Undercurrents Stir

But Maria's expression remained calm, as if her actions had done nothing wrong.

"I don't consider myself a particularly outstanding teacher. In fact, I've never taught anyone anything. But... if you don't mind, I can show you what the world looks like from my perspective... This might help you understand what you really need to do, how about it?"

After comforting the confused little girl, Maria left the room.

After looking around for a while, she silently touched her chest.

Over there, the wound that had once pierced through had long since healed, leaving not even a scar.

No one could imagine that just a dozen minutes earlier, Maria had been carrying out a horrific massacre.

Although those puppets, devoid of self-awareness, moved stiffly, each one possessed terrifying strength.

Splitting a tree with a single punch is practically the most basic skill.

With the support of those in Great Ones, each of them was like a mini-superman.

It's even comparable to those Blades.

Such a force would be extremely terrifying no matter where it is placed.

However, this power, enough to destroy a city, seemed weak to Maria.

As Hunter who once slaughtered Great Ones in human form, Maria's abilities were not so awe-inspiring.

The other side clearly understood this as well, so during the fight, they chose to flee without hesitation.

This manifests as the moon moving away from the ground and rising into the sky.

Clearly, the other party already knew that Maria was not someone to be trifled with.

According to the normal logic of interactions between Great Beast, the other party should have backed down at this point, and Maria had no need to continue to pursue them relentlessly.

But... clearly, the rules for Great Beast do not apply to Hunter.

Maria could not give up so easily.

Only.

"To hunt it, we still need to find its true form..."

Maria remained silent for a moment.

Within her inherent influence, the location of each beast is special.

Some are completely created alternate dimensions, while others are places that have assimilated the original world into their own domain.

But in any case, these places will appear very special, and once Maria can enter them, she will be able to distinguish between the real and the fake.

But the prerequisite is... you have to be able to get in first.

"After the battle, He's clearly on my guard... It'll be difficult to find him now."

"But... it's not entirely hopeless."

Maria pondered for a moment, then looked up.

Right in front of her, the disheveled Sankta girl emerged looking miserable.

Although he looked a bit disheveled, he was alright overall.

At least, there were no injuries on his body...

Looking at the ever-exquisite and beautiful Maria before her, and then at her own reflection, she couldn't help but glare at Maria with a resentful gaze.

Do you know how dangerous that was just now?

"Those family members thought we, the Inquisitors, had attacked them..."

"The Swarm of people almost started fighting!"

The Sankta woman spoke, looking at Maria again.

"So how did you get away?"

Maria was a little curious.

"What else could I do..." The woman shrugged. "The other Inquisitors came over because the commotion was too big, and they confronted the family members. I took advantage of that opportunity to escape."

At this point, she couldn't help but look at Maria again.

After noticing that Maria had no signs of battle, he couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

"You... killed the Wolf Lord?"

"... almost."

"That's really impressive."

The Sankta woman scratched her head, marveling at Maria's despairing power.

But Maria suddenly spoke up at that moment.

Do you know where Agniel is?

"I need to talk to him about something..."

"To be honest, I never expected you would go out of your way to find me."

Inside the church, a dazed Father Agniel quickly changed into his monk's robes, picked up a candle, and came out.

The strange blindfold that he hadn't had time to remove was still on his head.

He had clearly been asleep, but was forcibly dragged out of bed.

"So... is there something you need?"

Although he was extremely tired, he mustered his strength and asked Maria a question.

Someone of Maria's stature, the Queen of the Royal Court, couldn't possibly just be asking herself if she'd slept.

"Is there a Great Beast in Siracusa?"

Maria asked the question directly without any hesitation.

If there's anyone in Siracusa most likely to know anything about the Great Ones being, it's undoubtedly the mysterious Sankta.

And as it turned out, Maria was right.

After she asked the question, Agniel's expression changed several times in an instant.

But after a moment, he forced himself to remain calm.

"I think I've seen a similar record in the case file. Is there a problem with your question?"

"... I need to know all its information."

Maria spoke, her eyes calm.

These words, however, made Agniel, who was standing to the side, suddenly become wary.

"You...no, I probably shouldn't ask this question, but for safety's sake, may I ask you why you want to know about Him?"

Is the legendary ruler of the Royal Court searching for Great Beast that has lurked in Siracusa for countless years?

When these two entities come together, it's hard for him to think of anything good.

Maria's answer to his concerns was also very simple.

"I'm going to kill him."

"..."

Chapter 225 Undercurrents

"I'm going to kill him..."

Father Agniel's mind went blank when Maria uttered those words.

He felt as if a heavy hammer had smashed down on his head, leaving him speechless.

After hesitating for a long time, he finally raised his head in disbelief and looked at the woman with a cold expression opposite him in the dim candlelight.

"You... want to hunt Great Beast?"

"Yes."

"..."

Father Agniel fell silent.

After a long silence, he simply let out a soft breath.

"Your request... is truly difficult to make."

As he spoke, he rubbed his temples.

He couldn't say he knew a lot about Maria, but he did know some information that others didn't have access to.

The problem is... he doesn't dare tell Maria.

The terror of the Great Beast needs no further description; the whole world knows of its Great Beast -destroying power.

As for Maria... Although Father Agniel had never witnessed Maria's battles, he could glean from the fragments of information in the archives sealed by Laterano what Maria had done in that war concerning the fate of the Sarkaz.

It's fair to say that even from just that little bit of information, Maria has already demonstrated a destructive power no less than that of Great Beast.

Now, Maria has made it clear that she is going to hunt the Great Beast...

He is not qualified to bear the consequences if these two entities come into contact.

"..."

Agniel fell silent, and Maria noticed this silence.

After a moment of confusion, she suddenly frowned and asked the old man in front of her a question.

"How... do you view Great Beast?"

There was something Maria had always known, but she had never investigated it.

Great Beast are creatures that have existed in this world for an unknown amount of time, arguably spanning the entirety of human history.

Now that human civilization has developed to this day, how do they view Great Beast?

It's important to understand that the people here are different from those in Maria; they only came into contact with Great Beast after their own civilization had developed to a certain level.

But this world... exists in a state of coexistence with Great Beast.

In this context, how do these humans perceive those things?

"... Regarding your question, it's difficult for me to answer. I'm not a professional researcher, and my answer will be superficial." Father Agniel didn't hide anything, but lowered his head, his hands slightly clasped together, somewhat uneasy. "But... in my view, every Great Beast has its purpose. Although they do often toy with us, they also undeniably protect our civilization from withering away in its infancy."

"From a personal perspective, I don't like Great Beast, but I support their existence. The only problem is that the way humans interact with Great Beast needs to change."

Father Agniel clearly expressed his views, which was met with a long silence from Maria.

"You..."

In the candlelight, Agniel could not see Maria's face clearly, and her movements remained unchanged. But even with a simple change in her tone, Father Agniel could sense the lurking, mountain-like rage within her!

It's like a volcano that's been suppressed with all its might; no one knows when it will finally explode.

This attitude made Agniel swallow hard.

Before he even realized it, his hand had already quietly landed on his Guardian Gun.

Even though he knew his struggles might seem ridiculous, it was still better than not struggling at all.

Fortunately, Maria managed to suppress her anger, and her shoulders slumped slightly, revealing a rare hint of dejection and dishevelment.

"You guys... are really ridiculous."

"... Perhaps."

Agniel didn't know where Maria's hostility towards the Great Beast came from, nor what she knew, but at this moment, he could only cooperate with her and not provoke her.

Maria only closed her eyes and pondered for a moment before exhaling.

"I think I understand what you mean..."

"So..."