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

"Based on the observations and perceptions of my companions at the time, I have determined that this well-preserved pre-civilization presents an uncontrollable danger. Considering subsequent research and the safety of those on-site, I believe that conducting simple, preliminary, and superficial research is the best option."

After all, Helatia is someone who can become the Archon of Science. Her language and logical abilities allow her to remain extremely strong and stable even under the watchful eyes of everyone.

Even other scientific researchers had to admit that under the circumstances at the time, Helatia had indeed made the best choice.

only……

There will always be people who raise questions about this.

"According to the situation, there's nothing wrong with the scene. There's no actual evidence to support your claim of potential danger!"

Another person stood up, and Maria was quite familiar with this person.

It was Maritus who was obsessed with scientific research.

He stood up, seemingly disagreeing with Helatia's earlier insistence on their return.

And Helatia did not indulge the other party and spoke calmly.

"But you can't explain why those marine cavalry appeared where we were exploring... You know, according to research reports, that area exceeds the depths the marine cavalry fish are accustomed to. This anomaly is a signal."

"Or do you have any objections to Mr. Alessio's findings on these fish?"

The atmosphere at the scene gradually became heated.

Helatia spoke firmly, and Maritus was no ordinary man.

He quickly reacted and continued speaking.

"My research direction differs from that of the venerable Mr. Alessio, but I have read each of his books at least ten times. His elegant prose, like a movement, combined with the rigor of engineering, makes him one of the greatest scholars of Agor... But it was also he who proposed that the growth of life cannot be constrained by words."

"At some point, at some instant, they will undergo a miraculous transformation... If we use our inherent thinking to think about these miraculous creatures, the result will only be that our brains will be constrained."

Maritus spoke clearly and logically as he refuted Helatia.

Maria could even see some of the Agor people starting to verify with each other, searching to see if Alessio had said anything like this or something with the same meaning.

The rigor of the Agor people... really gave Maria a whole new perspective.

But Maria also discovered that the man sitting next to her was not watching the so-called work of Alessio, but... a music collection?

"Do you want to hear it?"

The man noticed Maria's gaze again. After a few pauses, he hesitantly handed Maria something that looked like an earmuff.

Although he looks cold, the man is not the kind of person who is difficult to approach.

Maria also glanced at Helatia who was confronting her in the battle of wits, then turned around.

"Thank you."

Maria didn't know what Helatia's confidence was, but she had already fulfilled Helatia's request, so next, she could actually do nothing.

In that case, it seems like it would be nice to do something else...

Thinking about it, Maria took the earmuffs from the man's hand.

Following the man's instructions, she held it to her ear.

A strange melody came out from it, slowly echoing in my ears.

There are no words, no noise, only a wonderful melody of natural combination...

Unlike the music Maria was used to listening to, this piece of music consisted almost entirely of percussion instruments. It sounded more rhythmic, but... the continuity was slightly lacking.

"how do you feel?"

"...It's pretty good, but it's missing something."

Maria gave a brief evaluation.

The man did not refute, but was silent for a few moments, then silently tore off the first page of the draft paper beside him and stuffed it into his pocket.

Maria then realized that this piece of music might have been composed by the other party himself.

"You're...a musician?"

“…I can’t call myself that yet.”

The man shook his head silently, his tone calm.

But soon, he turned his head and looked at Maria.

"Are you?"

"……no."

Maria shook her head.

She has listened to many songs, but she really has no talent for art.

Maybe she did in the past, but now, whether she likes it or not, hunting seems to have become the only thing she is good at.

The conversation between the two people was very calm, even a little boring.

The man also realized this problem. After a moment of silence, he asked Maria curiously.

"You're not interested in this trial of wits... so why are you here?"

"You're not interested either, are you?"

Maria did not give a clear answer, but was vague about her thoughts.

But the man was serious about his words.

"Because...it's necessary..."

"Ok?"

"Agor was built on the foundations of a previous civilization... I believe you learned this in the public nursery a long time ago, but what you may not know is that even today, the entire city of Agor is still built on our reproduction of the technology of previous civilizations."

The man spoke slowly but seriously.

Even though he himself was not interested in these things at all, he still came.

