"Is there anything else?" Victoria asked with her eyes closed.
"Oh, yes, there are two. One is the reporter, she is now locked up next door, and we have seized her camera. Teresa said that this kind of behavior of trespassing into the combat scene is very bad, and it may need to be handed over to the police. Office No. 005 handles it... She asked me to ask you what to do now."
"anything else?"
"Ms. Chiba said she wanted to talk to you."
"Where is she?"
"With that reporter, too."
Victoria stood up and sat up. She quickly rubbed her face with her hands, "Which room is it specifically in?"
…
"Victoria!" As soon as Stella saw Victoria entering the door, Stella rushed forward and raised her hand to grab Victoria's arm, "It's so great to see you -"
Victoria put her hands behind her back, "Speak carefully, why did you suddenly appear in the clock tower?"
Stella retracted her hand in embarrassment and whispered, "They and I have already explained it-"
"Then explain it again. Others can go out first."
Everyone left one after another and closed the door from the outside. Only Chiba held his arms in his arms and leaned motionless to watch the excitement.
Victoria raised her left eyebrow, as if she was going to fight Stella to the end.
Stella held her forehead with one hand, "...It's very simple. It happened so suddenly. Before I could figure out what happened, the police started chasing people away, and then you appeared at the scene again - that You know how chaotic the scene was. I was really frightened and ran blindly without caring about where I was. As a result, I accidentally ran into——"
"You accidentally ran into the church, right?" Victoria interrupted, "Then you accidentally ran into the bell tower, accidentally climbed to the top of the building, and accidentally took some photos? "
"Yes." Stella nodded repeatedly, "You know everything."
"Do you think I believe it?"
"Well...why don't you believe it?"
"I'll give you another chance. Think about it carefully."
"……Why?"
Victoria was unmoved. She put her hands on her hips and said, "You'd better give me a convincing reason."
Stella raised her hand to smooth her hair and turned her head to look at Qianye.
"Don't look at me," Chiba hugged the back of his chair and blinked innocently, "I am not the team leading tonight's operation."
Stella was silent for a moment, then she raised her right hand and pinched a very thin slit with her thumb and index finger, "My behavior tonight may... indeed... seem a bit suspicious of deliberately breaking into the bell tower, but -"
"If tonight's enemy is not an 'assassin' but another chelate, do you know how much danger your behavior will bring to the mercury needle that rescues you?" Victoria seemed to have completely guessed the result, She sat down on the table next to her, "That means the assassins don't have the habit of attacking civilians, otherwise your brain would be blown out and your brains would be all over the place by now, do you understand?"
"I know." Stella sighed and whispered, "I actually didn't expect you to come to save me at the beginning -"
"……Can you say that again?"
Stella quickly raised her hands as a gesture of comfort, "...Why are you angry again? What exactly do you want to do with me? Just say it, okay?"
"Hindering AHgAs's operations is a felony," Victoria answered righteously. "Although there were no serious consequences this time, if we pursue the case, we will not be able to escape a sentence of more than three years and less than ten years."
Chiba nodded aside, "By the way, there is no bail in AHgAs's internal prison."
"You, wait a minute - what are you doing? All of a sudden, you are singing and chanting against me," Stella's eyes widened, "...I am in the way...what am I in the way? I am in the way - even if I am today I really fell to death under the bell tower. It was my own fault. I was looking for death. I deserved it... But I remember that the mercury needle did not give priority to rescuing the attached people when it was destroying the chelates, right?"
Victoria snorted, "So?"
Stella's throat moved, and she pressed her heart with one hand, "I sincerely say, you saved my life, I am very, very grateful, but I knew clearly the risks I might face next before I went up to the bell tower. , I also acknowledge the risk – what’s the problem with that?”
"Hmm." Victoria nodded.
Stella quickly straightened out her logic, "If you really want to be serious, it is precisely because you have no obligation to prioritize rescuing civilians in this situation that I dare to rush to the bell tower. You do what you should do." , I also do what I should do, and we all perform our own duties... Isn’t this something that everyone is happy with, why is there a penalty? "
"So you did break into the bell tower on purpose."
"I--"
"Suzy." Victoria called out the door.
The door opened in response, "Here?"
"Catch him and take him away."
The two quickly entered the house and handcuffed Stella and dragged her away. Stella admitted her mistake repeatedly. When she looked back, she only saw the slowly closing door and Qianye who was saying goodbye to her silently.
Victoria and Chiba were the only two people left in the room again.
"It's not really going to be handed over to Office 005, is it?"
"Let's imprison him for a week to teach him a lesson." Victoria pinched the bridge of her nose, "It's so crazy, this woman..."
Chiba watched Victoria walk to the single sofa by the window and sit down. She rarely saw such a depressed expression on Victoria's face.
"What’s wrong with you?"
"I'm tired." Victoria replied with her eyes closed, "Why isn't this over yet?"
"Aren't you already prepared that the assassin is not dead? I thought you wouldn't be surprised," Chiba said softly, "Teresa said you always told her this."
Victoria didn't say anything. After a while, she suddenly opened her eyes, "But how did it survive from the Golden Crow Palace? In such a short time, can anyone really pass through the center of the explosion without being injured?"
"Maybe it didn't go in at all." Chiba continued, "It has always been very cunning. I even lost it once."
Victoria took a long breath, "I shouldn't have stopped you tonight, you caught it then..."
Chiba shrugged nonchalantly and looked away.
"Have you made any progress in the wasteland?"
"Oh, it's progressing rapidly, I was just going to tell you this," Chiba said with a smile, "The police officer may have dug out the assassin's background, and maybe it's really a mercury needle that was left outside-"
Before she finished speaking, there was another knock on the door. Victoria got up and went to take a look, but came back quickly.
"There is a second awakening training for the reserves tonight, and we can no longer occupy this ward." Victoria picked up the coat hanging on the back of the chair, "I just want to go back to the apartment, you come with me Bar."
"What are you doing in the apartment?"
Victoria threw a film canister into the air and quickly caught it herself.
“Let’s see what Stella has taken first.”
