Camp

There wasn't much contact between them.

Therefore, although she had a greater capacity than anyone else to accept the cost of death, she also loathed death more than anyone else.

Death is the end of life!

It should not, and absolutely cannot, become the process of any life.

Taking a deep breath, Maria stroked the other person for a while longer before silently tilting her head back.

It was already daylight, and the moon was no longer visible in the sky.

But Maria could sense that the other party still existed in this world.

Without a doubt, Maria failed to kill the opponent... In fact, what the opponent sent out could only be considered a part of it.

It never intended to fight Maria head-on.

Perhaps it didn't want to fight Maria, or perhaps it felt it wasn't ready.

Regardless, this experience made Maria realize just how formidable her enemy truly was.

The old methods of fighting are probably no longer effective.

She needs a completely new way of fighting.

A method sufficient to deal with an enemy that may exist on the scale of a planet...

Maria returned to Yharnam without a word.

Too many things to do made her reluctant to meet with the girls right now.

She needs a quiet place to think carefully about what to do next.

The Doll, belonging to Maria's family, quietly welcomed the master of Yharnam and then led her back to her room.

She could sense the struggle Maria was going through.

She knew this was a routine day for Maria, but she still couldn't help feeling sad for her.

The kind Hunter was exhausted... she deserved a good rest.

Unfortunately, she was merely Maria's Doll... She couldn't make decisions for Maria.

But it was at this moment that Little Regret emerged.

She swallowed hard, looked at Maria in front of her, and spoke cautiously.

"That..."

"Simulation..."

"It's working again..."

Chapter 255 Camp

Inside the Hunter's Cabin in New Yharnam.

As Maria tidied her clothes, she lowered her head and pondered the battle that had just taken place.

In fact, the battle hadn't had any effect on her body. If there was any problem, it was that the long-awaited high-intensity battle had made her body and mind tense up.

It must be admitted that ordinary days can indeed easily corrupt one's mind... at least Maria did feel that she had been somewhat lax in her studies.

This battle allowed her to gradually recover.

More importantly, Maria is finally no longer a headless fly... she has discovered her enemy.

There truly exists a terrifying Great Ones on Terra... Even from Maria's perspective as a Great Ones butcher, this opponent is far too formidable.

It was just an eye, the size of a star, and even a casual attack from it required the aid of that unknown tree to discover it and pull it into its domain...

In the eyes of the older generation of Hunter, the inability to hunt Great Beast independently is considered a stain on their reputation.

"..."

Looking at her taciturn reflection in the mirror, Maria paused for a long time before taking a deep breath.

Meanwhile, a gentle-looking Doll stood upright to the side, its hands folded together below its abdomen.

"Are you ready, kind Hunter?"

"Yes, Doll."

Maria did not turn back.

They are currently discussing a simulation of Little Regret.

If the previous simulations were merely to help Maria understand this world, then now Maria can truly say that she is preparing to fight that Great Ones.

The first step in the battle is to figure out exactly what the opponent is.

"This time, the enemy we face will not allow us to recklessly rush in and kill as we have before... Its sheer size is beyond our comprehension, not to mention that we still do not know what its abilities are."

Taking a deep breath, Maria gently reached out and placed her hand behind her head.

At this moment, the Doll unexpectedly stepped forward, her eyes softly gazing at the back of Maria's head, and reached out to gently braid her hair.

"You sensed a threat?"

"... Yes, Doll."

Maria rarely confides in others... but the Doll is an exception.

When facing the Doll, Maria wouldn't pretend to be fearless and invincible... In fact, such a thought is dangerous in itself.

Maria has always seen herself as the weaker party, and within the space she has planned for herself, she has tried her best to think about how to defeat enemies that ordinary people cannot even imagine.

This time, however, she had truly met her match.

"The level of our opponents this time is beyond our imagination... We simply cannot win in a normal battle. I need to go to more places and find more people who are ahead of their time..."

Maria whispered, while the Doll beside her simply tilted its head.

Do you think those so-called wise men on this land can help you?