"Agor's civilization is built on every individual... just like a piece of music relies on every note... only in this way can it have value."

"This Helatia exploration of a former civilization is the largest ever... I shouldn't miss it."

The man said this, his voice cold, but revealing his passion.

As he put it, his sense of self seemed weaker than his sense of being part of a group.

Maria didn't comment on this idea.

She just thought about it for a few seconds and nodded silently.

"Maria..."

The man was stunned for a moment, then realized what Maria meant and nodded.

"Ulpian..."

……

"Do you consider the appearance of the cavalry fish in that sea area as an accident?"

Helatia did not directly answer Maritus' words, but turned around with a smile.

"Yes!"

Maritus didn't know what Heratea was thinking, but he still insisted on his own opinion.

It was just an accident!

"Then I'll apply for a sea map record!"

Helatia said, glancing at everyone present.

Although she could retrieve the information directly, she chose to leave the decision to everyone present.

She could see that most of the others weren't very interested after realizing the purpose of the trial.

Because they all knew that even if there was indeed a problem with Helatia this time, the impact would not be that great... After all, this investigation of the remains of the previous civilization was itself just an additional task to determine whether the previous calculations were correct.

It’s best to have it, but it doesn’t matter if you don’t.

That's why, even if Helatia carried out the mission perfectly, they wouldn't be able to bring back much information.

After all, we still have to wait for the next mantle exploration mission.

That's why Helatia knew that most people didn't care about this.

But... there are always some real researchers who are dissatisfied with Helatia's actions this time, and they also doubt whether she can take on the next investigation.

The command of the fourth mantle exploration is what they want.

Helatia herself didn't care about it, but... since Maria needed it, she didn't mind trying a little harder.

After Helatia's words were heard, a discussion broke out among the group.

Finally, the vote was issued by the jury.

"Seven to six, mobilization is allowed!"

The woman in charge of hosting the meeting spoke and handed the terminal in her hand to the other party.

It was connected to the terminals of everyone present. In just a few seconds, Helatia threw a table of recent biological actions into the terminals of everyone present.

It records the movement trajectories of marine life and, with the help of the deep-sea exploration points deployed by Agor, quickly records the changes.

Most people didn't think much of this, and some even wondered what Helatia was doing.

However, scholars who specialize in this area frowned.

"its not right?"

"Um……"

"These creatures...are all approaching the underwater ruins?"

"what?!"

The words quickly spread throughout the venue, and many people began to quickly review the movements of marine life in the vicinity during these days.

Soon, someone noticed.

"Recently, a large number of creatures have left their original habitats and are heading that way..."

The more people observed, the more they felt that there was something wrong with the migration of this group of fish.

Logically speaking, these creatures would never leave their original habitats unless there was a special outbreak.

This is true both from an individual perspective and from the perspective of the entire marine community.

and……

"Giant gray whales are also approaching that area. Judging from their size, their numbers are small, and they made multiple turns before finally arriving... We can conclude that they were also forced to approach that area... And as the dominant oceanic species of the past, even now, there aren't many superiors in the ecosystem. But even they are being forced to leave their territory. I think this may prove that there are some special conditions we're not aware of near the pre-civilization we discovered this time."

Helatia spoke, and this time, her actions did gain everyone's approval.

But a few people still found the problem.

"But this unusual migration only occurred around the time you returned... This shouldn't be related to the danger you mentioned, right?"

"Perhaps this proves that my judgment was correct. If we had returned a few days later, our fleet might have encountered some unforeseen danger?"

Helatia's words were clearly sophistry... but everyone had to admit that such a debate did have its own merits.

At least, at this moment, no one can refute this angle.

Because no one can judge whether something that has not happened could happen.

After a discussion, no one could come to a conclusion.

But the anomaly displayed on the terminal's nautical chart is real.

The vast majority of people who didn't think there was anything wrong with what Helatia did also approved of her approach.

Maybe...she really saved the entire exploration team in some sense?

Whether this is intentional or not.

The situation began to be one-sided, with people believing that Helatia was innocent, and her actions were completely consistent with her identity and logic of action.

More and more people lost interest in this trial of wits, and the situation gradually came to an end.

But obviously, this is not the ultimate goal of this battle of wits.