosen as the contact person to liaise with the Doll.

Their job is similar to that of guards.

Because the assimilation of Platform 17 was not perfect, those crazed monsters still occasionally surged forth.

Their responsibility is to ensure the safety of the middle and inner layers of Yharnam.

FrostNova readily agreed to this request.

In their view, they were already getting a lot of benefits by being able to live without discrimination in Yharnam, have safe food, and even passively control the Originium infection. They felt it was only right that they accepted the simple guard work.

Moreover, under the influence of that giant light, their bodies would not die.

But Maria still warned them not to die too many times.

After all, losing reverence for death is no fun thing.

Patriot tried to say something to Maria several times, but ultimately remained silent.

As for Rhodes Island.

Maria didn't know how to deal with this strange obstacle.

Since the battle ended, their higher-ups seem to have held a major meeting.

Many of them got into arguments.

However, the final decision was to communicate with Maria in a formal capacity, and some of the more severely infected operators were arranged to come here to rest and recuperate.

The Blood Demon they had encountered before had also arrived here.

However, the other party seemed very unwilling, and could even be described as being brought over bound hand and foot.

Once she arrived here, she squatted in her basement and refused to go out no matter what.

Maria, however, didn't seem to care.

After all, all she really needed from Yharnam was a means of transportation.

She is Doll, and she hopes that Maria can live in a normal place, so she has been trying her best to make New Yharnam a normal place that is also somewhat special.

To achieve this, tools, personnel, and other miscellaneous things are essential.

However, she didn't want Maria to worry about these things, so she took care of everything herself.

"Things are gradually getting back on track... What we need next is to bring in more people... especially technical personnel, to rebuild this city."

Although the Doll were more familiar with the environment of Yharnam, the new city that Maria saw also Doll a lot of ideas.

She was particularly intrigued by the tools powered by Originium.

That's why she used her limited ability to move outside of Yharnam's range to go find Wei Yenwu.

That man was cunning, even somewhat treacherous.

But... what does it matter?

After the Doll paused to consider their fists and their purpose, the other party weighed the options for a while and readily provided them with a considerable amount of supplies.

As for the so-called diplomats, who were actually informants from the Lungmen Guard Department, the Doll seemed to be of no concern to them.

"Thank you for your hard work, Doll."

Maria nodded and extended her hand.

After a moment of stunned silence, the Doll gave Maria a reproachful look, then naturally moved its face closer and rubbed against her.

"A gentle Hunter..."

She whispered, her voice soothing.

Since he confessed his true feelings to Maria last time, Maria seemed to have become a little more enlightened, for some reason.

Although she still didn't understand many emotions, she knew how to reward the Doll with a little affection.

The Doll had told itself more than once not to get too attached to this moment of emotion.

But every time Maria reached out her hand, she couldn't help but want to reach out to her.

Over time, she got used to it.

Who can blame me for being such an easy person to please?

The Hunter's heart would pound at the mere sight of a hand.

I clearly don't have a heart...

As it rubbed against the Doll, it suddenly remembered something and looked up again.

"There's one more thing, Hunter."

"Um?"

"I've made some progress on what you wanted me to investigate."

What is it?

"This is it."

The Doll pulled a small piece of torn cloth from its bosom.

These are the clothes of those Blades... After their transformation, even their clothes became unusual.

Maria, however, sensed a familiar aura emanating from it.

However, she didn't think much of it at the time, and just handed some to the Doll to investigate... She thought that even investigating a little bit would be like winning the lottery, but unexpectedly, the Doll gave her a big surprise.

"This thing... is related to the Umbilical Cord..."

"Um?"

Upon hearing this, Maria frowned decisively.

Even the Puppy on my lap frowned.

After hesitating for a few moments, Maria relaxed again.

While gently rubbing the other person's head, she whispered a question.

"Related to the Umbilical Cord?"

"Um..."

The Doll nodded.

If I'm not mistaken.

"Perhaps, a segment of the Umbilical Cord... has already been revived!"

