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

"There were no other factors that interfered with the judgment throughout the process."

"If that's the case, then no matter what the outcome, I, Helatia, shouldn't have any regrets... Every regret I have now is a denial of the past... And those who deny the past cannot grow..."

"Besides... rather than regretting it, I actually wanted to ask you to dance... but I might not have much time."

Helatia said this and also extended her hand with a smile.

"After tomorrow's trial, I'll probably be sent out to carry out a punitive operation... But before that, do we have some time to communicate and get to know each other?"

Helatia was still very curious about Maria's origins and identity.

But Maria said nothing.

She was silent for a moment and looked at the woman in front of her.

Looking at her leaning back on the sofa with her legs crossed, she calmly shook her head slightly.

"If there's a chance later...I'll ask you to dance."

"...Well, this is the third time you've rejected me... To be honest, I'm a little frustrated."

Helatia's words were still not in a proper form, but Maria didn't care.

She just rubbed her eyebrows and took a deep breath.

"I think our attention should be focused on your current problem..."

"Ok?"

Helatia blinked and looked at Maria.

"You really want me to continue to serve as the Scientific Archon?"

"Yes……"

"……Why?"

Helatia asked, but after a moment, she came back to her senses.

"You... hope to use my identity to do something?"

As she spoke, her eyes were fixed on Maria.

It was not until Maria's eyes flickered slightly that a real smile appeared on the corner of her mouth.

She felt... that she was really beginning to connect with Maria...

398

Chapter 398: Multi-ship operation.

Maria is not a person without desires...

At least, that's how she felt in her heart.

Helatia looked at Maria in front of her and blinked.

In fact, what she said, that she would be dismissed from all her positions, was just a possibility.

After all, she is one of the very few scientific archons in Agor. Even if this action is not completely in line with the rules, most of the action has been completed.

Even if there is punishment, at most it is just suspension for a few days. The so-called dismissal is only the worst case scenario.

Besides, even if she was dismissed, it would only affect Helatia, and Maria would not be affected at all.

If that's the case, then why would Maria want to help herself?

"You want me to continue to be the Scientific Governor?"

Helatia raised an eyebrow, her tone also curious.

But this time Maria did not evade the question, but nodded seriously.

"really."

Whether it is for the advancement of the future Hunter Plan or to facilitate understanding of the direction of time nodes, Maria needs Helatia to continue to maintain a high status.

At least, with her, Maria still has a channel to understand the internal situation of Agor.

"You're rarely this frank... I can see you're really serious about what you want to do."

Helatia raised her eyebrows, twisted her legs slightly, and looked at Maria in a different posture.

"But you won't tell me this, right?"

"I don't really like blindly testing things... Sometimes, maintaining a tacit silence can be a good relationship."

Maria exhaled and spoke slowly.

Maria has a very good impression of Helatia so far.

Of course, this is inseparable from the fact that the other party has helped me many times in a row.

But if you look at Helatia from someone else's perspective, you will feel that strange and subtle feeling.

In a sense, Helatia is very similar to Maria.

Both of them are completely willful guys. They will do and try whatever they think is appropriate.

The only difference is that Maria can change everything because she is powerful enough, while Helatia is in a high position, so she can change many things.

"You are so cold... If I have a child in the future, I will definitely not let her know you."

Helatia shook her head slightly, her mouth pouting slightly.

Seeing Maria's complete lack of reaction, she adjusted her posture.

"I don't know what you want to do, but... if it's really important, I don't mind helping you..."

Helatia thought, folded her hands slightly, and revealed a sharp look.

"The Battle of Wits Trial will still take some time... If possible, I really hope you can do me a favor, and it seems that only you can help me with this..."

"……Um."

Maria sat on the chair, her hands folded on her knees, neither denying nor confirming...

……

A few days later.

……

The trial of Helatia began as scheduled.

This time, almost all the people of Jiakonanle came to the arena to witness this unprecedented trial.

A few days ago, Helatia, who was leading the entire Agor people forward, has now become the one on trial... Everyone is curious about what exactly happened.

Who brought the charges against him?

Maria also mixed in with the crowd before the show started and stood quietly in the crowd.

The structure of the entire Arena of Wisdom was actually not much different from that of the Colosseum. It had the same circular structure, the same special space for judges, and also allowed ordinary people to come and visit... The difference was that there were no wild beasts or ferocious gladiators here, no sand or weapons, only a cold platform and the judged.

Everything here is made of cold blue-black metal, and the swaying water reflects dazzling yet tranquil light and shadows, falling on the ground.

Quiet and peaceful...

No announcement, no notification.

Just when everyone was curious about how all this happened, Helatia slowly walked out from a corner of the passage, and in the gradually peaceful environment, she slowly walked to the center of the entire platform.

There was still a smile on her face, and she seemed to be full of confidence in the trial, looking at everyone present with a smile.

Then, he bowed slightly.

After he stood up, there was no sound.

Soon, a coral-like machine rose from the ground, its body surrounded by points of light. After a few resonant beats, these points of light began to come alive, floating in the air, forming a ring that seemed to breathe...

Sometimes big, sometimes small...

Agor's trial is different from what Maria imagined.

There is no protagonist in this trial...or rather, there is no presiding judge who has the final say in this trial.

Some are just people with similar functions.

A temporary agent.

"Everyone..."

Her voice was heard, carried along with the halo in the sky.

"I believe everyone should have understood the purpose and reasons for this meeting through the terminal... Archon Helatia will answer all the questions we have..."

After she finished speaking, she silently took a few steps back, moving her body away from the core area of ​​the trial.

The other people present were carefully watching the documents that were mechanically transmitted in their hands.

It contains many details of the recent exploration operation.

Maria glanced at it for a few times and frowned slightly.

Helatia...hid her details?

But Maria didn't have time to think about it, and soon the trial began.

But although it is called a trial, it is actually more like questions and answers.

The content at the beginning is not complicated, just some questions about observing resource points in mantle exploration and the site selection for new city construction.

None of this matters.

In just half an hour, Helatia finished one after another.

Soon, the second question about this mantle exploration was raised...

"Regarding the report, Ms. Helatia, it states that the remains of this ancient civilization are well-preserved and highly valuable for research... What do you think is the specific extent of their value?"

A man stood up and asked a question.

And Helatia also knew that this problem would determine how many problems she would encounter when issuing the retreat order later.

In theory, the smaller the extent of the damage, the less damage her evacuation would cause.

but……

"From what I learned when I left, none of the ancient civilization ruins that Agor had investigated were as complete and massive as this one."

Helatia finally told the truth.

These words caused a wave of turmoil in the originally calm arena of battle of wits.

Everyone was a little out of control and started discussing with their companions.

Soon, another person stood up.

"In that case, Ms. Helatia, knowing its value, why did you choose to return early?"

When this question was raised, everyone's voices fell silent again.

I have to say that people in the Agor civilization are indeed quite rational.

This also prevents this large-scale interrogation from turning into a quarrel among a group of mediocre people.

Maria blinked and turned her head.

Right next to her, a slightly younger man was concentrating on looking at the document in his hand.

His face was cold and his body was thin. Beside him was a roll of draft paper, which was dotted with patterns and curves that Maria could not understand.

He noticed Maria's gaze and turned his head slightly.

"Any questions?"

He spoke, his voice a little tough, but it sounded good, like someone who had specially practiced his throat.

Maria shook her head, turned her head again, and continued to look at the trial scene.

The man was silent for a few moments, then lowered his head to study the documents again.

His eyes were somewhat thoughtful.

……