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

A seemingly ignorant child, a young man with a serious and resolute face, and a kind old man.

There was something indescribably strange about the appearance of all three. Whether it was their clothing or their movements, they couldn't discern any gender distinction, as if they inherently possessed a neutral divinity...

They looked at Maria with different eyes.

The child has an innocent look on his face, the young man has a cold expression, and although the old man is gentle, his calm face makes it difficult to tell whether he has good intentions or not.

"No."

Although she didn't particularly want to stay here, Maria didn't get angry directly, but answered his questions calmly.

"Yeah……"

Several people were not surprised by this answer. After nodding slightly, they turned sideways, revealing the kneeling mat beside them.

"Then please stay here and look at the Lord..."

Their tone was gentle, for Mary was not a member of the Lateran Order, and they did not intend to begin with an overly general doctrine.

but……

"..."

Maria just glanced at the kneeling mat and then looked at the people in front of her with a cold expression.

Maria had no interest in bowing down to anyone.

"..."

Several judges were obviously stunned. After looking at each other, the old man spoke first.

"Miss Stranger, perhaps you do not believe in our Lord, but I hope you can choose to respect..."

"...I have no interest in expressing anything about a stone statue."

Maria's answer was calm, but the words she uttered were sharp and a little scary to these old people.

The old man's eyes widened on the spot, somewhat incredulous that Maria dared to be so disrespectful.

But they really didn't know what to do now.

In the past, even if the visitor was not a follower of the Lateranism, given the majestic statues and the tranquil atmosphere, they would not be particularly resistant or objectionable.

In fact, they don’t really require people to kneel down. They just need to give a suitable reason, and they also allow others to question in other postures.

But no one expected it.

Maria actually chose to refuse so decisively.

Not even a reason was given.

This made them, who were used to following the usual procedures, feel a little overwhelmed.

At this moment, the child next to him suddenly spoke.

“Sister…are you not facing the Lord?”

The child is naive. He may not know why he comes here. He just subconsciously believes the two adults next to him and thinks their actions are reasonable.

That's why he was so confused about Maria's decision not to kneel.

But Maria just glanced at the child, and then...

Slowly bend down...

Just when the two thought Maria might cooperate a little, Maria just knelt on one knee and looked at the child in front of her.

“Do you believe in your Lord?”

"……I believe!"

"Then where is He?"

“He is everywhere, He is in everything, He watches over us…”

The child responded to Maria's question very smoothly, like a programmed machine.

Although the two clergymen beside them vaguely sensed something strange, they knew that Maria's behavior at this time did not violate the rules. After looking at each other for a few seconds, they temporarily suppressed their actions and silently watched the interaction between the two people in front of them.

After listening to the child's words, Maria nodded silently.

Then… the first inquiry was sent.

“Is your Lord watching you?”

"Yes."

The child nodded firmly.

“Will your Lord protect you?”

"Will do!"

The child still didn't hesitate.

"Then is there anyone besides your Lord who will always watch over you and protect you?"

Maria finally asked the question.

The child originally wanted to follow logic and answer no.

But Maria pointed to the statue beside her.

This made the child hesitate in answering.

He must not lie before the Lord.

So he began to rack his brains to think of similar people in his life.

And the answer is actually very obvious.

"My mother, my father..."

The child gave the answer hesitantly. Although he felt that the answer became a little strange when connected with the previous text, he still said it.

The two adults next to them realized what Maria wanted to say and their expressions changed.

But Maria just glanced at them sideways.

Then he continued to ask his last question.

"That……"

"In that case, could your parents be your masters?"

Maria opened her mouth and uttered something that was extremely crazy to everyone present.

The child next to him was obviously troubled by this question.

He was stunned for a long time, looking at Maria in front of him at a loss.

Those gray-black eyes were calm, like inorganic gems, silently gazing at the child in front of them.

“Your Lord will protect you, but it is your parents who give you things to live on. Your Lord will watch over you, but it is also your parents who encourage you when you are in His hands… Your Lord is everywhere, but He never gives you anything.”

Maria whispered, her faint voice like a spell in the darkness.

The light of the statues on the side dimmed a little.

At this time, the two adults finally couldn't bear it anymore.

They coughed and brought things back to the positive side.

The young man didn't say much, but just comforted the child and took him away, leaving Maria alone to look at the old man in front of her.

This may be the first time the old man has met someone like Maria.

He could clearly feel Maria's indifference to everything.

She was not an extreme opponent, she just denied the existence of the Lord they believed in.

Pure and self-centered...

“The purpose of religion is to unite people… but religion is not the only thing that unites people.”

Maria said this, looking down at the old man in front of her again, with a calm demeanor as if nothing had happened.

Maria didn't care that she might be destroying the faith that a child had been taught from birth.

The old man had no way to refute it.

Just like when people see something with wings they think it can fly, the old man could feel the strong aura of Maria after seeing her.

This is a very vague concept.

It's somewhat similar to temperament.

But unlike temperament, which is something that only develops from within, aura is more like something extremely sharp and overbearing that will affect other people who are close to her at all times.

Perhaps this will will not erupt directly, but as long as you get close to such a person, you will always be easily dragged into his vortex.

And Maria, without a doubt, is the one who possesses this will.

After just looking at each other for a while, the old man felt a slight pain between his eyebrows.

After hesitating for a moment, he spoke slowly.

"It seems that people like you would not come to Lateran..."

“…It was just a coincidence.”

Maria answered, also slightly raising her head and looking at the statue in front of her.

After sensing for a while and making sure there was no breath of the beast master or giant beast, he looked back at the old man in front of him.

"I believe any extra words will be meaningless for what we are about to do... In that case, I will be direct. Madam, please tell me your name, your origin, and the purpose of your visit to Rutland."

The old man spoke.

Maria also nodded.

These problems are normal.

"I'm from... the Sarkaz... Don't be so vigilant. I mean no harm. I came here just to rest for a while."

"As for my name..."

Maria paused for a few seconds before speaking.

"My name is...Maria..."

"..."

The old man hesitated for a few moments, then silently raised his head and looked at the woman in front of him with no joy or sadness on his face.

When Maria was talking about something, he was still doing the examination seriously. He only paused after Maria said her name.

Look up and watch.

The old man carefully observed Maria's face, and after a long silence, he spoke.

"Ma'am, if this is a joke, I beg you to take it back."

"……what?"

"Mary's name...it has extraordinary significance for Lateran."

The old man's tone was a little cold, and his eyes were firm.

He actually had no problem accepting Mary's blasphemous words just now... The Lateran doctrine was that the words of man were sacred.

This doctrine has many interpretations at many times, but in the eyes of the old man, even if Mary's words may be blasphemy against the Lateran Church, he chose to accept it... because he felt that Mary was only speaking from her own perspective.

but……

Maria is not a good name.

"……Why?"

Maria's answer was as cold as ever, and there was no other meaning in her calm eyes.

This made the old man a little confused.

After another moment, he frowned and replied.

"Are you a Sarkaz?"

"...I may be similar to the Blood Demon, but I am not of the same species as them."