Chapter 397

Are they the children of a wealthy family?

Yin Hongying pondered for a moment, then lowered her eyes slightly again.

"I never said I wanted to be your subordinate, did I?"

"That's not something you need to worry about... Let's get back to the question we were talking about."

The girl shook her head. "I told you, I'm willing to give you this opportunity... but that female general, I don't know where she came from or what her abilities are."

"But the current emperor is no pushover either. No matter how much he cares about personal feelings, he would never appoint a useless person as a general."

"... so?"

After listening to the girl ramble on for a while, Yin Hongying frowned and showed some impatience.

Only then did the girl reveal her true purpose.

"Before I send you to investigate that woman, I'll give you another simple task."

The girl smiled, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at Yin Hongying, who was gradually becoming serious.

"You..."

"Go and kill the current eldest princess..."

Nighttime, inside the Hundred Refining Bureau.

The bright moon hung in the sky; the world still had two moons high in the sky today, which made Maria feel uneasy.

But she still sat quietly alone on the top floor of the attic, looking at everything around her.

With the addition of Sui, the Hundred Refining Bureau Division is now showing signs of transforming into the largest academy in the entire Hundred Stoves.

Although he claims to be no particularly remarkable person, in reality, as a Great Beast that has lived for an unknown amount of time, even his simple thoughts can greatly benefit these people.

Many renowned masters have now become apprentices here.

Correspondingly, as more and more people voluntarily choose to stay here and cut off contact with the outside world, the original Hundred Refining Bureau space gradually becomes insufficient.

Left with no other choice, the entire Hundred Refining Bureau began to expand outwards.

Even though it was already night.

Maria could still see the artisans working feverishly on the edge.

This made Maria fall silent.

She looked down at her feet.

Beneath that deep soil, how many secrets lie hidden, unknown to many?

Thinking about this, Maria also felt a strange sense of unease rising within her.

But in just a few moments, the flames dissipated.

Maria also turned her head slightly.

Right there, in the corner of the eaves, a pair of small dragon horns were peeking out, barely concealed...

"Age."

Just by looking at the angular shape, Maria could tell who the other person was, and she shook her head slightly in exasperation.

"Huh? I've been found out again? I thought I hid my presence well this time, right?"

With a whoosh, Sui jumped onto the roof, looking at Maria with a hint of helplessness.

It's strange, though Maria said last time that her abilities were stronger than his own—and Sui also admitted that without using her true form, Maria's strength might indeed be somewhat greater than his own.

But why was Maria always able to find her trail?

I think I've hidden myself very well, haven't I?

"It's just a matter of self-awareness."

Maria shook her head slightly.

After glancing at the girl a few more times, she asked a question with some confusion.

What are you doing here?

"I want to hang out with you~"

He was all smiles, and even pulled out a few bottles of alcohol from the side.

As Maria frowned, the girl, as if by magic, suddenly pulled a strangely shaped bottle from behind her back.

"This is..."

"I heard it's some kind of... wine made from grapes? I don't really know. These were gifts those guys gave me as a formal apprenticeship present. But that's not important. I remember you said last time that you didn't like the drinks here?"

A clear smile radiated from his young face.

Although Maria had only mentioned it briefly during their last conversation at the Zuo Family, Sui remembered her friend's preferences.

I got my hands on it by chance this time, so I was naturally overjoyed and came looking for it.

"Wine..."

Maria paused for a moment.

She took the bottle from the girl's hand, glanced at it a few times, and then paused for a moment.

"What's wrong? Doesn't this one suit your taste either?"

The boy tilted his head.

She thought Maria would be happy to have this on her... but it turned out...

Why isn't there any reaction?

"... No, just... thank you."

Maria wanted to say something.

But looking at the innocent girl in front of her, she remained silent for a few moments before letting out a soft sigh.

Besides thank you, she didn't know what else to say.

"It's okay, I'm just glad you like it."

Seeing Maria come to her senses, Sui also breathed a sigh of relief.

She didn't stand on ceremony and pulled Maria to sit down beside her. She then took the braised beef wrapped in brown paper from her curled-up tail and placed it next to her, along with some condiments and snacks.

Maria was puzzled for a moment by this, but then she understood.

"You... came to ask me for a drink?"

"Yeah... we haven't seen each other more than a few times this month."

Sui smiled and urged Maria to sit down next to him.

Maria paused for a few moments before slowly sitting down.

Sui didn't wait for anyone; he directly opened the earthenware jar next to him, picked it up, and drank several mouthfuls at a time.

After thinking for a moment, Maria looked at the bottle in her hand, silently opened it, and then began to tilt it towards her lips.

After taking a few sips of their drinks, the two began to slowly start talking.

Are you still angry about what happened last time?

He looked at Maria and tilted his head.

She could sense that Maria was still not in a very good mood...

Although she maintained a calm and collected demeanor, Sui could still sense Maria's worry from subtle glimpses.

Although last time I said that men were allowed to conduct experiments to plunder Great Beast.

Overall, however, Maria still didn't quite agree with the plan.

She was just suppressing herself, suppressing her desire not to interfere in what was happening here.

"So..."

He took another big gulp of wine, then casually wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

Why are you so resistant?

Although she was a bit slow, she was definitely not stupid; on the contrary, she was much more dexterous than most people.

It was simply a matter of lifestyle habits combined with her overwhelming strength; she didn't care at all what others thought.

But Maria was stronger than her.

"I didn't have a chance to ask last time, but it seems you've encountered something like this before?"

"... Um."

Maria took a deep breath and nodded slightly.

"I've met a group of people who also said they could use their own methods to make humanity transcend the ordinary..."

"But in the end, it resulted in a terrible disaster..."

Maria closed her eyes, and those hideous faces gradually resurfaced in her mind.

People who were subjected to blood tests...

A girl who lost her parents and is now living alone at home.

The nun and the knight, driven to madness by their unwavering beliefs...

"Humans may be able to surpass beasts, but... they will absolutely not do so by inheriting their power!"

Maria opened her eyes again, her gaze sharp.

She has always believed that humans have the potential to surpass those in Great Ones.

But... it definitely won't be by plundering the other party's power.

This approach cannot even be described as creating Great Ones; it is simply changing the vessel for this power.

The madness, the greed, the thoughts within will not change.

From the moment one becomes Great Ones, the boundaries between power and the body become less clear.

Even when the body does nothing, it contains supreme power, and this abstract concept of power can also reside in individual entities, embodying their own will and thoughts.

Just like those guys in Yharnam.

They believed that studying the blood of those in Great Ones could lead to a way for humans to become Great Ones.

But in reality, this action is simply turning humans into clones or puppets of the enemy!

They believed they could gain power by maintaining people's thoughts.

But in the end, they will only be fooled in return.

This is the wrong path!

"... I don't understand."

Maria's words were still too difficult for a child of that age to understand.

She hadn't thought that much about it; she was just wondering why Maria was unhappy.

The answer she received now left her completely bewildered.

However, she still noticed something.

"You're just worried about what kind of trouble those people might cause if they fail, right?"

Sui smiled and then waved.

"If that's the case, you can actually rest assured~"

"Um?"

"I did something little trick with those things..."

As she spoke, she waved her little paws.

Maria was stunned for a moment before she noticed it in surprise.