Chapter 212 Another Simulation

The Doll stepped forward and slowly handed the fragment that Maria had given it back to Maria's hand, gently touching it a few times.

Surprisingly, as the Doll's aura spread, this patch of shredded feet seemed to have a mind of its own and began to curl up on its own!

The characteristics of this creature should absolutely not appear on a fragment of a man-made object!

"As you can see, this thing is extremely sensitive to our scent, to the point of being wary."

The Doll has its hands folded over its lower abdomen and bows slightly.

"Is there... the power of the Umbilical Cord on this?"

Maria frowned, then gripped it tighter, carefully feeling its texture.

"It's not that strong." The Doll shook its head.

Maria had been fighting those monsters for so long that some of her senses had become dulled, so she didn't pay attention to them. But the Doll was different. As an artificial being, she always maintained her best condition, so she could sense that extremely faint aura.

"These fragments are only tainted with a trace of its essence; the true Infected are likely those Blades..."

"..."

"But since even the clothes you're wearing are tainted with this aura, it means that the power within these Blades is highly active." The Doll continued to explain to the puzzled Maria, "Just like the slight evolution in your clothing, those Blades are in the same state... but not as pure."

"So, I suspect that one segment of the Umbilical Cord may have somehow survived and dispersed its power."

"Is that so..."

Maria frowned, her fingers gently kneading the large dog girl lying on her lap.

The cool fingers seemed to touch some sensitive spots, causing the girl's face to flush slightly even in her sleep.

After a moment of silence, Maria turned her head and looked at the Doll beside her.

So... what are your thoughts?

Maria now faced two choices.

Continue on to Bolivar, or turn back immediately and head to Ursus to retrieve the Umbilical Cord you already know about.

Both options have their advantages and disadvantages, and Maria couldn't decide which one to choose right away.

"...My idea is to continue to Bolivar." The Doll had clearly been prepared for this, so it answered decisively after Maria asked the question.

Instead of searching for the Umbilical Cord, it would be better to go to Bolivar first.

"Bolivar... why?"

"This is more advantageous for our current situation."

The Doll shook its head, its gray eyes fixed on Maria.

"Although the Umbilical Cord has been revived, its instincts are incomplete... The abilities of ancient beings are unique, and you now possess all of these abilities. In other words, no matter how much the Umbilical Cord stirs up trouble, it can't do anything significant. On the contrary, for you, figuring out what's really going on in this world is the most important thing."

"The Umbilical Cord can move within that country called Ursus, and you can go there and retrieve it at any time. Conversely, leaving it in place temporarily might trigger a real crisis in this world."

"Moreover, since it has chosen to give its power to other life forms, it means that its own threat level is ultimately not very high."

"In comparison, you don't need to focus your important energy on something that can be dealt with at any time. Going to Bolivar will be more beneficial for you to understand the hidden aspects of this world..."

The Doll spoke, detailing how the Umbilical Cord was not very dangerous and that Maria deserved to do more important things.

After thinking for a while, Maria reached out and pushed aside the scroll on the small table next to her.

It contains a map of the entire Terra.

Bolivar, on the other hand, occupies a large area on the westernmost edge of the continent.

Ursus, on the other hand, stretches across the very top of the continent, forming a vast region.

The border between the two countries is not particularly far apart; if we are only discussing the national border, the transfer between them would not even take a week.

Meanwhile, Maria and her companions were in the westernmost part of Yan...

"On the left are Leithanien and Siracusa... above is Ursus, below is Rim Billiton..."

After a moment of silence, Maria also fell silent.

But after a moment, she made a decision.

Let's go to Siracusa first.

"Um?"

"We should head to Siracusa and then directly into Ursus... Crossing through different countries might cause us unnecessary problems. In that case, we can simply use Ursus territory and head towards Bolivar."

Maria made the final decision.

Clearly, although the Doll indicated that the Umbilical Cord was completely unimportant, Maria was ultimately not that generous.