"Don't underestimate any kind of creature. Doll, I'm one of them too... I was just lucky." Maria shook her head. "I can't guarantee that all of these people will be useful to me, but I believe that in the history of this world, there have always been those who saw things ahead of their time."

"Is that so..."

Hearing Maria say this, the Doll didn't say anything more.

She simply nodded slightly and then lowered her hand.

Maria's soft white hair was also braided into a beautiful ponytail.

This is the Doll's elaborate makeup.

But clearly, Maria, being so dense, didn't appreciate such beauty; she simply picked up her tricorn hat to indicate that she was ready.

Meanwhile, Little Regret nodded in affirmation.

Just as Maria was about to leave, the Doll paused for a moment, then took out a simply decorated box from a cabinet beside it.

Inside, a simply designed walking stick lay quietly...

"Um?"

"It was sent from Rhodes Island."

The Doll stroked the Blades, then looked up at Maria.

"You previously placed an order for a telescopic cane with Ms. Fire God... and just recently, we took the opportunity to contact them and obtained the weapon from them... According to Ms. Fire God, she actually wanted to do more, but unfortunately, her forging design and skills are not perfect, and this is the limit of what she can do."

Hearing the Doll's words, Maria reached out and gently took out her cane.

The cane is about 1.2 meters long and feels quite good in the hand. The center of gravity is near the head of the cane, which Maria holds. There is also a small, discreet button on the side.

With a gentle press, the entire cane will loosen and transform into a whip about two meters long.

It's not particularly long, and it's somewhat different from what Maria used before.

But...

"Not bad..."

After swinging it a few times to confirm that its strength was acceptable, Maria silently retrieved it, turning it into a simple walking stick beside her.

However, Maria was already tall and slender, and the cane seemed rather out of place on her.

With everything ready, Maria nodded to the Doll and then approached Little Regret.

After a brief confirmation, she silently closed her eyes.

The simulation... begins again!

A gloomy, oppressive sky.

The sounds of screams and wails.

And then there was the scorching, blood-red wind that rushed towards us.

Maria had just opened her eyes when she found herself in the middle of a battlefield.

There was a large group of fallen corpses not far away.

Blood was still flowing... and many people were still convulsing.

However, describing this place as a battlefield is somewhat of an exaggeration.

In Maria's view, this place was more like a bloody land rife with violence.

Most of those who collapsed were ordinary people wearing old, yellowed clothes, carrying various packages on their backs, seemingly on a long journey.

The startled Pack Beast hadn't run far and remained in sight.

A cart made of moldy wood.

Wild laughter and wailing echoed incessantly here.

Looking around, Maria could easily see dozens of uniformly equipped men chasing after the Swarm unarmed civilians.

Maria couldn't help but frown at the sight.

She was about to start working on it, but then stopped herself.

"This is their war..."

After a moment of silence, Maria exhaled.

She turned slightly, preparing to leave this dangerous place before the tyrannical soldiers noticed her.

But when she turned around, she saw a trembling girl lying on the ground.

She was about seven or eight years old when she went up there. She had strange, pointed horns on her head and was lying face down on the ground, seemingly playing dead... but her tense body and heaving chest clearly indicated that she was using this ridiculous method to save her life...

She seemed to have noticed Maria, but kept her head down, not daring to move an inch.

Maria glanced at it a few times, then shook her head and prepared to leave.

But at that moment, a soldier suddenly darted in front of Maria.

Holding a spear, he stabbed one by one the men on the ground who were pretending to be dead. When he saw Maria, he paused for a moment... Compared to the other disheveled refugees, Maria's clothes were impeccably elegant, and her demeanor was strangely composed.

But after taking a few more glances, he realized that Maria was not a member of his team, and his face turned ferocious.

"Damn Blood Demon!"

He growled, decisively raised his spear, and hurled it at Maria!

But Maria simply raised her hand and easily deflected the spear with her cane.

But clearly, this only further enraged the man.

He roared angrily and charged at Maria.

His blood-stained face looked so ferocious and terrifying at that moment.

But Maria only glanced at him a few times before kicking him away without any politeness.

"That's enough..."

"Shut up! You savage monster!"