Kal'tsit did not offer any rebuttal to the Doctor's words. It was true; while the enemy's minds held secrets, the minds of their own operators held even more vital intelligence. The difficulty of interrogating a few ordinary operators was on a completely different scale compared to breaking a leader of the Confessarrii or a member of the Royal Court; the enemy would undoubtedly extract information far sooner than they could.
After all, the probability of their subordinates leaking information was much higher than that of Theresis's men. If Kal'tsit were to interrogate her own operators, they would likely confess everything after at most three injections of whatever torture drug she prepared. Therefore, there was nothing wrong with the Doctor's decision. Their capacity to absorb errors in this matter was inherently much lower than that of Theresis.
"Sigh, it's just a pity. If we could have discovered what the enemy is planning this time, we could have been prepared to deal with it". Despite having made her choice, the Doctor still felt a sharp pang of regret. This was such a golden opportunity to obtain the enemy's plans, but reality simply would not allow it.
She considered the fact that doing so would mean gambling with Ascalon's safety and the security of the landship's excavation and return to Kazdel. As an elite commander, she would never gamble on her core objectives; everything had to yield to their most vital plans. Thus, she only voiced a few complaints while continuing the mission to rescue their people as quickly as possible. Yet, watching such a massive opportunity slip through her fingers still made her heart ache.
"By the way, Kal'tsit. Why don't you let the people in that village try? See if they can interrogate them for information? Those people aren't restricted from mentioning things involving that village anyway". The Doctor spoke as if she had suddenly remembered something, attempting to have Kal'tsit convince Jeanne and the others to handle the matter for them. If persuasion failed, they could always trade something for the service; since both parties already had a foundation of two successful collaborations, it wasn't an impossible request.
"Are you dreaming? Do you think they wouldn't realize what kind of complications this would involve? Why would they risk their own safety to help us?". Kal'tsit answered coldly. This was purely an attempt to use the village as a tool—a gun to be discarded once fired.
It was true that those Sarkaz were no match for Jeanne and her companions; even if more Sarkaz came, Jeanne could resolve the issue with ease. However, there were still many ordinary villagers in that village, as well as infected people who were nowhere near as strong as Jeanne or Patriot. A couple of elite Sarkaz soldiers could tear through those people effortlessly.
If Theresis learned that his secrets had been handed over to Babel by Jeanne, he would undoubtedly seek revenge, and those innocents would be the perfect targets. Even if he can't touch you while you're in the village, can you all huddle in that village for the rest of your lives, never leaving until the day you die?. Therefore, although the Doctor's proposal held immense benefits for them—and provided a way to distance themselves regardless of the outcome—Kal'tsit rejected it decisively.
Furthermore, she did not wish to create a conflict with Jeanne. The power that child possessed was beyond Kal'tsit's ability to counter; there was no need to add such a person to her growing list of enemies.
"Fine, fine. I'll just think of another way. If it really comes down to it, I'll just abandon this operation entirely". Although the Doctor didn't understand why Kal'tsit rejected a proposal that could clearly reduce their potential losses, she didn't press the issue. At this moment, the Doctor was in a state of extreme rationality; everything she did was for the benefit of Babel, and she no longer cared about anything else. Thus, despite her previous excitement over Jeanne's appearance, she was now perfectly willing to sell the girl out to gain an advantage for her side.
Kal'tsit was already accustomed to this behavior. Even more insane plans had sprung from this person's head; it was simply a matter of keeping a close eye on her.
"Let's not talk about that. Have you met that Jeanne yet? Is she just someone with the same name, or is she truly the person from history?". The Doctor's tone shifted instantly. She abandoned the discussion of Theresis to anxiously ask about the matter she had been obsessing over, completely unbothered by the fact that her previous thoughts would have been detrimental to said girl. This near-schizophrenic shift in state was so rapid that Kal'tsit couldn't help but sigh. The Doctor's mental instability seemed to be getting worse.
"Hey, tell me! Is she actually a human?". Seeing that Kal'tsit hadn't answered, the Doctor became frantic. She felt like a student waiting for college entrance exam results on a frozen website; it felt as if a hundred Kal'tsits were scratching at her heart. She urged Kal'tsit to give her a straight answer: was this Jeanne a human, and was she the Jeanne she knew?.
"She did indeed admit to being that Holy Maiden, but I cannot confirm if it is true. I can hardly run a DNA test on her, and even if I did, it wouldn't prove anything". Although Jeanne admitted her identity, Kal'tsit could only listen without being able to refute it. There was no scientific means to confirm if someone was a long-dead figure from the past. Ordinarily, anyone claiming such a thing on the street would be hauled off to a psychiatric hospital.
However, through her observations, Kal'tsit believed this Holy Maiden truly might be that historical figure, and that her appearance was a miracle. Too many things about her defied scientific explanation; in fact, had she not tested her blood, Kal'tsit would have doubted if Jeanne were even human.
"The probability of her being human is high! In this era, what would she gain by pretending to be one!". The Doctor was visibly agitated, sitting alone in her room gazing at the twin moons, unable to stop herself from sighing with emotion. Perhaps it was the thrill of finding another of her kind; the twin moons she usually found irritating now looked remarkably pleasant.
She had much she wanted to say, but she kept those words hidden in her heart rather than sharing them with Kal'tsit. She was too embarrassed to speak them aloud, and besides, who knew if Kal'tsit would archive those confessions to use as "dark history" against her later?. Nevertheless, Kal'tsit could feel the intensity of her emotion; she had never sensed such a strong emotional fluctuation from this person before. Even during the years of Babel's struggles, the Doctor had never shown such a strong reaction, let alone an emotion as intense as this excitement.
"Wait, if she is a resurrected ancestor, how does she shield herself from the influence of this land on humans? She doesn't have a protective suit!". After the initial excitement, the Doctor suddenly realized a critical problem. How had Jeanne survived for so long?. While humans of the past were not harmed by Originium, there were things on this land far more terrifying to humans. Even within the strictly shielded environment of Babel, the Doctor didn't dare remove her suit for more than two hours; she even wore it while sleeping.
The things that harmed humans were not physical substances, but a spiritual presence that eroded the human psyche at every moment. Even though this influence had weakened by now, she dared not be careless, given her own precarious condition.
"I am not sure. My preliminary estimate is that she possesses a special energy that protects her from such harm". This was a question even Kal'tsit could not answer, as she had not yet found the reason why Jeanne could move so freely.
"So the 'all-knowing' Kal'tsit actually has things she doesn't know!".
"Stop using that tone!" Kal'tsit snapped, knowing the Doctor's use of "all-knowing" was anything but a compliment.
"Whatever the reason is, I will find a way to ask. If nothing else, it might give you a bit of ability to move freely, rather than being stuck like you're in prison". Suddenly, Kal'tsit's voice softened as she spoke to the Doctor. On the other end, the Doctor fell into silence, not answering immediately.
"Thank you".