Chimaera's Conquest: The Legend Of The Devourer-Chapter 265: Interrogation 101 (1)

Maria was in her room, with her guards stationed outside as usual. But this time, there was no yelling, no noise from within—just an eerie silence. The typical scene of Maria throwing a tantrum on her failure couldn’t be noticed by anyone.

For once, the room was not in disarray. There were no broken items, no scattered belongings. Everything was in its place, meticulously organised as if everything had been cleaned moments ago.

As for Maria, she was sitting next to a large glass wall, staring at the massive empire she had built over the years. But even she knew none of it would have happened without Charles.

Charles was more than her right hand. He was her sentinel who always carried her to victory. But this time, he failed and left Maria to collect the pieces alone.

As she watched the lively streets, everything seemed to be at peace—everything but her heart. Charles was gone. She had received the news a while ago but was only coming to terms with it now.

Learning of his passing had been a blow, but Maria hadn’t thrown a fit. She knew that Charles wasn’t there to help her clean up anymore, and that thought kept her from making a mess.

As much as she hated to admit it, her tantrums resulted from needing attention. Now that she knew Charles wasn’t there to give her that, she couldn’t find a reason to thrash the room with most of Charles’s memories.

She never told him that, but Charles had been more than a servant to her; he had been a friend, a confidant, more reliable and caring than her pathetic father had ever been.

Now that Charles was gone forever, Maria didn’t want to imagine him sad or worried about her, so she cleaned the room, remembering all the times he was there to comfort her and enjoying her moments with him in silence.

Just then, the door to her room opened quietly, and someone entered. The man moved silently and sat beside her. It was her fiancé and best friend, Luca. He was one of the only people for whom Charles had a bit of respect other than Maria.

Luca didn’t say a word, respecting her need for silence. They sat together, side by side, staring at the night sky.

Eventually, Maria couldn’t hold back and began to sob. The grief she had been holding back flowed freely, and Luca immediately pulled her into his arms. He held her close, letting her cry on his shoulder, his hand gently caressing her back.

"Shh... it’ll be alright," Luca whispered. "I’m here for you."

Maria clung to him, her tears soaking his shirt. She let out all the pain, frustration, and anger she had been bottling up. At the same time, Luca continued to hold her.

After what felt like an eternity, Maria’s sobs began to subside. She pulled back, wiping her tears.

"You’re back..." Maria sniffed, trying to smile but couldn’t.

"How could I not be?" Luca replied. "My work can wait, but you will always be my priority."

Maria didn’t reply, just let her head rest on his shoulder. For a few minutes, they stayed like that until Luca spoke again.

"Charles meant so much to you," Luca said softly. "I can’t imagine how hard this must be for you. But as painful as it is, we have to move on. There’s a lot we need to deal with."

"... you’re right."

Maria took a deep breath, feeling a bit steadier. Some might call Luca being insensitive, but she knew he was right. She had to keep moving forward, for Charles’s sake, if not for her own. And, like Luca said, they had a lot to deal with before things went haywire.

"Maria," Luca began hesitantly, "I know you might not like the sound of it, but let me deal with that bastard. He deserves to pay for what he’s done. I’ll-"

"Absolutely not!" Maria yelled, shaking her head. "Adrian is my fight. The things he’s done... I can’t let anyone else take my revenge. It has to be me."

"Maria-"

"Luca, please..." Maria interrupted him. "I need to do this myself."

"Alright," Luca nodded, respecting her decision. "But promise me you’ll be careful and ask for my help if you need it."

"I will," Maria promised.

Unlike herself, Luca wasn’t awakened. He was a human, but a massively rich one at that. Maria knew there were ways Luca could deal with the situation better than she could.

She’d have accepted his offer before. But after Adrian killed Charles, there was no way she would let anyone else take her revenge.

More than that, Luca was worried about his ass since he was involved in the Ghost project, which meant that if anything were revealed about the project, he would suffer as well.

This was why he wanted to deal with Adrian himself and leave no room for mistakes, which was evident with his next question.

"What about Vex?" Luca asked. "I’m worried that he might spill our secrets."

But Maria shook her head. "I’m not worried about Vex. Charles had blind faith in her, and so do I. No matter what happens, Vex will keep her mouth shut."

Luca sighed, still uneasy. "I hope you’re right."

"I am," Maria said confidently. "We have to trust our people. Without it, we’d be nothing."

Although Luca nodded, there was a lot he wanted to say. But he kept his thoughts to himself. He trusted her, which was why he had funded the research into creating Ghost Soldiers and left the dungeon issue in her hands.

Time and again, he had placed his faith in Maria, only to be met with one disappointment after another. Although he didn’t let Maria know about his plans, it was the last time he was trusting her to do something right.

If she messed it up, Luca would be forced to take matters into his own hands. As much as he loved Maria, he wasn’t blinded by her love. If push comes to shove, he won’t hesitate before abandoning her.

Although he hoped that day would never come... for her sake.