In Terra, she is a hunter and a bad woman.

After hearing Maria's words, Chen couldn't help but refute.

"At least I can tell that mine is food, right? Do you think yours is food?"

"...I'm not targeting anyone intentionally, but everyone has a different definition of food. At least, where I used to live, there wasn't this... Rice noodle rolls. There wasn't such a thing as rice noodle rolls where I used to live."

"Where you live...ah, you're from Victoria, right?"

Hearing Maria suddenly mention her past, Chen no longer worried about the food issue.

Come to think of it, she was actually quite curious about Maria.

So far, the strength Maria has shown clearly shows that she is no idler.

She was certain that without sufficient actual combat and fighting, Maria would never be able to develop that unique elite aura.

This woman definitely walked out of a pile of dead bodies!

But then the problem arises again.

Although Terra is far from peaceful nowadays, where else can such a war forge such a character?

Especially when she went back to compare Maria's past, she found that many things in the application file Maria provided did not match... She was sure that the entry file was 99% fabricated.

But the name Maria might be real.

Logically speaking, this type of checking for smuggled people is not part of Chen's job description.

But considering that he had met the other party several times in just a few days, Chen had to be vigilant.

If Maria simply didn't want to reveal her identity, then everything would be fine.

But if she came here with some hidden purpose...

Chen slowly narrowed his eyes.

Meanwhile, Maria was confused.

"Victoria? That's not a place name..."

"what?"

"Victoria refers to the glorious era led by Queen Victoria, during which many things were born. It can describe a time or the style of that era, but... it is definitely not the name of a place."

Maria carefully explained the meaning of Victoria to Chen in front of her, but Chen's expression became more and more strange.

What is this woman talking about?

Is it intentional?

On the Terra continent, as long as you have studied a little, you will know about the country called Victoria on the west side of the continent, right?

Should I ask her if she is from Victoria?

Why does it feel like the two of us are not talking in the same direction?

Maria gradually became aware of Chen's strange expression, and after hesitating for a while, she nodded affirmatively.

"Yes, I'm from Victoria."

Obviously, there are many things in this world that are still familiar to us, but their meaning has changed.

In this world, at least, Victoria is no longer a synonym for an era, but a specific place.

"..."

"Ms. Maria, you don't seem to be very good at lying, do you?"

Chen narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at Maria in front of him, whose expression remained unchanged, and the corners of his mouth suddenly lifted up.

She suddenly discovered something interesting.

Although Maria in front of him looked strong and malicious, she was surprisingly a good child who would never lie...

This is really...

Chapter 53: Do you want to take a shower?

Maria could not lie.

Or maybe Maria is not good at lying.

This is related to her past life experiences.

After all, in a place like Yharnam, there was no need for her to lie to anyone... The endless cycle itself had already consumed everyone's energy.

Quarrels, fights, and plots.

These things have already been thoroughly explored by everyone in the previous reincarnations.

After realizing that they could not escape from Yharnam, everyone finally chose to remain silent. In the repeated fights, they tasted the feeling of hunting others or being hunted by others.

Maria, who had been in such a place for who knows how many years, naturally would not tell such a meaningless lie.

So facing Chen's subtle expression, she just emphasized it stubbornly.

"I'm from Victoria."

"..."

Chen didn't answer, but just looked at Maria for a while and shook his head helplessly.

Although I still want to continue asking questions, now is obviously not a good time.

She came here for something important this time.

"Where's Hoshiguma?"

"do not know."

"Ok?"

"She just left a note saying she had an urgent mission... As for what it was, I have no idea."

Maria answered calmly while eating rice rolls.

But when Chen heard this, he frowned.

"Emergency mission? Then why didn't I receive any news?"

"..."

"Xingxiong and I are partners. If she received the mission message, then I should have received it too... There's no such thing as her receiving the message but me not receiving it!"

"..."

Maria didn't answer, but stopped what she was doing and turned to look at the other person.

That subtle look made Chen feel at a loss.

After hesitating for a while, she reluctantly spoke.

"What does that look of yours mean?"

"Being disliked?"

"No!"

Hearing Maria's words, Chen immediately reacted with a blush.

Did Maria feel that she was unwelcome in the Imperial Guards Bureau, and that was why she was isolated in this operation?

There's no way this could be happening!

Although many people were dissatisfied with her taking on the responsibilities of the special operations team as soon as she returned, she also believed that those people would never target her for such a boring reason!

There must be more reasons!

There must be someone behind this deliberately making trouble!

Who would deliberately prevent themselves from knowing this?

And knowing this, will it have any impact on me or him?

Chen frowned and began brainstorming.

On the side, Maria, who had finished eating the rice rolls, also lowered her head silently.

"This... tastes good?"

"what……"

"It tastes very interesting. I've never tasted anything like it in Yharnam."

Although Maria has almost no requirements for food intake, being able to eat delicious food still makes her feel very good.

But Chen, who was standing by, keenly noticed a strange term.

"Yanan?"

"...No, you heard wrong, it's Victoria."

"It's etiquette to look at someone when answering their question... Didn't you say that yourself, Miss Maria?"

“…I forgot.”

"Are you shy?"

"I won't be shy."

"Ms. Maria, your ears are red."

Chen looked at Maria in front of him, and his expression became a little subtle.

Although she is very cold in battle, Maria is surprisingly cute in her daily life.

Naive? Or perhaps... immature?

But no matter how she is described, Maria like this will not be annoying.

Rather, because I have seen Maria being so cold and ruthless during the battle, seeing her so innocent now makes her look more attractive.

Speaking of which...

smell……

The delicate incense slowly seeped into Chen's breath, and the sweet smell made her heart beat faster.

"what happened?"

Maria was also a little surprised after noticing that Chen was always looking at her.

But Chen just blushed and shook his head quickly.

"No...it's okay."

Chen lowered his head and felt that something was wrong with his condition.

What's going on?! Chen Huijie!

What kind of obscene things are you thinking about?

"..." Maria looked at the strange Chen and sighed.

"There are indeed some weird people around Miss Xingxiong."

"?!"

Hearing this, Chen felt that he could no longer sit still.

wack?

Are you a weirdo?

Then who are you?

But after hesitating for a while, Chen finally said nothing and just sat back dejectedly.

"Forget it. I don't know the location of those operations anyway. I might as well wait here for a while. When Xingxiong comes back, I'll ask her what's going on."

"...please."

Maria nodded, stood up, and walked away silently.

After sitting alone for a while, Chen couldn't stand it any longer.

This feeling is unprecedented.